JustHiHeels: Goodbye Summer, Hello Fall!

It's football season which must mean fall, right? Right. No, wrong. According to the calendar the autumnal equinox falls on September 23 at 4:21 A.M. (ET). Let's not get technical. Labor Day is over. That is the last official weekend of summer, right? School is back in session and I've started seeing all of the high school homecoming pictures showing up on my facebook timeline. By the way, love them! I love seeing all of those monumental pics...first day of school, homecoming, prom, graduation and everything in between. Ok I've gotten off track. Back on track now, as it just has to be fall, all of the county fairs in the mid-west are over. Almost-don't jump the gun. The National Cattle Congress fair opened Thursday (Sept. 17) and runs through Sunday (Sept. 20).

So, the reason we moved to Wisconsin is Harley Man accepted the position of General Manager for the Walworth County Fair. And what a fair it is! Everyone that we talked to during the 6 days it ran were welcoming and so proud of "their" fair. Many spoke about the many generations in their family that have showed livestock at the fair. People shared their tradition of taking a week off of work to attend "their" fair. Quite a few family reunions happened as well, coming early when the gates opened and leaving as those gates closed for the evening. The barns were full, the quilts were hung with caring hands, the carnival was in full swing, the food stands were oh-so-good. One thing that I found unusual about this county fair is that it does not serve alcohol. You did read that right. No alcohol. No booze.

And I loved it.

It was the most wholesome, family friendly county fair ever. The concerts were packed, the stands for the truck pulls and bull riding were full, the monster truck show was bursting with people. I didn't hear of one complaint that beer was not available. Do I think there are people that would have loved to have a few drinks during the concerts and other events? Sure. But they still came and had a great time.

Anyway. I didn't mean to go on and on about it being alcohol free, but darn it, it's a rarity at county fairs as that is a viable source of revenue.

You know what else those county fairs count on? You. Us. Families. Get out to your own county fair and support the local talent in the home ec building, ag building, the animal shows, the 4-H kids, and all the events in between. They count on us to come to the fair and have fun, spend some money on the food and souvenirs. Do it so they don't go away, so they are not just a memory to tell and retell our grandchildren. Let them live that dream, to see the big carnival rides and lights through a child's eyes. To have them walk through the barns, smell the "smells" see and hear the goats, pigs, chickens, horses, cattle, the rabbits, and enjoy creating those smiles and memories.

If you live in the Waterloo, IA area, get out there and enjoy the 105th National Cattle Congress. And bring the kids, don't forget to eat at the Noodle Nook and grab those mini donuts.

Here are a few pictures I took as I ate my way through the 166th Walworth County Fair. Already planning for next year, and I think I'm going to be entering of few of the categories! Yay!