Oh, it's just so Grange-y

One way that we here in central PA know that summer is coming to an end is when the Grange Fair comes to town.  And the interesting thing about the Grange Fair is that it's just so....Grange-y.  

There's really no other way to describe it.

You walk around, hopefully with people 

you enjoy walking around with.

You view the animals there to be viewed.

[Do they know they're on display, because come on:
How sweet is this?!]

 You say hello,

 and have a moment of 'huh, I eat you...'

 You wander through the crafts,

 the [blue-ribbon-worthy?] collections.

 You ponder what makes one pepper 

more prize-winning than another,

 you marvel at the things that people do.

 You reflect on the fact that you're really a citizen of this great place when you recognize names of contestants, and wonder if you can request them to share with you their prize recipes.

 If you're me, you get a little giddy about the flowers,

 and focus on the ones 

that have caught your fancy.

And then, of course, there's the typical fair fare, 

 of games and cheesy prizes, 

 of fried food [speaking of cheese...]

and any other treat your heart [but not your arteries] desires.

And you get all grateful to have quality time with dear friends before life gets all blitzed out crazy again.

It's just so Grange-y, but somehow, just so good.

Sleepover, Cottage Style

Since the day I moved in, 

these two darlings have been begging me for a sleepover.

And, since our summer is nearing its end, 

yesterday they came tumbling in with bedding and baggage, 

ready for a night and a day of fun.

We started off with dinner (quesadillas, our tradition) 

and a game (Clue, our obsession).

Then, a treat:

 Meyer Dairy, for ice cream.

 We sat in the cool of the picnic tables to enjoy a pleasant evening, 

which started out well enough.

Then, this happened:

Clearly, it was time to retreat from public.

 Under the glory of the setting sun,

we drove ourselves home, with precious talking underway.

We closed out the night then,

 hanging around,

 singing and playing our little hearts out.

 There were some final games,

and then we climbed into beds and read, and talked, 

and laughed ourselves to sleep.

The next morning unfolded with lazy laying around,

 and a very large investment

  in breakfast.

I thought to myself:

 "what lovely sweet girls."

And then, this happened:

 Clearly, it was time to divert some of that energy elsewhere.

Commence:

Epic Water Balloon Battle.

 We prepared.

Though our progress was slow,

we worked together

 until we could fill enough arsenals for all.

 We headed outside in our bathing suits,

 into the rainstorm we refused to let defeat us.

 We took our places,

 and got ready,

 for action.

[Did I mention it was pouring? Did I mention it was awesome?]

Wet and weary, we headed inside for lunch

 and a few last rounds of Clue,

before declaring our sleepover a success, 

and to be repeated, soon.

Let's call it "Quality Time"

Because that's what it always, always, is.

The Word Is:

delicate

[And the day came when the risk to remain tight in a bud was more painful than the risk it took to blossom. ~Anaïs Nin]