Maestro

We just have way too much fun out here! Dayle, our new neighbor, has many talents! Two talents that we especially enjoy are his knowledge of the bible, and his ability to play the fiddle. He shares his talents by teaching me to play the fiddle and doing a weekly bible study with us. All we do in return is share supper with him. I think we have the better part of the bargain!

Kissing Donkey and Fixin Waters

I know...a kissing donkey is just wrong! I guess we have to find entertainment any way we can! The other picture is of Teryn fixing the water. When we went riding, he found a tank emptied because of a bad float.

Outlook

One of the ranches that we lease has an old truck sitting on a ledge overlooking a canyon. Every time we go, it makes me laugh! I tried to get a picture, but nothing would do the scene justice. Hopefully, this picture will give you an idea about the nostalgia of the scene!

Poor, Tired, Mi Hijo

Nuff Said!

Clowning Around on Mother's Day

Everyone had fun. The boys - and Teryn were standing on their horses. The pig and donkey followed us everywhere! They entertained us, and aggravated each other the entire day!

Mother's Day Weekend

We had a great Mother's Day weekend! It started late Thursday night, when Clay and Chad arrived at the ranch! On Friday night Tricia, Joe, and kids came out and we caught up on all occasions from the last 6 months: Christmas, Valentines, Easter, Clay's Birthday, and Mother's Day. On Saturday we played with horses most of the day. We were amazed at all that Clay has learned since he's been at Clint's. He was able to give Dad quiet a few pointers! Saturday night we went to Tate's wedding party and saw most of our favorite people from around the area! On Sunday we played with horses again. I'll put up more pictures from our rides on the next post!

Skunk Story

I wish I had a picture of this one, but a words will have to suffice!
We keep several cats down at the barns to keep the mice and rats away. Inside one barn is a bathroom, and we keep the doors open so the cats can come and go and do their jobs. Well the other day, Dale was 'sitting on the pot' when he heard a noise in the cabinet opposite him. When he opened the door to take a look, he found himself nose to nose with a polecat! The skunk prompty turned around and did what they do when they're scared! There wasn't much Dale could do with his britches around his ankles. Luckily his hat got the brunt of it! If that's not funny enough, there's more. The next day Dale and Teryn put out the live trap to catch the skunk, and as Teryn was trying to get the skunk out of the trap, Dale hollered, and the skunk got scared and sprayed Teryn too! It'll be a while before either of them live that one down!

A Boy, a Horse, and a Dog

Horse Training 101

Cody is 2 years old now, and we've been getting him ready to be a cowpony! In these pictures you can see: The parade to the round pen. Ty preparing Cody to have a passenger. Ty sitting on Cody. Cody and Ty had a great training session, and we're excited about the progress they will be making this summer!

MiHijo Relaxing

I've been sitting in the back yard enjoying the day now that it's warmed up a bit. Usually when I'm out there, MiHijo comes up, so I let him into the yard with me. He's so funny! He likes to get as close to me as he can, then he puts his head in my lap, and just relaxes. It is so cute. If you've never been around donkeys, I am sure they are part dog, horse, and teddy bear!

Pine Tree Crosses

Story of the Pine Tree Cross
When we were outside at Mawmaw and Pawpaw's house, they started talking about the little crosses at the tops of the pine trees surrounding their house. Once they pointed them out, I begain looking, and I saw hundreds of little crosses scattered among the trees. I was very curious to learn about the little crosses, so when we got home I started searching. I found out that Pine Trees start their new growth in the weeks before Easter - in the form of yellow shoots. As the days get closer to Easter Sunday, the tallest shoot branches off to form a cross. By the time Easter Sunday comes around, most Pine trees have small yellow crosses on all of the tallest shoots. What an amazing Easter gift to look at the crosses at the tops of the Pines, pointing to heaven, reminding everyone of the amazing sacrifice of Jesus Christ! The picture shows one that I got for a keepsake.

If you would like to see a picture you can click on the following webaddress.
http://www.clfbest.org/Pine%20Tree%20Crosses.html

The Prodigy

Ryanna is only 4 months old, and she can already show us how much she loves her Mimi! ;^)

Other Pictures From Our Trip

Over the River and Through the Woods

Pictures from Grandma (and Grandpa and Mawmaw and Pawpaw's)house. They are: 2 Men and a Baby. 2 Bell(e)s. 4 Generations of Belle's and (Pa)Tricia's. 5/8th's of Us. Heaven!

Ryanna

Ryanna is changing so fast!!! In the picture of me holding her, she is holding my hair in her fist. She doesn't know it yet, but she holds a lot more than that in her tiny hand. Namely my heart!!

Ty and Cody

I took some pictures today when we were playing with Cody in the round pen,and taking a short walk. Ty said that he wants his horse to be: calm, obedient, smart, strong, and brave. Judging from what Cody did today, I think Ty got what he wanted! I thought Ty was really cute, he went and put on his medicine bag just before we wwnt to work with Cody!

Cody - Ty's Mustang

We are very excited to finally find a horse especially for Ty. Cody, his new little Mustang, will be 2 in April. A Parelli trainer named Rico has been working with Cody for the past 1 1/2, and Cody is very friendly and has great manners! Rico and his wife Ann, are Native Americans, and they had a little ceremony for Ty. It was a beautiful day and a fun afternoon! In the pictures you can see: Rico singing an original song about Mustangs, and Ann doing a purification ceremony and giving Ty a Medicine Bag. Rico also gave a demonstration of some of the Parelli games he's been using to train Cody. The last picture is of Ty petting his new companion before the trip home.

The Boys

We took a quick trip to see the boys this weekend! They had to work during the day, so we decided to go on a day trip to the State Fair! The trip was great - and the boys are doing awesome!

Mujeres del Tamales

That means Tamale Women! Today that's what we were! Michelle and her two little girls, and Emma and I made tamales. Some were meat tamales, others were dessert tamales made with raisins and peanuts! There can't be any better way to learn Spanish than to work (or cook)together! Emma es la mejor Professora de Espanole y Cocinar en todo la mundo! (That's supposed to mean Emma is the best teacher of Spanish and Cooking in the entire world - but I'm pretty sure it's not entirely right!) Anyway - it was fun and the tamales are great!

Indulge Me Please!

Donkeys can live to be 40 years old. Since MiHijo is the last equine I will ever need, I am being thorough in his upbringing! I decided that when I'm 90, I may not feel like bending over to pick things up, so I taught MiHijo to "give it to me please!" I am asking for the can in the first picture. He is handing it to me in the 2nd! The 3rd picture doesn't need explanation - the gloat says it all!!

Yeah Clay!!!!!

I have a new hero! It's Clint Haverty - Clay's boss! He encouraged Clay to go back to college, and even offered to let him go during the day without penalty to wages! Clay took him up on the offer, and is now enrolled as a full time student, taking Business classes at Texas Women's University!! I've been giving Clay all sorts of grief about going to a womens college! He says the 82% female poplulation has nothing to do with his decision - but I'm not buying it! What do you think?

Bacon - Not

Teryn and Ty have been trapping coyotes with snares. They've caught 12 coyotes in 4 weeks. Sometimes they catch javelinas in the snares, and the other day they caught this big hog. Don't worry - it looks like Bacon - but it's not! Bacon is still hanging out at the house with us!