Autumn Fest 2012

One of the biggest events on base is Autumn Fest.  We got to experience our first one this weekend.  It was fun, but not quite as big as I had anticipated.  Mostly, there were food booths from various groups on base.  The groups use this a a big fundraiser for various events.  Tommy worked at the Filipino-American booth because it was the fundraiser for the sophomore class.  If you work, then a percentage of what is raised goes to reduce your cost for whatever trip or event the class decides to do, if you don't work, you get nothing.  So I required Tommy to work, but I think he would have anyway, he had fun with his classmates.

In addition to being able to get dinner there, there were some Italian vendors selling beautiful lava stone tables, ceramics, paintings, and gourmet Italian goodies.  I forgot my camera, so I don't have pictures to show of the vendors, but I did get a lot of samples and bought some of the goodies!  They had the best strawberry jam I have ever had...ever!

These are some yummy sun-dried tomatoes.  None of the oil, and they are kind of sweet.

On the bottom is orange marmalade and strawberry jam.  If you look closely you can see in the 3 days Sam has been home she has eaten about half of the jam, guess I have to find the store where they sell this stuff!  On the top is kind of like a relish type thing.  It is really good.  The sample was on bread, so you could use it for bruschetta or I think you could put in on top of brie or some other cheese.

They also had a stage for performing.  One of the shows was this Michael Jackson dance group.

You can't really see the group, but the lead guy had a fake mic on and sometimes pretended like he was singing.  He dressed like MJ and had longish hair that he greased and pulled back into a pony tail to try and look like him.  The dancing was decent, and he had some back up dancers, but not the best I have seen.  However, when he is out in town, the act draws 10,000 people, easy.  Maybe I am just not a big enough MJ fan, but I wouldn't go out special to just see the group, but it was fun.

There was also an area with bouncy houses and big blow-up slides as well as about 5 carnival rides.  

This ride was C-R-A-Z-Y!  It looks like it would just be one of those rides that spins and holds you against the wall, just with seats and nothing to hold you in.  People were literally hanging onto the rails above and behind them so they wouldn't be thrown out of their seats.  It does spin, but it also rocks back and forth and bounces you around.  And, it goes on for somewhere between 5 and 10 minutes, no joking.  But you pay $4 for 1 ride, so it had better last a while.

In case you don't believe me, here is a video that Mike took.....

Definitely not a ride you would see in the States!  And check out the girl in the animal print tank.  For those of you who watch The Middle (Kim I am talking to you), she totally reminded me of Sue Heck! She is trying so hard to be cool and stand up and dance, but just not quite there with her thumbs up dance and tripping and falling. But who am I to judge, there is no way I would be getting on that ride!  Mike and I missed it, but we heard that Tommy was doing pretty good dancing and hopping in the center!  The little guy with the short hair is a swim buddy and he made Tommy give it a try and helped keep other people from knocking Tommy down.

Sammie was a little bummed, because she was not around to enjoy Autumn Fest.  She had European Champs for cross country and got to go to Germany.  While we had pleasant weather, in the upper 70's here, it was not quite so nice in Germany.  She had to be sure to pack for winter weather for the weekend.

Here are the girls before the race began.

Another shot waiting to start the run. 

Sam's report when she got home was that the course was hilly and snowy.

Even with the snow and hills, Sam was able to keep up and pass some of the other girls.  I am cold just looking at the girl behind her!

He she is passing another competitor.

Here are the girls after the race.  Sam doesn't have a winter coat anymore, but she does have her warm swim parka, and I am sure she was glad to have it!  You can tell she was out in the cold with the pink still on her cheeks!

They were able to bring up 4 girls and 4 boys, so here is a shot of their group.

Even with snow and freezing temps, Sam still seemed to have a good time!

We did not travel to see the race, so I am thankful to her coach, Heather, for taking and sharing all these pictures!  I hate missing the kids' sporting events, but traveling to all of them in Europe is just not going to be possible!  It was really strange this weekend because her phone doesn't have service in Germany, so we heard nothing from her from 7:30 Friday morning until she landed in Italy at 8:00 Sunday morning.