Summer

The days seem to just be flying by lately...I'm not sure why though. We've been sticking pretty close to home as much as possible and not doing much besides just enjoying these lazy summer days.

 After lots of thought, I decided to trade Rosie the goat back to the man we got her from. I was just too worried about the possibility of someone getting hurt by her horns (accidentally of course, she was very gentle). So we took Rosie back and traded her (and a little cash) for "Rosepetal". (R named both of them and seems to have a fondness for Rose kind of names!) Rosepetal is a little older (probably close to 2 years old) and is expecting! We aren't sure when the baby (babies?) are due, but I think we probably have at least another month or so. I think it's going to be so fun for M and R to have these baby goats to play with and help raise. Surprisingly. both kids handled getting rid of Rosie very well... and it helped that Al (the man we are getting the goats from) got a nasty cut (caused by another goat's horns) on his arm while catching Rosepetal for us. It was a very good example for the kids of why we need goats without horns! Here's Rosepetal...

 

And both our girls "cutting" the grass in the little pasture for me this morning...

 

 So.... we've been having fun trying to win Rosepetal over (she's even wilder than Rosie was!) and playing with Betty. Betty almost seems like she's more dog than goat most of the time, and she's pretty sure R is her mother (and if R isn't around, I'll do.. Rosepetal will do only if R or I aren't around!) When she sees R come out the front door, she starts crying for her, and will follow her endlessly around the little pasture. When she gets frightened she gets very close to R, even leaning on her legs or trying to squeeze between her legs for "protection" (usually from our long suffering golden retriever Emma, who has been called into duty as a reluctant, incredibly inept sheepdog).

 We've been doing other things besides playing with goats though... We go to the stable twice a week for R's riding lessons, and last weekend the kids and I spent a whole day in town... we went out for lunch, did some shopping and stopped at the library, and ended our "day out" by going to see the movie "Cars". (Which we all loved!) Last week we also spent a wonderful afternoon wading in a little creek a few miles from our house.

The kids started out just wading...as in, feet wet, clothes dry. Here they are looking for tadpoles (notice how M carefully rolled up his pants to keep them dry!)

 

 But then they got into a little deeper water...



and discovered the fun of the little waterfalls...

 

 By the time we left they were totally soaked! (but happy!!)