Horse fun in Hailey . . .

A few pictures to enjoy before I nod off to sleep after an enjoyable weekend spent in the Wood River Valley watching the Lucky 13 Hunter/Jumper Horse Show with Katy and her barn friends!  I hope to have video available shortly.  

Mysti was unable to make the trip so Katy rode Fiddler, a great lesson pony owned by Katy's trainer. 

Making one of the jumps!  Since this was a beginners class, Gabrielle, Katy's trainer, was able to be in the arena to shout out instructions.  

First and second ribbons went to our barn.  Libby, with Rose, took first.  Katy, with Fiddler, took second.   Lily had a rough ride.  Fiddler refused a few jumps and then Lily went off course, which is to say, she didn't memorize it correctly and jumped the cross rails out of order.  It was Katy, Lily and even Fiddler's first show, so really, it went better than expected!  In the interest of full disclosure, I should mention that our three ladies were the only 3 in this particular class.  Not saying that to diminish the placing--it wasn't their fault no one else entered!!  They really learned a lot and had a great time.  

The Carriage Step Stable ladies.  Gabrielle is the owner/trainer of the stable.  They took home 5 ribbons this weekend!  Good job!!!  

Katy with her second and sixth place ribbons!  (Just so you know, it was sixth out of seven--she was happy to not be last.)  Again, they learned so much this weekend.  This was a starter show for Katy.  It was good for her to see what a happens outside of her barn in Boise.  After Katy's class, she was able to watch the more experienced girls/women compete the rest of the day (8 hours of competition!) Lots to work on before spring, and she is more motivated than ever.  We are looking forward to making sure Mysti and Katy are up to speed by the next show season!  

More random summer photos . . .

Emma and I enjoying an hour on the pond at Julia Davis Park.   We drive by this body of water on a near daily basis!  Emma has been begging me to take her on the paddle boats for a few years now, especially since they started renting out these awesome "swans."  Having run out of reasons not to go, I finally took her one morning in July.  We had a lot of fun!  Geese chased our boat looking for food. We saw a turtle on a log and then were surprised by a rather large Koi swimming near us! (Fairly certain the Koi was a regret-dump--definitely not native to the area!)  Eric happened to be driving by and stopped to see us.  He was able to snap a few photos and even managed to jump on board for a quick float!  So glad Emma was persistent . . .

Emma's favorite summer item--the gigantic beach ball!!  This one met an untimely end just after this picture was taken, with many tears shed over its demise. (Eric spiked it a bit too hard and it landed on the pointy top of one of our 4th of July lawn flags)  It took several weeks to locate another ball and then she would not let it out of the house.  

One of the fun things that Katy is able to do now that she is 12 is participate in the girls program at church.  The program is called Young Womens and they meet every Wednesday night and Sunday.  The Wednesday night meetings are often a fun activity (they went water skiing!), a service-type project (also fun!) or a lesson in how to do "something."  This particular night, it was an evening with a young lady who taught the girls how to apply make-up!  You may not have noticed, but I wear as little as possible, so Katy was thrilled to be able to watch an "expert" teach her the basics.  When all was said and done, each girl was able to try out a "new" look.  I wish I were able to take a better picture.  Her eye liner looked amazing.  Waaaay to old for her, but so fun to try it out . . . 

This was taken two nights before school started.  It was such a beautiful night--cool and clear--we let the girls stay up late and watch the stars.  Eric and I sat on the back porch under the old twinkling lights and just enjoyed the moment.  The rabbit even joined us for awhile.  He hopped onto the blanket with Katy & Emma and stuck around long enough for them to pet him!    

Katy in Kona, Hawaii, at a horse camp she attended thanks to Paul and MaryBeth!  I need to let Katy write a note about her experience.  I know she had a fabulous time!   

What Emma does when we are not looking . . .

She made this on Photo Booth, entitled it "Eyes rolling at you," and mailed it to us!