it's hard for me to comprehend she's old enough to drink... but i am so glad she came to visit. we had a good time together. she wanted to go for a hike of sorts so we went out to a natural bird refuge. it was so freakin hot we didn't last more than an hour



that night was the performance at the folk festival that she came to see... ani d'franco. there were quite a few good groups before ani closed out the night. all in all a great time. even if i am getting old and my feet got tired of standing. (oh, but i love the smell of pot... so of course i got to smell it quite a bit that night)



a friend of mine had a booth there selling different imported items... her lanterns looked so lovely after dark. i was going to set mine up inside but when i saw how nice they were outside it went under my gazebo thingy



the next day we went back but i guess by sleeping in we missed the majority of the free performances. so i convinced her that we should get a bit of mehndi done. after this she tried to convince me that we should get something pierced. i tried to tell her i didn't think i could pull off that look anymore lol



oh sammi... i found a handmade knitted cap there that i was sure you would like but it was $35 and didn't have the cash there to get it... (also i couldn't remember how much the other one was that you balked at getting...)



pictures of our trip to the farm to follow...

Beautiful!!!!

Thanks for sharing!!!

the first thing we had to do was drop off some packages at the hutterite colony. toothpaste was on sale so they asked me to pick up 120 tubes for them. they are a group of people of germanic decent that live and work communally. they each have their own home in this track housing but share a kitchen and dining hall. worldly items like televisions and computers are not allowed for personal use. they do use computers in their agricultural barns though. they are good neighbors and good farmers



sarah doesn't have her drivers license but would now like to try for it... so we were out driving when we saw this mother mule deer and her twin babies



we went out to the pasture... one of my most favorite places to be. the last time i went out there i went without water and would not make that mistake again. here sarah is beside a gopher hole... technically our gophers are called ground squirrels but regardless... they are good diggers they can make a mess of your land in a hurry



we walked down the coulees... it gets very dry on the tops of the hills but stays green in the bottom. i couldn't keep my hands off of the ripe chokecherries but sarah seemed more intent on studying the tent caterpillers beside them. chokecherries are great by the handfull... you just spit out the pits when you are done. however they do make your mouth pucker after a long hike of eating them



we found a few leaf fossils in an area full of shale from when we were a huge prehistoric inland sea. not too far from here there are dinosaur bones so i am sure if we knew what to look for we could find something from that era too. however this is sarah perched on top of a neat sandstone rock that has eroded



when we came back up we were at an area that is very special. there are about 5 or 6 tent rings left from a time before there were white settlers and the native indians followed the buffalo through the grassland. it's kind of a fuzzy picture but the clearer ones i had someone couldn't make out the rings. it is hard to imagine spending the winter with your family in a teepee that size. i'm darn sure none of us would last a night let alone a winter.



so thank you sarah for coming to visit... and thanks to you for taking a peak of my bit of the canadian prairie

very cool!! looks like you had a lovely time.

very nice pics emm

seems like you both had a great time.

I read and examined every bit you shared here. You know this is why I adore you to pieces... the knack for sharing, educating and expressing... the most powerful gift one can give, I believe. A mind and time... with heart is all that is takes. Looking great Emm, your niece is so hip... I love her style.

I have those stars you showed all over my living room... they are the coolest of little cute things.

All is amazingly diverse... the colony and the children dressed... so interesting... even if I am aware of much of this... to see it in real time is something else. So interesting...I appreciate you and all that you share.

Nice pics. . My niece has been staying with me and my boyfriend for several weeks during the summer for some years and we always enjoy her being with us, so I can very much relate .

here's to living life well. Family is our constant.

can i be your niece .... PLEASE ?




beautiful ..thanx for sharing

Awesome....Auntie Emm!!!

Whap!!

Amazing and beautiful, both in words and images... ...absolutely great photos, emm.. I love weekends like these.

So inspirational to spend 2-3 hours with you this morning/afternoon, sharing our lives... so freely. Every minute, every sec... is forever treasured by me. Thank you Emm. Forever friends.

Come walk and sit with me soon.

Your world is beautiful, Emm. Just like you.

emm, that girls needs to eat..smile.

Great photos hun ..glad u had fun

YAY! Looks like the two of you had a wonderful time! I'm also close with my niece (she's a teen too) and I understand how you much cherish your relationship with her.

Thanks for sharing.

she perhaps looks younger than her 21 years
i was suitably impressed with my parents
they freaked out when she had purple hair
but they seem to be acknowledging the fact
that the girl she lives with might be more than just a friend

her band's myspace page http://www.myspace.com/me...separation

great pictures Emm.
It looks like a great place just to get away from all of it.

I love photo essays like this - it takes you away for just a little while
thanks emm

WOW!

This is a very wonderful thread.

Thank you.

Great pics!

The sandstone rock looks like the head of a Tyraneosaurus Rex. Very cool pic. I also like the one where your niece is looking up at the chokecherries.


M
[Edited 8/28/06 10:17am]