Forest of the Plains

Last weekend we attended Blogstock '08 in Tekamah (that's "tah-KAY-mah"), Nebraska. John, Jim, and Ralph have already summarized a lot of what happened, so I won't repeat it here. I will share a few reflections and comments, though.

* It was really nice to finally meet some bloggers that I've read for years! I have such a hard time focusing on anything while trying to keep track of Jacob; I wish I would have found a way to focus on more conversations with adults.

* A couple weeks ago I recounted my first and only trip to an amusement park, Cedar Point, and how I enjoyed the roller coasters. (It was also the first time I had a frozen Snickers. YUM!) One person said he just couldn't imagine me enjoying that, and I agreed. "It just isn't like me, but it was fun!" That's how I feel about horse riding. It was so nice of Julie to put so much time and effort into offering days worth of rides. Thanks, Julie! I am still surprised that I rode a horse with out a lead rope and actually was in the lead of the group. My horse almost ran into the water once, but luckily I got him to stop just in time!

* I also thought Jacob would be scared of the horses because he was scared of a miniature horse in June. But, he was very pleased to ride a pony. He even kept hold of the reins! He cried when his turn was over.

* Jacob ate a ton of sour cherries that he picked himself. There were lots of comments from people wondering if all the acidity would produce vomit or diarrhea. Actually, neither! I'm not sure why, but they did not seem to produce any negative affects. Phew!

* While on the horse ride, I got about 10 mosquito bites. Normally my mosquito bites swell up to at least 1 inch in diameter and itch horridly for at least a week. Sometimes they even turn into bruises. These Nebraska bites itched a little that night and didn't bother me again. They're actually gone already. I wish we could trade in the Kansas mosquitoes for the Nebraska ones!

* I learned that Cliff is a HUGE tofu fan and is disappointed that Marilyn refuses to cook with tofu.

*Also, the other summaries didn't mention the gift bags. Holy cow! Our wonderful hosts went to so much work and then took time to prepare gifts for us! We got homemade cherry jam, honey from the Morrow farm, Morrow Kennel cups, the local newspaper with an article about Blogstock in it, and the Official Blogstock '08 Book with excerpts from all the attending bloggers' blogs.