Summer Reflections... August 16, 2011

Hi everyone--

I can't believe that summer is almost over. Perhaps more than any summer before, this one has just been a complete blur-- a good blur, but a blur nonetheless...

Let's see... June involved multiple camps (tennis for Chelsea and basketball and soccer for Emmy). I flew down to Florida when Britti ended her professional internship at Disney. We had so much fun during our day in the parks-- we hit all four of them in less than 24 hours :) Afterward, we made the grueling 15 hours home.

We had a great time on our trip to visit family in Nebraska and Colorado. We all LOVED Rocky Mountain National Park (and our nearby cabin), and it was nice to see Grandma A and tour many places that are so special to her. We shared several miles on the road and in the air, and everyone got along well, even though we grew tired and ready for home by the end of our travels. In all, we took over 600 pictures and gathered over a foot of memorabilia that Emmy used in the scrapbook that she made of our trip. She entered it in 4-H competition just a short three weeks after our return, winning county and then placing second in the state-- WOW!! Not bad for her very first scrapbook ever!!

As I just alluded, after our vacation, we launched right into 4-H camp (Britti, Chelsea, and Emmy) and another week of tennis camp and then 4-H competitions. In March, Chelsea had been named an Ohio 4-H State ambassador, and her work began in mid-July. We were very blessed that Chelsea qualified for state competition in skit and that Emmy qualified for state competition with her dog and with scrapbooking and Sports Nutrition. However, between ambassador responsibilities and competitions, we calculated that we commuted to the state fair eight times in 13 days and spent three nights in a hotel as a family and two nights in the state fair dorm for Chelsea. YIKES!!

What a successful few weeks, though... Chelsea made several good friends with fellow ambassadors and enjoyed rich experiences helping with various judgings. (She even got to assist with the creative arts competition, and she saw that Emmy was only two points away from the top score in the state with her scrapbook!!) Chelsea's skit team won Outstanding of the Day, coming in second in the state. Emmy won Outstanding of the Day with her scrapbook, coming in second in the state, and she also won Outstanding of the Day in showmanship with Coco and a silver medal in rally competition. We had high hopes for Sports Nutrition b/c Emmy did so well at the county level, but we didn't know that part of the interview would be over a website instead of her book, and she missed two questions during her interview. Thus, she didn't place, but, wow, what a state fair!

Right after our last trip home from the state fair on August 5, we jumped right into the county fair. Chelsea interviewed for fair queen on July 24 so we had to wait for two weeks before hearing the results on August 7. After winning two second places in the state, Chelsea won top honors when it was most important. We were so excited for her to be named as the 2011-2012 Athens County Junior Fair Queen!!! She handed out awards during all of the shows, and she had a great time.

Chelsea did sooooooo well at the rabbit show as well. This year was truly her's!! After not placing at state last year and not placing in pro showmanship and only winning second place in a prelim class with her rabbit, she had an AMAZING year this year-- topped by second in Pro Showmanship (a personal best) and Reserve Grand Champion Best in Show (another personal best).

Ellie-Kate also got into the act, showing a rabbit, chicken, and hog in various pee wee showmanship competitions. She also won second place with the float that Emmy designed for her in the kiddie parade and fourth place in the chicken pull competition. The little girls loved seeing the animals, riding rides, and watching shows.

During our busiest week of the year, Britti had her own exciting news. After a few months of considering options, she decided to stay in Athens, find a job, and pursue a master's degree in education. Ramon, her boyfriend from Disney, also decided to move to Athens and finish up his undergrad degree. Fortunately, Britti found a full time job with The Summit, an apartment complex, complete with benefits and good pay! She's going to finish her thesis for her MA in history during fall quarter and then start coursework in education in winter quarter. Meanwhile, she's excited about earning money again and having a stable income. She started on Wednesday of fair week-- right after the rabbit show on Tuesday. On Saturday, August 13, I drove her to the airport, and she flew down to El Paso, and she and her boyfriend, Ramon drove back to Athens so that he would have his car. They just got back here today, August 16.

As I write this update, we're shifting gears to fall sports seasons. Chelsea already had her first tennis match, winning 6-1, 6-3 in her singles match against Granville, and Emmy was selected for a traveling soccer team that starts on Monday. I want to say that things are going to slow down, but I just shake my head at the items on our family list as we move into the end of August... college search stuff for Chelsea... the completion of Chelsea's Gold Award project... visiting fairs and festivals as part of Chelsea's fair queen responsibilities... finishing up the summer online classes that Roger and I have been teaching... gearing up for fall quarter... back to school shopping...

As I take a deep breath, I'm overwhelmed by everything that's going on with our family, and I yearn for quiet times playing dollies with Ellie-Kate. Everything's good, but just a lot... However, I'm very, very grateful just to witness all of these special moments for the girls. I remember that my appendix ruptured a year ago tomorrow, and, ever since, I have been very aware that every day is a gift. I'm so grateful that I'm here to cherish these memories and moments... to watch the looks of sheer joy when Chelsea won fair queen and awards with her rabbit, when Emmy came so close to winning the state championship with her scrapbook, when Ellie-Kate laughed as she showed her first hog. It's been busy, but I wouldn't want to miss a thing.

Thanks for continuing to follow our family. We hope that you have enjoyed a great summer as well :)

Christie