Nelson Family Blog: Sioux Empire Fair, 2017

Summer is sure winding down around here, Emma starts school two weeks from today. Eek!!

Another week has passed, and it's been another eventful one. This past Saturday, I was looking for an excuse to get out of the house with the kids, and I just happened to run across a Superhero Party that Dakota Vision was hosting. Basically all I had to do was bring some items for the food shelf, and we had a free event to attend.

John had some photos to work on, so I dressed Elliott up as the Flash, and Emma as Supergirl, and we headed out. The kids had such a good time. They got to play in bouncy houses, ride a train, eat lunch, make superhero masks, enjoy a photobooth, and meet some superheroes. We were at the event for the entire 3 hours it was going on, and both kids started crying when it was time to leave.

Elliott mostly played in the bouncy houses, and went down the slides like 100 times. He loved it, and could not get enough of it. Emma loved the train, and she rode it around and around for probably 30 times. Both kids were a little shy around the superheroes, but enjoyed interacting with them and getting their pictures taken. It was a great event, and both kids were pooped afterward. Eli had a 3 hours nap once we got home, and Emma had some quiet time.

After resting at home, we packed up the kids and brought them to Newton Hills, where Jim and Barb were camping for the weekend. We hung around and visited for a while, but since Jim and Barb were willing to keep the kids for the night in the camper, John and I decided to have a date night. We went out to eat at the Attic, and then just enjoyed a quiet evening at home and watched Game of Thrones. It was a nice night.

On Sunday, we enjoyed sleeping in, and then went to church without any kids, which was kind of awesome. After brunch at Granite City, we went grocery shopping without the kids as well. At around 3pm we headed out to the farm to pick up some very dirty, very tired kids who had a blast camping. It was definitely a bath night, and then an early bedtime for everyone.

Monday was school registration night for Emma. She was so excited to bring her school supplies in, find her desk, and talk with her new teacher. She is so very excited to start Kindergarten, it's adorable. I wish she wasn't growing up so fast, but I am so glad she is so excited and ready for school. After registration, we treated Emma out to Cold Stone Ice Cream. It was a great evening.

Yesterday, we decided to go to the Sioux Empire Fair. I got off work at around 1pm and was at the fair with the kids around 2:30pm. I bought the kids some wristbands, and they rode ride after ride after ride. Both kids had a blast with the rides. When it was just me with the kids, I had them both riding the little kiddie rides, and they both really enjoyed that. We did that for a solid 2 hours, until John arrived. Once he got there, we each took a kid, which was a little less stressful than having both of them.

Once Emma wasn't restricted to just the little kid rides, she had such a good time. She rode a roller coaster, a spinning boat, and basically anything that she was tall enough to go on. She is such a ride junkie. She is not afraid of anything, and she cannot get enough of the rides.

Once John and I were tired of shuffling the kids around on the rides, we pried then away and went and saw the animals. Elliott especially loved this. He loves to just look at the animals, and he pets any of the animals that he can. He loves animals.

We also let the kids do a train ride, walked through the Expo Building, and just generally walked around taking in the sights. We were at the fair until around 7:30pm, and then it started getting really crowded and the kids started getting really crabby, so we got the heck out of there. It was a great evening, the weather was beautiful, but we were all more than ready to head home for the night.

I really do enjoy fair season, and the Turner County Fair starts on Monday, so it will be another fun day of rides and other fair activities. Also, it kicks off our week of vacation, which I am more than ready for. :)