Riding the Mid-Way

First, let me stand back so you all can admire me. I am the bestest blog of the day! Woo hoo! Yay me! As you can tell, I am very excited. Have a drink and celebrate my blogging success!

Now, on to the Kansas State Fair news!

Eli, my 4-year-old son, was so excited about the Kansas State Fair this weekend because he couldn't wait to ride the Fair rides. The one he was most excited about riding was the Ferris Wheel! He was so hyped up that we went to the grocery store when we got to Hutchinson to buy our Fair tickets in advance. By purchasing them in advance, you could save money - $15 for 20 tickets, which seemed like a good deal. At least I thought so at the time.

We took the kids back to Eric's parents' house (who live in Hutch) and put them to bed so we would be up early the next morning. When we got to the Fair the next day, Eric and I went right for the food. Lady of Guadalupe was up first. Yumo-o! Who would have thought you could find the best Mexican food EVER at the Kansas State Fair?! Then, it was on to the rides.

First up, Eli wanted to ride the Scooby-Doo bus. Here is where the tickets come into play. It was two tickets to ride the bus. Eli is four, so he's not tall enough to ride nearly anything by himself. That means either Eric or I have to accompany him. It is two tickets for Eli and two tickets for daddy. You can see how our "good deal" of 20 tickets is going to disappear fast. The Scooby-Doo bus slowly went up and down for about two minutes, I snapped a couple of photos, and then it was over. Hmmm . . . that didn't seem like $4 dollars worth of fun. Then, Eli wanted to ride the strawberries. (Think Tilt-a-Whirl for the pre-school set.) Two more tickets each. I don't do spinning, so again, I stood with grandma and Georgia, my 15-month-old, snapping pictures while daddy and Eli spun around in the strawberries.

After that, Eli spotted the games. He went over and started playing the duckie game before we could catch him, so we had to pay the carney with the gold teeth $5 so Eli could pick up three ducks and win a stuffed dolphin. It was that or $2 for one duck, in which case you win a plastic sword. We still have our sword from last year, and I am seriously trying to limit the number of weapons Eli seems to acquire.

Eli then spotted the Ferris Wheel. It was the Ferris Wheel with the big sky buckets, so it seemed safe to let him ride it with us. The interesting fact to remember is that Eric, my darling husband, is afraid of heights. He hates the Ferris Wheel, which is actually the one ride I do like, because I hate spinning and dropping and pretty much everything else that could cause any sort of regurgitation. Eli was dead set on riding the Ferris Wheel with both of us. This is when we discovered that the Ferris Wheel was four tickets per person!!! That's right, it cost 12 freaking dollars for the three of us to ride the f***ing Ferris Wheel! Eric made the comment that at that price, they better be providing you with sexual favors, too. Unfortunately for him, they were not. And in case you're counting, that just ate up all of our tickets.

We boarded the sky bucket, and the Ferris Wheel started to rise. And so did the green color on Eric's face. I looked at his hands, and he was gripping the seat so tightly, his knuckles were white. If only I had brought my camera up in the Ferris Wheel with us. Eli was excited because he could see everything! He could see where grandpa works, but most importantly, he could see the grain elevator and the water tower, with which he has a strange fascination.

After spinning around several times, Eric breathed a sigh of relief as our sky bucket slowed to a stop. When they opened the door, Eric practically knocked Eli and I both over so he could be the first one out of that thing. Hmmm . . . the fact that he will knock over women and small children to get off of a Ferris Wheel does not bode well for him if ever there is an emergency.

After the trauma of rides, we treated ourselves to a Fried Snickers on a stick and set off for home so Georgia could take a nap. And then it's back to the Fair tomorrow. My goal is to wear the children out so they will sleep for the next two days. Unfortunately, the sugar rush from all the candy they ate at the Fair is balancing out their fatigue. I may need a new plan!