a boy and his horse.

There was a horse, born 26 years ago on hill below the mountain. This horse was tough, but small in size, and because so ...nobody wanted her. There was a boy, who wanted the horse, the horse that nobody wanted. He needed this horse, and she needed him, and so it was decided. She was his best girl, his companion of the outdoors, and the magic in his childhood. The boy rode the horse high and low, whispering in her ear, and telling her all his stories. She took him places, just she and him, all over the face of the mountain. They grew up together, this horse and this boy, the horse that nobody wanted. They went to college, to rodeos, and miles and miles of hunting. This boy and his horse.

The years went by and the horse got sick. But, oh, how she was wanted. The boy was a man, and knew the time had come, but didn't want to face it. The man and the horse walked together... to a special place on the mountain, and the man and his horse looked at each other... one last time. The boy hesitated. The man was brave. And the world stood still. For a moment it was just the boy and his horse, and all those miles, and all those trails. It was her shiny coat, and her warm smell. Her tough personality, and loyal friendship. It was all the years, and all the memories, all remembered in a few perfect moments. Then the thunder clapped, the sound rang strong, and the mighty girl went quiet. This horse that was so wanted. The boy and the man, they fell together and drowned in the sorrow. A bond that could never be broken. Because the boy loved the horse. And the horse, well she loved the boy. He buried her in a safe place on the mountain, a place they both called home. Next to a rock that will never be moved, and a buckle never to be worn again. This horse that was so wanted.

taking it all in.

Maggie is already six months old! I am trying to take it all in and just enjoy her little babiness, and fat cheeks, and drooling smile. At six months old she already loves fashion, shakes, and late night movies. She loves cuddling, walks in the park, and sunsets. Kory's whiskers, Emma's realistic animal noises, and Hayden's kisses. Sometimes I will think to myself, "I have THREE kids!"...and then I smile. It does not really seem possible, but here they are all calling me Mom. Well, almost all of them.

my Angel Emma.

Emma had a great day today, and was so excited to be baptised. She looked like an angel the whole day, even covered in mud on her way in the door tonight after playing with the dogs and feeding the horses. She has already confessed to me that she has sinned. She took food out of the kitchen. LOL! I am pretty proud of this freckled face little girl. She has had my heart for eight years.

THANK you so much to my family and close friends who came to support Emma. I was in tears just thinking about all the love. Sigh. :)

hello September.

Fantastic pic taken by Ladd Darley. It is of Kory and Boyd in Yellowstone.


I think I love September the most. It is the month I fell in love with my hubs, 14 years ago, on the most beautiful campus in the world at Utah State University. It is the month that is still Summer, but almost Fall. It is new clothes for school, and corn on the cob. It is Peach Days, and some of my favorite birthday's. It has one holiday, that requires no gift giving. It is filled with fantastic photography light, just before the sun heads down for a little sleep. It is by far my favorite month. So my September, here is to you, the next 27 great days. I hope you don't let me down.

Famous in BEC. Amy Wilde: Atmosphere

I have read Dear Abby forever. FOREVER. I loved each morning opening the paper and seeing her 50's haircut, and her solid words of advice. I remember thinking, I would like to see my picture and words in print someday. Well, I finally got the courage up to take in some of my sample columns into the Box Elder News Journal...and after a bit of a wait, and some persistence...I have my own column!! The editor is going to let me have a monthly column, and I could not be more thrilled!!!! Thank you to all of my friends and family who have supported me in this little dream. You are my best writing inspiration. :) The column name is Atmosphere. Named for the air we create around us, for the motion we make when we move, for the wind that carries our thoughts, and for the vast amounts of feeling in this universe. I am so excited to keep writing!! If you are interested you can read my first few columns by clicking this link:
http://www.benewsjournal.com/opinion.html

Wheat and Beet Days!

Toots and I decided to run the W&B 10K this year. It was a great morning for a run, with lots of clouds and a great location. We loved it! I am still not as speedy as before I had Maggie, but it is still so much fun. I am glad that Toots is my running buddy! It is so fun to have someone to do these races with. After the race, Toots went home and I met the kids and Kory to watch Emma ride her horse in the W&B days parade. My goodness she can ride 'em pretty. She really is so confident and she just loves her horse. It is fun to see her growing up into such a little lady.

DRC

There are few times in your life when you gather such attention and mass amounts of old retired people as when you are in an RV park full of double axle shiny RVs worth more than our first and current home combined, and you are trying desperately to get a rock-chuck out of his comfy home next to your 'tranny' aka transmission. Such was the day last week, when after a fun afternoon exploring Yellerstone, and going to the IMAX movie about Bears, we saw a rock-chuck run up under the engine of the truck. The truck we had borrowed from my dear father in law, and the truck which we were trying SO hard to be careful with despite having bad luck. So what in the hay is a rock-chuck?? Well, I will tell you. They are yellow-belly marmots. Marmots choose to dig burrows under rocks, and next to trannies in nice shiny trucks because predators are less likely to see their burrow. Predators include wolves, foxes, coyotes, and my husband. The marmot is also an omnnivore, eating grass, leaves, flowers, fruit, grasshoppers, bird eggs, and the important firewall insulation pad that protects a truck from heat. Ahhh Yellow Belly Marmot. Damn Rock Chuck (Kory's words, not mine), or the DRC. Unwanted Hitchhiker. How easy we thought it would be to get rid of you. We tried everything, from hosing the thing down, to jabbing it with a stick, to spraying enormous amounts of 'OFF' repellent on him. Nothing. NOTHING. So, the next morning we called in the big guns. That's right, Fish and Game. At first, it was easy to see that this nice guy packin heat did not totally believe us. He crawled right under the truck, face up and starting poking around. When the DRC chirped, the guy from Fish and Game jumped two inches off the ground. He was a believer. Soon the geriatric nation was piling out of their RVs, setting up lawn chairs, and watching the free entertainment of Kory, the Man from Fish and Game (no relation to the Man from Snowy River), and the nice man from Canada. All three men worked for close to an eternity, each one taking a different angle on the DRC, and FINALLY after copious amounts of man effort...the DRC ran...he ran and ran until he found a new home...right up under a nice, shiny, double axle, 40 foot RV.