I hesitantly stepped into the venue with my husband and children in tow, and childhood experience came flooding back to memory as my eyes adjusted to the dark. That old, familiar feeling fell over me as I breathed in a pungent, musty mixed scent of dirt, hay and popcorn.

But it was dirt, hay, popcorn and nostalgia.

We made our way toward seating that rendered us tightly packed like acrobats with other spectators on greasy, kernelstrewn wooden bleachers.

The atmosphere was gritty. But in a child’s eyes, the experience was anything but.

For our kiddos, it was pure magic.

We’d made it to the circus.

Here was the carnival, in all its glory, booming hype music, beaming smoky lights as we giddily awaited its start.

Although my husband and I spend much time wrangling our own little clowns, this was our time to loosen up as others walked a tightrope. Spectating as a 30-something parent is a different experience from that of a child, but a carnival still dazzles.

What dazzled even more than the acrobats leaping through silver rings was the joy on our boys’ faces as they sat in awe at their very first circus.

Certainly, ethical questions have long loomed behind the use of wildlife for a glitzy show.

Many traveling troupes are realizing there’s no business for elephants in show business– this was to be the last year for most circus elephants among the clowns before packing up their trunks to return to their proper habitat.

But some things hadn’t changed.

Families around us shelled out large bills for glittering plastic cups filled with slushy ice at astronomical prices.

Impulse buying at the circus remained as hot a commodity as taking photos with snakes and crocodiles at intermission.

As we made our way toward reptile photo ops during the show’s break, we were inundated with barkers pushing balloons and popcorn.

It was all part of the exciting experience, but I quietly assured our kiddos we’d make them fresh popcorn at home after the show.

As it turned out, the snacks for sale didn’t really matter after all.

What truly fascinated our tots were the up-close-and-personal moments with animals, a camel’s near-embrace, and an elephant’s massive trunk that breezed by our sons’ faces.

What captivated our boys most of all were the dirt bikes.

Our eldest proudly posed with a lineup of dirt bikes as a metal ball cage loomed in the background.

That night, we made popcorn as promised as we all mused over the evening’s events.

The circus may not have been in tents, but the excitement was intense for certain.

It’s not every day we have close encounters of the wild animal kind.

Nor is it every day we draw inspiration from daredevils blazing circles around each other.

Our younger son loved the little crocodile best, and he made his best croc impersonation via his ‘tick tock’ noises a la Peter Pan.

Our older boy insisted that he wanted to ride dirt bikes, because, in his words, ‘There was a lady standing in the cage. She was fine. So it’s OK.’

We laughed as we marveled at the circus acts we’d just seen that were so out of the ordinary routine.

Seeing our little circus peanuts talk about the fun they’d had was priceless.

The rest was just popcorn.

Like elephants, a night out at the circus was an experience our family would never forget.

— Michelle Cote is the art director of the Journal Tribune. She enjoys cooking, baking, and living room dance-offs with her husband, two boys and a dog. She can be contacted at mcote@journaltribune.com.