Watco Company Picnic -- Sept 2008

Maggie Snow sat with Austin and Jack and I sat in front of them. The boys had fun, but thought it was a little rough!

Jack coming down the slide....weeeee

Austin coming down the slide - so much fun!

The Watco Company picnic is always a lot of fun and held at Lincoln Park in Pittsburg. There are all kinds of rides for the boys at Kiddieland and then Watco brings in a bunch of bouncy slides and things that little boys and girls will enjoy. It was a beautiful Saturday in September that we enjoyed good company and food....and rollercoaster rides!

Our Last Horse Show of the Season -- Sept 21, 2008

We have had a rainy 2008 and a bumper hay crop. Yahoo. However, so much rain has kept us several times from holding our horse shows at the Hepler Arena. Our last show was held indoors to make sure we could finish out the season. We met at Bridwell Arena at Frontenac Kansas. There was a special costume class that the boys had prepared for over the last few months. Austin and Mommy were Native Americans with their buckskin pony, Dusty Dakota. Jackson and Daddy were Union Officers on their palomino US Cavalry pony, Honey! We had a great time and were blessed to have our Nana and Papa at the show besides Nana Jane from Kansas City. Austin is really becoming quite the rider and Jackson loves dressing up and showing everyone what he can do. In the costume class, Jackson took 2nd and Austin came in 3rd out of 7. Our friend Bailee Heenan took first as a prairie school girl. We were proud of Bailee and she looked so pretty. The boys wore Papa Art's neck ties in the Lead Line class and looked real nice. Papa Art would have been proud of the boys! Everyone fell asleep on the way home from the show except Mommy!

In the Company of Dogs....

The dogs are so much fun to watch play. They get along so wonderfully and are such a treat to watch. The boys love to play with the dogs and especially like to feed and water them. Our dogs are Cy, liver/white/tri Springer; Private, black terrier mix; Mimi, black lab; Milroy, golden greyhound mix; Emily, golden retriever; and the Hoss man, black and white Springer.

Update: Our friends the Van Elders in Leawood have asked to have Emily join their family. After much thought we have agreed to let her be a city dog!!

Dogs were out enjoying some comfortable fall weather and enjoyed posing for some pictures!

Can You Say White Water Rafting

Okay, we didn't take the more challenging raft trip because the river was dry at the time of year we visited. Also, because we had a 3 and 5 year old and their parents and grandparents. We were more about enjoying the scenery along the Colorado River. It was also pretty spectacular to see a Bald Eagle. We see plenty of hawks in Kansas, but nothing compares to the wingspan of an Eagle. Incredibly beautiful.

McKechnies on Holiday ~~ Colorado

We headed out the last week in August for a week of hiking, fishing and family time in Colorado. Other than the mountains....Colorado is almost as pretty as Horse Creek! Collen and Bill spent the week with us and also joined in on a Colorado River Raft trip.

We watched the Democratic Convention every evening and cheered on our very own Kansas Governor, Kathleen Sebelius. I actually was able to read a book and relax with a nice glass of Pinot Grigio. Wow, life away from the Ranch was pretty cushy. We also had some great meals at the Condo. We certainly didn't go hungry.

The first day we took the ski lift up to the top of the mountain at Granby Ranch and hiked down the mountain. The boys thought it was awesome and made little mounds of dirt as they hiked so they wouldn't lose their way. It took us about an hour to come down the mountain, and it psyched us up to do more hiking in Rocky Mountain National Forest.

The swimming pool at the resort was a fun place for the boys to spend about an hour each day. They practiced jumping into Daddy's arms and sitting on the steps. The pool temp was very warm and cozy.

We had some great hikes in Rocky Mountain National Forest. Adams Falls was pretty cool with a steep climb to get to the top of the falls, then a more relaxed hike along the river. The Holzwarth Historic site was a beautiful valley hike with displays at the original dude ranch. The boys loved it...especially when they were allowed to practice their roping skills. Driving up to the Continental Divide and hiking to Lake Irene were also spectacular views. We did a little fishing but mostly just took time off from the bustle of our everyday lives!!

Our last day we spent the morning on a white water rafting trip down the Colorado River. The boys sat in front to begin the trip and we managed to get pretty wet as the rapids were pretty strong at the beginning. The 50 degree temp water was a reason Austin decided to move to the middle of the raft. He was the smart one because Jack and I continued to sit in the front and enjoy the spray of water. We warmed our feet halfway down the river in a small hot spring -- very nice. I need a hot spring at the barn after I ride or clean stalls!!

I guess one of the more pleasant parts of our trip was the drive to Colorado. We drove to Salina the first day out and then stopped in Hays to visit the Sternberg Museum. WOW it was cool. The boys were a little concerned the dinosaurs might come alive, then a robotic t-rex actually did start to move and make noise. Mommy and Daddy were advised to move away from the t-rex by their very concerned sons. They love us. The Kansas scenery is so beautiful with so many different colors and a beautiful blue sky. Reminds me of the Kansas state song, Home on the Range....

Carly rides Dusty....Nathan takes a nap on a pallet!

Austin and Jackson headed to bed early tonight. They were pretty tired from the day of chores and fun with their cousins. Our Cousin Nathan decided to take a small nap on the pallet outside the hay barn....sounds REAL comfy Nathan!! Carly decided she was going to show us how to run a barrel pattern! Yee haw.

Our Level 3 equestrian riders, Joel and Carly, showed us how talented they are by riding Honey and Dusty around the back yard. Carly was able to practice a barrel pattern real nice and kept Dusty on the pattern. It takes COURAGE and a positive attitude to ride a horse and our Cousins have both of these.