Sunday, July 5, 2026

Happy Summer Happenings!


Happy Month of July! I hope everyone is having an enjoyable summer. The twin fawns that were born in our backyard --click here to see that post-- visit us from time to time, and are growing well. They are very curious and full of energy, and their Momma Doe keeps a close eye on them.
 


My front garden perennials are all growing well. I did not plant any annuals this summer as all of Colorado is in a severe drought and we are under outdoor watering restrictions. Happily, the decorative plaques and statues help fill in the blank spots.



Our neighborhood was once a functioning cattle ranch, and the barns and a section of land have been converted into a very active equestrian center.



 The main barn has actually been placed on the National Register of Historic Places! You can read a post I wrote about this at this link.


Our oldest granddaughter took riding and horsemanship care lessons in the riding school in June. They learn how to care for a horse, their nutrition, grooming, and hoof care, saddle, bridle, and tack care. How to mount a horse, lead, turn, gallop, and go over obstacles. Also, barn safety and arena etiquette.



 A short YouTube video of our granddaughter practicing a slow gallop.  *Edited to change this to a trot, not a gallop, as Beth explained to me in her comment.

She really enjoyed the lessons and now feels more confident horseback riding and may pursue taking more involved Western Riding lessons.


Our daughter, son-in-law, and her brother-in-law were fortunate to see a FIFA World Cup game at Los Angeles Stadium between Spain and Austria. Spain won the game 3-0. 





She sent us this video of how the Los Angeles Stadium reacted to Spain's first goal!



It is hard to believe that it has been ten years since the first photo in the collage above of our grandchildren at a Fourth of July barbecue we had at our house! 
This 4th, we celebrated with our son, daughter-in-law, and family in their neighborhood at a delicious catered barbecue in their community park. The gathering also included a water slide, a bounce house for young children, and face-painting artists. 
They usually begin the event with a large bicycle parade led by the local fire department, but this year, many firefighters from fire departments across Colorado have been sent to help with multiple wildfires burning in our state. 
Many Wildland Urban Interface areas in Colorado also canceled fireworks shows this year to keep safe.




I hope summer will bring joy to all!







42 comments:

Jeanne said...

Great pictures!

Beth said...

Such a cool barn! Your granddaughter is fortunate to spend time with horses. You mentioned a "slow gallop." The gait the horse is performing is a trot, also known as a jog, not a slow gallop. I believe a slow gallop would be a canter. Here is a video short showing trotting, cantering and galloping. https://www.youtube.com/shorts/lC-xU4zKKGg

Pat @ Mille Fiori Favoriti said...

Thank you, Beth, for sending the video link that explains the difference between a horse's trot, canter, and gallop! I never took horseriding lessons so I am clueless, and I should have asked my granddaughter for the right definition when I watched her lesson. Did you move your blog to a new website? I always enjoyed your posts!

Life Images by Jill said...

my goodness, fawns born in your back garden, I can't imagine it! Of course they are feral here in Australia and don't belong at all. Looks like you have been having a busy and enjoyable time. My grandson was taking riding lessons for a couple of years, but seems to have given up on it now. Have a wonderful week. I am joining you from Mosaic Monday.

Ruth said...

What a lovely summer update! It sounds like your granddaughter had such a wonderful experience with her riding lessons.
#mmbc

Kim Carberry said...

Those deer are beautiful, how wonderful to have them visit your backyard and the flowers too. That barn looks like such a big piece of history.
It sounds like you had a great 4th July celebration.

eileeninmd said...

Wonderful photos of your summer so far and your family.
I love the deer and the flowers are all lovely.
Take care, enjoy your day and have a great week ahead.

Char 🦋 ChronicallyHopeful.com said...

Your garden looks like a fairytale wonderland with the whimsical flowers and decor and the deer family. So lovely!

The horseriding reminded me of my childhood. I had a friend who owned a horse, so I was fortunate enough to get to ride pretty often. Her horse was a rescue and was kept by a third party, so it was a special day out for both me and my friend whenever we went riding. Lovely memories.

Handmade in Israel said...

Lovely photos! The twin fawns are simply adorable. How lucky your daughter and family were to catch a World Cup game. My hubbie watched England last night at 3am our time!

Carol On The Lake said...

Your garden is beautiful and I just plain love horses! #MMBC

Laura @ Our Grand Lives said...

Looks like you had a lovely 4th of July celebration! Ours was very quiet this year which was nice in its' own way! I love the equestrian center and learning more about the area's history. We have friends who moved to Colorado a few years ago and she rides regularly. I'll hae to ask her more about that. Have a wonderful week!

ellen b. said...

How wonderful for your granddaughter to have that resource and gaining confidence in horsemanship. Fun flashback to the 4th 10 years ago! Hooray for being able to attend a World Cup Game. It's been fun to see fans from all the different countries respond to their teams and to being in the USA. Our sons will be at the USA v Belgium game today.

EricaSta said...

Sure, that your granddaughter had fun riding the horse. Great Youtube!
Thank you for sharing at MosaicMonday

Greetings by Heidrun

Stacy said...

Horseback riding has been my daughters favorite! Shes' actually going to college to be a trainer, talk about living our your little girl dreams lol. It looks like you have a beautiful Equestrian center nearby! And how fun that they got to see a FIFA game in person! My boys would love that! Hope you have a great day!

Joanne said...

Aw, those fawns are adorable. It looks like your flowers are holding up well despite the drought. Anytime I see or hear about a barn/horseback riding lessons it brings me right back to memories of visiting and sitting in our local horse barn as my youngest sister took lesson and worked there for years. She became a horse obsessed young lady and has never grown out of it to this day.

Sandee said...

How fun. Lots of wonderful things happening in your neck of the woods. Love the food. I'm hungry.

Yay on part of your family being able to attend the World Cup in LA.

Thank you for joining the Happy Tuesday Blog Hop.

Have a fabulous Happy Tuesday. ♥

Gillena Cox said...

Happy World Cup viewing
Thanks for dropping by my blog

Much love

Veronica Lee said...

What a joyful summer update!
The twin fawns sound absolutely precious, and your granddaughter’s riding lessons must have been such a confidence‑building experience.
I also love hearing about the historic barn and your 4th of July celebration.

Sandee said...

I love summertime. What views you have. Beautiful.

Thank you for joining the Wordless Wednesday Blog Hop.

Have a fabulous Wordless Wednesday. ♥

Jeanie said...

Your fawn babies are getting big! And so is your garden. It looks like you picked a great activity for your Fourth, too! I love it that there's an equestrian stable right near you! What a delight it is to see all this!

Nuria de Espinosa said...

Qué maravilla de fotos, de vídeos. Me gustan mucho los animales y las flores. Qué cervatillos tan bien cuidados. Un placer pasar por tu blog. Acabo de unirme al reto desde Bitácora literaria. Saludos

Esme Slabbert said...

Love those deer. Just returned from a 2½ week vacation and saw deer and mule deer along the road.
Glad you made it over this week, and thank you for sharing with us at SSPS 418. See you soon, and do not miss checking what’s new on Thursday, July 16

Yogi♪♪♪ said...

It looks like a lot going on where you live. We were in Pagosa Springs for the 4th and they of course cancelled the fireworks as they were bone dry.
I am really enjoying watching fans from overseas cheering their teams on. I love it. Still not interested in soccer though.

Tom said...

...Pat, so I should assume that you take riding lessons? Enjoy your summer.

Jim said...

Wonderful shots.

Spare Parts and Pics said...

I love the old barn. So cool about getting to go see the World Cup game. I've been watching some on TV. Never been to a pro soccer game.

Michelle said...

I know you must enjoy seeing those fawns grow up! Watching a FIFA game would be pretty exciting, I think. Thank you for linking up.

Jocelyn said...

Sweet pictures.

Photo Cache said...

I like the barn.

Worth a Thousand Words

Shiju Sugunan said...

How exciting for your granddaughter to learn horsemanship. The twin fawns are absolutely precious. Your garden plaques and statues are a wonderful way to keep the front yard looking beautiful and vibrant despite the water restrictions. Have a lovely summer!

Joyful said...

So many wonderful photos.

Amy Johnson said...

Your garden sure looks pretty, drought and all. The baby fawns are so cute! Visiting from TFT.

Soma @ InkTorrents.com said...

Must feel so special to see them growing up in your backyard. Your garden is looking beautiful despite the drought. I love that the riding lessons are paired with the horsemanship care lessons. So important. I wish your granddaughter all the best.

-Soma

eileeninmd said...

Hello Pat,
You have some wonderful critters in this post. The deer are so sweet. I love your garden flowers and the garden art. Nice shots of the equestrian center and the horses. Pretty butterfly and a lovely wildflower. Great photos. I hope the rest of your summer is fun. Thank you for linking up and sharing your post. Take care, have a great day and a happy weekend! PS, thank you for leaving me a comment.

Jayne said...

The twin fawns are growing so quickly, they're just adorable! It was lovely to see your granddaughter enjoying her horse riding lessons. it looks like she's doing great. Fab family pics too. I hope you have a wonderful rest of the summer, Pat. :)

~Lavender Dreamer~ said...

I love seeing these horses! I need to borrow some of your photos for my post today! heehee! Sweet hugs, Diane

Villrose said...

Aw! The cute fawns!
/Irene

Light and Voices said...

Cute fawns! Nice that your granddaughter has time to spend with horses. Hugs!

PaulaShort said...

Love your photos. The horse ones are my favorite.
Visiting today from Talking About It Tuesday.

Stephanie said...

Pat, I loved your summer post. So many wonderful things taking place. I'm hoping soon that we will see some much-needed rain here in Colorado. Loved all your photos and video clips as well. Happy July and happy summer to you!

Steph@CrazyLittleLovebirds

Lowcarb team member said...

Great post and so many wonderful photographs.
Keep on enjoying your July days.

All the best Jan

Debbie-Dabble Blog and A Debbie-Dabble Christmas said...

All beautiful pictures!! The deer are so sweet.... Thanks so much for stopping by!!
Hugs,
Deb
Debbie-Dabble