Day 134

Today found me caught up with other things so did not do a lot of Iowa State Fair planning.  Although, I did clean up my sewing room a bit to start finishing up some quilts I have been working on.

So, thought I would share a bit about how I became involved with exhibiting.  I must admit I am a very competitive person.  Exhibiting at the Iowa State Fair (ISF) provides me with a challenge along with being a great creative outlet for my competitiveness.  When I was in 4H I did have a number of exhibits that went to the ISF.  The most memorable being a part of the fashion revue with one of my sewn outfits.  That was fun and quite a confidence booster.

My grandmother used to show livestock at the National Cattle Congress and other large shows.  My dad had always wanted to exhibit at the Iowa State Fair but never was able to.  So, while in FFA my goal was to exhibit dairy cattle at the ISF.  I raised a dairy calf through the Iowa Jersey Cattle Club.  I loved it!  My husband still gives me a bad time about my dairy whites and walking backwards (since he was a beef steer kind of guy).  If you have no idea what that last line meant you'll have to take in a dairy show at this year's fair.

When my husband and I married a friend of ours encouraged me to try exhibiting flowers.  I can only ever hope to be considered average in this pursuit but who doesn't love extra flowers around the house?  It is very addictive and only takes one ribbon to get you thinking about how to improve, what to grow, a new recipe your dying to try for the next year's fair.  From flowers I moved on to baked goods and now my challenge continues into textiles.  I guess in a way I am coming full circle and going back to those 4H days.