Sisters Rodeo 2009!

We had a great weekend in Sisters, OR with the highlight being the Sisters Rodeo on Saturday afternoon. David has been going to this rodeo ever since he was a kid and I've been going ever since the first year we were dating way back in 2000. I just realized that this was the 10th year I've been going! Yikes. If anyone reading this has ever brought small children to an outdoor rodeo then you're probably familiar with the challenges. If you haven't then you must be smarter then we are. Grace was soooooo exited to go to the rodeo this year and asked all week when we were going. When we finally got there and walked in to the stands she yelled Yee Ha! and bounced up and down. She walked around behind the stands with Grandma for a bit and got to meet a Rodeo Queen and get her autograph which she was pretty excited about. You just can't beat royalty when you're three. I was mostly worried about Ethan because the rodeo started at 1pm which is smack dab in the middle of nap time. He finally fell asleep about 2.5 hours into the rodeo when his Oma took him for a walk.


Tips for surviving a rodeo or other outdoor event on bleachers with small children:

• Pack a lot of snacks! Food, especially treats, will work wonders.
• Pack something special to drink. I brought Yoo Hoo chocolate milk which isn't something they usually find in my diaper bag and more exciting then a water bottle.
• Bring sunscreen even if the forecast calls for rain showers
• Bring the hugest bag you can find to hold the mountain of snacks, drinks, sunscreen, and coats
• Make sure you have a ratio of 9 adults to 2 kids. That really helps!

I didn't get a chance to take a ton of photos since I was busy juggling an overflowing diaper bag, camera bag, camera, and children. I brought Grace to the portapotties twice and hung out with Ethan behind the stands to let him walk around a bit. I did manage to get some good photos of my favorite event in the Sisters Rodeo...the Wild Horse Race! It's absolutely hilarious to watch teams of men try to subdue wild horses and then ride one around a barrel at the opposite end of the arena. Truely a crack up.


By the way, this is far from our kids' first rodeo. This was Grace's fourth Sisters Rodeo experience and Ethan's second. We also attend the Snake River Stampede Rodeo in Nampa, ID every year since my father in law is on the rodeo board. We usually attend 3-4 performances during Rodeo Week every July.