Have You Been to the Fair?

If you haven't been to the Wilson County Fair, you need to go. Our family loved going to the fair together, and I had the opportunity to go last night. My bud, Chris, went with me where we snacked on corn dogs, funnel cakes, and lemonade.

No fair experience would ever be complete without seeing the livestock exhibits. I'm not necessarily a "cow" person, but they were interesting to see, poop and all. Their breeders were with them, keeping them clean to make sure they were eligible for that big prize.

Later on we saw the rabbits in cages, and one looked like a cow. The white bunny with black speckles was something new to me. I'd never seen one before. I hadn't seen a duck with a "hat" on it's head until last night, either. And those turkeys. The blue ribbon winner was a turkey that's considered rare because it's kind is not raised for meat. Interesting ......

While Chris isn't a big ride person, he did break down and go on the ferris wheel where you can see the lights of the fair. Any kid would be mesmerized. I tried the Ali Baba - the large 22 seat swing that swings 180 degrees - and survived. No, not a nervous stomach, but I admit I did hold on for the 180 degree part. Something never to miss. You should try it.

Then there were the hog races. The MC was quite the actor. He lined up a cheerleader for each hog. The cheerleading queen for one of the pigs in the last race was nominated by her husband (obviously, not a very sympathetic man), and when her pig won, she was given the choice of "snout or ham". Which one would you have chosen? Well, the ham is not on the front end and she just couldn't muster up enough to kiss that pig!

Just down the lane was the juggling act. One man, two man and three man jugglers captivated the little kids in the crowd. When they climbed up to a 50-foot height above the ground to juggle, the audience was amazed.

The highlight of the fair was the hypnotism act. Believable and unbelievable at the same time. When Chris and I got there, there were 15 people on the stage, sitting in chairs, fast asleep. The things the hypnotist made them do! Wow. The first lady was instructed to do her best imitation of Madonna. She strutted around on stage just like Madonna did. The Michael Jackson impersonation was definitely the best performance, moon-walking and all. Even the gloved hand movements were believable. So, was it 'for real'? You can decide when you see it .....

Wilson County's fair is given the highest accolades. If you haven't been, you need to go. Today through August 29. Don't miss it.

Camp Hope at It's Finest

It's hard to believe that two weeks have passed since Camp Hope ended. Honestly, I've been slacking off on writing because I came back from camp and things really geared up in the world of real estate. That aside, I wanted to share with my readers how fantastic camp was.

Twenty-one kids up to age 16, 15 adult counselors, action-packed days, three square meals a day, and nearly perfect weather made for an incredible camp for everyone!

Did I tell you about the zip line? Or the obstacle course? Kick-ball games? Swimming twice a day in the pool that has it's own slide? How about the Wii competition? Tie-Dyed tees and building bird houses? And we even had a spider hike - hiking through the woods and saw over 500 spiders and their webs? Interesting. And fun.

Dillon and Michael were the two guys I was responsible for. Both are great guys. This was Dillon's last year and so we made it a great last camp for him. Our dunking contests in the pool became an everyday habit. Michael was my buddy for our chicken fights. We were last year's champs. This year few took us on.

Amber, my Monopoly opponent had a blast. We met when she was a patient at Vandy over a year ago. This was her second Camp Hope experience. What a wonderful kid.

Our favorite pool activity, after the slide, was the long snake we made. It started with just three of us, then it grew to a long 15 people. Loads of fun as we circled the pool over and over.

These are the greatest kids in the world. I wish I could take them home with me and enjoy them year 'round. They're sweet, imaginative, and grateful to be alive.

Won't you give generously to Camp Hope? If you'd like more information about Camp Hope, click HERE. Your generous support means that more children have the opportunity to go at no expense to them.