Here a Cluck, There a Cluck, Everywhere a Cluck Cluck

Today was the day that Abbi worked hard for! She gave a report on a breed of chicken called Australorp, and of course no report is complete without a live presentation. We began the morning with a visit to the orthodontist to repair a loose wire. Then we stopped at Aunt Julie's house, which is the foster home for Abbi's chickens, and picked up Licorice (the chicken's name, not candy). Abbi's chickens were removed from their original home by the boss on CR 35, due to lack of attention to chores ... important things like water, food, and gathering eggs. They may be returned to their original home now that spring is here, we'll see. Obviously the boss will have the final say.

Off to school we headed with Licorice in tow. After signing in at the office, to a chorus of oohs and aahs, down the hall we went.

We made a stop at the restroom so Abbi could wash a little "chicken residue" off of her sweatshirt, that she acquired sometime during the trip. Here is Licorice waiting patiently in her carrier - not like she had much choice.

Abbi did an amazing job on her report! I even learned a couple things that I didn't know. I was sooo proud of her. She has had a great year learning and experiencing many things with her wonderful teacher, Mr. Hamilton. I am so thankful for each teacher that she has had!
My question for today is ... "whatever happened to taking puppies and kittens to school"? Now that I could handle! Today really wasn't too bad. When Abbi was done, I simply carried that chicken in it's cool carrier back down the hall, to my car, and back to Aunt Julie's where I dumped it back into it's pen.

Our farm is exploding with animals ... our dog Uno now has 5 puppies, Abbi has two bunnies, 3 cats, tomorrow we will get a new horse to replace her geriatric horse that died this winter, and soon we will be taking possession of the baby chicks that we'll raise for the fair. Never in my wildest dreams did I imagine taking care of such a menagerie of animals, or even chasing a pet bunny around the horse pasture like I did on Wednesday. I am learning to relax and just enjoy whatever Abbi brings into our lives!

Chickens and Horses and Ribbons, Oh My!

It's a Blue Ribbon Week for the Hawkins'. Well, mostly blue ....




Poultry Club ribbons Saddle Club ribbons




Abbi proudly "fluffed" her fancy before the judge made his way down the table to her. She received a blue ribbon.

Kevin and Mitch are hanging on to their broilers while the kind judge inspects the breasts of another competitors chicken. Wouldn't most men enjoy being a chicken judge??? They each received blue ribbons for their broilers and roasters, and then several Honor ribbons for some of the birds. An Honor ribbon is step above blue, and allows them to return to the table to compete only with the Honor - ees. Make sense?

Abbi has fallen in love with "contesting", which involves barrel, flags, and poles. Here she shows her fine form in barrels. She is a true cowgirl!

Then on to the fancier competitions, like Horsemanship, Showmanship, Riding, and Reining. She rides with good form in spite of never having taken any lessons. She won ribbons in all these classes except for Horsemanship! Hooray!

Here she gets a little coaching from our very own Horse Whisperer (aka Uncle Terry) before her Western Horsemanship contest. What would we do without him?!


I'm pretty sure the judge was impressed with her big smile, or perhaps it was simply the fact that Ginger is 25 years old and still looks so good!

A nice pose with Ginger before competitions got started. Please take note of the wonderful haircut on Ginger's mane ... yup, I did it and I'm proud of it!

I'm tired and I really don't know how this post is going to look. I'm pretty sure that none of the pictures are going to be lined up with the correct descriptions, but guess what? I don't care! See, that's what spending 14 hour days at the fair does to a person ... not to mention all the sugar, grease, and diet coke a person can possibly consume. Good Night All! And sweet dreams of lots of ribbons for your own kids - if you're brave enough to take the leap into 4-H!