John and Sara Paterson

Can you spot the real one?

2012-01-04T21:13:00.000-08:00

today Sierra was working with Misty as we realized she'd been left out with all of our attention going to Sweetheart and her wound care. So....she ended up getting her to come very calmly up the backstairs, through the kitchen and into her bedroom. We introduced her to Casendra's play horse "butterscotch" and it actually seemed as though she thought it was real. Very cute, and they look so similar :) Then we brought them in when grandma came for a visit and Casendra even got to sit on Misty--who is a very fiesty little girl, but she took it all in stride and I think was quite happy with all the attention!

DAY 41 Update pics of Sweetheart--but you still should check out the link for all of them!

2011-12-23T00:40:00.000-08:00

Sweetheart UpDate-for those who aren't on facebook etc. :)

2011-12-15T14:34:00.000-08:00

Here is a link to photos of the wound healing..and it IS healing! Thank you for all your prayers and support, keep on praying as though the wound is healing quickly, it is still a major wound and the healing must continue! :) Here is an example of Day 12 vs. Day 33!!!!

https://picasaweb.google.com/103008369298872824106/ATimelineOfTheMiniHorseWoundPictures

Sweethearts wound update--GRAPHIC WARNING

2011-11-19T21:41:00.000-08:00

This is kinda how it looks now, pictures don't do it justice. apparantly too much more flesh/skin is dying--not sure if we just need to do something minor different with how we are treating it, or ??? Not sure if vet is trying to save us money (maybe she recently added up all the times she's worked on her and realizes its getting too costly to keep messing with it...??? How do we decide? Can't God provide the money? Or is that just 'unwise' because it is an animal? Too bad we weren't a government funded rescue society--then we could get donations or grants or something :) Oh to be a millionaire. Anyhow--pray for a miracle still please :)

Cab's Wound Day 7--Looking good, can even see some new skin growth right around the edge...and we hadn't even finished cleaning the edge!

2011-11-12T21:26:00.000-08:00

Getting better....three days in to healing

2011-11-12T21:22:00.000-08:00

Cabs Wound-November 4, 2011

2011-11-12T21:11:00.000-08:00

So this is Cab's wound that happened a week and one day ago...we thought it was pretty bad...apparantly a bit from Oscar. WE had to take him to the vet, she put him out, layed him down on the snow outside the clinic, cut away the dead skin so we could treat it as an open wound. Daily washing, hosing (just with a syringe/needle/water) and a topical medication. The last picture is of the imprint he left as he was snoring away. We thought this was a pretty major issue...until today. See below for what we encountered today. Not cool. But hopefully something we can post about in a few months with prettier pictures. But that isn't a for sure thing.

And we thought Cabs wound was a problem....DO NOT LOOK IF SQUEAMISH--DOG ATTACK on our MINIS

2011-11-12T20:55:00.000-08:00

So...it appears that either coyotes--or rather the dogs that live on the same property as our horses (they rent the front/house, we rent the fields/barn) found our minis to be to much fun to chase, took a bite, then a week later (we treated the first wound thinking it was a puncture wound from a fence injury as they had escaped the first day we put them in) they joined together and took our mini "sweetheart" down and ripped into the first wound, removing muscle etc. (and eating it I presume as we didn't find it in the field) and also got a couple good lacerations into moms mini "Misty" the first two pics are of Sweetheart and she is at the vets awaiting final call on her future--vet seems positive at the moment, but I can't even imagine how she will save her---she told us it will be a lot of work on our part for at least 3 months. But has offered to let her stay at the clinic (not charging) as long as she can swing it with the owner but we have to feed/treat and such her once or twice a day for the duration. Misty is there with her too and I think she'll require some stitches and daily hosing as well for awhile. PLEASE PRAY. This is Casendra's first horse and its traumatized Seirra who was the first person to see the wounds after our neighbor told us 'kind of' what happened. Though he had painted his dogs as heroes that chased the coyotes away--which I'd love to believe. But we had been there 2 hours before at 8:40 am to let the ponies out of the barn where they stay all night and they had been fine, and coyotes don't tend to attack in a field with large horses and they also go for the throat, dogs often go for the hamstrings. Its so sad, she was being literally eaten alive. Crazy stuff. Sorry for the graphic, but I warned you!! It gets it off my chest and is giving us a picture timeline so hopefully we'll be able to chart healing as we did with Rosie. ahhhhh, we will glorify God through this!!

2 for 1...how could I say no??!!

2011-10-03T23:23:00.000-07:00

This is "Sweetheart" formally known as "Cricket" Casendra's new Miniature Horse. We are praying she'll be able to live with us forever as a pet but she may have to join the rest of the horses as livestock depending on how Town Council decides. But for now, she's here with us and Casendra and her are quite the team. The other little girl (tan with the blue eyes) is moms new little one. Her name is Misty and Sierra is coowning her with mom I think as she is doing all the training. Sierra has already taught her how to lie down and follow her everywhere despite her 'attitude'--Misty is not quite as willing to follow as Sweetheart is. She's only 6 months old afterall so she is doing pretty great for one so young....both of them actually are. Casendra leads hers everywhere and Sweetheart is just as her name says....A sweetheart!!! Handled much by children at her previous home she is perfect for Casendra to learn with and enjoy. What fun! Thanks mom for taking the 2nd part of the surprise package deal!!!

True Love :)

2011-10-02T22:08:00.000-07:00

Sierra's trick horse and our herd

2011-05-01T12:05:00.000-07:00

As we were leaving the horse field we saw this amazing rainbow that went from the grain field beside our horse pasture over the highway into the next farm field. We didn't have time to look for the pot of gold though :(

Sierra decided to teach Caballero to bow. This is day one of training! Now she just taps his knee and puts the treat in position and he bows! All by herself she did this, very impressive.

From front to back in picture one: Lua (sara), Sage (Ocean), Sway (Amanda), Soppy (Amy), Lammy (Journey), Cab (Sierra), Rosie-pulling up the rear (charlotte)--And now Garron has his own horse...I'll post one of that giant later!
They all come galloping up when we arrive to feed them, such a great sight to see!

Our herd of horses...pending one more from Amy's household!

2011-04-30T13:30:00.000-07:00

Halloween

2010-11-05T18:43:00.000-07:00

Sorry for the blurry photo, but Amy has the good ones :) and for those of you who don't know Amy or her blog then you'll have to make due with this one...I had an angel, a ninja and a horse heading out for candy this year.

They had a blast out with John (their dad), Amy, Garron, Sol, Journey, Mike, Meagan, Logan and Emily.

I waited at Amy's house and handed out Candy and did nothing else worthy (like washing her dishes or making hot chocolate--sorry Amy) but my big belly makes much movement uncomfortable!!! Come on, take pity :)

Amanda's new life...and her helpers

2010-11-05T18:37:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple fall photos of when the kids (Sol, Journey, Casendra) and Amy helped out at Amanda and Bob's farm garden digging potatoes. Some of those suckers were huge!! Look closely at what Journey and then she and Casendra are holding onto!! It's fun being out there and lots of changes are taking place. Amanda is a perfect farm wife as she is such a hardworker and willing and HAPPY to be doing stuff like this!! You are a lucky guy Bob.

Sierra and wonderful Caballero

2010-11-05T18:29:00.000-07:00

Just a couple of Sierra and Cab (with one of Muddy thrown in so you can all remember what his forelock is supposed to look like!). They are doing so well together and get to continue lessons this winter (as she missed so many due to her broken arm). He is learning to collect...kind of . We need Kristy to come ride him and teach him as Sierra isn't strong enough and has quite the time trying to show him what to do (especially as she is just learning)
The first time we tried to have someone (being Sierra) ride Cab bareback he spooked and shot off in a circle around me with me holding onto Sierra and dragging her off. Now he can ride bareback, english saddle, western saddle and DOUBLE!! The first rider is Stacey who has been jumping with him. However, we've definitely decided he needs to improve his 'whoa' before he gets to continue jumping (he seems to like jumping)

Stacey with Sierra on the back and Cab going along as easily as if there was no one on him...such a great horse!!

Couple of Casendra and Ethan too

2010-11-05T18:20:00.000-07:00

Casendra was dressed in clothes that came in a bag of kids clothes (but they were not kids clothes I later informed Sierra--who had dressed her) but she was so cute parading around in them with her little kitty.

Ethan let Casendra help him build this car, like the one Nelson had built when he lived with us (not quite the same :) but she was so happy to get to play with her big brother and even more happy to get her picture taken with him and their project.

Muddy's hair....what a chore

2010-11-05T18:13:00.000-07:00

Poor Muddy managed to completely entagle his entire forelock in burrs. I procrastinated taking them out until mom said she'd help. Well...she did it all! And didn't even resort to cutting! It took awhile but she got it done and although he looked like Don King a few times at the end with a couple nice braids to help tame the 'fuzzy look'. He was presentable when he went home :)

The biggest problem was that he wouldn't keep his head down, I'd tempt him with treats or just keep pressure on the halter till he lowered his head...but heck, how uncomfortable for him really. I hate having my tangles combed out and tangles didn't even begin to describe what was going on around his head!!

They are out! But braids were needed with lots of cowboy magic (hair product that helps detangle and shine) to get it all sleek again.

Casendra and Sol...quite the pair

2010-11-05T18:08:00.000-07:00

These two can sit for quite a long time and watch Grandma Char's village/train sets going around. They play excellently together and only occassionally have days where they just can't quite handle one another. But for the most part, they play and talk and sing and sometimes even dance around very contentedly throughout the days they get to spend together.

Sway

2010-11-05T18:05:00.000-07:00

This is Sway. A (soon to be registered quarter horse) weanling filly that has taken Muddy's place in our lives.

Muddy was not able to convince his trainer that he would make a suitable and safe riding horse for our family. So he has been kindly accepted back to his original home where they will work with, evaluate and decide what his future is to hold. We are hoping and praying he'll come around and make someone (maybe a mountain riding cowboy) a great strong horse.

In place of him, they traded us for this little weanling filly. She is very cute and has quite an interesting demeanor. Not much really riles her and she seems to take life as it comes.
Every now and again she'll attempt to assert herself but with our gentle, passive resistance, she quickly settles and does what is asked of her. We expect to have a lot of fun with her over the winter and as she grows throughout next summer. Won't be riding her for a long time yet, but that is good for me as I'll be busy with Wiliam when he arrives!

Sierra's little Ruckkus..pics of their last day together.

2010-10-11T19:44:00.000-07:00

A couple weeks ago, Sierra's favorite pick of Sunshines litter went to be with his new owners. A sad day for Sierra but she was happy with the home he went to and she was able to pick a new pup to pay special attention to for a little while. And John was good and said a proper good bye to the pup without trying to scare it or do some weird psycholgoical torturer of it. Way to go dad!! You can see how to get to Sierra's heart!

For David...These were caught by your brother Jon

2010-10-11T19:31:00.000-07:00

Hey David, I was supposed to send these pics to you awhile back (well the first 2 were from today) but the other 2 were from a ways back. Jon James caught them at a nearby river. First one was a pike and these last ones were golden eyes? Anyhow, pretty impressive. Jon worked for 4 days to get that first pike but he never gave up! And it was goooood!
You should email him for the story of these guys as he had a fun night tonight :)

Pike caught after 4 days of 'hanging in there'.

The puppies!! 5 weeks old!

2010-09-12T08:34:00.000-07:00

Sunshine and her pups Link

2010-09-01T19:41:00.000-07:00

copy and paste this to your address bar to see all the pics/videos of Sunshine giving birth and her growing pups. picasaweb.google.ca/jssepaterson/20100809#

They survived Day 1!

2010-09-01T19:33:00.000-07:00

They all survived day one...funny story for Ethan (though not so funny to him at the moment) he told me his day didn't really go well and this is why. All was going well, fun coloring activities, all school assembly, snack and then the recess bell rang. He told me clearly things didnt' go badly because he wasn't listening or anything like that, no it was because he sat down to put on his outdoor shoes (basketball type, lace up, quite stiff) and he kept sitting trying to get the 2nd one on...for so long...the ending recess bell rang. He did say some kids tried to help him but it was to no avail...he never made it outside to play. This happened both morning and lunch recess and last recess was not outdoor due to rain. POOR GUY! He desperately needs recess time, so new shoes will have to be bought tomorrow and delivered before recess :) Such a sweety.

I say that the looks on their faces say day 1 was a success.

1st Day of School

2010-09-01T19:27:00.000-07:00

Ethan started his first day of Grade one today...anyone else think he may have gotten into some old Steve Urkell episodes?? I just saw his stance is eerily like that guy!

Sierra had her first day of Grade 4 today. She had her cast taken off early (much to both of our surprise and later shock and later puking--sierra, not me-- as the trauma of it all hit her as we sat making an appointment to see the Dr. again in 6 weeks.) Weird day! But she does have a splint to wear in the first week so she can slowly make the transition to having an arm again. And her teacher was very understanding and kind so the day went well.

Sunshine's Pups

2010-09-01T19:21:00.000-07:00

Sierra and 'her' runt "Ruckkus" (named by his new owners, we aren't keeping any of the pups!!)

Ethan and "Saiber" the first born, I had to pull him out of his momma!! but he paved the way for the other 9 to come easily.

The pups have all been moved out to the back shed where they are hopefully going to potty train themselves! They are doing really well already. I will post a link eventually to our picasa web album where there are photos and videos of their birth up until today.

2010-06-11T22:46:00.000-07:00

I just blogged below about our ride-a-thon but it is out of order so you'll have to scroll down to "Rivers Edge Ride-a-thon" title to start at the beginning. I tried, but it messed up...or I did. Either way...there is an order to the story :)

Also here is a link to see pics of Sierra's new (used) tack.
http://picasaweb.google.ca/jssepaterson/SierraSNewSaddleAndACouplePicturesOfCuteyPieMuddy#5481743084170294354

Happy! We did it!!

2010-06-11T22:23:00.000-07:00

We were both VERY happy to stop for lunch. They had a campfire going, and the snow never stopped falling. We all stood close to the fire and let our clothes steam dry. Sierra got her boots off and tried to remind her feet that they were still alive. We had a great lunch of hot beans, cold cut sandwiches and hot chocolate along with chips and cookies. It was a bit less than an hour stop but it did the trick. Warmed us up and gave us the much needed encouragement and energy to keep on going. Our leader would have let us turn home then if we had all been too cold. But we persevered and had a great afternoon.

Sierra changed into her snowpants (in the tiny outhouse...with me trying to help...quite the funny experience...just ask her!) and was extremely happy that I brought them!! They kept her dry for the rest of the afternoons ride. We also got to canter and run around fields a lot which also kept us warm and inspired to go on.
During the ride we crossed rivers (and not shallow ones either) went up steep muddy hills, went down STEEP muddy hills, went down STEEP, MUDDY HILLS INTO RIVER'S and traversed many mountiansides filled with trees and fallen logs. The whole time in wet, heavy snow and -1 to 1 degree celsius weather.

When we got back to the lodge for our steak dinner all our layers were wet, the outer ones were so wet it was like we had dumped them in a bathtub, pulled them out and left them on the floor in a great puddle. However...It was great fun and we hope to do it again next year. We'll both bring better rain gear next time...Jackets AND pants!

Sierra and I layed down on the couch as supper was being fixed and both of us actually fell asleep cuddled up together (we got pretty chilled) Luckily when we woke up we got to eat a great meal and they started a fire in the fire place which helped us regain feeling everywhere. After supper they did a little raffle. Sierra won a 'bit warmer' and I won a pocket knife. Pretty cool I say! All that on top of what we got for fundraising which for me was a 25.00 gift certificate to their camp store (which I gave to Sierra as it was her birthday) and Sierra....

One of the highlights for Sierra was that she raised enough money (she raised $827.00 in only 8 days) to win the prize of an 8G IPOD touch. Pretty cool for a 9 year old.

When I first decided to do this with Sierra I read that we'd have to each raise 100.00. About a month later I realized that we needed to start and I needed to tell Sierra my plans so that we could get fundraising. So I signed us up and went online to get the info.

There I learned we'd actually EACH need to raise 200.00 as we were using their horses and I almost cancelled us out thinking it would be impossible to do that in the 8 days we had left (I procrastinated and then poor Sierra had to work with what was left...) But Sierra did so well and worked hard and by day 2 I knew we could do it! So I kept us signed up. She raised money by asking at school, going door to door in our neighborhood and even venturing downtown to ask businessess for their support (while her chicken mother sat inside the car waiting and praying that they'd say yes to her--once I had my 200.00 I quit and let her take the lead).

Tomorrow we will be working on our thankyou cards for all of you and the strangers too, who gave so freely to her (and me).

THANKS EVERYONE. JOIN US NEXT YEAR...on the actual ride!!

If you run into Sierra, get her to give you the story. She's in bed now so I didn't get to give you her version but it is WAY better and more in depth than mine. But I figured if I waited, I'd never get the pictures up. So...ask questions if you would like to know more. But the summary is 'fundraising for REBC, snow, horses, riding, snow, camp lunch, snow, loping, snow, loping, more snow, home again, soaked clothes, nap, supper, prizes, snow, truly excellent memories.'

Out in the cold

2010-06-11T22:04:00.000-07:00

Sierra, naturally, got a bit bored during all the walking on her very well behaved horse "Bert" so decided to take a nap. Good thing he was so well behaved (though he got a big grumpy half way through, we're sure due to hunger, and was very rude (swung his butt around to threaten a kick...or actually did kick) to any horse that got to close...except mine :)

So...you can see here Sierra is beginning to wane. She was cold (her feet had been cold since before mounting) and wet and hungry. Shortly after this picture I forced her to eat chocolate i had brought along. She is one of those people who needs to eat regularly or she can get pretty scary. She did recover though and then I encouraged her to trot around more especially when the group would stop, so that it'd warm her up. It worked.

It was nice that the ride was relaxed and you didn't have to stay in perfect formation but could get out and in fields ride abreast of one another.

And then lunch finally arrived.

The River's Edge Ride-a-thon

2010-06-11T21:58:00.000-07:00

Sierra and I took part in the River's Edge Bible Camp ride-a-thon this year. I planned to do it with her for her 9th birthday. You'd think end of May would provide us with a beautiful warm spring day...hmmmm, not quite, we saw the weather forecast a few days before the event and it didn't look good. But we kept praying it'd change. It didn't. We got up Saturday morning at about 4:30 to get ready for our possible 2 hour drive (it only took us 1 hour 40 minutes) and we were NOT speeding. It was snowing, slushy and below freezing driving conditions so most the time we were under the speed limit. Apparantly we left the house before the call from the ride leader asking us if we wanted to cancel till mid June. I'm glad though cause I think this ride, with its weather and such has given us better experiences adn memories then the perfect weather day we had originally hoped for.

WE BUNDLED!!
Sierra was not happy being so bundled and refused to wear her snowpants (her wise mother--buffered by her own 6 layers however insisted on bringing them and tied them onto my horse 'just in case') After all our fundraising (when I say 'our' it was mostly Sierra) and the weather report came in. Sierra didn't think it was going to be much fun. SNOW, RAIN, 1 degree weather. I told her we needed to think positively and have a good time no matter what.

Don't I look happy?? I was pretty excited to go, though a bit of nervousness as I am pregnant and it was cold and snowy and we weren't stopping back in at camp for lunch but would be out on the cold trail for the full 6 hours if no one wimped out. Yikes...what about bathrooms??

Out on the trail at last. We first had to stand in ankle deep mud in the arena while everyone had their tack checked and were helped up on their horses. Get this...I got the short one and Sierra got the biggest! My guy (freckles...ugly but sweet and easy to ride with a comfy trot and bumpy lope) was sturdy though so that was good. And the two of them got along so we got to ride together.

We met Leanne Van...nope not that name anymore, ummm, Symes, it is, out at the ride. She knew the people heading it up. Unlucky for her they clotheslined her off her mighty steed halfway through which made the rest of the ride a pain 'literal' in the body for her, but she did the whole thing! She and I vied for best position in the line, here she got ahead of me and Sierra was on her own up front with the leader.
By the way, Sierra was by far the youngest rider out there but held her own very well. Once her horse jumped a fallen log and Sierra was almost a goner, but held on and righted herself quickly. The leader was impressed. He told her at the end that she was a 'good little rider'. And she really is!

Sierra's 2nd ride on Caballero January 20/10

2010-01-22T18:15:00.001-08:00

I added the link, but I think you need to click on the actual title of this post to see the video...so try it and let me know if it works. Turn down the volume if you don't want to hear me babbling on at her :)

Sierra's new Horse

2010-01-22T08:26:00.000-08:00

It's Caballero.
He was mine, but we just bought a new gelding, a 5 year old morgan/percheron cross "Muddy". He is much bigger and sturdier and thus immensely better suited to carry me!
Sierra was outgrowing Srgt. Pepper so he has found a new home with some friends of ours that are starting up a ministry where horses and at risk youth/families will be paired up to work through healing together. Very cool and he is being well taken care of by their 3 young boys.
However, that left Sierra without a horse so now she has taken over Caballero. He is a great size for her, perfect age and seems to be very good fit personlity wise. She is tough enough mentally and determined so she can be his leader. She is also gentle enough not to scare him. They have now had 2 rides together and have done lots of ground work. They are adorable together! I will post a link next so you can see their second ride and how good he is about lowering his head for her to work with him! I love watching them. We are pretty sure they will be ready to have riding lessons together come spring out at the TL bar Ranch.

Come rain or snow....we have been managing to get out there almost every day to see them! So much fun!

Christmas In Reverse

2009-12-10T13:52:00.000-08:00

The included link will take you to a site where you can see some clips of the Christmas play if yo uwish. :) I hope to get a complete video from someone that was there, we'll see if it happens!

Little Donkey, by Ethans K class

2009-12-10T10:01:00.000-08:00

Ethan was only on stage for one song...almost wasn't as I had forgotten his class was doing a song. Thankfully, Sierra reminded me of it at supper right before we were headed out. He did great and knew more of the words than I thought possible as he had missed so many days due to illness. GREAT JOB ETHAN!

Little Donkey Song by Ethan and his K class

2009-12-10T09:59:00.000-08:00

Ethan's class was only on stage for one song...almost wasn't there as I forgot he was in it. At supper Sierra said, Ethan is in the concert too". I then remembered the note that had come home 2 weeks ago stating such, Ethan has missed a few days due to sickness so we missed the much needed reminder :) But he made it up and actually knew almost all the words :) GOOD JOB ETHAN!!

Captured in the act :)

2009-12-10T09:53:00.000-08:00

Sierra and Ethans Christmas Concert was absolutely superb. It is the best one I have ever been to actually. The songs, the story, the amount of kids, the talent and the sheer enjoyment and excellent, clear message really impacted me. I wish you all could have been there! If you get a chance to see "Christmas in Reverse" at another church somewhere....do so!

Quick video of the Cattle Round up in progress.

2009-10-30T09:54:00.000-07:00

CATTLE DRIVE

2009-10-30T09:50:00.000-07:00

Here is John on his 'used to be his' horse, Copper. John is good on horses, he takes advice, listens to it and has a natural way. He only got scared once, when Copper...who is really rather fast, kicked it into high after he asked her to lope for a bit. She can go from 0 to more than 60 in like a second...he didn't fall off though, just lost his hat. He looked a little concerned as he flew past me and Caballero, but he managed to whoa her and stayed quieter for the rest of the ride (including on the way home!) It was kinda funny. At one point I thought, uh oh...he's a goner, but he proved me wrong and stayed on top where he belonged. Nice John!

John, myself and Jon James got to go on a mini cattle round up this past Monday. We were helping bring in cow/calf pairrs from their summer grazing fields. There is a community of farmers that each bring 20 cow/calf pairs and in the fall they round them up and take them home for the winter. Bob, Amanda's signifcant other, invited us to go along. We had Cab (my horse), Copper (Johns previous horse) and one of the farmers lent Jon James an older mare to use. It was beautiful weather, the horses were pretty much well behaved and we did finally see cows in the last quarter of the ride (they were being pushed from the farside of the area by other riders, we just made a 'wall' so they couldn't turn the wrong way...they seemed to know what was expected and gave us no trouble.)

That is Jon James way over on the hill. He did his job, separated from us and kept his horse moving in the line. Well done!

My Caballero. Such a cutie, such a scaredy cat, but heck...there was A BUNCH of new stuff for him to experience.

John Paterson is in this picture, for the first hour and a half this is what we saw. Each other. Separated by scenic hills and valleys. But that is what we were supposed to do, slowly move forward, apparently in a line that spanned the whole field, we heard cows but didn't see any. I saw a herd of deer though. That was exciting :)

We WERE herding cows....just not too closely.

2009-10-30T09:44:00.000-07:00

THis was the general set up, we formed a line across the field, each hilltop we stopped at and made sure the cows being driven from the farside were moving forward and that none were trying to cut back. We were also supposed to make sure the little hovels of trees were not hiding any...but we didn't actually go into the bushes, just looked.

My beautiful horse. Trying to figure out what the heck we were doing. He likes to be told exactly what he is to do and how...then if he feels you know what you are doing, he'll do it...pretty much no matter what you ask. So great :)

That is Jon James and another guy that was a part of the round up. Jon is on the solid colored horse. She was about 20, and looked a lot like our old horse "Oola" but she did her job and even cantered now and again. Jon is such a natural, doesn't ride for years, then can just get on and look like he knows what he is doing. No hands way in the air, no horrible posture (really good posture actually), he is a natural.

Finally...we saw the cows. They were well behaved and only a couple tried coming our way, luckily a 'real' cowboy was there to push them back. By then my horse just wanted to get to the front of them and was in no frame of mind to run toward one of them

Copper and John done for the day

2009-10-30T09:37:00.000-07:00

Copper and John had a good day together, Copper used to be Johns but then was sold to the couple that now boards our horses, which is nice cause we still get to use her sometimes. And they are a great couple which really helped her become very people friendly.

Copper was good with the cows, didn't like to be too far from Caballero but went where she was told regardless. So apart from the gallop that had John a tad scared (terrified was the word he used). They were a great team.

She gets a little bored when left with nothing to do but who doesn't?

Copper is gorgeous, strong, comfortable, capable, inquisitive, friendly and determined. Great all round horse.

What a day...for Cab!

2009-10-30T09:33:00.000-07:00

He was drenched when we returned to the home base. He was not tired though...just soaking wet. All the new stuff, quads, bikes, cows, people, other horses, hills....they left him rather high. I met a man there who helped him calm down (just by providing him consistent boundaries and expectations...without talking to him or really even looking at him...) and he gave me some helpful tips for working with Caballero...especially on hills. Caballero only wanted to run down hills, steep hills, very scary. And my tension transferred to him easily and didn't help him calm down. So I took the advice and will remember to stop worrying about everything around me and do what needs to be done to get Cab and me on the same page regardless of environment. Great experience for both of us.

See he's calm now and almost all dry!

Camp...you can see some of the others involved and even cows in the distance. THey will be held in this area until the next day when they will be rounded up into the corrals, sorted and shipped back to their homes for the winter.

Driving Home

2009-10-30T09:27:00.000-07:00

Here are some of the cows we helped round up. Our job didn't take us very close to them really so this was to show you that there were cows!

WE had fun. We're good out together. Nice to get out and do something, not just a movie or dinner but fresh air, horses, each other, good weather, no responsibilities but to stay on and move forward.

I did it!!! THANKYOU FOR SUPPORTING ME AND PRAYING!!!!!

2009-10-13T22:28:00.000-07:00

Congratulations - you did it! You gave your heart, soul, sweat and tears for three days and created some remarkable memories along the way.
It all began with an emotional Opening Ceremony at COW Palace. We walked through the hills of Daly City and San Francisco and passed by the San Francisco Zoo on the way to the Great Highway, where we walked along the coast through Ocean Beach. Then we strolled along the breathtaking Lands End Trail, enjoying a beautiful sunny day. As we arrived at Crissy Field, with the Golden Gate Bridge providing a gorgeous backdrop, a troop of fabulous local boy scouts helped us set up tents to protect us from the wind. A full moon lit the sky as we settled in for the night.
Saturday's route traveled through Sausalito and Mill Valley. We were serenaded at cheering stations by guitar players and 80s rockers and at camp by a wonderful youth a capella group, "Til Dawn." The Coast Guard came out to cheer us on, as well as cheerleaders from New Balance and Sequoia High School. As we headed back to Crissy Field to camp, one couple went off to get married! They had gotten engaged on last year's event and wanted to make the Breast Cancer 3-Day part of their wedding celebration. They came back on Sunday to finish the walk.
The final day of our journey began with ladies handing out tissues because it was so cold and windy as we left camp. The Oakland Fire Department brought their antique truck and handed out candy. We walked through Golden Gate Park, by the de Young Museum and Japanese Tea Gardens. Then we traveled through Haight Ashbury and downtown. The fabulous San Jose bike police kept us safe all weekend long!
A celebratory Closing Ceremony on Marina Green was a beautiful (though windy!) end to a beautiful weekend. The money we raised will help Susan G. Komen for the Cure and the National Philanthropic Trust Breast Cancer Fund save lives.

And it begins....

2009-10-13T22:22:00.000-07:00

Trying to get everything to fit was quite the chore...and headache...we had to keep our individual packs to one bag each weighing no more then 35 pounds AND it had to include our sleeping bag, airmattress and pillow. We managed. Amazing. And now after completeing the 3 days we have a better idea of how to pack for any future walk. Nothing like doing it to teach ya!

The four of us on the morning of Day 1 at the Cow Palace (whatever that is...)

Laura was my partner for walking and getting down there. We made it! And we both met our goals!

We surely did take this to heart. We were passed by A LOT of people!! But we made it before getting shut down or picked up by sweeper vans. Let see: Day one we walked from 7:30 till 5:15. Day 2 we walked from 7:34 till 6:30? and Day 3 we walked from 7:10 until 3:15. Hmnnn...and no pitstop kept me longer then 10 minutes except lunch which was maybe 20-30 minutes each day. So our team was pretty slow, but we tried to stick together and make sure we had enough juice to make it the whole way! Successful!!

The damages...

2009-10-13T22:15:00.000-07:00

Duct tape was great. I asked for specific prayer on day 2 for my blisters...and it worked! I didn't have to add to, change or mess with my pre bandaged feet at all. So good!

But by the end of day 3...different story. I had just added on top of previous bandages, too tired and afraid that taking my shoes off would mean never getting them back on...so blisters did arrive and by the last part of the day, 3-4 miles or so...it was painful...I ended up kinda walking on my tippy toes as my heels were rubbing too much and I was too past it to care :) enough to change the set up. But they are getting all better now, so no harm no foul :)

Closing ceremonies continued.

2009-10-13T22:12:00.000-07:00

When the surviors came through the line to stand on the platform, everyone held up their running shoes. Mine were attached to my fanny pack, so I held the whole thing up. Pretty neat, very sad, but hopeful too.

The survior circle.

Closing Ceremonies

2009-10-13T22:10:00.000-07:00

We rested for about an hour at the end of the walk, then we formed a parade of all participants, walked 5 a'breast', for I think 1/2 mile down to the wharf where closing ceremonies were held. Pretty cool, shut down traffic, took up a lot of space. I walked in my crocs :)

Reasons why we walked, Katie and I carried flags at times, she more than I, and when I get pictures from her camera I will post them.

It was a HUGE event. You could tell that at the end when all were assembled. 1500 walkers, lots of crew and supporters. Truely fun and rewarding. Nothing like anything I had done before!!

Walking with you got me through!

2009-10-13T22:06:00.000-07:00

Done! We did it! We all met our goals!! 1/2 marathon, 60 miles, every day, smiling, having fun, walking despite the pain, remembering those whose blisters won't go away in a couple days because they have ongoing radiation treatments. We did what we came to do and it was awesome!

Mom and daughter, both loving, encouraging, stubborn, determined and highly capable women. Great to see you together :)

Well, Laura, mission impossible....now mission possible. Way to go :)

Sandy! The Woman of the Day :)

2009-10-13T22:02:00.000-07:00

Holy Cow! Sandy, Katie's mom (who by the way is a lovely 60 years of age!), walked the entire way, 60 miles and all around camp too, with crazy blisters, sore aching body and determination like I've not seen in a long time. She was bound and determined to make it and she sacrificed a lot! Tons of training, tons of fund raising (she was our top fundraiser). Going from NO walking to staying faithful to her training regime. And she did it.
Well done Sandy I am so amazed and proud of what you accomplished! I'll never forget the sight of you...walking "one foot in front of the other" "one step at a time" "one more step". You did it!!!

Sandy had a shawl that held on individual ribbons (attached by her own hand right up until the day we did the walk) the names of people who donated, people who lost the battle to cancer (breast or other) and survivors and others people requested she walk for. It was a highlight to so many people. Never to be forgotten. So many people asked about it and said they would always remember it. Nice!

One of the small hills we walked....San Francisco has a ridiculous amount of hills. We went up, then down...that was nice...until we realized that if you go down...you just have to go up again! But we did it. And I only stopped half way up one hill to breathe. The rest I did without having to stop. Pretty amazing!

2009-10-13T21:55:00.000-07:00

Best Friends Forever. Its true. I Love you Katie! Keep up the fight :)

Great signs and one of our lovely crew members...they were awesome, kept us safe in crosswalks, met us at pit stops, gave us what we needed when we needed it. And they are VOLUNTEERS!! Well done Crew :) You made it happen!

Cheer Stations...they matter!!!

2009-10-13T21:52:00.000-07:00

Seriously....when we would get to a cheering station or when vehicles would drive by and honk...it kept us going. Sometimes it was the only reason we did keep going Ithink... such a nice thing to be noticed and Thanked! Lots of cute signs and funny sayings, wish I could remember them all. My favorite was "Save Second Base" and Katie gave me a pin that said that. I was to cheap to buy one :( Thanks Katie!!

Katie was my reason for doing this walk, and her deliberate attitude of positiveness and energy was amazing and I loved it. Walking without her was hard the few times I did it. She kept on going, despite the pain, despite the brain injury and headaches, despite everything that could have had her stop...kinda like the energizer bunny :) Well done Katie!

The "other side of the bridge"

2009-10-13T21:48:00.000-07:00

We made it! What an insanely long bridge, I was beginning to think it would actually never end. But it did. And we both made it to pit stop 1 on day 2! yeah for us :) You can see below another of our faithful volunteer policemen...they wore pink shirts :) and carried little boom boxes on their bikes which gave us a welcome dose of music when they would go by. We were not allowed any ear phones so only a couple of people had ipods/iphones that played music outloud. What a hard time without music!! We loved when we would get a small listen in on anything with a beat!!!!

The other side....finally!

The Bridge Continued!

2009-10-13T21:44:00.000-07:00

`Laura is afraid of heights, so getting her this close to the edge wasn't the easiest, but she was brave and did it. I think she even looked over the edge?

See, there is our camp in the distance. Such a view from camp of the bridge...though I was dissapointed that it wasn't golden...or even very pretty! I say some gilding is in order!

I laid down to get the following picture, nice break though a lot of people were concerned with my welfare! Come on guys, its only the first hour of day 2...I'm fine!!

Day 2 "The bridge"

2009-10-13T21:41:00.000-07:00

Base Camp

2009-10-13T21:40:00.000-07:00

The first day we walked from "Cow Palace" through who knows where and ended up at base camp.
We started around 7:30 and ended at 5:15. Long day. But the sea of pink was fun to see in the distance, knowing we were almost there. It was right on the water, so beautiful...but also windy...and as the days progressed...VERY cold and windy. We slept in tents, 2 to a 6.5' x 6.5' tent. We had portapoties, and food tents. They had a medical tent and other odds and ends tents (stores/sales etc.) but they had to be taken down on day 2 due to the crazy wind. Our food tent stayed up but it was a chilly eating time!

Our tent was the third from the end of a row of 40-50 tents! And there were only portapotties at the far end. Our food tents and everything else were at the end of another row of 40-50- tents) LOTS of walking even in camp :( . It was a crazy long walk, specially in the middle of the night when I had to go to the bathroom.

At the end of day one walking, we got into camp, set up our tents inside (Laura had gotten help putting the actual tents up and getting our gear there) then we went for supper, I left for a shower and then...get this...I went to bed at 8:45 and was asleep by just after 9pm! I NEVER go to bed before 11 pm (and that is usually early for me) but I was tired, and I slept well. I didn't use an airmattress, the grass was very thick and soft and there was a hole in the ground right where my hip needed to be so as long as I slept on my side it was comfortable. And I brought earplugs with me as both Laura and I snore...so that way I didn't wake myself up and neither did she! Very nice. I also showered at night which is weird for me, but I couldn't face getting up even earlier to wait in line for the truck showers (which left no room for privacy I'll have you know...fine for those of you who don't care....but quite the feat for those of us who don't want to show every bit and piece that we call our own :) So many naked people...in such close quarters...but it was a great hot shower and it warmed me up enough to go to sleep in peace and wearing a hat to walk meant no worries over bed head the next morning.

My tent mate, and the reason any of these pictures exist! Yeah Laura, what fun we had :)

On day two, I was a little more socialable and after eating supper Katie and I hung around in the big tent to hear who had won the "rockstar" competition. It was a 3 way tie and they all got buttons. They all had great songs (some made up songs like the song sung to the tune of "we will rock you" with a chorus of "we will /walk the/ three day") Then they had a dance party with great music. They made the men get up onstage first and dance...then when the women were allowed up (Laura had returned by then from the medical tent where she had her foot iced) I said, Laura...give it 3 seconds. And low and behold in under 3 seconds I'd say...Katie was up front and center stage moving like she hadn't walked 10 or so hours previously :) Laura and I didn't have the guts to go up so we danced demurely in our seats...well I was actually on the ground trying to stretch so that I could make it to my tent when Katie returned! We didn't stay for the whole thing as the showers and my bed were calling...loudly! I was dreading another day of walking!!

One other cool thing at supper was that just after I had sat down and begun eating, freezing cold and trying not to shake my food off the fork...there was an announcement that the last walker was arriving and could we all please go line up at the flagpole to greet her. I actually thought they were joking...what were they thinking making me get up and WALK even one more step let alone across a dark uneven field. Quite a few others continued sitting and I figured I was exempt as I was still eating, but then the music started ("I got a feeling", by the black eyed peas) and I thought...if it were me, I'd be so thankful to see others standing up for me...so I excused myself and hobbled while trying to move a bit to the music and made my way out to the flagpole. (it wasn't so far away thank goodness!) and I was a part of the team, huge team, that welcomed her in! Pretty exciting...kinda how God and the angels rejoice when one of us returns home. At least that's how I saw it.

Some of the Scenery

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Our Favorite Cheer Team!

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Hookers for Hooters...what else could you want :) they were so entertaining, encouraging and funny. They would drive by with their stereo blaring and then wait at different stops to give us up close and personal encouragement!! Sometimes a wave or call to dance, and other times a smack on the backside with one of their 'props'.
Yikes!!

Pit Stop One!

2009-10-13T21:31:00.000-07:00

At Pit stop one, there were bathrooms (complete with serenading, hassling, dancing and all sorts of crazy nonsense acting, volunteer San Hose Police Men) This officer was great!! Just like Jim Carrey. He followed one lady right into the bathroom much to her suprise, after serenading another lady and then dancing with her when she came out...he also banged on all the doors demading the women hurry up and get a move on! Wonderful comic relief, but he was only there the first day :(

Long lines for the bathrooms, but you HAD to go to make sure you were drinking enough along the way.

Looking pretty good arne't we :) yeah....it WAS only pit stop one.

Sierra's 'cat' while we were away on holidays

2009-08-26T14:04:00.000-07:00

Just a cute little guy she found while 'pouting' on the beach...he cheered her up (as long as she didn't try to pick him up with her fingers as his hair had quite the sharpness to it. He became our 'horse' in our castle corral.

Camping Trip August 2009

2009-08-26T14:02:00.000-07:00

Well we missed out on any pictures from our actual "goertz" famil reunion...guess we were too busy having fun, playing baseball, eating, swimming, diving off high diving boards, sleeping, eating, singing, visiting etc. etc. It was good! But we caught some pics from our way home. We spent 2 nights in Salmon Arm, B.C. beside a lake. That was also good and relaxing and our Korean 'sons' were excellent travellers. No complaining, set up there own tent and took it down (very precisely) helped out with the kids and endured LONG drives in the truck with those same kids!! Well done guys :)

The Sandcastles. We started with just the kids building a small one each, then I got bored and joined in the fun...continue on for just what we were able to create with sand, an icecream pail, lake water and natures decorations.

The kids got bored of it long before I did...but being a tad OCD I kept them on task and working!! :) catipillars and food brought them back on board full swing in no time.

2009-08-26T13:57:00.000-07:00

Finally the men arrive to help finish the moat...filling it with water was quite the challenge.

Finished Product. Not a bad job if I do say so myself. It was a lot of fun for me to do...with everyone helping :)

MORAINE LAKE, BANFF

Stopped in here on our way home (it was a looooong way home...just ask the boys!!) What a beautiful spot.

Paul's Birthday...better late than never :)

2009-08-26T13:24:00.000-07:00

Birthday supper with family and even our old homestay student "Nelson" who we got to have stay with us for a couple of weeks at school years end. It was great having our old 'son' home again.

Presents and again kids around to offer LOTS of help unwrapping and sampling!

2009-08-26T13:21:00.000-07:00

friends/family attending our party time and of course some of the gifts!! Nice big rice cooker for those hungry times :)

2009-08-26T13:20:00.000-07:00

Finally the cake...tried for a soccer theme as he's a great player and lover of the game.

And last but not least we used his new cards to play some games...can't remember who won, but I know it WASN'T me :(

Happy Birthday Paul! We adore your smile and personality!!

Brian's Birthday Pictures

2009-08-26T13:00:00.000-07:00

These are very delayed pictures, but I am a procrastinator. Sorry. click on the collages to see the pictures up closer :)

John and Paul hung out on the couch watching the festivities and John helped decipher one of the Canadian 'jokes' in a birthday card.

2009-08-26T12:57:00.000-07:00

We had a dance party at the beginning of Brians Birthday party...we didn't make them dance (well Paul did humble himself and did a few moves) but Brian showed us a few of his Korean Martial Arts training moves.

Presents...snacks and gift cards and a bunch of kids to share them with :) Brian is a very good big brother to the kids and is patient and very kind with them.

Casendra stealing the wrapping paper and the show :)

Reading the various cards with Sierra's help.

2009-08-26T12:45:00.000-07:00

Brians Birthday cake. We tricked him into trying to blow out the sparklers...he knew what we were doing but good naturedly played along...such a great sport!

Cousin Solomon looking on happily with Ethan explaining something to Brian

Cousin Journey with the birthday boy.

Happy Birthday Brian! You are awesome :) !!

Welcome to the San Francisco Bay Area Breast Cancer 3-Day: San Francisco Bay Area Widget

2009-08-19T13:00:00.000-07:00

Trimming Weekend

2009-06-18T19:43:00.000-07:00

Wow, what a lot of work, education and wishing barefoot trimmer simply lived closer. But it was FUN!

We really did have an awesome time. Lane and Margie were awesome hosts and very knowledgeable. It was also neat to have a farrier taking the coures (a girl!) to give us both views (lane used to be a regular farrier too). Not something that will be perfected anytime soon, but we have lots of support and our horses are both VERY patient. But I can see the benefit and we will work together to get our horses feet healthy (which includes more than just a good trim).

Lane Moore and John studying and working on Srgt's feet together. How these people do this, and not become crippled is beyond me.

My beautiful boy...and my hansome husband too :)

Front foot started, far one still waiting on us. Working on Cadaver feet was much easier...wish I had more to practice on!

From One "bum" to another :)

2009-06-18T19:38:00.000-07:00

Such funny poses, I had to get pictures. And of course you can see my wonderful horse waiting patiently in the background.

Another bum picture, but you can also see Margie Moore in the background. She kept us VERY well fed and housed...and helped make things 'clear' when all that Lane knew was a bit much to take in :0)

More "Action" shots :)

2009-06-18T19:34:00.000-07:00

measuring angles...Srgt's were WAY off! He had been trimmed before so that there pretty much was no angle at all to his hooves...honesstly almost straight across at the coronet band.

Seeing how deep one could dig to get the heels down!

Nice area to work in, There were about 6 of us I think...including one female farrier! Wish she lived closer! And a 14 year old guy...he did really well.

Finished Products

2009-06-18T19:30:00.000-07:00

John and Lane did such a great job on Srgts feet, (in the first 2 pictures, it shows the hoof that they did, and the one hind left before it was done...he had been trimmed by a farier just 2 weeks before...yikes!

These last 2 are of Cabs front feet. I did the back ones, but forgot to get pictures :(

It will take some time, especially for Srgt., to get his feet really good. But already in the field I can see a difference. Less pain, more freedom to move! Very cool.

Relaxing at Night--beautiful views!

2009-06-18T19:27:00.000-07:00

Happy 8th Birthday Sierra. Some pieces of your year leading up to this day...enjoy!

2009-05-31T11:27:00.000-07:00

Dear Sierra,

Wow, you are 8 years old.
You are a smart, talented, sweet, kind, loving, curious and beautiful young lady.
I am so proud that you are my daughter.
Sometimes I forget to take the time to look at you, to see you, to acknowledge you and how wonderful you are. How much of a blessing you are in my life.
An actual GIFT from God…to me and to dad. And of course to many others too.
I love who you are and I am so enjoying being your mom.

This year I want to commit to praying for you every day. Specifically for you, not just as part of a night time prayer. I am going to pray for your spirit, for your mind and for your body. I will be praying for you as you continue to make friends and figure out how to live peacefully with them. I am going to pray that you are able to guard your heart and yet to be free enough to express it truthfully. I am going to pray that as you continue to grow and learn, that you remember that God is your father, your friend and your King. I will pray that you remember him every day, remember that He is with you at all times, when you are being good, when you are being naughty, when you are happy and when you are scared, sad or feeling lonely. I pray that you will know God and learn to see yourself as he sees you. I will pray that you learn to not be afraid to fail. To not be afraid to make mistakes…because you are human and until we get to heaven, all of us will make mistakes, but we will be forgiven for them and we will be loved through them and best of all…we will actually learn from them and be used by God through them. I will pray that you will not be afraid to be yourself or to do what God wants you to do even when it is different than your friends and they perhaps tease you.

I love who YOU are, and I don’t ever want you to think of being anyone different.

God made you with a purpose and a plan and you have brought hope to many of us.
Your family loves you and I love you and that is the way it IS!! Be brave, try new things, let people know what you are feeling and, no matter what, be truthful, it sets you free!

Sierra, you are my 1st baby, my first daughter and my first 8 year old.
I love you and I am proud of you.

I hope and pray that this year will be awesome for you.
Enjoy your time as an 8 year old. Have fun, be a kid, make mistakes and please
never hesitate to ask me for a hug or cuddle when I get too busy to see that you need or want one.

Tell people your dreams, your wishes, your hopes…tell me…I WILL listen. And I will do everything I can to make them happen.

HAPPY 8th BIRTHDAY!!

I love you Sierra,

Mom

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SIERRA'S FIRST RIDING LESSON! MAY 29, 2009

2009-05-29T21:53:00.000-07:00

One of our presents to Sierra this year, for her birthday, was riding lessons. REAL ones, not the ones I give her (I got her started, now with our two personalities, it's safer for all of us if she goes to someone else :) Her party is on Sunday, but she first got to go on a date with John to a kids ballet and received her first rose from him. He has stolen that from all other guys that might ever enter her life ;)
Then on her actual birth DAY (May 28) she went with me and Ocean to Olds for supper, a new outfit (including shoes and earrings) and then dessert at DQ. Finally today, I told her that she would be going out in the evening for a surprise. I wrote it in hand writing--they are learning that in school now--for her to figure out and when she did, she was VERY excited.

The riding lessons are 2 hours long. They have 1/2 an hour to catch, groom, saddle and bridle (with a little help) their horses. Then they ride for an hour and 15 or so and then they have to untack, groom and put their horses back out to pasture. It is a great learning experience...not just the fun stuff ;) (they also take turns picking up the arena poop and are responsible if their own horse poops out on the road or around the barn!) Here in these pictures, she is with Jamie, her instructor, bridling--Jamie was impressed that Sierra wasn't afriad to put her finger in the horses mouth to help him open it for the bit--and getting a hand up onto her steed "BUD".

Sierra had a great lesson and will be continuing full time lessons (1x per week hopefully) starting in the summer. Right now all the classes are full, but due to some other kids cancelling she got to have an early 'try out'.

UP AT LAST! Sierra and Bud.

2009-05-29T21:43:00.000-07:00

She wasn't too impressed with his looks at first, but by the end of this lesson...she was...well you'll see ;)

AND THEY'RE OFF!

2009-05-29T21:41:00.000-07:00

warm up exercises...oh the memories of riding lessons (both taking and giving)

lots of riders!

Nah....she's not estatic to be up there :)

TIP TIME

2009-05-29T21:39:00.000-07:00

Jamie is Sierra's riding instructor. She is great and was so positive with the kids (and knew their names as well as the horses) I really like her, so does Sierra. We are lucky to have her so close. (she also had a baby not long ago...never would you be able to tell!!)

Sierra, you look great!

TRAFFIC JAM!

2009-05-29T21:36:00.000-07:00

This girl is only 5!! She did awesome. Sierra's horse liked hanging with this little girls horse.

Traffic jams did happen, there were 9 kids riding and 3 teachers/helpers (and another on the ground) No accidents though which must have been an answer to someone's prayer.

John, Ethan, Casendra and Grandma Charlotte were present to see Sierra ride. Everyone had a good time I'd say, even little Casendra. She was happiest when released from her stroller to wander, pick up straw and climb on structures that had perfect strangers asking us if she was 'okay to climb on that' :)

Hard work too, not all play!!

2009-05-29T21:33:00.000-07:00

I got video of her working hard with her horse. He tried to cheat on this pole and cut to the inside, but Sierra caught him and managed to persist long enough to get him on the right side of it. Way to go Sierra!!

TROTTING!!

2009-05-29T21:31:00.000-07:00

Sierra got to trot on her first lesson. She loved her horses trot and wanted to go on and on (and this is after a full day's field trip at school which exhausted her...but not so much that horses couldn't get her geared up again!)

In Love and VERY happy

2009-05-29T21:29:00.000-07:00

Sierra informed me she loved "Bud", he won her over and she felt really good about her riding lesson. It was so satisfying and special to see how well she did and to see how happy she was in the riding environment.
It really boosted her confidence.
HAPPY BIRTHDAY SIERRA! Summer will bring you into regular riding lessons. We are ALL excited for you!!!

Our kids and their hiding place

2009-05-01T20:11:00.000-07:00

This shelf is in front of a strange alcove in our living room wall. The kids love hiding in there, and strangely they can all fit. But once their all in there together, it can be a bit of a chore getting out.

My Birthday cake...made by Amy

2009-05-01T20:02:00.000-07:00

My 33 birthday happened this year. I first thought I was turning 34, but had somehow skipped a year.
I like the number 33 so this should be a great year :).
Anyhow, Johns mom came down and cooked a great meal and Amy made my cake, a butterfly, as she sometimes sees my joureny thus far. Then I got to go to the mountains for a get-a-way, on which my brother Jon joined me.
He was very gracious even when I didn't join him on hikes or any outings of the room.
I told him, my goal is to stay in this room the entire time and do nothing (well I had brought finance stuff with me, books, crosswords, and the 2nd season of lost :) And that is what I did.
I had also brought most of my own food to eat, but mom and dad did treat me to a meal in my room..that was fun.

But the one time I left my room was to put my tray from lunch out and lo and behold I let the door close behind me and was locked out. I had to go to the office to get let back in. OH well, I knew I should have stayed in!!

My birthday was great, I haven't yet reached the age where I dread getting older, but I'm sure it'll come. Helps having a husband 10 years my senior :) though...perpetually young it makes me !!

Casendra and her food

2009-05-01T19:51:00.000-07:00

Look how cute I am

Don't touch my food though or you'll get it! "the look"

Ethan showing her his cracker

Ethan trying to eat his cracker...not a good idea to not share after you've let her see something that can be eaten. She is very verbal and will cross anything to get to you.

My hansome, weirdo, crazy and very similar boys :)

2009-05-01T19:48:00.000-07:00

Casendra our doll

2009-05-01T19:46:00.000-07:00

Wow, this first picture is so funny, she seriously looks like a doll awestruck by the glory of God maybe?? :)

another funny face, when she is not so sure what you are saying makes any sense at all.

Little frown/pout.

She does enjoy clapping and often Ethan can entertain her well enough to earn some claps for himself.

The puppies :) and their midwives :)

2009-05-01T19:42:00.000-07:00

WE got to see some of the pups being born. The mom did great, as did Amanda and Ocean who kept her calm and peaceful and also kept track of who was born when...mind you they are all black, so after the first few no one knew which was the first born any longer :)

Caballero and Sierra...before she got kicked :)

2009-05-01T19:40:00.000-07:00