Have you seen those Lifetime movies where the couple has been together for 11 years and then the wife learns something shocking about her husband?
I’m the star of that movie!!!
After 11 years of being Natchelle, my world was turned upside down. A hidden past came forward.
Nate is almost 32 and had never been to a fair. What??? How could this be? I wanted to know if he really grew up in Iowa. I couldn’t even trust that his name was Nate at this point. Mind blown.
I love fairs. So very much. The food. The animal shows. The crafts. The smells. All of it. Growing up, the Webster County 4-H fair was the highlight of my summer.
That’s me with my reserve champion market hog. That’s a pretty big deal when you’re a young 4-Her.
That’s me with my duck, Roger. She (yep, that’s correct) won best pet. Such a good duck. Ike would love her. I later received a red ribbon for my hair.
So, clearly the fair is a huge part of my past. And come to find out I married a man who had never ever been to a fair. It was time to make that right.
We joined one of my very dear childhood friends and her husband at the Iowa State Fair last Thursday. Nate’s life will never be the same. And I can now remain married to him. Long live Natchelle.
Within minutes of walking into the fairgrounds it became clear that we needed to have some sort of food on a stick in our hands or we may risk being kicked out. We grabbed some corn dogs, cheese curds and a lemon shake-up and joined Santa.
Nate was still doing okay at this point. We did a little wandering after our first food stop. We checked out the wine tasting, some antiques and some crazy entertaining duo. We then headed to the animal barn to check out the sheep in disguise.
Nate didn’t find it nearly as entertaining as my friend and I. I love the sheep barn. The constant “baaing” makes me laugh.
We arrived at the pig barn just in time to see the biggest boar being led to his cage. I played city girl and snapped a photo of this 1100 pound beauty. I mean, can you get much better than this??? The pig didn’t want to move. I liked his style.
We then hit up the fried dessert stands. An Iowa State Fair must.
Nate had a fried Snickers. I had a fried Milky Way and my friend had fried pineapple. All of which were amazingly glorious and disgusting all at once.
I then took a nap.
This post is going nowhere fast. I swear I’ll have some kind of real post…next month.
So, that’s the tale of Nate’s first fair experience. Overall he said he didn’t hate it. He thought it would be more redneck. He thinks he can wait another 32 years before he goes ago. Ohhh, Nate.
Are you a fair fan? Were you in 4-H? Ever have trouble naming a duck?
Have you seen those Lifetime movies where the couple has been together for 11 years and then the wife learns something shocking about her husband?
I’m the star of that movie!!!
After 11 years of being Natchelle, my world was turned upside down. A hidden past came forward.
Nate is almost 32 and had never been to a fair. What??? How could this be? I wanted to know if he really grew up in Iowa. I couldn’t even trust that his name was Nate at this point. Mind blown.
I love fairs. So very much. The food. The animal shows. The crafts. The smells. All of it. Growing up, the Webster County 4-H fair was the highlight of my summer.
That’s me with my reserve champion market hog. That’s a pretty big deal when you’re a young 4-Her.
That’s me with my duck, Roger. She (yep, that’s correct) won best pet. Such a good duck. Ike would love her. I later received a red ribbon for my hair.
So, clearly the fair is a huge part of my past. And come to find out I married a man who had never ever been to a fair. It was time to make that right.
We joined one of my very dear childhood friends and her husband at the Iowa State Fair last Thursday. Nate’s life will never be the same. And I can now remain married to him. Long live Natchelle.
Within minutes of walking into the fairgrounds it became clear that we needed to have some sort of food on a stick in our hands or we may risk being kicked out. We grabbed some corn dogs, cheese curds and a lemon shake-up and joined Santa.
Nate was still doing okay at this point. We did a little wandering after our first food stop. We checked out the wine tasting, some antiques and some crazy entertaining duo. We then headed to the animal barn to check out the sheep in disguise.
Nate didn’t find it nearly as entertaining as my friend and I. I love the sheep barn. The constant “baaing” makes me laugh.
We arrived at the pig barn just in time to see the biggest boar being led to his cage. I played city girl and snapped a photo of this 1100 pound beauty. I mean, can you get much better than this??? The pig didn’t want to move. I liked his style.
We then hit up the fried dessert stands. An Iowa State Fair must.
Nate had a fried Snickers. I had a fried Milky Way and my friend had fried pineapple. All of which were amazingly glorious and disgusting all at once.
I then took a nap.
This post is going nowhere fast. I swear I’ll have some kind of real post…next month.
So, that’s the tale of Nate’s first fair experience. Overall he said he didn’t hate it. He thought it would be more redneck. He thinks he can wait another 32 years before he goes ago. Ohhh, Nate.
Are you a fair fan? Were you in 4-H? Ever have trouble naming a duck?
Ahh! Funny. Is it okay with you if I pin all the photos with you and farm animals to my "humor" board on Pinterest? just wondering.
ReplyDeleteGood stuff. We actually have a county fair near us in Jersey that's supremely farmy, surprisingly.
Bahahaha.
DeleteNo, it's not okay.
FYI: I'm really good at paybacks.
LOL, funny post! Love the big pink cuteness at the end!
ReplyDeleteNever had any of the fried food you mentioned ;)
i am not sure which is cuter- you as a young 4 h-er, roger, or the pig....
ReplyDeleteROGER IS AWESOME!!!! I LOVE state fairs! We go to the MN one every year and it is easily one of the biggest highlights of my summer!
ReplyDeleteI'm not even sure where to start with this post, but I'd give it a blue ribbon for being amazing (obviously). Also, your hair looks adorable.
ReplyDeleteHow did he never go to a fair before?!?
ReplyDeleteLove the old pictures!
bahaha look at little Michelle. And her hair. ;) We should have a throwback bad hair day link party someday. It would be awesome and I could link up about 800 photos.
ReplyDeleteLong live Natchelle!
Yesssssss to the link party!
DeleteI was a 4-Her! Manitoba 4-H for 10 years, woodworking and carpentry for 9 of them, and I loved every minute of the camps, conferences and trips I got to participate in.
ReplyDeletehaha! Those pics of you at the beginning just made my whole day. Andy and I have never been on a ferris wheel together. When we were first dating, I told him your relationship can't be serious until you've been on a ferris wheel together. 8 years of marriage and two kids later, it's still not serious.
ReplyDeleteHahaha! This reminds me of when I took my husband on his first ferry ride! So funny how different kids do different things growing up. I love me some fair food too! Yum!
ReplyDeletelol how funny.
ReplyDeleteHah! I go to fair every year. This year, my fair posts on my blog stretched for three full posts of photos and writing about it. Because fair is that awesome.
ReplyDeletehahaha! I used to love going to the fair & its wonderful smells! Now it scares me (maybe I've contracted agoraphobia somewhere) and the odor(s) nauseate me. The Arizona State Fair, even at the end of October, can be quite warm... Last few times I was there accompanying classes of third-graders.
ReplyDeleteLong live 4-H! Woodbury county 4-H fair queen and grand champion cat! Obviously, I'm super cool too :)
ReplyDeleteOnly fair kids are cool kids. ;)
DeleteAnd he calls himself a Midwesterner. Psh.
ReplyDeleteRight? Weak.
DeleteWhat?! What did he do with himself during the summer in high school? Going from county fair to county fair was our lone source of entertainment in Southern Indiana!
ReplyDeleteIf you really want great fried-_____-on-a-stick, you should check out the Texas State fair. It's not til October (because it's 100 degrees every day until then), but last year's best taste winners were fried jambalaya and fried bacon cinnamon rolls!
You had me at bacon cinnamon roll...
DeleteI had to laugh at Roger the girl duck. when I was growing up, my grandmother (my grandparents had a farm in Illinois) got me ducks as pets one year when I went to visit. I named them Honey & Sonny, but it turned out that Honey was a boy and Sonny a girl. I could walk them on a leash I tied around their necks (loosely). So I totally get that Roger was a girl.
ReplyDeleteHow do you know until they grow up? Ducks need more recognition in the great pet department!
DeleteOh, the fair. Such great memories. And the smells. I love everything about it. I like how you got Nate liquored up at the wine tasting BEFORE the animal tour. Good thinking!
ReplyDeleteTook Sweet D to his first fair last year. He was under the totally mistaken impression that Fair=Carnival Rides. NOT! Georgia State Fair has fantastic animals (pigs my favorite! Yours was lovely) and spectacular crafts pavilion. Do they do racing pigs in Iowa? Betcha no fried rattlesnake on a stick, either.
ReplyDeleteFairs Forever!!!
L
Whoa. This is all intense. Puts our butter cow to shame. ;)
DeleteMy college roommate was from Iowa and she was very distraught when she found out the butter cow had been vandalized! We went to the Delaware State Fair a few years back. It. Was. Awesome.
ReplyDeletePoor, poor butter cow.
DeleteI had a similar experience this weekend when I discovered, after 7.5 years of marriage and nearly 12 years together, that my husband has never been to a fair! I grew up in rural Ohio and find this completely unacceptable so I took him to the county fair this weekend. His response (after repeated calling me a nerd for being in 4-H), "The food was good, but I just don't get it." Sigh... He's such a city boy.
ReplyDeleteWhat's with these dudes of ours? So sad. I'm just glad I'm not alone.
Deletelol. Little 4-H Michelle was too cute!!
ReplyDeleteThat is pretty amazing that this never came up considering your history of prize winning pets. ;)
I'm not sure how we never discussed it. So weird. And earth shattering.
DeletePoor Nate, he sure looks happy ;). I can't remember the last time I went to a fair..I have a very queasy stomach, and just the smell of it gets me going..although...I do remember loving those super nutritious elephant ears...yum!
ReplyDeleteI love a good fair because I grew up around them, but my hubby isn't really interested either. My grandparents on my mom's side raised and showed sheep, and we spent a lot of time in the sheep barns each summer. In fact, some of those sheep you saw may have been my family's, my uncles won Grand Champion Ram at the IA State Fair this year (for the 3rd year in a row, actually :-) )
ReplyDelete