McBride Family Adventures at the Malheur County Fair

This year was our first experience as exhibitors at the Malheur County Fair. It was a very long but fun week for our family. The local county fair is a five day event held in Ontario, Oregon each year. Matthew was eligible for 4-H, so he raised a black Angus steer named Hank. He worked extremely hard and spent many hours with Hank to make him gentle. He was a dream steer for a first year 4-H exhibitor. Peter did not take a steer; instead, he entered multiple exhibits in the open class categories. He entered a jar of his freezer jam, sewed a pillowcase, made cookies, and entered two of his Lego creations.

Because Matthew had to be at the fair early each morning and late each night to take care of Hank, attend 4-H meetings, clean the barn, etc., Toby, Matthew, and Peter stayed at Dan and Mom's house in Ontario for the week. We were so lucky that they opened up their home because it was so nice for the boys to be able to shower, relax in an air conditioned home (the temperature was 100 degrees all week), and sleep in a comfortable bed. Due to the fact that it was so hot, William, Joseph, and I only attended the fair while Matthew was showing and went home each day.

Matthew had the opportunity to show Hank three times during the fair. He showed in the Malheur County Cattleman's Association Market Steer competition, Malheur County Fair Market Steer competition, and Showmanship. Matthew also entered his 4-H record book for judging. Overall, Matthew earned four blue ribbons during the week!

Peter was extremely successful at the fair. His Cloverbud Record Book earned a blue ribbon. In addition, he earned a blue ribbon for his freezer jam and pillowcase. His cookies and one of the Lego sets earned red ribbons, while his other Lego creation earned a white ribbon. He was very pleased and cannot wait to enter more exhibits next year!

On Saturday morning, Matthew sold Hank in the Malheur County Fat Stock Sale. It was so amazing to watch the sale because it reminded me of how lucky we are to live in this area. There are so many individuals and business that support the Fat Stock Sale and the 4-H clubs. Matthew's sale was extra special because Hank was purchased by the Warner and Mary Kay Maag Family, Jamieson Produce, and Y-1 Farms. After purchasing Hank, they donated the meat to Pioneer Nursing Home for the residents. It was such an amazing act of kindness by the Maag family!

Despite the fact that it was a long, hot, and exhausting week, our first fair experience was amazing, and we cannot wait until next year!

The boys on Saturday morning. They are exhausted at this point!

Swimming Lessons

In July, we enrolled Matthew, Peter, and William in a week of swimming lessons. It was fabulous - the weather was excellent and the instructors were wonderful. Matthew's instructor was Lauren Young. He is a fairly good swimmer, so they focused on more advanced techniques such as diving and new swimming styles. Jordan Dobney was Peter's instructor, and they got along very well together. Peter's swimming improved significantly during the week. Williams' instructor was Olivia Walker. She was also a very good instructor and helped William become very comfortable in the water.

Joseph Stephen - Two Months Old

Dear Joseph,

Happy two month birthday! It is difficult to believe that you are already two months old. You have changed so much during the past month! You are becoming much more active each day and are awake for longer periods of time. While awake, you are very aware of your surroundings. In addition, you will excitedly move your arms and kick your legs. This routine has allowed you to transition to sleeping for longer periods of time. You will typically sleep for about six hours straight at night!

One of your favorite activities is to sit in the swing and watch all of the action taking place. Our house is very busy, and you will turn your head to follow us when we are speaking to you and seem to recognize familiar voices. You do not enjoy laying on the floor as much as sitting in your swing. That might be because you can't see everything as easily. Most likely though is due to the fact that laying on the floor can be hazardous to your health with three older brothers. As a result, we do not lay you on the floor very often! At this point in your life, your favorite place to be is in Mommy's arms, and I am enjoying all of the cuddling while it lasts!

In the last month, you have started to really fill out. You are beginning to look more and more like your brothers with each pound you gain! Those chubby cheeks and chunky thighs are absolutely adorable, and you have grown to weigh 13 pounds, 12 ounces and 22 inches tall. This rapid growth is probably because you have increased to eating five to eight ounces of formula at each feeding. At two months of age, you are fitting comfortably into three month clothes.

Although you reveal a number of facial expressions to us, the most common is a very serious look. Your eyes are so quizzical, and it seems as if you are analyzing everything you see. At seven weeks of age you smiled for the first time! We all try to make you smile, and it is so exciting when you actually do. I am sure that we will be seeing more of your beautiful smile and fewer serious looks each day!

You continue to be such a happy baby. You have started cooing and making other baby noises. When one of us talks to you, it seems as if you are trying to respond through your adorable cooing. Occasionally, you will experience a bellyache in the evening that will make you cry. When this happens, you have perfected the art of sticking out your bottom lip while crying. It is truly pitiful! However, you should be happy to know that you never cry long. When you make a sound (even if it is a cooing sound) William immediately says "Baby crying!" and rushes to your side.

We love you Joseph and can't imagine our family without you in it!

Love,

Mommy and Daddy

You look like you are ready for a fight in this picture!

 

Smile!

A Visitor

Last week when Toby's mom was gathering eggs from the chickens, she found this golden eagle sitting inside the building!

Apparently, our visitor had found a nice place where it could feast on an unlimited supply of legs, breasts, and drumsticks! You can read about golden eagles at this interesting website. According to the site, "The golden eagle is one of the largest, fastest, nimblest raptors in North America." You can see from the photo that I took that the raptor's beak and talons could prove to be very dangerous.

Our visitor camped out in the building for a day or two and did not seem to be bothered by us peeking in. Then, he disappeared, and we thought he had moved on. We were wrong though, as we continue to see him around our place almost daily. He will sit on the rimrocks above the house, on telephone poles, and on wheel lines. 

Based on what I have read, an adult golden eagle is typically 33-36 inches tall. We believe that our visitor is a young eagle because he is only about 20-24 inches tall. Another interesting fact is that golden eagles live for an average of 30 years!

If you are ever in our area, keep your eyes open for this amazing raptor!

William and His Squirt Bottle

William found a squirt bottle this morning and has been very busy. Joseph was laying peacefully in the bassinet sleeping when William walked to up to him and said "Hands up Bebe." When Joseph did not put his hands up, William proceeded to squirt him and wake him up! After being scolded by his mother, he has moved on to washing windows.