Perfect Weekend

This past weekend B once again played with the Impact. After finishing 3rd in their last outing due to a rain shortened tournament, they came away with the gold this time. Playing almost flawless all weekend, the team went undefeated in pool and bracket play, with a 7-0 record, giving up prescious few runs ans rarely being challenged. Another great weekend for Mom and Dad, behind the backstop, even though it was again hot and humid.

A Mid Summer Night

Our first show of the season at Wonderland Farms was the 2009 Mid Summer Nights Schooling Show on August 15th. B showed on her favorite Wonderland horse, Peanut. Despite being uneasy about her first competition over crossed rails, B performed very well with no faults and no penalties for being off course. I could study that course for a whole day and still not remember it. B did not place in the crossed rail event but did bring home a couple of ribbons in her other two events. Overall we were pleased with her first show at Wonderland. Next week will be her first "jumper" show at Wonderland.

A summer at the Farm

Wonderland Farm, that is. B spent most of the summer working at Wonderland Farm in Leland. She served as one of their horse camp counselors and helped with the day to day workings of the farm. Mike and Karen have a really nice farm with excellent facilities and a love for all things equine. The summer job was terrific for B. She learned alot about caring for horses, equipment and facilities. As the summer wore on, the things she was learning were relected at our own farm as she began keeping our own things better organized and cared for. As a manner of payment for the work they performed, the young ladies working the camp got free lessons. The lessons have already made a marked improvement in B's riding. All in all, this experience has been a huge positive for B and has paid dividends for us as well. Many, many thanks to Mike and Karen for the opportunity.

Public Housing

This summer we made our first effort with bird houses. Basically, it only happened because we were given the house as a Christmas gift. It laid in the barn until it was technically too late for Bluebirds, but we put it up in mid summer anyway. We also did not recognize that the access hole had been made undersized.

To our surprise, within a week or so, there was a nest under construction. Shortly, the established nest had five eggs in place, in spite of the difficulty we had observed mom and dad having getting in and out of the doorway. A brief check today found five little babies tucked as neatly and snug as eggs in a carton. These little ones should have no trouble making their way out into the world soon....provided mom or dad don't get wedges in the front door.

Guest Again

We had another great weekend of watching B guest play for a local travel team. She has played with most of these girls in the past so it was a good fit. After hitting the losers bracket right off the bat, they fought back with five straight wins on Sunday to finish in 3rd place. They were playing to get into the championship game and had a 4-1 lead when the rains came and washed the remainder of the tournament out. B pitched in four games and only gave up one run. Her work with Coach Bryon at the K-Zone has been making quite a difference.