We had already planned on coming to the Wisconsin State Fair; my parents actually bought us tickets for Christmas last year. Namine was also invited to the State Fair with The Ability Center, an inclusive nonprofit. They provided two tickets — one for Namine, and one for a chaperone. We used the tickets we received for Christmas for the other parent and Namine’s cousin, who we had invited along with us.
The itinerary for TAC at the fair was pretty short before everyone would go their separate ways. The first place we headed was to watch dog diving. Trainers showed off their dogs jumping as far as they could (the dogs, not the trainers) into a pool. Some of the dogs did it for the pure enjoyment; some did it competitively.
While the dog diving was new to us, next on the list was an old favorite: the pig races! There were three different races, each with different kinds of pigs. The last, of which I unfortunately did not get a picture, were potbelly pigs. And while most of the pigs seemed happy to race around the track, Pig Number Three (which I think was appropriately named Taylor Not-So-Swift) was definitely not inclined to do so. One of the trainers actually had to chase her around the track just to get her to finish.


Before moving on to the final item on our itinerary, the girls stopped for a photo.

Finally, we headed to the games and rides area of the park. There were no accessible rides at the State Fair, unfortunately — unlike our recent trip to Disney World — but Namine was still able to play several games. She also won several plush prizes in the process. Namine and I waited and watched as her cousin went on some rides.

After the games and rides, everyone who came for the TAC event parted ways. We caught up with my parents, who as luck would have it were also at the fair. We had lunch together, although a little later than intended due to a misunderstanding.
That’s a funny story, actually. We wanted to eat at Saz’s. I should say I wanted to, because I could live on their mozzarella marinara and it’s a tradition to get it at the fair. My mom said she and my dad were already there, so after the games, that’s where we headed. It was pretty crowded, so I wasn’t too surprised that I couldn’t see them. In texting with my mom in order to pinpoint where they were sitting, we both realized that neither of our groups were in the same location. There were, in fact, two separate Saz’s locations. They came to the one we were at shortly thereafter.
Since I hurt my back, I’m no longer able to pick Namine up, so she was not able to ride the Giant Slide at the fair. I did still take her cousin up to slide down, though. Namine was still concerned about me climbing the stairs, since my knee is still recovering from a separate injury. It was sorer after the fact, but I made it.


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