4-H at fair time...

I must admit...I am not a fan of fairs. County, state--you name it. It is far too crowded for me. I hate the overwhelming sense of insignificance, the fear that my children will get lost, and the twenty pounds you can gain by just smelling the fried food on a stick as you hurt your back and feet walking everywhere. The Minnesota State Fair, also known as "The Great Minnesota Get Together," takes place the last two weeks of August through Labor Day. Our county does it near the middle of August--and this week is it.


We have never exhibited at the fair through 4-H or Open Class. I never did it as a kid, though I was a 4-H member and it was my favorite building to go to. I have tried finding a group for my kids a couple of times--it wasn't until this year that we all really clicked with one. I knew the kids were going to want to show, so we set the goal pretty low this year. Each did three projects--photography, space models and scrapbooking. I was fairly confident we could accomplish all that. Last weekend I was disappointed to be working on things so late--but they all got turned in today. Each person gets interviewed by a judge for each project. How daunting that must be to little ones! Great practice for grown up life. I learned this afternoon that we are not the only ones--apparently 4-H parents are all familiar with this.


After a member determines to do a project, they must register right after the hog roast in the spring. They really just sign up for everything they think they MIGHT even want to do just a little. There is no penalty for not doing it--but if a member signs up too late--they are not allowed to win a state fair trip with that project. Can you imagine what a bummer that would be? So we got ours in, even if at the very last moment.


My two older children got two blue ribbons and one red each. My youngest brought home three blues. I am really proud of them. We have to wait until tomorrow to see who brought home the grand and reserve champion ribbons of the county. We will also have to submit our things for open class. My daughter, husband and I are all submitting exhibits. We are really excited!! Who would have ever known? I am still not a fan of crowds or the wafting smells of fried foods, but maybe it will have a new perspective for us.


It was funny, when we got home the kids were already chattering and I explained that if they wanted to do vegetables or baking we could actually do it if we weren't stressed about getting other projects done that could be done at another time. Maybe it would be more fun for them too. I think that showing at the fair is more than just ribbons. Oh, I don't kid myself into thinking that it isn't a motivator for them. I just think that the payoff is encouraging them to do the work in the first place.


Even my husband got into the spirit this weekend by helping make 4-H symbols for the GPS hunt that is new at the fair. I think the spirit may become contagious. My youngest asked why we never showed stuff when my husband and I were kids. I guess I never even thought about it--I think I knew it would never happen. The thought of showing never crossed my mind--not once. My husband grew up in the cities near the fairgrounds and he went every year, but showing wasn't one of the things kids around him did. I think open class is kind of our chance to join in the fun. My children have asked repeatedly to go to the state fair and I have never relented; perhaps it would be a chance to be inspired for next year's projects.

Summer in the cold

July had some unseasonably cool temperatures.We saw summer arrive late in the month of June with some temps in the mid-90's (Fahrenheit). Those temps have disappeared.


When my boys started the morning with their last day of swimming lessons for the year, it was nippy! It felt more like Halloween time than it did time for taking a dip into the water.


We had lunch and decided to go for a hike at Nerstrand Big Woods State Park. It was chilly, but we were okay. We tried to do the GPS geocaching-really the childhood game of searching for pirate's treasure gone high tech. We have enjoyed doing it, but we also find it frustrating. The ranger suggested trying to use the unit with a traditional compass. I think we will do that next time. We did find some blackberries and raspberries in the park and stopped periodically to pick some for a great snack. It was great ! When we were driving home, I noticed that the car told me it was 59 degrees at 3:00 in the afternoon.


The boys had a softball game with their 4-H group at 7:00 in the evening. I am happy the boys have been able to play with 4-H. We aren't sports fans around here. I have to tolerate a football game every now and then in the fall, but that is pretty much it. It was a nice pace for the boys--the parents don't get silly with their obsessive behavior. If more sports were like this, I might be more inclined to do them. They are really looking forward to next year!



There were blankets, jackets and a baby even had a stocking cap on. After sitting on the ground an hour, we were ready to get home. We actually turned the heat on it the car...can you believe it? JULY and we turned the heat on? Minnesota is considerably warmer in the bottom half of the state. The warmest recorded temperature was in Moorhead (on the border with Fargo, North Dakota) on July 6, 1932, with 114 degrees. I learned that and thought of my grandmother, pregnant with my father--she would have to wait two more weeks before delivering in that heat wave. UFF DA!!!


The coldest temperature in Minnesota was recorded in Embarass, Minnesota (far north) on February 6, 1996 with a low of -60 (Fahrenheit). This was actual temperature and did not include windchills. For a few years, I lived in Fargo and remember it getting -40 below and speaking to a person from California and she was utterly amazed. I remember her asking how we lived like that. In northern Minnesota engine block warmers for the car are essential. However, the record colds set this month aren't that dire.


June brought highs in the mid-90's in Southern Minnesota (usually warmer) to the low of 23 degrees in Tower. Tower and Embarrass are close to each other and are routinely the coldest place in America and frequently have colder temps than many parts of Alaska even. Northern Minnesota has a lot of mining. Can you imagine working in winter temperatures like that? My husband is a mechanic for agricultural equipment, that can double for snow removal in winter, and I know how cold he gets. Today he went to work on a piece outside and had to return to the shop for a jacket. For all the people who have been shocked by the temperatures, there has been an upside to all of this. Last night was only the second time I have killed a mosquito this entire season. Minnesota, like so many other places, like to think of the pest as a state bird of sorts. Such a strange year. I think I should fix my back door so it is more energy efficient--I thought it was going to be a bad winter a while ago. I am getting concerned over heating costs this year--never know, maybe it will surprise us and be a nice mild winter to match the mild summer.

Fire: the odd tool of Prairie Restoration

Native Americans used fire to control and help the prairie. As this area became settled, fire was controlled at all costs. This control was for good reason-the Moose Lake and Hinkley fires were the best known of all the fires in Minnesota history. However, fire was a reality and it motivated changes that were not necessarily best for our prairies. Now, groups focus on safely burning areas that will encourage the prairie to come back and thrive.


We learned of Pheasants Forever's efforts because my children were to help in 4-H. As part of their project, my kids are revisiting the burn site to watch how the field recovers. My husband is really the only person that eventually helped because of conflicting commitments. He helped by maintaining the wet line outside the burn perimeter. This is most important when the burners are first igniting the fuel, but the water is also used at various times throughout the burn and at the end when making sure all fire is completely extinguished.


Many of the burners have training in the fire control. They take it through the Department of Natural Resources. For some larger fields, they may plow a perimeter that will help control it--but the plow line is no substitute of labor intensive observation. They work in two teams and create a ring of fire and will join on the other side.


When the two teams meet, it takes an incredibly short amount of time for the fire to flare up, cosuming all available fuel. In one burn I went on as a reporter, the flare up created intense heat and burned out in less than a minute. Another site that was six acres in size, burned eleven minutes from start to finish. Eleven minutes! The sheer terror that a fire could bring to the settlers or anyone with an out of control fire is easily understandable. It also brings new light to the Native American's practice of burning. With regular prescribed fires, not only does it open up space for new plants, it removes the dead debris that increases the risk of unintentional or more dangerous fires. Though it is hard to beleive, this blackened field will become a lush, green carpet of new foliage in a very short time. I can't wait to post photos!

The cookie monster would be jealous: preparing for the hog roast

Wow, time flies when the modem breaks and you get busy! We have had some great fun the past few weeks.


Last Friday my kids helped make cookies for the county's 4-H fundraiser. This is an event that is planned all year and takes three days of actual cooking and work to pull off. Friday was the beginning of the cooking preparations for the hog roast. The roast serves about a thousand people Sunday. The kids helped to prepare the sheets for baking.


They also helped remove the cookies from the sheets, stack them up and place tables and chairs out for the people to eat at. The Lions donate their use of the building and kitchen. This is pretty much an all day affair. We got to break at noon and share a meal with the cooks who have been doing this for years and years. The women there were incredibly nice and I really think we got the best job of all. So many others were working at clearing tables and doing dishes among all those people...we had a nice slow pace and were rewarded with very yummy cookies!


All in all, while we enjoyed the day and had a great time, we were still very tired. The kids helped set up the tables, chairs and prepare 1080 cookies. We had tables and tables of cookies and even when stacked, we had tables of them! Right before we left, they had a chance to have some fun and take a break with the other homeschooler that helped out that day. What a great time we had helping the county make about $20,000 that day.

Leadership with 4-H

I love 4-H. My children have tried a couple years to find the right club without a huge amount of success. We have tried two different groups and contacted others in the past; we found this one because of my work and I think it is a huge blessing. We just went to our first meeting at our new club and I am already so very impressed with the group. They had a speaker from the county's recycling center and had several recycling activities. We have to drive a bit to get to it, but I think it will be very worth it.

Last weekend the boys went to a leadership event for younger members who may not be able to attend Project Blu--a state program for older 4-H'ers to help them gain leadership skills and experience. They made St. Patrick's Day cards for local nursing home projects, played some great team building games and met some new friends. It was a great day. Alex was supposed to go to Blu in Mankato last weekend and I was supposed to attend as a chaperon, unfortunately we were both too ill to go. We look forward to next year.