Walworth County Fair 2017

Today we decided to visit a county fair mid-week. What a great idea!! The lack of crowding, ample parking, and beautiful day, made the Walworth County Fair so enjoyable we didn't want to leave.

Because this was the first day of the fair, we actually got to see some of the judging. We watched the "pie ladies" cutting and tasting the pies. What a great job!! As always, it was fun to see the exhibits and get a few pictures.

The 4-H exhibits are very interesting and this county's exhibits really focused heavily on agriculture. We always learn so much from these displays.

Apples on Display

Giant Onions

Monster Cabbage

Bee Keeping

Really Cute Cake

Alfalfa Hay

Quilting Demonstration

The animals are a fair must-see. Ugly turkeys, monster rabbits, pigs, horses, sheep and goats are what makes the fair "the fair." Lou tried to engage several goats in conversation. One of the goats actually freaked out when Lou made a turkey sound. So weird!!

Baby Chicks

Mini Horse

Scary Turkey

Flemish Giant

Lou freaked this goat out!

We were more than surprised to see our favorite Ice cream Vendor, Yesteryear's Ice Cream. This year, the owner baked cherry pies to go with the amazing churned custard. We generally split entrees, but we have never, ever tried to split this wonderful dessert. It just would be too painful:)

This was soooooooooooooooooo good!

We listened to a lively polka band and enjoyed the accordion and banjo sounds. What a wonderful way to spend a late summer afternoon.

Lou with Packer Flags vendor

Irish Fest 2017

We attended Irish Fest on Friday night. The weather was warm, sunny and perfect for this amazing music festival.

Map of Ireland. Our mother's great grandparents were from County Limerick ( south west).

Milwaukee Irish Fest is a yearly ethnic festival held at the Henry Maier Festival Park, on Lake Michigan, United States, every third weekend in August. More than 130,000 people attend the Fest each year to take in nearly 250 acts on 17 stages. The four-day festival in downtown Milwaukee started in 1981. Irish Fest is the largest of the ethnic festivals held at the Summerfest grounds which report attendance, and holds claim to the largest celebration of Irish Culture in the world.

Perfect escape from the crowd.

Lou on the rocks!

With 17 music stages, there was music and dancing everywhere. Sometimes, it was hard to keep track of the groups we saw, but the music was such a nice change from the blaring electrical sounds of all the county fairs we have visited this summer.

Kavan from Cavan

Every Irish instrument represented in this group

Edel and Kate

Flute and Fiddle

The Irish step dancing is always a pleasure to watch since little girls and boys are usually the dancers. The energy and enthusiasm displayed by these young people is something we really appreciate.

Cashel Dennehy School of Irish Dance

Parents and Kids dancing together

We saw many men in kilts and quite a few in the parade that marched throughout the festival grounds. Paddy McFest  joined them on the march.

Paddy McFest

Can you tell which is the woman?

Of course, I always snap a picture of the human statue. This year, I saw him play the flute and engage with the crowd for a few moments before turning into the statue again.

Human Statue

The genealogy tent offered festival goers help with locating their Irish roots. A poster of common names did not have our maternal grandma's name of Minihan, or great-grandmother's name of Shaughnessy, but it was exciting to look for them anyway.

Friday's highlight was the Celtic Canines. These playful Irish Setters thrive on constant human companionship, and it was fun to watch the interaction between the dogs and their owner.

Irish Setters

Irish Terriers

No Irish Fest would be complete with something relating to the Titanic. Our very own great, great  uncle, Dr. William Minihan, drowned on that fateful night in 1912.

State Fair 2017

Thinking that we would avoid the crazy crowds common on a Friday night, we decided to visit the Wisconsin State Fair on Tuesday afternoon. Boy, were we in for a surprise! Lines getting into the fair were very long, and every food stand, vendor, and exhibit were full of people. Despite the crowds, we had a good time.

Below are some pictures of things we saw and did:

Talented Kids

Girl and Boy singing: "The Sun will come out Tomorrow"

4H Exhibit-spray painted bottle caps

Nutcracker-done by a young 16 year old girl

Interesting Sites

Flame Guy

Pow Wow

Giant Ferris Wheel

Molly Moo

Guess about Cows

Learn About Cows

Sleeping Steers

Beautiful Surroundings

Entry to Flower Building

Exploratory Park Path

Fattening, Unhealthy Food

Fresh Cut Pizza Fries

Spam Everything (ugh)

Door County Cherry Fudge Cake

Crème Puffs

Yes, we waddled back to the car, but since the walk was long, we lost a few calories. Well, two weeks to Irish Fest!