Friends are better than anything

We abandoned swimming today so we could accompany Gillian today as she visited a ranch with her Activity Days friends and leaders. Borges Ranch is a very pretty place at this time of the year, right in Walnut Creek. The ranch and the house was built and maintained by pioneer Frank Borges around 1900s. Today it serves as a Ranger station with lots of beautiful area to use for activities throughout the year. There are several old machinery on display and a barn with a few farm animals. All of these facts were presented to my boys when I told them that we would opt out from swimming and go to the ranch instead. They didn't sound very interested in the ranch, so I had to play my other card and tell them that Gillian's friends' siblings (a.k.a their own friends) would be there. They didn't hesitate after that. Friends are truly the bread of life, and children need them as much as adults. I'm so happy my kids have found fantastic friends in this present ward. Here are some fun pictures I took while talking to my own friends and keeping up with the children.

Jefferson is always the first to try anything that involves machines. He did get wet from trying to pump the water too hard.
Gillian is always funny, and sometimes very silly. Here is a cool picture, pretending to use the privy:
Verdant land and very pretty girl
After a week of worrying about whether Mary was still her friend (they had a little misunderstanding on Sunday), Gillian is happy to have Mary back.
Some of the children trying to feed grass to the goats on the other side of the fence.
My drive there wouldn't be complete without taking a few pictures of the gorgeous landscapes.

Although swimming is always fun, being with friends is just better.