A Wedding, The Farmer's Markets, and Memorial Day, Oh My!

Okay, so for the second installment of my belated posts.....

Last weekend, Mom and Dad traveled down to Florida for my cousins's beach wedding.  They enjoyed being able to get away and spend time together!  Here are some pictures that they took while they were down there...

My wonderful parents!

On the beach...aren't they a handsome couple!

For Memorial Day, we invited my grandparents as well as a family from church over to share dinner and games with us.  Dad was out cooking the meal and playing around with his new photo editing program on his phone!  Here's what he came up with...

The "Grillmaster"

We are also going full steam with the farmer's market right now.  We sell at about 6 markets each week, as well as about 5 restaurants, and one or two stores.  Here are some pictures taken at our Aiken Farmer's Market.

Noah

Me...trying to figure out what Noah is doing with the phone.

Noah and I were trying to figure out how to take a picture on the phone using the "front" view.  Sorry Noah, you sort of got blurred!

Ahh, there we go,...we tried again the following week and this one seemed to have turned out a little bit better!

And this is Ethan and I at the market.  We were having a lovely day, I was busy sampling our goat cheese to a couple of customers when I felt something on my ankle.  I thought it was my skirt swishing against my leg, but it wouldn't stop, so I finally brushed at it with my other foot and when I looked down....I saw this! Look at the size of that thing!

A Rhino Beetle ( a squished Rhino Beetle to be precise!) 

 Below is what they normally look like!

I held my composure until I was able to give the customers their sample and then jabbed Ethan and told him to kill it!  This is what we looked like afterwards!

So all in all, going to the markets can be very exciting.  Now that you know that I don't like frogs or Rhino Beetles, what are some things that you are afraid of or grossed out by?

Hello Again!

For those of you who were beginning to think that we had fallen off the face of the earth....this post is for you.  We have just simply been really, really busy!  Below are some pictures that were taken over the past month or so.  It will show you a little of what we've been up to!  I was hoping to be able to squeeze them into one big post, but as I started uploading photos, I realized that I'd better break it into a few posts...so here is the first.  Hope you enjoy!

Kidding season is just beginning to slow down.  We have four does left to kid, one of them being a for-sure and the other three being maybes!  This is the longest kidding season we've had yet, with no real break in between kidding.  We have been bottle-feeding non-stop since January.  But as tiring as it is, it is our favorite time of year.  I mean, come on...how could you not fall in love with a face like hers.....?

They are all so cute and sweet and if we could we would keep all of them!

These are some of the doeling born in the first group this year.  We were trying to be inconspicuous in taking their pictures, because see what happens when they spot you....

H-E-L-P!

Wonder what this little guy found so fascinating?

In the midst of all the busyness of life, my grandparents found time to replace our kitchen flooring!  They used to lay flooring before they retired and were the best around, so when they graciously volunteered to replace ours, we were overjoyed! 

They did a wonderful job!  Aren't they the best! 

(Gram is having knee surgery in a few weeks and will be rehabilitating for a few months after that.  We have been praying for a safe surgery and a speedy recovery!)

Our brother cats...Pecos and Chito.  Something happened to our Chito; he just disappeared one day and we haven't seen him since.  We have a feral cat roaming around our woods right now and we've seen him try to attack our grandparents cat, so our suspicions are that he got our Chito.  For Savannah's birthday gift, Mom and Dad let her pick out two new kittens.  They are pretty cute.  I'll have to post pictures of them soon!

After we finished up milking one evening, there was a full moon coming up, so I grabbed the camera and waited!

...and I wound up with this photo! 

"When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him?"

-Psalm 8:3-4

Gram and I are usually the two milking, but since her knee has really been bothering her, we had to have a fill-in!  Noah!  He has been a really big help and we appreciate his willingness to learn!  He did a great job!  

Mom brought the camera out to the milking room the other day to get a few shots of what goes on out there.

Noah and I milking out the does.

It's a patience building job!

This is the front of the stanchion.  Hi, girls!

After milking, we take the milk and pour it into a strainer.

From there it either gets jugged up or pasteurized where it is then made into cheese.

Wrainy, our Great-Pyrenees watch dog!

The rose bushes have been in full bloom.

Dad at one of his markets.

As a side job, we also clean pools and ponds.  Here are Ethan, Dad and I on a few jobs.

Frog man!

I hate frogs, and Ethan gets quite a kick out of it...but honestly, can anyone think of one good reason for frogs??? Anyone???

Dad, hard at work.

This is another pond we cleaned.  Here, Ethan and Dad are catching the fish.  I told them they look like "Swamp Men"!

 Dad is surveying over our work at the end.

So that's my first post.  Stay tuned to see pictures of our Church Heritage Day, farmer's markets, and kitties! 

Savannah Turned 19!

On May 17th, Savannah turned 19!

Some fun facts about Savannah:

-was nicknamed "Pooh Bear" when she was little

-became allergic to berries at about 12 and then, with a little help from our chiropractor, got over it

-is the cat lover of the family

-has naturally wavy hair

-was the 1st to pierce her ears

-learned to swim underwater at the age of 3

-is the only one in the family with a nickname that stuck, "Vanna"

Happy Birthday Savannah!  

We are so glad that the Lord blessed us with you 19 years ago!  You certainly brighten our home and your gentle spirit is such a joy to others!  We pray that the Lord would bless you as you serve Him with your whole heart!  

Love you lots Vanna!

"But the wisdom that is from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, willing to yield, full of mercy and good fruits, without partiality and without hypocrisy.  Now the fruit of righteousness is sown in peace by those who make peace."

-James 3:17-18

Happy Birthday Dad!

On April 29th, our dear Dad became a year older!!!!

Some fun facts about our Dad:

-he had a foreign exchange student, who became like a brother, stay with his family during his junior highschool year

-gashed his head and had to have stiches when a kid threw a piece of glass at him as a boy

-permed his hair when he was a teenager

-loves the newest gadget out there

-always said that when he grew up he would never be a farmer (LOL!)

-had a part in the play Brigadoon in highschool

-he likes hats

(This next one is Noah's contribution, when I asked him to think of something unique about Dad that makes him special!)

-he likes Mom

Happy Birthday Dad!  You are such a fun guy to be around and you always brighten our day.  We love you very much and pray that the Lord blesses you mightly in the year to come as you grow in Him!

"The steps of a good man are ordered by the LORD,

 and He delights in his way."

-Psalm 37:23