This was an extra special year to visit the Minnesota State Fair for me, as kid one was finally old enough to get her first “job-job” there. She is working for her grade school phy ed teacher at the corn roast booth and is having a great experience (see above).

Looking at Google results, I’ve written here a lot about the fair and Sunday’s visit was as fun as always. Year 43 started with the whole family participating in the Milk Run 5K, which I’ll write about in another post later this week. We parked the car behind Heritage Square around 7AM, which worked out great.

After the race, we changed clothes and walked around together before the 2PM corn roast shift. Food included Sweet Martha’s cookies, Fresh French Fries, Pronto Pups, several malts from the Dairy Building, 1919 root beer, Danielson’s onion rings and corn on the cob (of course).

We visited the Grandstand, Colleen and kid two took the chairlift thing to the top of Machinery Hill, we saw Raven’s show at Minnesota Bound, toured the art, food and horticulture buildings, got a button from admin, listened to some live music at the Leinie Lodge, stopped by The Current booth and watched part of a horse show in the Coliseum.

After kid one went to work and Colleen left for a benefit event in Minneapolis, kid two and I hung out until kid one got done working. Thankfully she was finished early (10PM), but it was still a really long day (especially with the heat and sun). We walked up and down the Midway watching people try to beat the carnies, visited the Wild and Vikings booths, rode the giant slide and Skyride, then took a little nap in the car until it was time to head back to the corn roast.

Anita Baker was performing in the Grandstand that night and I made the girls wait outside for the fireworks, which were especially good this year. Traffic leaving via St. Anthony Park was non-existant and we made it home before midnight.

Since I have to work at Fortune Bay, I’ll miss the Minnesota Music on a Stick concert everyone else is going to on Friday. I’m experiencing fair withdrawal already, though, so I may have to stow away with kid one on Sunday or Monday…