These late spring days are filled with so much.

As many of you know, I have struggled with my weight most of my life. It goes up and down like a manic roller coaster. Well, a couple weeks ago I said ENOUGH!!!! I am trying the South beach diet. It seems to be a healthy alternative, although I hesitate to call it a diet. It is simply a healthy way to eat and live.

I feel like I have lived online to find every source I can to help me have creative ideas and still be able to eat food I like. I love, LOVE the Fat Free Vegan blog. Although I am none of those, ( well I am a blogger ), the foods there are simply wonderful. Last night I had a chilled curry zucchini soup that was FABULOUS!!! Also the vegan lasagna is to die for.

So in honor of my new way of eating ( and living ) I will try to post some recipes that I am trying. If you feel adventurous come along and eat with me. It is healthy, it is creative and a lot of fun.

Good bye rain...hello sunshine

Well the wind blew in several days of rain. It got downright cold here at our little farm on the hill. The big red house was a nice safe place to be with a pot of homemade soup in one hand and a batch of brownies in the other!!!

The rain has past and the last two days have been simply stunning. The grass is all green, the trees have blossomed, and the days are getting warmer. I feel summer nipping spring in the bud! Just a couple more weeks of school and we are free!!!

K. has a field trip tomorrow which she is really looking forward to. R. had a killer ball practice today. ( well, he is afraid of the ball...) E. has t-ball tomorrow , and so it goes.

Sam and I have been working like crazy to get our backyard landscaped...and let me just tell ya darling, out here it ain't easy. All rock and no play. Then you feed horses, haul water buckets and run your guts out the rest of the day. While kids follow you around saying.... I'm hungry, I'm bored. LOL!!! E. ran it past me today, so I plopped her on the counter and made homemade strawberry jam. :0) It is fabulous!!!

So, if you are around come on by. We will drag you along with us.

Hello Dear Reader....

Life comes at you fast doesn't it? Although today it has been wild and windy, the last few days have been gloriously sunny. Much too nice to stay inside! Here are a few updates since I last posted and no, I'm not dead!

*Spring break in Zions National Park was a blast...cold, but fun.
*K. had her dance recital and she was amazing as always!
*Ball season has sprung and trying to get three kids to practice is a joke.
*We have a new mule...Diamond. She is a baby and very cute.
*Two of our hens became Mommies while we were away.
*It is always nice to come home to baby chicks.
*Sam is working his guts out trying to landscape the yard...( the never ending task )
*I am working alongside him of course!
*Stay tuned there will be many photos to follow.

I have missed yall.

The other woman is a mule

This is Liz. She is Sam's mule. She LOVES Sam. Not me. I am the OTHER woman. (GASP) Many people have told me that mules have a favorite. Well, She has always loved Sam...and like me, I suppose she always will. ( I just hope she will share!!!) For the longest time when I would feed her she would turn her butt on me. LOL!!! She would go to the very back of her stall and turn around. She has so much character. She, like Sam...loves to be alone. Up on a mountain with no-one around. She is very anti-social...another endearing trait that Sam possesses. They are like two wallflowers that were just made for each other. Both stubborn, both loners, both cute!

Luke and Ellie

What can I say? This is where Ellie loves to be. Cross-legged at the foot of her horse. It cracks me up. Luke likes Ellie the best. He likes to follow her around and she already has him around her stubby little finger.
Every day Ellie helps Sam with chores. She loves to lead Luke, feed him and of course, give him lots of love. It is sweet to see a little girl so full of love and kindness. And to see her interact with creatures great and small fills my heart with great joy!

The rest of the story

This is a sheer rock cliff that is in the vicinity of the Coral Pink Sand Dunes. This is off the beaten path in the State Park of the same name. It was simply breathtaking. the trail winds through sand, rock, some tricky to navigate turns and falls straight down. Just amazing. I really appreciated the contrasts not only of the land but of the light and color. The white of the snow, the green of the trees, the red of the sand and the blue of the sky... all thrown together in a tapestry of light. The pictures really don't do it justice.
This was my favorite spot. The rock I am sitting on was shaped like a giant heart. I found solace there from the wind and others in the group. I do like to be alone. The valley below stretched out for at least 100 miles. It was so amazing to me to sit there and be able to watch the next storm roll across the way. Awe of nature, for sure.
This is opposite of the sheer cliff face. That is Sam on the edge. He always does like to play the edge. You can't even imagine how far that drop was. And flat rock the whole way down. Wouldn't make for a soft landing...But amazing to see.
So this is what pretty much all of Friday looked like. A blizzard. It was bone chilling cold with sustained winds of 61 mph. The snow hardly stopped, and the sun rarely shown. I can honestly say that it was the coldest I have ever been in my entire life!

Into the great wide open

Into the great wide open...under a sky of blue... The beauty and majesty of nature is all around us. Often, I wonder how many of us take for granted that the sun rises and the gift of a new day is given to us. How many of us run out the door and greet the day with joy and thanksgiving? I must admit it is much easier to do when you are on the edge of nowhere...

Sam the man. On a rock. Honestly I was impressed. There was NO WAY I was climbing up there for a picture. He crawled up that rock with blinding speed and no fear at all. So tall rocks beware...Sam is not afraid!

Yes, that is me doing a little yoga on the edge of a cliff. Yes, I am laughing my head off, lots of joy on the edge of that plateau...*smiles*