State Fair-Alaska Style

The Alaska State Fair is unlike any other fair I have ever been to.  Although the rodeo is anticlimactic and the shows are not always the biggest names in the business (who would want to travel all this way to play in an outdoor theater at this latitude?), the rest of the fair lives up to Alaska's reputation-being the biggest and the best.  Dimitri and I were able to walk to the fair from our house and explore the wonders of the fair, mainly the animals and the ginormous vegetables.  Quiz time: How do plants make food?....Through photosynthesis (the sun's rays), plants are able to produce their own food.  In Alaska, the sun shines 20 hours/day in the summer, making lots of food and growing the vegetables extremely large---world record large.  As Dimitri and I were approaching the largest pumpkin in the world, or at least would have been except for the miniscule hole in the bottom of it, we ran into a news crew that thought Dimitri was so cute, they needed to interview this mother and son in front of the pumpkin.  Needless to say, he put on a show.

The top picture is next to the almost world record holder at 1,705 lbs.  The next picture is of some runners up, only about 1,000 and 850 lbs respectively.  The last picture is next to the new Alaska world record holder at 1,200 lbs.  At any rate, he was on the news that night and everyone thought he was adorable.  I think the size of the pumpkins is much more impressive, and I'm the mom :)

Dimitri was also intrigued by the animals at the fair.  On another outing, this time the entire family was able to participate, we let him pet the animals.  He was the happiest boy ever. 

Dimitri is interested in everything, from animals to the ability of a dowel to be used as a lever to tip over his walker.  He is cautious, but loves life.  Again, he is the happiest baby I have every seen :)