State Fair 2019

Elise and I went to the State Fair over Labor Day weekend. She was performing in the Galaxy of Stars Talent Show and we decided to make a fun couple of days of it. We stayed in a nice hotel and took the shuttle back and forth to the fair grounds. (There was so much flooding on the grounds this year that parking was limited.)

We got up Saturday morning and drove to Grand Island. We parked at the shuttle site next to our hotel and rode over to the fair. First stop was a slushee and a corn dog, and then we checked into the talent show where Elise participated in a workshop. Then we spent a couple of hours touring the fair.

We wanted to see the baby animals first! 

 Day-old piggies in the birthing pavilion.

Then we headed back to the dressing area to get ready for the semi-finals. Elise was dressed in a princess dress with sparkling shoes and headband. Unfortunately, the area surrounding the stage was grass and was a mud pit. We spent a good amount of time strategizing how to get on the stage without  sinking in the mud, falling or ruining her outfit. We finally set up a little place for her to sit and wait and then I left to find a place to sit in the crowd and deal with my own mud issues.  The princess and I were exchanging texts...

 She managed not to fall and all the little girls ADORED her! "Are you Cinderella? You're so pretty!"

With the flooding causing parking problems, plus the Husker football traffic stalled on the interstate, I was also getting frantic texts from a few fans.  Cousin Melissa made it just in time to see her performance.

Greg and Rose got there just after she was done.  No worries! Elise was thrilled to have some supporters :)

It was a gorgeous night, Elise did an amazing job with her song, "Journey to the Past" from Anastasia, and she made it to the finals on Sunday night.

After a long day we were excited to have a nice room to collapse in with free breakfast in the morning. We slept great and Elise managed to get a couple of hours of homework done before we packed up and headed out again.

 First stop... slushees.

We rode the Sky Tram (which I kept referring to as the Sky Cam. Elise wouldn't stop making fun of me so it's new name is the sky bucket.) Little did we know that a few hours after we rode the sky bucket, it broke. People were stranded for a few hours as firemen went up to each bucket to get people out.

 We went through the quilt building and found this amazing Harry Potter design.

 We loved the sand sculptures.

After touring all the things that we were interested in, we headed back to the dressing area to cool off and play cards. Then it was time to get ready to perform.

Eden's brother, Chandler, was also in the Talent Show so the "siblings" got to hang out together. Scott came to see the finals and Melissa came back too! And, a dry path was made out of plywood and rubber so the contestants could get on the stage without worry of the mud.

 Elise sang "Almost There" from Princess and the Frog and gave another fantastic performance. 

 She placed 3rd in her age division!

While she did not take home the top awards, (the top winner left with over $6,200 in cash and prizes), she gained experience on stage, as well as behind the scenes, dealing with weather, tech issues, critics and haters. It’s events like this that train your mind and spirit to believe in yourself! 

She sang musical theatre against barber shop quartets, country and pop singers, dancers, magicians and baton twirlers and still took home a trophy at the end of the night! 

Good job, Elise! Keep dreaming and working hard! We're proud of you and love you!!