A Little Too Much

Toe's first county fair was a great experience. We did the petting zoo, ate corn dogs and elephant ears, visited the reptile tent (My favorite! We saw a baby alligator that was adorable), did some crafts, wandered through the barns and exhibits. Toe especially loved looking at all of the animals. We had to go back to see the pigs, sheep, goats, cows, rabbits, and chickens twice.

On our way back to the car, we stopped by the carnival to see if any rides were appropriate for him. I told Toe that we could only do one ride. We walked all over and Toe decided he really wanted to go on the child roller coaster. Mind you, before this he had been on the swings and been swung around by his parents, but that was about it. I asked him if he was sure, he said yes. I informed him that this ride wouldn't allow me to go with him and asked if he still wanted to go. He gave an emphatic yes. I checked a few more times. Yes. Yes. Yes. I was dubious, but I bought tickets.

There were signs posted on this thing saying that you shouldn't force your kid to go if he doesn't want to, and to keep an eye on your child to make sure everything is ok. I asked the operater "Is he too young?" hoping he might say yes. He said, "Nope." Toe was really excited. He got on, no problem but looked concerned when he noticed I didn't follow him. Another kid got on.

I told him I was watching him and I would be right there.

And then the ride started. Three quarters around the first lap, we could see he was definitely not having a good time. Without a word from me, the operator pulled the thing to a halt, helped Toe off and handed me Toe's ticket. SO NICE.

I looked for a ride we could do together, but they were all adult rides or kid ones someone would do alone. And I now had tickets to spend....

We opted for the Tilt-a-Whirl. Large red strawberries you climb into.

And he loved it. He laughed like a maniac and I actually made the thing go faster. Right before we were done, he got a panicked look on his face and I asked him if he was getting dizzy. He said yes and I told him to close his eyes or look at my face and he did, and all was fine. When we got off, he asked to go for another ride. Look at that child's face. Exhausted, I tell you. I told him it was time for a ride in the car. Home. He was pretty happy with that.