Trail Ride Adventures & A Bison Roast Supper

The smoky skies lingered with another air quality warning, but after coffees, breakfast, and a bit of marketing, the fellows ran to town at 10 to pick up the truck fitted with four new tires. With Britt’s go-ahead, plans were on for the trail ride, and it was full-on chaos packing beverages, snacks, and gear.

B and Cooper were out catching horses when her coworker Sandy pulled in with her horse trailer before 11 to give Jimmy a lift and join us. The horses were full of P & V, but soon enough everyone was caught, loaded, and the three dogs tucked safely inside as we pulled out.

B chose Bragg Creek for its wide trails, and thankfully it was less smoky there. Once unloaded and tacked up, we had a rocky start—Sheldon had quite the incident tightening Beib’s cinch after letting go of the reins. What followed looked like skijoring gone wrong, ending in a tumble on his bad shoulder and a battered hat. B caught Beibs a short distance away, saddle under his belly, and soon we were back on track.

Jimmy hauled with a new lady friend Gambit

Cowboy Matt ready for his first mountain trail ride!!

The ride stretched nearly 2½ hours and 14 km, with a few stops and even a horse swap along the way. Back at the trailers it was untack, water, chips, and a cold drink before heading home around 4:30.

 look at Jimmy go, rock star trail horse

Thanks to Sandy, Shaina, Britt and Matt for taking photos as well

Matt's "new" cowboy boots from Papa worked perfectly

The cows wanted to join our party

At the ranch, dogs were let out and horses unloaded while I prepped a bison roast and garden veggies for supper. Britt smoothed chipped hooves, scrubbed tack, and fed her horses while Matt helped Sheldon unhook the trailer and wrestle the spare tire back under the truck. Shannon dropped by for a visit, leaving just as food hit the table after 7.

Britt headed home after supper, and we capped the evening with a hot tub soak before a game of hearts.

Smoky Skies, Golf Greens & Jimmy’s First Ride

The morning started under a smoky haze with an air quality warning—coffees in bed were the perfect slow start. Shaina and Matt were up soon after, joining us for their own cups. Sheldon ran the truck to town with Matt following to bring him back, and once home, S whipped up a hearty breakfast before their big golf day.

While Shaina settled into work on her laptop, I mapped out a wedding-day makeup and hair plan and published a blog post. Once we were both dressed, we headed outside for Jimmy’s inaugural ride at our place. With little idea of his saddle history, we tested the waters—Shaina climbed on bareback first, moving him around the house paddock. True to his gentle giant nature, he was calm and steady. 

After fueling up the Mercedes and loading golf gear, S and Matt were off just after 11 to meet Sheldon’s coworker buddy and Nathan at Mount Kidd. Meanwhile, Shaina and I gave Jimmy some light under-saddle lessons in the round pen—he did beautifully and is ready for tomorrow’s big trail ride.

The afternoon was a blend of work and chores. I tackled tutorials and marketing, including a Hometalk post for the natural nightstand —an exhausting process of switching dozens of Canadian Amazon links to US versions. Shaina wrapped up her laptop tasks before joining me for a late lunch of leftovers.

By midafternoon, the golfers had sent through a few photos from the course, while Shaina was busy getting showered, styled, and ready for a city photo shoot for her business profile. I turned to the garden, gathering the last undamaged Duchess of Oldenburg apples before the magpies could claim them, baking three crisps. At the same time, I worked on the round trays, trimming rice paper to size just as the crisps came out of the oven at 4:30.

This is my thumb nail - I cut the remaining bit holding it to my skin and chopped it down to a stumpy nub and took down the 3 finger nails next to it all ripped on the edges too ;(

With Shaina gone, I moved through more evening chores—feeding Harley, scrubbing dishes, sweeping the garage floor, and sealing the trays with a second coat. A walk with Harley in the cool 23° air was long overdue after the heatwave, bugs and all. Back home, I watered the planters and gardens for half an hour, then pulled the spent pea plants, giving the beds a much cleaner look.

Even weeds can look great in the golden hour!

B arrived with Cooper around that time, tackling her horse chores and loading tack for tomorrow’s trail ride. As I pruned a few more trees, two more nails tore painfully—grrr. By the time I headed in, B was feeding Cooper and grabbing a bite herself, and the evening was already slipping away. I headed to bed with Netflix while Sheldon and Matt wrapped up their golf day, stopping at Nathan’s for a cold beer before rolling in after 10. They brought Lexi back along for a little ranch vacation. Shaina returned from the city by 11:30, scooped Lexi off to bed, and we all finally settled in for the night.

Family, Photos & A Full House

Sheldon was off after 9, meeting Nathan and Matt at the golf course after swinging by to pick up his buddy Dave. Meanwhile, I wrapped up the custom refinished dining table tutorial, posted and shared it around, though engagement is slow right now—likely the end-of-summer rush pulling people offline. I switched the blog privacy back to public after realizing not one person had read since I made it private. Looks like I’ll need to find a way to merge subscribers with private access for smoother reading.

With family photo day ahead, I jumped in the shower before prepping a macaroni salad. The rest of the morning rolled into vacuuming, laundry, and cleaning before Nathan and Matt arrived just after 1:30, fresh from lunch in town following their golf game. Nate went for a nap, Matt washed Shaina’s runners, and soon after Sheldon rolled in with beer and the Opa wrap I had ordered.

The three of us caught up with a cold beer while the guys hunted for a fourth golfer for tomorrow. Eventually, Sheldon landed an old coworker to join. I started coleslaw with carrots fresh from the garden and one of my cabbages. While a neighbor stopped in to look at hay—ordering 10 first-cut bales—Matt helped Sheldon load 5 bales into the dump trailer for delivery. Of course, after unloading, the buyer changed his mind and decided he only wanted 5 now and 5 later.

I curled my hair while helping Mom K troubleshoot her blog connections, as Nathan showered and blow-dried his getting photo ready. Sheldon and Matt returned, with S giving Harley a bath while I refreshed her bedding—keeping her quarantined to dry for the upcoming photos.

Sheldon showered just as Kaylin, Renn, and Shaina arrived at 4:30. Renn dove into playtime, so we played in the castle for a bit while the girls got ready. Then Shaina helped me with makeup and Kaylin applied my false lashes. Thanks! Britt arrived but had forgotten her shirt—back to town she went—while Sheldon fired up the BBQ, cooking smokies everyone enjoyed with salads on the side.

Krystalle, the photographer, arrived after 6, and from then it was game on. Despite smoky skies, the sun peeked through, giving us some beautiful golden light as we wandered the yard capturing shots. The session ended in pure chaos with the dogs joining in—those photos should be something!

By 8, we wrapped up and came inside for refreshments. The Boysis crew headed out for baths and bedtime, while Krystalle stayed to visit until 9. Britt finished horse chores then it was cards before she headed home at 10:30, with work waiting in the morning. The rest of us finished the card game before bed. I snuck in a little Netflix while Sheldon scrolled his phone before lights out.