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We arrived back in Chapel Hill this afternoon, after spending a week in KY with Ben's family. As always, it was a ton of fun. The gathering consisted of Ben's parents, Ben's two older brothers and their wives, Ben's younger sister, us, and our 3-year old nephew. Oh, and how can I forget the 4 horses and 5 dogs! The highliights of our stay included playing lots of games, watching movies, cooking, exchanging presents, quail hunting, and horseback riding. A bit of explanation on the latter two activities. Ben's dad and brothers are really into bird hunting. Ben's parents live on a 104-acre farm out in the middle of nowhere, so it makes a great place to practice shooting. So anyway, they bought a box of 10 live quail, planted them in various parts around the farm, and Ben, his dad, and two brothers proceeded to find them. I must mention that this could not have been possible without the help of Huck, the Brittany Spaniel. My sister-in-law Anne and I tagged along because we wanted to see Huck in action. All in all, the boys did quite well, shooting 7 of the 10 quail. They are quite yummy when grilled.

The horseback riding was definitely on of the best highlights for me. Ben's parents own 4 horses (2 ponies, a thoroughbred, and a Dutch warmblood). Ben's dad is very big into horseback riding, particularly dressage, and has won a few ribbons at competitions. I really like horses, and I've ridden a few times, but nothing fancy. Anyway, I asked Marty (Ben's dad) if he'd give me a riding lesson on Pirioso the Dutch warmblood (not sure if that's how you spell his name). So first we brushed a bunch of dirt off Pirioso, cleaned his hooves, put some boots around his front hooves, and got all his gear on. Marty rode Pirioso around for about 10 minutes to get him warmed up, and even showed off some of his dressage steps. Then I got on Pirioso, and Marty had me do some balance exercises; apparently riding a horse is all about balance. Marty had Pirioso on a lunge line which is a very long reign that he was holding so that I wouldn't have to use reigns, and also for control in case Pirioso got other ideas in his head :) Anyway, I practiced balance while Pirioso walked. Then we kicked things up a notch. Marty taught me how to post, which is where you intentionally lift yourself up and down in the saddle while the horse trots. That was pretty hard to do at first, particularly since I had never been on a horse who was going faster than a walk, and you have to time your post with the horse's gait. But after I while I started to get the hang of it and it was really really fun! Afterwards, I led Pirioso back to his stall, and we removed all his gear and gave him some carrots for being such a good horse.

I didn't take a whole lot of pics while I was there, but once I dig my camera out of my luggage, I'll see what I can post.