Doc is doing great! He’s the farthest along of the younguns we’ve been working with. He’s a looker too—excited to get him on the trail here sooner than later. It won’t be long now! DSC07586 wire DSC07591 If you’ve never had an Oreo race, you’ve not  lived (or laughed so hard you shot tea our of your nose). DSC07595 My only question is, would we consider this a world championship  if citizens of multiple countries competed? Germany had a marvelous representative! wire If you were a guest of ours last summer, then you may recognize this gal here, but now she’s wranglin’  much smaller stock!  Jess was blessed with a gorgeous baby girl just a few months ago and made it up for a few days to see everyone. It was wonderful to see her and meet her sweet new addition—so happy for Jess! DSC07611 wire LOOK what we got! Two days in a row for a little bit at least (although none since), but every little bit helps! Guess our rain dance at the barn was better than we thought! DSC07604  wire Our Rain Dance: 391524_4327051698799_459485307_n 428906_4327047058683_149877395_n wire What do you do when it’s hot (and there’s lots of water handy)—you start a WAR—what else?? So allow us to give instructions on the correct way to have a water fight: Step #1) Choose a subject. Sometimes that person is a willing victim which makes your task quite easy. #2) Pour water and laugh hysterically. 428784_4327044858628_457259530_n559115_4327045458643_1295541785_n #3) Be prepared for the possibility that “karma” will instantly be returned by way of your evil partner with an even larger bucket of water. #4)  Find a new partner and empty your boots. 599519_4327046138660_2032968423_n563955_4327046458668_864099473_n     #5)  Ignore everyone else laughing hysterically. wire The kittens are mobile! And apparently camera shy as well. Just a couple more weeks and they’ll be ready to go into the kid’s program for the remainder of the season. Eddy is a proud papa!   DSC07615 DSC07616 DSC07620 DSC07621  And their names are currently Larry, Moe and Curly—at least until their gender has been verified. Such cute babies though! wire Matt Wince here has had his children hard at work panning for “gold” in the river. No vacation perks until they earned what it cost to bring them….. DSC07629 DSC07630  .…we didn’t have the heart to tell him—just look at that blissful smile….. wire We all went to the rodeo! This summer, the typical six  Granby Saturday night rodeos were bunched into two weekends, three days in a row. The first weekend was over top our opening days, so no one made it, but this past weekend was the big 4th of July weekend rodeo (minus the fireworks) and it was a GREAT show! Great competitors, great friends and GREAT guests! DSC07637DSC07638   Tammy sang the National Anthem to kick things off and then Isaiah Wince, who’s family we adore, competed in the mutton busting and took 2nd place—so congratulations to Isaiah! Way to ride ‘em cowboy! (Must have learned those moves from our impressive riding program…..*ahem*.) 527866_3252345239730_2018434153_n (Think we need to invite this guy down for a lesson or two, though. I mean, doesn’t he know you’re supposed to dismount from the left? Sheesh….basic riding stuff people—let’s put a little effort into remembering next time, ok?) 540953_3252342679666_729441463_n Oh and don’t worry—he was ok.  He landed on his head. Safest spot for a cowboy….. ha! (A little cowgirl humor here….really he was ok!) wire Now for those concerned about the bear…. We have to laugh a little. And let us reassure you--No, he’s not into the food. No, he’s not bothering the animals or the guests. And no, he’s not the prelude to a big scary mamma bear.  But he is : on his own and just a curious little guy who has delighted many a staff member and guest with a picture or two and and we believe soon he’ll be moving on where he’ll find a quieter and more fruitful place to settle. If not, Division of Wildlife will decide if he should be relocated or not. For now, he’s causing no harm and we respectfully give him his space (and keep the food out of reach!) Here are a few photos some of the staff have captured of him for your viewing enjoyment: 529422_3865966404946_883690545_n 250971_3857795240672_1145588603_n  487240_4333981672044_319365353_n 528218_4333980392012_232065680_n 315427_3863714148641_824629085_n wire  Cheri continues to get better and better! DSC07689 She’s down to walking with just a cane now and will be back on a horse within the next few weeks. As far as she is concerned, it can’t come fast enough--she  has incredible patience! (And not just in the healing department—we’re also talking about the enduring of this endless photography……but we just want to brag on how awesome she is doing—so thanks for humoring us Cheri!)   Oh and the big announcement is NEXT!