Fair Time!!!!

Chris with Houdini who took reserve x-bred steer! Kelly, that's Neil Parr behind the steer. I'm behind Chris talking to him.

Emma very proud of her lavender ribbon!!! Mom and Dad were proud too!

Ella and the queen with Ella's princesses.

Waiting for the junior showmanship class

Natalia gave it a try!

The tongue sticking out must mean something!!!!

Anna was very determined!

Ella pulling hard!!! Her steering was a little off - she almost hit a post!

Finding his spot to lay down after placing 3rd

Gibby running in the show ring!

Flower Arrangement - 4-H A rating

Market Basket - 3rd

We spent the last week at the Mason County Fair in Havana. Emma took 2 steers, 1 barrow, vegetables, and flowers. The girls had a great time and met more people again this year. Chris and I were exhausted at the end of each day but got up and went at it again the next day. All in all, the girls had a great week. Emma did very well and gained more confidence in the show ring with her steers. She really seems to enjoy it and is becoming quite the showman. We still have some improvement in the swine dept. as her barrow, Gibby, ran around the ring the whole time and then laid down in the corner and wouldn't get up when his class was over. Ella made herself known to everybody. She was rarely at our spot in the barn, she was always somewhere else! She played with her princess figurines and made a ton of friends (mostly high school girls). Anna watched the pig scramble with intense fascination. She was studying up the techniques for catching a pig next year. She is determined to catch a pig next year! The girls and Chris are already talking about what they are going to do next year. As tiring as it is, I love it that they are excited about it and want to do it!

Demo-Day 2

Eric putting in the last two pieces.

New drywall!!!!!

Phillip working!!!!!

Phillip waiting for directions.

Funny what you find behind the walls. Extra drywall - I guess Grandpa paid for it and they were going to make sure he got every bit of it!

What the h---- are we going to do with that?????

So much dust flying, didn't get a clear picture.

Thank goodness for Eric! He and Phillip came down today and helped us take down the soffits(sp?) and the wall that needed to come down. Couldn't have done it without them! Thanks guys!

PS: Sorry, but the pictures are in the wrong order:)

kj

Still haven't hurt Chris:)

Demo Phase 1

We've officially started the kitchen remodel over the last 2 nights. AND, neither Chris or I have killed each other:) Here are some pics of what we have done.

Swimming!

I apologize for it being so long since I last blogged. I find it hard to do this and so I tend to put it off, but you can thank Devin and Christy and Brittany for encouraging me to blog. I just looked through their blogs and that made me get on the ball! All I have for you is the girls swimming. We have been extremely busy this summer with softball, piano, 4-H, VBS and family visits! I thought this would be a relaxing summer where I could hole up in the house and not go anywhere, but with 3 girls I should have known that was not the way it would be:) It's probably good for me to be this busy!

Welcome To The Barn!

Can't have a spring on the farm without a new litter of kittens! A little inbreeding going on here!

Maddie likes to get nose to nose with them and they don't mind checking her out either!

Just the right size for Ella!

They fight terribly over their feed - kids!

Don't forget about the steers! These two have been a challenge for Chris to halterbreak!

We've added some new additions to our barn in the last couple of weeks. We're gearing up for the 4-H fair and of course, spring always brings new babies on the farm! Pigs are a new experience for us and they are so far a great joy! They make us laugh every time we've gone out to the barn - ok, I'm sure the honeymoon period will end soon with these two animals, but so far I just love them! They are like having two puppies! They chew on everything and are so curious about anything we do. Chris and I laugh so much at them! Their names are Gibby and Reggie. I always have to name the animals or there is too much fighting between the girls. Gibby is from iCarly and Reggie is from the ISU Redbird mascot whose name is Reggie. No names for the steers yet, though I'm sure Chris has certain names for them that would not be appropriate for me to put on here! I'm thinking the one with the purple halter should be called Houdini since he always manages to get his halter off!

Thanks for checking in!

Karen

American Girl Doll Trip

Great Grandma Budke bought the girls, myself, and mom Peoria Charter tickets to go to the American Girl Doll Store in Chicago on Good Friday. I had a hard time facing the fact that mom would not be going with us and knew that I would need to have someone who would thoroughly embrace the shopping day and so my BFF Sherry was there to rescue to me! Chris offered to go first, but with the great weather - he had to work and I don't think that really bothered him! Sherry wanted to check out the store for her little darling, Kali, who will one day, I'm sure, make the trip with us! We had a great time and couldn't believe the treatment these dolls get at the restaurant and the store - they even have a beauty shop and a hospital! The girls loved it and Sherry and I enjoyed everything except the bus trip (Sherry says we'll drive next time).

I couldn't make it through the day without crying or thinking about mom. When I took Ella to the bathroom, they had little holders for the dolls to sit in while you went to the bathroom. I knew mom would have thought they were ridiculous and she would have laughed at them. That got me! The waterworks turned on!

Thanks for checking in and I apologize for it being so long....it's hard writing knowing that mom isn't going to comment. You'll probably find that I'll use this as a form of "therapy" - hope you all don't mind:)

kj

Disney Was Great!!!!

The weather was not ideal but it didn't stop us. We conquered Disney through the rain and wind and even through a couple of sunny, 7 0 degree days! The girls all flew well - no throwing up this time - thank you, Dramadine(sp?)! We all enjoyed the trip and cannot wait to go again! Here are a few pictures of the girls with some of the characters they met. That is our game while we're there, to get as many autographs as we can! I'll try to post more this weekend - I only took 261 photos!

ki