October Birthday!

Ella turns 12!!!!!

Lots of milestones: graduated from Primary, moved into Young Women's, got her temple recommend.

She is such an amazing young woman!!

This summer and fall she rode to her heart's content and became a pretty good rider. She's loved on Piccolo so much, and so did we, on both of them.

Attended a few awesome classical music concerts. 

Took quite a few selfies!

Here on a Sunday, all ready for church.

Making faces right before a glorious concert at Rice University.

She loves nails!

Friends got Piccolo's stall decorated a couple of weeks before her birthday at the horseshow!

Rode in her first equitation on the flat class, bright and early, at dawn.

So proud of her talent, hard work, and grit!

Chilling at the horseshow.

And had a lovely golf party at Top Golf with a few of her close friends. 

Right before her birthday she had her first school dance, Halloween costume themed. She was Ms. Sox Hop!!

Here with some of her school friends she usually also eats lunch with. 

The birthday cake was a success: Harry Potter themed. She loved it. My first try at fondant. 

September birthday!

Due to Harvey, school start was reset for two a half weeks. It was good and bad, but mostly good.

Happy Birthday Rishi, welcome to the 40's club!

Hurricane Harvey and a few other sweeter things

Ella has a great horseshow right before school started.  I love her style!

Warming up:

Ready to go!

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'Yay, a blue!!!

These cute little waterfowl came visiting and stayed. A Sebastopole goose and a mallard duck. Best friends. They become part of our backyard scenery for a couple months until we found a better more spacious place for them to grow and thrive but we do miss them.

 Marmalde was not so sure about them... she was scared of them in fact!

 School started for a few days then stopped, Harvey came and left behind lots of destruction, pain, and emptiness. But then many big hearts and hands worked hard and are still working to rebuild. Rishi was a big part of the rescue efforts, then part of the mucking and demo of many homes helping his dear friends in Katy who were affected, and also participating fully in our church stake efforts with the Yellow Shirts/Mormon Helping Hands.

 Ella made some amazing jumps in the back yard!

 Aloha!

Rishi, Monya, and little Simran here, getting out of the waters in their Katy's neighborhood. 

Our beautiful Telfair almost under water. We were saved and didn't get flooded.

The pumps tirelessly pumping water out so we don't get flooded.

We were so lucky our Brazos river did not crest at the height they anticipated.

Out for a bike ride in our beautiful neighborhood after the hurricane craziness washed off.

These cuties loved their lettuce. 

Enjoying her first shake.