Catch Up!

Once again, I need to catch up on my blogging...don't know why it seems so hard to sit down and record all our doings. We are enjoying some nice Fall days here lately...on Saturday I took the kids to a corn maze. (It was actually a sorghum maze, but who would notice, besides another farmer?) We had a great time, even enjoyed the drive there and back through lots of woodsy areas turning some awesome colors! Josh is unfortunately having his annual Fall issues now, but the rest of us are doing our best to enjoy life anyway.
Sarah Ying starts speech therapy with the local public school this week - only took them 5 months to get her started. ;o) Hopefully they will realize that after 2 years of parenting her, I do know some things and offer some more services after they see how she does. Otherwise we will be searching for some private testing facility to help us force them into providing her with special education. After homeschooling for over 15 years, 5 other children, I think I know when a child is learning and when they just aren't. We have tried a lot of different interventions with her and so far nothing is really working. She makes the same very slow level of progress regardless of input. I expect we'll be struggling with that for many years to come.
Looks like we will be heading to Kentucky next week for the All-American Jersey show...and for some fun on the way there and back. Mammoth Cave National Park is high on my agenda, but we'll have to see how that works for Dr. Jim.
Lots to do to get ready for that trip, plus keeping the home fires burning with school, violin, plus all the decorating/costumes for Halloween, etc.
Work,
work,
work!
:o)
Amy

Sunday Snaps...only one day late

Here is my snap for this chilly Fall Sunday in southwest Alabama...trees are still green, but not for long at these temps!

Saved by Leah...

Here are some fair snaps from my niece Leah's cell phone...so there is some photographic evidence of all our hard work! This is the first day we were showing, our district fair. (Next day was the state-wide 4-H competition and then the last day was the Open Show.)

Daddy and Abby getting the cows washed.


The showstring all washed in their places.


Abby helping Sarah Ying in the Novice Showmanship Class


Sarah Ying really loves her trophy!


Josh in his showmanship class


Abby with our dry cow in her showmanship class


Hannah showed the Junior Champion


Moriah showed the Senior Champion


Hannah resting with our 3 year old class entry after the show was over

Thanks, Leah!

FAIR!!!

Well, we survived another year's Fair!
It was a great time...a lot of seriously hard work...and my latest chapter of epic photographer fail! On Saturday evening after the cows left for the fairgrounds, I discovered my camera battery was dead. I thought there would be a minute in there somewhere to rush by a store to grab one, but it didn't happen. So here is my one and only picture that is even fair-related...the kids posed on the front porch with the banner we used at our exhibit and most but not all of their awards. (We haven't finished unpacking and doing all the organizing/laundry so we haven't found all the trophies and ribbons yet.) We got back last night about dark thirty and turned out the milking cows. The heifers and the dry cow will be put out today and that will be the absolute end of another fair season, except for the laundry and cleaning out the car. We do sometimes go to the big shows just to watch, but I haven't got the mojo to actually take the cows. Our own fair (about 2 hours drive away from here) is more than enough for us to manage.

Gotta' go soak my poor feet now...3 days on concrete...
Whew!

Amy

Happy Birthday Daddy!

Happy 48th to our Daddy and DH of almost 24 years (wow...has it been that long?) Usually we have to celebrate this birthday at the Fair...this year we are home still. We'll be off to the Fair this weekend.
Check out our blurry action shot of blowing the candles out: