Admittedly, landscapers have the upper hand when creating beauty, but the natural beauty in my back yard from an irrigation ditch is pretty unbeatable (with a little help from Earl)!
How can life get any better? Having the opportunity to experience the workings of the vacuum cleaner with the vacuume expert is definitely living the charmed life!
My Dad has had minature ponies for years. We have had family pictures taken with the ponies and pony cart. As it has become increasingly difficult for him to get out and tend the ponies, he has reluctantly sold some of them. I have been the fortunate recipient of his kindness and selected the first minature he purchased to pull the cart. I also got the last of the little boys from last year's crop.
I named the older female, "Lou," after my Mom, because she loved to go out and brush and comb the ponies. The grandkids named the little boy, "Jake," because they wanted to.
The baby boys -- Evan and Eli -- were introduced to Lou and Jake and I think they liked them.
We started our "getting to know you" session by feeding Lou sugar cubes to coax her over to us and get used to the kids. As soon as Ellie decided it was her mission to train Lou, she got a bucket of grain and began brushing and talking to her. Next came the lead rope and lessons in leading her around the pen. Now, she is in charge of catching Lou and letting the other kids pet her. It is definitely a charmed life!
I love it that Ellie wants to have the ponies be part of her life. She wears her boots and a western shirt and jeans out to spend time with them. She actually coaxed Jake up close enough to give him a quick pat today. Just that knowledge in a little girl's mind that animals can be your friends too is part of living a wonderful life.
Don't be scared! Ellie really is not going in the creek headfirst while Luke looks on! They are hunting for snails on the rocks in the creek. That's what I call a charmed life!
The "GRAND"kids! They look happy -- don't they? This was after I told them the lesson in life on willows and bare legs -- promising the joy of experiencing it first-hand if I didn't get cooperation from each of them! Learning obedience from really being motivated is part of living a charmed life!
Ellie Jo -- my favorite first grand-daughter!
Luke - my favorite first grand-son!
Tess - my favorite little mini-me!
Mia - my favorite little ball of fire named after my Mother!
Noah - my favorite little "McNeil-natured" child. Don't try to break a McNeil -- because you can't -- that is unless your Mother is a McNeil and then....holy moly!!! Watch out! It is a battle royal!!!
Elijah and Evan - my two favorite baby boys! I'm a little scared for the future -- because what one doesn't think of, I'm afraid the other one will! Jack and Rajko are the only grandchildren missing from this post, so we'll have to catch up with them next time they're here. As for me....as you can see -- I'm still livin' "the charmed life!"
