Visitors! And a plan for the week

I'm a horrible correspondent. I like to write, don't get me wrong; I've started more letters to various people than they'll ever know. I'm just slow to finish and usually fail to send them. Cards for birthdays, anniversaries, and graduations are routinely belated.

Since I also loathe, detest, and despise calling people (although I love it when they call me...), I'm just not very good at staying in touch.

Which brings me to the visitors - a couple of weeks back I had a letter out of the blue from a very good correspondent, who also happens to be my college roommate. She writes lovely long letters, which I read, enjoy, and to which, with great frequency I generally fail to respond (guilt, guilt, guilt!).

Long story short, she and her family are coming to SD, and stopped in for a visit. We're just on the far western edge of their loop. They're doing a Laura Ingalls Wilder-tracking trip - how cool is that! In the process they've covered multiple states (all the way from Massachusetts).

They camped (in a covered wagon) at the Ingalls Homestead in De Smet - their three girls, who are absolutely adorable - were fascinated by the giant Percheron teams, the calf, the sod houses, and especially taken with the kittens :) M, their middle daughter, starts school this year. She was thrilled with prairie school, ringing the bell, slates, and carrying your lunch in a syrup pail. As her mom said, the first day of modern school may be something of a shock, but hopefully not a disappointment!

After joining us in Mitchell for a supper and a quick (and damp) visit to the (World Famous!) Corn Palace in the pouring rain, they headed back for camp and one more day in South Dakota before trekking homeward. It was wonderful to see them, and I've renewed my vow to be better about writing.

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Tonight the farrier comes back to finish the four untrimmed horses. Hopefully, he'll be on time and I can get a ride or two in post-trimming. Here are my goals for the rest of the week:

• Sunny: continue working across ground poles, and on circles & bending & transitions
  
• Lace & Pennie: clean up manes & thorough grooming, and some good pictures
• Riding
  
• Star: thorough grooming & some good pictures.
  
• Thunder & Amyra: "post time" saddled & groundwork

Ideally, I'll actually accomplish most of that!