Baptisms and Bunny Tracks

Okay, we have lost the battery charger for our camera- between the house thing and the center thing, somewhere is a poor lost battery charger for our camera. Until we find it or can buy a new camera- we are pictureless posts.

So- we have literally thousands of bunny tracks at our house! We've discovered a cute family of cotton tails living under our pine trees in the front. We have seen them a few times- they are adorable! They like the hay that I feed the horses and goats and help themselves to the "crumbs."

We've also had our own herd of deer at the Center. They come and sleep under the trees there and mill around. I've counted up to 12 at one time- mostly does with one 4 point buck. They don't even run away anymore when we pop out of the office or the back door of the center.

Now the BIG news- Kyle got baptised on Saturday- he was all smiles from ear to ear. And so excited! CONGRATULATIONS KYLE! We really brushed up on our Primary songs as we waited an hour in the chapel singing them until it was his group's turn (they were last-talk about ANTICIPATON...) But it all went off without a hitch! We love Kyle so much- he is a great helper with his brother and sisters and so much fun to hang around with- we love having him come out to visit. I can't believe in just four short years he'll be passing the Sacrament!

I also went with a friend this last week to California. She was taking a horse down to a Jumper trainer and I (somehow) made connections to get a colt on the way- so we brought back him. The story is really quite amazing. Last summer, as I was examining my breeding program for my horses (in particular the sport ponies), I decided, after much study, the bloodlines I wanted to find in an Arabian stallion to add to my program. The pure Spanish bred Arabians have amazing athletic ability and beauty and brains- all important. I had called a breeder in california, Wess, who had advertised a stallion at stud. Mostly still fact finding, an idea hit me to ask if he had a younger (2-3) year old colt he would lease for a year in exchange for training. He didn't. But we had a GREAT conversation reminiscing about the old days of showing and people we knew in common. He was very excited about my breeding welsh mares and producing sport ponies for kids to ride and show.

Out of the blue, last October, I got a phone call from him one night. He told me he couldn't get me off his mind and that he had a weanling colt he wanted me to have. In exchange, I would train and show him and he had the option for 10 breedings later. A colt of this caliber and breeding is worth around $10,000. !

He sent me video of the colt to analyze, as well as both his parents- straight spanish horses out of excellent breeding! I wanted to be sure that I was getting something that was what I was looking for in conformation and movement. And he is! A win/win for both of us! Wess is very excited for me to promote him as a sport horse.

The colt is BEAUTIFUL and has a GREAT disposition! My friend, Kris, couldn't believe Wess's horses and how great the colt was. He literally jumped right in the trailer and trailered like a dream on the long ride home! I've had to blanket him because we're so much colder here and he tolerates that every day, too. His name is Sal - short for Salvador- what they called him at the ranch- but I'm thinking of registering him as Regalo Sensacional- (which is Sensational Gift) or if I keep the Salvador- Salvador Regalo- but he is very nice!

A little about Wess-First- he is such a nice guy! Truly! He is a costumer for the TV show House, as well as several commercial clients. His ranch is in the beautiful mountains 2 hours out of LA. He knows what a great horse is and breeds some magnificent examples. His ranch manager, Ron, did a great job working with Sal- Thank-you Wess so much for your faith in me AND your generosity- Sal will be treasured and loved.

Oh- and exciting news for my friend, her horse was evaluated and seems to be Olympic caliber jumper- whoo-hoo! Kris and I had a GREAT time down and back- even having to delay our trip in Cedar City due to a horrible snow storm up here at the time, it was a fun trip (and we both loved California's 70 degree weather- it was lovely to get out of the snow and cold for even a few days!)