Secretariat's Belmont Stakes Win

Secretariat

Today, Mom & I went to the Alamo to see the movie "Secretariat".  I have been so excited to see this movie as I have known about and admired the horse for as long as I can remember.  This movie was done wonderfully and I was very impressed.  I can't wait to see it again and it is definitely a must have when it comes out on DVD. 

A Fun Book Day

Today was the first “Read-In” at school for the school year.  Becca and I had not gone last year and I was very interested to see what it was all about.  It didn’t start until 6:30 so we had over an hour to find something interesting to do.  I decided to go along with the theme of the evening and took Becca to the local library.  I had wanted to take her since her birthday as you had to be 6 to have your own card.  She was so excited when I told her where we were going!!  After giving them our information we were bestowed with our library cards. Becca then escorted me upstairs to the “kids” section where she picked out 2 books.  While she was looking around, I found Harry Potter & the Deathly Hallows on CD (17 disks in all!!).  This brought me much excitement as the first half of the movie will be out in theaters in November.  Now I may have a chance to get refreshed before then!!  After checking out our books, we went to Burger King for a quick dinner and then to the school.  It was a very nice evening.  There was probably about 40-50 kids there of various ages.  Becca was the only one from her class to attend (Maybe I will get brownie points with Mrs. Bradford!!)  Several of the teachers and staff participated in the evening taking turns reading books.  Some of them got really into it and were quite funny and entertaining.  I think Becca really enjoyed it.  I know I did!!  They will be having another one next month with a Halloween theme.  I can’t wait!!! 

What I've Missed

I have not become very efficient at keeping things updated quite yet.  I will use this opportunity to play catch-up from the summer.

• Lucy’s babies:  In March we bought 4 goats.  2 of the 4 were bred and due in late June and early August. Well, the end of June came and went and Lucy (who was due first) still hadn’t had her babies.  She was as huge as a whale and looked like she could burst at any moment!!  The waiting game began.  Mom was on baby watch every day while I was at work.  Many times I asked “Any babies yet?” always with the answer of “Not yet.”  Then on July 7^th, I got a phone call from Mom saying that the babies were here!!  Twins, a boy and a girl!!  Both the color of the mother with blue eyes like dad!!  5 o’clock could not come soon enough for me!!  I went and picked up Becca from the babysitter and headed home.  I decided to surprise Becca and did not tell her.  When we got home, Mom told Becca that she needed her to get something out of the barn.  She was so surprised!!  I decided to name the babies Alice & Jasper (wonder why!!!)

• Baby Chicks:  When one of our Barred Rock hens decided that she wanted to sit on eggs, Mom decided to let her.  The problem was, she wasn’t laying any eggs!!  One evening, Mom gathered up several eggs from other nests and put them under the hen.  She was so happy!!  Eventually, 7 babies hatched (6 yellow and 1 black).  Becca had stayed home with Mom that day and got to witness them hatching.  That day I got the cutest voicemail from her telling me all about it.  I am so thankful that she was there that day.  All of them are growing up and doing well, aside from the one that was snatched by a Chicken Hawk.  However, we think 4 of the 6 are roosters and are sure to meet there doom sooner than later.  I, however, will have no parts in that!!  I will just have to enjoy them while they’re here and be happy that we got at least 2 hens!!

• Ethel’s babies:  Ethel was our other pregnant goat.  She was due August 4^th.  One Saturday evening, I decided to take Becca to Delco to see the latest Shrek movie.  It was playing at 7 so I decided to feed the goats a little early.  When I went out in the goat yard, I couldn’t find Ethel.  She was lying behind the barn.  I got her up and over to where I had put her feed.  As she was eating, I checked to see if she had started getting milk yet.  I was surprised to see that she was overloaded!!  She took a couple of bites and went back to where she had been before I disturbed her.  I yelled for everyone and told them that I thought Ethel was in labor.  You could tell that she was very uncomfortable.  I felt so bad for her (especially once she started screaming!!)  After about 1 ½ hours, we had 2 beautiful babies!!  Twins again, and again one of each!!  This time they took after their dad.  Both were black, brown & white.  No blue eyes this time but each very beautiful.  I decided their names would be Emmett & Rosalie (Yeah, I know!!).  It was a very exciting experience and I was very glad that we were home and Becca got to be there for the grand event.  Needless to say, we did not get to the movies that night but were able to go another day. 

• Best Friend’s Day:  Over the summer, I got a very sad email from the Mom of Becca’s best friend Gracie.  The letter stated that they would be moving away to Mechanicsville soon and Gracie would no longer be in school with Becca.  I was devastated and struggled to find the right way to tell Becca.  We came to the conclusion that, while we were sad, we would make the best of the situation.  Mechanicsville is over 2 hours away from us, so it was not possible to have frequent visits.  However, I had a brilliant idea!!  Becca & I were going down to Kings Dominion for 2 days & 2 nights.  We would go down on Tuesday and come back home Thursday.  Somehow, I recalled that Mechanicsville was very close to Kings Dominion.  I set to work on an email to Barbara (Gracie’s Mom) to see if it would be possible for us to come by for a visit.  I was delighted to hear back from her that a visit was most definitely going to be doable.  I couldn’t wait to tell Becca!!  Unfortunately, the week of our vacation started off with gloomy weather and we had to push our plans back a day but this still worked fine for Gracie’s Mom.  We had a delightful time at Kings Dominion and woke up Friday morning quite refreshed.  I always hate to have to leave such a wonderful place but I knew that what was ahead was most certainly worth it.  I turned on my GPS, gave Barbara a quick call to let her know we were on our way, and off we went.  20 or so minutes later, we were pulling into their driveway.  Gracie was outside excited to see Becca.  It really almost brought me to tears.  The girls hadn’t seen each other since the last day of school which had more that 2 months prior but that acted like they hadn’t missed a day!!  Becca gave Gracie the ½ of the friendship necklace that she had picked out for her (pink of course) and the stuffed horse as a housewarming present.  The girls then went inside and played while Thomas, Gracie’s little brother, finished his nap.  Barbara and I sat in the living room and had a nice chat and when Thomas woke up, we loaded up the cars and went to Applebee’s for lunch.  We had such a grand time!!  The girls were so adorable telling each other secrets at the table and laughing hysterically.  After we finished up lunch, we went by Gracie’s new school for the kids to play.  It was so awful hot that day!!  I was very pleased to find out that Gracie needed a bathroom break, so back to her house we went.  The girls got to play for a bit longer, but eventually it was time for us to go.  I felt so horrible but we had a long drive ahead of us and things to do once we got home.  As the girls said their goodbyes, I had to fight back tears.  I promised that we would keep in touch and try to plan another visit in the near future.  And then, we were gone.  Becca took it pretty hard and cried for a little while.  She just didn’t seem to understand why she couldn’t come back over the weekend to visit.  I assured her that this wasn’t the last time that they would see each other.  Becca’s first best friend (other than me, of course!!) will always hold a special place in our hearts. 

Becca's New Puppy

Somehow it was decided that Becca needed a puppy to call her own.  Mom can take all the credit for this but I have to admit that I was just a bit excited at the thought of a new puppy in the house.  As Mom likes to say, “There’s always room for one more!!”  And the search began!  We looked at Corgis, Mini Schnauzers, Shelties, Border Collies, Brussels Griffons, Chinese Crested, Italian Greyhounds and more that I’m sure I can’t remember!!  Becca had been saying that she wanted a Poodle but that was a serious issue with me because they are one of my least favorite dogs (for several reasons).   So…Becca was shown at least 50 different non-Poodle puppies.  Every response was “Awww…its cute” but she would never commit to one.  Every time she would say “You decide”.  The searching was starting to feel pointless and it didn’t look like we were going to ever make a decision.  Then Friday evening, Becca and I came home and Mom said “How about a Bichon puppy?”  She showed us some puppies that she had found in WV about 3 hours away.  That was the trick!!  Becca made up her mind instantly that that was what she wanted.  The breed is close enough to a Poodle without actually being a Poodle.  Mom called the breeder and got all the information.  We were getting a puppy that weekend!!  Becca & I got up Saturday morning to go to a yard sale at one of the local churches and found a brand new crate that would work perfect for the puppy along with a very cute dog bed.  Was this a sign or what?!  Next, we went to Petco and bought the puppy some toys & a very cute pink party dress.  This is Becca’s puppy…what did you expect?  The decision was made to leave Sunday morning.  We got up bright & early (for a Sunday) and while Becca was eating breakfast I started getting the car loaded.  Unfortunately, I had left the sunroof open overnight and it had rained!!  The entire front of my car was SOAKED!!!  I was really hoping that this wasn’t a sign too.  After drying as much as I could and adding a waterproof pad and a towel to my seat, we were on our way.  Becca was so excited about going to pick out her new puppy, which she decided to name Alyssa.  Three hours later and we were there, looking at 3 gorgeous little balls of fluff.  Becca decided on her puppy and that was it.  We had a new member of our family.  I think she made a great choice (she is just like her Grandmother in many ways!!).  The ride back home was uneventful, aside from some puppy cries at the beginning and gridlock on 81 about 1 ½ hours from home.  But we made it!!  It was a long day and I was glad that we were home.  Mom came out to greet us and meet the new puppy.  Some pictures were taken; she met some of the gang and began to settle in.  All was well until, later that evening, Becca decided that the puppy needed a bath and dunked her in one of the dog pools.  Needless to say, she got in just a bit of trouble for that one!!  I blow-dried the shivering puppy and held her for a bit in a towel and all was well once again.  I am very excited about what is to come with Alyssa.  This is definitely something new for all of us!!

Becca is a First Grader!!

Today was Becca's first day of First Grade!  She was very excited but still very composed and as cool as a cucumber!!  She picked out a very beautiful dress for a very special day and wore her friendship necklace so that her best friend, Gracie, could be with her even though she was far away.  From the way that she was acting, you would never have thought that she had spent a whole summer away from school.  I guess after Kindergarten, she's an old pro at this.  When we got to the school, she grabbed her bookbag full of all of her supplies along with her lunchbox with her secret note tucked inside from Mommy.  And then, away she went.  My brave outgoing little girl.  As my eyes started watering, I called my Mom and said "Our little girl is growing up!!" and she is and I don't think I could be any prouder!!

The Vacation Wind-Down

It has been such a busy week but yet it all seems like just a dream.  Tomorrow we go back to work and the babysitter and the vacation is over.  Our days have been spent with friends and family and have ranged from being very relaxing to overwhelmingly busy.  Sunday, Becca & I saw Nanny McPhee Returns with my Mom which was such a great movie.  Monday was spent moping around watching the weather.  Our plans were to leave for Kings Dominion Tuesday morning but Mother Nature had other plans for us as it was a rainy chilly summer day.  Instead we went out with Mom to some of the area thrift stores and found some wonderful treasures.  I have to say that this is one of my most favorite things to do and I am very glad that we were able to do this.  This just goes to show that everything happens for a reason!!  Tuesday night I checked and rechecked my packing list to make sure we had everything we needed for Kings Dominion which made Wednesday morning run very smooth.  I took everything out to the car and we said goodbye to everything familiar.  My anxiety was getting the best of me and I think I would have been happy to just stay home, but we all know that does not make for a fun vacation!!  So reluctantly, I left the comfort of my home to set out on an exciting adventure with Becca by my side.  Before we knew it, we were at Kings Dominion.  We weren't able to check into the hotel yet so we grabbed what we needed from the car and headed over.  Becca rode her first "real" roller coaster and even went on the "Drop Tower" which is scary even for me.  So of course, I was doubly scared!!  We made it in one piece with Becca smiling all the way!!  She said that she didn't want to do it again because it made her tummy hurt (probably because it was still making it's way down and hadn't caught up with her yet)!  Before long, Becca was hungry so we headed back to the hotel to see if we were able to check in yet and we were.  After unpacking the car, we headed to Burger King for lunch and brought it back to our room.  I turned on some cartoons and took a short nap.  Then we changed into our bathing suits and headed back out for some time at the water park.  We ended the day with the White Water Canyon (twice) and left the park dripping wet!!  We decided to head to the hotel pool (since we were already wet) and have a fun swim.  Once we had our fill of that, we went back to the room and changed and went to the attached Denny's for dinner.  Becca was pretty exhausted and almost fell asleep during dinner so I got a box and the check and we went back to the room.  We woke up late the next morning and had breakfast and a shower and headed out for Day 2.  This day seemed much more relaxing to me and I let Becca lead the way and do what she wanted.  With the help of "Brave Gum" - Juicy Fruit - we were able to do some of the "scarier" things and Becca realized that they were fun and she was glad that she tried them.  By the end of the day, I knew that I had my fill of Kings Dominion.  Two days is alot to do but Becca was wonderful (most of the time) and it was a great experience.  After dinner that night, we went to the pool and Becca swam for a bit and then we went back to the room and started to get our things together for the morning.  Becca woke me at 7:30 ready to go.  I had her watch cartoons for a bit while I slept a little longer.  Around 8:30 we had breakfast and then went out to the pool for our farewell swim.  We were the only ones out there and it was very nice.  After a quick shower, we packed up the car and checked out of the hotel.  We drove about 20 minutes south to see Becca's best friend from Kindergarten who had recently moved.  The girls had a great time playing and I was very glad that they were able to get together.  The time came for us to go and after a tough good-bye we headed home.  It was so nice to see the familiar sights as we got closer and before long, we were back!!  Saturday, we had a 90th birthday party for my Grandfather and while it was nice to see the family (some, anyway) I am glad it is over.  Today is a day of reflection and sadness as it all comes to a close.  Another year until I see you again vacation.  What adventures will you hold for us then?

Welcome!

This is my first post.  I turned 29 a few weeks ago and vowed to write something every day in my journal.  Well...that lasted about a week at most!!  I'm hoping that this will be easier for me to keep up with.  The next few weeks are going to busy so I should have plenty to write about.  We've got our vacation coming up, Becca's 6th birthday and school starts soon.  Becca will be a first grader!!  Wow!!  My baby is growing up.