The Fall Fair

I said my next post would be on "Fall Colours", unless something more interesting came up over the next couple of days.  Guess what?

Its beginning to get colder every day.  The kids are still playing outside, but now they are bundling up in warm hats and mittens every time.  Today they were down by the lake wearing splash pants (windbreaker fabric with a lining for warmth) to help protect them from the blustery winds.  Hot chocolate has been pulled to the front of the pantry shelf.

In many small towns across North America, its time for the annual "Fall Harvest Festival".  You know, the kind where you see people compete for "biggest pumpkin of the year".  They proudly enter freshly picked vegetables or baked goods, vying to win "best zucchini" or ""tastiest apple pie".

There is no harvest here on the tundra, so my interest was piqued when I came across a sign advertising the Rotary Club's Annual Fall Fair.  A Fall Fair?  In the Arctic? The more I looked into it, the more interested I became.  One advertisement proclaimed "World's Best French Fries!"  Another "Fresh New Games!"

I frequently visit the local library here in town. On my last trip to the circulation desk the librarian said "Don't forget to visit our booth at the Fall Fair! First 500 kids get a free book!"  "Um, yeah, about that.....What exactly is the Fall Fair?"  She stammered a bit and said "Look, there's a sign over there."  I dutifully checked out the sign. World's Best French Fries!, it read.  Fresh New Games!

So, of COURSE, we had to check it out.

It was a CARNIVAL!

(Well, it was carnival games.  Close enough!)

This was our view from the line-up for tickets.

These people were waiting outside.
We're seeing more and more amautiit:
traditional parkas worn by Inuit mothers.
(I'm doing a post about these!)

Once we got inside we bought our tickets (50 cents each).  A hot dog cost 4 tickets, can of pop (soda) also 4 tickets.  The price of the various carnival games varied (2-3 tickets per go).

Hot dogs!  

The kids learned a few valuable lessons at the Fall Fair.  First lesson: Tickets don't go far and run out quickly.  They decided after seeing all the games (and cotton candy) that to conserve tickets they would split a drink together.  Teamwork!

A bucket of water just landed on this poor man's head.

Cotton candy! 8 tickets!!

Coraline giving ring toss a try.

8 tickets well spent.

Felt like the whole town was here.

Doesn't matter where you go.  The "poop emoji" is a favourite.

Captain Jack won a stuffy!

Coraline came so close...........

Daddy saved the day! Two happy kids
with two carnival prizes.

It was a great day.  And the kids got their free books from the library's booth as promised!  Captain Jack Sparrow went with Captain Underpants, Coraline with an old favourite: Bridge to Terabithia.

Up next: Fall colours.  For sure next time, promise!