State Fair

We were fortunate to be able to go to the Fair on a beautiful sunny day - and with friends too!  Rebecca had entered two items in the fair and was very excited to see if she had placed with either of them.  We went to a few other exhibits on our way to see her items. 

How exciting it was to go to the case and find that she had indeed gotten ribbons - two blue ribbons!  Congratulations!!!  You did a great job Rebecca!



The first ribbon was for this beautiful jointed doll that she made. 



The second was for this food made from felt.  It's a blueberry waffle breakfast.  The waffles are sitting on a waffle maker (really cute).  The meal also includes sausage and a fruit cup.  It's so cute!



My children have enjoyed this exhibit and look forward to going back each year.  You start with a basket and then wander through the garden areas of things that grow in NC.



The children are able to pick and gather various fruits and vegetables.



When their basket is full, it is weighed and exchanged for some money.



You can use this to buy a bag of goodies - including an apple and some peanuts.  Eliana loved her apple this year.  I love seeing her eating it on her own!



The DMV hosts a driving safety experiential exhibit. 



They also gave out "clickers".  (Really loud and lots of ours have disappeared thankfully!)



Of course we had to see some animals and the ducks and chicks were the cutest!







Bumper cars are the favorite ride for my family.  Just look at their faces!













I was able to do something really fun too!  There was an Artisan Bread class.  We thought it would be short and we would go in and enjoy the beginning of it.  My friend Rebecca and I and some of the kids (5) started out in the class.  Well, it wasn't a short class and so the kids drifted out.  Rebecca and I stayed because ...

it was fun and interesting and I was chosen to be a volunteer.  :-)  One of the first jobs was to cut and weight the dough.  I've had some practice with a scale and this was fun. 



The chef from Neomonde Baking Company was hilarious!  It was a lot of fun learning the techniques and making the bread.



Doesn't this look yummy?  Oh, and did it all taste good!  We made a pumpernickel with raisins and walnuts, a whole grain and focacia.  It was all delicious and I was able to bring a loaf of each home (and sample it there too). 





It was a fun day filled with lots of sights and sounds.  We were worn out by the end of the day and ready to go home to rest.  I'm thankful that we were all healthy and able to have a fun day together.  Hope you are able to enjoy a fun fair where you live!

Blessings
Leslie

20 Years Ago

I had typed up an entry and our computer froze and lost it.  So for now, I'll just let the picture speak.



I love you sweetie!

Leslie

New prayer request

Actually, two requests. One for me and a bigger one for Daniel.

For me.  I'm not sure what to share and will just say that I just feel weak and hurt.  At times, wondering if God is even hearing my prayers. I *know* He does - it just doesn't feel like it when there is no answer.  I really want to walk in the path He has for me and hearing nothing can just be painful.  Does this make sense?

My feelings are not pretty. I know that. I know that the Bible says God loves me. He hears me. He is with me. He has a plan for my life for good. I just would like to feel it too. Or maybe I just need to trust more.

Could you also pray for Daniel? This is such a deja vu request. Today we went in for a routine eye appt. When the looking got longer - I knew. Something was wrong. I just prayed for the dr to be able to know clearly what was going on. Like last year, she saw problems with his optic nerve. (He had an MRI on this very day last year and all was fine.) Well, the problems are different and still not "normal looking". He is going to be referred to a neuro opthamologist at Duke.

I didn't ask what this could mean. Didn't want to do that in front of him and wasn't sure I wanted to know. Did a quick google search though on the specialist and what they do as well as her description of the color of his optic nerve. We don't see any other symptoms or signs of problems, but she wants someone else to check him out to be sure.

We will probably get the referral within a week and then have to wait a month or two for the appt - sooner if there is a cancellation.

I was calm when she told me and now it's late and I need to go to bed. Could you pray that there is nothing wrong with our little boy? Alternately, if there is something wrong that they would find it quickly and that it would be fixable.

Thank you for your prayers.
Love,

Field Trip - Historic Oak View County Park

Today was field trip day.  It was a beautiful, sunny day - just perfect for an outing with friends.  We visited Historic Oak View County Park.  This is a 19th century historic farmstead.  Our larger group was split in half and we then toured the grounds.  We viewed the home from the outside only.  The left side of the house is the original house (1855) and is built in Greek Revival style.  The right side of the house (Colonial Revival) was added on in the 1940s. 



There was a lovely gazebo in the front of the house.



We went into the kitchen, a separate building behind the house.  We talked about things that we used and done differently than today. 



The children helped start the making of butter by using cream in a jar.  (Much easier than using a churn, though mine have liked doing that in the past.) 



Next, we went outside and the children had the opportunity to try using a washboard to clean some clothes. 



Three children at a time were able to wash clothes.



Eliana loved this.  Of course, she loves anything with water!  Her wonderful big sister was helping her!





Just thought this was a fun picture of Isaiah and Joshua with their buddy Joe.



The cash crop for the plantation was cotton.  Until the boll weevils came through destroying cotton in the US.  They switched then to pecan trees.  The children were able to go into this  "field" of cotton and pick one. 

 

 

I know you can't see it, but I love the he wears a Down Syndrome Awareness bracelet on his right arm.  :-) 



Getting the seeds out is hard work.



I think this is a really pretty plant.  Feels so soft too!



Next we went into an old barn and learned more about cotton. 



The children twisted cotton to show how it strengthened the fibers. 





We saw an old gin,



a huge bale of cotton and even a boll weevil.  (It was much smaller than I had imagined.) 

 

Eliana loves hanging out with her friend!



The children learned about artifacts.  We were told that to be an artifact it had to meet these three criteria

*must be old

*must be made by humans

*must be used by humans.

The children were given several artifacts and then tried to figure out what they were used for - and it wasn't as easy as you might think!  Two of the items are in the next two pictures.  See if you can guess how they were used. 



 

After figuring it out, a spokesperson from each group shared with the rest of the group what the tools were used for.  Did you have a guess?



The first one is a tool used to remove the nails from horseshoes.  The second is to scrape away the hair and skin from a pig in order to have clean meat.  (yuck!)

We stayed for a picnic lunch.  There are large grassy areas (where the pecan trees are growing) that are an ideal spot to picnic and play.  Daniel loves hanging out with his friend Miss Lynn!



We played for a short time in the museum.  There is a really cute hands-on children's area.  Eliana loved the dress-up. 







A beautiful fun day.  I had fun hanging out with my children and my friends.  I'm so thankful I have the opportunity to do these fun things!

Blessings
Leslie