Day 12

Sunday, July 26, 2009

0630 - alarm goes off - I'm still tired!

I'm not sure what sort of crazy dreams the girls were having last night but they are both sleeping upside down on the beds, with their heads at the foot of the beds. I go to the office to start uploading Felisa's Mutton Bustin' video. It certainly isn't the best video out there (Ron says he can't even see her!) but it's better than nothing.

0700 - time to wake the kids up

After breakfast, we drive across the ranch to meet the Hicksons (our rock hunting teacher) at the creek bed. He helps us find fossils and once we get started, he identifies what we find on our own. There are a bunch of shells down here. The girls give up on the fossils after a while but have fun playing in the creek. After some searching in the creek, we drive over to the gravel pit to look for more shells and artifacts. There are a lot of interesting-looking flint nodules over here and soon we have a sizeable (and heavy!) collection of rocks to bring home with us. By 1000 we are getting hot and thirsty so we load up to head back to the house. Mr. Hickson was very nice to help us and even gave each of the kids a bag of polished stones to bring home.

Once back at the house, I have to box up the rocks/fossils and load them in the car. Clean out the trash and get the bottom layer packed. I went to the barn for a few minutes and when I got back to the car, Sunny was sitting in the back seat looking at me. I tried to take a picture but she jumped out to quickly.

Ryan is working out on the elliptical trainer in the barn. Too much excess energy? When he's done, he comes to the house to report his result. 207 calories burned in 20 minutes. At least it's a constructive way to use his energy, right? Maybe it just seems strange because I prefer to be a couch potato myself. I'm certainly not going to discourage it. Exercise is healthy!

After lunch Betty helps us get the toys put back away properly then we play Mexican Train dominoes. It was a lot of fun. The girls stuck it out for 4 rounds then went to play and came back for the final (12th) round. Ryan won the game. I was second and Betty Lou was third with only one point more than me. Between the two girls, Felisa won.

When we finally finish playing dominoes, dinner is late. Oops! Fajitas for dinner then brownies for dessert. At dinner we ended up talking about our names and how they were chosen. Fun and interesting.

After dinner I choose a route for tomorrow and download pictures. Betty Lou takes the girls for another ride around the ranch on the mule before it gets dark. I finish loading most of the stuff into the car and the kids play in the dark with Ryan's night vision goggles and their glow-stick bracelets.

Ron called and talked to the kids for a bit before bed.

Finally, it is bedtime. I am so tired today. Not really in the mood to drive all day tomorrow but oh well. Hopefully I will sleep well until the alarm goes off bright and early tomorrow morning!