Western Washington Fair 2014 ( Puyallup Fair )

This year's state fair has come and gone in a whirlwind of activity and busyness that still has my head spinning. I could not have enjoyed the time there without the help of 2 of my grandchildren and my husband. The Western Washington Fair formerly known as The Puyallup Fair is one of the biggest state fairs in the nation. Literally thousands of people passed by my exhibit in the 'Animals Of The World ' barn and my husband and oldest grandson were often answering questions regarding my Jacob sheep , giving me a break.

We set up our exhibit the day before the fair opened. It takes planning and preparation to set up a fair exhibit, and also packing for the whole week I and my grandchildren will be camping at the fair. Here is my husband standing next to my ram pen. Yes, my ram ( not my husband ) is dangerous.

My ram's name is Goth , here is part of my display. The rugs shown were crafted by me using the wool of my sheep. You can also see a Jacob sheep skull and hide on the wall.

We cart the blue "walls' in too, giving the display a border and a place to hang up info regarding the breed of sheep.

This is the back of the display. Usually my exhibit is placed in the middle of the big barn so we created the walls as a way to also define the space visually.This also gives us a little bit of privacy since we are open to the public from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 p.m. for five days and nights. With record breaking attendance at the fair this year we often had so many people passing though our barn there was no room for us to get out of our exhibit. At least there was an interesting animal to view pretty much everywhere in the barn for those stuck walking at a snail's pace because of the crowd. ( That is one of my granddaughters above. She was a big help this year )

Goth doesn't seem to mind the crowds and must have had his picture snapped thousands of times over the years. He does play with the big rubber ball while at the fair, and enjoys soda crackers and apples as frequent treats for being good.

A partial view of  the aisles filled with people. This is what Saturday & Sunday look like until after 7:00 p.m. A non-stop flow of people viewing the animals . We are very happy and honored to be able to exhibit our sheep here and love answering questions about them , and we do get a lot of questions !

The table in front of my exhibit contains wool, horns, things made from the fiber of my sheep. All hands-on for the public.

All's quiet before the barn is open to the public. We get there at least an hour before they're open so we can clean the animal's stalls , feed & water them, and prepare for the day.

The sheep on the other side of my display. I keep the ram separate from the girl sheep & their lambs. Yes, the girl Jacob Sheep have horns too.

My best help comes from our oldest grandson. I really don't think I could do this anymore without him, so thank-you C.T. ! This was a great year at the fair and we're hoping to be asked back again next year.

Honey-Bee Tea Time on the Porch

 Autumn, my favorite time of the year. I love the crispness of sunny autumn days but this fall the weather is hot. Too hot. I took tea outside on my front porch because it was hot indoors and the thermometer said it was a cool 80 degrees in the shade on the porch. 80 degrees ? It is the second week of October and nary a raindrop in sight for most of the month this far. I am missing my Pacific northwest weather of cool rainy days , cool sunny days , and rain.

 I did however enjoy my mint tea and some cookies on the porch as I watched the birds at the feeder and my dogs snored at my feet. This honeybee cup with a lid was a birthday gift from my sister-in-law Alice * and her husband Paul.

 The cup not only came with a lid ( love this feature ! ) but it came with a strainer that fits over the cup , a plate to rest the cup on and a little hive shaped rest for the used tea leaves or tea bags. The whole set goes perfectly with my honeybee tea pot too !

 Seems like I have not been home much at all the past 6 weeks and just returned home again this past weekend.I am so happy to be back . I will be enjoying tea on my porch catching up on the magazines that have been piling up while I've been away , maybe even get some spinning and wool dyeing done this week too. Might as well take advantage of this amazing weather while it lasts.

I am excited to be back to my Tea-Time Tuesdays too and will be joining these ladies ~
Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage *
Martha at Martha's Favorites *
Bernideen's Tea Time Blog *
Ruth at Antiques & Teacups *
Kathy at A Delightsome Life *

Long Prayed For Gift Has Arrived !

 What a month this has been . I entered a new decade of life ( 60 years old now ) and our youngest son and his wife were blessed with their first-born child after many years of marriage, a son ! My husband & I now have another grandchild, a baby long prayed for . God is so good to us , our little grandson and his mommy are healthy and doing very well.



I have been gone most of this month, starting with the state fair to coming home after being there for 5 days & nights, to unloading the animals and travel trailer so my husband & I could drive over the mountains 6 hours away to see our new grandson.( Just holding a newborn baby makes me want to cry for the happiness of a new life. Precious.) Then we came home for a couple of days to catch up with things around here so I could head back over the mountains with our oldest grandson to help out with the new baby . Our daughter-in-law had to have a C-section and needed a little help. She is recovering quite well now and I am getting back into my daily routine around here , with a bit more spring in my step and a happy song in my heart... a new grandson, praise Him ! " Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of lights ; " James 1:17

Summer Was Awesome

 I have missed blogging but have no good excuse for not logging in nightly. This summer has been one adventure after another with one summer duty or need after another leaving absolutely no spare moment that has not left me exhausted and deciding I really need to get some sleep. Yes, this night-owl has been to bed before 10:00 p.m. many nights the past month ( August ), so maybe that is my excuse ! I needed to get some sleep. We did some camping last month with our daughter & her family, and my husband's brother and his wife. ( Above is our little Jayco trailer , our home away from home when we're camping. )

 We camped at Iron Creek Campground near Randall, Washington. I am the gray-haired lady in the picture with my husband and 4 of our grandchildren. This campground is so beautiful with ancient trees, fast moving rivers, hiking trails, berry picking, fishing... just an amazing place to camp with family and friends. A place that is so beautiful and magnificent there are not adequate words to describe it. "Awesome" comes close, if you're using the intended definition of the over-used word.

 We've spent quite a bit of time at our home over the mountains too. Our youngest son and his wife  who live near-by this home are expecting their first baby after 13 years of marriage and this little long-hoped-for miracle is due any day now ! My husband & oldest grandson are shown here after checking out the woods and pond and discussing what needs to be done for next year's hay crop.

 Our oldest grandson is a very hard working young man and has his heart set on raising Galloway cattle. He and his mom ( our daughter ) discovered there was a couple who raise Galloway cattle near our home on the other side of the mountains and our grandson has worked hard to earn the money to buy a calf from these lovely people. We visited them and their herd a second time, where our grandson saw his calf. She isn't ready to leave her momma yet, but in a few weeks ...

 One of the perks of our trip over the mountains is the time to hang out with these characters . Yes, along with our oldest grandson who traveled with us are his 6 cousins ( or 6 more of our grandchildren ) . You just know you're going to be amused and entertained when you sit down with this group. If you make sure you have a lot of Cheetos and chocolate pudding to share you're in for an even better time !

 My husband & I also began a bedroom / bathroom re-model late this spring, and are finally finishing up. I use the "we" generously , because my husband really did almost all of the work himself after the plumber re-fitted the plumbing for our new spa bathtub. This is the old master bedroom as we began to clear away and move things for the work to be done. The room is now repainted, the tub and sink have lovely tile my husband cut & fitted perfectly , and after this month I'll have the carpet shampooed, new curtains, bedspread... oh, lots of things.

 We can't escape gardening around here either. With all that we have going on my husband also raised a bumper crop of beans and cucumbers. I promised him I would process and preserve all his hard -earned harvest . This is the number 1 reason I have had no spare time or energy. We here in the Pacific Northwest have had a record number of days over 80 degrees in July & August. We do not have central air-conditioning and I have been over-heating myself as I have been canning in our kitchen with the temperatures indoors at about 80 to 90 degrees daily. Believe me when I tell you I wilt at 72 degrees. Yes, this wilted blogger was very happy to go to bed before 10:00 p.m. for many a night lately. I must confess, we have a teeny tiny air-conditioner in our bedroom , so it wasn't hard to choose going to bed over blogging !

 The reward for all that hot and hard work was worth it though.

Summer is almost over, and although it is my least favorite season, it was a summer well spent. My youngest grandson shown above with our dog Whimsy  is soon to be the 2nd to youngest grandchild and grandson. My dog Whimsy is over 1 year old now and she has proven to be very good dog, wonderful camper, and all around excellent companion to our family. The year has gone by so quickly and soon my favorite season will bring with it the weather I love . As I look over my blog from its' beginning, a beginning that started as our family eagerly awaited the birth of the grandson shown above with my Whimsy, I see how quickly things can change in a life, how what seems an insurmountable life situation can in a few short years turn into something quite amazingly different. Not what was expected , but every bit as "awesome" and blessed.

Rain !

Days of extremely high temperatures have left me wilting . All my time seems to be spent watering the gardens and livestock, only to begin again. It's too hot to bake or can the fruit and veggies . We don't have air conditioning except in our bedroom... and tempting as this is, I cannot justify spending the summer days there.

Yesterday thunderstorms rolled in bringing with them abundant rain. Today is a very fine day for baking and gazing out the window, and I am loving it ! "For ground that drinks the rain which often falls upon it and brings forth vegetation useful to those for whose sake it is also tilled, receive a blessing from God." Hebrews 6 : 7

Kona ~ A Happy Dog

This is Kona, a Labrador Retriever. Kona is a happy dog. Kona's mistress , Shannon, ( sister of our youngest son's wife ) hosted a baby shower for our son and his wife who are soon due to have their first baby ( our grandson ) after over 13 years of marriage. A miracle and a blessing we will never take for granted. Kona seemed to take over the role as host for the baby shower and I thought he was pretty entertaining, greeting every newcomer and checking out the gifts. During the baby shower I saw him grab an unopened water bottle, bite the lid off  and enjoy a long cool drink . His happy face made me even happier. How can you beat this ? A happy son, a happy daughter-in-law, a happy family, a happy dog enjoying the gathering ? Well, the only topper for this ? A happy birth !!!!! Soon.....

Chicks Just Make Me Happy

 Two granddaughters spent a few days here with us and of course they loved holding and playing with my new chicks ( as in baby chickens ).

 How can you not love holding such tiny softness , such fragile beauty ?

You just try keeping these two out of the chick pen , no way... these two returned as often as I allowed to hold the baby chickens. Oh my, am I blessed ! Granddaughters to play with and baby chicks too. I hope you have special joys in your life, and I know you do. Just look around, see how your life has been blessed. No matter your set -backs , the tragedy and chaos you have suffered and maybe suffer even now, you can find even a small glint of light, of hope, of blessing. Bless you today as you travel on this journey of life and appreciate the every day things so many take for granted...a bit of food, a place to sleep, something lovely to look at and somebody who cares for you. You truly are blessed !

Me, my chicks make me happy, and my granddaughters make me happier , I am blessed !