Fair Warning

The fair started with a "hello." A family got out of the car next to us. Shane and Rey became friends.

Pretty amazing. If I'd have known the boys would hit it off THAT quickly I would have introduced myself to Scott, Malva, Luce, and Lanna right away. Instead, I saw them unpacking a family car, assumed it would take a while, and started to herd Shane on. I didn't want to stand in direct sunlight with a five year old as a parking lot filled out and entry line lengthened.

Short-sighted in retrospect.

Rey's family got underway quickly and ended up in line behind us. The boys became buddies.

The fair itself was small. There were no rides.

That didn't mean there wasn't fun to be had!

There were lots of different animals.

Now that we're chicken farmers, my interest level has increased.

Carrie would love to get Shane involved in some 4-H activities. She participated as a kid.

Did I say there were no rides? That may have been true when we arrived, but one presented itself.

Shane grabbed the last car when the tractor-train pulled up.

Rey saw us and hopped on the go-around.

Then Dylan, Eli and their parents walked up next!

I thought Shane would have wanted to stick with a family and friend. However, he didn't want to wait for a train ride to finish or follow anyone.

We ended up on our own.

Thankfully, on our own in the shade. I re-applied sunscreen after the train ride, but it probably washed off in a sweat waterfall. As usual, Shane didn't need a drop.

Shane was within the perfect age range for all of the different activities.

It helps he's naturally curious like me, too.

We met back up again with Dylan's family in the animal area. Rey's family had already left.

Shane was happy to share his newfound chicken expertise.

Dylan's family left soon after. We'd been at the fair for two hours. Everyone else seemed to last about one.

We stopped at one booth on the way out to say farewell to some neighbors who were volunteering. Silas threw Shane a mini-frisbee and sparked a crisis. I realized moments before Shane.

His toy plane was missing. It was brand new from Grandpa's house. It would have been safe in the car, but I relented.

Shane started to cry.

I suggested we do a walk around. I warned Shane that the plane was probably long gone. It helped to have something to do. It provided him processing time, as well. I was proud of how well Shane recovered. I told him he could play some Lego Hobbit as a reward when we got home.

My phone gave a hint of the plane's final fate much later. This was the last picture Shane was holding it in.

We walked back to the food area and bought a freeze-pop for a quarter and Shane has no plane in the Ruritan Club train ride.

It was a tough, but valuable lesson for a young boy. We got out a lot of energy, too! Maybe next year we'll have a chicken with us if we go.