Two Fair Postings

Okay, I feel like I should explain why I have TWO fair postings. Well I wanted to add the pictures...AND to be honest I forgot that I had already written about it. So...be amused. I must be getting older. And, after all I am Blonde!

Have a great week!

Intercounty Fair

So Tim and I went to the Spokane Intercounty Fair this past weekend. It was a beautiful day with strong sun but cool in the shade. We got there about 1pm and immediately had a corn dog! They were SOOOO yummy! Then we headed through the animal areas...watched the lumberjacks for a little while...and then had a roasted turkey leg....headed to see the photography, produce and baked goods...then had to run out to get a spot to watch the Mutton Bustin' contest...what is this? Well for my friends in Cincinnati and Louisville with kids, it is for kids ages 6 and under and less than 60 lbs. They get geared up with a crash helmet and padding and then get put on a sheep who is in a chute like a bull for bullriding...then, they release the sheep, who sees part of the herd at the end of the arena and bolts and runs while the kid hangs on for dear life...using arms and legs only...only one kid actually managed to hang on until the sheep got to the other end of the arena. The goal is to stay on for 6 seconds...which apparently is harder than it looks. There were kids who got on without question and there were kids who cried and fussed, and maybe never even got on. This was EXTREMELY amusing to watch. We watched with friends who were expecting and our first question was, will your child do this in a couple years?

Then, we looked at the rest of the arts and crafts...and had a pulled pork sandwich, twist cone and went to watch the hyptmotist. That was Something!! I had never seen something like this before. And, at 7pm Tim and I decided we were ready to go home and take care of Elphie, so we got some carmel kettle corn and a small taste of fudge on the way out. It is not Hartford County, and it isn't the Ohio State fair, but it was fun! Now, if I can convince Tim to let me go to the compact car demolition derby this weekend...

Weekend Fun!

Well, Tim and I had a fun weekend this weekend. Friday night we ate at a local restaurant which is fairly new called Villaggio (spelling could be wrong). It is on 29th street and specializes in pizza, panni and wine. Tim and I usually split a salad and pizza. It is really good! Then Saturday I weighed in at WW and lost another pound so I am at 27 lbs total lost. My goal is to get to 30 lbs and then make my way to 40 lbs. It is a process for sure but definitely worth it. I have been able to hike more now that some weight has come off. SO, this weekend Tim and I headed to the Turnbull National Wildlife Preserve http://www.fws.gov/turnbull/ which has some great trails and you have the opportunity to see wildlife. We saw a deer, coyote, praying mantis, lots of chipmunks, squirrels, and of course several varieties of birds. We even saw some muskrat mud huts!! We walked about 5.5 miles. Then we headed to Cheney for some lunch about 2:30pm and happened upon the Artist Cafe...http://www.artistcafe.biz/Home%20Page.htm it was really good! Tim and I will definitely return again!! I did laundry Saturday night, didn't have to fight any crowds which was nice and then Tim and I watched BLADE RUNNER.

Sunday Tim and I headed to the fair. The Spokane Intercounty Fair. http://www.spokanecounty.org/fair/sif/ There was tons of great fair food. Tim and I had a corn dog, roasted turkey leg, soft serve ice cream, pulled pork sandwich and of course some Carmel kettle corn! It was all really good. We also got fudge samples and of course we looked at all of the animals and vegetables and baked goods at the fair as well. We watched the Kids Mutton Bustin' contest...what is this? Well the kid has to be 6 yrs or younger and no more than 60 lbs and they have to stay on the sheep for at least 6 seconds...which is harder than it sounds. they get to wear a crash helmet and some padding around the body. They are sat on the sheep in a chute and then the sheep is let go...and off it runs and the kid must hold on for dear life while the sheep runs to the end of the arena. Several kids fell off in seconds, one kid actually stayed on. The prize is a silver belt buckle and a chance to come back next weekend to win a 4 wheeler. IT WAS NUTS! We also watched the hyptomist (I can't spell today). It was fascinating. You wonder if the people are really under or not.

The Trip Home

So, we got up about 8am Sunday morning to the sound of a helicopter...WHAT?? Where were we? Well, it turns out that they were clearing new ski runs...using a helicopter to bring the trees down from the mountain. As luck would have it, we sat and watched one drop off some trees as we left the hotel! Then, we headed back to Naches to find a place for breakfast. We stopped at a small local joint with some good greasy spoon food. Then, headed off to Wine Country. We stopped at 4 different wineries. Tim took one for the team and tasted at all 4 places. I only did a little at the first (being a responsible driver). We drove through orchards, fruit farms, corn fields and vineyards. The only places that were green were areas watered by irrigation. Where do those Washington apples come from? Yakima and east on 82. We did part of the Rattlesnake http://www.rattlesnakehills.com/wine.htm Hills wine trail. It was great! The people were nice and the wine was good (so I was told!). We headed home after only 4 places because Tim was sure that he was going to fall asleep if he drank any more. So...we headed home up 395 to 90. Right through farm country! Once we got home, Tim made some AWESOME burgers on the grill and now we are resting to prepare for work tomorrow. Perdita was so happy to see us home. Elphaba gets picked up tomorrow and I am sure when she sees Tim she will spaz!

And, we listed to BOOMSDAY by Christopher Buckley http://www.amazon.com/Boomsday-Christopher-Buckley/dp/0446579815 which was read by Janeane Garofalo and it was HYSTERICAL!

Happy Trails!

Mt Rainier Day Two

So, Sunday we were up and out the door before 7:30am in hopes to cram as much of the park in as humanly possible AND still do some hikes and see some great things. So we headed down the road and stopped for breakfast at a local joint called Buzzy's...apparently around for 25 years and it was small, cute and had some great food. Then, we headed to Carbon River. I wanted to check out the rainforest area there and possibly do a hike. When we arrived we found out that the road back was washed out. So it was 3 miles to the trailhead then another 3.5 mile hike. Since the road went through the rain forest we decided to hike the road up past where it was washed out and then turned back. It was incredible. Not just the nature, but where the road was washed out...entirely! We recognized a lot from our trip to Hoh Rainforest in Olympia National Park...so we saw a banana slug, a nurse tree and a collinade (sp?). It was great. Then, we headed to Mowich Lake so Tim could try out some fly fishing and we had a little picnic along the lake. It was beautiful. Then, we headed back to the main hwy to hit the most popular sections of the park. It was hard to get around as the flood of Nov 2006 had washed out many roads. So we had to go out of the park, then get back in to get around. But, it was well marked, and in hindsight we should have just concentrated on the Carbon River and Sunrise sections and left the rest for later. But...we pressed on. We entered through the Southwestern Entrance and headed towards Longmire, Paradise, and Ohanapecosh. We stopped to do a short downhill hike to see some falls, then we headed up to Paradise to walk around the visitor's center and see the view of Mt Rainier from this point. Then, we left and headed down toward the Grove of the Patriarchs (a Hike Tim wanted to do). We made it there in time to hike it before it got too dark! Then it was time to try and find a place to eat. We were unsuccessful. So we ate our cheese, crackers, grapes and snacks that we had packed. We had to drive to Naches for gas and then it was a 2 hour drive back to our hotel. We got in close to 10:30-11pm. Tired!! But, we managed to see the WHOLE park!

Mt Rainier Day One

So we left Friday night and stayed in Yakima, what is in Yakima? Well it is the gateway to wine country...and we stayed in the Oxford Suites http://www.oxfordsuitesyakima.com/ ...very nice and affordable. And we were told to eat at Santiagos http://www.santiagos.org/ which was really REALLY good.

So, after a great night's sleep and a nice breakfast buffet (included in the price of the room) we headed to Mt Rainier National Park. We went in via the Chinook Pass and it was breathtaking! We stopped for a few pictures of the mountain and then headed to Sunrise http://www.nps.gov/mora/planyourvisit/sunrise.htm

We decided to do the Mt Fremont Lookout Hike, a little more strenous but not too bad. We left with daypacks. It was a steep climb to both of our way points, but finally once we hit Frozen Lake, we kind of broke away from the other hikers and headed even further up. We had almost a 1,000 ft gain in elevation...ended up at 7,181 (or something close to it). Three months ago I could have NEVER done this hike. It reminded me of some hikes I did in Colorado in August 1998 (and I was in MUCH better shape then). The view was spectacular! You could see for miles, lots of mountains. The pictures don't do it justice. Once we got back down we had a little snack in the truckbed overlooking Mt Rainier. Then, we headed to our hotel. We stayed at Crystal Mountain, normally a ski destination http://www.crystalmtlodging-wa.com/index.htm so there was quite a deal on the stay...nearly half price or more. We stayed in one of the hotels there. It was quite pleasant...my husband's only complaint was that they had removed their hot tubs, and he said "what kind of ski resort doesn't have hot tubs?". The rest of the stay was great. We ate at Alpine Inn that evening and dinner was great. We turned in early as we had a long day ahead of us on Sunday!