Monday evening the kids and I drove down to Spanish Fork to attend their very first rodeo. It started to sprinkle on the drive down, and was very windy as well. I was a bit nervous, since we had brought no coats at all. (It had been almost 100 degrees earlier in the day, I honestly didn’t think about it.) We were meeting Joe and Sun, who had printed out the e-tickets for us, since there was no printer in the rental house, and since we were closer geographically, we had a bit of a wait.
At least I remembered to bring the water. You can see the dark clouds in the sky, but it wasn’t really raining, yet. But just after we sat down, it started really pouring.
Fortunately, we had awesome seats in the grandstand, and were cozy and dry the entire night. If we had been out in the rain, I know for sure we would have had to leave early. I wouldn’t have been able to handle it.
The kids loved the rodeo. It was way more exciting and fun than I think they had imagined. 
The bucking broncos were very exciting, and the kids had lots of questions. “Why is there a rope around the horse’s tummy?” “Is it hurt, is that why it’s bucking?” “What’s that buzzer for?” Between Joe and I, I think we got them all answered and reassured. Sarah was most concerned that the horses were being hurt. When we explained that they weren’t at all, she felt much better.
It’s not a rodeo without a rodeo clown. And this one was actually kind of funny! He is showing off his boomerang hat here.
The highlight of the evening was the mutton busting. The girls were very sad that they didn’t get to do it themselves, but unfortunately they were over the age/weight limit. 
The picture is kind of blurry, but it’s the best one of the night. Sophie must have taken about 20 shots, but those sheep are faster than you think. 
A couple kids fell off, and got a bit trampled, and one had the sheep roll right on top of her, but the adults were right there to pick them up and dust them off. They were all grins and smiles afterward, so I don’t think it actually hurt, much.
The calf roping had Sarah again very concerned that the poor baby calves were being hurt. “Mama, why is he choking that calf? Why he is throwing it on the ground? Doesn’t that break the calf’s neck? And now he’s tying it up! Why? Are they gonna eat it later?” I tried to reassure her as best I could, and she did feel much better when she saw the calf get up and walk of it’s own accord to the other side of the arena. Still, she may be traumatized for life now. Oh well, she already didn’t eat meat, this wasn’t going to change that.
Yes, that is baby Dexter at his first rodeo, less than 2 weeks old. And Riley making sure Mom is taking good care of him.
The barrel racing was much more fun for Sarah. No animals looked like they were getting hurt, it was all about the fast horses, and girls riding them. If we lived in the States, I could totally see her wanting to do this as a hobby.
Some of the riders knocked over barrels, which is disappointing for them, but kind of exciting for us. And those horses are fast. Seriously, I do not know how they are able to stop and turn like that. True athletes.
The rain fell off and on all night, but it was the wind that made us glad we were all huddled together under the grandstand. Charlie, however, had a better idea.
Sophie loved the trick riders, and they were definitely pretty amazing.
Their glittery, sparkly red, white and blue outfits weren’t bad either. 
You need to click on the photo to make it better, to really appreciate what she is doing here. She is basically hanging completely off the horse, holding on with one leg, upside down! And yes, the horse is doing a fast trot the entire time. Crazy!
Riley is so sweet with Dexter. He just kept peeking in, making sure he was okay, and so gently, too. What a good big brother!
I had to take Alexandra to the bathroom just as the bull riding started. Darn it! I gave the camera to Sophie, but neglected to tell her it was off, and she needed to switch it back on to take photos. So we got none of the bull riding, but it was really cool. Especially when one of the cowboy’s got a hoof to the chest, after being thrown off. I saw him sitting on the steps later, getting looked over by a doctor. He was out of breath, for sure. I hope he didn’t get a broken rib. Ouch!
On the way out to the car, we got to see an awesome fireworks show.
It totally made up for no fireworks on July 4th. Also, it was after 11 at night, so the kids thought that was very cool. Although they were pretty tired.
In the car on the way home, Alexandra asked if we could go to another rodeo while we were in America. I am so glad the kids enjoyed it, and that we could share it with the other rodeo fans in the family.