More Horses

I have a strange list of things my children should do before they graduate.  On that list is the ability to tack-up and ride a horse.  Lance and Jared became proficient horse riders in Florida but Titus was still too young.  As Amber had started taking lessons, I realized Titus should join so he did.  At previous lessons he had come along and helped groom Henry (Polo's barn pony buddy).  He took to riding really well, I think this is going to great experience for both of them.

Happy Birthday to Me!

 

The family really made my birthday extra special this year!  It's been a long time since I received flowers and these were gorgeous.  The kids made really pretty paper flowers to line the ceiling  I had lamented that I wouldn't see my birds in the morning anymore because the Oak was gone, my family listened and bought me a wonderful window feeder and as an extra bonus some beautiful stain-glass pieces (I love stain glass, especially blue stain glass.).

The amazing part is they managed to accomplish this while I took Lance and Jared to Writing class and did my Costco shopping run.  Chris had asked in the morning what I wanted for dinner,  I said "Lasagna but its Wednesday we don't have time for that."  I was wrong, soon as we left, he ran out the door with Amber and Titus, did all the shopping and started the lasagna.  It was taking a little long, so he texted Lance to drag his feet talking with people leaving writing class.  Then on the way home he came up with a false errand to run at the grocery store.  In the end everything was perfect, so thankful for my loving family that made me feel so special tonight.

Timber on Target!

 

We've feared for a while that the White Oak in the front yard was dying.  We didn't want to remove he tree because we didn't want to loose such a big tree and because of the cost.  However, another perk of our arboretum membership is to get free consultation from an arborist.  The arborist came by in the fall and confirmed what we feared; the tree was already half dead from a fungus.  Thankfully the fungus wasn't contagious to our other oaks (it must have been injured at some point and it enter the trunk that way).  We were hoping we could do something to save the tree, but alas we could not.  One of the many things I enjoyed about the arborist, is they don't remove trees as part of their business, so their opinion to remove, is not compromised by a conflict of interest.  I asked for a recommendation of who should remove the tree and he gave me a name.  Funny part is when I had them come out for an estimate, the owner of the company was surprised they had recommended them.  Apparently he didn't know the arborist was no longer competition.  We dickered back and forth a bit and he gave me a very reasonable deal (half what neighbors had paid) "since business is slow in January

When they came to take it down on Wednesday it was quite the event, school came a screeching halt, as did Chris' work day.  The tree is about 120ft tall and they had to use a large crane; taking it down in three 40ft segments.  The most amazing to me was they came, set-up the crane, took down the tree, mulched or carted it away in only two hours.  Toward the end, the gentleman you see up in the tree came over to us and asked "Why did you decide to remove the tree?".  We told him because we knew it was dying, then he said "It was so rotten my spikes were sinking in like it was mud.  I think it would have come down next wind storm."  Ironically, a week later we had that big wind storm, the tree had been only 15 ft. from the house.

Saturday, Amber's American Heritage Girl Troop went to First Flight Archery to earn their Archery badges.  Coach John and Leslie has tweaked the "Introduction to Archery" class to meet their badge requirements.  Since there was an open line, Titus was able to join in as well and get his introduction class done*.  All the girls had fun and earned their badges, we'll see if anyone wants to continue.

*No surprise, he shot the best out of the group, earned an ice cream bar but chivalrously gave it to the girl in second.

Horses on Target

Friday, Amber finally began horseback riding lessons.  Lance had met a young lady at dance class that owned a horse and today Amber started to learn to ride.  To say she was excited would be an understatement.  We've been looking for a place that was close and affordable for years.  The horse she rode is a Welsh Pony named Polo.  Brittan and Polo were the perfect combination of excitement and stability Amber needs.  

Saturday, Jared competed in both USA Archery and JOAD State Archery tournaments.  This was really long day of shooting. **Update:  He ended up placing 11th but considering it was his first time shooting in this age range (15-18) and he was technically still 14, I think its pretty impressive.

On Sunday, Chris posted this on FB "Dental care in the Otto house is becoming serious business", or it could be the bathroom has terrible lighting and my eyes are old LOL.

New Years Day Hike

This year for your New Year's Day Hike we chose Raven Rock Park.  This is one of our favorite hikes.  We like it because its a challenge and its a destination hike.  The destination is an area next to the Haw River with a long staircase down.  At the bottom there are huge rock formations along the river that the kids like to explore.  As an extra bonus, the trail is a circle, not an out and back, so the way home provides different scenery as well.

The kids were "Looking Amazing!".

Per tradition we also measured everyone. Lance still holds the title (by an inch) as tallest child in the house but I think he may have to relinquish it next year.