A Fair Day

YIPEEEEEE!!! 1st place!!! We went to the fair tonight, and the first thing we did was check to see how my salsa faired, tee hee, see the play on words! Anyway, I won first place, and on the back they commented on how cute my label was. I won 2 $5 gift certificates to Kerr, so now I can keep on canning. This year salsa, next year who knows?!?!

Copsey's Kickin' Salsa!

All the canning entries.
After checking out the salsa we were hungry. Who could resist fair food? We had corn dogs, nachos, and we tried a funnel cake. Not as good as I remembered it though.
We watched barrel racing while we ate nachos and even though the pictures are blurry it is telling of how fast these children were going. This little girl was first place for a long time. She is about 8 years old. No fear I say. Her time was about 16.8 seconds.
This is a better picture. This girl is about 10.
Oh my gosh. You won't believe what is coming now...
I can't believe it. I just can't believe it is actually out here working too...
The tractor with a rake!!! Katie was way excited about this!
Look at how high this little spitfire's bottom is off the saddle. She went full throttle for her ride.
She was amazing. She too is about 8 years old.

"GO, GO, GO"
She did it. This girl won first place, her time being 16.577 seconds.

Katie said she'll learn to barrel race tomorrow.
It may not be barrel racing, but it's a start. This is Katie's first pony ride!!!
What's a fair without Smokey the Bear. The petting zoo had a milking cow. People could milk the cow and drink it. We skipped this part.

This is a Watusi. I thought that was a dance. Do you think he/she has a constant headache?
I can't look at him/her anymore, I just want to take them off and give him/her a break!
This Texas Longhorn was making me a bit uncomfortable. I was holding a red balloon and it kept staring at me. Those fences don't look THAT strong.
This is the biggest cow I have ever seen. I hope she is having septuplets
But she really likes to be brushed. In fact when Katie and Rick picked up the brushes she rolled a little so they could get a belly shot. Her face made her look like she was in ecstasy.

Katie really liked this goat. They were buds.
"Goodbye little goat, I have to go on the rides now." Smooch!!

Another horse of some sort.
The Super Slide...

...was really fun!
Katie LOVED these cars. They whipped around at the turns.
Is that an happy kid or what?
Flying on a bee!!!
Time to go home....

Bummer. Going home is not as fun. We all had a great time at the fair. If Katie had her way we would go every day. She found something fun in everything we did or saw.

I hope you enjoyed all the pictures. I know it was a bit overwhelming, but I didn't put them all in, and I didn't want you to miss a single part of what we did or saw.

Love
Amy

Happy Birthday Uncle Jack!!

We celebrated Uncle Jack's birthday a little late this year. We celebrated on Saturday, but we went to a barbecue that night so we had cake today. Katie and I made blackberry cobbler, Uncle Jack's fave.
Katie picked out the hat for him last week, and she couldn't wait to wear it for his birthday. Thank goodness Uncle Jack didn't want to wear it or there would have been a fight!! Katie loves to help with the candles, and she is generally excited to celebrate any one's birthday.

Happy Birthday Uncle Jack. Also celebrating today is Auntie Leahna. We sure wish we could help you with your candles, but we're afraid you might fight for the hat!!!

Love
Amy

Parades

I know I know I can't believe I forgot the camera too. But in self defense I was in a hurry as I wanted to get good parking and a good seat for the parade. As it was we made it just at 10am and we found a shady spot...to stand. But the parade for Red Desert Rodeo was great. The announcer is a guy who announces for the rodeo circuit, and he did awesome. They even played appropriate music for each entry. One example is a guy in a buggy being pulled by a miniature horse, they played Alan Jackson's "Little Bitty".
The parade started off appropriately flying the American flag as well as military flags. People here are extremely patriotic, and you don't mess with the military!
The coolest part of the parade was the end when they had the Wyoming State marching band. They were chosen to play at GW's last inauguration. I have never seen a marching band that size and boy color me impressed!!!
The funniest float to me was the one holding a reunion class from 1998. I thought how cool those older folks are having a reunion. Then I choked on my water when I realized those old folks are my age!!! I can't believe I've been out of high school for 10 years. You Mercy girls reading this might want to get in on a float back home. But then maybe not as some young whippersnapper may think "what are those old folks doing on a float? That is like so uncool!!"
I know I'm not that old and many reading have been celebrating more than 10 year reunions for decades!!!
It was a really fun parade. The next one is in the winter and it is a light parade. We will freeze our butts off, but I will redeem myself and bring the darn camera.
We are off to the Sweetwater County fair this week. I will be putting in my salsa and we'll see if I win or not. Wish me luck. There will be lot of fun stuff for us to see and do. Next year come on out and join us!!!
Love
Amy

Potty Training

Well she finally did it. Katie has pee peed on the potty. She is especially loving it because she gets a gumball when she goes. She has a brand new gum ball machine, that when a coin is inserted a gumball comes out. Bribery is a great thing!!! I have a couple of pictures and some great video of the first event but I was reminded by my more modest husband that these were not pictures to show on the world wide web. Smart man he is!!!
So I will just tell you as a very proud mommy that my very excited, and proud, gum chewing daughter is peeing in the potty. She has all the accessories. A cute potty seat that fits inside the big potty, a stool, and a potty seat that folds up for travelling. I am still using diapers when we go out since I don't really trust her to tell me when she has to go. But we will be getting some awesome pullups for travelling. At home though she has lots of new panties to get around in.
YOU GO KATIE!!!

Independence

Yesterday Rick, Katie, and I took a drive out to Casper. We stopped at a few places along the way that were once a stopping place for the people traveling the Oregon Trail, to their new home in the West.

Here are a few pictures from our trip.

Not a great picture, but have you ever seen a Badger in the wild??
Independence Rock. The pioneers who came to the West had to get here by Independence Day, and then they knew they would make it to their destination before the first snow. Many who came were the first to graffiti on this rock. They used stone cutters, wheel grease, etc. On the top of the rock there are many engravings from the 1800's. The Copsey's who came in 1856 didn't sign the rock, but we imagine Great-Great Grandpa John was climbing all over it at 12 years old.

This is Independence Rock from afar.

Katie didn't even want to get out of the car, but when she saw she could climb up the rock she begged. Daddy and her went to the top and they were awestruck by the amount of people who engraved their names. I was awestruck that a 2 1/2 year old would climb over 100 feet up a rock, and like it!!!

Still Climbing.... Mommy can't watch anymore. I went for a walk around the rock.

These cheaters came in a car. Signed it anyway though.

I don't know what year this was I'm guessing 1896. But maybe you think differently. Let me know. The signatures on top are much clearer. If you want to see them then come visit us and we'll take you.

We went to the National Historical Trails Interpretive Center in Casper, Wy. It gave the story of the Oregon Trail, Mormon Trail, California Trail, and the Pony Express. The four trails converged in Casper. It was amazing to think of the hardship these people endured to make a better life. If it had been me I would have made where I was work. The center was a great way to bring the sights we saw together, and to understand the history behind the sights. The state of Wyoming has gone to great lengths to make sure the history of these people is protected for all to experience. It is pretty humbling to see what our forefathers did to give future generations a better life.

Out in the parking lot this antelope was relaxing so I had to get a picture. Out on the prairie this would be an impossible picture to get. Especially this close!

Katie did great on the drive. She is a trooper!!! She really loves wind. Thank goodness as it blows awfully hard here!

Devils Gate is where the Sweetwater River cut through the rock. Incidentally the Sweetwater River is named because of the sweet taste of the water. The water has a low level of Alkali in it, not enough to harm anyone but enough to make the water sweet. Anyway, I digress, the Devil's gate is just west of Independence Rock where the pioneers stayed for the night. It is gorgeous and if I was a pioneer I would think of stopping and setting up camp. It is called Devil's gate because of Indian Folklore, but I don't want to tell you because; one, I don't know it exactly enough to type; two, because you should read about it when you visit, I don't want to tell you everything; and three, I have enough to tell you, you don't want to fall asleep from boredom do you?!?!?

The Pioneers came through here from Independence Rock which is only about two or three miles east.

They came around the hill on the right to the this side of Devil's Gate, and rested. How cool would this spot be to camp in?!?!

That's all for the educational portion of this post. Now for a couple Katie pictures. She was obsessed with picking grass while we were at Devils Gate.

HOW CUTE IS THIS KID!!!!

Thanks for visiting the blog, I really enjoy keeping you all up to date!!!
Love
Amy

Good Golly Miss Molly

Many of you know Molly our Beagle, our first child. I haven't put a post in on her yet, and realized yesterday that is must be done. So while she is napping I thought I would put in a post just so she won't feel left out.

I must mention she is snoring. She is worse than her Dad. She sleeps outside our room and we can hear her snoring all night, even with the door shut. I know dogs snore, dream, and play in their sleep, but the constant snoring is unbelievable!!!

Molly was born February 14th 2004, and we brought her home 6 weeks later. She is a Daddy's girl for sure. She is insanely jealous, if another dog so much as wants a pet from her Dad. She jumps on Dad and glares at the other dog just to let them know who his real pet is, just in case they think she is replaceable.

Here are a few things about Molly:

She loves to sleep on laps. If your lap is empty watch out she will jump on when you least expect it.

She as a BoBo. That is a piece of fake sheep skin that she carries everywhere, and can often be found laying on her bed mouthing it like a pacifier.

She doesn't sleep on her bed, but under the cover of her bed. It took us a very long time to figure out why she was chewing the zipper off her bed. Now she has two covers, one to lay on, and one to cover her up.

She loves to sleep in our bed, and did for a long time, until one night I couldn't figure out what the wet feeling was at my feet. That was her first and last accident in our bed.

What did you have for lunch???

She has an eating disorder, where she temporarily looses her mind and goes after whatever she can get her paws on. She once ran away with a huge scoop of ice cream in her mouth and no matter how cold it was she wasn't going to let go for fear we would take it away. Little does she know I don't enjoy taking things like food away from her, and if I don't have to I won't.

Katie couldn't exactly hold herself up yet, but we loved

this outfit and if we didn't take the picture at this age she

would have grown out of it. It's not exactly her best shot!

She is AWESOME with Katie. Katie can do almost anything to her and she won't make a peep. We have to protect Molly from the kid!!!

She is a lover not a fighter. She will lay down for even the smallest dog. Even if attacked she won't fight back. We are always on alert for those who want to do her harm.


We sure love this Beagle. She is loud, and often irritating. But she is loyal, loving, and ours. We can't imagine life without her. I have to get Rick to scan some more pictures of Molly and then I will post them. You should see when I used to dress her up!!! Keep watching for more pictures!

Katie Sue...

I like calling her that. Her middle name is really Sandra, after my mom, but since my mom is Sandi Sue (her middle name) then she is Katie Sue. The two Sue's are buds. Here they are at the beach watching the surfers.

I know even though we moved, and they don't get to see one another very often they still will come together and it will be like old times. We sure can't wait for you to visit Grammie!!!!
Love
Mommy and Katie

Another Day on the Lake

Katie had her first boating experience today. We picked up Aunt Carrie and Uncle Jack's boat and took it for a spin. Katie was so excited as she was told she could drive. I didn't know what to expect as she had only been to the lake by shore and I was worried about her spending a day in a boat. I also had memories of hating being in a life jacket all day and thought she would object.

Alas I didn't have to worry a bit. She took to the boat like a navy sea woman, and she didn't seem to mind the life jacket one bit.

When we threw her overboard to see if she liked deep water (just kidding she really went gracefully into the water with assistance from mommy, daddy, and Uncle Jack) she was a floating fool.

She needs a few more driving lessons, but she will be Captain soon enough. She is already ready to get back out there.

Taking off on her first boat ride, the smile when we went fast was priceless!!

Katie swimming in the Gorge!! I think we were a little over safe with the floatation devices! Resting with Daddy
Look out boaters, she is at the wheel and she doesn't want help!!!