Memorial Day and Parade

I would like to begin by thanking the many men and women who have fought and are fighting for our country and sacrificing their lives for our liberty.  Without the service of all of you, we would not be here today.  I enjoy American history and am just amazed at the strength, honor and courage our forefathers had, to fight so long and hard for our freedom.  A shout out to all those who are entering the armed forces, thank you thank you thank you!  I have several cousins and friends who are joining and I am so proud and thankful for every one of them. 

Our family annually participates in the town Memorial Day parade.  This is a parade where there are more people participating IN the parade than watching. :)  Ahh, in a small town of just barely 700, the Memorial Day parade has always been the main event of the year.  It doesn't take much for us to all get excited.  Anyway, here are just a few of my favorite pictures!

Abigail on Hoss.  They won 1st place in the Riding Horse division.

Ben and a few of our puppies. (I'm pulling them)

The ending of the parade!!!  I think it's so neat how they finish up with Abigail holding a flag on the horse.  So all-American. :)

The most memorial event was not photographed, the thunderstorms.  Right after we all arrived at the cemetery where they have a little service, you could see the storm clouds rolling in and feel the wind picking up.  The girls decided to head right home since they had ridden their horses into town and we didn't have a trailer big enough for all three.  It wasn't 10 minutes later that things started getting pretty nasty and everyone took off for their vehicles.  Dad went to go tell the girls to turn around, Mom went for the car so we could have somewhere dry for all the puppies and we all stayed put hoping we wouldn't get poured on. :D  It was just starting to really come down when Mom came back with a car to pick up as many as she could and Dad brought the girls/horses back.  They just held out there waiting for the rain to subside.  A wonderful lady/friend took some of us home while mom brought some other friends to their house.  Yeah, it was kinda crazy.  Anyway.....that's how that all went.

BTW, I hope to post on our latest show tomorrow. 

God's blessing to you all!

~Bethany~

Columbia City Show

I know it's been forever since you've heard from me last, but it's been a pretty busy week.  At the last show that we went to (Van Wert) we were informed of an Indiana show about 2 hours away from us.  It sounded like a good show and was within the 30 days of our health papers so we decided to go for it!  It was just a one day show, but we went up the night before and stayed the night.  Being a 2 hour drive, it was a smart move. :)  It also had an Alpine Specialty, so it made for a 2 ring, 1 day show.

We started out with showmanship.  Abigail ended up winning the senior division!  Great job girl!  I had a yearling who wouldn't stand well for me, so I didn't even really have a chance.  Thanks Dixie.  lol!  Oh well! 

The regular Alpine Sr. Doe Show was first.  Yearlings placed 3rd and 4th, Two year olds placed 3rd and 4th, Four year old placed like 4th.  Nothing great.  There was a TON of competition there though and I felt like we were placed fairly (except for one of my yearlings lol).  Then we went right into the Alpine Specialty Sr. Doe show and our yearlings placed 1st and 4th (or right around there), Two year olds placed 4th and 6th, Four year old placed 2nd.  So we actually had two does out in the lineup. 

The Alpine Specialty Jr. Doe show went so so.  One of our Intermediate kids placed 3rd, but the other two were buried in the class (it was a huge class, like 16 or something). Again, one of our Senior kids placed 3rd but the other two were again buried.  Oh well.  In the dry yearling class, Ali won her class!!!  Woohoo!  She ended up winning Grand Champion!!!  Okay, so it was all worth it. :)  Then we went right into the Regular Alpine Jr. Doe show.  Our Intermediates all got buried.  Athena won the Senior class (though the other two were pretty much buried).  In the yearling class, Ali won again!  So we had two in the Champion lineup.  Yay!  Ali won Grand again so we got to wait around 'till the end again.  Here comes the exciting part....ALI WON BEST IN SHOW!!!!!  I was so excited!!! 

So anyway, that's how that show went.  Got to meet a few new people, had some fun showing our goats, had a good time hangin' out with family, learned some new showmanship techniques, all that fun stuff.  :) Well, here are a few pics from the show.  Enjoy!!!

Showmanship lineup!

Champion Lineup for the Alpine Specialty.

Milking out the does after the show.

Waiting for BIS.

In lineup for BIS!

My Ali girl!!!!

Have a great weekend! 

In Christ,
~Bethany~

Fruits of the Spirit

LOVE

Romans 8:39 "Whether we are high above the sky or in the deepest ocean, nothing in all creation will ever be able to separate us from the love of God that is revealed in Christ Jesus our Lord. Meaning, so even death is not an obstruction for God not to be able to show how much He would sacrifice just for the love meant for all of us.

JOY

O come, let us sing for joy to the LORD, Let us shout joyfully to the rock of our salvation.

PEACE

Do not be anxious about anything, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all understanding, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus. Philippians 4:6-7

PATIENCE

Let us not become weary in doing good, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up. Galatians 6:9 

 

 

 

 

 

 

KINDNESS

Be kind and compassionate to one another, forgiving each other, just as in Christ God forgave you. Ephesians 4:32

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

GOODNESS

Do to others whatever you would like them to do to you. This is the essence of all that is taught in the law and the prophets. Matthew 7:12

 

FAITHFULNESS 

He that is faithful in that which is least is faithful also in much: and he that is unjust in the least is unjust also in much. If therefore ye have not been faithful in the unrighteous mammon, who will commit to your trust the true riches? And if ye have not been faithful in that which is another man's, who shall give you that which is your own? Luke 16:10-12

GENTLENESS

A gentle answer turns away wrath, but a harsh word stirs up anger. Proverbs 15:1

 

 TEMPERANCE 

If you find honey, eat just enough--too much of it, and you will vomit. Proverbs 15:16

Awards!

I was awarded the Stylish blogger Award by Amy @ AmyWegnersBlog!  Thanks a bunch Amy!

The rules: State 5 random facts about yourself and award 5 other bloggers.

1: I have neon green glow in the dark retainers.

2: I love politics.

3: My favorite drink on a hot day is either cold lemonade or kefir!

4: I want to be a vet, but don't want to go to college for 10ish years. :P

5: I have never been to the hospital for myself (except for being born in the hospital).

Okay, was that random enough? :D  Or you all thinking way TMI!  lol!

I Award:
Ria @ Life as a Wife
Hannah @ Trusting in His Love
Rachel @ HopeJourney
Lynette Kraft @ Dancing Barefoot on Weathered Ground
Rebecca @ The Life of a FarmGirl

I recieved this from Tiffany over at Musings of a Missionary Girl! Thanks so much!

If you are tagged.........

1. Post about the tag

2. Pick 10 bloggers who deserve this award.

3. Leave a comment on the blogs of the people you tagged letting them know they were awarded.

4. Answer the questions along with your post.

1. Apples, Oranges or Banana's? I'm going to have to go with oranges.  Though fresh apples are excellent!

2. How many siblings to you have? 7!  4 sisters and 3 brothers!

3. How old are you? I am sixteen, turn 17 in August.  My, that sounds old.

4. Do you live on a: prarie, woodland, swamp, city or other? Tough to say.  I live in the middle of nowhere, hold an address of a hicktown that has no town, built in the middle of a pasture, and are surrounded by on all 4 sides.  Yeah, I have you confused already don't I? :D

5. Scissors or glue? Well, depends what you are using them for!!! 

6. Describe your dream house? Something big...but usually I dream more about the barns and property.  I LOVE barns! 

7. Is your room clean? It's okay for now.  I think.  lol!

8. If you could be a movie character for a day who would it be? I don't know.  Something from some long ago time, WW2 maybe?

9. Italy, Greece, France, Spain or England? Italy!!!  Why?  I don't know.

10. What denomination are you? Christian.  Is that a good enough answer?  Says a lot, yet for some it doesn't say enough. 

11. Do you sleep with a stuffed toy [Be Honest!!!!] No way!  I haven't slept with a stuffed toy in forever. 

12. Gum, chocolate, or jelly beans? Chocolate, chocolate, chocolate and more chocolate! 

13. What is your favorite book? Oh I don't even know where to start on that one.

14. Favorite ice cream flavor? Cookie dough or anything with chocolate!

15. If you had to eat one type of food for 2 weeks what would it be? Noodles.  Vague enough, but still can be prepared in many different ways.

16. What is your favorite Olyplic sport? I don't watch much Olympic sports.  I do like the ice skating tho...

17. If you woke up one morning and discovered you had turned into Miley Cyrus for the day, what would you do? I guess I would be famous.  Finally!  I've been waiting for so long!  JK!!!

18. Describe yourself in three words. ( I told Abigail to describe me in three words and this is what she told me.....Confident, Focused, Fun.

19. What do you hate?  Government controlling citizens and citizens willingly giving up their freedom.

20. If Elmo came into your room with a gun, what would you do? I'd say "and I thought you were just fake".

I tag...
The same 5 tagged above....plus the following.....

Ashley @ A Cowgirl's Dream
Adam @ One Texan's View
Kelsey @ The Narrow Way (sorry Kelsey, I hope you see this.  For some reason your blog would not come up for me)

BTW, if anyone else would like these, leave a comment and let me know!

In Christ,
~Bethany~

Show results and new calves!

Howdy folks!
So I'm sure a few of you may be wondering how we did at our first show of the year.  We went to a Tri-State show in Ohio and competed against people, I mean goats from Michigan, Indiana, and Ohio.  :)  I'll give you a little outline here....

Friday- We were hoping to leave around 4-5:00, but things just kept coming up so we finally pulled out of the driveway around 8:15.  Yeah, a tad bit late, but oh well.  We arrived at the fairgrounds around 10:00 and got everyone settled, then hit the hay. 

Saturday - Abigail and I were up early shaving udders and doing chores.  The show started at 8:00 a.m. with Senior Showmanship.  Abigail and I both made the mistake of not scrubbing our showmanship does' hooves and didn't place as well as hoped.  Rachel however got out there and got the job done and won the Intermediate division!  I decided to put Elizabeth (8) in the older age division (9-11 year olds) and she ended up winning as well!  Woohoo girls!  
  Right after showmanship, we went right into Alpines.  Thea', my favorite yearling won her class with our other yearling Dixie right behind in 3rd place.  In 2 year olds, Gala won her class with Alithia coming in 3rd as well.  Missy, my 4 year old won her class too, so we had 3 of the 5 in the Champion line-up.  We were elated when Gala won Grand Champion!   This was our first Senior Alpine Doe to win a milking leg, so that was SO exciting! 
  The Junior Doe show was just as exciting.  We had three Intermediate kids and three Senior kids.  Our Intermediate kids place 1st, 2nd and 4th.  Our Senior kids placed 1st, 2nd and 5th.    I also had Ali, my dry yearling who placed 2nd in her class.  In overall.....my senior kid Athena won Grand!  Then we waited around for Best Doe in Show and guess what......yep she won Overall!!!  Another exciting win! 
  The last thing we had for the day was the buck show.  We only brought our buck kid that we kept this year from Gala and Presto cross.  He's a beauty and showed it out in the ring winning both times in a class of at least 10!  So that was all our excitement of the day. :)

Sunday - There was a little church service before the show started, a wonderful addition if you ask me. :)  Again, we got right to showing but it didn't go quite as well as the day before.  They still placed decent with the yearlings going 2nd and 4th.  The yearlings went with Gala 2nd and Alithia 5th.  Missy did win her class, and nearly won Reserve, but she missed it. :(  Still, no bad placings, so I was still pretty happy.  Once we got down to kids though, we did well again.  Both our Intermediate and Seniors placed 1st, 2nd and 3rd in their classes.  Ali won her class, and we were all hoping she would win grand, but....Abigail's senior kid Callie won Grand!  Ali received Reserve though, so I was still pretty happy.  We waited around for Best in Show, but the Nubian dry yearling won....so we headed on home!  Overall though, a great weekend!

Rachel and Rebekah in showmanship.

Elizabeth in showmanship.

Ben and Josh in showmanship.

Alpine Champion line-up on Saturday.  Elizabeth has the yearling, Abigail has the 2 year old and I have the 4 year old.

Gala, our 2 year old.

Alithia, our other 2 year old!

Ali, my pretty dry yearling.

Athena, the Grand and BIS on Saturday.

Callie, Grand on Sunday!

When we came home Sunday afternoon, we found a surprise waiting our in the pasture....a beautiful heifer calf from Violet!  What I didn't mention earlier, was that Fawn calved Friday morning with a bull calf, so we are now milking 3 cows/heifers.  Lots of milk going through here right now.  I figured it to be about 20 gallons a day (at least) which averages about to be about 140 gallons of milk a week.  Yikes! :) 

The family with the new heifer calf.

The bull calf is the light brown one and the heifer is the dark brown.  

The heifer is about 2x the size of the bull calf.   She has had a hard time getting on her feet, so we gave her some selenium tonight.  Hopefully that will get her up and going!  

Well, I'll close here.  It's way past my bedtime. :)

~Bethany~