Christmas 2011 - My Birthday!

Here's my family, celebrating my birthday.  Notice Woody and Jessie to the left, and then notice the CEO and bored Texas Ranger, two mamas, and one daddy.  These are my favorite people!!

Christmas 2011 -- Cookies and Presents!

Namaste!

Christmas 2011 - the Cowboy Dance!

Christmas Cowboy Dance!  

   

These wild ones crack me up.  This year we spent Christmas in Texas which was wonderful.  And the kids kept putting on shows which were fun and hilarious and so cute.  Here's a sample!

Christmas 2011 -- At the Apple Store with My Posse!

Over winter break, I was at the pinnacle of my Steve Jobs crush.  I was busy helping mom set up her iPad and helping Elena with her new iPad and iTouch.  I got her iCloud set up and FaceTime.  And I was busy getting tons of photos set up for the both of them.  And just generally being an Apple nut.  So, of course, when we went to the mall, I had to get a photo of my cowboys at the store.  I thought it would just be a we all stand there photo - but my posse felt that it needed to have a little rodeo circus effect.  Love it!

Christmas 2011 - My Posse

Here they are, my posse.  How lucky can a middle-aged cowgirl get?!

Christmas 2011 -- Best Gift Ever!

When we were in Texas for Christmas, my mom wanted to buy the kids cowboy hats, so after the toy exhibit, we went to the Pinto Ranch Western Wear place and it was very very easy to find a cool black hat for Emma, pink hat for Clara, and this rocking Lone Star state cowboy hat for my favorite little Texas Ranger.  And you can see that this gift was very well received. He gave an immediate thumbs up to the staff.  I don't even think he really fully processed that the gift was from Grama.  He just was so happy to receive it that I think he just took it as a true gift from the universe itself!

Christmas 2011 - My Favorite Herd Ever!

This photo was taken the day after we arrived in Texas for Christmas.  My sister took the whole family to this ritzy mall in Dallas to see an exhibit of toy trains.  The toy train exhibit was right next to a Barney's, Pinto Ranch Western Wear, and Apple Store!  It was crazy crazy cool fun.  And just quick as a heartbeat, I got this great photo of my sister and her kids!  

Elena's Wonderful Home!

This photo was taken on June 1st. We had just spent a wonderful evening playing cards and gossiping and making fun of each other. I am super happy in this photo because I am the new grandma of a few weeks old foal!

Florida '08: Mom and Her Girls!

Here is a photo of my favorite ladies by far! They are sitting under a palapa roof on a beautiful morning. They are very happy!

Florida '08: Enjoying the Animal Kingdom!

Here is a photo of my family on a really extraordinary beautiful sunlit morning in Florida at the Animal Kingdom Park. We got up early in order to have breakfast with Donald Duck, Goofy, and their pals. And then we were going to take a tour of Africa, ride a train through the jungle, visit animals on a nature walkway, and play, play, play, play in a big jungle gym area known as the Boneyard. We had an exhausting, drum-beating, skirt-swinging, dancing day. And we slept as deeply as we could for our naps before jetting off to the Magic Kingdom for the 'Not so Scary' Halloween! A big day!

Florida '08: Waiting for the Magic Kingdom!

My mom and dad hosted my family for a week's trip to Florida. We had an amazing time, celebrating Emma's birthday, swimming, visiting the parks in Orlando, playing with the girls, and being together. Here is a photo of us taken on the second day as we are waiting to board a bus for the Magic Kingdom. We were staying at the Animal Kingdom which is an amazing resort with a nature and animal preserve surrounding the rooms and villas!

My Fabulous 44th Birthday Party!

Today I am 44 years old! I woke up late, went and got a Starbucks and the NYT and listened to Louie Armstrong's version of "Do you know what it means to miss New Orleans?" A great start to my new year!

On the 23rd, Sunday, we celebrated my birthday a bit early at my sister's house. It was lots of fun. I cooked from my organic garden supplies and from the beef I bought from a farmer in Weston. I spent time with my family and received really nice presents!!

But best of all was celebrating with my nieces. Those girls know how to party. As soon as the cake rolled out, they went wild. Emma demanded to know whose birthday it was and when she found out it was me, she went big-eyed (probably thinking I was too old for a birthday!) and said happy birthday to me a thousand times! How very nice. They were completely into their treat, as you can see from these photos. All I can say is if you want a party to go off with a festive air, bring my party girl nieces!

My Beautiful Nieces at the Blackswamp Festival!

Here are my loveliest nieces! Elena brought them to visit on the Saturday of our BlackSwamp Festival. We went to the kids' section and Emma and Clara *loved* it! Emma enjoyed rocking out with a band named Wilson Lake and the Rock Bass singing songs about burned marshmallows, walking in the woods, the King of Speed (a guy who boats fast on the lake), etc. And Emma had a butterfly painted onto her face and made knocking sticks and her fabulous hat! Clara was a wild rocker, jumping up and down in her stroller and getting a balloon. It was a wonderful day!

Thank you for coming to Bowling Green, you dear girls and my dear little sister!

My Favorite Ladies!

My dad sent me this photo this morning, very very early. I was working quietly at my computer and it arrived! What a nice way to start my day! He took this photo at the stable at Holiday Acres and it shows my sister, Elena, my mom, Ann, and my two nieces, Emma and Clara. These are my favorite ladies.