Threshing Bee.

The Threshing Bee gives you the chance to watch really old tractors and cars in a parade. This is especially interesting to enthusiasts of old tractors and/or cars. Or people that actually used them or saw them being used back in the day and can distinguish one from the other. I am not that person. Besides a few unique ones, they all look and sound about the same.

I just spent a minute trying to figure out how to type out that sound. I can't figure out what letters would make it. It's chug-a-chug times 1,000, or Thomas the Train after he's smoked cigarettes for fifty years.

I grew up attending this yearly third-weekend-in-July event and I have some great memories. I do still love it all and maybe someday I'll get more into the actual knowledge of the machines. But if I was honest, I'd say my favorite part is when one of the tractors breaks down and creates a big hullabaloo and inevitably causes other tractors to stall.

Thanks to our family we got seats in the shade. Very hard to come by... I'd liken it to floor seats at a Lakers game.

Here's Ava watching the parade:


And Aunt Marlys holding a very heat-induced-zonked Eli.


Here's the view from Greg's sunglasses while he watched the parade:


Did I mention it was HOT?


This very rare tractor is worth a lot. Like enough to send Eli to college.


I could post more photos of tractors. But I'm guessing most of you probably aren't interested. And the few that are probably have your own albums to enjoy.

Ali and Benjamin (my cousin's son) loved riding the horses:


And last but not least: The Cook Car. Imagine these four ladies cooking up a plethora of midwestern delicacies, to serve to all the guys working on getting those finagled old tractors up and running for the parade. Think homemade stews and cookies served on one long picnic table with a bunch of greasy overall-ed, grateful men chowing down. It's awesome.

We didn't get to take part in more of the Bee festivities because of our way-too-packed-tight schedule. But so you know for your 2012 vacation planning, there is a talent show (let's be honest, Amber and I got nothing to offer here), tractor pull for kids, gun show (and not the muscle kind), antiques, and a host of other enjoyable festivities.

Mark your calendars, folks, Crosby, ND is calling you to visit!

-Heather