Rabbit Fest 2011

Two years ago I wrote about Rabbit Fest. Bekah and Nathan came up, it rained and rained until it was super muddy, and Bennett was about three months old. Well, this year we decided to attend the small town fair once again. And while some things were different--we went with our friends and Bennett was old enough to actually go on some of the rides--some things never change...

Here we are waiting out the torrential rains under a disassembled game booth. I am pretty sure there is some kind of natural law that it has to rain over Rabbit Fest weekend. In the end, we decided to go home and try again the next day. So after loading three very muddy strollers into the back of my car, and loading three very wet children into their car seats, and loading three very wet and muddy adults into their seats with one on the floor (hey, when you pay for parking by the car load you do what you have to) we drove back to our house through the rain and hail. But instead of ruining a perfectly good night, we decided to make the best of it by ordering pizza and watching a movie while the kids played in Bennett's room.

Our plan went off great, with everybody happy and the food being delicious, not to mention a lot cheaper than fair food at $4.00 a hotdog.

So there we were, hanging out at our house, when we looked out the window and realized that it wasn't raining anymore! In fact, it was a gorgeous night. Perfect for Rabbit-Festing. So two of the original four of us decided to throw our poor kids back in their seats and try it again.

When we arrived at the city park for the second time in two hours it was packed with people and cars and lots and lots of mud. But what would a fair be without people and cars and excessively dirty things? So we piled out and had ourselves a great time going from booth to booth and riding whatever rides our under 36-inch children were allowed to go on. Sadly, the kiddie roller coaster (or choo-choo train) was not included in the under 36-inch category, much to the dismay of our adrenaline seeking son who would love nothing better than to hold on for dear life and develop a severe case of whiplash. Maybe next year, Buddy.

We did, however, get to go on the Ferris Wheel (the big spinning spinning) and the Merry-Go-Round (the horsies), both of which Bennett loved and is still including in all meal and bedtime prayers.

The Ferris Wheel

I know he doesn't look very excited in this movie, but trust me, he hasn't stopped talking about it since we got off. That big spinning-spinning was just a lot to absorb...

Getting on the Merry-Go-Round. As soon as this ride started moving Bennett started throwing out the "diddy-ups" and the "yeeeee-haws." This kid has been around a horse or two...or maybe just his mom who spends a lot of time on her hands and knees giving out rodeo rides...

Besides rides, we also had a chance to walk around the vending booths and sample all the free stuff (we are cheap) and listen to a local garage band rock out after about fifteen minutes of tuning up and mic checks. Once they started they really were pretty good. And when Bennett took the dance floor by storm he provided an equally entertaining show for the masses. Well, for me, at least. But since I will always be Bennett's biggest fan, that's not really a surprise.

That night Bennett got to bed way too late and I spent about four hours the next day involved in the "Rabbit Recovery Program" wherein I had to pressure-wash the car mats, Bennett's stroller and our shoes, and thoroughly clean out the mud from the inside of our car. But it was worth it. Here's to another great year of Rabbit Fest. My umbrella and I will see you next year.