We're gonna party like it's your Birthday

Guess whose birthday it is today?
Gabby's!!

Want to know how old she is?   Just ask her.

My horse is brilliant.  What can I say?

Gabby was one of those surprises that change your life forever.  Stacey always wanted a horse when she was in grade school.  She saved every penny and finally was able to buy the first Brichacek family horse, Babe.  Babe was the sweetest mare ever.  About 6 months after getting Babe, she started to act strange.  She wouldn't let us ride her anymore and she was getting very fat.  On May 21, 1999, I was outside helping my Dad with fencing.  He walked behind our barn to get a fence and stopped dead in his tracks.  He turned around and started yelling, "Babe had a baby!!!"  That's right, we were sold a pregnant horse and didn't even know it.  (That really puts a whole new meaning to buy one, get one free, huh?)  Gabby has been a part of this family ever since.

Once Gabby was born, we realized we had no idea what to do with a  foal.  Some of her training was a bit delayed which may account for some of her stubbornness, attitude, and (I'm going to be honest here) downright laziness at times (In the words of Kara when the vet asked if she was an active horse, "She doesn't have many hobbies.").  Despite the fact that she will not lead anywhere unless food is involved, will not pick up her back left hoof to save her life, and will hunt you down if you get between her and dinner, she has learned some nifty tricks along the way.  The one shown above is great when kids come over.  They ask Gabby to count to a certain number and solve math problems.  My dad said that I should start teaching her square roots.  Never gets old.  She is also able to "guess" which hand I have a treat hidden in and will roll her lip back to "smile" when I ask her to.

Cannot believe she has been part of our family for 15 years already.  (Am I having one of those weird "mom moments?" sorry)

Thanks for reading!

Easter Weekend

Remember last month when I was really good about blogging?  Obviously I couldn't keep that up for too long.  Adjusting to a new fieldwork rotation is keeping me busy! 

I was able to go back home this past weekend for Easter.  It was great!  There is nothing like being on the farm during the spring time.  The grass is turning green, calves are being born, and every one is just so much happier.  I have to share all the adorable animal pictures from the weekend. 

 

This is our pet cow, Katie, with her 4th calf.  Kara named this one Benny.

Kara and Katie

Most of our calves born are black so this one was just too cute!!

Kara has a WEIRD obsession for this cat.  Notice how frightened the cat looks.

Kara's horse, Stormie, had his birthday a few weeks ago.
He got a jolly ball! 

Unfortunately, Gabby has been pretty sick lately and needed the vet to come out over the weekend.  She is getting old and all of the dust from her hay is finally catching up to her.  Hopefully she will be able to pasture soon.

And guess who came to visit me over his Easter break?!?!

Patrick discovered a while ago that if you talk, cows will just stand there and stare at you.  He likes to take advantage of this and practice his campaign speeches.  (Apologies in advance for the video being a little choppy.)

Have I mentioned that Patrick now has a blog?!?  He is sharing funny stories from teaching.  He is way talented at writing too!  Here's the link:

http://thedonnybrook.wordpress.com/

Hope your Easter weekend was great too.  Thanks for reading!

Wowza

This picture was taken with my phone on Christmas day.  For once, I'm glad it wasn't snowing on Christmas.  

Gorgeous.  Isn't it?  There definitely isn't scenery like this in Kansas City.

I officially have one week left of Christmas break.  Fieldwork starts next Monday! Hopefully I remember something from school.

Thanks for reading!

I don't think I'm in Kansas anymore.

Not that anyone would really be able to tell the difference between a Nebraska and Kansas sunset, but the point is that I am back home in Nebraska!  Even better, I get to spend Christmas break at home on the farm until I start fieldwork on January 6th.

Last Thursday, Dad, Nick, and Sarah came down to Kansas City to help move me out.  Although moving is always so much more work than originally planned, we managed to have a good time.  Besides loading up all of my stuff and cleaning out my apartment, we managed to see lots!  We went on a Harley Davidson tour (Sarah and I went shopping during this), ate at Oklahoma Joe's, went to see the lights at the Plaza and the Crown Center, and went on a Boulevard tour.  

Unfortunately, when we finally got back to Omaha and unloaded everything, I realized I had a lot of unpacking to do.  (Sorry, Stacey, for leaving my stuff all over your house.)  But on the bright side, I get to live with my sister!!! Camp Sister starts now!

I have to say, I'm pretty excited for Christmas!

My last ever fall break

And so last week was the last fall break I will ever have (because I absolutely refuse to go back to school after this).  It was absolutely marvelous!!  (That is until I realized I should have done LOTS more studying for my musculoskeletal test Monday morning.  Oops.)  I was able to sleep in, bake, ride in the combine, see my horse, my dog, and most importantly my family :)  Patrick also flew back into Nebraska for the weekend. It couldn't have been any better.

And here are the pictures I know you're just dying to see.

Sunset on my drive back to Nebraska.
This was before I was pulled over.
 I guess it's illegal to drive for more than 5 seconds in the left lane in Missouri.

This is our bucket calf, Gigi! She follows you everywhere!

This is my beautiful horse, Gabby.
She definitely holds the honor of having the the most pictures in my phone. 

Doesn't the sky look amazing?!

This is our dog, Hallie.
Also known as: Boots, Puppy, Hallers, Shep Shep, and Puppy Paws.
She is usually very camera shy, so this picture is a gem.

One of my favorite things to do during my time home is play with Hallie.
 She loves to chase a basketball around.
She also recently got this whale toy that she LOVES to play with. 

I was able to go to Jill's volleyball game.  It's probably the last I will ever see her play.
She was a rockstar!
This picture cracks me up.

My specialty: lemon meringue pie.

This is Kara's horse, Stormie. (Also known as "Mister." (That needs to be said with a lisp.))
He's a little more rider friendly than Gabby.

This was Patrick's first time riding a horse.  He's a natural!

Looks like Matt Dillon, right?

Saturday was Kara's homecoming.  Didn't she just look gorgeous?

Saturday was also Jill's last band competition.  It was freezing, but amazing!
Their theme was Coldplay.  They played a great Viva La Vida.
This also marks the end of the Brichacek marching band era.
Stacey started marching band in 1998, and we've been going strong since then.

Can I just do last week over again?