New 4-H Year Begins

        We began our 2013 - 2014 4-H year with a lunch meeting on Nov. 1.   Bronte came an hour early to help prepare lunch for the rest of the club members.  The lunch menu was planned to represent a good example of MyPlate, see (ChooseMyPlate.gov), which promotes healthy eating, and can be very tasty.  We had Fruit and Cheese Kabobs and Fruity Shake from 4-H Cooking 101, melted cheese, beef, and peppers on french bread, and sweet potato oven fries.  We skipped dessert because of Halloween the night before.

    After electing new officers and other business items, we helped Jenna finish her service project of making blankets for foster children by tying two quilts.  Unfortunately I forgot to take pictures that day.

  We decided to do service projects for our work meetings until the members get started doing their fair projects so our meeting held Nov. 15 was spent making nine fabric drawstring bags for someone who is putting together personal care kits which will be sent to Ethiopian women.  As can be seen from the photos, the girls were busy sewing, serging, cutting, pressing, measuring and putting cording into casings.  New and old skills were practiced.

 

   
  Three members of our club did record books for evaluation this year.  On Nov. 16 at the annual 4-H Awards night, they received them back with evaluation notes, seals, and pins earned.  Congratulations on your great record books, Jenna, Alexa, and Chloe!
 

Picture page showing Chloe's prize winning fair projects

 

 

Lots of Purple Ribbons Results of Fair 2013

         Hard work brings rewards and the girls were surprised and gratified by the results of the judging of their entries this year.  There were many blue ribbons, champion ribbons, reserve champion ribbons, and special awards earned through their efforts to finish and do their best.

         I know that some of our club members were working right up to judging day on finishing the last details and paperwork on their many 4-H projects.  I am proud of them for setting goals and working hard to reach them this year.

These photos show the winning entries from our club for champion and reserve champion awards.  Several of the girls were out of town so are not shown in the pictures taken at the fair.

Alexa champion on her poem in creative writing

Alexa reserve champion on her pastel bird

Jenna champion on her reversible shoulder bag which she used
in the fashion review

Hannah reserve champion gathered skirt with zipper

Chloe champion gathered skirt with zipper

Alexa champion and 2 special awards on her wonderful
educational display

Alexa champion on her little zipper pouch
Note:  Chloe won reserve champion on her little
zipper pouch but I didn't get a picture of it.
Sorry, Chloe

Chloe reserve champion on her photo

Autumn champion on her pastel painting of a bird
and flower

Autumn champion on her photography

 

Hannah reserve champion her photography

Chloe champion on her pastel horse painting

 

 

Bronte did the floral arranging contest for the first time.  Jenna won champion for the intermediate
age group and Alex won reserve champion for the junior group.  They each competed against seven other girls.



 

                                   Aren't they fabulous?!

 

Finishing Up

Bronte finished her pillow

The girls had set a goal to have their fair projects by July 1 so we had a work meeting to help them do that yesterday.

Three of them finished their pastel artwork, Autumn will finish hers this week.  Jenna made another zipper pouch because she used her first one for a birthday gift (they do make great gifts).  Chloe worked on her self-designed crocheted purse and learned how to decrease to shape it.

Some of the girls prepared and sewed fair labels into their fabric entries.

 After working for an hour and a half or so, they changed into swim suits and we went to a neighborhood pool down the street (thanks, Deborah, for letting us come).  They swam, played pool tag, and had a great time in the water for an hour.  Great fun on a 90 degree day!

These photos show what they have been doing the past few weeks as they prepare for fair judging day coming up on July 20.

Alexa finished her doll quilt

Autumn, Chloe, and Hannah's pastel paintings in process

Working on the bird painting

Sewing the blocks together



Hannah and Chloe made skirts with zippers



Chloe created an original pattern for a crocheted purse




Jenna made another zipper pouch

Bronte and Alexa doing the 4-H Walk-a-Thon on June 22

Moving Forward

      Our monthly 4-H Club business meeting was held today. We tried to keep it short so we would have plenty of time to work on projects, but we did take time to share with each other our favorite books or authors for roll call today.

 

 

Hannah and Bronte demonstrated beekeeper protective clothing

 Chloe gave her presentation on beekeeping (her grandfather is an expert) and  we learned about the equipment used to protect against getting stung and about honey combs, queen bees, and honeybee eggs.  It was very interesting.

Chloe shows us how to handle honey combs

 

The following photos show what everyone did today during our project work time.  Most worked on art projects.

Bronte started a counted cross stitch design

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Jenna started a zipper pouch

Pastel paintings are taking shape and becoming colorful

Monthly Project Work Meeting

 

 

   Bronte, in her last year of being a 4-H clover bud, brought the fleece pillow she has finished.  Doing her owl pillow, she was able to practice the skills of enlarging a pattern, cutting, placement of design, doing the blanket stitch by hand, machine stitching and stuffing the pillow.  Very cute.

   Today she measured, cut out, pressed, and began sewing up a pillow case from fabric matching a quilt her mother is making for her.  She just needs to sew the French seam around the edge and it will be finished.  Good job, Bronte.




















   Alexa made progress on her doll quilt today, making sure all the inside corners of each block were precisely lined up.  She did some taking out and re-doing today.  It is coming along well.  We'll get a photo next time.



The girls are making headway on their pastel paintings done on suede board



The beauty is emerging

 

 

 

 

Knitting Day

    After the business part of our meeting
 today,  Alexa gave us a presentation from
 a school report she had done on Holland.
  She chose the subject because her great,
great grandparents immigrated from there
 to America in 1907.  We learned some
 interesting facts about the country.







  

     Even though it is late in the 4-H year (since county fair is in July) and we usually work on projects chosen much earlier in the year, we had a fun time today learning how to knit.  Of course most of us had done some knitting before, but it had been long enough that all of us had to be reminded (or shown for the first time) how to cast on.   Thanks, Sarah, we enjoyed it.

The rest of the time was used mostly for getting
 started on art projects.  Other projects are
 beginning to be finished and ready for fair!

 

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