on our way to Jackson, Mississippi!

Matthew and I took a vacation to Florida.  It took us a bit of time to get there but a fun trip it was....

Our first stop was to drop Hudson off at my parents for the week.  We are so thankful they were willing to watch our beast.  Ha!  They even treated us to a nice breakfast before we left.  Then, we were off...

We stopped in Springfield, MO for lunch.  There was a Braum's!  I love Braum's.

Then, on to Tennessee.  We drove right past St. Jude's Children's Hospital.  We respect everything they do there and I would love to go visit the children to see how our donations help them and take them toys and bring them cheer!  Maybe we can train Hudson to be a therapy dog?!

We stopped here in Memphis to have BBQ.  It was delicious!

We drove on to Jackson, Mississippi and stayed the night before the rest of our trip.  

memorial day bbq.

My sister and brother-in-law invited everyone over for a Memorial Day BBQ!  We had a great time at their new home playing washers, chatting, and eating some yummy food!

the fair.

We headed to the Westmoreland County Fair this past weekend. While it took a good hour to get there, it was so fun and worth it. Matthew and I needed something fun to do!
We were shocked to see corn growing in the fields. We almost thought we were in Kansas.

And here we come!

The fair from a distance...it was pretty busy for a Sunday afternoon!

First stop: we checked out all the animals. Matthew was surprised at how many Jersey and Guernsey cows there were compared to how few Holsteins were there.

Let's just say...I learned a lot!

People sleep at the fair. Really? Well it makes sense to stay with their animals and such. I just had NO CLUE!

The only Holstein calves! (Matthew used to milk this kind of cow!) Did ya know that little fact?

There were some beautiful horses. We did not see too many at first because we think the judging was going on for them. But we walked back through later in the evening (like 10:15pm) and a bunch more were in their stalls.

The llamas! Did ya know Matthew bought a llama in my honor with Heifer International for my first Christmas present from him? While it would be nice to say hello to that llama, I highly doubt this is her.

Swine! Pigs...pigs...and lots of pigs. Not that stinky, thank goodness. No little piglets at the fair that I saw but just big pigs. We even saw one being walked, yes walked, back into its stall without any leash...just with a stick. I was IMPRESSED!

As Matthew said, "the grass (or hay) is always greener (or browner) on the other side." So true for this little guy or gal. We saw some goats with docked ears and super long ears...so many different breeds.

He just LOVES having his picture taken. Rather, I think he was embarassed by my picture taking at the fair. I think I was the only one with a camera! Ha!

Time to milk the cows. I wanted Mr. T to go up and ask to milk them. He's got the experience but no. (I don't think they would've let him anyways...) So we watched. Interesting apparatus but very effective! Now I can picture what Mr. T did in his tight jeans and white shirt and big rubber boots or somedays, Carhart overalls. Awesome!

We had to stop and check out the rabbits...some of them had the LONGEST ears I've ever seen. Kind of like Peter Cottontail. Too bad they bite if you stick your fingers in the cage, just like Matthew's rabbit Molly did to me. They look so soft and cuddly though.

Look closely! Yes, that's right. These chickens get Aquafina water. Really? Ok, guess not! Apparently, they just use them for the water. But I thought so for a moment until Matthew laughed at me. I think his exact words were, "Seriously honey?"

A ROOSTER!

Then we headed to check out the Ag sections. I wanted to pick up this beautiful hydrangea and take it with me. Would that be frowned upon? It was a beauty!

Another thing I learned...they judge HAY!....and...

CORN STALKS! Now, I did not see anything fancy about these things but apparently the judges do as do the people who enter them. I am a-maized!

Notice they have these fine treats guarded. Delicious tasty sweets and breads!

A beer and wine contest. Not a bad task to judge these if you enjoy beer and wine!

What's that, you ask? Why, it's a John Deere tractor and combine made of LEGOS!!!

Matthew checks out the 4-H Court of Honor.

On the 4-H side, this ferris wheel was made of Legos, too. So awesome!

So you probably know that there are games and rides at the fair. Well this was their version of roulette. If you look closely, you will see that they use a MOUSE to pick who wins! They spin the table, dump the mouse in the middle and the mouse runs into one of the holes alongside the edge of the circle and that's who wins!

In our next house, I'd love a huge porch. Anyway, I saw these rocking chairs and I would love for these to be a part of our next home! Wishful future thinking...

Who can go to the fair and not have a funnel cake? All I can say is, "what's weight watchers?" HA! It was yummy!

Matthew with some antique tractors. He's standing next to an Allis-Chalmers.

A very old combine machine that used a pully system.

We had a blast!!!

*next up: the demolition derby at the fair. it was awesome (in case you were wondering!).