Fun at the fair {soooo late!}

{finally... my state fairs pics...}

We went to the State Fair on Kid's Day and 9-11a.m. all the kiddie rides were free.

So...

we

rode

EVERY

ride

there

was

to

ride!!!

And then some! Raegen was so excited to ride this frog...

until he was no longer excited to ride the frog {which really didn't take that long}.

But he had fun despite the terror...with his partner in riding crime, Mimi.

Dad and Lynden would often go stand in line for us while Raegen and Mimi were on a ride, so that when they got off they could almost get on another immediately! It was a great plan because there were THOUSANDS of kids there!!

Calling the Hogs on the bus...

soooo glad Mimi rode with him because I would NOT have like this.

It was two hours

of non-stop

riding fun!!

But I think this was his favorite. Though he {could have} almost gotten thrown off before it started just for teaching the other kids to stand up!!

His face,


says it all!

FUN!!

And of course, what would a trip to the State Fair be without a trip down the SUPER SLIDE!!!

I LOVE that thing!

Lynden's first ride at the State Fair...

sooooo much fun!


Clearly, dad is having a blast!

"Keeper of the strollers"

Stacy and the kids arrived just in time to join in on the fun...

and Mimi too!


Now this...is just insane!

{not for me.}

With no more free rides to be had, it was on to the Hall of Industry for some free goods!!

ha

Raegen found his own way to milk the cow...

{sometimes you have to make your own line}

He LOVED driving the combine at the Farm Bureau exhibit {one of our faves}.

It was the perfect place for Lynden to catch some zzzz's.

The Game and Fish exhibit is always a must see as well...

They had some fun animal tracks for the kids to ID.

And this....was just a tad creepy.

{a few people walked up behind me while I was taking the picture and gasped because they thought it was a REAL baby...I don't blame them!}

A few group pics...

What's cuter than a bucketful of grandkids??

Our FAVE stop of all time is the FFA Barn. This year they had a few pigs that gave birth, so they little piglets were just HOURS old...

I thought they would be smaller...that poor mama pig!

As we were heading out to leave we ran into some good friends from church. They were there showing animals for 4-H.

Another great year at the State Fair!!

My Florida Gator

Hog fan through and through

until...

this arrived!

My Aunt Euna lives in Florida and a few weeks ago I received this key-ute gator with a personalized collar that reads:

Lynden Rucker

My Florida Gator

Chomp, chomp! I just want to eat him up he's so cute!

And as you can tell, Lynden is quite the fan too!!

The Hogs are gonna have to really deliver if they want to keep this boy as a fan!

He is smitten! Thank you Aunt Euna, we LOVE our Florida gator. ;)

WPS!!!!! {"woo pig sooie" for those scratching your heads}

We headed north last Friday for Saturday's Hog game against Ole Miss. As you can see below, Raegen was thrilled I let him watch his "Cars" movie...

We arrived just in time to have lunch with Robby and Michael. As we were leaving the restaurant I was tapped on the shoulder by a "friend" I met through my blog during the summer. Ironically, we live just minutes from each other and have never met in person! It was great to FINALLY meet you E.L.!! ;)

That afternoon all the boys went to play a few rounds of golf and Lynden and I stayed with April and Brody. Lynden napped {of course} and I just wished I could!! Later that afternoon we headed a few miles north to visit with Danny, Bridget, Sean, and Gracie. Gracie is getting so big and can now hold her head up on her own!

Sean and Raegen had fun "racing" cars.

And, as always, Raegen made himself at home. ;)

On Saturday I dressed the boy's in their Razorback best {shirts from Aunt Stacy} and we headed over to Rob and Kate's for them to spend the day with their cousins.

Then B and I met up with his accountant, Jake, and his wife, Lane, for a little tailgating before the game. Because it was an early game the food consisted of donuts, pastries, and pigs in a blanket...that's my kind of meal!!!

{this picture makes me realize HOW. SHORT. I. AM!!! gee! grow some legs!!}

We had a BLAST at the game. Jake and Lane are such great hosts. We haven't been to a Razorback football game since...well, since we've had kids!!

Our seats were rather high, but I was amazed at how well we could see...I guess there really are no bad seats at a Razorback game!

Of course I stayed in my seat for the half-time show...hello!, LOVE. marching bands!! I recorded a lot of the show on my phone, but it was taking way too long to load on the blog, so just pics...

We stayed dry the entire first half and almost through the 3rd quarter. They made an announcement that a storm was 15mi away and moving at 40mi an hour. We decided to stay just a bit longer and it wasn't five minutes and they came across with another update that the storm was just minutes away!! We decided to head back to where we parked the cars and as we were crossing the street outside the stadium we overheard them suspend play due to lightning. I think we got out just in time. A shuttle drove us back to the parking area and we took refuge in the gaw-geous! barn.

You can see more pictures here. The parking area was at Pratt Place Inn & Barn and it's really the perfect place to tailgate because if you don't want to/can't go to the game, or you have to leave early, you can always just hang out in the barn and watch the game on the dozens of flatscreens they have.

~

While we were enjoying the game, the boy's were enjoying their cousins...

Raegen and Alyssa posing as cooking cousins...

Alyssa feeding Lynden with the Boon spoon {I LOVE!}...

Owen helping out...

And wouldn't you know it, when we arrived back at Rob & Kate's a white van pulled in just before us. I knew IMMEDIATELY who it was!! It was the Duggar's!! They are practically "neighbors" with Robby and Katie. They were passing out campaign flyers for their older brother, John, who is running for alderman. If I lived in the area he would have my vote!

Raegen and I watch their show every week...he calls it "the kids"..."I wanna watch 'The Kids'". I was soooo that crazy, creepy fan {can't you tell?!...I'm grinning big enough for everyone!}. They were so gracious and sweet and not once did they try to call the law on me. {though I don't know if they'll ever visit Rob & Kate again...they may call ahead and make sure I'm not there!}

We had such a great time this weekend with family and new friends... and I always enjoy seeing Raegen and Lynden spend time with their cousins.

The ride home left a LOT to be desired, but that's just traveling with kids...expect the unexpected!