We had our first experience with the West Virginia State Fair...

and it was GREAT!  We had a great time, saw all the animals, blew $10 on one game for the boys, and filled our guts with an incredible amount of fair food!  The boys loved it, and I'm sorry to say, my fellow Richmonders, it's alot better and cleaner than Virginia's!

We are in the process of looking for two Tamworth feeder pigs, and the chickens are growing like gangbusters.... still don't know what Helga is, though..she's a mystery.   The chickens like veggie scraps, leftover pasta, spaghettios and cereal with milk, in addition to their feed.  They are so funny to watch... very entertaining!

We are getting estimates for the driveway, well and septic and we have finally chosen our floorplan... it's all so exciting!

Homeschooling is going great, although I fear Rabbit may have a mental block with math, which if so, he gets from his mother!

And, lastly, WE NEED RAIN!!!!!!  It is sooooo dry here, but we are loving all of it.... and have met some truly great folks.

But we miss you all, and hope the rest of your summer is relaxing and safe...

So much to report!

And the kids got a basketball hoop from a neighbor... so generous!  Of course they are using it as a jungle gym, shimmying up and down the pole....

First off, we started homeschooling this week and it's been great... so far, so good!

Although I don't look particularly excited in this pic, we WERE excited... this is the first morning (7:30) as I am explaining to Rabbit and E how things were going to go...

 Secondly, it's been a very busy and productive week at ATG!  We got all our stumps removed from the homesite and it looks like a completely different place... it's a big, dusty open area, ready for a foundation!  Check out the before pics in the previous posts, and compare to these:

Eric contemplating what to do with all the boulders we've dug up...

The boys thinking they're archeologists...

And on to the chickens... we think we finally figured out what Helga is.  While all the other chicks are the Buff Orpingtons we ordered, we never could figure out what the free, exotic chick was.... and now we think she is... drum roll please......... a Dark Brahma!  She's going through this pubescent, gorpy phase, but she is going to end up real pretty.

This is the chickens eating leftovers... cold pasta and corn.

Signing off from ATG... have a great weekend!

One final one for the night.

The rabbit had a little party this weekend and our friends came to celebrate.

While we are on a roll....

This is a photo of the chickens on pasture.  The fence is to keep out the predators (4 legged ones anyway).  We put them out there last week (Tuesday the 25th).  They seem to love it.   

After they run this grass down a little bit we can move them to a new section.  They really are fun to watch.  They do they silliest things.  

Let's try some pics, shall we?! (you have no idea how difficult this is...!)

Some before pics of site...

Notice Eric squatting in the pic above...

This is the first tree that they cut on our property.  A large white oak.  It has an enormous top.

Almost to the homesite. 

This is a shot of the homesite after we have been cleaning up for a day or two.  Just beyond where you see the stumps in this picture is where the rock is that I was standing on in the picture at the top of this page.  Also, it is from a slightly different angle.

This is C on the splitter the first day of clean up.  You can see the fallen trees all over  the place in the background.  Most of what you see in this picture has already been cleaned up (see above).

Happiness is a full woodshed.  Or nearly full in this case.  This was actually taken today (8/1/11).  We will have it completely full by tomorrow.  Then we will have to stack up the logs near the woodshed (probably right behind where I am in this picture) for the future.  There is still tons of downed trees to get out of the way for the dozer man to come in and knock out stumps and prepare the house pad.   I'm thinking of renting a large woodchipper to dispatch the small branches of the tops.  We will see how it goes!!!!!