Let the Prom Drama begin....Like Aurora, her dress keeps changing

[horseshowmom]

"Shower..........do not pass go until you have showered" and that is when I thougt of you

Could be worse, I guess...

If our kids only knew how much fun we have at their expense..........

This is a child who has literally been kicked in the forehead (concussion), almost broke her upper arm when a horse swung around and knocked her head over heels, and then stepped on her, and has had her feet stepped on numerous times (1200 lb. horses), and she wants to whine over a shot!

Yikes, it seems so much of the country is sooooo dry. What do people do if there is not enough hay? I assume that is what you feed your horses.

We feed both hay and feed in the winter, but they need the hay for the roughage (and the nutritional content too). You can buy feed that has the roughage aspect incorporated, but it's much more expensive. I honestly don't know what people are going to do. I know people who have sold most (or all) of their cattle herds for this reason. The horses (or cows) could really suffer if they don't belong to somebody who makes sure they're taken care of. Not to mention how much the per bale cost has jumped.

It does mean a lot. In the grand scheme of things in life, it is a drop in the bucket, but IMO it is one of those times in life where the memories stay vivid for a very long time. It is the last of the carefree years, adult hood is looming. For myself, it is the end of a life stage, he is grown and ready to spread his wings, whether I am ready for it or not.

Yes, it seems to happen regardless of whether we're ready or not.

I must say, I do love the recent trend in the jeans worn with high heels. It gives me more variety when buying jeans to be worn with flats.

DD likes to wear hers with heels though, so she struggles to find them long enough. I don't do heels anymore!

Have you told DH lately that he has used up his nursing/caregiving allotment for the year?

He's lucky that he's married to a good woman.

My DD spent the afternoon at her Best Friends house and they spent their time riding the horses. My DD was so excited, she got to trot. Then she went on to tell me the story of her BF whose horse started to canter and the BF doesn't know how to do that yet and fell off (she is just fine)

I'm glad the friend was okay. That soft arena dirt helps a lot (if they were in an arean). We've had a spill or two over the years ourselves, but the concussion was the worst of it (although she still has a discoloration on the back of her arm in the shape of a horseshoe, and it's been a year and a half ).

then they got to clean the saddles with toothbrushes (which she did willingly, but does she clean her own room???? Of course not, I was).

DD's room was the same way, but the tack was always cleaned (except for the time she left the western show saddle in the trailer in very hot, wet weather, and it turned green and had to go to a professional for cleaning ) .

For us, it's a major job. She has both western and English tack. The western show tack has silver all over it. Lots of work involved (of which I do none of - all her job! ).

I take care of the show clothes. A showmanship outfit can easily cost between $700 - $1000, so it takes special care (only one dry cleaner that I trust, and it's 50 miles away). We're very careful with her stuff, because I usually resell it for close to what I gave for it (our seamstress sews for people nationally but lives in our area and gives all of her local customers a break). That's the only way we can afford it. Her last horsemanship shirt cost us $350, and I sold it for the same. It was gorgeous. DD didn't want to sell it, but who needs a $350 shirt just hanging in the closet? The styles will have changed by the time she shows again.

She had a great time.

Sounds like a smart kid!

 

[horseshowmom]

Went to see DD in Boulder yesterday afternoon and took her out for dinner - that was very nice.

DS played two lacrosse games this weekend and they did well.

Nebraska won 41-40 over Ball State. I swear they are trying to kill me!

Have a good day!!

Glad you got to visit with your DD! I tried to talk DH into riding over and having dinner with ours Friday, but he vetoed the idea (party pooper ).

Glad your DS had good lacrosse games too!

I thought about you when I saw the Nebraska scores!

 

[mamacatnv]

This is a child who has literally been kicked in the forehead (concussion), almost broke her upper arm when a horse swung around and knocked her head over heels, and then stepped on her, and has had her feet stepped on numerous times (1200 lb. horses), and she wants to whine over a shot!

We all have our issues I hate, hate, must be drugged into oblivion to go to the dentist. I can't hardly stand to take the kids, the sound sends me over the edge.................

We feed both hay and feed in the winter, but they need the hay for the roughage (and the nutritional content too). You can buy feed that has the roughage aspect incorporated, but it's much more expensive. I honestly don't know what people are going to do. I know people who have sold most (or all) of their cattle herds for this reason. The horses (or cows) could really suffer if they don't belong to somebody who makes sure they're taken care of. Not to mention how much the per bale cost has jumped.

Is this why you got yours so early and in the heat of the summer? You knew what was coming

DD likes to wear hers with heels though, so she struggles to find them long enough. I don't do heels anymore!

I love the look, but am old enough to care if my feet hurt - function over fashion.

He's lucky that he's married to a good woman.

That he is! Does he need the # for the florist?

I take care of the show clothes. A showmanship outfit can easily cost between $700 - $1000, so it takes special care

What is this the 4 legged version of a beauty pagent???? You aren't one of THOSE Mom's are you

(only one dry cleaner that I trust, and it's 50 miles away).

Ummmm, isn't just about everything 50 miles away from you?

We're very careful with her stuff, because I usually resell it for close to what I gave for it (our seamstress sews for people nationally but lives in our area and gives all of her local customers a break). That's the only way we can afford it. Her last horsemanship shirt cost us $350, and I sold it for the same. It was gorgeous. DD didn't want to sell it, but who needs a $350 shirt just hanging in the closet? The styles will have changed by the time she shows again.

And here I thought the $200 bat for baseball was bad...............

Horseshowmom:
Any other problems from the creep?

Sandy:
Any road trips planned for football?

We get to drive up to S. Lake Tahoe on Saturday for DS's game. The field was saved during that horrible fire this summer, but I guess everything around it burned. The field was so pretty, it sits down in a canyon and the bleachers were amongst the trees, also the upper perimeter of the field is trimmed in trees. I have heard all the tree's are gone and then I have heard they are still there, we will just have to wait and see. Hope it warms up a bit, it can get cold up there!

 

[horseshowmom]

We all have our issues I hate, hate, must be drugged into oblivion to go to the dentist. I can't hardly stand to take the kids, the sound sends me over the edge.................

Here's hoping your teeth stay in great shape!

Is this why you got yours so early and in the heat of the summer? You knew what was coming

Yep!

I love the look, but am old enough to care if my feet hurt - function over fashion.

Great minds obviously think alike!

That he is! Does he need the # for the florist?

He's got it, but he probably won't think to use it...

What is this the 4 legged version of a beauty pagent???? You aren't one of THOSE Mom's are you

It's probably closer than you might think.

And you wouldn't believe what goes into getting the horses ready. DD has been able to make very good money banding horses' manes for other riders (since we show on a budget, she learned how to do her own very well early on) - $25 and up for each mane. Since she's been doing it for quite awhile, she can do a very professional job in 30 minutes. When she was still going to shows, she could rake in some pretty fair money.

Not only are the manes fixed up, the horses wear tail extensions (sort of a wig for horses to make their tails nice, even, and full - no, I'm not making this up ). They have to match perfectly, so we own more than one extension idea:f rom now on we should buy horses to match the tails we already have ).

If your horse has a spot where he's had an injury/scratch/scar/etc., they have matching spray paint (to match the horse's hair color) that you can cover the area up with so it won't be a distraction. You also put hoof black on their hooves, so they have nice, shiny hooves (black for black hooves, clear for white hooves) - kind of like fingernail polish.

Try not to laugh too hard! There's more, but you probably wouldn't believe me if I went through it all (you may be having a hard time just believing this much ).

And, I must confess, DD does have a couple of tiaras laying around somewhere, but the dress she wore for the beauty pageant was borrowed at no cost while the outfit for the Horse Show Queen contest cost about $350. She was a lot more interested in the Horse Show Queen deal!

And here I thought the $200 bat for baseball was bad...............

Well, as I said, we show on a budget. Just her western show saddle sold new for about $3500.00, but we bought it used for $500 (looked almost new). She made the money for it by selling stuff on ebay.

Her English saddle would have cost $3000 new, but my mother found it in the classifieds in her town in FL. I got it for $250 (it looked brand new). I bought it based on the name brand and the pictures my mother emailed me - isn't technology grand! We sold her old, well worn English saddle on ebay for $400, so we came out of that pretty well too.

Even her hat should have cost about $250, but we found it on the top shelf of a store (the only one, and it was her size), and they let me have it for either $60 or $70. I could sell it for $50 now, but she just can't bear to part with it!

I should probably write a letter to the ebay folks. They really helped keep us going!

Ummmm, isn't just about everything 50 miles away from you?

You know, now that you mention it...

Horseshowmom:
Any other problems from the creep?

So far, so good...

We get to drive up to S. Lake Tahoe on Saturday for DS's game. The field was saved during that horrible fire this summer, but I guess everything around it burned. The field was so pretty, it sits down in a canyon and the bleachers were amongst the trees, also the upper perimeter of the field is trimmed in trees. I have heard all the tree's are gone and then I have heard they are still there, we will just have to wait and see. Hope it warms up a bit, it can get cold up there!

And to think I was complaining about being all sweaty today! I love autumn and am looking forward to some cooler weather. I love sweaters and sweatshirts.

I hope the weather works out well for y'all. The fires were so terrible. Let us know how things looked when you get back.


BTW, I was very impressed with your ingenious method of getting the track you wanted for your DD. It's a real shame that you've had to deal with all of this after going through all of that. You deserve to keep the one you've got, you certainly worked for it!

 

[Sandy V.]

Good Morning, ladies!!

Horseshowmom, your stories of the horse shows made me smile. I was in 4-H for 11 years as a kid and I showed cattle. We never made it to the spray paint and hoof polish stages, but I spent a decent amount of time getting steers washed and groomed. It hurts when they step on your feet!!

Glad to hear that there's been no more word from the creepy ex-boyfriend.

I hope that the doctor is able to help your DH with the ringing in his ears. That would drive me nuts. Please let us know what's going on.

You know, you DO live 50 miles from everything!!

Melissa, isn't today the day for DS's doctor's appointment? I hope that all goes well and you get some good news. Or, at least, a diagnosis so you know what you're working with here.

When you finish with your DD's room, you can come out here and help me. I've got to start tackling my laundry room, which is the first room you enter when you come in from the garage into our house. I swear that room gets more stuff DUMPED in there that doesn't belong there and the task falls to me to figure out where to put it!!

Took DS to Kohl's yesterday to buy a pair of pants, tie, and cologne for Homecoming, which is October 6th. He already had a nice black shirt that he wanted to wear. His date's dress is off-white, so he bought a tie with off white, gray, and turquoise colors in it to go with his black shirt and black pants. Swear this kid is more fashion-oriented than I am. But heck, to get THERE, all you have to do is beat MY getting-dressed standard of "Is is relatively clean and do I have to iron it?"

No football trips back to Nebraska for a few weeks. There's a home game this Saturday, but we gave the tickets to DH's mom and sister. Then we have Homecoming the following week. The next week after that, DD wants to go to a game so she's going back with DH. Then I'll be going back with DH the week after that for the Nebraska-Texas A&M game. So no travel for me for about a month, and that's okay.

Ordered some furniture yesterday for our family room (sofa, loveseat, coffee table, and two end tables). It's supposed to be delivered tomorrow, so I'm looking forward to that. We have some really dumpy stuff in there that needed replacing BADLY.

Oh! I also put down a deposit on the cruise. We'll be sailing December 23rd through the 30th. Will write more details later.

Work is still really busy - I got placed on a special project that is very time consuming. It really cuts into my DIS time!!

Well, talk to you folks later!! Have a good day!!!!

 

[Sandy V.]

Dropping back in to tell you that we had a BEAR get into the trash last night!

My fault for leaving it out, but we hadn't had a big black visitor since June 30th, so I got lazy. I knew he came before I even went out to see the trash can because Tundra sleeps in the garage and when I went to get her to take her out this morning, she came charging into the house and ran to the back door. Once I got her collar on, she went barking out into the back yard and around the corner. I peered around the corner, and there was my trash bin knocked over. He had a pretty good feast - there was a leftover relish tray, some old hamburger buns, etc. He made a pretty good mess of everything. Nothing like handling discarded trash with bear slobber on it before breakfast.

 

[horseshowmom]

Dropping back in to tell you that we had a BEAR get into the trash last night!

My fault for leaving it out, but we hadn't had a big black visitor since June 30th, so I got lazy. I knew he came before I even went out to see the trash can because Tundra sleeps in the garage and when I went to get her to take her out this morning, she came charging into the house and ran to the back door. Once I got her collar on, she went barking out into the back yard and around the corner. I peered around the corner, and there was my trash bin knocked over. He had a pretty good feast - there was a leftover relish tray, some old hamburger buns, etc. He made a pretty good mess of everything. Nothing like handling discarded trash with bear slobber on it before breakfast.

No more making fun of where I live. At least I don't have BEARS in my yard (I'll grant you that's probably about all I don't have though )!

 

[Sandy V.]

No more making fun of where I live. At least I don't have BEARS in my yard (I'll grant you that's probably about all I don't have though )!

Oh, all right, I'll be good and stop teasing.

If I had snakes like you have in your part of the country, I'd have to move.

There is an area south of us that DH would like to move to when DS gets out of high school. From what I've heard (not from personal knowledge), there are rattlesnakes down there. I am petrified at the thought of living there, and am trying to convince him to look elsewhere!!

 

[horseshowmom]

Horseshowmom, your stories of the horse shows made me smile. I was in 4-H for 11 years as a kid and I showed cattle. We never made it to the spray paint and hoof polish stages, but I spent a decent amount of time getting steers washed and groomed. It hurts when they step on your feet!!

Girl, the livestock showing can be cut throat! I know our state 4-H had to start requiring ethics training several years ago and limit who was allowed to have contact with the animals due to people bringing professional groomers in from out of state. That amazed me!

I've always enjoyed watching the cattle classes though. My cousin showed livestock heavily and helped a lot of kids with it (former Ag. teacher, current Extension Agent).

When we first started showing (and were complete newbies), we had a friend tell us that baby oil would condition the horse's hair and make it shiny, so we lathered him up. They neglected to mention how much to use. When we got through, he looked like he had been Turtle Waxed. When we sprayed him with a water hose, he beaded up like a brand new car!

You know, you DO live 50 miles from everything!!

Yep!

Melissa, isn't today the day for DS's doctor's appointment? I hope that all goes well and you get some good news. Or, at least, a diagnosis so you know what you're working with here.

Me too!

Took DS to Kohl's yesterday to buy a pair of pants, tie, and cologne for Homecoming, which is October 6th. He already had a nice black shirt that he wanted to wear. His date's dress is off-white, so he bought a tie with off white, gray, and turquoise colors in it to go with his black shirt and black pants. Swear this kid is more fashion-oriented than I am.

They'll be really cute!

But heck, to get THERE, all you have to do is beat MY getting-dressed standard of "Is is relatively clean and do I have to iron it?"

We're obviously kindred souls!

No football trips back to Nebraska for a few weeks. There's a home game this Saturday, but we gave the tickets to DH's mom and sister. Then we have Homecoming the following week. The next week after that, DD wants to go to a game so she's going back with DH. Then I'll be going back with DH the week after that for the Nebraska-Texas A&M game. So no travel for me for about a month, and that's okay.

Your DD and DH will probably really enjoy their trip together. That's a great thing!

Ordered some furniture yesterday for our family room (sofa, loveseat, coffee table, and two end tables). It's supposed to be delivered tomorrow, so I'm looking forward to that. We have some really dumpy stuff in there that needed replacing BADLY.

The last time we went to look at furniture, we came home with 3 rooms full. Then we decided we needed to redecorate to go with the furniture. At one point, DH had his chain saw to take out the little half wall between the kitchen and den. (Fortunately, it worked out well ).

Oh! I also put down a deposit on the cruise. We'll be sailing December 23rd through the 30th. Will write more details later.

Christmas at sea - sounds good to me!

 

[horseshowmom]

Oh, all right, I'll be good and stop teasing.

If I had snakes like you have in your part of the country, I'd have to move.

There is an area south of us that DH would like to move to when DS gets out of high school. From what I've heard (not from personal knowledge), there are rattlesnakes down there. I am petrified at the thought of living there, and am trying to convince him to look elsewhere!!

I am absolutely scared to death of snakes. They're really the only thing that really gets to me. Unfortunately, the water moccasins and cottonmouths (really the same thing) are very poisonous. We've only had one dog bitten (several years ago), and we rushed her to get the shot that they give, but it was still an ugly site. Her head swelled up and eventually the swollen area burst. We had to keep putting medication in the wound. It was so bad.

 

[Sandy V.]

Girl, the livestock showing can be cut throat! I know our state 4-H had to start requiring ethics training several years ago and limit who was allowed to have contact with the animals due to people bringing professional groomers in from out of state. That amazed me!

Back when I was showing and shortly after, the big ethical issue was pumping the animals with steriods and other substances. Sad that adults would push their kids to be involved in something like this.

When we first started showing (and were complete newbies), we had a friend tell us that baby oil would condition the horse's hair and make it shiny, so we lathered him up. They neglected to mention how much to use. When we got through, he looked like he had been Turtle Waxed. When we sprayed him with a water hose, he beaded up like a brand new car!

That's hilarious. Well, at least you could leave him out in the rain and he's still look good.

We're obviously kindred souls!

Fashion is just too much work!!! I go for comfortable.

Your DD and DH will probably really enjoy their trip together. That's a great thing!

She's still quite the Nebraska fan, despite her attendance at Colorado-Boulder. Raises more than a few eyebrows at college. And she's still very much a Daddy's Girl (she's a Mama's Girl too, so we're lucky).

The last time we went to look at furniture, we came home with 3 rooms full. Then we decided we needed to redecorate to go with the furniture. At one point, DH had his chain saw to take out the little half wall between the kitchen and den. (Fortunately, it worked out well ).

We've been looking since July and just sort of happened on the right furniture on Friday night during a fluke stop at a furniture store. So your "3 rooms"'s worth doesn't surprise me - I can see us doing that. As for that chain saw, I can imagine that happening at my house.

We are trying to re-do some cable work upstairs and DH had DS crawl into a utilities chase in our house on Sunday. Space was about 18 inches wide and 10 inches deep went down the span of about 9 feet . Good thing he asked DS, as there was NO WAY I could fit in something like that!! Just glad we got DS back outta there!! They'd have had to saw the drywall apart in our computer room to get me out of that space!!

Christmas at sea - sounds good to me!

Makes for a very relaxing time for us. The ship is at sea the first two days, so we have uninterrupted family time onboard, which is our purpose for going. The holidays get way too hectic and we really want to spend some time together, just the four of us.

 

[Sandy V.]

I am absolutely scared to death of snakes. They're really the only thing that really gets to me. Unfortunately, the water moccasins and cottonmouths (really the same thing) are very poisonous. We've only had one dog bitten (several years ago), and we rushed her to get the shot that they give, but it was still an ugly site. Her head swelled up and eventually the swollen area burst. We had to keep putting medication in the wound. It was so bad.

I guess I'm afraid about not being able to go out in my yard or even on my own deck because the stupid snakes will be out there sunning themselves. I worry about my dog. Your poor puppy!! I hope she got better.

 

[horseshowmom]

Makes for a very relaxing time for us. The ship is at sea the first two days, so we have uninterrupted family time onboard, which is our purpose for going. The holidays get way too hectic and we really want to spend some time together, just the four of us.

That's exactly the way I look at it. I like to keep the holidays as simple as possible. While we do have some family stuff we have to do at Christmas, Thanksgiving is just us. We've had people who kind of felt sorry for us, because we don't have a big family get together then, but we try to explain to them that we really, really enjoy it that way!

 

[horseshowmom]

I guess I'm afraid about not being able to go out in my yard or even on my own deck because the stupid snakes will be out there sunning themselves. I worry about my dog. Your poor puppy!! I hope she got better.

She recuperated quite well.

We really haven't had a snake problem in the last several years (I don't remember the last time I saw one in the yard). I think it's because we have so many cats. They keep the mice population down (along with anything else that's small), so there's nothing for the snakes to feed on. As far as I'm concerned, that's enough to earn their keep!

 

[Sandy V.]

She recuperated quite well.

We really haven't had a snake problem in the last several years (I don't remember the last time I saw one in the yard). I think it's because we have so many cats. They keep the mice population down (along with anything else that's small), so there's nothing for the snakes to feed on. As far as I'm concerned, that's enough to earn their keep!

Glad to hear it.

Good reason to keep those cats around!!

 

[mamacatnv]

Quick check in - I will get back to you all with your snakes, bears, furniture and horse shows in the morning, when I am at work and have some spare time

Our HS Athletic Director asked me to attend a seminar this morning regarding Athletics & Ethics that was hosted by the school district and presented by some Organization called Global Ethics. Guess the District got a grant and put a chunk of $$ into this multi-day multi-faceted seminar. It was very interesting, attended by a Varsity Athlete, a Varsity Coach and a Booster or parent rep from each HS in our district. Met some neat people and learned a few things.

From there........

Ran to my office for an hour..............then..............

Ran to the HS to pick up DS (who by the way is a wreck, he is so nervous about whether or not he will be able to play anymore of this season.) Took him to the Orthopaedist who checked him out, ordered and x-ray(didn't see anything but he didn't expect to) he manipulated the leg and ordered an MRI. He wants to see the Meniscus (sp?) and the Lateral Collateral (?) He does not think they have snapped but he says there may be some tears or they may just simply be bruised. They added a hinged neoprene brace and off we went to the scheduler whose first words were.......I'm new Great.
After 1/2 hour of her trying to figure out how to schedule the MRI and the follow up all at least a week out and me trying to keep my cool, she is new! Anyway, I said just schedule something, I'll call my connection and get it all squared away and on the fast track. Then, along comes the office asst. who is not new, see's what is going on and takes over. MRI is tomorrow morning at 10 with a follow up with the Ortho on Tuesday at 8:30. Couldn't be any better since it takes 3 days to review the MRI results and get them back to the Ortho.

Left the Ortho, ran to Taco Bell to feed the always hungry, now gimpy football player......Ran back to the HS in time for the team & individual pictures. Slowed down, kicked him out of the car and raced to the elementary school to pick up DD and her 2 co-horts that are part of the car pool.

Arrived home and here I am..................

Thanks for the good thoughts and thinking of my DS.............I'll catch up in the morning, sounds like I have missed a lot!

 

[horseshowmom]

mamacatnv - We'll add your DS to our prayers. Considering he has to have a MRI, it sounds like they've really expedited the process. I hope it shows everything the doctor needs to see and that things will work out for your DS. I know he's on pins and needles.

Keep us updated!


Sandy V. - Concerning the livestock shows, DD's BF told me that some of the dishonest pig exhibitors (not that the pigs were dishonest but the exhibitors were ) have been known to actually put water hoses in the pigs mouths to force them to drink water to put weight on them the night before the show.

Of course, some of the major horse shows have had to actually hire people who walk through the stalls on a regular basis to see whether people have their horses heads tied up high in the stalls. If they don't, some people would actually tie them up and leave them that way all night, so the horses would be tired and keep their heads down in the Western Pleasure classes. Winning horses can be randomly drug checked due to the use of drugs.

That's really pretty sad, and it's certainly teaching the kids who are involved in showing (both in 4-H and in breed shows) some very bad lessons! Our horses have always been well cared for, and we've taught DD that you take care of the horses needs before you take care of your own.

I like to think though that most of the exhibitors are honest. I really think 4-H is a wonderful organization and offers some great opportunities for kids. For the most part, we really enjoyed DD's 4-H activities (I guess there's a few bad apples everywhere ).

 

[Sandy V.]

mamacatnv - We'll add your DS to our prayers. Considering he has to have a MRI, it sounds like they've really expedited the process. I hope it shows everything the doctor needs to see and that things will work out for your DS. I know he's on pins and needles.

Keep us updated!

Me too!!!

Sandy V. - Concerning the livestock shows, DD's BF told me that some of the dishonest pig exhibitors (not that the pigs were dishonest but the exhibitors were ) have been known to actually put water hoses in the pigs mouths to force them to drink water to put weight on them the night before the show.

Of course, some of the major horse shows have had to actually hire people who walk through the stalls on a regular basis to see whether people have their horses heads tied up high in the stalls. If they don't, some people would actually tie them up and leave them that way all night, so the horses would be tired and keep their heads down in the Western Pleasure classes. Winning horses can be randomly drug checked due to the use of drugs.

That's really pretty sad, and it's certainly teaching the kids who are involved in showing (both in 4-H and in breed shows) some very bad lessons! Our horses have always been well cared for, and we've taught DD that you take care of the horses needs before you take care of your own.

I like to think though that most of the exhibitors are honest. I really think 4-H is a wonderful organization and offers some great opportunities for kids. For the most part, we really enjoyed DD's 4-H activities (I guess there's a few bad apples everywhere ).

It's amazing the lengths people will go to just to get a leg up on the competition. I am grateful that my 4-H activities happened MANY years ago and I think (hopefully not just wishful thinking) that many of these practices didn't happen then, or maybe they were just isolated occurrences. If they were dominant activities, I was pretty ignorant about them.

Actually, most of what I did with 4-H involved the more traditional things for girls - cooking, sewing, gardening, and canning. I grew up in a farm family atmosphere where the women prepared the meals, cleaned the house, tended to the garden, etc., and the men did the field work and took care of the livestock (we raised beef cattle and chickens). I did a lot of garden work and really liked it - it was a good way to get out of the house!

The biggest negative thing about such an environment is that males tended to be "valued" more because they were the farmers - they were going to be the ones that were working the land and would eventually inherit the farm ground. I knew at a fairly young age that I wanted no part of living in that environment and certainly didn't want to raise children in it either. Don't get me wrong - there are lots of good values that I learned and I think I have a very strong work ethic because of where I came from. But it is a very isolating existence (at least where I grew up) for women.

My new furniture got delivered this morning at 6:50 a.m. (have you EVER had a delivery this early? Barely got a sip of coffee before they were at the front door! ). I am happy to say that it looks very nice. The only trouble with buying new furniture is that it makes the SURROUNDING pieces look kinda shabby, so now we are probably going to look for new pictures for the walls, a new accent chair, and two new lamps!! The family room has oak flooring, but the new sofa and loveseat really need a rug to set them off, so we have to drag one that we own out of storage to see if it will work first before we buy anything else!

We're trying to limit the new furniture purchases until we can convince the kids as they move out that they need our castoffs!!

Horseshowmom, how is your DH doing? Didn't he go to the doctor yesterday? I hope all is well with him.

Melissa, keep us updated on your crazy life. You are ONE BUSY WOMAN!!!

Have a good day, all.

 

[Sandy V.]

Good morning, ladies.

Beautiful fall weather here today. I love summer and fall here; the temperatures are mild most of the time.

After "living" with the new family room furniture for 24 hours, DH and I are meeting after work tonight to look at rug options. The burgandy leather and the oak flooring are a nice combination, but they need a lighter rug underneath the furniture to make it "pop". So off we go to check out what's out there.

Not really a heck of a lot going on. We're working on some home improvement stuff this weekend. Not really "fun", but necessary.

Going out for dinner tomorrow night with some friends. The restaurant serves the most amazing duck - can hardly wait!!

Well, back to work - check in if you have a moment!! Have a good day, all.

 

[horseshowmom]

6:50 a.m.

My DD still laughs when she sees a furniture ad, because she says buying the furniture was just the start!

I'm in the waiting room now (trying to work from my laptop and cell phone). DH's procedure had to be done over a 3 day session. It's an outpatient procedure, so we have to go back and forth each day (about 75 minute trip). So far, so good, but they said it would take 4 to 6 weeks to know for sure.

Y'all have a great day!