IT"S ALMOST TIME

Caitlyn and I leave for D.C. in four days. We're both really looking forward to the trip although we agree we could do without the 12-hour bus ride. But then we can't really complain considering it is costing us $25 for Caitlyn to go on this trip which includes her room and board, tickets, and dinner at Hard Rock Cafe on Thursday evening. Her only other expenses will be 2 meals a day for 5 days, plus whatever "stuff" she brings home. It's a great deal and I'm thankful she is getting this opportunity. As we get closer to the trip, we have a couple of things kind of hanging over us though that concern us. For one, Granny hasn't been well and has suffered some more mini strokes. She is now bedridden and hospice makes daily visits to care for her. That's never a good sign. It is difficult for me to know she's been in this state for so many months now and I am praying nothing else happens while we are out of town. Last Saturday our neighbor, Ed, suffered a massive stroke. He has been hemorrhaging from his brain since then and is not expected to recover from this stroke. We are told it is just a matter of time before he dies. His family has already been making funeral arrangements. This has made our whole family sad since we have lived next door to them for the past 12 years. For many years our kids were the only "grandchildren" they had. We have so enjoyed getting to know them and talking with them and helping them. They are neat people. They are good people and both Keith and I have taken advantage of the wisdom Ed was able to offer us on many different topics - especially about life and faith. We will miss him and we worry about Beverly whose health is also a huge concern. Ed always took care of her. So anyway, Caitlyn and I are saddened by the realization that Ed may pass away while we're gone and we would miss the funeral. We are praying for things to work out differently but we also know God is in control. So for the next few days we will focus on making sure we have everything we need and getting packed. We will be leaving around 6 a.m. on Monday so we'd definitely appreciate prayers for travel mercies as well as a safe overall trip. There will be about 25 teenagers and 10 adults on this trip. For many, it will be a chance of a lifetime to fully experience the rich history of our country.

DARK NIGHT

Keith took Claire and Garrett fishing in the sweltering heat and humidity last night so Caitlyn and I decided to go see a movie. Since Caitlyn's boyfriend went to see Dark Night without her and we've both been wanting to see it, that's where we went. It definitely didn't disappoint. Even though the movie is nearly 3 hours long it didn't feel like we'd sat in the theater nearly that long (except for my bad knee which was totally killing me when we left and the stinky people next to Caitlyn).

Caitlyn and I both liked this movie well enough that we'd see it again today. For her, that's not saying much since she'll watch any movie she likes a thousand times. But for me to say that does mean something. I'm not a person who likes to watch very many movies more than once and if I do there has to be a significant period of time between viewings.

The movie is fast-paced, of course full of violence and action, a little romance, suspense and there was one part that even made me jump in my seat. I won't reveal the details in case you haven't seen the movie.

I've never been a huge Heath Ledger fan, but I have to say he played the role of the Joker fabulously. Funny, at first I thought it'd be a perfect role for Johnny Depp (and I still think he could pull if off well), but Ledger did a remarkable performance. He was able to pull off the freak part with finesse and the character was very believable. And of course, Christian Bale is nice to look at and plays such a great role. I love the personna that has been given to Bruce Wayne in these movies. ;)

So yeah. I definitely recommend seeing this movie but I highly recommend you see the first two Batman movies first so you know what the heck is going on. If nothing else see Batman Begins before seeing Dark Knight.

PROJECT RESULTS

Both girls did really well on their 4-H projects this year. Last night was the Fashion Revue. Caitlyn received a Blue Ribbon with Honors which put her just under Grand Champion and Reserve Champion. Not bad for her first year in the Fashion Revue! Caitlyn didn't finish her photography project because she ran out of time. This summer has been kind of busy. She did receive a Blue Ribbon with Honors as well as Reserve Champion on her Computer Arts project though. :)

This was Claire's first year in "real" 4-H, meaning she was finally able to get out of Mini 4-H. She was going to do a couple of projects this year, but due to our schedules and this being her first year I limited her to just one. She competed in the Make With A Mix division of the Foods category. She had to use a box brownie mix and create her own unique brownie by adding two new ingredients. She added chopped Milky Way bars to the batter and caramel sauce on top. The result was pretty tasty - rich, but tasty! Claire received a Blue Ribbon for her brownies which made her pretty happy. :)

I guess tonight we'll take the kids to the fair to ride rides. Not my favorite thing especially since it's so dang HOT right now. Geez, it's 90 degrees and the humidity is off the charts! But oh, well. At least I won't have to do it again until next year.

FAIR WEEK = FRUSTRATIONS

This is fair week and typically I wouldn't mind it too much but this year I'm annoyed. We aren't going to be too busy this week which is nice. We'll only be at the fair 2 days in fact. Last week was the crazy week with pre-fair judging and Caitlyn having to work two shifts in the concession stand. We had to drive to Greentown and back several times and some days more than once a day. Tuesday Caitlyn is in the Fashion Revue so we'll go to the fairgrounds for that, but then we won't go back again until Thursday. Keith has to work the fair that day so we'll be there from 3 p.m. - 11 p.m. The kids will ride the rides that day and we'll probably spend $150. That's nuts.

What irritates me is that the Sheriff acts like Fair Week is some kind of National holiday or something. He has actually ORDERED people to NOT TAKE ANY DAYS OFF DURING FAIR WEEK. Are you kidding me? Whatever. Keith and I were going to go to the Creation Museum and to King's Island with the youth group from our church this Friday and Saturday, but it looks like I'll be going alone (well, not really alone, but without Keith). We are just now getting to a point where we can do things with the older kids (i.e., Caitlyn) and I was really looking forward to it. I'm still going to go because Caitlyn wants me to go and because if there aren't enough chaperones the trip can't happen. But I'm frustrated that Keith always has to miss out on stuff because of his job. I keep wondering when we'll ever have a normal life. :/

PRODUCTIVITY

It's so quiet here this afternoon. All the kids went to my mom's to swim and Keith is working so I've had the house all to myself since 2:30. Yay me!

At first I thought it would be a great day to take a nap, but I've been doing that a lot lately. I'm not sleeping much during the night these days so, whatever. But after I thought about it some more I decided I really didn't need to succumb to my sluggishness. I didn't feel like scrapping either. I haven't wanted to do that since Cropulation back in May. :( So I decided to do a little more work in the front room. I really need to get it cleared out so we can paint and refinish the wood floor. I'd like that done before school starts. I have actually gotten a lot done in here and I feel good about it. I had to take a break and eat something since that's been an issue for me lately too. It's hard to eat when you constantly feel like you're going to throw up (and no, I'm NOT pregnant). So anyway I thought I'd update my blog to reflect that I am still working toward the goals I set the other day.

I've been able to listen to all the Aerosmith , INXS, Eagles and Journey I wanted today too. So that's been kinda fun. :D

Oh, and I did get all the kids' outgrown summer clothes to the resale shop and/or the Salvation Army. ;)