Iowa State Fair 2015 (part 1): Old and New Edition

We took three trips to the Iowa State Fair this year, and in many ways this year's fair was like the other years. 

Char still stuck her head into things. She's multitasking here.

We ate cheese curds (that's Charlotte's hand sneaking into the frame).

I had a pork chop on a stick (x3).

And I also ate any meat I could get my hands on. Check out my cheesy horse shirt - Char demanded that I wear it. I didn't mind; I've lost a lot of my pride over the years.

Daphne and Char rode the Big Slide.

I walked along as Char rode a horse.

And Charlotte played in the bendy mirrors at the Museum Complex at the top of the hill.

It wasn't all "been there, done that", though. There were quite a few "firsts" as well. This was the first time Charlotte walked through "Little Hands on the Farm".

Daphne hadn't sewn a quilt before, so it was a first for us to see her labors hanging in the quilt exhibit. Daphne's mom and grandma both have previously had quilts hanging in this same room.

Daph also won her first ribbon in the baking competition. She received second place for her peanut butter bars.

(I didn't enter anything at the fair, but worked hard as a taste tester.)

I never thought I would see a Donald Trump Chainsaw carving, so this was also a first.

Although you can't tell in this photo, Charlotte had a ball running through the human maze. It wasn't as easy as the paper mazes she flies through, but that's a good thing.

In all of her visits to the State Fair there has been one constant: Char is wiped out by the time we get to the car.

The biggest difference between this fair and all others will be covered in the "part 2" post.