Family or Marriage • Finances & Money

Mmm-Mmm Fatty Goodness

Well we’re back from our mini-vacation! Where did we go? Where do you think? Back to see our families in Pennsylvania, just like we’ve done about 50 other times this spring and summer. However, this trip was different because we took 2 extra days off to enjoy our families and the local county fair.

Getting to see my family

First, we got a chance to hang out with my best friends when one got his daughter baptized in our hometown on Saturday. You might know this new daddy as Shawn from this site! I don’t get to see these guys (and their wives) often so it was a great time. Plus we got a free dinner!

On Sunday, I got to hang out with my two nieces all day. We played in the park for a couple hours and I like to think they actually had fun! It’s sad we don’t get to see them very often because we see how quickly they grow with each passing trip home.

It was also nice to get to sleep in for 3 mornings in a row. We got 9 hours of sleep each night where we normally get 5-6.

Deep-Fried Foods Galore!

Man, I ate so horribly on Monday at the county fair, but I don’t care because I was preparing my stomach, and wallet, for it for weeks. Since having my first deep-fried Twinkie last year at our local fair here in Maryland, I couldn’t wait to try other deep-friend sensations. And I did, with great joy!

I had budgeted $50 for the fair, but ended up coming in well-below budget. I was amazed at how inexpensive the fair in PA was versus the fair here in MD.

• Parking was $7 cheaper in PA
• Admission was $5 cheaper per person. However, my father-in-law paid for our tickets in advance and didn’t want repaid ($6 total) so it was free for us
• Food was $1-2 cheaper per dish. For example, deep-fried Twinkies were $2 vs $4. Oreos were 5 for $3 vs 4 for $5. I don’t think there was any dish cheaper in MD than in PA.

So I think it goes to show one more way rural areas are cheaper than city/suburbs.

So what did we buy? Well here’s what Stacie ate first:

• Half of a steak sub $3 (half of $6). We both think we could have gotten a better deal at other stands though
• A tiny dish of fries for $1. However, even though the dish was tiny, it was a perfect portion for Stacie
• A big cup of grape shaved ice (like a snow cone) for $1.50. It was a small size, but I can’t imagine eating more than they gave us!

Total for Stacie: $5.50

And now my menu. If you ask Stacie about this, she’ll frown deeply and say NO dietitian would ever advise eating like I did. But she wasn’t my dietitian on Monday, she was my loving wife 😉

• A deep-fried Zinger (like a Twinkie, but with icing on top) for $2
• 3 Pierogies with onions for $3. They actually gave us 4, and Stacie ate one
• Deep-Fried Oreos for $3. I actually gave 2 of the 5 to a friend
• A corn dog for $2.75. I keep forgetting that I don’t like corn dogs, but I ate it all anyway
• My own cup of bubblegum-flavored shaved ice for $1.50
• The other half of the steak sub for $3
• Large soda for $3. It was watered-down Sierra Mist, but it hit the spot.

Total for Mike: $18.25

Wow, that was a lot of VERY fattening and/or high-calorie food! I don’t know if I even want to count the calories and fat, but I might just do it as a post over at Building Nutrition. However, we were walking non-stop around the fair for almost 5 hours, so I don’t feel completely bad about my intake.

So in total, we spent $23.75 for food and $3 for parking, for a total of $26.75 for our own little date. It’s hard to get out of a movie theater for that much, and we got exercise and a tan while doing it! Although I think I’m a walking heart attack now.

Oh, and I had 3 slices of pizza that night at the parade after the fair. I’m a pig. But I loved it.

_{Photo by Tomeppy}