House Guests & a Night of Cards

Early morning sunshine and the magpies started the day, which encouraged me to get up and make coffee before settling in with some marketing and a little blog time. S slept late, enjoying some extra time in bed with his coffee and phone.

I headed outside to let the horses out and fill the water troughs, treating everyone to some apples while I was at it. There are not as many apples this year, but the birds seem determined to sample any that are growing. Most of the nice ones now have at least one bird peck in them. GRRRR!

S eventually made his way out to join me, sitting on the deck in the sunshine with his devices.

Be still my <3, Shaina has this video of Renn avoiding sidewalk cracks from 2 years ago today!

He bathed Harley while I dug potatoes and onions for supper. He then mowed the little patches of grass that are growing in the shade around the fire pit while I remade our bed. Just another day of us tackling our own little jobs around the ranch.

S was soon back inside watching baseball, while I got busy with lunch and supper preparations. I prepped the potatoes for the BBQ, made the salad fixings, whipped up our favourite balsamic dressing and prepared the zucchini dish.

The Jeep rolled in after 2:30 and the visiting began. Once the sun returned after a little reprieve, we enjoyed some time on the deck while Shaina and Matt caught Mac and Jimmy and introduced them to his Mom Betty and her husband Tony, visiting from Ottawa.

S & M walked the horses to the gate and back

Britt joined us too, doing her feeding and then coming over to visit on the deck. It was a beautiful afternoon for everyone to catch up.

Shaina prepped a most delicious warm corm salad for supper too. Supper was enjoyed inside, and unfortunately the weather decided that our outdoor plans were over. The wind had picked up and the temperature cooled down, albeit with yet another amazing sunset, so instead of a campfire, we moved on to games inside.

And there were lots of card games and lots of laughs.

B eventually headed home around 11, but we weren't ready to quit. The games continued until after 1 a.m.! 

I settled down to read for a while, while Betty seemed to enjoy some tablet time. I’m not sure about Shaina, but the guys quickly drifted off to sleep.

A long day that started with sunshine, apples, gardens and chores ended well past midnight with family, friends, cards and laughter. No campfire tonight, but honestly, the sound of everyone laughing around the table was a pretty good substitute.

Shaina shared these photos of their trip to Banff yesterday

Cleaning, Zucchini & a Night Under the Full Moon

A wee bit of reading started the day before I moved on to coffee and socials. Then it was time to get productive. I set the robot vacuum going and started the cleaning while the horses were let out, taking a pile more pea plants I had pulled along the way and a bag of veggie tops with them. The horses were more than happy to take care of the garden leftovers!

Back inside, laundry was on the go and the robot moved on to more rooms. We headed outside where S loaded up all the recyclables while I did some hand watering. I also found four perfect-sized zucchinis ready to pick. My hand-pollinating is working!

With the onions, dill and cilantro now all pulled from the big raised bed, I reworked the soaker hose and got it watering properly again. I did the same with the in-ground bed. It feels good to get things rearranged as the garden changes through the season.

Linens were changed on the beds and the bathrooms cleaned while S made grilled cheese for lunch and caught up on the news. I was once again a few days behind, so after lunch I uploaded the videos for Wednesday and finally got that blog posted. A little more tidying and a few more loads of laundry and we were ready to jet into town.

S dropped me off before 2 to get my nails refreshed while he dropped off the recyclables and ran a few errands, including picking up some last-minute weekend necessities like milk and eggs. While waiting for him to pick me up, I grabbed us a couple of Tim’s iced coffees.

Back at the ranch, it was back to laundry and directing the robot around for some spot cleaning while S caught a nap in Big Brown.

The winery was having a party we had been invited to, with food trucks planned for supper. This was yet another thing I would have been perfectly okay with missing, but S had his heart set on going… so off we went!

We took the Ranger and found lots of people and plenty of dogs enjoying the event. There was a bit of a hiccup with the food truck—it had apparently been double-booked—but thankfully it finally arrived around 7:30 because by then we were both starving!

Mexican food it was for supper, along with live music from a young girl who was very good. There was also birthday cake for owner Phil’s 48th and, of course, lots of cold refreshments.

Thanks, guys, for the fun night!

We headed home under the full moon, settled in for another episode of Lioness, and eventually called it a night.

A day that started with cleaning, laundry and garden chores ended with Mexican food, music, birthday cake and a party under a full moon. I may have been perfectly happy to stay home, but sometimes the prince knows when it’s time to get out and enjoy ourselves—and tonight, I'm glad we did.

Bull Riding, Pumpkin Spice & Another Summer Scorcher

S said he was aiming to be back in town by 10, but as I was up making us coffees at 8:30, he changed his mind. It was suddenly, “I better get there.” He showered and was tapping his toe, ready to go, while I finished my coffee and got myself ready too, with the off chance of staying to watch the bull riders again. I fed Harley and let the horses out just in case, because you never know where the day might take us.

When we got to town, there were water puddles everywhere. Turns out they had received rain and hail overnight while we once again got absolutely nothing. Of course. It also turned out S had forgotten his truck keys in his haste to get going. So I drove him to the rodeo office, where he brought me back a pumpkin spice muffin—worth the trip! I then dropped him at his truck, where at least he could use the door code to get his gloves for cracking chute gates today.

I came back home and got busy marketing my latest tutorial and working on the blogs. It was only 20°C when I dropped S off, but already 27°C by the time I was home. Looks like another scorcher ahead.

Hank's new pony rasp arrived in last nights parcel

I also chopped up some bison tongue and liver to make Harley a few meals, along with some broth I had made for her. She certainly isn't lacking for homemade food around here!

After noon, I packed up some cold drinks and headed back into town for the second day of bull riding at rodeo school. The improvement in the riders from yesterday was immense. You could really see them gaining confidence and getting better with each ride.

Once the riding wrapped up, we once again gathered for cold refreshments and visiting with the group. Lots of laughs carried on for another hour or so at Boreham’s trailer before the five of us headed to Road House for supper.

Once again, supper came with plenty of laughs, stories and good company. These spontaneous rodeo-school days certainly weren't what I had planned when I woke up, but they have turned into some pretty great days.

After supper, we headed back to the ranch, passing B on her way out from feeding around 8:30. S headed straight for the hot tub while I fed Harley and the cats and watched a bit of Surfer Girl until he came in.

Then it was another episode of Lioness, checking one more off the list before calling it a night.

Two days of bull riding school, friends, cold drinks, good food and more laughs than planned. My little “just say yes”challenge is definitely paying off. Sometimes saying yes to an unexpected invitation gives you a much better day than pulling weeds and yard work.

Just Say Yes: Bull Riding, Backyard Carrots & an Unexpected Evening

Mornings are definitely getting cooler, with the windows open all night, and of course the sun is up early along with the dang magpies. Today I opted not to scroll Instagram with my first coffee but instead curled up with my book. A much nicer way to start the morning!

S woke, made his coffee, got dressed and shaved, and was off to rodeo school by 9, hoping to get in on the Tim’s promised coffee and donuts at the grounds.

I published a blog post as well as the tutorial for Kaylin’s IKEA organizer, then shared it up on the various sites before heading out to release the ponies. I pulled more pea plants and sunflowers, both of which the horses were very happy to help dispose of. I also harvested a few of the first carrots, with varying degrees of success. Dang! They may not win any beauty contests, but they’ll be eaten, odd-looking and all. :)

Back inside, I turned my attention to marketing, something that has been neglected for far too long. After a bowl of leftovers, I headed back outside because it was simply far too nice to stay indoors. I scooped poop, pruned some branches and was pulling weeds in the island when S texted that I should come watch the bull riders at rodeo school.

And there it was—another impromptu decision in my personal challenge to just say yes.

I quickly changed and drove into the rodeo grounds. I met up at a friend’s trailer, and she and I walked over together and found seats under an umbrella, which was absolutely perfect on this 29°C day. The agricultural staff were videoing each ride, while Donny Jo and Scott Schifner critiqued each one.

It was quite the challenge for the riders, ages 16-21with varying levels of experience taking on different bulls, steers and cows. There was even one girl brave enough to ride three!

Scott talking to the young girl with Sheldon just off to the right 

Once the clinic ended for the day, we all enjoyed a few ice-cold refreshments at the rodeo office. Somehow that morphed into heading back to our friend’s trailer, where the fellows had Caesars while Bev threw a pasta casserole in the oven along with hot garlic bread and tossed salad.

THANK YOU!! It was so tasty.

There were lots of stories, laughter and visiting, and before we knew it, it was time to head home. I was the designated driver and safely got us back to the ranch around 10.

Once home, I settled down with my book after finally forcing Harley outside for a pee following her long quarantine inside. Apparently B hadn’t even popped in while she was out feeding, so Harley had been holding it for quite some time!

S was sound asleep almost immediately, while I squeezed in a little more reading before calling it a night. The winds picked up and thunder rolled but nothing happened.

Another day that didn't quite go according to plan—and another reminder of why I'm enjoying this little “just say yes”challenge. I could have stayed home pulling weeds, but instead I ended up sitting under an umbrella watching bull riders learn their craft, sharing laughs and stories with friends, and enjoying an unexpected supper.

Sometimes the best days are the ones you didn't plan for.