Goats that Surf......Yes I am serious!!!!

A few weeks ago our friend, Shelley, introduced us to a really cool Christian guy named Dana.  Dana has a heart for God, goats, soccer, and surfing.  He lives the life that God has given him to the fullest everyday, making sure that people know about Jesus and the love He has for all of us.  The reason why we had the privilege of meeting him was because he needed his car worked on.  Of course I believe that another reason was that God wanted to bless my family and I with the privilege of meeting him, hearing his story, and being encouraged by his life and how he lives his life.  Dana will be leaving on the 17th to go do some ministry up in Canada.

Dana has three goats.  Their names are Goatee, Pismo, and Grover.  They are also known as "The Surfing Goats".  Surfing goats....seriously.....yep totally serious.  These goats surf.  They not only surf, but they play soccer!!!!  Dana had to come to our house tonight so that Keith could finish working on his car before his big trip to Canada.  Dana brought his goats with him tonight.  Lets just say that my kids had a blast playing with the goats.  Dana taught them how to play soccer.  Pismo is pretty good at playing.  Below are some pictures of the kids, Dana, and the goats while they were at our house tonight.

Also there is a link to a YouTube video that features Pismo and Dana surfing.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPhvKYCpWyw

Pray for Dana and the rest of the crew that will be going to spread God's word in Canada!!!  We can't wait for you guys to come back so we can hear how God has used you to spread His Good News!!!

One Proud Mamma Here!!!!

Well, last Saturday started a very busy time of year for my family and I, the Santa Barbara County Fair.  We love fair even though it is a very stressful time.  My kids are involved in one of the many local 4H clubs here on the central coast of California.  Their club name is Vineyard 4H.  Kristy is on her fifth year as a member and Abby is on her fourth year as a member.  Both of the girls are involved in wide variety of projects, from turkeys and rabbits to arts/crafts and shotguns.  The fair is a great opportunity to show what they have learned and done throughout their 4H year.

On Saturday, July 5, we participated in the fair rabbit show.  Kristy took her Californian buck named El Hefe.  We were wondering how he would do because of some issues that we were having with him, including him molting (loosing his fur).  Well needless to say that worrying was for nothing.  He received 7th place out of the 26 that were in his class.  We are so proud of Kristy and El Hefe.  Abby, although she participated in the rabbit show, did not take her rabbit this year because right now her rabbit (La Princesa) is busy being a mom to 5 baby bunnies.  Kristy's doe rabbit, La Duquesa, is busy being a mom to too 4 baby bunnies.

Today, July 7, our turkeys were judged.  This was our first year in turkeys.  Kristy had intentions of bringing a market turkey and breeder turkey.  Bringing a market turkey did not work out so she decided to concentrate on the breeder turkey that she bought.  Abby is too young for market turkeys, so she bought a breeder turkey too.  These turkeys have been a joy to have....even when they are loud in the mornings!  When we walked into feed the turkeys this evening we had the surprise that they had been judged while we were gone.  Abby, who has a slate turkey, received 1st place in her class.  She is so excited about this and Keith and I are so proud of her.  Kristy received reserve champion out of all the breeder turkeys.  Basically that means that she won 2nd place out of all 15 turkeys.  Trevor Morgan, a son of a friend from our 4H group, won first place or grand champion as we call it.  Kristy is very excited and we are so very proud of her.

Below are some pictures of the girls with their turkeys.  Abby's turkey, which is a slate turkey, is named Blackie and Kristy's turkey, which is a bourbon red,  is named Ginger.  There is also a picture of Kristy and her rabbit El Hefe during the showmanship contest.

This coming Wednesday, July 9, we will find out what the results are for the still entries that we enter.  Will write about that when we find out!

Summer Days

Well, our crazy summer schedule has begun, but before I begin to tell you guys about that, let me explain the meaning behind our blog name change.  As most of you know, my family and I are not from California.  We are east coasters.  My husband Keith, my daughter Kristy, and myself were born in the north (Pennsylvania and Ohio) and my youngest daughter, Abby, was born in the south (Georgia....and she is very proud of it) so hence the name 3 Yankees and 1 Rebel.  I don't know what I would do if I had a child here.....we would have to change the name of the blog again and coming up with a name that would include California in it would take come creative juices on my part.

Anyways, as I said at the beginning our busy summer has started.  Last week we had a busy filled week with Bible school.  It was fun (for the most part) to see how God worked in and through the lives of the people that were there.  This week my kiddos are at church camp.  Boy do I miss them.  I am usually excited about having peace and quiet in the house but now that they have been gone for a day I am itching to have some noise around here!  

In a week or so we will be going to Santa Barbara County Fair for the 4th year in a row.  Kristy is taking a rabbit and a turkey and Abby is taking a turkey.  It should be a blast!  It will be a long, stress filled week and when the first day hits we will all be asking if it is the last day yet.  The week after that we will be helping at Grace's VBS for the week and then Kristy goes off to Camp Wahoo.  I get to spend time with Abby while Kristy is at Camp Wahoo.  We will definitely be catching up on some schoolwork, but we will make sure that we have some play time too!!!

Our family has grown (as far as furry friends go) in the last few months.  We have 5 kittens (that we are trying to get rid of) and 10 baby bunnies!!!  They are all so cute.  They are all growing up fast though.  We are in the middle of trying to find homes for the kittens.  We are keeping one though!  As for the bunnies.....well......some will end up in the pot for stew and some will be kept for breeding and show.  We will see how it goes.

Anyways, here are some pictures of the kids at camp.  Will upload more pictures of our summer adventures as they happen!!!

Lopez Lake Hike

Hey everyone!!!

While my mom was visiting we tried to get out as much to see the beautiful nature that God has given us.  The one day we decided to go hiking at Lopez Lake.

Lopez Lake is located in Arroyo Grande, CA....just a little north of where my family and I live.  This beautiful place is also the location of where a lot of people from the area get their drinking water.  It is a beautiful place to spend the day, the weekend, or even a week.  It has plenty to do...camping, hiking, swimming (including Mustang Waterslides), or just sitting and enjoying God's beautiful creation around us.

We hiked on a flat path for about a mile till we hit "High Ridge" point.  We went partially up High Ridge, but not all the way.  Believe me, if the kids had their way we would have gone all the way to the top!  The pictures that we were able to get were remarkable.  We got to see some funny looking birds that look like they are water skiing in the lake.  They were quite entertaining.

Our hike at Lopez was really enjoyable.  My family and I plan on going camping there in the near future.  We know several families in the area that go camping and always have a great time!!!

Till next time :)

Round Up 2013

Hey everyone.  My family and I just got back from the annual Round Up (the Ames annual branding of the cattle) and we had a great time.  This is our 3rd year going to this and we wouldn't miss it for the world.

The Sunday before we went to Round Up, we had to take our trailer down due to the fact that my husband couldn't come down on the date that we were going.  My mom was with us and she enjoyed the trip down to see where we get to spend a weekend every year.  The round up is held on an avocado ranch in Goleta, California called Rancho Dos Pueblos.  Below are some of the pics that my mom took the day that we took her down there.

 So as you can see the ranch where we go for round up is beautiful.

Now for some of the fun pictures!!!  Below are the pics from the actual roundup.  Round Up is a combination of things.  It involves vaccinations, pregnancy checks, making big boy cows out of little boy cows (if you know what I mean), clipping the ears, tagging the ears, and of course branding them.  It takes a lot of work and a lot of dedication from the cowboys that are involved.  Enjoy the pics!

The wonderful thing about this round up is it is very family oriented. You will find people of all different ages there.  The kids have a blast.  There is a creek to play in, horseback rides, and just hanging around by the campfire with some of the other kids.  There is also a chance for the kids to rope and hold the baby calves while all the stuff is done to them.  It is a blast watching them.  

Kristy taking a rest after all the "working" (which is actually lots of playing!) that she did!

Kristy on "Red", which is a very kid friendly horse!

Kristy and Peyton play with "Boo Dog".

Abby just chilling out.

All in all we had a great time.  We can't wait for next year to come by as we get to go back and  experience the "cowboy life" for a few days.  This way of life is not seen a lot, but it is part of our very rich history of the USA.  Don't let it die out.  To whoever is reading this I encourage you to find a place where your kids can experience this way of life, even if it is for a day!

With that I will leave you with one more picture.  It just shows how "exhausting it can be for a little kids on the ranch :)

Enjoy!!!!!