Oh. My. Goodness.
We had the most glorious Sunday. After church we stopped by the house, picked up the camera, headed to Whataburger for a sinful lunch on the go, and drove north to Belton/Salado. Wilder fell asleep in the car so we decided to take a bit of a tour, enjoying wonderful conversation and lovely farm scenes. Our roadtrip conversations are some of my most cherished times together. Seriously, my eyes glisten and my nose stings just thinking of our times traveling together and the great talks we have. Gosh darnit, I LOVE my husband!
After Wilder woke up we stopped at Pace Park in Salado for a bit of playtime. Wilder loved it -there were several other kids plus a big, wonderful daddy to play with.
Brian really got into this playscape -literally.
Brian's squatting in the little play house with the camera entertaining several wee folks.
Harry Potter slips down the slide, wand in hand.
I'm in love with those little feet.
Aaahhhhh, wood chips! Wilder loves throwing them -everywhere. Particularly on the slide.
Thief in action. Wilder highjacks this sweet little girl's ball and promptly runs off to the other side of the park. She was kind enough to share. I waited with her while Brian retrieved the scoundrel with ball in hand. 
Caught! Wilder highly objected to leaving the park, but we had fun and a lovely adventure! Hooray, hooray for family time and impromptu roadtrips!
Here are a few of my favorite shots from the Christmas Stroll in Georgetown. On my photography blog I have a handful more and the Flickr set. Here's the link to my other blog so you can enjoy just THAT much more of our hometown!
Passing out candy to spectators.
No, this isn't Wilder, but ain't he cute?!
Okay, I LOVE the kid in the middle. He was a hoot!
This boy scout brakes it down with his mad hoola-hoop skills.
At Bethlehem Village the townswomen shake their tail feathers and clap their hands for the Lord. It's a party town.
Spectators of the live Nativity play in Bethlehem Village. My question: Where's the 3rd king?
Here you have (quite possibly) the youngest attendee of the TxMPA Rally and Lobby Day at the state capitol this morning. I'm kicking myself for leaving my camera at home; it was quite a sight to behold. Red was the color of the day and approximately 600 people connected to the entertainment industry in Austin showed up bright and early on the south steps of the capital. It was a bonding experience -hundreds of people united for one cause: to bring the film industry BACK to Texas by creating tax incentives that compete with New Mexico, Louisiana and Michigan. Lots of people say how Austin is such a hot place for film, but that glorious time for the industry has passed. For the past several years Texas has not been able to compete with the tax breaks surrounding states are offering to film productions and many of Texas' best crews and actors are making a mass exodus in order to stay employed. Today is a day where the industry is attempting to change that in a BIG WAY. If these bills don't pass today, it will be a few years before they can be considered again and that may be too late.
Decked out in red, Wilder and I mingled with the large crowd and provided some light, morning entertainment. Folks thought my wee one was pretty adorable -sporting a red hat, red sweatshirt and red shoes. One lady loudly cooed to her friend, "Oh, Looooook! A FILM baby!" I had a good laugh at that. Wilder thought the capitol offered a nice selection of leaves in neat little piles on the walkways which he enjoyed sharing with me in big fistfulls. AND he LOVED clapping -which there was a lot of during the speeches by the likes of Richard Linklater, one of the producers from Friday Night Lights, the president of TxMPA, and our very own Gov. Rick Perry. We left after the speeches and got back home at.... 8am. Yep, an early morning, but it was well worth the trouble. I am so glad I got out of bed to support my profession and join together with others who like living and working in the industry in TEXAS. Hopefully we will make a difference!
Today Savannah had her first sheep herding lesson at Paws 4 Ewe and she's a born natural. I would hope so, since she is a border collie, but you never can be too sure where her instincts lie. She's great with tennis balls and small dogs, but sheep is a whole other animal (pun intended.)
Yes, I got to pet a pony and it made my week. Hours later I still feel the high of being on a ranch surrounded by all sorts of creatures and, particularly, this lovely white horse. It let me scratch behind its ears and reached it's head over the fence to nuzzle up and smell my hair. For a brief moment I imagined the possibilities of it taking a huge chunk out of my face or arm, but I cast away fear so the animal wouldn't catch me with the scent. Just call me the horse whisperer. (Now feel free to guffaw.)
Savannah was so impressive and I apologize for not having shots of her in action, but we were a bit busy to be taking photos. My mother-in-law, Betty, came along to see how our girl did and watch Wilder while I worked with Savannah and the trainer, Michele. Honestly, I just stood on the other side of the fence while Michele and Savannah and a few good sheep had at it. Michele said that the first lesson was meant to be all fun and Savannah could do no wrong, except eat her sheep (which, thankfully, she didn't.) Savannah surprised us all by being quite the natural, but also overweight and tired a bit too easily. I know you're laughing, Brian. I've resolved to slim up our collie and I might reap some benefits myself while I'm at it. I hardly think I could avoid it, actually, since I can only imagine the way to slim her down is by running her and playing more ball.
I resolved to have my own ranch after five minutes on this beautiful land, but, as my family can attest to, I have always yearned for the country life. Plus, Santa knows how long I've been asking for a pony and I'm determined now to get one after remembering how I end up on cloud 9 after being around horses.
