Oktoberfest

The local Addison Oktoberfest festival is touted as one of the "10 Best Oktoberfest events" in the nation. I have heard good things about it in the past but have hesitated to make plans to attend due to how steaming hot it is in September in Texas. But it has been a bit cooler this year and I was looking for something fun to do with the kids this past weekend while Scott was out of town, so off we went to celebrate Oktoberfest!


Saturday started early with a 5K fun run! Look at Amelia and John all ready to race with their bibs and timing chips on their shoes!
Fresh off the excitement of the Boosterthon event at their school, I asked the kids if they would like to participate in this run. After they said yes (enthusiastically), I let them choose between the one mile fun run and the 5K, and they chose the 5K. The three of us went to the local running store to pick up our gear on Thursday after school. The proceeds from the race were given to an organization called "Wipe Out Kids' Cancer" and the event was very family-oriented. In general, the kids did great and we all finished together just shy of 45 minutes. I had told them in advance that we would alternate running and walking as needed during the course. I have to admit I was disappointed that they predominantly wanted to walk and that I heard a bit more whining and complaining than I would have liked ("I'm tired", "When is this going to be over?", "But mom, I don't want to run anymore!"). However, living the race through my kids' eyes was also a good lesson for me. As always, I need to work on my patience (I have very little), and it was also good for me to practice demonstrating a good attitude no matter the circumstances. After the race we socialized with a few friends we ran into at the post-race party, drank a lot of water (it was about 82 degrees during the race, humid and warm), and got free coupons and samples from sponsor booths.

The kids each also got a goody bag at the finish line that contained a coupon for free carnival rides at Oktoberfest through 5 p.m. that day. What a bonanza of a prize! So after returning home for Amelia's ballet class and completing some chores around the house, we headed back up to Addison for a fun afternoon.

If that's not a joyful expression on John's face above, I don't know what is! Below the kids are waiting patiently for the bumper cars to start.

The kids are the two on the left in the slide below.

Their favorite carnival attraction was called "Circus circus", which was a large fun house of crazy mazes, swinging steps, funny mirrors, and this large spinning wheel at the end.

Oh wow, did they ever love that wheel! I had a great time standing outside watching them giggle with delight in trying to figure out how to manipulate their bodies to travel all the way around the spinning wheel.

The unlimited carnival ride tickets were such a blessing, as there is no way I would have paid for them to go on as many rides as they did Saturday afternoon. The circus attraction lasted about 5 minutes and they must have gone on it at least six times each. At $3 per ride (the cost if you were buying the tickets), that would have been a whole lot of money! Plus the bumper cars, slides, and other rides they went on...all added up would have been crazy expensive. It was nice to let them pretty much run free for an hour without thinking about a budget or whether each ride was worth the cost.

At 5:00 when the children's unlimited ride tickets were no longer valid, we went over to the festivities tent to check out the entertainment. This is exactly what I came to Oktoberfest hoping to see!We enjoyed listening to the German music and watching the dancers and other performers. I was especially pleased that Amelia and John really seemed to enjoy this part of the day, as they pleaded with me to stay for "just one more song, please!".

We saw great Germn outfits like this on dozens of people inside the tent.And of course we enjoyed refreshments! Fresh draught Oktoberfest beer (Spaten, I think) for me and soft pretzels for the kids. Yummy!All in all we had a great day on Saturday. I hope the weather cooperates in future years so that we can return to Oktoberfest. And I am hopeful that the kids will even agree to participate in the running event again!