That time of the season again…

Hi all! Sorry if we’re a little late writing our blog this time; we didn’t really think we had that much to talk about. As it turns out, we do have a little something. It’s that time of the season again where, after 7 months here in Arizona, we find ourselves with 16 days and counting before the ranch closes for the summer. We’ve been filling out applications, sending out resumes, checking out websites, and talking with different companies all in hopes of finding our next temporary home. Normally, with 16 days left in a season, we would have long since figured this all out. After 14 jobs, somehow, looking for our 15th has provided us with more challenges than usual. (Yes, Mom, we have ideas, but no, we don’t quite know where we’re going yet!) Are we worried? Yes. A little. But we feel like we have some good leads, and we know that it always works out in the end. (If you are reading this and need a great Concierge and Shuttle Driver, hit us up!) In other news, we have been trying to do all the activities in Arizona that we’ve wanted to do before we leave. We went to some hot springs yesterday – even though it was 95 degrees outside – and soaked for an hour and a half. Highly recommended! We’ve been doing a lot of hiking and have seen the desert coming alive again – cactus flowers blooming, rattlesnakes (eek!), lizards, and vultures. (Begee even saw a snake in a tree! *shudder*) Today, we went horseback riding again, and got to lope for the first time. Loping is a step below galloping but a step up from trotting, and it was so much fun! We imagined ourselves chasing after an outlaw with Wyatt and Doc. Then, this afternoon, we went skeet shooting and took out some clay pigeons. Begee hit 20 out of 50, and Erin had 6 out of 50. Guess we won’t be with Wyatt and Doc after all… We went to the zoo last weekend and hung out with the javelinas, orangutans, and lions. A couple weeks ago, we went to Sedona and saw the only McDonald’s in the world with teal arches, instead of the standard golden arches (that one’s for you, Karrie!). We also saw Snoopy Rock and our favorite Channel 3 anchors. We've also been to Jerome and attended a Phoenix Coyotes hockey game, where Begee met Howler while Erin drooled over Wayne Gretzky. We’ve accomplished so much here in Arizona and have really faced some of our fears (hello riding a mule into the Grand Canyon!). We never expected to find such excitement and beauty in the Arizona desert, and we never expected to like working at a dude ranch so much. Someone we interviewed with today told us that she felt like she already sorta knew us because she had been reading this blog. She even said she was excited when she saw our names come through her applications. That made us feel nice! Wherever we go next, whatever we do, we can only imagine what adventures lie in store for us and hope that you’ll keep reading about them. Happy travels!