The Junk Drawer - September 2023.

 I bought a new vacuum!  Sidney had to help me test drive it, since she does all my vacuuming.  I find this funny since Kevin used to do all the vacuuming and picked out our other vacuum.  Our old one is a rainbow vacuum, which kind of makes me giggle.  It is huge and bulky and I use it about once a year.  He did not mind lugging it around the house, but it is a bit big for us.  I will say, the rainbow vacuum is the cleanest, freshest vacuum I have ever had, so it was going to be hard to beat.  We settled on a Miele.  Sidney loves it!  She has pulled it out several times, even when she was not scheduled to clean, just to mess with it.  

I love this face, as it reminds me 100% of Kevin.

She even vacuumed of the cornices.  They really did need it!

You gotta love this little guy that hitched a ride to the ranch on my windshield.

Me showing off my headstand skills.  Famous party trick!

I had a work trick to Washington DC.  My co-worker took this great picture of the Washington Monument as we drove by in our Uber.  It was such a reminiscent trip, as the last time we went was to visit AshLee DC or Bust.

I think I have time for a few more bouquets from my garden before it gets too cold.

I got this AMAZING sunrise on my morning walk.  Just beautiful!

Axis Dance Convention 2023.

Kendall attended a local dance convention.  She really enjoys these.  It was her second one of the season.  Of course, she had to take a pre-conference bathroom selfie.

I do not think Nike will be featuring these socks in their next advertisement.  However, this is the reality of what happens after hours of turnning on a concrete floor.

It was super exciting, in that she earned a scholarship in one of the classes.  These scholarships get her discounted tuition for the following year, which is always awesome.

The best part of it, is that she rewarded herself with a delicious brownie dessert after a hard days work!

Equine Kindergarten.

 Levi has been doing fantastic and looking great.

Sidney has been saddling him up and doing some gentle rides in the round pen with him.  He does not seem bothered by any of it.

I am including a picture and a short video just as a reminder of the goofy baby that he is.  He is doing so great that it is easy to forget he is still young and silly.  Yep this is him rolling around.  

I love this video.  The part I love the most is that I can literally put myself in Pigeon's brain as he watches Levi.  I believe he must be shaking his head and rolling his eyes at his little brother.  

A few weeks ago, Pam asked me if I was interested in joining her for a clinic in Idaho City.  I jumped on the opportunity to take Levi on a short trip and learn some things in the process.  Sid decided to join us for the day.  It turned out to be a gorgeous day as we trekked up to Cowboy Campground.  Sabrina owns this place, and it did not disappoint.  I will definitely be returning.

Levi and I entered the round pen for our session.  It was a bit nerve wracking, as I am green as it gets, and so is Levi frankly.  We did it.  I can honestly say some of the lesson was confusing and I am not sure I agree with everything that was taught, but I did certainly learn a few things that will ultimately be beneficial for both Levi and I.

After the clinic, Sidney took Levi on a walk around the property.  She tried to coax him into the trough.  He was not having it.  Maybe next time...

Inked.

Kendall has been wanting to get a memorial tattoo for quite some time.  She finally asked if it would be alright.  She wanted to get it this fall to mark the five year mark from Kevin's passing.  She found a really great tattoo artist that worked with her on a design.  The artist asked that I be there for the entire experience.  I was honored to do this with Kendall, as it was very special and meaningful for her.

She was a bit nervous about whether the process would hurt, but found that it was not too bad.

Here it is immediately afterwards.  It has already healed up and looks amazing.  The writing in the tattoo is actually Kevin's writing.  She got it from a card he had given her once.  The daisies were our wedding flower and the lavender represents serenity and peace.  Kendall and her artist decided to add the butterfly, acting as a "kiss from dad".  It turned out beautiful!

Another Driver in the House!

Sidney was eligible to take her driving tests recently.  She got her car all cleaned up for the skills portion.  She wanted her instructor to be 'very comfortable'.  

I drove her to the meeting spot for the skills portion.  It was so weird watching her drive away!  She passed with flying colors.

Next, we made a trip to the DMV to take the written test.  She was not playing around with this one.  She spent the weekend truly studying.  She went back to take the test and reappeared 10 minutes later informing me that she had failed.  The practical joker had not actually failed.  She had nailed it!  All her studying paid off.

Yep, we now have three licensed drivers in the Strong household.  Weird!!!  What will I do with all this time I just got back?

'Ride the Brand'.

Mustangs have a very specific, very meaningful brand.  To learn more about it visit The Mustang Heritage Foundation.  For some crazy reason, Levi's brand never came through.  We have been trying to coordinate a time to get out to the BLM to have it re-done.  They only have the liquid nitrogen out there on certain occasions.  Sidney and I were so excited to see what it might look like that we sat down and used the key above to figure out what it would be.

The call came from the BLM to bring Levi in.  The unfortunate thing is that it was the same day that Sidney, Noel and Sabrina were all out of town.  Yikes.  It would need to be just Levi and I.  I was a bit nervous to load him up and take him over there, then take him back to the ranch after the experience and unload him.  I convinced my mom to join me for moral support.

Levi loaded like a champ.  Sidney had asked me to tie him off on the outside of the trailer, just in case he freaked out, I would have a way to let him loose without jumping in the trailer to do so.

When we got to the BLM, I managed to walk him through the corrals and back to the branding area.  He was on high alert, as there were some new horses in the corrals and everything was new, really.  Not to mention, I was probably nervous too.  Once we got to the back of the corrals, Logan came out to meet us.  He took Levi from there.

They loaded Levi into the squeeze shoot, which is what they use to keep the horses stable while freeze branding them.  It was a quick and easy process.  Levi did great. 

Logan and Zach were fantastic and tried to make it a non-traumatic experience.  They let Levi loose to run around the round pen afterwards.  They had me back up to the loading chute.  However, after spending some time with Levi, they were impressed and decided to lead him down the chute into the trailer.  I was waiting by the chute like an anxious parent picking their kid up from school.

I got Levi home and back into his corral in no time.  He was such a good boy!!!

All Things Pigeon.

Sidney has had a heck of a time with saddles.  She has been spending a lot of time and money on finding a good fit.  Not a perfect fit, but a good fit.  FINALLY after this last go around, I decided to kick in and take a visit to Rick Bean.  He does saddle fitting and had been recommended to us.  To tell you the truth, I was a little worried about going to him.  I had made a deal with Sidney that she needed to buy all of her own tack, as I was taking care of the board, etc.   I was worried that Rick would recommend a saddle completely out of Sidney's financial reach.  For those that do not know, saddles start at several hundred dollars and can go up to five figures.  

Noel called Rick and got us a Saturday morning fitting.  We drove up there and were pleasantly surprised.  Rick was the most humble, most knowledgeable man.  Most of all, he took an inventory of what we had and was able to work with one of Sidney's existing saddles and pads.  In fact, when all was said and done, I asked him what she should be saving for.  He told us that the saddle she had is a good quality one that he sells brand new and this set up she has should serve her for many years.  Of course, if Pigeon's body changes, it may need some tweaks, but she had a solid set up.  His knowledge and modifications were worth every penny!

Sidney and Jayde wanted to take their horses to a fall classic jump show to get ready for this winter.  The week before the show, I volunteered to go out to the ranch and set up jumps for them.  We spent a few hours at the ranch with them mostly knocking the jumps down and me picking them up.  The next day it felt like I had done a mean squat workout.  They truly looked like a train wreck, with both riders and both horse out of jump shape. 

The following weekend they headed to the show.  Sidney told me that all the stars were aligned and the two pairs were on fire.  I did not get many pictures.  She said the show arena was amazing, a lot like you would see on television with the giant flowers, rocks and other large distracting features.  I did get this one video of Sidney and Pigeon in the warm up arena.  Yep, they look good.

Turns out they did amazing, and both her and Jayde walked away with a number of ribbons.  They were super encouraged and excited for the winter series to begin.

While Sidney and Jayde were off having fun, my dad and I decided to put a wind break in Pigeon's shelter.  I have to laugh, because I am not sure Pigeon 'needs' this.  It is more about what we think he might want.  It turned out pretty nice, and he has really taken a liking to it.

The following weekend, Sidney and Jayde took Pigeon and Kaycee out to Parma for a flag clinic.  They had a blast.  Fell off their horses a few times and generally acted like a couple of goofy teenagers, while the other ladies took themselves very seriously.  These ladies are living their best lives!

Sidney has been getting on Levi a bit more and casually riding him in the arena.  He has been a sweet and gentle boy so far.  He did get a bit excited one night and did a bit of crow hopping (this is what Noel tells me), but Sidney managed to ride it out.  

This girl has a lot of patience (or perhaps it is just relative, because I have none).  She sat with the boys one night and tried to get them interested in the large ball.

Levi seemed way more curious than Pigeon.  Pigeon really only wanted to engage if treats were involved.