Rodeo Road
So, Kody has been traveling a lot. Starting the end of June and reaching into September he is home only a couple days every week. I'm used to it, this is how our life has been since we were kids. I can remember getting off the school bus and running up to the house where my dad would have the truck and trailer hooked up and horses loaded, just waiting on me to hit the road. I loved it! We had a '89 Chevy Crew Cab with a camper on the bed and a3 horse bumper pull. I tell you what, that truck could put me to sleep within about the first ten minutes of driving because it was so loud and bumpy. My Dad would always tell me that I was the worst traveling partner because I would sleep almost the whole way! This still continues to this day. I could be helping split the drive with Kody in the middle of the day, on a full night's sleep and I'll be struggling to stay awake after a couple hours of driving. It's terrible! Last year, we drove all night to Calgary, Alberta from Casper, Wyoming so Kody could compete in the short round. I think it was close to a 21 hour trip. So we drove there, or I should say Kody drove most of it . He got on, got bucked off, then we hit the road back home. So in all, we drove over 42 hours and I spent 7 hours in Calgary. Not what I would call a fun trip. To top it off, it was the first time I had left Sheridan over night. And to top that off, it was the first few days that she had been weaned! Talk about a hard trip for this Momma! But it all turned out great, she stayed with my parents, who adore her and she took to being weaned like a champ and never looked back. Speaking of traveling in the car, my little Odessa hates it. She will be as happy as a clam when I'm buckling her in and be totally peaceful for about the first 10 minutes. But once that ten minutes is up, it's an all out scream fest. And I'm not talking about a cute little baby squeal, no this is full out, top of her lungs, make her sister plug her ears and momma pull her hair out, screaming...the whole trip. It doesn't matter if it's a quick trip to town or the hour it takes down to my parents, she is screaming. I feel so bad for her. The poor dear is sweating and spitting whenever we get where we're going. So needless to say, Odessa will not be making any long road trips until she's able to cope with traveling in the car. It breaks my heart. I would really love to go with Kody and bring the kiddos to closer rodeos, but anything over an hour away is just out of the question at this point. I've tried everything to see if it helps but no success. I've tried turning up music, tucking her in tight with blankets, switching to a different carseat, and using a white noise maker, but nothing seems to work. So I guess it's "home sweet home" for us for a while.
This week Kody was riding in Estes Park which is about an hour and a half from home. I really love this rodeo. It's such a beautiful setting in the mountains and this little town really treats it's rodeo contestants good. There's always a great hospitality tent with awesome food and little kid play area that Sheridan loves. So I had a sweet friend offer to watch Odessa so we could go with Kody and give him a little family support from the stands.
It was so good to go with him and I know that it's good for Sheridan to have some Mommy and Daddy time to herself sometimes. She is at such a fun age right now, but she's also at the "testing" stage where she really likes to see how far she can push my limits. She gets this look on her face that let's me know that she's going to try something, so I try to let her attempt what she's thinking of doing before I stop her just because I want her to know that she can make a choice to behave or not to. This time she thought it was hilarious to take off running from the base of the stands around the back and off into the area where all of the ropers on horseback were standing. NOT a safe place for a toddler! So I had to be a little more proactive with my child wrestling. To add to the fun of this situation, there were a couple of bystanders that were encouraging her to run away with "hurry, she's coming!" So after scolding Sheridan, these strangers received a scolding as well!
Our Little Diva
Swinging with Daddy
Sleepy girl on the drive home
At the end of the night, we had an amazing time. It was so great to get away with Kody and share in the rodeo experience. I really missed it! I hope to be getting back into barrel racing soon, but I'm really enjoying just being mommy and wife with my sweet, little family.
I hope everyone is having a great summer!