Cool.

Nothing is more fun than driving down the gravel driveway and catching a glimpse of your daughter fiddling with her pony. Clean, braided, leg-wrapped... the pony not the daughter. Watching her saddle up by herself, bridle by herself, and head out into the pasture by herself. Well, not actually by herself - as always, there are four goats in tow...

A mini!

Yesterday we had a visitor for the day - a mini. It was Juice Box. She spent the day with us and we all had a great. She learned a lot about living on the farm. She learned that you can't wear Crocks outside in the morning because your socks will get wet. She learned to identify horse poop when we cleaned stalls. We called it cleaning Tessa's bed. She learned that you have to give the goats the fresh-picked grass that you have in your hand quickly otherwise they will mug you like the little thugs that they are. "Give us the grass, kid..." She was fascinated by the ladies enjoying a dust bath in the newly plowed garden. "Go see them chickens."

Fun to share all these things we love with our little juicy that we love so much!

It's a sign...

As winter drags on and our crummy luck for 2011 continues, it remains difficult to be "glass half full." Another surgery for Bryce the service dog tomorrow - this is after an extremely expensive CT scan that was needed to get a clear view of the tumor that is reappearing. A spay for Katy Kitty. A trip to the ER for izzy after two falls during a riding lesson. A CT scan later shows no damage, just a whopper of a headache and strained neck muscles. Assorted winter colds, growing pains, shoulder surgery rehab, the list goes on.

But, in the middle of all this "life" that is overrunning us, we received a sign. A sign that there is hope for us yet... One small green egg lying in a nesting box.

All I wanted when I moved back to the country was a chicken that laid colored eggs. And all of our chickens have NOT laid colored eggs. Beige. Beige eggs. Healthy and sooooo tasty, but beige. Ug. Until last week... I arrived home after work to an amazing surprise. Turns out that Bee's chicken, Pip, had not started laying yet - we thought she had. Nope. But last week she gave us the most awesome gift, a beautiful sage green egg. You'd think she laid a blue Tiffany's box, I was so excited to see that egg. That egg was a sign that despite the fog, the cold, the drama of life, there is goodness in the world. I mean, how can a girl's outlook on life not be changed by a green egg. Do you hear me? A GREEN EGG!

Life is good.