They came, they brought cheese, they brought love, they left.

The annual Veteran's Day visit from Amy & Corrie has come and gone. Another wonderful long weekend full of delectable snacks, thoughtful gifts, entertainment for kids and adults alike, star-gazing and trashing in communal viewings of Us Weekly, happy hours, good times. Charis and I have been close with Corrie and Amy forever. Really, as long as we've been alive! They are those rare friends who are also like family - familiar and real and loyal.

Thanks for everything, Amy and Corrie! We had a GREAT time and we'll mark the calendar for Veteran's Day 2011!

Amy and Gideon: Friends 4Ever

I'm pretty sure my sister has a more wide-ranging photo selection from this November's Amy-and-Corrie lovefest, but these are two of my all-time favorites:

Ever since I got Gideon, Amy has wanted to ride him, and finally I found a saddle wide enough to fulfill that request. Amy tried to convince me that she hadn't ridden for 50 years, but her relaxed demeanor and excellent seat made me think otherwise. We had a lovely, chilly ride, and Gideon got a chance to pay Amy back for all of those treats she'd been sneaking him when she thought I wasn't looking!

Luke

After much searching and some luck in turning sales horses around, I've found Luke - a 18 month old Friesian/Morgan cross who will be my next forever horse. Here are a few pics of my beautiful boy: