ode to the fair

watching the parade 2004

August is time for the Alto Fair. Held in the unincorporated town of Alto, WI, the 2-day event is similar to a county fair, only more family-ish and much smaller. For me, it a class reunion and a family reunion with the added bonus of chickens, goats and cows. It starts with breakfast and ends with fireworks. I love it beyond reason.

As a kid, it was the place to bring all my 4-H artwork, baking and animal projects for judging. I rode ponies in the parade. Cheered on by my beloved grandpa, I led my calf, Shasta, in the ring (winning the coveted "honorable mention" ribbon). I was so proud to be the granddaughter of a dairy farmer. As a tween, there was the excitement of carnival rides and the chance to glimpse that boy for whom I held a torch. As a young adult, it was the best place to catch up with old classmates. Now, I treasure the opportunity to share all of this with my kids, to see my grandma and all my aunts, to pet the critters, check out the pies in the baking competition and admire the vegetables from 4-H'ers gardens.

2006, our friend's chicken, Claus--Grand Champion

Several years ago, I decided to enter the "butter cookie contest." I begged Grandma for her best recipe, and spent two days baking. The result was a plate of 6 perfect cow-shaped cookies. Traditionally, my grandma competes in these contests as well. That year, she used a lesser butter cookie recipe, allowing me to go for the glory. I walked away with the blue ribbon and the 20 bucks. Due to the pilfered recipe, my victory was not quite as sweet as the cookies--I would rather have seen Grandma win.

alto fair, tilt-a-whirl 2009

photo by Cal

Once the great-grandchildren arrived on the scene, my grandma and my Aunt Ann began presenting an annual "Alto Fair" envelope to each family. The envelope contains money for each child to play carnival games and enjoy the rides. It is so much fun to burn through this money, absolutely guilt-free, knowing we are here simply to enjoy.

This year, I rode the tilt-a-whirl with Oliver. The dirt, grease and faded clown pictures were eerily familiar--I believe this is exact same tilt-a-whirl we rode all those years ago. Back then it was an exciting 3 minutes and then on to the next ride. This time there were two hours of head-spinning before I felt normal again. I am changing every day. Thankfully, the Alto Fair remains pretty much the same.

Arigato Tomoyuki

a new friend, a new brother

Tomoyuki is a great cook--he made these soba noodles for us

(they came all the way from Japan in his suitcase!)

I lucked into modeling this gorgeous kimono at one of our get-togethers

Tomoyuki's whisk for making green tea--delicious!

We were honored to celebrate Tomoyuki's 13th birthday while he was here with us.

A very special occasion.

Tomorrow we will drive our precious new son and brother, Tomoyuki, to meet the chaperone who will take him on the long flight back to his family in Japan. It is a bittersweet time. Tomoyuki loves to fish, so we have done that once today, with plans to return to the lake later this afternoon. I find myself unable to tell him it's time to pack his suitcase. Oliver will have a big adjustment Friday morning, when he wakes up without his new big brother by his side. Tomoyuki has brought much joy and laughter from his home to ours, and I hope we are sending these same gifts, along with pure love and summer fun back with him. Thank you, Tomuyuki, for being you.

labyrinth amazing, not a maze

our triumphant group enjoying the labyrinth

photo by Michael, who climbed on top of the barn to take this shot

A lot of amazing, new things have been happening here lately. Last weekend, we enjoyed the great honor of hosting a meditation retreat. Our schedule included yoga, meditation, breathing exercises, music, laughter and much more. Along with 14 other people, we practiced being in the present moment. We all received many lasting life lessons.

One of the best parts of the retreat was walking the meditation labyrinth. We mowed this 7-circuit wonder into our lawn last month. Fortunately, my dad the mathematician showed up and coached the entire project. If he hadn't been here, I would still be standing out in the yard scratching my head and turning the instructions this way and that.

There will be more retreat posts coming up, too much for one entry. I am floored by how lucky I am to be part of these wonderful days.

Here is some good info on labyrinths, courtesy“The Sacred Labyrinth” website: http://www.angelfire.com/tn/SacredLabyrinth/:

Unlike a maze, a labyrinth has only one path leading to the center. There are no dead ends. There is one way in, one way out: you cannot get lost.

"Each person's walk is a personal experience. How one walks and what one receives differs with each walk. Some people use the walk for clearing the mind and centering. Others enter with a question or concern. What each person receives can be integrated on the walk out. Your walk can be a healing and sometimes very profound experience or it can be just a pleasant walk. Each time is different."

It is a perfect space for people of all beliefs to come together in a common spiritual experience.

Hooray for Tomoyuki!

family of frogs

Our family has a traveling dream: we want to see the world together, making new friends and expanding our understanding of this planet and all who live on it. The first step of this journey is welcoming others into our lives, just as we hope to be welcomed wherever we go.

Tomoyuki arrived on the 25th of July. A kind and open 13-year-old from Japan, he'll be here until the 20th of August. This young man is incredibly brave--to fly those many hours away from home and spend time with this nutty family, possibly very different from his own. We received his picture a few days before his arrival and realized that we felt a great love for him even before we met him. Our thrill at having him stay here with us helps me to understand how my own host family must have anticipated my arrival at their home in Chile back in 1981. Now I know how excited they must have felt, how they lovingly prepared a space for me in their lives.

Tomoyuki fits right in with our family, and has enriched all of our lives, even in this first short week. He and our other 3 kids are busy making origami, catching fireflies, playing with the animals, laughing and running around. Even more than I do for this blog, Tomoyuki takes pictures of everything, from birds to fishsticks. We have all become close to this wonderful boy very quickly. When David proudly proclaims "Good Morning!" in Japanese, Tomoyuki gently and laughingly lets him know that he has actually said "Good Night!" This is world travel at its best.