If you haven’t been to the fair yet, and by now I’m sure that’s a very small percentage, you only have a few more days to do so. My family went on Thursday when the kids got in free. Somehow, I managed to talk them out of going on the rides, and instead we focused on the Livestock Area, the Hall of Flowers, and the Grace Pavillion. And, of course, we couldn’t miss a chance to eat some scrumptious fair food. Note: did you read Heather’s article when they did the Fair Food Scramble? Everything they said about the Pork Slyders at Johnny Garlic’s is true. Total Yum.
A couple things you won’t want to miss:
There are baby animals at the Livestock Barns! If you need your fill on cute, that’s where to get it. Our favorite stop was with the baby pigs. You have not experienced cute until you’ve seen a bunch of “Babes” running circles around their ma – or in our case, sleeping underneath one gregarious oinker-let.
Foot massage chairs. Be warned, there seems to be a lot of kids circling around these chairs like vultures, ready to take it over as soon as someone leaves. You have to be quicker than them. But once you’ve pushed them out of the way and sat down, it’s so worth it. These are the next best thing to actually getting a foot massage.
The Hall of Flowers. They sectioned off the building to show different parts of the county. And some of the displays this year were the best I’ve ever seen. I especially love Bennett Valley’s display (I’m a bit biased, being a BV girl at heart), the way they scattered lavendar among all the flowers, just like the Matanzas Creek Winery.
Useless crud for sale in the Grace Pavillion. I am now the proud owner of face lotion and peppermint foot cream. I probably could have lived without them, but man those girls were great at making me believe I couldn’t. $40 later, and I am moisturized. Even the kids got swept up. DQ now owns a pair of balls on a rope that you can clack together. And the Taz, get this, bought MONEY with money.
And because a picture’s worth a thousand words (and I’ve already given you almost 400), here’s a brief photo montage of our day at the fair.
Wine Country Mom 
Ah, fair days! This year I actually got to go with my husband – no more getting up at 6 am to truck animals into the back gate – no more hanging around Jamison arena while my daughter tried to coax her recalcitrant pygmy goat into the judging line – no more playing in the toddler area with my son – just some nice friendly local crowds around the Splash Dogs and Acro-cats, and another wonderful flower show giving me the inspiration I need to overhaul those weedy corners of my yard. Thanks for re-awakening the memories!