Fun Days

Well, the Dog Days of Summer have arrived!  We've already begun the high 90's heat wave and wild fires.

This past weekend was Fun Days here in our neck of the woods.  It was hot, and we needed lots of water, but we had some fun too!  Saturday morning we decided to tool around a little and just see what all was going on (and do a wee bit of shopping).  Of course while we were there we got shanghaied  volunteered to help out in the children's area.  This was our castle for the afternoon!  It was quite a job babysitting kids of all ages and making sure the little ones were safe.  About halfway through, we finally figured out that we had a little more clout when one of us was actually in the bounce house.  Guess which one of us went in?  I was perty tired when it was all over from helping the littlest ones climb the "ladder" to the big slide on the other side.  Hubby played sheriff with the big guys, and as you can see, he meant business!
 

We were next door to the petting zoo, so I managed to sneak over and see the animals during a lull in the action.

We were also close to the practice calves for roping!  This kid knew what he was doing.  Who would have guessed!  The great thing is that the city provided everything for free.  Even the mutton busting and the bull riding shows were free.  After we closed down the castle we headed to our VIP seats for the bull riding.  We had no idea that that meant we would be sitting in the first row, and spitting out grit from between our teeth by the time the show had ended.  Bull riding is NOT my favorite event, and I tend to watch through the gaps between my fingers, but since we were VIPs, I guessed I'd better not cower too much.  It was a little scary because the first guy out of the chute got kicked in the head and had a nasty looking bloody wound.  (It got better after that though, Thank Goodness!)  I thought I was going to have a cowboy in my lap at one point in the show. (and.....no....he wasn't cute!)

Mutton Busting: Training for future bull riders.
These kids really hang on!

The clowns were great!  This bull was one mean dude, and
this clown got in the fray.  He was okay though.

This is the mutton scramble for the 8-12 yr olds.  I don't think they expected so many kids.
I felt sorry for the poor sheep.  The winner is the one who can get the
ribbon off the sheep's neck.

The little kids ages 4-7 are much more fun to watch.  This sheep is relaxing after
being relieved of his ribbon.  He looks like he's smart enough to keep one eye
on the look out though!  Good thing.

A quick dinner in an air conditioned restaurant was wonderful!  After some major hand (and arm, and face) washing, of course.

Gratitude for:

- Children's laughter, and watching how the big kids pitched in to help the little ones!

- Fun with friends.

- No severe injuries for the bull riders and clowns.

- Cold water and a seat in the shade from the Lion's Club.  Thanks guys!!