The State Fair

Saturday we had big plans to go to the State Fair. Unfortunately we went out to the car and found a BIG FLAT TIRE. Then there was a problem getting the spare out, and then Brian was already dressed and needing to go get Big Al from gymnastics, and needing to be at the Fair before 1 because it was scout day. So I did what all mom's would do (I hope). I recognized that Brian wanted to go because he loves photography and it was a great place to shoot pics, as well as look at the photography contest. The kids wanted to go because, well..... they are kids. So I stayed home. No martyrdom, just what needed to be done, and I'll admit..... I enjoyed the quiet. So while I hung out and actually read a book, the kids ate cotton candy, fried butter (actually extra credit for Big Al) giant corndogs/hotdogs, and lots of lemonade. They were very thoughtful and brought home some cotton candy for me as well.

I also got to hear about the pig races, the quilt contests (Brian put in an order for me), and the cake decorating contest (T-Rex was terribly impressed) and all of the animals. The little girls were also very impressed with the giant sand sculpture. Next year they want to ride a bunch of rides. They are already planning that visit.

The Blondie Fairy

In all fairness, grandma got busy making Blondie a fairy too.

The Cheesie Fairy

My mom is a photographer, and has been playing around with some of the images she has taken, as well as photoshop. Cheesie tends to be the one that both my mom, and husband take the most photos of, mainly because she jumps into the middle of them. Cheesie is quite pleased with this one, although I think next time we'll have to dress her up a bit more. Nice work mom. To see more of my mom's work you can go to www.photoblog.com/widcat or www.redbubble.com/people/widcat/art The second link allows you to buy certain pictures in various sizes. You'll see Cheesie in a bunch of them. Enjoy

Before and After

A big day for a teenager....

She was only able to get the top ones off, and has to wait until Dec. for the bottom braces. The retainer is great though because it is perfectly clear and you can't really see it - really beats the wire across the teeth that I had to wear.

Pumpkin Patch

Brian took the girls to a great church pumpkin patch. They found a pumpkin with warts and a great gourd that is shaped like a swan (sort of). Great pictures of most of the girls - T-Rex doesn't tend to jump into pictures, so Brian is going to have to work on getting some more of her, but the others are usually game.

Festival

Blondie's PT had another festival today for her clients. She has two of these a year, and my kids always want to go. Cheesie and Blondie had a great time, while Big Al and T-Rex helped out with making masks and delivering water around - even in October SC has some HOT days.

This one had a fall theme, and the kids decorated pumpkins with sliced vegetables. They decorated masks, played games, and ate a lot of snacks. There was a pinata for the little kids, and then one for the older kids.

Horseback riding was the big hit with my little girls! They both went a couple times. The hardest part was getting Blondie up because she had to step up with her weaker foot, but once she was up she was fine. Cheesie was all smiles and enjoyed it so much.

Delivering acorns to squirrels in need

Yep.... thank goodness for facebook. I keep up with an organization called Carolina Wildlife Care, and my mom mentioned that they had posted on facebook that they needed acorns for squirrels that they are rehabilitating. Blondie had a great time looking for them in the yard, and my mom took them over to the place, and while very grateful, they needed more.

So, today at the end of my Brownie girl scout meeting, Blondie, Cheesie and the other girls, all went outside and gathered 10 or 15 pounds of acorns from under our oak trees at school as a simple community service project. It only took them 15 minutes because they were VERY engaged with the whole idea of helping injured animals. I was going to just hand them off to my mom tomorrow, but Blondie and Cheesie really wanted to see the place, so I drove across town, in rush hour traffic to deliver them in person.

This place runs on a few donations, and a whole bunch of volunteers, and they take in any wild animal to try to rehabilitate. I was NOT prepared for how many cages (about 50-70) of squirrels (several in each cage) were in one room. Honestly, squirrels are a bit of a nuisance for our family because try as we might, we can't keep them out of our attic in the winter, and we can hear them running the walls on really cold nights (creeps me out). Blondie and Cheesie however, are planning on going back out to the schoolyard tomorrow afternoon and pick up some more acorns - although I'll definitely hand those off to my mom to deliver on her way home.