looking forward, looking back

Just popping in to share some pictures from this morning. I took Emma over to the barn to get a little practice in before tomorrow--her first horse show. She is showing at the county 4-H Fair in lead line classes. My little sister will be bringing her pony and taking Emma through the events. Emma is excited and admittedly nervous. But the prospect of show clothes and ribbons has her grinning from ear to ear. 

Mary, of course, got a ride in as well--always dressed for the occasion in her pink cowgirl boots and ruffled skirt. It's also ninety-plus degrees and humidity is hanging in the air like a damp towel--but she's in a long-sleeved, long underwear top. I've given up my fight with this child. The long sleeves were a compromise. I talked her down from jeans and a fleece zip-up hoodie. I just have to let her sweat it out, until she agrees to take off one of her many layers. 

My littlest sidekick learned the joy of climbing gates and finding a comfortable seat. And she became best pals with a persistent little farm dog--rolling a gritty brown tennis ball back and forth until she tired of the game.

On the way home she fell asleep in the car.

The road to the farm is one of my favorites around here--the majority of it is not paved and it winds along a beautiful, clear creek. When Elizabeth was a little babe and I needed to get out of the house for a break, the girls and I would often pile in the car and drive this road so I could catch my breath in the world of mother-to-three. The vibration of the stones under our tires, the flickering of sun and shade through her window, always seemed to lull her to sleep.

I watched her in my rear view mirror today while I drove. Her eyes were always out her side window, looking up into the treetops. When I looked back the last time, she was sound asleep. My sweet little babe.