[PayNoAttentionManBehindCurtain]

Good job selling the old one. I need to get my trailer re-painted, every winter for the last few it's been on the winter time agenda but hasn't made it to the top yet:). Charlie re-did his a few years ago. He did what it sounds like you have to do, but it came out well.

Wow...Miss Ellie wasn't at the trainers long was she? Seems like you just took her. I've always been very impressed how gutsy your are:)...riding her for the first time at a big group ride....Does your trainer take them out on trails and in groups? Looking forward to your pictures.

Here's some pictures of our picnic yesterday, we had a very nice non-stressful day laying around under the trees, playing, and taking a walk to the stream, that is just about (already) dried up.

JP and Tucker really enjoyed the playhouse, JP ran and hid in it from "monsters":), and Tucker would go in, shut the door, and sit on a little stool I put in there. We could see him thru the side. He'd sit there then come back and sling the door or window open and hang out and jabber at us then go back and sit on the stool...scary to think he who he may be impersonating:).

They all took turns on the roller coaster. Blake's cousin is spending the week with him, so she was here too.

We threw frisbees, and the kids had a game of baseball.

The we cooked hot dogs, caught toads:), and ate ice cream cones.

And just generally laid under the trees and visited.

The kids ended the day playing in the hose, and making a big mud puddle, which I didn't get a picture of.

Becky

[MissTargets]

Good Morning.

Nice pictures Becky, and it is not raining! It is suppose to rain here for the next couple of days. We sure do need it. Alison wants to go on a trail ride, but it sure looks threatening. My friends were in OK for the Appaloosa Nationals and said it rained every day. She won a fifth in non-pro yearling geldings and an 8th in non-pro most colorful at halter.

[AnAmericanMother]

Long as you don't play with the ice cream, and eat the toad!

Cute pics! I remember when mine were that little!

[HairOfTheDog]

Hey the play house is pretty cool :~)

[FrogInABlender]

Wow, that’s a really cool playhouse! I would’ve loved that as a kid. The catching toads and eating ice cream would’ve been right up my ally too. There wasn’t a toad alive that was safe from me if I ever saw him. I’d pick them up and wag them around all day, and the same went for box turtles and green snakes, but I always put them back when I was done playing with them. You’re a great Grandma to do all that stuff with them!

[FrogInABlender]

Oh, and about Ellie, she was there for a month. It didn’t seem like that long to me either, but apparently she did really well. He said she pulled the wagon like she’d done it her whole life and apparently there was no quit in her when it came to hills and creeks and stuff like that. I really like the way he trains. He rides them alone and with groups and through all different kinds of terrain. When you get them back you can be assured that they’ve pretty much seen and done it all, in addition to having their gait pretty well set too. The only thing I don’t really like about him is that he really doesn’t want his horses to have any kind of personality at all. He doesn’t abuse them, but he definitely doesn’t pet them either. He wants them to do WHAT they’re told, WHEN they’re told and that’s all. And that’s a good thing I guess, because they’re very well behaved when I get them back, but they’re a little withdrawn and it takes a me a while to get the “life” back in their eyes, if you know what I mean. I’m sure that I treat my horses too much like pets, but I want them to look at me when I talk to them and to come to me when I walk out in the pasture and not just be like an automaton that I ride. If I wanted that I’d ride a motorcycle.