South Haven: The Van Buren County Fair

One day while we were in South Haven we decided to go to the Van Buren County Fair for a little 4H fun.  Sadly, the kids aren't big fans of animals up close ... they really prefer them to be at quite a distance, in cages, or just in pictures.  Sadly for them, that's not what fairs are about.  So on we went!

I got to pet this chicken ... first one ever!

The kids hated the chickens.  Chickens, particularly when grouped together, tend to be a noisy, unpredictable bunch and the kids clung to us with fear while viewing the chickens.

The turkeys too, though the ones we saw were pretty quiet.

The ducks, however, make such a nice, soft quacking noise, and the kids were much more at ease around them.  And who wouldn't love a cotton ball-topped duck?

After viewing the chickens, turkeys, ducks, and some bunnies, we made our way to the petting zoo area.  They had a candy dispenser filled with animal feed, so I showed the kids how to feed goats.

Though, from a distance, it probably looked like the animals were trying to attack us.

Unlike most petting zoos and fairs I've been to, this one had some exotic animals, like kangaroos ...

... and a zebra.

At previous fairs we've been to, we've taken pictures in the cutout boards they have.  So when the kids were reluctant to try this one out, my sister stepped in to show them how it's done.

And, of course, they followed suit.

Probably the one animal the kids hate visiting more than chickens are sheep.  We tend to think of them as a softly baa-ing creature, but these dudes pack a serious punch in the noise department.  Very jarring, to be sure.  The kiddos were slightly fascinated that some had no wool ...

... while others did.  But that's about where the interest in sheep ended.

We heard there was going to be a magic show with Ronald McDonald, so we headed over to the gazebo area to watch.

As we watched, however, the clouds started rolling in, thunder boomed above, and we decided to take cover in what appeared to be the Girl Scout barn.  It also had a food area, so we thought it'd be a good time to eat some lunch.

The kids played with some road safety activities they got in the barn while we waited for our food.

As we waited and ate, the rain started hammering the tin roof above.  But no one in the barn was sad about it; we hadn't had rain in what seemed like forever and the crops were hurting because of it.  So when we first heard the rain, the entire barn - filled with us and a bunch of farmers - erupted into boisterous applause.  It was a hard rain, to be sure, but it ended by the time we finished our food.  

Once the rain stopped, we gathered our things and headed over to the midway to check out the carnival games.  Christine and I have fond memories of playing carnival games when we'd go to the Kent County Fair as kids, so I was geeked to get to share this fun, quirky experience with the kiddos.  The "dime game", as we used to call it, has fallen victim to inflation; it now costs a whole quarter to bet on a color.  The kids were pretty interested in it, though, and Baylor even got to throw the ball a couple times.

My sister and Mollie dominated the race-the-car-by-rolling-a-ball-into-a-hole game.  Baylor and I did our best, though.

Then Bryson, Christine, and Dad tried to fool the guesser.  Bryson offered up his weight (and won) while Christine and Dad offered up their ages.  Christine won, but the guesser pegged Dad from the get-go.

One of our Curious George books has a dunk tank in it, so Baylor was beyond excited to see one in action at the fair.

The kids started to get tired but we had promised Baylor he'd get to try an elephant ear, so we tracked one down and settled in to enjoy.

Mollie didn't really like the elephant ear much, as she prefers more salty foods, but she did enjoy looking at the haul we'd accumulated during our time at the fair.

Baylor enjoyed the elephant ear immensely, though, acquiring a cinnamon 'stache for good measure.

We had such a great time at the Van Buren County Fair!  It was a great addition to an already great vacation.