Update....soon!

I can't believe I've neglected my blog for this long! We have had so many exciting things happen around here, but we are ALWAYS on the go so I haven't had the chance to write about everything. Sadly, it's so much easier to post some pictures on facebook and call it good. Today was my last day teaching preschool until the new year and tomorrow is Jocelyn's last day of school before the Christmas break. We are excited to have time together and I am going to get this blog caught up! :) Here are two pictures that I will blog more about SOON! 

2nd Grade!!

There is no way that I have a 2nd grader! Crazy! Jocelyn and I had a WONDERFUL summer together, so it was hard for both of us to be excited about school starting again. We went to "meet the teacher" on Friday and found out she has Mrs. Bergamo. We don't know much about her, but she seems nice. None of her good friends are in her class this year, but we know she will make friends easily like she always does! (She was excited about her cute new backpack that she picked out! We need to get a pink water bottle to match. Not the bright orange one she has! haha!)

She had a fun first day of school and she likes her teacher! Good news! :) I missed her all day!!!

Zia Classic

I seriously love these pictures! They make me so happy. We have been wanting Jocelyn to start showing for a long time now and it was so fun watching her. It was definitely a proud Mom moment!

Jocelyn entered a "lead line" class this time, which was a great introduction to the "showing world". There was no pressure and she earned a blue ribbon, so she was thrilled! In September of this year, she will be entering the walk/trot class, which she will compete in until she is ten years old. Then she'll compete in the walk/trot/canter class.  

I can see the nervousness in her face in the picture above! She wasn't sure what to expect, but she sure loved dressing up in her fancy english outfit!  

Getting ready to head to the arena.

This girl is all business.  

Getting ready to take pictures. She looked so cute!

Talking to the judges. She said they were very nice. 

Jocelyn with her trainer, Mariah. We LOVE Mariah, she is awesome!

Showing off her blue ribbon! She said, "I've always wanted a blue ribbon and now I have one!"

Dismounting.  

Way to go, Jocelyn!!

Enjoying some bbq after her competition. She was too nervous to eat before. Like mother, like daughter! :)

 We have learned SO much about riding, horses, showing, etc. It is WAY more complicated than I would have ever thought. We learn something new every time we go for a lesson and I have a feeling it will be like that for years! People will ask me, "What does she do in her shows?" I tell them she will be in the "walk/trot class" and they say, "Oh. So she'll just walk and trot around?" They have no idea what all that involves! (I didn't either until we started all of this.) I really think people underestimate the hard work that goes into it. There are so many things that Jocelyn has to do to look the part and to receive a high score.  Her chin, head, fingers, wrists, elbows, shoulders, hips, back, knees, feet and even her heels have to be in just the right place. If one of those things are slightly off, it affects her riding. When she is doing a posting trot, she has to be in rhythm with the horses outside leg to be on the "correct diagonal." Which means when the horses outside leg (the leg closest to the wall or rail) is forward, Jocelyn needs to be up in the posting position. When it's back, she should be sitting down. Added to the mix is a 1200 pound animal who has a mind of his own, whom she has to control and get to look pretty too! It's a lot for anyone to get together, so to see Jocelyn handling that is very impressive. We are looking forward to her show in September!!! She is working hard! :)

Fun Valley 2012

We headed up to Fun Valley Family Resort in South Fork, CO this summer for vacation. I had heard so many great things about this family resort and I have to say, this was one of my favorite vacations! We had a blast! It was a perfect place for Jocelyn to meet new friends and be able to hang out with kids her age! There were so many things to do to keep busy. We took Jocelyn's bike up there, Graham and Grandpa brought their motorcycles and went for a couple of rides, we played putt putt, rented paddle boats, Jocelyn and Grandpa went on a two hour trail ride, we went on a rafting trip, went to a couple of the dances they have, enjoyed the afternoon rain showers, played games and enjoyed each other's company!

This stream was right behind MiMi and Grandpa's RV spot. So pretty! 

The Snack Shack had really good food! Reminded me of one of our favorite spots at Bear Lake. :) 

The last day we were there, Jocelyn played with her new friend, Avery the whole day. The girls were so busy and had a great time! They rode bikes, took the paddle boat out, played putt putt and played games in the 5th wheel when it started raining. 

The first five minutes were hilarious watching two 7 year olds trying to figure out how to steer the paddle boat! So funny. They finally figured it out and did really well! 

The cute playground where Jocelyn met Avery. Our little cabin is in the background, so it was a perfect spot!  

 Jocelyn and Grandpa had a blast on their trail ride! Jocelyn was excited to ride western again! The trail guide was hilarious. He told Jocelyn that she was in charge if he was eaten by a bear on their ride!

 Jocelyn rode a horse named Apache. I can't remember the horses name that Grandpa rode. 

At Fun Valley, you can take RV's, tents, rent cabins or "motels". It was pretty packed with RV's, but surprisingly it wasn't ever loud or crowded! I loved it! The most crowded was at the BBQ night and I can see why, it was REALLY good BBQ!!!

The bridge takes you to the restaurant, office, gift shop, grocery store, snack shack, etc. It's so convenient to have your own little town right there! It was gated and you have to have a sticker on your car to get passed security. We felt really safe letting Jocelyn ride around on her bike b/c of that! 

I loved seeing an OU banner! :) Older couples come to work at Fun Valley for the summer. A lot of them were from Texas and Oklahoma! My Mom and I enjoyed the accents...made us feel at home. Super friendly people! 

Jocelyn and Grandpa enjoying the paddle boats.

These are some of the pictures from Graham's phone from their motorcycle ride. The boys got soaking wet a few times on their rides. I enjoyed the afternoon rain! 

More pics from their ride.

Jocelyn LOVED being able to ride her bike so much !

More horseback riding pictures from my phone.  

Can you see the horses tongue sticking out?  :) 

Funny story...We went to the dance hall (or whatever you want to call it) one night. This boy, Alex, came up and asked Jocelyn to dance. They danced the rest of the night. She was SO excited. There was a street dance the next night, so they made plans to meet up. When we were walking back to the 5th wheel, Jocelyn was planning her outfit including a skirt, ruffly top and she wanted to see if we could find her some dangly earrings. You should have heard her talking about her outfit! Oh boy! The next day, she ends up meeting Avery at the park right before the dance. Avery tells Jocelyn she is going to the dance too. SO! Jocelyn gets all fancy for this dance and as soon as we get there, Alex runs up to her. They get halfway through their first dance and Jocelyn sees Avery. She ditches Alex and goes and dances with Avery for the rest of the night!!!! Poor guy. Graham was actually very relieved that she isn't totally boy crazy yet. He saw a glimpse of how bad prom will be when she was planning her outfit and talking about it the rest of the night! HAHA!

Her fancy outfit for the street dance! :) We found SUPER cute earrings and a necklace at the gift shop that were horse shoes! Thank you, MiMi! 

More motorcycle ride pictures.  

Graham took this picture for Jocelyn while he was on a bike ride. I think we need to frame it for her room!

I had to have a picture of the place where Jocelyn had her first dance! :) 

We made GREAT memories here and we all want to go back sometime soon! THANK YOU to MiMi and Grandpa for a FABULOUS vacation we will always remember! xoxo.