Sunday Funday with Emily

You gotta love Sunday Fundays.. and today was definitely one of them.  The weather was absolutely perfect- 80 Degrees- and everyone was taking full advantage of it on the lake.  I woke up this morning at 6:30am to the sound of swimmers on our dock- Dad, Tatyana and some friends decided to do an early morning lake swim.  Dyllan and I woke up a little later - made a big breakfast- and watched all the activity  on the lake from the deck.  We noticed paddle boarders going by the house.. in groups of 5-10... then the groups turned to more of a line... of paddle boarders.. hundreds of them.. all paddling by our dock.  We sat there for a while and just watched them all... Apparently today was the annual Paddle Around the Rock.  Hundreds of paddle boarders paddle 13 miles around Mercer Island.. haha.  Nuts.

Shortly after- Zack and AJ (kids I used to nanny for) and their parents came over with lunch for us and some mini sunglasses for Dyllan from their vacation in Jackson Hole.  We hung out on the deck some more while we ate lunch and watched all the boaters, wake boarders, jet skiers.. swimmers, kayakers, and fishermen go by.  

Just after lunch- Emily came to pick Dyllan and I up for a fun afternoon of wine tasting and horseback riding.  My good friend Emily works in the wine industry and seems to have all kinds of fun connections in Woodenville.  Today was no exception.  We went to a private tasting party at one of the best wineries in the area- Betz Family Winery.  I promised Emily I wouldn't embarrass her with my lack of wine vocabulary.. and I promised that even though it was hot out I would resist the temptation to ask for a chilled beer mug or an ice cube for my red wine... I did my best to swirl my wine like the rest of them.. and make sure to smell it before downing it- letting it glide over my tongue- front to back- absorbing the whole flavor.  haha.. no in all honesty- it was fun- we met some cool people- tasted some really great red wines.. had a few snacks.. and that was about all Misses Bug was up for.  All she wanted to do was play with the white table cloths.. touch things that she couldn't touch.. or run a muck where ever she pleased.   She did learn how to smell the wine though.  I think she liked that.  She also devoured all of their blackberries- so I think the tasting was a success.

From Betz- we drove out to Carnation (20 min super scenic drive in farm country) to the Barn where Emily's horse stays.  I didn't really know what to expect- I kind of pictured a tiny little red barn with an arena and one or two horses.  Boy was I surprised when we pulled up to the Gates of this Barn!  It was gorgeous.  Gorgeous like the type of place you see only in the movies.  As we pulled up- we saw cows out the window- acres and acres of grass, stables, hay.. a lake on one side, a rive on another.. We were excited to get out.  Dyllan has been "nayyyyy naayyyy ing" all day, every day- ever since we visited my Aunt Becky's farm and Dyllan got to pet the horses.  She just can't get enough of them- or any other animal for that matter.  So you can imagine Dyllan's delight as soon as she got out of the car and saw the horses.  She went running for them as fast as she could- yelling "naaay naaay"!  We pet the horses- fed them carrots and bananas ("nannas")-, played with the farm cat, 2 dogs ( "uuufff uuuufff")- Emily even took Dyllan on her first horse ride.  Uh oh... Dyllan is hooked.  She loved every second of it.  

Fingers crossed that Dyllan doesn't ask us for a horse now...

Someone didn't want to sit still while we wine tasted.  

Ahh at the barn at last!  Now Dyllan's horse has a place to roam free.
Can you tell how excited she is looking at the horses in the pasture?!

So so excited- running as fast as she can!

Just day dreaming ... of the day she will get a real horse...
"Whats that you say toy horse?!  You wanna run free?"

I love this photo!  Look at our little cowgirl.. so cool, just another days work on the farm.  

Feeding the horses carrots

Chasing the farm cat. everywhere!!

"Im gonna getchu Cat... here I come!"
(The cat was patient with Dyllan but didn't love the way she pet her.. she would just keep creeping out of Dyllan's reach.. taunting her.  Dyllan loved this game!)

"C'mon Toy Horse.. lets go get you some hay!"

Dyllan would NOT take her eyes off of the horses

Farm life is great

Going to pounce on this dog- who was barking at Dyllan because he was scared of her.  Of course Dyllan didn't hold back- and charged him.

Ooooo she spotted a horse- as soon as she saw him she went running over!  sprinting!

Outside of Fiero's (Emily's horse) stall- Look at all the ribbons!

Dyllan and Emily up in the Hay loft

So busy, Mom.. can't sit still!

The time has finally come!! Dyllan got to ride the horse!  She was soo excited!

ummmm, not sure?  Dyllan?  Or was I embarrassing you taking so many pictures?

After Dyllans ride- Emily showed us some tricks!  Dyllan was hooked- so impressed!

Playing in the sand

Rinsing Fiero off- after a hot day

The driveway to the barn- you can't tell but there is a lake on the right- a huge house that the owners live in- and a river to the right.  So pretty- all lined with these huge trees.