Topsfield Fair

Topsfield Fair is a New England tradition that has been running annually since 1818, with an exception for a few years of interruption during the Civil War and WWII.

On Friday the 30th, at 1PM, it opened its gates for the 186th time, and I was there with my boys.

Opening Friday is a great time to go if you're ever visiting.

Too early in the day to speak of any crowds.

No lines or obstructions.

They didn't even charge us the $10 for parking.

Nice, because it cost $30 for the three of us to enter the fair.

Yikes!

We started out with our favorite part of the fair... the animals.

Some hairy sheep.

And some naked sheep.

We watched sheep being sheared both the old fashion way with sheers,

and with electric clipper shears.

Here's a cow with cute curly bangs.

Or, is it a toupee?

An alpaca with a cute nose.

A beautiful draft horse enjoying some green grass

outside the Fruit and Vegetable Exhibit.

The horse looks so muscular and strong,

and I like their hairy hooves.

My son said it looks like they have boots on.

Yeah, maybe, like those furry boots people have in the Alps.

Moving on...

To the inside of the Fruit and Vegetable Exhibit.

Above is the "Best Home Garden Display".

Wowsers!

Those are some large pumpkins!

Very nice "Ribbon Worthy" produce.

But, what's in the bucket?

That's not sage, is it?

Moving on to flowers.

My favorite part of the Flower Exhibit was the Dahlia displays.

Below is one of several.

The blue glass bottles looked especially nice with the orange toned Dahlias.

Nice to see the wide range of size, petals, and colors displayed like this.

The boys and I also spent a little bit of time in the

Beekeeping house.

Look at the range of color in the honey jars!

From light, almost citrusy yellow colored honey,

to a very dark, amber color.

I wish I could have sampled them.

My son got to make his own beeswax candle (for a $1).

And if you'd rather buy them, you could have done that too.

Here is the duck race.

Volunteers from the crowd get to race mallard ducks.

Kind of fun, but over before you know it.

Besides, they were from New Mexico where duck racing,

according to the announcer, is very common.

I guess there was a pig race too,

but we missed that one.

Hand carved Welcome signs, anyone?

Or how about a cowboy hat?

With a pair of cowboy boots?

Not particularly New England:ish, more Texan, I'd say.

Here's a part of the fair that we covered quickly, the carnival.

It was actually a bit of a turn off walking through this part.

The workers at the attractions don't spare any tricks to lure your children in.

I was close to picking a fight (well, perhaps more of an argument)

with a worker

about their sneaky methods at the balloon and dart stand.

But, I figured it wasn't worth it, and we left.

The boys did try a couple of the games.

But the games are over quickly, cost a lot,

and the prices are so tacky,

that they soon wanted to leave this area.

There's no mistaking that food is a big part of any fair or carnival.

Topsfield is no exception.

All kinds of food options line the paths to every exhibit,

and the smell of fried foods lie like a heavy blanket across the fair ground.

Okay while you're hungry, but then it becomes almost nauseating.

Although dogs are prohibited from entering the fair,

there was some fun and fancy food to purchase and bring home to your pooch.

Does a dog really care though, what the food looks like?

I think this dog food mostly entertain the owner.

I seriously don't know how these bmx guys fit in to the agricultural theme.

But,

they were AWESOME!!!

We really enjoyed their performance.

Their tricks were high flying and fantastic.

I don't think I was the only mom

that gasped and held my breath a few times.

Last,

but NOT least...

The Big Pumpkin Weigh Off

This, my friends, this...

is what I came for.

This trip wouldn't have been complete

If I hadn't gotten to see these fantastic, giant pumpkins.

This year's winning pumpkin, announced last night, weighed 1,668.5 lbs,

and was grown by Mr. DeNigris and Mr. Moore of Gloucester.

Congratulations to the two of you!

All in all, a fairly fun visit.

But, I think, to enjoy it more next time, I need to let go of my romanticized images of what an agricultural fair should be like. In my mind I see an agricultural fair the way it might have been about 50 years ago. Less commercialized, more genuine, and more... agricultural.

Bigger isn't always better

Every year in August, we pick a nice sunny day on the weekend to go pumpkin shopping as a family. And every year the man in the family takes his time to very selectively look for the biggest and most perfect pumpkin he can bring home.

(The boys and I pick out just normal size pumpkins, that's good enough for us.)

The 70 pound pumpkin has been adorning the entrance to our house for just over 2 months.

And today, on October 31st, it was time to carve it.

The normal carving tools you get at the store in the carving kit were of no help. Real carpenter's tools were needed to get through the thick walls. As the kids pulled out the flesh, we saw the seeds.

They were HUGE!!!

But also beautiful, look at their gorgeous caramel color.

They looked yummy as they came right out of our giant pumpkin.

Above they are pictured next to normal size pumpkin seeds.

Well, I toasted them right away, eager to compare.

The small ones came out yummy as expected, but the big seeds - BIG disappointment.

It was like eating unshelled sunflower seeds where you have to spit out the shell, but the inside wasn't quite worth the effort.

I have googled recipes for the giant seeds, but unsuccessful. If someone knows how to most enjoy the big seeds, please let me know. I'm pretty sure my husband will continue his yearly tradition of finding the perfect pumpkin.

P.S. I put a few seeds aside to dry and plant next year.

Pumpkins, squashes and gourds

What's the difference between a pumpkin, a squash and a gourd? No, this is not one of these jokes with a clever punch line. I mean really, what's the difference?

I did some googling and found a (non-botanical) definition that helped a bit.

In general, pumpkins are the ones we carve for Halloween.

Squash we cook and eat.

And gourds are for decorating purposes only.

Yes, that helped!

Until I started thinking about pumpkin pie, pumpkin bread, and all other pumpkin recipes out there. There is even a pumpkinrecipes.org out on the web.

So obviously, we carve and eat pumpkins. Unless... the pumpkin we eat is different from the pumpkin we carve?

Yeah, now I'm just getting confused so I'll leave this subject and move on to show my white little Baby Boo pumpkins. Those are my favorites to decorate with. Aargh!!!! Now I'm totally messed up. So we carve, eat and decorate with pumpkins.

If we don't eat or carve the Baby Boo pumpkin, shouldn't it be called a gourd?

Never mind, forget I said anything... I'm just gonna go back to my googling for a little bit.

Have a great weekend you all!

In my oven right now

Oh, no, you didn't really think I stuffed this one in my oven, did you?

Naa, that one is way to big.

As you can see, I went shopping for squash at my favorite grocery store today.

So much to choose from.

So many different kinds I've never heard of and I am so curious.

I settled for three kinds of squash to sample and compare.

The all familiar Acorn squash (all green), the Carnival squash (yellow, green and light green marbled), and the Delicata squash (the yellow striped in the upper right corner).

They are all roasting in my oven right now, and it smells delish. Can't wait.

- Aww, Squash, how sweet. I heart you too!

Does Clint Eastwood have a disease?

That was my question to the employee at the garden center. I pointed to the little funny looking things growing on the stem of the Clint Eastwood Rowdy Red tomato plant.

-No, those are roots.

"Oh!," I said, feeling a bit silly. But the employee didn't appear to think that my question was silly at all, and continued to tell me about tomato plants, their roots and how to plant them. In short:

• A tomato plant benefits from being planted deeper than it is in its pot.
• It's okay to bury some of the leaves.
• New roots will develop along the stem.

The tomato plant will this way be sturdier, have a better root system and all together healthier.
All makes sense to me.

Now, back to the tomato with the movie star name. On the description for this tomato it said that this is a big and bold tasting tomato that is not for sissies. And, that it has some of the highest sugar levels ever seen in a tomato. Further, it said, the sweetness and the fruity flavors are well balanced with acidity and earthy nuances. It also mentioned complexity.

Wow, you'd think we're talking wine here, not tomatoes.

Just had to get it, and I can't wait to taste it.

But first I have to plant it - deep.

And I think of myself as a gardener...

The first of the season. Fresh radishes, straight from the soil.... of my friend's garden. She brought them for me the other day. I really wish I could say they are mine. But I can't. The cool season crops are being harvested. And I have nothing to show. My seed envelopes are still in the desk drawer. Not growing too well there, I'll tell ya.

I had the best of intentions. Lettuce, arugula, carrots, radishes, the works. The spring had just started - there was plenty of time. Besides, my allergies have been bad, the black flies wouldn't let me step outside the house without attacking me, and... what else? I was waiting for the right moment.

I should learn from this - my whole life can go by while I wait for the right moment. But I don't think I'll learn anything, this has happened before. I'm a daydreamer and procrastinator.

Good thing I have nice friends who are willing to share their crops.

By the way, the radishes were the best I've ever had, and, I even tasted (after making sure they're not poisonous) the leaves. Reminded me a little of arugula, but grassier. Do you guys eat the leaves, or greens, of any of your crops?