Monday was haul in day to Benton Franklin. We left at around 8 with our 3 heifers and 4 steers and met Leslie, Traci, Jolene and kids in there. We were a little later this year because Natalie had a doctor’s appointment due to her broken arm. Not to worry though, she could still show her steer with a broken arm. We all got unloaded and pulled around to park. We try to get in there early before it gets clogged up with traffic. We had sandwiches for lunch and then washed after lunch, had weigh in and then a 4-H meeting. We also went and got our buckets donated by Ranch and Home, and I think all the kids had Reece pack them back for them.
Tuesday we were up bright and early to get ready for market class. The kids all did great. Anna was showing FFA, she was Reserve Champion with her steer Marvel that is bred-and-owned. Marvel is out of Foxxy that Anna showed a few years ago. Macy Beus, we showed with her dad Brad, was Grand Champion. Bella Holt had a steer in FFA that she bought from us and he did really well, he is a nice clubby steer by Fur Trader and out of a Hereford cow. Our good friend Aram Borba had a nice steer there from Unruhs, and he won his class and got to come back to the champion drive. Kaine and Kade were both in the light class, Kade was 1st and Kaine was 3rd. Jaxsen, Julian and Ady were all in the same class. Jaxsen was 3rd, Ady 4th and Julian 6th. Natalie was 2nd in her class. All of the kids showed great. The small and medium sized kids went on rides on Tuesday when they got done showing. Kelten took the boys to football practice. Toni took my laptop and went to work all afternoon in the camper.
Wednesday was showmanship and then breeding classes. Our two steers were Grand and Reserve in FFA, Bella was Grand and Anna was Reserve, both steers are by Fur Trader. Kaine is a Sr, he was Grand champion. Kade, Jaxsen, Ady and Julian are intermediates, Kade was reserve champion. Natalie is our only Jr left and she was Grand Champion. All the kids did a great job showing and they all made it back to the championship round. Aram did a great job as well, this is his first year showing steers. Kelten took the boys to football practice. Toni went and worked, then took a nap. She also had court on Wed during the showing, so things were hectic, or more hectic, for a bit. We were pretty lucky, the weather was way cooler than normal. Usually during fair week we have extreme heat. Aram’s steer had been limping since Monday so the fair board sent the steer home. It was a pretty emotional night for Aram. With the steer being sent home, Aram wasn’t able to sell his project and recoup funds invested. Luckily some of our communities are donating funds to the North Franklin Livestock Booster to help Aram out.
On Thursday the kids showing in the round robin went around and learned how to show the animals. Then Kaine went on rides with his friends. They did not go to football practice since they were showing in the round robin. Natalie has a broken arm, and she won the Jr Division, woohoo. All the beef kids did a great job. Then Toni, Leslie, Aram and Anna went to Justin Moore and the rest of us went to the rodeo. We hear Justin Moore was fantastic and sings just as well in person as he does on the radio. Toni loves him so was super excited that her favorite cousin Nick got them fan zone tickets. Fan zone is right up by the stage with no seats, but no one sits down anyway, so that works.
Friday was the sale, we had the sale of champions, then the steers sold first. Prices were good and the sale was great. We think the steers averaged around $4 per lb which is the highest average for the BF Fair that we have ever seen. That kind of support is humbling and appreciated. It really allows these kids to continue to show their livestock projects. We went back for lunch and then walked around some. The boys went to practice and we went to the rodeo that night. Lane came to spend time with Anna. Kaine had a “friend” come to the fair as well to see him but we were not introduced to her as his girlfriend or anything. Really no introduction at all. We let all of the kids go to the rodeo and stay for the whole thing on Friday. Jaxsen and Julian are really into bull riding. So getting to watch the whole rodeo and not just part of it was great for them. They also love JJ Harrison and had already seen him throughout the week. The middles (Jax, Julian, Ady, and Natalie) grab dinner every night and then weasel their way up to the front of the seating area to watch as much rodeo as we let them. Somehow they always manage to get in the front. Friday was the first night they got to watch the entire rodeo.
Saturday we had livestock judging. All of our kids, including 6-year-old Savannah who judged, were in the top 10 in their division. Great job guys. Kade was Grand Champion Intermediate and Natalie and Ady were both reserve champions. Lane helped us with the 2 steer classes. We had to get the classes set and judged. The judging had about 100 kids in it, so we decently competitive. Saturday is adult rodeo night so the kids had to find other entertainment. Lane went home about 8:30 pm, so Anna hung out at the camper with Aram I think. Kaine and Kade had been hanging out with friends most of the week and not us. Surprise surprise they are that age. The middles wanted to go to the 4-H dance and Leslie took them. We hear that the boys were rowdy and the girls just laughed at them. We have heard there is video of Jaxsen dancing with his shirt off, but we don’t have the proof. Saturday Toni’s favorite cousin Manny (notice a theme here on Toni playing favorites) went to the rodeo early and fended off other people so we had a really nice table that seated all of us to eat and watch the rodeo. We had an awesome time. After the rodeo was James Otto, who was really good, then we go back to the steer barn to load out steers around 1 am. We got done around 2:10 am.
On Sunday we packed up and came home starting at 6 am. So not much sleep for some of the group. Luckily Stacy (almost a cousin, and Toni’s favorite on Sunday) had gotten up at 5 am and started tearing down the decorations. He didn’t help load out the night before because he gets up early and starts tearing down. Kicker took the 2 big boys and loaded all of our tack and Leslie’s and took that. Then Toni took Anna and our heifers and Leslie’s heifers and headed out. I had Ben and Jaxsen to get the camper put away, hooked up, and head home. We got home, got unloaded, then had 2 groups out to look at horses. We sold one of the yearling colts and the second group liked a bunch so hopefully they will buy as well. It was a really nice, but exhausting, Sunday.
Overall we had a good fair week. There were some definite highs and lows. We are very proud of the kids. Not just our 4 but all of our kids. We have a very large extended showing family that worked hard every day, they showed up on time, gave it their all, and made us feel like our time and energy in being there was worth it. Now we get to go home for a week then do it all again! Come see us either at CBJLS or the Othello Fair. Also, if you want to donate to the Booster Club, we have a website up now, https://northfranklinlivestockbooster.com/ and go like the Facebook page.
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