Little sisters of the sun lit candles in the rain

Tomorrow is historic "Jubilee Day" here in our town. Jubilee Day is supposedly the largest outdoor one-day street fair in the world, but that claim might be exaggerated by our enthusiastic Mayor. Maizie and I get all excited when Jubilee Day is approaching, because it seems like it is finally summer when it is Jubilee Day. To be perfectly honest, the fair is really just a lot of greasy food and carnival-looking crowds, but we love to walk in anyway and people watch!

I took this photo of Sovey and Pie this morning. The auto-auction is in the background and you can see some of the Jubilee Day rides (orange and red to the right) waiting until late tonight when they will move into town to be assembled. I am not sure if you can see in this picture, but Pie and Sovey are bleached out orange in the shape of saddles and girths. I guess that is their version of a farmer tan - a rider tan.

Mom and I write notes on our blackboard about which buckets we have scrubbed and filled. Sovey snuck in and added his own note.

Noodlebug was waiting in the window for me when I got home from riding this morning. She has her two little back bunny feet pressed up against the screen! So cute!

Maizie's last day of school was June 9th which explains my lack of blogging. When Maizie is in school I am lucky that I get to ride pretty much every single morning. Now that she is home, I run and bike with her in the mornings and ride the horses in the evenings after dinner. At least, that is the plan. Mother Nature and her evening thunderstorms have had a few things to say about my evening rides! All the changes to our routine have made Pie and Sovey a little confused. Horses love routines and ours hasn't been consistent for a few weeks. I rode Pie on Monday night and Sovey last night and then Mom and I rode this morning because Maizie has a riding lesson tonight. Pie has not been his easy-going self these last few rides. He is anxious and becomes frustrated easily when I ask him to walk in a direction that he doesn't want to go. I find it so interesting how differently Pie and Sovey react to uncomfortable situations. Last fall Sovey started to become anxious when riding out alone without Pie. Click here for that post. Sovey's reaction was to rush and nervously crane his neck around. By starting out again from square one, like he had just arrived at our farm, I was able to work through his insecurities. It didn't happen in a day, but it worked. Sovey is completely quiet and secure now without Pie. I can ride anywhere on Sovey alone and he is having fun again! Now, Pie is displaying his insecurities in a very different manner from Sovey. Pie stamps his foot and backs up and throws a temper tantrum if Sovey doesn't lead on the trail. Re-reading my old post about Sovey makes me feel that it is time to start again with the Pie-Pie boy - at square one, like he just arrived. This is why riding is so addictive. Everyday is new and different and requires thought and patience and consistency and repetition. I love it! So I am now on the "get Pie to smile again" plan.

And, on the colorful poster front...here are two sweet puppy posters I had the opportunity to design for an Etsy client as a surprise Father's Day gift. Harry and Oliver...even their names are adorable!