Horsey drama............
First of all, our dear Cody is doing well. Vanilla cornered him in the barn and kicked the shit out of him. We thought at one time his leg was broken. However, it looks like a puncture wound is the culprit. His leg swelled up quite a bit and he was unable to really put any weight on it. He got a dose of antibiotic last night and we will continue to pray for him and nurse him back to health .



On a brighter note, my Curious George went off to training 2 weeks ago. A family who does the mounted shooting has him and are doing a fabulous job training him. We got an update DVD from them showing what they were doing with him. They said he is doing really well, which I knew he would! I'm such a proud mama! George is a calm , sweet, wonderful horse. I can't wait to get him home and ride him.
*It's possible Vanilla lashed out at Cody because the normal horse pack and pecking order was interrupted. With George gone, we had the family's horse, Moonie. (They didn't have an extra stall for George) Even though he, too, was a gelding, it's possible Vanilla was upset with the change. Who knows.........but we can guarantee Vanilla will not get the opportunity to nearly kill Cody again. They will remain separate.
Thank you all for your good thoughts and prayers for Cody!!

It's that time of year, again!! FOOTBALL!!



This year we have all three kids involved. Both boys playing JV and Ally is a cheerleader for their team. It all ended up working well, but for a time, I thought we'd have each on a separate team which meant a logistic nightmare for me.

Max was asked to play for the senior varsity team this year. He attended their week-long camp in late July. Although he was slated to be their starting receiver and enjoyed playing with them, he ended up choosing to play for the JV team with his buds and brother. I know , I know, Max is a good athlete, blah, blah, blah.......humor me?? The new kid to the senior team (moved from Mississippi) told the coach, "Coach, everything I throw, Schreiber catches!!" LOL! Now, unfortunately the decision-making process wreaked havoc on Max. After many nights with little sleep and even making himself physically ill, he made a decision. He felt either way he went, he was letting someone down. Poor kid. Eric and I tried to help him however we could, but ultimately, he had to just let it go. I don't know where he gets that anxious, uptight personality from......... Eric and I also let Max know that if he played for the JV team, there was a very good chance Coach would put him in the QB position. That was exactly what happened and although it is not the position Max wanted, he's doing well learning it. It will be an interesting season.

*Jay is doing great and having fun, despite wanting to quit the first week (like he does every year :)

**Al is enjoying cheering, but her tendency toward stage fright may pop up with the first game next Sunday. We'll see...:) She is absolutely adorable in her cheer uniform - can't wait to share pictures!!

My kids have learned a lot living out here in the country. It is always a lesson in nature. We have learned to just let nature take it's course, the less human involvement, the better. It could be eggs fallen from a nest, baby turtles left to live in the wild (instead of in a fish tank on a dresser) or killdeer who know how to protect their babies better than us. The kids know to leave well enough alone. However, we have also learned it is a myth that once touched, animal mamas will abandon their young. So...when a nest of baby bunnies appeared in the yard, it was too much to not look in on them occasionally.

Now, the dogs didn't even pause when walking by the nest on leashes for the first several days. However, while Max and Ann (holding Vivian) went out to take them for a walk, they knew there was something there. Gracie is commonly unleashed because, left to her own devices, she won't run off. Only when Boo takes off after something, does Gracie usually stray. That being said, Max let her out with no leash. Boo quickly made a beeline for the nest and as they were flinging nest makings, Hannah ran inside to tell me the dogs were eating the bunnies. As I run out, I see Gracie, indeed, eating one and Max sitting on the ground bawling. Both dogs were eventually corralled to the outside kennel and I make my way back to a sobbing Max. The remaining bunnies were found, after fleeing the nest, and safely returned. From Ann's description of what happened, there was no stopping Gracie once she had her mind on the bunnies. Max was pleading with her to stop, and pulling veraciously, but she was too strong for him to handle. Unfortunately, he had to witness the meal and hear the screaming babies. Sadly, he will probably always remember that scene. I reminded Max that if not for him, she may have gotten them all. He was a hero. It's not Gracie's fault, she did what dogs do. We sometimes forget she's a dog. She's so loving and low maintenance that we often are under the impression she's human with no animalistic tendencies. Max and Gracie made up and the rest of the bunnies are big and ready to flee the nest for good this time. Another lesson learned.....nature's balance.

It was 3 years in the making, but we finally got to see Ann and Hannah again! When asked by Eric why I would want to move back to Georgia again, my reply was, "Because that's where Ann is!" It was like we hadn't missed a day of being together. Ann got to celebrate her birthday while in Ohio (yay?) cheesecake and all...

Happy birthday Ann!!

God, I miss her.....

Ann is an awesome, awesome, did I mention awesome photographer. While visiting, she took many pictures of the kids. They are unbelievable. I can't wait to share them. This is Ann taking pictures of the kids and the horses.

All we really did was play around the house and enjoy each other's company. That's my kind of vacation!! :)

And nearly a month later...even more Washington Island photos.


This is Kathy and her dog, Wisco. They own the jetskiis we love so dearly. Among his many talents, Wisco not only jetskiis, but can retrieve rocks thrown into the water - the exact rock you just threw for him. I call that a true talent.

This kids love painting the rocks they find. They get pretty darn creative. Here, they are just pretty darn ornery.

Not a great photo, but it is the kids a couple years ago on the ferry to the island. There are a couple different ferries and on the trip back, we got the same one from this particular picture. So...we had to re-create it of course.

More Washington Island photos:



Al and Lainey rode their bikes to Papa and Grammy's. They are also loving their matching shirts!!

Eric, Viv and I on Rock Island beach.

Hmmm...Max looks like he was definitely up to no good prior to being photographed.

Wave-runnin', Jet-skiing, Ski-dooing, whatever you want to call it, it's the highlight of my week. I love, love, love going fast on the water. I think, here, I was promising Max I would go slower and wouldn't dump him. Fun-hater.