The Fair

Last Friday night was Lailey's first fair experience. Maddox too, but he was pretty much content to snooze the night away. I told Lailey all about it - the rides, food, fun - before going, so she was very excited. When we drove up and she saw the lights, she starting saying excitedly, "The zoo! I wanna go to the zoo!" I said "It's the fair!" She then says, "Oh yeah, the fair! I wanna go! Let's go to the zoo!" Somehow "fair" just wasn't sticking so she continued to tell us all the way into the parking lot how excited she was to be at the zoo. So cute.  Uncle Nick, Aunt Julie, and cousin Addie came along with us. We ate ridiculously expensive fair food, bought some tickets, and let Lailey have a blast. 

First up, the helicopter ride. 

Since fair rides freak me out a bit, Davey gladly rode with Lailey.

Surprise! We happened to see Katie and Gracie, Lailey's cousins.

Next ride, the swings! Definitely a Lailey favorite.

All warm and cozy.

I think she's having a blast.

Julie, Addie, and Nick

The pretty ferris wheel that we did not ride. $1 per ticket, 5 tickets per ride, times 3 people...
yeah, don't think so.

Last ride, the giant slide. I am a fan of the giant slide since there are no spinning things or moving cars, or rusty old bolts holding me suspended high in the air that haven't been properly inspected. Oh wait, okay, there probably are old bolts, but at least I'm not suspended in a car or something. Yeah, it's in my head, but still.

Before leaving the fair, Lailey asked to ride the "bouncy thing," which involved being strapped into a harness with two bungee cords attached, then bouncing very high on a trampoline. It was 10:00 pm, but we had had so much fun that we decided to bid farewell to Nick and Julie and then head back to the "bouncy thing." While observing this ride earlier in the night, I noticed the obscurely placed sign read "for 20-180 lbs." Unfortunately, when we got there and asked if she could do it, the man informed us it was an old sign and she had to be 40 lbs. Yikes. I took a deep breath and attempted in the most straightforward way possible to explain this to my toddler, who despite her sweet disposition for the evening, was probably pretty tired at this point. Well, she handled it like a champ. Disappointed? Yes, but no tears.  I couldn't have been more proud (and relieved!).  She still talks about it over a week later, and I promised that someday, somewhere, we would find a bouncy thing when she was big enough to do it.

Thankfully, family outings have been redeemed since the Noah's Ark trip. Hey, ya win some, and you lose some. Or in family speak, you enjoy some days and make tons of memories, and other ones you wish you could have a do-over.