Her First Lost Tooth.....

The Little Brat lost her first tooth today at the age of 6 years and 10 months.....she's one of the last in her 1st grade class to lose a tooth....it fell out at school, which broke her Daddy's heart. He was anticipating a manual extraction. Oh well, he has 19 more opportunities for that! Randi was ecstatic to finally have it come out, and proudly shows off her little gap above.

When I picked her up from school, she had a small plastic treasure chest on a string hanging around her neck. They have little containers in the nurse's office for just this type of a situation. How cool is that??!!!

We placed her pearly white in a little heart shaped pillow overnight and lo-and-behold, the Tooth Fairy left her a crispy dollar bill in exchange! That's a pretty good rate for such a tiny baby tooth, IMHO. She was very pleased.

This rite of passage left me in a more melancholy state...my first born lost her first tooth! She’s loosing her baby teeth! My little girl isn’t a baby anymore! She is growing up.....she's getting 'adult' teeth.....someone get me a tissue! I can't go on.....

Snowmagedon 2012......

...NOT!

Apparently this is all the snowfall we are going to get this winter, so let the snow man building begin!

....my little snow bunnies got to go sledding for the first time under the awesome supervision of their big sis!

Then, it was time for a maiden voyage on their own....Sophie wasn't so keen on it all...but she endured.

...and my little man did great as well!

I couldn't let the kids have all the fun though....so we piled on for a family run. We actually made is all the way to the bottom without wiping out!

The Little Brat sure was cutting it up....she'd sled upside down if it were possible!

....Daddy joined in before too long....Can you sense Sophie's excitement??? Weeeeeeee!

CJ is such a cool kid...just kicking back and taking it all in....

I told the Little Brat that if she HAD to eat the snow, it should be up off the ground....we have dogs, you know...and a goat....a goat who loves to urinate at the most opportune times and in the most inopportune places at that (see pic below).

So she grabbed a branch....good girl :)

It was so much fun to see the little ones react to the snow for the first time....it would have been a sad thing if they had to wait until next year to experience it.

Better late than never!

Happy Trails,

Leah

iLuv

iLuv my husband....he's given me the most wonderful family a woman could ask for....he's also given me the confidence that comes from knowing I have a partner for life.....throughout the years, I've come to learn the secret of marriage....it's a simple rule, really....some might tell you it's more complicate than that, but they are nutballs...here it is....pay attention!

To keep your marriage blissful,
even when it's tough,
when you're wrong admit it;
when you're right shut up.

You're welcome....

Happy Valentine's Day to all those iLuv!

The Island of Misnamed Toys...

A friend of a friend's son is obsessed with whales, so she got him a stuffed whale. Did I mention it's sperm whales, specifically, that he loves? So he named the thing SPERMY. She tried to get him to name it something... ANYTHING... else. So he did. He chose Moby Dick.

I can't say my kids have every been this creative with their toys to date....they might surprise me though....until then, enjoy an adventure into THIS 3-YEAR OLDS Island of Misnamed Toys.....




Happy Trails,
Leah

How far would you go to house your horse?

As I'm sure you're well aware, there are people out there who would do anything for their horses. Maybe you're one of them. I like to consider myself one of those people as well; to a certain extent.....I've had occasion to shop the value food section and using copious amounts of coupons so my horse could have his teeth floated on schedule. But I'm not sure I would go as far as the lady in one news report from The Daily Record. After a disagreement with some neighbors, the report says, Stornoway on Lewis, Scotland, resident Stephanie Noble has a new roommate--her 3-year-old Connemara filly, Grey Lady Too.

This story bothers me.....not the part about the horse living inside with her..the part about the neighbors being so void of compassion for her..what do you think?

Happy Trails!

Leah

Puppy Love...

I wanted to take some time on this glorious sunny day to capture our herd of hounds mucking around in a day of their life at the farm....it's real chaotic and all...there's nap time...

With intermittent checks on the surroundings...

...and plenty of cuddling too!

Boomer-dog is 17 yrs young this year....can you believe it? He's doing well for an old man....born in Kaneohe Bay, HI, Boomer has traveled many miles and made many memories with me over the years....he's my best good friend. ...and such a handsome boy.

Then there are the pups....always lookin' for T-R-O-U-B-L-E!

You can't hardly ever find them more than 5 feet apart from each other....

Ginger will be 2 this year....she's a pure bred lab...genetically 'stout'....a bit short for her weight, you could say....and a real sweet girl.....

Tuff-pup is our newest addition....he'll be one this year....he's an Australian Cattle Dog just like Boomer...his coloring is red merle (Bomer is a blue merle)....he's a real good dog too...

He's learning lots of neat tricks like sit and stay and roll over and our favorite- play dead! He's real good at that one....he's so smart! Luv this pup! Last, but not least, is Fiddle....she may not look like any dog you've seen, but please don't tell her! She believes, without a doubt, that she is one ferocious canine beast.....she's a very special goat...
Happy Pets!

Leah

Port-a-What?

Port-a-COOL! It's not too early to think about the steamy hottness of impending summer! I, for one, can't wait for the chill of winter to fade to make room for tank top and horse show season! Speaking of summer, I came across this handy contraption that I believe was designed JUST FOR ME! After working up a sweat in the barn, my normal routine is to B-Line for the nearest stall fan and park my dewey a$$ in front of it until the summer haze dissipates in my head....how amazing would it be to have one of these portable air conditioning units to pull out when the temperature rises instead?!?! Better yet, how fantabulous would it be to haul one of these to our horse shows for speedy relief between classes? I think I need to start saving or be REAL nice to Santa this year.....anyone reading have any feedback on these?

Happy Trails,

Leah

Most psychopaths are not behind bars...

THIS ARTICLE provides some very interesting food for thought on the subject of psychopaths in the workplace....

"most psychopaths are not behind bars -- and at least one study shows people with psychopathic tendencies are four times more likely to be found in senior management"

Kickin' it with ODPOAC...

This past weekend we visited Penmerryl Farm for the Old Dominion Pony of the Americas Club (ODPOAC) Annual Awards Banquet and Membership Meeting....We met a great group of personalities and are very excited about the year ahead as ODPOAC members....I can tell this is going to be one really fun group of people....after the banquet and meeting, we settled into our accommodations to enjoy the rest of the weekend...Deannie and Ken are the owners of Penmerryl Farm and also the fabulous hosts for their Bed & Breakfast service!


We reserved a room for the weekend and were excited to scope out the grounds so we'd know our way around when the shows are held here this spring....the room was very comfortable and although the pool was closed for the winter, the indoor hot tub was fantastic! We woke up to Deannie's home cooking on Sunday morning and every had their fill....and then some!

We brought Bo with us so we could scope out the facilities and trails...He was given a spacious stall in super tidy barn with plenty of shavings to accommodate his high standard of living....nothing but the best for Ole' Bo!

The trails were cleared wide through the woods...

..and along 1 of 2 gorgeous lakes....JR and Tyler have their fishing spots all picked out!

We took a small detour to check out the cattle in a nearby pasture along the way....

All in all it was a great time getting to know the members of the ODPOAC, getting acquainted with Ken and Deannie, and getting familiar with Penmerryl Farm.....we are looking forward to our mini family vacations here this show season....it's well worth the drive!

Happy Trails,

Leah

Punks and Ponies...

Gma Kathy came to visit! The Little Brat wanted to show her how she can walk, trot, and canter bareback now, so we headed down to the barn....unfortunately I had locked my camera in the truck on this particular day, however, Gma Kathy was able to take a couple pics with her iPhone...here is a shot of the punks being extremely helpful on the lunge line....

..and here's a triple threat for you....3 punks on a pony...no good can come of this.....

Of course, their daddy is encouraging them....

Before I forget, LB took her first solo ride @ Lake Anna a couple weeks back! Bo was a true gentleman...she only had to implement that 'emergency stop' I taught her 3 times....he likes to lope up hills....it's what he does! LB wasn't so keen on it though....maybe next time ;) Here's a pic of LB, Me (w/the pony), and a couple of our good friends (Tammy & Beth)....

We are looking forward to the 2012 show season! Sophie & CJ debut in Leadline and Randi in W/J...stay tuned for lots of pics and videos....shows begin in May!!!

Happy Trails,

Leah