It has taken me far too long to pay tribute to my special girl, my heart horse, the one I cried with, celebrated with, fought with and Simply Dreamed with... Sedona gave us so much, it was time for her to rest. Multiple AQHA WC and RWC producer, multi AQHA ROM and superior producer, Congress Champion producer and she herself earned her ROMs. Smallest in stature, biggest in heart and attitude. When I asked her to fight for her life, she did, many times. When I needed a friend to cry with, Sedona was there. She was the epitome of a Diva and All alpha mare. She loved her babies and cried for hours,standing over Lily when she died. God truly blessed Todd and I when the gavel dropped and we were the high bidder. We had to have her... thank God we did.

There will be one more lil one from Sedona and Telasecret in 2023, I pray it will be her best ever! Her daughters continue to carry on her legacy producing the 2022 AQHA Congress Champion Weanling Colt and several futurity winners in the last few years.

RIP my girl, I will love you and cherish my memories with you forever. Please wait for me at Heaven's gate.

on August 1, 2020, Sophie went for her last wade in the pond. She barked at Kali and smiled up at me. Sophie's precious heart was never going to fail her, she fought for every day and smiled with her eyes to let us know she was still with us. Sophie was mostly deaf and her eyes blue with age, her vision deminished. We made that most difficult decision for Sophie after she stopped eating. She had given us all her heart and all her love... this was our way to return that love to her. She left peacefully in my arms. I know Patton, Abby, and Sunny were there to greet her. They all adored her and she returned that love. We will always love and miss our girl...God blessed us with her and she enriched our lives. RIP Beautiful girl, until we meet again.

Our dreams are shattered, we are heartbroken...I literally cannot stop crying. Our beautiful Lily is gone! Created on my birthday in 2017, born the day before Todd's birthday 2018 and taken from us Thanksgiving day 2019. I cannot get the image out of my head... Sedona standing over her, nickering, biting at her, licking her... begging her daughter to wake up. We were only gone 5 hours... came home to our nightmare, she had ruptured her aorta. I've waiting 15 years to raise a Mr Elusive filly... she was perfect. She was our future, she was our bright light every day. She was totally bonded to us, followed us, came running across the pasture when you called her name. Anyone that truly knows us, knows our horses are not a commodity. We don't collect them... we are not horse traders. They are our family... our children. Lily was only 18 months old.... just not fair. Todd and I are devastated... we loved this sweet girl... always will. RIP Beautiful girl, wait for me at the gate. Our hearts will never be the same.

we adopted Fosco from the SPCA in September of 2015 after our sweet Abby passed away. We wanted Sunny to help raise our next dog and she did a wonderful job. Fosco was always skittish of everyone, except us, but once he warmed up to you, he was a goofy friend for life. Sadly, in December of 2017, Fosco developed epilepsy. We tried everything to help him... sometimes they occurred every 10 days, longest was 69 days. Fosco was a sweet boy and loved his girls, us and especially Kalesi. We sadly lost him due to his epilepsy making the tough decision to set him free from the grips of grand mal siezures. We will miss you sweet boy... hope you find Sunny in Heaven.

only 5 short months after moving to our ranch, our sweet barn kitty, Lucy, gave birth to Elsa. Named after the famous lion, our Elsa came out hissing and growling! Lucy only had 1 kitten and Elsa knew she was special. Not a very big kitty, but she had a HUGE heart! She, like her little mom, kept the dogs and other cats in line. And if we petted her a moment too long, she would swat us and let us know she was a badass cat, not a lover! Elsa, like her mother, had cancer in her last months. She quietly slowed down and slept on her bench in the sun more. One morning, she let me know it was time... she was ready to go meet all her friends that had gone before. Gently in my arms she took her last breath and I know Heaven will never be the same now that she is there! RIP our sweet little lion... we loved you completely.

on October 22, 2016, Sunny went for her last swim in the pond. She played with Fosco and Sophie and had a great time. Doing well with her CHF and arthritis, she swam now with a life jacket.  The following weeks, Sunny grew more tired with each passin day. Her body becoming frail and her hips and back legs no longer supporting her. Sunny's precious heart was never going to fail her, she fought for every day and smiled with her eyes to let us know she was still with us. Sunny was never in pain, never cried out for help and never lost her will to follow us when we fed the horses. She would quietly bark at Fosco and Sophie as they chased the ball watching from the sidelines as she could no longer run. We made that most difficult decision for Sunny as her quality of life began to fade. She had given us all her heart and all her love...this was our way to return that love to her. She left peacefully with her eyes bright and in my arms. I know Patton, Abby, Tahoe, DooLee and Cassie were there to greet Sunny. They all adored her and she returned that love. We will always love and miss our girl...God blessed us with her and she enriched our lives. RIP Beautiful girl, until we meet again.

A Dog for Jesus

I wish someone had given Jesus a dog.

As loyal and loving as mine.

To sleep by His manger and gaze in His eyes

And adore Him for being divine.

As our Lord grew to manhood His faithful dog,

Would have followed Him all through the day.

While He preached to the crowds and made the sick well

And knelt in the garden to pray.

It is sad to remember that Christ went away.

To face death alone and apart.

With no tender dog following close behind,

To comfort its Master's Heart.

And when Jesus rose on that Easter morn,

How happy He would have been,

As His dog kissed His hand and barked it's delight,

For The One who died for all men.

Well, the Lord has a dog now, I just sent Him mine,

The old pal so dear to me.

And I smile through my tears on this first day alone,

Knowing they're in eternity.

Day after day, the whole day through,

Wherever my road inclined,

Four feet said, "Wait, I'm coming with you!"

And trotted along behind.

Rudyard Kipling

there are no words to descibe the pain we felt when our Cassie died. She had the most gentle soul and precious personality...and those Eyes! Cassie loved with every ounce of her being, dividing her time between us. Todd's lap at night and sleeping with me, I still hear her quiet purr. We rescued Cassie after loosing Simon and she filled a void left in our family. Why God took her home will never be understood...but we will always treasure out memories of this precious girl God blessed us with her...our family will forever miss Cassie.

Ginger showed up one morning in our old barn with a litter of 4 kittens. Ginger was a very feral cat and kept moving her kittens hiding them from us. Finally got them all in the house and she learned to trust us. We kept 2 of her kittens, Tahoe and his sister, DooLee and along with Ginger, they ruled the barn. Ginger followed me everywhere, reaching out to grab my shirt when she wanted attention. We loved this beautiful kitty... she was special. Never a sick day, but age did catch up to her and she slowly slipped away. RIP our beautiful girl, our family and barn are lonely without you.

on September 12, 2015, Abby went for her last swim in the pond. She played with Sonny and Sophie and had a great weekend. We even commented on how great she was doing with her diabetes and CHF. We had expected her to pass soon after her brother died 2 years earlier since they had never been apart, but she was thriving. We had Patton and his sister Abby since they were 12 weeks old and this courageous breed has stolen our hearts. Abby was not herself on Monday and by Wednesday, she was gone. Her precious heart was just worn out and we knew it was her time to run free with her brother. Abby took a big piece of our hearts with her and her friends look for her every day. Our ranch will never be the same without our Abby. God blessed us with her...

I try to write the words I want your heart to hear.

Hoping to find some comfort, in the fact that your not here.

I gaze into the space that you once occupied,

Knowing now that it's empty, because my girl, you've died.

I do believe with all my heart, that your soul has gone to be,

With all the other angel dogs that you were meant to see.

We will have to stay behind, until God calls us too,

Do not be afraid that he's now called for you.

The water is still, in the pond where you played,

And your bed is so empty, where your pretty head laid.

I dread the day that your scent disappears,

for it's proof to me Abby, that you were just here!

Don't worry about your friends, they will make it through,

the pain of the moment and will chase birds to remember you.

Now you go and play with Patton, and look down when you can,

remembering we love you Abbigail, and this isn't the end.

Tahoe was born here, 4 kittens born in an old wood barn that we were tearing down. Took Ginger and her kids in and raised them...keeping Tahoe and his sister, DooLee. At the time, I was driving a Tahoe and Todd has a dually! Our Tahoe was just the coolest kitty, great mouser and Great friend. He proudly shared his "catches" with us and slept with us most every night. One morning, he was just gone. We searched and prayed, but I knew my beautiful boy was not coming home. He never had a sick day and truly loved his life and us. I miss him every day... My heart was broken... RIP my beautiful boy.

This is so hard for me to do, I have put it off praying for a miracle. We drove all the way to Plano to rescue Simon...saw this beautiful face and knew he had to join our family. After losing Jasper, Simon was part of a duo of rescued boys to help heal my heart....and he did that in short order! Such a unique personality and a Big boy weighing a whopping 16lbs at eighteen months old!  He and Baxter had a morning routine of being let out the cat door after 7am... Simon would walk from the front of the house to the back porch and wait for us to come out, always there to greet us as we went to the barn. One morning, he went out...and has never been seen since. We searched for weeks, but there was never a sign of him. All we can figure is that something took him. My heart was broken... RIP my beautiful boy.

Doolee fought a good battle with feline diabetes, but in the end, it shortened her precious life. Born here in 2001, she and her brother and mother have been the bright spots in our barn, keeping watch over the mice and even the new foals. Never lonely on foaling night with Doolee around, she always wanted to be the first to greet the new foals. She would follow me in the pastures and climb up my leg to sit on my shoulder, purring and bumping me the whole time. Such a sweet kitty, I will always miss her ... RIP my beautiful girl.

This is the hardest thing for me to do, and I have put it off for months praying for a miracle. Jasper was more than a cat to me, he was my soulmate with paws. I cannot begin to explain the bond between us, suffice it to say, there will never be another. We rescued Jasper as a 4 week old kitten, nursed him back to health and he became a very vocal and talkative member of our family. Jasper, as you can see, was pretty cross-eyed...I think he gave extra love to the extra images he saw! He snuggled with me, talked to me and Lord, was he a good listener. He filled my heart like no other.  In August 2013, we left for an overnight trip...Jasper was on our bed when we left. Came back the following evening and he was gone...and has never been seen since. We searched for days, for months, but there was never a sign of him. I guess God needed a very special kitty to warm His lap in Heaven. I will never be the same without my Jasper. God blessed us with him and he taught me how to love a kitty completely... RIP my beautiful boy.

on March 13, 2013, our vet discovered that Patton had a HUGE Spleenic Hemangiosarcoma. We opted to have the tumor and his spleen removed... hoping we could give him more quality and pain free time. We have had Patton and his sister Abby since they were 12 weeks old and this courageous breed has stolen our hearts. Patton lost his battle only 37 days later, but in those 37 days, he knew joy and love! You sure would not have known he was sick, and certainly not dying. Knowing we did all we could for Patton, gave him our best, our love and not letting him suffer helps to get us through his passing. He never stopped fighting… yesterday morning, he would not get up, had labored breathing and his eyes told me it was time. We laid him to rest close to the very same spot where he had chosen to sleep the last 2 nights. Odd that is was among our other precious 4 legged family members who went before him. His sister Abby stayed by his side all morning and I held him in my arms with Patton licking my face as he took his last breath. What an incredible dog…heart of a lion and so much courage. Our ranch will never be the same without our Patton. God blessed us with him...

I try to write the words I want your heart to hear.

Hoping to find some comfort, in the fact that your not here.

I gaze into the pasture that you once occupied,

Knowing now that it's empty, because my boy, you've died.

I do believe with all my heart, that your soul has gone to be,

With all the other angel dogs that you were meant to see.

We will have to stay behind, until God calls us too,

Do not be afraid that he's only called for you.

The water is still, in the pond where you played,

And your bed is so empty, where your pretty head laid.

I dread the day that your scent disappears,

for it's proof to me Patton, that you were just here!

Don't worry about your sister, Abby will make it through,

the pain of the moment, and will chase birds to remember you.

Now you go and play, and look down when you can,

remembering we love you Patty Boy, and this isn't the end.

Hopi was the first pet we got together after we married. Abandoned as a 4 week old kitten, we rescued her and she quickly became our family. Hopi broke her leg as a kitten and the bone separated rather than grow together and heal. Given the choice of euthanasia, amputation or surgical repair, we of course opted to fix her leg. Little did we know that a pediatric orthopedic surgeon would be called in to fix her leg with a tiny plate and screws! We laughed as Hopi became our $1200 rescue cat... but would not have had it any other way!! At only 7 lbs, she never knew she was little, taking on the dogs and other cats, making sure they knew who was in charge. Hopi died as she lived, on her terms. A cat that Never left home, when she fell ill, she simply disappeared, not wanting us to find she had died in her bed. No greater gift to us than this precious kitty. Hopi, we will miss you always and forever.