a small town fair

We have a family change jar. Anytime we find some change, we put it in our jar. Every once in a while, the kids will dump it out and count how much money we have saved and how much more we need to save. We are not saving to go on a vacation or out to eat. We are not saving for Christmas or a rainy day. No...this money is set aside for something even more special than that..the Vernon County Fair.

This fair, one of the oldest in the state, started off in the late 1800's with bicycle races, elephant rides and farmer wrestling matches. Although you won't see that at the fair anymore (although my 12 year old would like the farmer wrestling matches brought back), you will find horse shows, a demolition derby, tractor pulls, milk and beef cows and...eh...Ed's Magical Midway rides. And on Thursday nights, for $18, you can go on unlimited rides from 4pm to 10pm. Truth be told, this is what my children look forward to every year (although the milk cows are a close second).

So, we took the $118.36 and headed for an evening at the fair. It is one of the only times I set aside our no 'food coloring, no preservatives, if it wasn't raised on an organic farm we don't eat it' mentality (because, really, not allowing my children to have cotton candy at the fair might start a riot, and frankly, I am out numbered). So, with unlimited ride wristbands in place, my children were off and running. Only stopping back to check in for food or to relay how absolutley exciting the Tilt-a-Whirl was or how my 14 year old went on Spin Out 12 times in a row. We all got our fill of fair food, including the fried cheese curds, caramel apples and a couple of corn dogs. There was even some leftover pink and blue cotton candy left in the plastic bag at the end of the night (which I happily threw away on our way out). And on the way home? All three kids were fast asleep before we headed down our driveway. Now, that is a sign of a night to remember...