We went to the Ohio State fair...

...the birds and the beasts were there. But there was no big baboon, and there was no "light of the moon" this time around. Instead, this happy occasion was rounded out by me, David and Noah, and hot hot hot August sunshine.

On Monday night, we decided to save some serious gas money by cutting our work day short and heading to the Ohio State Fair. Had we not gone then, we would have had to make a special trip from Mount Vernon, which is a good hour+ from the fair.

For those of you out there who are fair skeptics, you need to know a few things about the Ohio State Fair, and my undying love and loyalty to it.

1) It's one of the largest fairs in the country. You can walk MILES on the grounds in the course of one day.

2) Once you pay the $6 (advance) admission price, you get to do a lot of stuff for FREE. I love free stuff!

3) When it comes to family entertainment, it's really hard to beat (you'll see why later).

4) I happened to live at the Ohio State Fair for three weeks each summer from 1994–1996. I was part of the All-Ohio State Fair Band (trumpet) in 1994, and then I was part of the All-Ohio State Fair Youth Choir in 1995 & 1996 (alto II).

5) The state fair is the ultimate venue for 4-Hers to show off their blue-ribbon projects. Growing up, my sister and I were both part of the "Kinsman Snappy Snippers," a local sewing club that my mom helped lead. And because we were decent sewers, our projects sometimes made it all the way to the state fair.

I obviously have some built-in affinity for the State Fair, but it's still a fabulous place to go. I ask David to take me every year, bringing along a giant mental checklist of all my favorite things to do and favorite vendors to hit (can you say fried cheese?!).

When you've got a baby and a limited time frame, however, the list becomes infinitely smaller. None-the-less, here is a rundown of the cool things we saw at the fair Monday night.

- Right out of the gate was a fancy tent of Budweiser Clydesdale horses. My goodness they were beautiful!



- Then we moseyed down the way and into a model four-bedroom modular home that was gorgeous. It made us want to buy up more acreage, dig a basement and plop one on top.

- Misters were everywhere, and I encouraged us to sashay through each and every one. After all, it was 90 degrees outside.



- The Agriculture building always has the neatest free exhibits. We saw newly hatched baby chicks, an enormous toy train & town, and even a puppy playtime exhibit. Is that not the cutest Beagle pup you've ever seen?









- After the Ag building, we got held up by the Direct TV booth in the commerce buildings. We've been wanting to switch anyway, and they had a fair special for $23 off each month for one year!

- The commerce buildings were a perfect shortcut to ODNR (Outdoor Natural Resources Park), my very favorite place at the fair. David had to eat his Philly steak sandwich, so we popped a squat on some benches just inside the ODNR gate. I make it a priority to find at least one of my county benches (Trumbull, Franklin or Knox) in ODNR, and spotted Trumbull right away.



Then we wandered past the kids kayaking and Smokey the Bear (the talking version), and checked out the fish tanks and the settler cabin. On the path to the bluegill fishing ponds, archery tents and simulators, I happened upon a sailing photo opp I couldn't refuse.



Since Noah's too little for outdoors activities (no bow & gun yet!), we strolled over to the mini zoo of native Ohio animals. Some of the highlights were the beavers, swans and bald eagles.





- We were on our way to the dairy barn when I happened to see and hear - the risers and risers full of kids in matching t-shirts and shorts. The Youth Choir! I made David stop for just a song or two. Here's a picture of this year's choir, which numbers 200 (back in my day it was 250).



- Finally, we made it to the dairy barn. Each year, some talented soul carves some pretty darn amazing images out of butter for the enjoyment of fairgoers. I know, what's the deal with midwesterners and butter? We just love it, that's all. This year, the sculpture included (of course) a butter cow, and then a Mount-Rushmore inspired mountain of all the Ohio U.S. presidents. Cool stuff. For once, we skipped the ice cream in the dairy barn (but not altogether).





- If you exit the dairy barn, it's just a hop, skip and a jump away from the Coliseum, which has horse shows of every variety you can imagine. I have no idea what the proper name of the show was that was in progress as we walked by, but here are two horses waiting for their number to be called.



- One more important stop at the fair is the Bricker Building, kind of a "As Seen on TV" headquarters. First stop: bathroom to change Noah's soaked clothes! Then I actually restrained myself from going down the huge candy aisle, which has all the best old-school and hard-to-find treats AND a tasty selection of homemade fudge. Instead, we plopped down at the food court to indulge a sweet tooth or two and cool off in the air conditioning.



At this point, we were in dire need of a turn on the footsie wootsies. Recognizing a beat bunch when we saw one, we opted to head home (but not before one last lemon shake-up on the way out).



My verdict? The fair still ROCKS! I can't wait for next year, when Noah is a year older and can try out some of the rides and bigger-kid exhibits. I firmly believe the fair is hands-down one of the best values in town (family and financially). I heart the OSF... forever!