The Morrill's Go To The Stampede

July:  a time of PARTIES!!  An average family living in Juab County will celebrate the 4th of July, the 24th of July, hot dog month (if you're really die hard like me), and THE UTE STAMPEDE.  When I was young, from the time that school got out until the Stampede I would do chores for neighbors and family member so I would have some money to go to the carnival.  I loved the rodeo.  Then puberty hit and I suddenly discovered how uncool the whole shindig really was.  Boy was I above it all.  Then I got married and the novelty of showing "an outsider" what the stampede was all about suddenly became cool again (plus I got to make out on the Ferris Wheel, always a bonus).  Later, I had kids and I was bound and determined to instill a piece of my childhood onto them.  Thus, the Morrill Stampede Celebration was born.  The celebration begins Thursday at 4pm.  We gather in the kitchen and make pink popcorn (I just watch, its more edible if I just watch).  We head to the horse parade and munch on the popcorn.  Most people skip the horse parade and this year I am surprised to say that the kids got more candy at the horse parade than the Mammoth.  There were WAY less kids and they threw tons of candy.  Jeremy filled his entire cowboy hat with candy.  Tyler even got a haul.

After the parade I needed to head home and finish getting things ready for Saturday.  Jeremy begged to go to the Stampede, so I sent him with my parents.  Matt and I were asleep by 10 and around 11:15 Jeremy swings open the front door and just starts screaming/yeehawing.  He was so excited.  He jabbered on for about an hour about how cool the rodeo was.  "There was this guy that didn't have an arm and he rode his horse on top of his truck, and Grandpa said that when I turn eight I can ride my horse on top of your truck dad."  Meanwhile Matt and I are fighting to stay awake.  Jeremy changes into his pajamas and jumps into bed where he continues to talk (to himself) about the rodeo and the bulls and the roping, etc. 

Friday, I left work at 2, picked up the kids, and said if they cleaned their rooms, I would give them some money to go to the carnival.  Well, they didn't clean their rooms, so the Morrill's skipped the carnival this year.  Which was just fine with me because it was $4 to ride the Ferris Wheel.  Anyhoo, so we went to the rodeo.  Same as it is every year, but for some reason the jokes were really bad.  I mean just plain bad.  Friday night, after the rodeo, Wellsfargo sponsors a coin dig for women and children.  So after the rodeo the kids hopped over the fence and went to town.  I wasn't going with them, I was wearing sandals and I certainly didn't want to step in some "dirt."  Bailee was successful and she got 2 fifty cent coins.  Jeremy came up short, but not to worry, Sheridy jumped right in the arena during the women's dig and got coins for all the kids.

Saturday was the big day.  Matt woke up sometime in the early hours (I was dead to the world) and put the pork on.  We woke up and started to set up the swimming pools and the slip and slides.  *Side note: Matt wouldn't let me do this on Friday because he didn't want to "burn" the grass.  So we set up the backyard and slowly everyone starts to arrive.  Jumptown came to set up the slide and then the fun really began.

Around 2, we decided to have lunch. It was quite a spread and very tasty. Everybody was having a blast.  I was quite happy to see all my family around me.  At some point during the day, the girls decided that they needed to have a tea party.  After a long, hot afternoon in the sun, everyone slowly began to disperse.  Suddenly, who should arrive but my best friend, Holy.  By the time she showed up, I was wiped.  I went down the slide with her a couple of times, but my energy was fading fast and I still had an evening at the rodeo.  They stayed for a while, but then they needed to get ready for the rodeo as well.  So, after a quick taco run, everyone was ready for the rodeo.  Once again, same old rodeo, same bad jokes, but having your family there makes it so much better.  All the younger kids were in awe, the fireworks were pretty cool, and the cotton candy was definitely tasty.  All in all, it was a great weekend.  Everybody ready for next year?