Caution! May be a bit gory...

ChubChub celebrated his 5th birthday. He was invited to supper at our Very Special Cousin's house. The adults really appreciated a tray of special cheese. Yummy!

Branch and Dr. Peter discussed pigeons.

ChubChub received more than enough gifts. Pop made him this nice little knife, and now he thinks that he's just as big as the other boys.

We attended the monthly homeschool meeting, and Josiah gave a class on playing chess. He was able to play a few rounds with some challengers. He's mighty tough to beat, though.

He also shot his first deer this past Saturday. [The following photos are graphic!]

Lots of venison for the family larder...

We Can Finally Breathe!

These past two weeks have been very busy. The three older boys were asked to speak at the annual 4H Awards Banquet. They all did a fine job.

They also received numerous awards for their 4H participation.

We have really enjoyed the cooler weather. Stennes "trapped" Branch in a maze of ropes, and the other boys enjoyed watching him escape.

Branch and Josiah dug entrenchments for their battles. A cannon is always a nice addition to any yard, ya know...

Branch worked diligently on improving MO'M's compost pile.

Stennes enjoyed a bowl of ice cream up in the deer stand. They'll be setting those up within the next few days for hunting.

Mean Ol' Mama found an outstanding deal on pasta: 24 ounces for $1.00! These bags should last us a few days...(boys, boys, boys)...

The great outdoors has never been so beautiful as right now.

But family game time is fun, too!

Josiah's incubator has proven profitable for him. Check out this cute little bantam!

We enjoyed spending time at the Georgia National Fair. Josiah's mini-booth placed 6th.

Branch placed 2nd! Not bad for the first time!

Anders placed 3rd.

Stennes' wheelbarrow placed 2nd!

Branch placed 3rd in public speaking. This was his first time, and we're very proud of him.

Josiah placed 1st in public speaking!

Anders placed 2nd!

Stennes bought himself a new belt buckle. Wow!

Josiah placed 4th in the Cotton Boll rap that he performed!

Anders won 1st place! This was a tough competition. He even competed against Josiah!

Poppins treated the boys to a ride on the bumper cars over on the midway. They really had a great time!

We had 3 good preaching times Sunday afternoon. Mean Ol' Mama saw one of the Haitians in the grocery store, and he asked her to please bring the preacher back to their house.

We then had a meeting with a group of Hispanics, and then another with Haitians. We had such a good time with all of these sweet, gracious people.

When we returned home Sunday evening, we dismissed the boys for the next 3 days. They're living out in the woods as pioneers, cooking for themselves and catching what they can to eat. Roughin' it, as the saying goes.

And just look at their closest neighbor: a very venemous water moccasin! Josiah took care of him. Mean Ol' Mama just smiled feebly and tottered away, trying not to think about it...

Strange Days...

ChubChub was happy to have a "boat" from a box. He's pretty easy to amuse.

And now he's a robot... Branch has been carving pigeons to put on his minibooth for competition in the Georgia National Fair in 2 weeks.

The boys purchased nice whips to learn the art of whipcracking and target striking.

Josiah bought this nice shirt at a yard sale. Both the message and the theme are all "Josiah".

Poppins let ChubChub hang out in the deer stand that he purchased at a recent auction. ChubChub had a good time shooting "deer" from just the right angle.

Branch's German Owl hatched out two squabs. Kind of ugly. Notice the paint on his arm and hands? Painting his carved pigeons...

This is a posed shot that Josiah will be using on his minibooth which will present the 4H Poultry Judging competition.

This is a posed shot of Anders for his minibooth which will present information on the 4H Forestry Judging Team.

Branch is also in a posed shot for his minibooth which will discuss the care of pigeons. We'll take shots of their completed booths as soon as they are finished.

And just look who was gadding about in Mean Ol' Mama's yard this morning. They had escaped from their pen and were having the time of their lives...

We're a bit behind on posting because we're (guess what???)...BUSY, BUSY, BUSY...