Surprises!

The other day, as I was driving up my gravel road, heading home, I ran into a neat surprise. There in front of me were two covered wagons pulled by horses! They pulled to the side, when they saw me, so I could pass by. But instead of passing by, I stopped and opened my car window, and asked the men in the wagons if they could stop by my driveway, just ahead, while I ran in the house a grabbed my camera. They agreed. So I sped up to the house, ran in and ran out with camera in hand, followed by my two barking dogs. I told the dogs to stay! and being good girls, they obeyed nicely.
This is the second wagon. I messed up the order, when I downloaded the photos, and I didn't want to do it over, since it takes forever with my slow dial up Internet.

This is the photo that should have been first. The men told me there were about 20 other covered wagons that were up ahead. "We're the slowpokes of the group," one of the guys said.

They also told me they were members of the Maynard Saddle Club, and they go on these outings twice a year-driving up and down these hilly gravel roads. I was sorry I missed the rest of the caravan, but they told me they would be all back the first week of October. I'll be ready with my camera then!

The second surprise was finding out that my prickly pear cactus was blooming! This prickly pear cactus appeared in this spot a few years ago, on its own. It has been spreading and growing bigger and bigger. And now, it's blooming! Aren't the flowers beautiful? The pads of this plant are edible, and very nutritious, but you'd better pick them off while wearing gloves. They don't call it the prickly pear for nothing!

I hope you enjoyed my surprises. And if you're experiencing the sweltering heat, we are experiencing, I hope you're managing to stay cool. If you're living in the areas plagued by severe storms, I pray that you stay safe.

Thank you for reading. Have a great week.

Prom Pictures and a Small Woo Hoo!

My daughter sent me some pictures of my oldest granddaughter, Nichole, going to her Senior Prom, recently. Pictured above is Nichole and her date, Danny. Aren't they cute?

And here is Nichole, with her best friend Ally. They have been best friends since kindergarten! They are lovely young women now, going off to college soon.

It seems like only yesterday that Nichole was a little girl, chasing my chickens around the yard, swimming with baby ducks in the kiddie pool, taking a walk in the woods with me, collecting pretty rock treasures, catching tiny frogs in cups at the river, and trying to sneak them home by hiding them in a suitcase, and crying when they were leaving to go home to the city, because she didn't want to leave her Nana! But, of course, she will always be my Honey-Bunny. And did I tell you that I am very proud of her?

Sunrise, sunset, sunrise, sunset

Swiftly fly the years

One season following an other

Laden with happiness and tears

-From "Fiddler on the Roof"

.......

I also want to mention a small Woo Hoo. I have a short, writing related article in this week's Writer's Weekly, a popular newsletter for freelance writers. Angela Hoy, who publishes the newsletter, bought this from me recently, and if you'd like to take a peek at it, here is the link to it:

http://writersweekly.com/success_stories/004730_06042008.html

Thank you for reading. Have a wonderful day!