WOW! What a week it was. We headed to the county fair on Wed. to get the kids' steers checked in. I asked my dad if he would pull his camp trailer down for us to stay in. The trips back and forth every day are so wearing. We got checked in, animals fed and watered, and the trailer all set up. One thing we did notice was that there was more competition for the steers this year- or I guess I should say better. Thurs. morning came awful early- I think Ariel was up and out by 5:30. She and Justin fed, cleaned the pens, washed their steers and started getting ready for the big day. This year was so much better than last year because they had such gentle steers, they were like puppy dogs. What a difference that makes. The lady that helped us clip them told us to give an hour to groom. So we headed over to watch the last of the pig judging and showmanship. After that we headed over to get ready. Just a few things we didn't account for: we had 3 steers and 1 shoot- not good. Rachel (my neice) was showing first, so they were first in. We were all scrambling to do what we could without the shute, what a wreck. We also didn't have a generator that would work our dryers and the electricity there was a joke, to say the least. It kept tripping off and we were having a hard time getting them ready. Rachel got 2nd in her class- yea! Ariel went in next and we got her ready just in time- thanks a bunch to Cher who stayed behind and helped us. Ariel got 1st in her class- good job! We had two more classes showing before Justin had to be in there which gave us a little more time. After a few stepped-on toes, black paint on our fingers, show adhesive all over our clothes, he was off into the ring. Justin had the hardest class, but he still got 3rd. Way To Go! The judge put his and 2 others seperate and took quite some time to decide how to place them, so we felt really happy about that. After the steer judging was over they each got to go back into the ring for showmanship. Rachel was in Jr.'s, but Ariel and Justin were both in Sr. and in the same group. They both did a good job, but only Ariel was chosen to go back in for the final round. We just need some more practice, Justin. Ariel didn't win anything, but she did a good job. We all felt like that contest was a pre-determined decision. I won't vent it here, but pretty much everyone there felt that. Anyway, when the judge went around and gave comments for each kid he said that he couldn't fault her in any way. She controlled her steer well, set him up well, and did what she should have. There was another kid that did a GREAT job and really stood out to all the spectators! When he didn't win, there was a gasp from those in the stands. Kinda hard to believe someone can let their steer go 3 times and still win. But I said I wasn't going to vent, right. That night was the opening night of the carnival. That first night it is all the rides you want to ride for $15. After animals were all tucked in for the night the kids headed off. Me, I watched a little of the demolition derby with some of the other parents, up until security came and put up a tarp over the fence in front of us. We were watching it from the steer barn. We were pretty put out about that since if it wasn't for our kids and their animals there wouldn't be much of a fair. After a few of the dads told them off and we let them know just what we thought about it, we just pulled up some feed buckets and watched it from over the fence- we'll show them! The derby was pretty much a dud, so we were really glad that we didn't pay. And we had more fun taunting the security anyway. Ariel showed up feeling 'green' just about the time it ended. She had gone on rides with some of her friends and threw up twice, yum! You would think that after the first time she would have known better than to go on another ride- um no. Friday morning was another early morning and we had to get ready for the sale. We did watch a few open class shows to help pass the time. We decided to give ourselves more time to get ready for the sale, so we got an early start. We all went down knowing that with the economy this years sale wouldn't be the same as last year. There were more animals and less money to go around. The kids both sold for about $3,000, so we won't complain. Some of the others got lots less. We had the same buyer from last year come from the valley to buy for us. Thanks Jerry! We didn't make as big of haul as Rachel, a whopping $10,000. It pays to have connections. And our buyer is actually one of their connections also. That gives the kids enough to pay me back (YEA!),buy steers for next year, and pay for their own grain. And they may even have a little left to spend. Atleast that will put them on top next year. That night we were all wiped out. We were all in bed with lights out (atleast in the trailer- the carnival was still going strong) by 9:30. We went to sleep to the tunes from the carnival and the announcer from the rodeo. Sat. was nice. We got up later and the kids fed and cleaned pens. Ariel and I had a nap, Justin walked around the fair. We didn't have any shows or anything that day, so we just hung out and took it easy. We met up with friends that came and just had a fun day. That night I went to bed early. The kids played at the carnival and around for a while. Sunday morning they had to load their steers on the trailer at 6:00. A little sombering knowing where you were sending them off to. Ariel had a hard time. We are all glad that it is over. But the kids are already talking about next year. Each year we learn a little more, get there a little more prepared, and feel a little more satisfaction with the way it all goes. The kids sure did good to work their steers, and it really did pay off. We sure appreciate my brother David and his wife Cher. Since Saul knows nothing about the animals and tells me we can do 4-H as long as we don't try to involve him, we wouldn't be able to do it without David and Cher! It hasn't even been a week and David is already asking the kids when they are going to get their steers up from the field. Last year we bought from AZ National, but this year we are going to buy from Dad and David.
12 years ago
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