Brailey had a wonderful time at the Buckaroo Rodeo Bible Camp in Pendleton. Not only did she win a buckle (a mighty fine Montana Silversmiths one), she also learned a lot and made some really nice friends. She did not want to go, AT ALL, but Brady insisted she would have a good time, and she did! She can't wait to go again and is inspired to ride her horses and to become a better cowgirl. She also came to realize that her horse Tex is not a push button, easy horse to ride. Truth be told, he is one in a million, but when it comes to barrel racing and pole bending and anything to do with an arena, he is hard to ride. You have to ride every hair on him to make it all work - and I know this first hand from when I used to run him. He was good all week long, but when the rodeo came, Bray got nervous and he knew he could do his thing, and the result was not pretty. So that part left her in tears. But when she won the buckle in Goat Tying for her excellent attitude, horsemanship and work ethic over the week, she felt much better. I would have to say they couldn't have picked a more deserving kiddo, even if she is my own daughter. Long story short, though, the silver lining is that it turned her focus off Tex and onto Mater. Brady and I have long known Mater would be her next horse, but she was stuck on Tex. She and Texi Man have such a bond and she loves him so much. But now she has decided that it would be okay to have a couple of horses to ride, and she rode Mater for the first time after she got home from camp.
She had a wonderful time riding him, after Brady rode him down, of course. Mater is very low key and easy going, so there wasn't much to ride down. In fact, you have to have spurs for this boy. Brady loves this colt! His name may be Mater, but we call him Lover Boy, because he's so sweet. Much like someone else (her name starts with a B and ends with a Y). And although Tex is perfect in many ways, he doesn't like attention like Mater does. Tex is more like Eyore, where Mater is more like Pooh Bear.
Alvin and I participated as the Paparazzi, again. I thought this was a creative shot. Ha!
And there they are. Testing the waters!
Brady was incredibly excited and proud. I wonder how Tex was feeling?
She's a happy girl! She has big plans for this boy! Mater looks super excited, doesn't he? He has no idea what he's in for... She has been "bonding" with him all week, and he loves every second of the attention she shows him.
And so there you have it - the past, the present and the future. It's a good life!
