Worldess Wednesday: Help

I'm a full time, working mom with a 90 minute commute to work. Mornings can be chaotic. There are some mornings I would never get out of the house on time if it weren't for the help my Panda and Monkey provide. On one recent morning, Monkey said she would give her brother his bottle.  They really are great kids.

A Bucket for the Bubbles

My kids love bubbles.  I will walk throughout the house and yard and find bottles of bubbles laying around. I try to keep the half-empty bubbles containers in one place, but they still end up everywhere. That's why I was happy to get a small, galvanized bucket from Red Hill General Store. It is the perfect size to keep by our front door so the girls can grab a bottle of bubbles when they head out to play. And hopefully the bubbles will return to this bucket for the next playtime!
 

In looking for other uses for my bucket, I thought it would make a great storage container for fruit. I always have fresh fruit available for the kids. If I leave it on the counter, they are much more likely to grab a piece instead of asking for candy. I think these apples look great in here!

And I'm a sucker for pretty flowers. You can always find a floral arrangement in my house. I love flowers and think they brighten up a room. Sunflowers are one of my favorites! And this bunch looks great in my bucket.

Do you want your own bucket? The Real Farmwives of America & Friends are giving away a bucket! Just visit the website to have a chance to win your own Galvanized Embossed Tub from Red Hill General Store! They have plenty of different sized containers on their website. And share with me what you would do with a bucket like this!

While Red Hill General Store did provide me with a bucket to blog about for this post the pictures, ideas and opinions shared here are my own.  Thanks Red Hill General Store for the bucket. It has plenty of uses around my house!

Go to each "X", Smile and Turn

"Well I was born in a small town. And I live in a small town...Probably die in a small town, Oh those small communities."

The words to John Mellancamp's hit song have been running through my head the past few nights as I've spent hours at the county fair. Small town fun really describes what we've been doing!

Tuesday of the fair was always my busiest. During my 4H tenure, I showed my hogs in the swine show in the morning and did dress review in the evening. Clothing and Swine were my favorite projects and the ones I was fortunate to excel in.  In fact, while in the Project Building, I found a picture hanging on an alumni wall showing myself and a trophy from Dress Review.  I was always pretty lucky when I modeled. Must have been the exceptionally big hair that convinced the judges I was worthy enough to advance to the State Fair competitions. I'm second from your right. In a lovely wool, purple dress. This was my 10th year of 4H, I think. My sister is standing next to me in a blue wool coat. Not sure why we both made things that caused us to smother during the fair.

Tuesday's at the fair haven't changed. I stopped in the swine barn to check out the winning hogs and spent the evening at the Dress Review. My Mom has sewed for the kids and enjoys modeling with them.  I get to emcee the whole evening and love doing that!

This year Mom made matching pink camo pants and white shirts for herself and the girls and black camo pants for the Lion Cub. I thought they looked so cute! Mom also made an outfit just for Panda to model. Watch out future Dress Review competitors, this young lady knows how to hit her marks and smile!

In my biased opinion, I believed my Mom deserved Champion for her efforts. But she went home instead with a blue ribbon. She doesn't care. She sews outfits to help with the Adult numbers. She wants the Adult show to continue so she makes things for the girls to model so their will be competitors.  I, on the other hand, am fiercely competitive and want her to win!



This morning was the Beef Show. Tonight, the track is featuring some vehicles trying to destroy other vehicles. Should be interesting. And I know The Farmer will be there to keep things running smoothly.  Maybe I'll stay home and catch up on laundry!

It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year

I am in the middle of my favorite time of year. No, not Christmas. County fair time!

I am a proud former 10 year 4H member. I owe much of my life success's to my time in 4H. 4H gave me life skills like sewing, cooking, stage presence and animal care. But it gave me so much more than just project completion. I made lifelong friendships. Many of my friends that I competed against in 4H are some of my greatest treasures today.

So it's always with great excitement that I greet the local county fairs beginning. And Monday was the first day! This year holds even more greatness.  My Panda is celebrating.her first year in Mini 4H!  Mini 4H is for students who just completed their 1st and 2nd grade years in school.  "Real" 4H is for 3rd-12th graders. 

Panda decided to take three projects this year.  The limit was two.  Yet somehow we have three.  Clothing, Food and Livestock. The mini livestock project will show this weekend.  But her Clothing and Foods projects were turned in on Monday.  She had to make a popcorn snack (she made caramel corn) and a stuffed bear head (it's supposed to look like a panda).

She worked hard on these projects and I resisted the urge to help her! I did have to teach her how to knot thread, properly shank a button, how to overcast stitch and use the stove to pop popcorn. But she made the projects and was so excited to turn them in.

My county fair is small.  All of the projects fit in one building and the livestock occupy 5 barns.  We have one Merchant's building, a tent with local entertainment, a food stand, some food trailers and a midway that is the last reason you would go to our fair.  But I love the size of the fair.  I can let my kids walk around and not feel like they are going to be stolen.  They get to see so many of their friends when we are out there.  And we get to watch all sorts of small town fun!

Monday night featured the Kiddie Pedal Pull.  This has to be one of the most popular things at the fair.  The kids get weighed and divided into classes.  My Monkey was in the 2nd group and did not have great luck on her pedal tractor.  I think it was the pig ears that someone gave her weighing her down.

Panda did a bit better in her class.  It took 1hr45minutes to get through all the younger classes before it was her turn. Did I mention this was popular?

After all the excitement of the Pedal Pull, it was time to head out to the grandstands to watch some dirt fly. The Farmer is on the Fairboard. One of the benefits of his involvement is getting an up close and personal look at what goes on inside the track.

These were dirt track races.  Trucks were racing each other down the straight-away. People actually paid to see this.  The highlight of the evening was when a snowmobile raced a Gator.  But by that time my camera battery had died! You'll have to trust me when I say it was funny.

So we went home from our first night at the fair exhausted, covered in mud and ready to go back tonight.  Tonight we'll be a bit more proper.  The kids will be modeling with their Grandma in the Fashion Show! I get the chance to emcee the event.  And it's such a joy to watch my kids strut their stuff on a stage in a room full of people.

More tomorrow...



Fun Friday! Take Me Out to the Ballgame!

A few weeks ago I had a chance to stand on the field of the coolest Minor League ballpark in America. I addressed the crowd in an effort to promote Indiana wineries and was in awe by my surroundings. I took my intern, dressed as a bunch of grapes, to throw out the first pitch of the game.

I watched the stands fill up to see the Indianapolis Indians play. I saw little kids holding their own gloves and balls, in hopes of catching a foul ball or getting an autograph from a player. And after being a part of the excitement, I knew I had to go back this summer!







Lucky for me, my friends at Indiana's Family of Farmers (IFOF) will celebrate America's favorite past time at Victory Field in Indianapolis on July 19th at an Indianapolis Indians Game.  We are working with Indiana bloggers to give tickets away to the event!

Winners will receive up to 8 tickets to the event for their family and friends to join IFOF at the July 19th Indians Game at 7 PM. Winners will also join IFOF for a special picnic at the park.  Free food...yummy!

If you would like to enter to win this giveaway, there are a few ways you can do so. You will get one entry per thing done. Maximum of four entries!

1. Follow and comment on this FenceRow To FenceRow blogpost

2. Follow @indianawinebabe on Twitter and tell me here that you did

3. Like my Facebook page. It's a new page, developed just for this contest. More content coming when my mind quits wandering to outside baseball games!

4.Tweet about this contest. Include @indianawinebabe in the tweet.

This contest will end at 11:59 EDT on June 30th. I'll randomly select a winner and you'll have 48 hours to provide your email address.

If you'd like more information about Indiana's Family of Farmers, find us on Facebook or Twitter.

Good Luck!  Can't wait to see you at the ballpark in July!

If Your World Crashed Around You, Who Would You Call?

I'm feeling a bit nostalgic as I write this. And a bit gloomy. Down in the dumps, you might call it. I can't pinpoint an exact reason, just feel off my normally perky self.

I'm a person who doesn't go anywhere and not know someone.  Back in the day, when I was a farm broadcaster, I talked to so many people in a given day. I was interviewing people, seeking stories, travelling, etc. And I often felt like I'd walk in a room and know more people than not.

Now, in my wine marketing job, it's the same thing.  I know lots of people. Some are the same from the radio job. But I widened my circle. I know lots of people. It's fun to be able to walk into a room and pick up a conversation with nearly anyone.

And yet, if my world crashed around me tomorrow, I don't know who I'd call for help.  Does that make sense?  I have thousands of contacts, but no true best friend.

OK, The Farmer is my best friend.  That's a given.  He is my everything.  He's my rock when I get crazy.  He's my calm when my head is spinning.  He's my first thought in the morning and last at night.  But after him, who would pick up the phone?

I grew up with two amazing friends that I met at church camp.  One girl and I went to church together, yet different schools.  The other girl and I only lived 15 minutes apart and talked on the phone constantly.  They are friends to this day, but no longer the best friends that they were in my younger days. 

Then there are my college friends.  People I still communicate with often, but are scattered all across the country living fantastic lives. 

I have work friends.  These are friends from other commodity groups who are fantastic people and we get along so well when we are together. But the miles between our houses prevent weekend gatherings.  I have some great friends from my work with Farm Bureau and our time on the State Young Farmer Committee.  Two couples we met then are still people we hang out with now.  But again, miles prevent frequent gatherings.

I have church friends.  It is this group that I hang out with most often and know would be there if we were to ever need something.

I have the friends I grew up with and, by virtue of living in the same county I grew up in, they are still friends today. 

I have new friends.  A few ladies pop to mind, people who have kids the same age as mine and we are together alot for baseball games, camps, field trips, etc.  They are friends who hopefully will become better friends.  But it's like dating. It takes time to develop those relationships.

So it leads me back to the original question. If my world were to crash around me tomorrow, who would I call?  I'm lacking that one best friend that I always had when growing up.  Two friends come close  in my mind. But I often think I value the friendship more than they do.  So I step back so not to smother them.

In the end, I wonder if I need that one best friend.  Maybe I have what I'm supposed to. A bunch of really good friends. 

I offer these thoughts as a question to you.  Do you struggle with the same thing?  Has our busy, crazy, insane lives as parents, full-time employees, farmers, volunteers, spouses, caused us to lose those valuable friendships?  In an effort to stay connected via Twitter, Facebook, texting and all other forms of communication, have we actually lost what matters most?

Who would you call if your world suddenly crashed around you?

Wordless Wednesday: Rain, again

I woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning.  I've been in a funk all day.  And it didn't get any better when I headed out the door to take the kids to daycare.  I was greeted by a downpour.

This is one of our wheat fields.  It doesn't look so great.  The dots on my lens are rain drops.  All of this rain hit as we have ONE field left to plant.  ONE.  Just ONE.  And at this point we may have to abandon the acreage, meaning we won't plant it.  I can't think of the last time we didn't get all the crop in.  To say it's been a frusterating year is to say Noah had just a little bit of water under his ark.  At this point, I'm starting to understand what Noah had to deal with.