Experience the Ohio State Fair

Dave and I love the Ohio State Fair.  We've been going since we were dating back in high school and the fair holds fond memories for us.  There's always something weird and interesting going on at the fair and we try to go each year if the weather cooperates.  Unfortunately, over the past few years, it's been too hot to drag Kira to the fair, so we haven't went.  Saturday's weather was perfect, so off we went!  The fair is one of the top 10 fairs in the country, so it's a pretty big deal in Ohio.

I spent three hours Saturday before we left getting my hair colored and highlighted.  Not for the fair, I'm not that insane, it was just time to do!  Today, I actually wore lipstick.  It's honestly Dave's fault that I don't wear lipstick often.  In high school, he'd refuse to kiss me if I had it on, so I stopped wearing it. Don't judge!

 I truly do embarrass my family.  They are learning to deal with it.  Here's my fair going outfit.  I didn't exactly blend in, but the checks were sort of farm like!

After arriving at the fair, we hopped on the sky glider to ride to the back of the fairgrounds.  Here's shots from the glider.  It was gorgeous out, so there were a lot of people at the fair on Saturday.

A section of the fairground has been taken over by the Ohio Parks Service and they have all sorts of things back there on Ohio history and the geology that make up the state.  Kira and Dave are standing on a map of all the counties in Ohio and they are stepping on the county we live in in the first picture.

One of the many traditions at the fair is the butter cow.  This year it celebrates Columbus, Ohio's 200'th birthday.  Believe it or not, the butter sculptures are a big deal at the fair and attract a large crowd.  I think Kira thinks we're nuts that we drug her in to see this, but it's pretty neat.  The total display – cake, cow and calf – required 1,900 pounds of butter and 451 hours of labor.  The butter cow made its first appearance at the fair in 1903 and took up residence in the Dairy Building when it was built in the 1920s.  The idea of other butter creations joining the cow also comes from the early 1900s, when Ohio State University and the Dairy Processors of Ohio sponsored butter-sculpting contests at the fair.  There was another cow to the left of the cake, but it was too crowded to get a good shot.

Outside of the dairy building, there were a couple of real cows and a baby calf.  My family didn't want to stop to see them until I sadly mumbled under my breath "noone wants to see the real cows" and Dave took pity on me and made Kira stop to look.  I enjoy cows.  I collect cow sculptures and I don't like to pass up the opportunity to gawk at real ones under very controlled situations.  There.  Now you now my dirty little secret.

Hope you enjoyed seeing parts of our day at the fair!

Smiles!
Lori