The barn at night

For all intents and purposes, the new barn is finished! Before we fill it with hay, tractors and trailers, Gene wants to have a big party. The little barn is from our other place, just relocated for the horses to hang out in. Still need to figure out the water set-up and a few storage issues, but it's basically done, and Gene is so happy!

Happy Trails, Maggie

Yesterday we said goodbye to 15 year old Maggie. She had an idyllic dog's life, here in the canyon, she never knew a day confined. The Big Dog will be missed big time, and Birdie will have to learn how to be the alpha dog around here. God bless her swimming, fetching little heart...

Horse Camp

Horse Camp 2010 was a great hit with Maddy and Kate! They were involved in all the daily horse chores and Grandpa Gene gave them riding lessons every morning. The hot afternoons were spent swimming and watching movies. The girls are excellent conversationalists and very entertaining. We really enjoyed having them here. I think Kate is more interested in riding than Maddy, whose attention span is shorter than Kate's.

I've included a photo from the new Manhattan City Water Park. We swam there Friday afternoon and they have this String Ray Wave Pool. Of course, the girls and I had to try it out. Maddy did better than Kate, and this old lady ROCKED the wave machine! I was the only middle-aged woman and I had the longest ride(that's not me in the photo). It was way fun!

The girls got to hear my band play Wednesday evening and Kate even helped with some percussion. St. Joseph's Catholic Church had their annual picnic and my band played. They also have penny games for the kids, so the girls won a load of junk! It really was a fun week with lots of activities.

Now it's just hot!

Joan

Family brunch

Here we are, minus a bunch of folks, but it was good to see you all. The focus isn't great on the photo, but it's the better of the two.

All is well here, hot and humid. Oh wait...it's July in Kansas! We were out very early this morning getting stuff done before the heat index went off the charts. Jenna was with us for 2 days and is on her way back to the Netherlands. After being home for one day, she'll take off for Israel to visit a friend before school starts. Next week we have Maddy(11) and Kate(9) coming for 5 days of Horse Camp at Camp Nelson. This will be interesting...Gene went to Brody's 4th birthday party, Wednesday evening. His actual b'day isn't until Aug. 3 and he's very concerned that nobody will know when his real birthday is! The things a 4 year old worries about!

Joan

Dad's Riverside Hall of Fame

Hydrangas

These are mom's hydrangas in bloom about 3 weeks ago. Mighty spectacular!

Almost Done

Roof trusses up...and then white metal roof goes on. And of course, the pictures are in the wrong order! Anyway, Gene got home last night and was very pleased with the barn. He was also happy to see me. Boaz's hoof is improving, he's now sporting a "hoof boot" which is blue rubber and fastens around his ankle. I then pour medication into the boot so he soaks all day. He doesn't mind the antibiotic and anti-inflammatory mixed into applesauce, so he's been a pretty good patient.

Gene has decided that all teenagers are crazy.

Joan