The Ledyard Fair

All year we’ve been looking forward to the free ride hour at the Ledyard Fair. Chad and Gavin stumbled on the event just after we moved here two years ago, and we sort of look at it as the kids’ big chance since we don’t normally spring for carnival rides.

Saturday morning dawned soggy, but by a quarter to eight it was clearing up and Gavin let out a joyful “Thank you, God!” on our way to the fairgrounds. Then, just as we pulled up the heavens let loose with a torrential downpour that stayed with us through the helicopter rides, the merry-go-round, the fun house, and the cars that go around and around the track really fast (not sure what they call that one). Needless to say, we spent a lot of time on the merry-go-round. Then, as suddenly as it started, the rain let up just as we finished our last free ride. What’s that all about?

After the rides we checked out the animals. I was interested to learn that a single goat gives 28 cups of milk a day and costs around $550 a year to maintain (though you have to raise at least two at a time). The mother of a girl who raises sheep shared a look at her hand felting project – a gorgeous marine scene featuring a humpback whale. We saw cows, sheep, llamas, a camel, and even a zeedonk (cross between a zebra and a donkey).

At the Lions concessions stand we chatted with our neighbor John who whipped us up some fried dough (seems no one’s heard of “elephant ears” around here). At the Ledyard Historical Society display we checked out old photos of our neighborhood. Then we finished up with a tour of children’s hobbies and home-canned goods.

After peeling off our soaked clothes, we sank into the kind of typical Saturday afternoon I was yearning for. Chad worked on the plans for a contraption to get the new piano into the basement, and I roped the kids into cleaning out the garage. Now I have hopes of making music again, and both cars are back inside again. Not a bad Saturday.