Happy Mother's Day; dead TV

I had set the alarm clock for 7:27 a.m. We're used to getting up earlier, and the sun shining through the windows nudged us awake around 7 a.m. Before Kyra said a word, she immediately pointed towards the Mother's Day gift bag that we had brought along with us. This was a gift that she and her dad/step-mom had purchased for me and handed to me when I picked her up yesterday afternoon. She wanted me to open it immediately. I was grateful for the picnic blanket that folds up into a bag with a strap! I can't wait to use it for the last-day-of-school-picnic. She said that this year I could use a the waterproof blanket instead of my usual fleece Georgia Tech blanket. How sweet!

Breakfast is served at 8 a.m. Kyra was so excited that she barely ate. After eating a few bites, she said she was full and asked if she could go on down to the stables. She was eager to be the first in line so she could get the horse that she wanted. Since we've been here several times before, I let her go and told her that I needed to check in/out of our room and would meet her at the barn later. I finished my breakfast and then packed our bags and took a load to the car. On my way back from the car to the room for the last load, I passed a woman that works there. We talked about the duck in the pen at the front of the house. She said it had laid 13 eggs and they created a comfortable pen for her so the other ducks wouldn't steal the eggs. While we were talking, she said that they expected 91 guests for the Mother's Day luncheon today. WOW!!!

I grabbed the last of our bags and went to the front office. I raved about the room we were assigned and Monica said she thought that we would like it best of the rooms that were available. I told her that Kyra and I had discussed earlier that morning what our favorite room was and we couldn't pick one because they are all unique and special in their own way.

About a half-hour after Kyra had arrived at the barn, I made it there. She was the first, and only one in line. I was surprised since they were expecting so many lunch guests. I guess most are just coming for the meal rather than riding horses. Kyra pointed out the new animals... a cute cat that she had nick-named "nanners", but we later found out his real name is "JP" or "John Pierre". He's "playing dead" in this photo beside the hoof picks.

At 9:15, when the horse assignments began, she requested Sioux and received her wish. Last night she told me that her first choice was Sioux, and then proceeded to list her next 5 choices. I'm glad she got her first choice, but even more happy that she had a back-up plan in place. I wanted to ride Wesson and thankfully, he was still available. We were assigned to Natalie's group. It had rained the day before so cantering was limited this morning. We probably cantered twice this morning. Natalie mentioned that John will be leaving the ranch to return to Canada on Thursday. About half-way into the ride, we crossed John's path. He was alone, so he joined our group for a little while. I told him that Kyra mentioned that she wanted to go to his ranch in Canada. He said he would give me his business card when we returned to the stable. I asked about his experience here and he said that he's really enjoyed meeting new people, has been glad to meet people that are now interested in his ranch, misses the thousands of acres back home, bored with the limited trails here, but will also miss the people he's worked with here. After the ride, and putting horses away, he brought me his business card. We have a lot going on this summer, but I'd like to make plans to go there next summer... http://www.sturgeonriverranch.com/

Lunch is served at 1 p.m. for the riding guests. We had time to spare so we went to the dining room for a drink first. The woman that I had met earlier asked if her husband was directing car parking. I said yes. She asked if the goose was with him. I said she was. She proceeded to tell me that this goose had claimed Tommy as her "mother". I had noticed when we arrived last night that the goose was following him and thought it was unique. She said that the goose, now named "Duckie", was missing one web, presumed to have been bitten off by a turtle. This goose never attached to it's mother. Tommy has been giving it attention, feeding it, petting it, etc. Now the goose is protective of him and doesn't like it when anyone else comes near him. She follows him around every where and even waits outside their door each morning. How unique! She said that she thought someone should write a story about this unique pair, so I thought it would be great info for my Mother's Day blog. She was called to duty, so Kyra and I escaped to the pasture. On our way back in for lunch, I stopped and talked to Tommy and photographed him with Duckie. He honked at us as he was reassuring her. How sweet!

Because of all the outside guests, lunch required assigned seating. We were instructed to sit at a specific table. It was a 6-person table. The couple that was already seated own a horse stable nearby. They offer boarding and riding lessons. They were interesting people. The other two seats were occupied after us by a mother and daughter that we had ridden with this morning. We asked the stable owners about the costs of buying a horse and boarding them. The prices they mentioned were astronomical! We were shocked at how expensive they said they sold their horses and boarded others for. Their fee was well beyond any other fees we'd heard of. The man gave Kyra one of his business cards, with a horse logo from Vista print. I wondered if they were truly there just for lunch or trying to drum up business. They were friendly enough, but pretentious.

Kyra ate quickly and then headed back to the barn to secure her place near the front of the line. I was impressed when she asked to be in John's group! She's no longer shy here... We rode the same horses this afternoon as we did this morning. We cantered a lot more this afternoon than we did this morning, so that made Kyra happy! While we were riding I questioned John more about his ranch. They only have 3 luxury rooms, but have access to decent cabins, as well as tent camping areas. They also do overnight trips where you ride to a camping spot, camp out for the night and then ride back the next day. That sounds like a lot of fun!

We enjoyed a very nice dinner and then went for a relaxing walk in the pasture. My mother's day was complete when we left and drove home without tears. YAY!!! But I knew it was too good to be true. At 7 p.m., while still driving, Kyra asked "what time does Home Hepot close?" I told her that it closed an hour ago. She broke down in hysterics saying she needs a door hinge and paint for her science project tomorrow. Too bad... How long has she known that she needed these supplies? Why is she only now telling me?

We arrived home and she took a bath while I brought in the suitcase and started laundry. After she was through, she laid down on my bed to watch TV while I showered. But the TV in my bedroom wouldn't turn on! Bummer! What else can possibly go wrong at the house?