Horse Practice

Many thanks to the Kanmore's for the use of a trailer! We went out to practice at the Mounted Patrol Arena.

It is always fun to watch Conner try in vain to get Rocky to move and Caitlyn and Shiloh are doing great.....see for yourself!

Summer Trippin'

We have had some serious fun the past week.  First we went out to Black Water Draw to see the old dig sites for Clovis points.  Clovis points are  unique prehistoric flint spear points made by a culture of people now referred to as Clovis people.  The dig site has also yielded an amazing amount of mammoth and ancient bison bones.  The deep area that we walked down into used to me a fairly large lake, however by the mid seventies use of agricultural wells had lowered the water table to the point where the lake dried out.  I found that sad.
The kids enjoyed seeing the archeologist working on the dig and a giant grasshopper.
We also enjoyed the natural wonders of the Carlsbad Caverns.  While this gorgeous cave is beautifully lit, we discovered the joys of bringing our own flashlight.  We did discover that a LED flashlight with the whiter, cooler beam, is much better than my Walmart special.  It was still a wonderful time.  Recent rains had saturated the ground water and the cave was much drippier than last time.  We were able to track drips as they landed on various cave formations and into the cave pools. 

The Caverns are a wonder that we in New Mexico are lucky to have.  We hope to enjoy it again and again!

What do I do......

People often ask me what line of work am I in.......and sometimes, I really don't know what to say.  I could say a variety of things, for instance:

Wildlife documentary maker- I video and and photography my kids going through natural habitats and behavoirs

Waste Management coordinator- TAKE OUT THE TRASH--NOW!

Law Enforcement- empty your pockets.  You are in violation of the no snacks before dinner policy.


Nurtition- eat that and you will be sick.

Fashion Advisor- Honey, I am fairly sure that soccer socks with crocks and shorts was so last year.

Beautician- Don't panic, if I trim you bangs, no one will ever notice

Chauffer- first stop, cheer practice, then load up the horse and go to the arena, then....

Medic- no it won't burn, I will blow on it while I wash

Food preparation- ok, after we cut the pineapple, we put it and the strawberries....

Arbitrator- ok, if you give up the two army guys, you get the blue car...

Meteorology- Mom what is the weather going to be today?

Educator- go ahead, slam that door again and see what happens

Soil erosion expert- Mom, the barn flooded again

Wildlife management- Mom, how do you get twine off the rooster

Therapist- tell me what made you so sad

Pharmacology- ok, three hours ago you had motrin, so now it is tylenol...

I could go on and on, in the end, as with any mother

I am their everything, and that, that is the beauty of it all.

And how was your day?

Cup cake bites!

After my friend Sarah, turned me onto the many incredible websites devoted to cakes and sweets.....I tried a recipe.  This is from Bakerella, a fabulous and talent chef.  For the full instructions, click Here.  She has fabulous ideas and is very very generous with the instructions.
My only additions to this is the following:

You will need two days.  I did it all in one, and there is just not enough Martha in me to do it again.  So, bake the cake, crumble, ball and freeze.  Do that on day one.  Save the balls in the freezer.
The next day, do the dips. 

Have lots of dish towels available.  I am a messy baker and went through quite a few and nearly went after hand towels from the powder room's stash.

Wear comfortable shoes.  Yes, I know, that should go without saying, but man, my feet got tired.

This recipe is easy.  It has lots of steps, but don't be discouraged.  Mine don't look nearly as cute and perfect as hers, but A) they taste good and B) Hey first time out of the gate!

I highly recommend this recipe, and the Bakerella site.  There are so many ideas and she has a gentle and easy way of explaining things.

So yummy up!  Make some cup cake bites!  Now, go to Bakerella's site and see some really pretty ones!

The Tale of Little Dragon.

Once upon a time, there was a little dragon who was very thick and wide.  She would crouch in the rocks by the big blue house and sit and listen.  Sometimes the noises perplexed her and she was compelled to see what made such strange noises.  She would scuttle and scurry, but if the people from the blue house came out, she would lie low and pretend to be looking elsewhere.  She didn't want the people to see her, to know she was watching.
Days would go by and she would inch closer to peer near windows, and then scurry off at the first sign of activity.  Curiosity was too much.  There were so many interesting sounds.  Children laughing, phones ringing, games whirring and beeping.  She felt compelled to see these people.  Yet she knew she shouldn't.
Today she made it to the arbor door, and as I stumbled upon her, she gave me an "oh-you-don't-see-me-I-am-not-going-anything-wrong" look.
I flicked her with the hose and she scurries away.
But like a good little bug eater, this little dragon, both thick and wide, will scurry back, drawn to the noises of my home.

I love fabric!

I love fabric.  The colors, the designs, the textures......
Here is what I ordered for the coming holiday season:

An ugly ugly thing.......

A person who destroys another's reputation may be referred to as a famacide, defamer, or slanderer.

 Slander is the spoken or transitory form of defamation of character, a legal term that refers to a falsehood presented as true which could harm the reputation of a person or entity. Slander also encompasses body gestures as in the case of sign language. If defamation of character is placed in a fixed form, as in the case of a sign, published paper, film or recording, it is considered libel. In short, slander is temporarily uttered or gesticulated, libel is published or otherwise fixed.