Equine therapy

A few weeks ago we went to equine therapy as a family.  We weren't sure what to expect but we were up for the adventure.

We drove through the Santa Clarita hills. It was part of the adventure just to be able to find the place. I had packed sandwiches for us to eat. The kids ate on the way up. I waited until it was over. I needed to be able to concentrate.

Our first activity was to observe a horse. It was fun to watch but didn't hold their interest for long. The next activity was to brush some miniature donkeys. They were a little bit bigger than large dogs. All the kids took turns using the different brushes.

The last activity was to take at least one of the donkeys through an obstacle course. It was harder than it sounds. The donkey was as stubborn as you expect a donkey to be. We took turns being the leader and the encouragers. It was fun to be able to work together. Even the girls participated.  

We learned that we are able to work together as a team on our own without designating specific tasks.

It was so much fun we are going to go back in July.

Isaiah

Isaiah is wild and crazy. He is artistic. He loves the piano. It is calming for him. He had his face painted in school today. He was there for a few hours but didn't get any work done. He is a recovering addict. He lies. He is passionate about everything. He has thrown himself whole heartedly into his recovery. I love my now 17 year old son.

Piano

I was driving home one wintry day and found a piano discarded in front of a house on the corner of our street and H-5. Anna called some friends to see if they were interested. I told the boys about it too. When we came home that night the piano was still there. Ben and Noah jumped out of the van with Levi and pushed the thing home. That sounds hard enough but it was missing half the wheels so it was even harder than usual.

The piano made quite a racket as it was drug over a block. They nearly hit a truck with it. Wouldn't that have been a story to tell. "Sorry sir I hit your truck with my piano"! The neighbors came out to watch the noisy spectacle going slowly down the street. Some thoughtful neighbors gave us two skateboards to put the piano on. That made the going much easier.

The boys (and Danyel) got the thing just inside the door and left it there! It sounded awful and leaned terribly. You felt like it was going to fall on you while you played it. I was able to position it and prop it up with phone books. When it warmed up it even sounded better.

beginning

I thought it would be fun to start a family blog.  I used to have one when we were working on an adoption.  When things got stressful around here I quit blogging about family stuff.  I think it is time to start over again.  No adoption this time.  Just what makes us fun, interesting and different.  Most of it will probably just be what you see on facebook but maybe expanded with a few more pictures.  I hope it will be interesting for you.