Fair Fun

Today we hit the 'Great Minnesota Get Together' - the State Fair.  Zander picked out his Korea jersey to wear and we were off. 

Our first stop was the Miracle of Birth Center, where we encountered a pleasant surprise - Mommy's cousin Chris and his fiancee Karissa.  It was fun to see them and get an update on their wedding plans.  Next was the Dairy Barn - here is Zander checking out the 'Princess Kay of the Milky Way' Butter display.  The princess is seated on the left (in the refrigerated case), and the woman in yellow is carving her likeness in butter (the carving takes 6-8 hours).  We love seeing this attraction each year!

 Zander checking out one of the previously carved butter princess images:

 Getting a wave from the princess... she loved it when Zander blew her a kiss!

 We enjoyed some yummy string cheese and a malt from the Dairy Barn:

 Look Mommy... mini donuts!

 Then we spent a long time checking out all of the tractors on Machinery Hill:

 My, what big tires!

 Trying to start the engine:

Next we went through the 'Little Farm Hands' Adventure.  Zander put on his apron, grabbed a pail, and checked out the corn:

 He was amazed to see a cob on the husk:

 Trying out a baby tractor:

Feeding the chickens.  (We were excited to see Medtronic as a sponsor of the attraction - see the blue volunteer shirt in back.)

 Scooping the soil and planting a seed:

 Petting the sheep (wearing his corn cob hat):

Experiencing what it's like to milk a cow:

At the end of the adventure, Zander used the 'money' he earned for his labor to 'purchase' a treat at the store - a yummy apple.  Delicious!

 Always a favorite stop - the Corn Roast.  Scrumptious!

Then Zander and Daddy went down the Giant Slide - here they are climbing the stairs on the left (about 1/2 way up):

Whee!!   The boys are in the lane on the right, about halfway down:

This was supposed to be the perfect shot of Zander and Daddy arriving at the bottom, but unfortunately 'Giant Slide' man stepped in front of me, so all you can see is part of Daddy's shorts!

 Woo Hoo!

After the slide, we headed to Sweet Martha's for a big bucket of chocolate chip cookies (Daddy's favorite).  We also ran into Mommy's boss Jan - it was fun to see her and meet her adorable granddaughter Macy. 

Zander really enjoyed all of the sights and tastes of the fair - there was so much excitement that he fell asleep as soon as we got into the car on the way home!