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{lifestyle} Kendall County Fair

The County Fair or local amusement park usually equals funnel cakes in my book! On Saturday, with my son off to a birthday sleepover, and my husband still recovering from a major knee surgery, I decided to take the two girls for an afternoon at the Kendall County Fair in Yorkville, Illinois.

County fairs are as American as apple pie, and I thought that it would be great for us to get out of the house, eat some funnel cake, and see the farm animals. Little did I know how even more inspired I would get about farming.

The best part about the county fair was being able to let my kids see real live animals, up close and personal. There are tons of articles proving how disconnected we have become from the sources of our food, which is why many people lack the knowledge of how (and wanting) to cook at home. We have become so de-sensitized by quick service restaurants where full meals come out in less than 8 minutes and processed foods, that we have forgotten where it all comes from and all the hard work it takes to get there.

I must admit that seeing and smelling all the animals up close freaked my five-year-old out! She was shocked to see how big real cows and pigs were in real life. She especially had a puzzling look on her face when she saw that the little sheep she had read about in her nursery rhyme books were also not so in real life. However, I wanted to take this as an opportunity to teach her and let her know that the bacon she eats and love so much in the mornings, is a pig. Her eyes widened at that realization. Today, when I brought home some carnitas from the local market, she told her cousin, “You know we’re eating a pig right now!”

The Kendall County Soil and Water Conservation District created an exhibit where kids go through a “farm” and pick play strawberries from a strawberry patch, pick vegetables and even milk a fake cow.

At the end of the exhibit, someone from the district brought examples of different things grown in farms and what they end up as in our regular lives. My daughter was amazed to feel real cotton balls and find out that they had seeds, and feel how wheat feels in her hand and find out that it can be made into bread! I was impressed by this and how they were trying to do their part in teaching the community about how important farming is to our everyday lives.

All in all, the Kendall County Fair was a great day to spend our afternoon. I am even more interested in learning about farming and I think I was able to teach my daughter a couple things too. Your local county fair is an fun and inexpensive way to have fun with your family and friends. Not to mention, the funnel cakes and fresh squeezed lemonade is always a reason to visit your local county fair!

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