September 14, 2011

Saddle Up Partners

Now that we're country folk, we figured a rodeo would be necessary.  It's been several years since I went to a rodeo (pre-kids for sure).  The boys loved it and were a bit more into it than we ever could have imagined!


They loved checking out the animals pre-rodeo and (I think) really thought that was the only "show" until the real thing started up.  And it started up with a bang... mutton bustin'!  Little kids held on for their dear lives and sheep tried as hard as they could to buck them off.  The sheep won, by a long shot.

After the first kid-o came out, Cash said he really wanted to try.  I told him that I thought the rule was that you had to be in kindergarten.  Seemed like a good age to me.  Wrong I was... several of the kids were still in diapers.  I kept having to repeat in my head, "I will not judge others for their parenting choices, I will  not judge others for their parenting choices..."

My kids didn't get to mutton bust this year.  I'm a bad mom.



Our friend Brinlee and her parents joined us for the fun.  Her daddy and our daddy just so happen to have been best friends growing up.  Seeing these two daddies with their lot of littles is so fun.  And I don't even want to think about the trouble they will soon be getting into!


Nanny and Grandaddy came too, and they made sure that the kids had plenty of hot dogs and Gatorade during the festivities.


Cash was pretty upset that the clown didn't juggle...


The looks of anticipation on the boys' faces as the guys got the gates ready was priceless.  We were right at the front so had great seats to take it all in.


This guy came right up to the rails and sprayed us with dirt!  Now that's a rodeo partner!


And here's where I won back some of the mommy street cred I lost during the great mutton bustin' denial... the calf scramble.  Stone and Cash went down and daddy walked down too, just to make sure our little rodeo newbies understood the rules.


Stone didn't really go after the calf.  He was having a hard time walking on the turned up dirt and mainly stuck close to daddy (I'm totally with him on this one, that's where you would have found me!)  Cash took off.  He was one of the smaller kids in the arena and that didn't bother him a bit!

(He's in the white shirt - you see him?  The kid that's almost airborne he's running so fast?)  He came back to his seat totally winded and smiling from ear to ear.  And they now ask daily when the next rodeo is and if they can bust mutton.

We are officially country folk!

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