Blogging is a funny thing. There are tons of things to blog about here at the fair. The one thing that I keep thinking of is my Dad.

So Dad, this one's for you.

I want to say thank you. Thank you for the good memories from Puyallup Fair. Thank you for spending your hard earned cash on food, games, rides, and souvenirs. Thank you for letting make a Doo-Dah sand bird. Thank you for letting me get a black and white old fashioned picture taken. Thank you for standing around while I rode on endless rides. Thanks for spoiling me with scones, crusty pups, and cotton candy. Thank you for allowing me to have one of my first dates at the fair, going to the Beach boys concert. I haven't forgotten all the fun I had and how patient you were.

Now I have my own kids. Guess what. I am now standing at the Matterhorn waiting for them, just like you did. They are begging for a Doo-Dah sand birds. They want to play games and ride rides. They have enjoyed a Crusty pup and would love some cotton candy. Who knows, they may bring their first date here too.

The fair has treated generations of families to fun every year. It is exciting to know that I am giving my boys the same memories you gave me.

Dad, you are the best. Thank you.

xo Michele

When I come to the fair I feel a little gooey. Not from the food, but from the memories.

My husband proposed to me at the fair 14 years ago. I know that isn't what all girls dream of. You have to keep in mind that my husband grew up coming to the fair an was raised in Puyallup. He always thought the fair was a fun place with good memories.

This is how the story goes. After work he asked me to drive down from Seattle to go to the fair. I of course said, "NO!". I was tired and the last thing I wanted to do was walk around a bunch of animals and crowds of people. He managed to sweet talk me into it. Once we were at the fair I wanted to go on a ride, he refused. I wanted to go see an exhibit, he refused. I started to think he was being cheap! I asked why in the world did I bother coming here if you didn't want to do anything fun?

What I didn't know was that he had been at the fair earlier in the day. He made arrangements with the man at the skyride. (That is the ride that goes high above the fair grounds from one end to the other. You can see everything from up there.) He had asked the man to slam the door shut and place a huge heart on the outside. He had also asked friends to hold a 35 foot sign up while the "heart" skyride car went by.

So, we got on the ride. I had no idea there was a huge heart on the outside. He said, "Look down there!". I looked out the window and saw nothing. He got so worked up and excited that he physically moved my head so I wouldn't miss the sign that said "Michele will you marry me?" Everyone was waving. It was such a cool sight.

When we got off the ride there were people gathered around. He knelled down on one knee and gave me a ring. I said yes. I think at that moment all the animals sang a song.

I should have known this was coming. We ran into his mom and his sister. I just thought, "it's the fair of course they are here."

We have come to the fair every year remembering that moment. We still hold hands and smile. It is one of those things my kids think is great. How fun that dad asked mom to marry him at the fair!

I only have one regret. I wish we would have served scones at our wedding!!

xo Michele

The sun is out, the sky is blue and it's a wonderful day to visit the Puyallup Fair! My adult son and I had a pleasant and congestion free drive into town from Federal Way. After parking we followed a group of red-hat ladies into the fairgrounds.

Once inside, I took advantage of a brief sit on the handsome wooden slats which covered a nearby bench in front of the Fair Administration office to collect my thoughts and give one last inspection of the contents in the bright scarlet print French-style wheeled shopping bag I took from the closet at home to carry around what "equipment" I'll need for today.

While occupied with this important task, one of the eye-catching multi-car people movers pulled into view with retinue of fair attendants clad in uniforms showing off various versions of a spotted-cow print. Noticed the gal closest to my line of sight wore the pattern on a pair of stylish cut-off overalls. So chic!

Meanwhile a gentleman with a no-nonsense look who also selected shorts as his attire today strode by totting an impressive video camera emblazoned with the KOMO television logo, before stopping several yards away to briefly capture several feet of the festivities unfolding just ahead...

As we are running a few minutes behind our original schedule this stop (for blogging) is our first activity of the day! And now we'll be off to partake of the festivities. See you later!

Sunday morning is my favorite time to be at the fair. The crowds are smaller, the lines are shorter, etc. We'll see how long the Fair traffic remains light--I'm betting things pick up around noon.

Today, I'm attempting to do the unthinkable: see everything the Fair offers for $10 or less. That means that rides are largely out the window, and you may be seeing quite a few posts about interesting animals and the like. If I do run out of money, however, I'll be able to make a withdrawal from the First National Bank of Amanda, my traveling companion for the day. If you're at the Fair today, she's the girl in the gladiator sandals and vintage orange sweater. We'll be on the lookout for her favorite beverage, TaB, throughout the day.

On our way in, we noticed a few interesting attractions, including a Retro Candy booth and a strange animal resembling a camel-cow hybrid. We'll be investigating these forthwith.

-Danny Serna

OK, we're done showing the fair through the gaping eyes of our inexperienced News Tribune staff scribes.

Time to bring in the folks who REALLY know what they're talking about.

On Saturday, you'll meet Roberta Marshall. She's 62, lives in Edgewood, grew up near the fairgrounds and attended Puyallup schools. She and husband Kurt have 2 grown children and 5 grandchildren. Roberta is a 15-year member and secretary of Tacoma Photographic Society. Last year, her photo titled "Maple Tree" received Best in Show in the Washington Photographer's Exhibit at the fair. The photo is currently on display in the photo salon, on the second floor of the Pavilion Building at the fair. You might find her at the camera club table giving fairgoers information about how to find a club in their area.

On Sunday, you can read blog posts by Danny Serna, a 17-year-old senior at Puyallup High School. "I've lived within one mile of the fair for my entire life," he tells us. "Though I'm a little fuzzy on ages 0-3, I'm fairly certain that I've been to the fair every fall for which I've been alive."

On Monday, we bring you Marcus Bouma, 31, who's a Puyallup resident and Tacoma Community College student. He says he's been attending the fair every year since 4th
grade.

Check out their collective wisdom over the next three days!

This year's fair theme is "Epic Fun." You've probably seen the commercials or billboards by now. And we intend to tell you about all kinds of epic fun over the next 17 days -- or attempts that fell flat.

Or else we'll die trying.

News Tribune reporter Melissa Santos, who normally gets to cover epic fun at Puyallup City Hall and similar places, will be blogging from the fair all day Friday. Look for her reports starting late morning or early afternoon from the cattle drive, the pumpkin weigh off and other first-day festivities.

We're crossing our fingers that our blogging computer on the fairgrounds will be working the way our tech guy promised.

Starting Saturday, our volunteer citizen bloggers will take over.

Enjoy, and keep coming back!

This year, The News Tribune has solicited volunteer correspondents to blog for our Web site from the Puyallup Fair, and about 30 readers responded for this opportunity.

We have picked 16 bloggers from diverse backgrounds -- from an eighth-grade horse-rider to a 67-year-old fair veteran to a 16-year-old exchange student from Turkmenistan.

Staff writer Eijiro Kawada, who has covered the fair since 2001, will blog on the opening day, and each of our volunteer bloggers will have a day to spend at the fair during the following 16 days. They will blog live from the fair throughout out the day.

Read on and find out who our bloggers are.

=> Read more!