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 7th, 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 4th. 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.
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