Clay County Fair

Over our 4th of July vacation, we also took in the Clay County Fair. Now, coming from a county where the fair was a lot bigger, I was a little disappointed in the amount of exhibits. It also didn't help that we were there on entry day and not everything was set up. All in all, the kids got to see some animals (pet some of them too), climb on the big tractors, and, of course, ride the rides. Here are just a few pics of the day...

4th of July Vacation

Well, here starts the review of the month of July. We spent an on and off again week at Grandpa & Grandpa Risdal's lake home. Three of Judd's sisters were there to visit as well, with most of their families (husband's had to work).


Xander spent most of his time fishing off the dock. When he wasn't fishing off the dock he wanted to (and many times got to) go fishing from the boat. Gee - nothing like his dad, right??

Judd and Tom played a little "Norwegian Golf" - when they weren't fishing with the kids.

Clara and Holden thought they should play some, too.

There was sun and sand...

A little bit of crazies...

And, of course, Tom's ribs...

Last, but certainly not least - The Fireworks!! We went to a new spot this year - the middle of a horse pasture temporarilly converted into a very large parking lot. We were so close that we had to slouch down in our chairs and look almost straight up to see them. It was one of the best shows I have every seen. It lasted well over 20 minutes. Here are a couple of pics and a video of the finale (just over a minute) - in case you didn't get to see a good show this year.



Overall, it was a great week spent with family all in front of a great view.

The Stache Update

Well, it's been 8 months now and Judd is still sticking with the handlebar. He has had many people stop him and commented on his progress. He even had one guy stop him in the middle of the aisle and told him that his mustache is competition worthy! We both thought that was pretty cool. I don't know how much longer it is going to last though, because a lot of the youth in our Ward (especially the girls) have been telling him he should cut it off. He is trying to think of a good challenge for them to earn the shaving of "The Stache".

It's June What!?!?!?!?!

Holy cow! It's the end of June already! Well, I have a bit of updating to do so this will be a long one. Hang on!

Going back to May, Brigit found a name not mentioned sister's markers and had a bit of fun...

A productive sewing weekend with just me, Mom, Auntie Lu, and sister Marsha. We all converged upon Fergus Falls and stayed at a hotel in one of their suites. With four people working on various sewing projects, there was thread everywhere! Of course the cleaning people got a big tip for cleaning that one up. This picture is only of the stuff that came home with me. It doesn't include the many pairs of shorts, shirts, headbands, quilts, etc., that went home with the other 3 ladies.

On to June - this month has been a plethora of "Mom, can I take a picture?" Here are a few samples...quite the shutter bugs!

Playing with friends....

We spent Father's day weekend at the lake with Tom and Carol (aka Grandpa and Grandma) and Lori and her kids. I think everyone was enjoying the s'mores. Brigit wasn't as interested in eating the chocolate and the crackers though. She managed to eat almost 1/2 a bag of marshmallows before anyone caught her.

And now for the most exciting news (to me anyway) - and, no, there are no more children on the way. I went in and donated my hair to Locks of Love. I've always been a little shy of the 10" requirement in the past because I was not quite daring enough to go short enough to do it. But, I found a stylist at Charisma that completely understands what to do with heavy, thick, curly hair - because her hair is the same way (thank you, April!). So, I put my trust in her and I have to say I am impressed. I ended up with two 1 inch thick pony tails that were each almost 12" long! I haven't had it this short since 6th grade. It is definitely a change, but it will grow again. Maybe I'll make it a habit every 2 or 3 years, who knows.

Whew!! Well, that should to it for now. I hope you enjoyed the update and I hope to make the future posts a little more frequent. (We'll see....)

There is hope...

I checked the mud fields (aka my garden plots) and there are veggies growing! Amongst the weeds I saw my peas, beans, onions, carrots, and beets. Everything else was too far away to tell the difference between the weeds and the veggies (or the weeds were just too big). With a little luck, the weather will stay nice and warm for a few days and dry out the ground a bit. (My garden was like stepping on a water filled sponge.) I would be happy for a high of 70 for a few days and no rain.

Rain, Rain - GO AWAY!!!

No, the emphasis on this title is not over exaggerated. It has been raining almost every day for a week and a half. Two weeks will be over and done with before we are expected to dry up a bit - they "say" we will see a break come Monday, but I am skeptical. We have had over 2.5 inches of rain since the 1st of June. I can't even get into my gardens to see how (or if) things are growing. You would think by now they have probably floated away (even though I doubt it.)

Technically, the Red River is over flood stage at 19.75 feet. So most of the bike paths we usually use are partially or mostly flooded. The website http://www.ndsu.nodak.edu/fargoflood/ has a gage that shows where the river is currently at and some other neat links about the river and its recent and long ago past.

Anyway, at the risk of running on and on about how fed up I am with the amount of water we are getting right now, I will sign off here with a small request - PLEASE STOP RAINING!!! (at least for a week!)

Kindergarten Program and a rare moment in history...

Xander's Kindergarten program was today. We went through the breakfast line and ate with him (the idea of this one is so they will have an idea of what to do next year for lunch, but Xander already does breakfast in the mornings.) Then the program! I was quite impressed with how well the three classes stood still together and sang wonderfully. Here is one of the videos from his class:

Here is the rare moment in history - Judd doing the chicken dance (among others.) If you know him at all, this is not his most favorite thing in the world, but he was willing to do it for Xander. Brigit had a great time, too.

Save your brain!!! Run...it's a Movie Bomb

O.K. So I think we may have rented this one out of curiosity, but this time curiosity did kill the cat! The "movie" (if you can call it that) was Cloverfield. If you liked the Blair Witch Project, then you will probably like this one. Otherwise, I would suggest skipping it and save yourself some brain cells. We actually watched the whole movie in rapid play, hoping that it would improve. No such luck. We even watched the deleted scenes and commentaries hoping for some kind of redemption. Still no luck.

So, you ask what the movie was about? In a nutsheel, there was a going away party for one guy and during the party this monster attacks New York City (think of a bad version of Godzilla with a new monster). Of course there is mass evacuation and a group of the party goers had to go back to save a friend. And, in Blair Witch tradition, the entire film is from the perspective of the one running around and holding the camera. If you have to know the ending, ask me or rent it (you've been warned!). I don't want to ruin it for you.

Trogdor strikes again...

After some wonderful missionaries introduced our children to Home Star Runner and Strong Bad E-mail, they have been obsessed with Trogdor "The Burninator". The obsession has finally evolved into full fledged tattoos.

The mural:

The artist:

Good-bye March, Hello April!!!

Here is what happened on March 26th:

This is what is left as of April 1st:

(No joke here!)

And the sidewalks are finally clear:

Check out Judd's Handlebar!!!

I am quite proud of Judd for continuing with this process. He started back around Thanksgiving of 2007. I admit there was a few growing pains, but it has paid off in the end. I know not everyone likes the facial hair on their man (or anyone for that matter), but I love it! You just need to get past that 3 or 4 day prickly stage.

I'm dreaming of a white Easter???

Yesterday - virtually no snow left, roads were clear, my gardens were showing, and the grass almost looked like it wanted to be green.

Today:

Five Inches!! (At least we didn't get the 12 inches that Sisseton, SD, received!?!)

O.K. It is only March. But it is not nice for Mother Nature to tease us like that. I guess the Easter Bunny will need to cancel the outdoor Easter Egg Hunt this year....

Hanna's Ice Show

Hanna has taken skating lessons this year (passing level 1 & 2) and decided she wanted to be in the Moorhead Ice Show. I don't know the final count, but there had to be over 125 skaters involved, with 59 of them in the advanced levels. The guest skaters were Amanda Evora and Mark Ladwig. He is originally from Moorhead and they are ranked 5th in the nation - very fun to watch. The theme was "Shop Till You Drop" and she was a Bubble from Bed Bath & Beyond. Unfortunately, from where we were sitting, she started out behind the older girl in the red dress. From there on out we were able to see her whole performance. They combined her group with one of the advanced level skaters - you'll see her at the end.

The sound of cold?

There is a sound that cold makes. O.K. - there are many sounds that cold makes. The way your vehicle door creaks when you open it so you can start it and get it warmed up. The loud popping and cracking that the frame of your house makes as the temperature outside drops out the bottom. The way sounds travel on the extremely crisp air. The lack of sound because it is too cold for much of anything to function. I don't think that I have ever heard noises from heat that are so depressing for some people. For me, the sounds are just an indication that I need to turn up the thermostat or put on another layer...