Back to School 2024.

This year was really strange.  Kendall did her own back to school shopping.  It makes me giggle how excited she gets for school supplies.  The best part of her haul was her new planner and fancy highlighters.  Sidney asked me to tag along on her trip (probably for the credit card, if we are being honest), but I will take it.

I think this could be the beginning of a very emotional year.  Kendall pulled up this gem of a picture of her first day of kindergarten.  To see the full post, look here:  the-first-day-of-kindergarten

It was only natural that we take a picture in front of the same door.  Look at how much she has grown.  It has gone by in a flash!  I am not sure why, but seeing her in front of the same door brought a lump to my throat.  Life has thrown us many curveballs in the span from one picture to the next, but we have stayed grounded and steady.  Yep, I can tell that this may be the year of choking back tears.

Fair Time.

Sidney helped Noel with the Mule show this year at the fair.  Emma celebrated her 2nd birthday at the fair.  My mom made her some adorable cookies to celebrate (pictured in another post).  Here she is admiring one of them before she takes a big bite out of it.

Hannah also helped out this year.  The girls set up a tent beside the living quarters and camped out for the weekend.

The mule show was full of long days and fun nights.  

In the evenings, some of Sidney's friend came out to join the festivities.

It was a great time, and Sid was dog tired by the end of the weekend!

Horse Butts and Therapy.

I do not know what it is about horse butts, they are just so stinking cute all lined up at the trailer.  Sidney took baby Levi to one of her drill practices this month.  He does not appear so 'baby' as he is getting so tall and starting to fill out.

He was a very good boy!

One evening she rode him in the back round pen and then walked him through the trail course.  He did amazing.  He has won the hearts of the ranch ladies.  I frequently have people commenting about his sweetness.  It probably helps that he is up front by the front round pen and tie rack, so people get to know him when they are with their horses.  

I have been trying to faithfully exercise him most days.  Then we do some thinking exercises.  This seems to be making him much more calm and willing to navigate new things.  

I am not sure when/where it happened, but this horse has stolen my heart.

Anna, Sabina's friend, made a trip over from Germany again this year.  She finished her horse physiotherapy degree and was offering sessions at the ranch.  Levi has never had bodywork done on him.  He has been growing so incredibly fast and is super stiff, so I asked Anna what she thought about working with him.  She was willing to give it a try.  Levi was an amazing patient.  We were able to get in two session while Anna was here.  I could see an immediate difference in his movements.

Camp Bow Wow and the Doggos.

Sidney decided that after two years, it was time to find a new job.  She started filling out applications through indeed.  She got one interview with a doggy day care place, but after the interview she had a strong feeling it was not for her.  Sometimes you just have to trust your gut.  She kept after it, but was getting a bit frustrated that she was not getting call backs.  I told her that her generation just likes to fill the application out online and expect magic to happen.  However, my generation is doing the hiring and we like to see your face and talk with you.

She took that information to heart, and filled out an application on line one day, messaged them the next day, printed an application the third day and dropped it by, got a call back the third day (30 minutes after dropping off her application), she had an interview the fourth day and was hired the fifth day.  Nice work!  The hiring manager told her, "You must really want this job.".  She was embarrassed, but it was likely what helped get her the interview.  She is now a camp counselor at a local doggy day camp.  She is having the time of her life and learning some great skills.

I think it is hilarious that the girls just love taking the dogs on outings.  

Kendall even took the dogs to the vet for a quick vaccination.  The dogs love these trips, as they usually end with a trip through Dutch Bros for a pup cup.

Kendall scored a couple Dutch Dog bandanas for the pups.  

River Fun.

It is amazing the difference that a couple years will make.  Sidney, my parents and I rafted the Boise River a couple summers ago.  Sid said she would never do it again.  It gave her crazy anxiety.  Well, a couple years later and with some adventurous friends in her life, she has been a river floating champ.

I am pretty certain she has rafted quite a number of times this summer.  Here she is with Claire floating the river.

A few of her friends from youth group got together to float.  They decided to pull the rafts out about halfway down and walk to Chick fil A for a quick snack.  

As if river rafting is not enough, throw in a bit of bridge jumping.  Claire's dad took them all to the river for some daring adventure.

The little park center bridge just wasn't sufficient.

There she goes!

Again, this takes me back to my youth, when the thing to do was to jump off the 'mud hole' train bridge.  I still remember the first time I jumped, arms splayed out.  Yep, that did not feel the best hitting the water.  I quickly realized to keep the limbs tight!

Celebrating with Bentley!

Bentley turned 18 this summer.  Her parents took Bentley and a couple friends to Cascade for the weekend to camp and boat.  Kendall was invited to the celebration.  They had a great time.  Bentley's mom, Stephanie, is in the top left of this picture.  She is such a fun lady.  We had a great time with their family during the Disneyland dance trip this past spring.

The girls had a blast tubing behind the boat.

It was a bit smoky up there, because of all the fires, but that did not stop them from having a good time.  

They glamped in trailers and played a lot of board games at night.

I love this picture with the beautiful rainbow behind them.

I am pretty certain this picture is not from the camping trip, but somehow ended up in Kendall's blog pictures.  It is cute nonetheless.

Fan Girling for Aaron Watson.

Sidney and Jayde attended the Aaron Watson concert at the Knitting Factory.  They had the time of their lives and were over the top fan girling.  It took me back to my own fan girl experience.  It was the Bush concert at the Ventura Theater.  Vicky and I were front and center, screaming 'I love you' to Gavin Rossdale.  Such fun and silly times.  

They arrived early to see the opener and solidify their spot front and center.

When Aaron came on stage, they had the perfect spot.

At one point, he even started singing and talking directly to them.  

Sid got a picture with him. There is nothing like the fun of living in the moment and having the fan girl experience.

Did I mention that he signed her phone case AND gave them each a guitar pick?