(Cool)School stuff

Good morning my fellow bloggers!  It's been a while since I've posted anything here and I just thought I'd update everyone on the happenings around here.  :)  Not that much is really going on.....but anyway.

School is keeping everyone occupied this time of year.  The school kids are doing well at school and always come home with plenty of stories.  I'm loving my classes at the careers center, been keeping busy with getting ready for chicks and working on livestock judging stuff.  This morning we get at total of 200 chicks into the center (dividing them up into 8 groups) and we'll be raising them for a state competition in 6 weeks.  Our livestock judging team is also off the a fair about 45 min. away to get some livestock judging in.  We are in a frenzy getting ready for the National competition in about 3 weeks.

My 6 week project at the careers center is a micro-organism project.  I have 3 organisms so far and need to get at least 7 more.  I'm hoping to find a pond that I get go gather some from once the weather clears up.  It's been cold, nasty and rainy for a few days here.  Here is a pictures of one of the organisms I found.  Pretty cool, huh?  I also found an Aquatic Sowbug (Subphylum Crustacea; Order Isopoda) and a Scud ( Subphylum Crustacea, Order Amphipoda).  They are both in the “Shredder” feeding group.  The one in the picture I think is a Caddisfly Larva, Order Trichoptera.  The feeding group varies. 

Have a good day everyone!  To God be the glory.

In Christ,
~Bethany~

Fall days!

Well, the early antlerless season is over and I am still deerless so I'm looking forward to the youth hunt coming up this weekend.  Probably still won't get anything but I'll go out and have fun anyway.  ;)  Yesterday we went out on a walk out by the woods to look for leaves for Rebekah's school project.  Afterword, I was very glad I wasn't going out hunting....the mosquitoes were HORRIBLE!  Here are a few pictures of our walk, take by Abigail. 

 

 Rachel and Buster

 

 Ben loves the woods.  I love his shirt.  ;)

 

 Berries!  Probably poisonous, don't eat!

 

 It looked like it was raining off to the west.  Made some pretty sunbeams too.

 

 Our hayfield through the trees.

Later in the evening the girls all got out the horses and took a ride.  This was the first time Elizabeth had Daisy out on the road.  She behaved very well.  Go Daisy(and Elizabeth)!

And here is an excellent verse to help you all get ready for the day:

Deuteronomy 31:6
Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the LORD your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you."

In Christ,
~Bethany~

Stories from the (non)Hunter

I'm sure everyone is wondering weather or not this crazy hunter has been successful.  The answer is....no. ;) 

Dad and I went out to a different woods yesterday morning and though I saw a doe, she remained in the brush and behind trees.  It was pretty neat though, because she started making this deer call.  A deer had been shot the morning before there so we aren't sure if it was attempting to call it (it could have been it mother or baby) or what was going on. 

I went out again last night and waited a little bit and went out at 5:30ish instead of 4:00.  I decided I wasn't going to get bored and took out some writing utensils and started writing away.  Around 7:00 I decided I was all cramped up and stood, looked around behind me and there was a deer (I think it may have been a buck) walking along.  He was too far off for me to shoot so I just enjoyed the view.  About 1/2 hour later I just happened to look up as a deer bounded back off into the woods.  Around 8:00, it was getting pretty dark and I saw (and heard) another deer do the same thing.  Oh great.  Well, by this time they are like walking all over the woods, behind me and in front of me.  I seem to no longer be a threat to all this wildlife, even with a gun in hand.  I did see a bunch of squirrels, a coon, some geese flying south and plenty of other little birds.  Oh, and I got a bunch of writing done! 

Now I'm not giving up yet.  I'm just not going out this morning. :P  It's cold, and I don't ever see anything in the morning in our woods anyway so I'll just enjoy a rather relaxing morning!  I'll go again tonight....any great writing ideas for me today? ;)

Sorry for the non picture posts....kinda boring I know, but I haven't taken any pictures the last few days.  :(

Have a great weekend folks!
In Christ,
~Bethany~

Early Hunt

Hey Everyone!  Some of you may know already that there was an early antlerless firearm season that started yesterday.  If not, you didn't miss much. ;)  It is kinda cool to be able to head out in the morning with nothing more than a sweatshirt and jeans on (minus the fact that I froze because I miscalculated the temperature) or barn boots (minus the mosquitoes at night).   However, I do prefer it over the freezing November temperatures during the regular season.  So anyway, yesterday morning I head out to where I was going to sit (which was a log performing as a natural blind) and about 45 yards before I hit my blind, my flashlight goes dead.  I'm thinking, "oh great" this is awesome.  Well, I can't see a thing so I just sit right down there (pretty much out in the open) and just sit.  Not two minutes later, I hear a "crunch, crunch" of a deer behind me.  Still really dark so of course I couldn't shoot anything if I tried so all I could do was listen to it.  Right after that another deer in front of me starts "whistling" to warn everything out in the woods that I was there trying to interrupt the peace.  Needless to say, other than hearing another doe making other odd noises, I didn't see a thing all morning.  Not to be discouraged, I headed out again at 4:00 in the evening.  Quick note to self: don't ever head out that early again.  At least this time I was in a decent location and not sitting on the logging trail.  I promptly feel asleep for a good 1/2 hour to 45 min.  Ahhhh....that felt good!  When I woke up there was nothing to be seen for an hour, two hours, three hours.  By this time I'm thinking about everything I really should be doing in the house and about 7:15 I got up (it's still light out) and head towards the house through the woods.  I get almost to the house and hear this noise.  I look over to my left and there behind some bushes stands two nice does.  Of course they have heard and seen me so they are really cautious.  I was like, well I'm not sure I can get them from here (since they were behind quite a bit of brush) but why not try?  About .2 seconds after thinking that they hightailed it outta there.  Of course, if I had remained sitting where I was they probably would have walked right in front of me.  Hey, but I got inside and took care of what needed taking care of!  And I was not 100% discouraged!  I'm heading out again this morning!  :)

Hopefully with a more successful story soon,
~Bethany~

P.S. You all can laugh, I really was too. ;) :P

Kiss the Goat pics

So I'm sure everyone is wondering how the "Kiss the Goat" event went.  I was unable to attend because of school ( I was at the careers center at that time) but Abigail came home with a bunch of pictures and everyone else, with a bunch of stories.  Here are a few of the pictures......

 

 Goldie just being her sweet little self.

  

 Almost everything was free.....including all food and ice cream!

  

 Mom and Abigail "fighting"

 

Ben climbing his way up, up, up!

That was so tiring!  Now gotta eat that delicious free food! :)

A professor kisses the goat (come on, kiss her on the lips lady! lol)

 Our little booth.  

Well, that about sums it up!  About all that's new around here is that I've been doing tractor safety at BACC (my careers center).  I love driving tractors!  The only problem is that today....we drive tractors, backing up trailers.  Oh boy!

In Christ,

~Bethany~

Goldie and.....college?

Asher Acres raises smart goats.....Goldie is heading off to college tomorrow! Of course, that's just to kiss some professors. :) A local college is hosting a "Kiss A Goat Contest" and we were invited to bring the goat. Goldie is our little sweetheart so she was the first on our minds. I'm sure she'll be a great hit. I'm gonna be at school (sad face) but Abigail is going with Mom so she'll be our photographer. I'll hopefully post a bunch of pictures tomorrow!

Till then!
~Bethany~

9/11

Eight years ago this morning thousands of people were getting up, heading off to work like any normal day.  No one knew that the world was going to change in just a few short hours. 

I remember exactly where I was even though I was just 8 years old.  Dad was off at work and we were doing something at the table (I think snipping beans).  He called us and told us what had happened and told us to turn on the radio.  Reports were already coming in and they were quite scary to a little kid.  We don't have a TV (and didn't then either) so we went over to a friends house that evening and watched for a while.  Now really, I had no idea what the Twin Towers or the Pentagon were or why they were targeted so this whole thing was making me completely frightened.  I saw some things I will never forget, like people jumping from the top of the building so they wouldn't have to endure the long agonizing death by fire.  That night I could hardly sleep thinking that our house was going to get crashed into by a plane.  Of course our little country home was no target for anyone trying to get the worlds attention so I was pretty safe. :)  However, there were many others who had the same problem sleeping.  Some kids like me wondered if our world had fallen apart.  Some, more adults, were asking what happened here?  How did we let this happen?  And more probably couldn't sleep thinking about the loved ones they had lost that day. 

Maybe you don't know all the statistics for this eventful day that will go down in history.  First of all, there were a total of 4 planes hijacked.  The first two were crashed into the Twin Towers at the World Trade Center.  The third, into the Pentagon and the fourth into a field in rural Pennsylvania after flight crew and passengers had attempted to retake control of the plane.  The hijacker had turned the plane back to Washington D.C. and who knows what their target was.  Out of each of these planes, there was not one survivor.  The casualties were 3,017 (including 24 presumed dead and 19 hijackers) in the United States alone.  But, there were not just attacks in America.  Other countries had severe attacks such as train wrecks and car bombs in Spain, London, Russia, Kenya, Thailand,  Turkey, Morocco and more.  Many more people were killed or injured. 

Here is a small video clip including one of my favorite songs.  Have You Forgotten. 


I just want to say. I haven't forgotten! Have you?

~Bethany~

Zoo & School

It's been a few days since I've updated....since then we've had quite a bit happen. :)  On Labor Day, Rachel, Abigail and I went with our youth group to the zoo!  It was a blast even though the weather wasn't the greatest (it was kinda misty) but we were thankful it wasn't pouring! :)  Here are just a few pictures from that experience!

 

Some sweet Python! (don't remember exactly what kind it was)

A bunch of us girls

 

Wolves!

Cougar

Red Panda

 

Giraffe!

Caden and I on our way home.  We sat in the back of the 15 passenger van.  He kept me busy answering all of his questions. :)

Yesterday was the first day of school.  Rachel, Rebekah, and the two boys are going to a local public school and I am going to the career center.  I'm in the agriscience program and I love it so far.  It's totally my type of thing and I'm with people who love similar stuff.  It's gonna be a great learning year.  

Hope all is well with everyone!

God bless,

~Bethany~

Labor Day!!!!

Today is Labor Day, the day we celebrate the workers or our country.  This holiday was first put into place 1894 by Matthew Maguire, a machinist from Paterson, New Jersey, and Peter J.McGuire, a New York City carpenter and signed in by President Grover Cleveland.  


What does the bible say about labor or work?  The word "labor" (labour) is mentioned 87 times and the word "work" is found in 387 verses!  Here are just a few to encourage you all. :)

“Come to me, all you who
are weary and burdened, and
I will give you rest.”
Matthew 11:28

 Therefore, my dear brothers,
stand firm. Let nothing move
you. Always give yourselves
fully to the work of the Lord,
because you know that your
labor in the Lord is not in
vain. 1 Corinthians 15:58

“ Do not work for food that
spoils, but for food that
endures to eternal life, which
the Son of Man will give
you. On him God the Father
has placed his seal of
approval.” John 6:27

A curse on him
who is lax
in doing the
LORD’s work:
Jeremiah 48:10

As long as it is day, we must
do the work of him who sent
me. Night is coming, when
no one can work.
John 9:4

Whatever you do, work at it
with all your heart, as working
for the Lord, not for men,
since you know that you will
receive an inheritance from the
Lord as a reward. It is the
Lord Christ you are serving.
Colossians 3:23

 If a man will not work,
he shall not eat …
never tire of doing
what is right.
2 Thessalonians 3:10, 13

…to accept his lot and be
happy in his work – this is a
gift of God …
God keeps him occupied
with gladness of heart.
Ecclesiastes 5:19,20

Thank you to all of our laborers, both physical and spiritual!  You are all appreciated!  God bless you all!

A sister in Christ,

~Bethany~

Ridiculous (the goat) :)

 

Introducing........

GRANTED-WISHES PVA RIDICULOUS

Registration # AA1447530

Sire: CH Pearl Valley Golden Ace

Dam: CH Step By Step PVLM Vienna

We purchased a new buck today from Granted Wishes (The Ringkvist Family)!  Thank you so much for this awesome opportunity!  We are really excited about this guy and can't want to see kids out of him next year.  He is available for breeding service so let us know if you are interested!  We already have him all lined up with a bunch of our girls. :)

In Christ,

~Bethany~

Gold Ribbon Showmanship

Yesterday was an exciting day for me.....off to state fair for gold ribbon showmanship! Gold ribbon showmanship is where the overall showman from their county comes and competes at the state fair. We left around 9:00 in the morning and drove the 2 hour drive into Detroit and got there with a little bit of time eat some lunch and walk around the fair. At 1:45 I was in the arena ready to show. If anyone has every been to the MI state fair and into the Colosseum, you'll know what I'm talking about. It's HUGE! However, all of the different types of animals were all being shown at the same time with other gold ribbon exhibitors. It was pretty cool. They had two classes for the goat exhibitors (there were 18 exhibitors altogether) and I was in the 2nd class. I got to go out of the second heat and did my best. They didn't place anyone there but announced the results after the lunch that was provided. The only downfall of the day, we forgot the camera....or one of the three cameras around here. :( Anyway, after lunch we all got called down and they announced the winners (they place the top 10). I got second.....getting beat by someone I always get beat by. :P It was a great experience and I was so thankful for it! Thanks Mom and Dad for driving us all down there! It was a blast!

In Christ,
~Bethany~

Asher Acres News

Today was quite a day! It was rather relaxing this morning, I put in several ceiling tiles that needed to be replaced downstairs, Abigail worked on some painting and everyone else just got some cleaning done. Then we went and took a nice long walk down to the river since it was such a beautiful day (70 and sunny!!). After getting some lunch, Abigail and I went down by an old tree by our driveway to and I did some reading and took a nap while Abigail did some landscaping. My shoulder has been giving me some trouble so I'm off limits to lifting anything heavy and she was moving rocks....so I couldn't help her. Around 3:00 she woke me up to to tell me that the boys were here. We have two new foster boys (9 & 5) that are now living with us. They are adorable and lots of fun! Sure, we're probably still in the "honeymoon" stage but so far it's been going quite well. Keep them (and us!) in your prayers though as there will be issues that will arise as they always do.

The old bridge built in 1958. :)
3rd cutting hay is down! Should be baling tomorrow.
Abigail and Ben on our walk.

As usual on our walks, we had casualties. (Elizabeth stubbed her toe) :)
Just some flowers
Abigail panting stuff for the boys' room.
All the kids!

Hope everyone's having a great week so far! We sold two milking goats so with the yearlings I'm drying off I'm just down to 5 milkers now. It's been chilly here at nights but oh so nice during the day which is very much welcomed after all the rain we got last week. Well, I'd better scoot outside, we're gonna have a bonfire! Yay!!!!

In Christ,
~Bethany~