The (not so) Greatest Show On Earth

The circus came to town again & we made our annual trip to check out the fun. We've gone almost every year since I met Jeff & even though it's a silly thing for the older kids to do, we always have fun together.

This year, Ringling Bros. came out with what they call "Celebrity Seats," which is just really another way to get more $$ out you. We suckered for it though, & bought the Celebrity Seats so we could be front row. The other perk of a Celebrity Seat is that you get to be "in" the circus by riding on a "train" on the circus floor during part of the show. I wish I could capture in words Jessie's reaction when I told her what we'd be doing. Apparently, when you're 13, it's not cool to join your parents & be in the circus. Who knew :)? Reese thought it was really cool though...and I must admit so did I!

In all fairness, Jessie was a really good sport & went along with the whole deal like a trooper. I overheard Jeff say something to the effect of "The things Heather makes us do!", but I saw him smiling big & having fun "in" the circus too.

So the family time was worth all the money in the world, but the circus itself was not, sad to say. This is the first time we've ever felt like the Barnum & Bailey circus was not worth the money spent. They had such a wonderful show, why on Earth did they change so much of it?

Three rings--gone. Now just one big floor where they do one thing at a time. Part of the excitement & "grandness" of the circus was all the things happening on the floor at the same time...there were just so many things to watch. Not any more.

Human Cannon Ball. Bello. Zebras & llamas. Stilt walkers--all gone. They've been replaced with domestic cats doing tricks, and a group of poodles doing dog tricks. Not even good ones at that. And where is hillarious Bello?

And the story line--why does a circus need a story line? Just do circus-y things, forget trying to change something that was already entertaining!

As it turns out, Barnum & Bailey has three different traveling circus groups. The group we got was called the Circus of Dreams. Certainly NOT my dreams. I wouldn't spend money on this again, because it was WAY scaled down from the other Barnum circuses that have come through.

Now, if we can have Bello again, then we'll be there front & center. But I'll wait until he comes back again, because this circus left a lot to be desired.