Sunday, March 22, 2009

Par-tea Time!!!

It doesn't take knowing me long to know I LOVE a good tea party! So when my mother-in-law invited me to come to (and bake scones for) a bridal tea party for a friend of the family, I was ready! We had some awesome food.



I made the scones - Chocolate/English Toffee, Ginger Lemon (my favorite, of course), and plain cream scones. My sister-in-law made the curd - strawberry and lime. My mother-in-law made everything else. (And I happened to be working that weekend.)


My mother-in-law had just painted the room and decorated it for spring. Very cute. And here are the gifts for the bride.

The ladies enjoying tea. We had a different tea with each course. Blackberry sage was my favorite!



Oh, look! Here is one of our elegantly dressed servers. Morgan, when did you become a young lady?


And who is this lovely young guest? That can't be MY little girl! :::sigh:::

Friday, March 20, 2009

It's Rough Being a Cat

Boy, who would ever want to be a cat? They work so hard! Just imagine, in ONE day, Stewart had to do this....




....then he had to do that.....



....and that......


.....and more of this!



Yes, the life of a cat is definitely a rough one. :::sigh:::

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

Silly Girls

My girls are so silly.




They wanted me to take their pictures the other night while they were goofing around.



They fight so much, it was wonderful to see them laughing together.


I like these times when they are having fun together, being silly, enjoying each other.



A glimpse of things to come? I hope so!





Friday, March 13, 2009

Just Call Him Hairy

Morgan comes home from practicing her piano at Nana's and yells, "Get the camera! Quickly! And BE QUIET!!!"


So Brooke and I grab the camera and follow her - back to the field between the end of our street and my mother-in-law's house. "Look, there, by the tree!" It was a little armadillo, rooting around for bugs or grubs or whatever it is they eat. We followed him around, taking pictures, for probably 15 minutes. He really didn't care.




But he never would give us a good smile. This is the only side of him we could photograph - his back side!
I think this is probably the only time I've seen a LIVE armadillo! Usually they are in the middle of the highway looking a mite poorly. I like this kind better.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

Sad, Sad Day

On March 10, around 10:30 at night, my cell phone rang. When I saw who it was, I knew it wouldn't be good. Calls that late usually aren't to impart happy news. The manager of our barn said Lady was colicking.






Brooke took these pictures of the horses on 2/17/2009. All three horses in a row - Punkin, Honeybee, and Lady.

If you don't have horses, you probably wouldn't know that colic is a VERY bad thing in a horse. I didn't. You think of babies with colic and you think "tummy ache." Nothing serious.


Later, when Brooke was looking at the photos, she was shocked to see that Lady was mimicking Honeybee's every step. In almost every shot!

But with a horse, colic can be deadly. I was still working, so Steve and the girls went immediately to the barn while I made phone calls to the veterinary service.


It is like they were synchronized - every step the same.

The vet contacted Steve to get the scoop once Steve arrived. After trying a few things that help for a minor colic, and those things not helping, they decided to bring the horse to the equine vet - a trip 45 minutes away. And it was now midnight.






Even here - all four feet off the ground at the same time - both horses. Weird.

The news at the vet's office was not good. It was very serious and she likely would not make it.




"I'm gonna get you, Honeybee!"

Steve and the girls arrived home around 4 a.m. Everyone was upset. By morning, things had worsened and Steve had to make the decision that no pet owner wants to make - we had to put her down.


Brooke with Lady in January 2009
Writing this today (1 April 2009), I still can't believe she is gone. She was just a few weeks shy of seven years old.


Me with Lady in 2007

I suppose it is every little girl's dream to own a horse. I didn't realize that "little girl dream" until I was 41. But while I owned her, she owned all our hearts. And we will all miss her dearly.