What a difference 1,463 miles make

Yesterday, I was saying goodbye to the 7MSN herd (and Carson) in brilliant sunshine and 80ish degrees...
Today, I'm back home...in torrential rain (blustery wind and a bit of hail, too) with a high of... ((shiver)) merely 53 degrees:
As sad as this sounds, I woke to an amazing sight this morning.  You see, when I left Critter Farm six days ago...

these tulips were not blooming:

these buds were not on my blueberries:
the rhubarb leaves were a third of the size they are now:

I hadn't even realized the ornamental pear had blooms on it:

and these leaves on this Japanese Maple hadn't even considered opening:

Apparently, while I was briefly away in New Mexico, Oregon agreed to finally let spring commence:

This sadly didn't change Chester's overall attitude at all:

But that's ok.  I had an amazing trip visiting my sweet friends (human and animal) in New Mexico *and* I came home to a garden in full bloom. 

Honestly, there are times when I can be a glass-is-half-empty kind of girl, but today my watering can is more than overflowing:

:-)

The rodent story...but I really want to talk about something else

Ok. I know I said I'd tell the rodent story if you wanted to hear it, but honestly?  It's not that exciting of a story.

I mean, so what if Carson and I went out at night... :  

armed with flashlights and cameras... :

(embarrassingly, it turns out I was the only one in my pajamas, heh):

to find the creature that had been bedding down with the hens at night: 

  Only, we found nothing but chickens (trying to sleep):

 And each other... at the opposite ends of the coop:

"Hey Carson.."

"Hey Danni..."

And, ok, so we did find eventually find the chicken-coop-squatter.  Squatting outside the chicken coop.  But it was all very anticlimactic: it was just an itsy bitsy mouse with great big ears.  Hardly worth all the drama, right?

Well, except for the fact that the 7MSN hens caught him and ate him up today:

That was exciting.  (They sure do make chickens different in New Mexico.)  And that's all I'm going to say about that.

But here.. this is the incredible thing I really want to talk about...

Look at our friend, George.  He wore a saddle for the first time ever today... :

And, ohmygosh, he was such a star.  Not only was he completely relaxed wearing that saddle, he had no problem taking both Carson:

and me for a ride:

 

Alan stuck very close and observed everything his buddy was doing:

 At the end of his first-ever riding lesson, George got so much love and praise: 

 And then he took a long nap:

He totally deserved it.

Yesterday's story isn't finished, you know...

Please, won't you allow me to pick up where Carson at 7MSN left off in her Cinco de Mayo post today?

You know...after the arrival of Morning Bray Farm gang:

... and after the Margarita party hosted by Carson:

... and after said-party was crashed by the unruly equines...:

 (some in costume):

 (some just really hungry):

It was after all this, then, that Señor Don agreed to chauffeur our ranch limo:

And off we went to explore the Back Forty.  Our goal?  To locate and observe the recently released (and suddenly feral) donkeys of 7MSN and Morning Bray Farm:

 Justina and I had prime seats in the back:

Of course, 7MSN Back Forty Tours are luxurious affairs, catered with only the finest refreshments:

 Ah ha... a sighting!:

 Crikey!  This one's approaching us:

  You know, it's a funny thing about these feral beasts...they seem to enjoy coming in for kisses:

... and pats:

...and bum scratches:

Apropos of nothing and just for fun, here's a picture of Carson taking a picture of Justina taking a picture of Don :

And did I mention that it was a magnificently beautiful day?:

Much too soon, it was time to round up the Morning Bray herd so they could get back home:

The feral beasts were actually amazingly cooperative:

And another lovely day of friends, critters and laughter at 7MSN came to a close:

(Unless you want to hear the story about how Carson and I went out later in the dark in pajamas with flashlights and cameras to identify the specific type of rodent that has begun bedding down with the chickens at night....)

Why I love New Mexico

It's hard not to love a place ....

... where you are always greeted by friendly faces:

... where you are asked to play fun games: and often more than once:

... where you get to hang out with friends who have the exact same obsessions interests as you do:

... where you are whole-heartedly invited to jump right in to the group effort of animal health care:

... where you are always invited to "go for a ride":

... where you all drink out of the same water bottle (now *that* is true friendship):

... where you are always learning about new things that aren't common where you come from, like, how to identify the infamous (and poisonous) loco weed:

- and what a plant that has been chewed by a porcupine looks like:

... where you can have lively, heart-to-heart talks with the ranch dog and nobody thinks this is unusual:

... where a  165 pound pot-bellied pig named Wynonna will let you take a close-up photo of her nose - with only minimal complaint:

.. where your friend really appreciates your help doing ranch tasks:

And where, at the end of a busy day, you are fed a delicious dinner on a plate specifically chosen to to match the color of paint you got on your pants earlier that day:

I really love New Mexico.  :-)

Thank you, 7MSN and Morning Bray Farm, for having this rain-sodden, Oregon girl come to visit. Again.
:-)