A Fair To Remember.

Oh, man, I could write these fair pun headlines all day. Just call me Carrie Of Clan Bradshaw. So as I wait for the pilot episode Game Of Thrones to kick off on HBO tonight (winter is coming... and I am a dork... and you are too if you know that reference) it only seems appropriate that I finally share our Thomas family trip to Medieval Fair from a couple weekends ago.





Sisters of The Royal Guard.



You shall not pass... ya'll.



I told you about those teen fairy wing girls. These were my favorites.



These bagpipe dudes are our Mom's favorite Med Fair performers. They get lots of teen fairy action I fear. Kathleen is showing me how to properly knee-clap as they play the soundtrack from The Last of The Mohicans, which is a bagpipe crowdpleaser. Especially when the crowd is filled with lots of the ladyfolk who then superimpose images of Daniel Day Lewis running through the woods in leather in their mind with these guys frollicking on the stage in kilts.



My dad, my husband and my youngest babe. The guys aren't really as much into this scene and have found alternate entertainment. This is as close as Chris gets to medieval garb. "Christopher Of The Hood"... more like "Chris Of The Easily Sunburned."



Meanwhile my mom thinks Charlie's "into it." But I think he might be checking out...



... the wench cleavage. I guess there's something for the guys after all.



Apparently cell phones go great with cleavage. All the wenches carry them.







Okay, but check out this bear. This was something we had not seen at the fair in years past, and it was so cool!





We all had to get bear hugs.

Then we started hitting the tents for some shopping. Dad especially needs a little impulse purchasing to lighten his mood when he gets cranky from waiting in line for turkey legs and roasted corn. So medieval impulse purchase number one...





A didgerridoo. Which only Charlie could get to properly play. He has this thing with tribal instruments in general.

But that was not nearly impulsive enough. So purchase number two...



Wait for it... wait for it...



"The Dragon Of Darkness."



Or, at least that's what this guy told us it was named. By the way, our dad challenged us to find one other person at the fair in one-piece coveralls (his signature look), but in that entire freakfest, our dad still won. And he wasn't even in costume.



Signing of Ye Olde Royal Credit Card Receipt.



Of course, then we had to carry it back to the car. Correction, Jeremy had to carry it back to the car...





... with a proper courtly procession. Mom, Charlie, Me, Chris, Sam (in the stroller), Jeremy, Kathleen and Dad in the rear, yelling out – no, really – literally yelling out to the hundreds of passersby:

"Make Way for The Dragon Of Darkness!"
"Hail The Dragon Of Darkness!"
"Bow Down To The Dragon Of Darkness!"

(My dad's coveralls are kind of cute from the back.) Then we finally got to the parking lot and stuffed it in the back of Kathleen's Scion. That dang dragon is now sitting in the backyard next to my parents' bird bath (because, you know birds just love black freaky dragons watching them bathe.)

But then the sales guy, you know that long grey-haired peasant shirt wearing fellow (who is apparently from Minnesota) called my parents this week to tell them that the dragon probably shouldn't stay outside after consulting with the artist (go figure, that ceramic dragon can't withstand 50mph winds and Oklahoma hail... huh). So now my dad has the dragon perched behind his armchair. It cried dragon tears with him the other day when he found out All My Children was cancelled.