Tadpole Wrangling

With a little help from some Ian, Mila, Lukie, Lisa, Curt, and Craig - we wrangled tadpoles yesterday!

Tadpole wrangling is a lot like herding cats - those little froggies-to-be can swim fast and dodge nets!

We quickly figured out that the best approach was to put the net in the trough and then swish it back and forth a few times.

There were so many tadpoles in the trough that you were bound to have netted a bunch. (Mila had a cold and so she wore a mask.)

The next step was to carefully bring the net over to the bucket where one of the adults would tip the froglings into the bucket with the others that had been caught.

Lukie was absolutely fascinated by the tadpoles.

He had a net to use, but was happiest just watching the tadpoles wriggle around in the bucket.

He spent a lot of time squatting next to the bucket and watching the nets be emptied into the water.

Because it was a beautiful day with temps in the 70s and low humidity, we got out the camp chairs and hung out a bit.

Of course, soon the horses got curious and came over to check out what we were doing.

We gave them a couple of cut up apples and then shooed them away so we could finish netting tadpoles.

In the end, we removed a lot of baby froggies from the trough. After packing everything into the car, I went back for one last look at the trough to see if many were left.

Looks like we've got some more tadpole wrangling to do!

Mutton Busted!

 The Strawberry Days Festival rodeo, the second rodeo of the summer, is in the books! And the mutton busting was, well, a bust.

As the time to ride approached, both Cambria and Titan started feeling a little nervous about participating.

After thinking about it for a while, both of them decided to be spectators this time instead of competitors.

Jessica wisely agreed - the point is not the competition, it's to have fun, and if riding isn't fun, then why do it?

So the kids hung around the stock pens

and enjoyed watching the rodeo instead of mutton busting.

And still had a terrific time.

The First Rodeo of the Summer

 The first rodeo of the season is in the books! Mutton Busters Cambria and Titan competed in Saturday's Hobble Creek Riding Group's 4-H Rodeo/Art City Day's Rodeo in Springville, Utah.

Already a two year veteran of mutton busting, Cambria had strategies for preparing and riding. Friday night before going to bed, she laid out her rodeo necessities.

Shirt, jeans, belt, good luck charm, and face mask.

She had a way of imagining herself winning and how long to stay on a sheep. 

And then (my favorite), she made a list of what to do on rodeo day.

See those check marks? She was checking things off as she did them! 

Not on that list and a surprise for both Titan and Cambria was a mid morning shopping trip for new boots and hats.

Titan's new books are very similar to ones I had while in high school. I think he liked that connection between us.

While liking these fake cow fur boots with red bandana trim, Cambria was afraid they'd get too dirty in the arena and got a different pair.

New hats, new boots, new shirts, very excited, and ready to rodeo.

Cambria's ride. You can ride facing forward or backward. Backward is easier because you can  hold on better when your face isn't smushed against the sheep's neck. She earned 38 points.

When Titan's turn came, he hopped right up onto that sheep and rode! So much for being a mutton busting newbie!

Jessica did not hear his score.

Waiting for all the competitors to take their turns can be long. Word in the stands was that the sheep were "tough" that night and so the rides were fairly short.

All who rode got a sheep trophy and a new cowboy hat. (Cambria is wearing hers; Titan is not.) Neither Titan or Cambria won the competition, but they had a lot of fun and gained some more experience.

I am especially proud of Titan - he wanted badly to ride, but he was also leery of the sheep. Showing true cowboy grit, he rode. 

One rodeo is in the books, and two more to go! 

Ready to Mutton Bust

The rodeo shirts that I made Titan and Cambria have arrived!

I was more than a little nervous that they might not fit. With the kids are in Utah and me in Indiana, I had no chance to custom fit the pattern.

Titan was super excited about his shirt (which fit!) and especially the Batman appliqué I added. 

Likewise, Cambria was happy with hers. (It also fit!) She is holding the surprise I'd tucked in their pockets.

Horseshoe charms for good luck! This is Titan's first year to mutton bust, and I thought that that might make him less nervous about riding a sheep. Luckily, the sheep don't buck like a bronco - they run, and the child rider simply slides off to one side or the other. Minimal opportunity for getting hurt.

I think the horseshoe charms were a bigger hit than the shirts! 

The first rodeo of the summer is this coming Saturday. I'm looking forward to videos of their rides and hearing how they do.

Stay 'tooned!