Back to the Southwest Once More

Okay, I've been meaning to share a few more photos and stories about our trip back to the Southwest, but time keeps getting away from me.

Anyway, I had planned on having one full day to ourselves (just me, Liv, and Andrew) - Sunday - before having to tend to family obligations (the visitation at the funeral home was Monday November 11th, Veterans' Day, and my grandmother's funeral was on Tuesday November 12th, my birthday).

On our first full day back in the Southwest, that Sunday the 10th, we had headed to Alamogordo, NM, where Andrew and I had last been stationed while we were in the Air Force. (Check out the posts on our arrival in El Paso here, and our trip to White Sands.)

After we'd spend a considerable amount of time enjoying the beauty of White Sands National Monument, we'd decided to spend a bit of time in Alamogordo, itself.

Since we'd gotten to White Sands mid-morning and stayed for a few hours, we were ready to have lunch somewhere in Alamogordo. Andrew and I had been thinking of this little Mexican restaurant we'd enjoyed when we'd lived there. It's this place called Margo's Mexican Food on 1st Street, just off of White Sands Boulevard. I was really looking forward to an order of the chicken flautas, knowing that none in Iowa would hit the spot as well as the ones I could eat in Alamogordo or El Paso. Maybe it's just the location that makes them taste better? I dunno.

But Livie had other plans. Shs said that since we'd eaten Mexican food the night before, she wanted something different for lunch. So we went to Sonic. Yes, the fast food drive-in. She had never been at a drive-in where the car-hop - on roller skates - skates out with your order.

Sure, she had been with me to that very Sonic once in 2006 when she was a baby and Andrew and I were still in the Air Force. Andrew had been deployed at the time. Livie must've been around 5 months old. It was a Friday afternoon, and I'd had a long day at work. I was exhausted. On my way from my office to the on-base child care center to pick up Livie, I knew that I just wouldn't feel like making myself anything for dinner that night, once we got home. My choices (if I didn't cook myself something to eat) were cold cereal, or going through the drive-thru on my way home.

So the Sonic drive-thru it was, late that afternoon in '06. Livie was in her car seat that afternoon as I went through the drive thru. Technically, yes, she'd been to that exact Sonic before, but she hadn't pulled into a drive-in spot, ordered from the menu board, and had the car-hop roller skate out with our food.

And that's what we did that day after our White Sands visit. She thought it was so cool!

Anyway, after we'd eaten our lunch, we had a couple more quick stops to make before heading back to El Paso to have dinner with family.

First, we had to drive past our old house.

This is the view as we were driving down our old street. Yes, we got to see those mountains every single day. I loved that those mountains filled the view of my kitchen window. And the living room windows, and the master bedroom windows. If we went out to the back yard, those mountains were our whole view. (They're the Sacramento Mountains, by the way.)

 Here's our old house. From the front, it looks the same. Though, there is a new satellite dish (ours was on the back of the house). And a new tree in the front yard, which you can see on the very left of the picture. Oh, and those black sun shades on those windows on the left side of the pic.

After driving down our old street, we had one more stop before heading back to El Paso. 

See, there are a bunch of pistachio farms in the area. And one very, very large pistachio. Since Liv, Andrew, and I enjoy eating pistachios, we had to go.

Here she is with the giant pistachio!

This is at McGinn's Pistachio Tree Ranch. When we first got there, she acted as though she were irritated. She said, "But I thought it was going to be a real giant pistachio . . . one that I could eat!"

They did, however, have lots of pistachios and pistachio treats in the gift shop, ones that we could buy and she could actually eat. We ended up with a small bag of roasted, salted pistachios, and some pistachio brittle. (They also had some spicy pistachio brittle made with chiles, which I'd sampled. It was really tasty, but since I'd be the only one eating it, I decided not to buy any - I don't need to eat a whole bag of pistachio brittle all by myself - even if I spread out the eating over a few days, LOL.)

We then went down the road a little ways to another pistachio farm/gift shop called Heart of the Desert. Guess what they have in the picnic area at this place? 

Yep, it's a painted pony. This statue is called "Apple Oosa" for obvious reasons: it's an Appaloosa horse, but it has apples on it, too! Cute, huh?

I was glad for a whole day to ourselves as a family, where we had the chance to do something memorable before having to deal with the sad issue of my grandmother's funeral. 

Stay tuned . . . in a few days, I'll post about how we toasted my grandmother's memory the evening after her funeral.

More Farm Photos - Rural Thursday

Okay, I saved a few of our farm photos (from our pumpkin picking/pony riding trip to Bart's Farm) for today's "Rural Thursday."

You may recognize the view of "Bart's Farm" from this past Monday's "Barn Charm." However, in this photo, I had Livie posing next to the barn (near the straw bales).

Of course, Livie HAD to get a pony ride (or in this case, a horse ride, as this guy was a couple hands too tall to be a pony). She loved the Palomino, and picked him because it looked like a Palomino Appendix Quarter Horse I used to have.

 The farm wouldn't be complete without some chickens! Livie LOVED these chickens because they were "bock-bocking" like chickens! Haha! (What else would they do, right?)

 Livie and I took advantage of this photo opportunity - there was an "autumn scene" all set up in the front yard of the "Bart's Farm" family house. When we got home, Livie helped me decorate the photo with PicMonkey. 

And, of course, Livie went crazy with the PicMonkey decorations on this photo. She's posing with a couple of the pumpkins we'd gotten from Bart's Farm, plus the awesome orange mums I'd gotten last week (and the sucker she'd gotten after her pony ride).

And yes, that's a spider plant holder (made out of metal parts)! We'd gotten it a few years ago at the Downtown Des Moines Farmers' Market, and usually put it out every fall; this was the first year I'd actually remembered to go out and get some mums for it. 

Rural Thursday is co-hosted by Two Bears Farm and A Rural Journal.  Please check out other "Rural Thursday" entries by clicking on the "Rural Thursday" button below:

 

First Weekend in October Barn Charm!

I absolutely LOVE autumn!! And I'm so glad October's here. Anyway, over the weekend, we went to a local farm to pick pumpkins and let Livie enjoy a pony ride.

And, of course, while we were there, I had to take some photos of the barn, specifically for "Barn Charm."

This is Bart's Farm in Marion, IA. (Click here for a heartwarming story about the family that runs the farm). And this is their barn.

During the autumn, you can pick pumpkins of all sizes, either by going into the field and picking your own, or choosing from the scores of pumpkins they've already picked and have waiting in rows in the yard. They also have decorative straw bales for sale, as well as gourds, "Indian" corn, and such. 

Plus, there's a paddock where they give pony (and horse) rides. Over the weekend, Livie rode a palomino horse named "Hulk" (you can see him in the second photo). In previous years, she's ridden a small pony named Princess and a Quarter Horse named Duke.

Anyway, it's a fun outing, which we all look forward to every year. Our first year visiting their farm (2008), we'd just learned about it by chance; but since we'd had such a fun time there, it's become an annual autumn tradition. That's where we get our autumn/Halloween pumpkins every year!

A bit of texture on the photo!

Some of the pre-picked pumpkins!

"Barn Charm" is hosted by Bluff Area Daily. Please click on the "Barn Charm" button below to check out Bluff Area Daily for other "Barn Charm" entries:

Going "Home"

While we were visiting Abuelita and Nonno over Christmas break, Abuelita and I took Liv and Andrew on a special adventure. We were invited to take a tour of our old house, where my siblings and I spent some time growing up. Back in the '90s, when my parents moved (a few years after I'd graduated from college), they ended up actually selling the house to a colleague of my dad's. This colleague, his wife (Dr. and Mrs. R), and their two kids still live there . . . okay, he and his wife still live there. Their kids have moved on to start their own lives with their own families.

Here's a view from the front yard, circa early '80s, when we lived there. The house was actually built in the 1940s!

Anyway, I run into Mrs. R (and rarely, Dr. R) every so often. And each time, Mrs. R invites me to come over and see the house. But it's usually the day before I'm heading back to wherever it is that I'm living (typically, back when I was still active duty and a plane ride away), so the tour never happens. Well, this time, my mom talked to Mrs. R before our visit this time, and they arranged for us to go visit during Christmas break.

This house was always really drafty in the autumn and winter, and my dad never set the thermostat to something the rest of us were comfortable with, telling us to wear sweaters if we were so cold. (Sounds very father-like, right?!)

Well, when we got to the house, the first thing we noticed was that Mrs. R had installed a wood-burning oven in the "breakfast room" (where we ate all our meals) adjacent to the kitchen. It smelled wonderful, and it was comfortably warm! And there was another one in a sun room on the other side of the house, delightfully radiating comfortable heat.

As we walked around the house, I thoroughly enjoyed all the changes she'd made, but realized that in my mind, "legend" had made each room seem larger in my memory than it had apparently been in real life. The den, for example, seemed a bit smaller as I stood there the other day, then it had in my memories.

At one point, while looking around the den, I was suddenly awash with missing my Uncle Hector, since this was the room where he'd fallen off the treadmill mid-run, only to look at me and say, "Oops," sheepish grin plastering his face, before he got back on and continued his workout.

Nevertheless, it was a lot of fun looking around, reminiscing, marveling at the wonderfully cozy changes, and sharing family history with Andrew and Livie.

But the most fun for Livie was what Mrs. R had outside - a chicken coop, chickens (obviously), and miniature horses! And Mrs. R even let Livie pick a few eggs to take home (which she ate for breakfast the next day, while still at Abuelita's).

Here's the photo tour of the "companions" we never had:

She got to touch a chicken!

She actually picked the two she's holding from directly underneath the chickens. And they were still warm! This little fact freaked Abuelita out! Hahaha!

Here's one of the chickens. I love the coloring! We saw some of these at the 2011 Iowa State Fair, by the way.

Some are outside. The "flags" are to keep the hawks away. Apparently, some time before Mrs. R put these flags out, 4 chickens had become hawks' lunches.

Liv's meeting the  two resident miniature horses.

Abuelita is petting them! (Livie is eating a snack. Lucky for us, I'd had a granola bar in my bag, for just such a moment when Livie became famished.)

I'd always wanted to have a horse on that property, but my dad always said no. One time, he'd told me it was because the city wouldn't allow livestock on the property (but I guess that was just a way to say "no" without saying "no" for the millionth time). 

When we got home, Livie showed her eggs to Oma.

One was definitely brown, two were very pale "brown" and one was a kind of pale blue-gray.

She picked the two she wanted for breakfast (the two itty bitty ones).

She said they were really tasty!

Anyway, it was such a fun adventure. I really enjoyed recalling all those old memories, while seeing all the great new changes Mrs. R had made. And Livie and Andrew got to see a bit of history.

More Holiday Spirit

Here are a few photos from last night's "Christmas in the Park" in Marion, IA.

They had an actual reindeer! Livie decided this one was "Cupid."

Livie and Daddy are waiting for the tree lighting.

Yay! There it is, all lit up!

Liv poses in front of the tree.

We went on a horse-drawn carriage. This was the carriage behind the one we rode.

Abuelita's Surprise Visit

Yesterday, Abuelita made a surprise visit, coming out to see us (Livie, in particular) for the day. We had great adventures! Check out the photo tour of our day:

First, we stopped at Liv's school to show Abuelita where Liv gets picked up every afternoon.

Then we showed her the playground.

We then went to a local farm where they offer pony rides. Liv chose to ride Princess.

Here's Liv on Princess. She LOVES Princess. So cute!

How was the ride? She gives it a "thumbs up"!

Now it's time to pose with the ghosties and pumpkins.

Should we get one of these pretty pumpkins?

We're going out to the field to find the right one!

Liv and Daddy look around.

We even get Abuelita to "rough it" out in the field, and I used my camera to capture the moment!

Time for a photo op on the straw bales.

And another photo op with the fall decorations.

A corn field, as most corn fields look early in the autumn.

Next, we went to the local high school to enjoy a marching band competition.

Liv's in the stadium.

Daddy, Abuelita, and Liv are having fun!

Liv and Abuelita enjoyed spending the day together.

Those Famous Black Horses . . .

Thought I'd reminisce a little more, but this time, I'm heading back to Culver, Indiana (and not New Mexico). Here's a view of some of the mounts (from the late '80s) of Culver's famous Black Horse Troop . . . the same horses used for Culver Lancers and Equestriennes performances:

Circa June 1988 (click the photo to see a bigger view)

I took this photo the afternoon after graduation in 1988. This was obviously after the horses had been turned out to pasture for a summer "break."

Following in My Footsteps?

The paddock boots: my well-worn pair on the left, and Livie's new pair on the right. Aren't hers so cute?! (I know, I know . . . I need to wipe the dirt off them.)

She told me yesterday that she wants to go galloping around on a pony. I told her the first step is to get back on the pony (Isabel, the cute little chestnut from my previous post) and learn to walk and trot. She agreed that she'd try again.

But first . . . I'm taking her to a mounted Pony Club meeting in the area, so she can watch other kids during their group lesson.

Liv's Riding Lesson (Sort Of)

Today was supposed to have been Livie's first "official" riding lesson. Since it was the very first lesson, it was an abbreviated lesson: the instructor's plan was to teach her how to groom and tack up the pony before having her ride for about 10 minutes. Then they'd return to the stable aisle to untack the pony and put her away.

So this past week, we'd ordered and received her pair of cute, little paddock boots, as well as a purple schooling helmet (safety is paramount, after all). She was SO EXCITED about it!

When I picked her up from Pre-K today, she jumped around like crazy, barely able to control herself, in anticipation of her lesson.

In the car during the 15-20 minute drive to the stables, the only question was a variation of, "When are we gonna get there, Mama?"

Finally we got there (after a seemingly unending car ride - for me, the repetitive "are we there, yet?!" questions were driving me NUTS, while Liv's excitement made her impatient). She jumped out of the car and bounded to the stable door.

But of course, her first mission was to find Benny, the barn cat. And when she found him moments later, she was so excited, she shouted and jumped around, startling him into running away. When I told her to walk and use her inside voice, she gave me a pouty lower lip.

Then we found her instructor, who offered a friendly greeting, and got the lesson pony, Isabel, out on the cross ties.

She had Livie "help" her groom Isabel. It was really cute, but the lighting wasn't sufficient enough for my little camera, so no photos.

Next she showed Livie how to tack up Isabel and then it was time to go out to the ring.

With her helmet on, Livie "helped" the instructor lead Isabel out to the ring, and they headed for the mounting block.

When they got there, the instructor asked me to hold Isabel while she (the instructor, not Isabel) helped Livie get up.

And here's where the lesson took a drastically different turn than what I expected. As soon as Livie got on, she started complaining that she wanted to get down, that she didn't want Isabel, but rather, another pony.

She INSISTED on getting down, and refused to get back up. She indicated that she'd wanted the palomino instead of the chestnut (Isabel).

Later on, she said it was because she wanted a smaller one, but all the other ponies Livie's been on have been near Isabel's size (only Gabby was a bit smaller).

It wasn't until we got home that she told me that she thought the instructor was going to leave her alone. I told her that would NEVER happen, and she agreed we'd try again another day.

Anyway, here are the three photos I got (not the best lighting for my dinky camera).

Livie's checking her laces, while her instructor's checking the tack.

The helmet and boots are just too cute!

Livie's pointing at Benny, who's in the middle of the ring.

There's Benny on the mounting block!

This was moments before she mounted up and had The Meltdown.

Her instructor and I thought that if she really wants to ride, it might be helpful to come out while she's giving other young students a lesson, so Livie would remember that she doesn't need to be nervous. We may also try heading out there when there's a mounted Pony Club meeting, so she can see a bunch of young riders in a lesson.

Then again, maybe Mommy will decide to take a lesson and Livie can watch "the master" at work! Haha!

Before saying goodbye, we gave Isabel a few treats - an apple and some peppermints! Livie laughed at all the "Isabel slobber" she got on her hands.