The things we do for our kids!!!.... I sure hope they appreciate all the thing we do for them. This entry pertains to Jayden and all her horses. This week, just like every other time we have had to haul a horse somewhere major, we are scrambling to get all the last minute stuff figured out. Jayden got a text Monday evening from the rodeo club coordinator with expectations. They have a student run rodeo club and nobody to oversee. There are no coaches, no advisor, no adult. The text informed Jayden that they need her horse trailer to haul, she needed health certificates and coggins for horses. Mark took the truck and trailer, black featherlite and white Chevy and he got the trailer checked over, tires ready, lights checked, stall slants put back in, and cleaned up. On Wednesday she had to take her horses to the vet to get health papers and Ace's injections between classes. She had a game plan to hurry back from class and take the horses to the vet in a 2 hour window. My job was to get the horses fed and in stalls, then load them in the trailer and meet her at the park and ride near Ogden. All was fine until they wanted Ace to stay an extra hour. Jayden had all her keys, books, and laptop in the tahoe that I traded her with. UGH! So, I had to make a quick trip to Ames, get her stuff to her and haul horses home and put them all away. Did I mention I have flooring people in my home putting down kitchen flooring? And did I mention it was raining and loading horses getting wet? Oh, and Mark was putting on a meeting I should have helped with at the shop and I had to skip another day of school with the boys. And I had to make yet another trip to Ames in the evening for the boys taekwondo and youth group. I should put on my cape and call myself super mom. If only I could fly...
One perk in being on the rodeo team, the University provided them with a truck and paid for a portion of the fuel. Jayden can only drive without a trailer, you have to be 20 in order to haul a trailer. She also couldn't get the truck early, so late on Thursday when she brought it home, Mark went out to hook it up to our featherlite trailer and make sure everything looked good. The ball hitch was flipped down in the truck bed and from the looks of things had not been used in some time. It was rusty and corroded. It took Mark a lot of time, trouble, and lube to get the ball to flip so we could hook it up. He was most worried about the electrical which turned out to be fine.
On Friday morning Jayden was on the road at 7Am driving to pick up the three other girls that would haul with her. Yes, technically she wasn't supposed to drive, once she picked them up, they drove the rest of the trip to Wisconsin.
I wanted to be there for Jayden's first rodeo. Mark wanted to help Jake look for a motorcycle. I didn't want to travel alone, so Luke went along with me. The drive seemed to take forever. It took us over 4 hours and we got there just minutes before the rodeo started. I had allowed extra time for stops and lunch, but in the end we barely had time. I learned on this trip that making stops at a rest area is the way to go. You have a bathroom and can get out and stretch your legs a little more than just walking into a convenient store. Plus, I love the fact that you aren't surrounded by junk food! The kids have learned that any time they stop at a convenient store it means, time to load up on junk, candy, pop, chocolate, chips, pizza, donuts, tea, you name it. They picked that habit up from their dad and it has been hard to break. At one of the rest areas, there was a path in the trees. I had Luke walk it with me and then we raced each other. It was such a beautiful day and a great way to get out of the car for a bit. I think Jayden was happy to have us there to watch and was excited for her first college rodeo. She sat with new teammates and others from SDUS and ICCC that she has known from Iowa rodeos. Iowa State has a team of around 15 competing members, most of those are barrel racers. Jayden was nervous running Astro at his very first rodeo ever. She didnt have the kind of run she hoped for, but it was still good to get that first run in. Astro took all the barrels wide. That horse has so much run in him, he is going to be really something when they get each other figured out.
Since none of the ISU members made short-go, they packed up and left. I had intended to stay and watch the short go finals and get a hotel for the night. After Jayden and her team left, it seemed kind of pointless to stay. The short go round is the top 12 in each division and compete in a final round. My Aunt Rose and Jon had wanted to come watch Jayden at her rodeo and couldnt get there in time. I called her up and asked if she was busy the rest of the day. She was more than welcoming and asked us to spend the night and she would fix us dinner. I knew it had been a long time since I had stayed at her place and being that far up up north, I should definitely stop. We drove about an hour and a half west and I drove right to their house without using directions. I was proud of myself for not using Siri directions and for remembering. We enjoyed a nice meal of my favorite, spaghetti. We spent the evening just visiting about many things. Jon showed Luke a model of the airplane he flew and had many conversations about airplanes and air craft carriers. He and Rose are such a cute couple. I am so thankful that God brought them together for the later years of their lives. They are filling their days with so many memories and traveling. I love hearing their story. I asked them to share the story of how they met. Both of them being from the same church and being in the hospital at the same time. I got to hear the whole story. Jon also spent time talking about airplanes and G-force.
Over the weekend, Jake and Mark had made plans to go look for a dirt bike together. Jake had been saving his summer money from mowing and hay. They would have some father son time and go out to eat too. Jake had been looking at dirt bikes and had one in mind. At 1AM Friday, Jake woke me up and told me he had gotten sick and vomited all over his bed. Sure enough, it was everywhere. I walked towards his room and stopped because the odor hit me like a wall. I was going to be sick. With the window opened, rubber gloves on, and a pillow held over my nose, I quickly got everything and hauled it outside. It was awful! I literally pulled his comforter all over the yard. I started in on the washer and dryer. It took 4 loads. I made a bed for Jake on the basement couch. Jake was a pretty sick boy and spent a lot of Saturday on a couch with little to eat. So much for the great weekend with Dad. Jake was excited all week to go and this was such a let down for him. It was a rough day from the beginning. On Sunday they looked at a couple motorcycle dealers in Ames before going to the private sale. The dirt bike wasn't all it was supposed to be. They came home without a bike.
One perk in being on the rodeo team, the University provided them with a truck and paid for a portion of the fuel. Jayden can only drive without a trailer, you have to be 20 in order to haul a trailer. She also couldn't get the truck early, so late on Thursday when she brought it home, Mark went out to hook it up to our featherlite trailer and make sure everything looked good. The ball hitch was flipped down in the truck bed and from the looks of things had not been used in some time. It was rusty and corroded. It took Mark a lot of time, trouble, and lube to get the ball to flip so we could hook it up. He was most worried about the electrical which turned out to be fine.
On Friday morning Jayden was on the road at 7Am driving to pick up the three other girls that would haul with her. Yes, technically she wasn't supposed to drive, once she picked them up, they drove the rest of the trip to Wisconsin.
I wanted to be there for Jayden's first rodeo. Mark wanted to help Jake look for a motorcycle. I didn't want to travel alone, so Luke went along with me. The drive seemed to take forever. It took us over 4 hours and we got there just minutes before the rodeo started. I had allowed extra time for stops and lunch, but in the end we barely had time. I learned on this trip that making stops at a rest area is the way to go. You have a bathroom and can get out and stretch your legs a little more than just walking into a convenient store. Plus, I love the fact that you aren't surrounded by junk food! The kids have learned that any time they stop at a convenient store it means, time to load up on junk, candy, pop, chocolate, chips, pizza, donuts, tea, you name it. They picked that habit up from their dad and it has been hard to break. At one of the rest areas, there was a path in the trees. I had Luke walk it with me and then we raced each other. It was such a beautiful day and a great way to get out of the car for a bit. I think Jayden was happy to have us there to watch and was excited for her first college rodeo. She sat with new teammates and others from SDUS and ICCC that she has known from Iowa rodeos. Iowa State has a team of around 15 competing members, most of those are barrel racers. Jayden was nervous running Astro at his very first rodeo ever. She didnt have the kind of run she hoped for, but it was still good to get that first run in. Astro took all the barrels wide. That horse has so much run in him, he is going to be really something when they get each other figured out.
Since none of the ISU members made short-go, they packed up and left. I had intended to stay and watch the short go finals and get a hotel for the night. After Jayden and her team left, it seemed kind of pointless to stay. The short go round is the top 12 in each division and compete in a final round. My Aunt Rose and Jon had wanted to come watch Jayden at her rodeo and couldnt get there in time. I called her up and asked if she was busy the rest of the day. She was more than welcoming and asked us to spend the night and she would fix us dinner. I knew it had been a long time since I had stayed at her place and being that far up up north, I should definitely stop. We drove about an hour and a half west and I drove right to their house without using directions. I was proud of myself for not using Siri directions and for remembering. We enjoyed a nice meal of my favorite, spaghetti. We spent the evening just visiting about many things. Jon showed Luke a model of the airplane he flew and had many conversations about airplanes and air craft carriers. He and Rose are such a cute couple. I am so thankful that God brought them together for the later years of their lives. They are filling their days with so many memories and traveling. I love hearing their story. I asked them to share the story of how they met. Both of them being from the same church and being in the hospital at the same time. I got to hear the whole story. Jon also spent time talking about airplanes and G-force.
Over the weekend, Jake and Mark had made plans to go look for a dirt bike together. Jake had been saving his summer money from mowing and hay. They would have some father son time and go out to eat too. Jake had been looking at dirt bikes and had one in mind. At 1AM Friday, Jake woke me up and told me he had gotten sick and vomited all over his bed. Sure enough, it was everywhere. I walked towards his room and stopped because the odor hit me like a wall. I was going to be sick. With the window opened, rubber gloves on, and a pillow held over my nose, I quickly got everything and hauled it outside. It was awful! I literally pulled his comforter all over the yard. I started in on the washer and dryer. It took 4 loads. I made a bed for Jake on the basement couch. Jake was a pretty sick boy and spent a lot of Saturday on a couch with little to eat. So much for the great weekend with Dad. Jake was excited all week to go and this was such a let down for him. It was a rough day from the beginning. On Sunday they looked at a couple motorcycle dealers in Ames before going to the private sale. The dirt bike wasn't all it was supposed to be. They came home without a bike.
Comments