A visit to the Rices

We had the most beautiful, amazing time.  They now live in Lake Elsinore completely in nature.  We went to church with them at their new ward from 8:30-11:30.  I was so glad to see it was a very nice ward.  Afterwards, we drove 4 miles on a dirt road to get to the place where they have their trailer set up.  They live on a 20 acre property working for a farmer who has a big home up the hill from them.  They work as helpers to him in exchange for staying on his land.  Their water comes from a well and was delicious. It was so wonderful to be with the Rices again! I love Brieanne sooooooooo much! They recently bought a family of goats that they will eventually use for milking. The babies are still nursing which was so cute.  (If you click on the picture of them you'll see that they are nursing.)  They have the mom, Amelia, the dad, Patch, a girl, Lucy and two little boys. Brieanne jokingly told me not to get too attached to the boys because they plan to eventually use them for food! She jokingly said their names are "Birria" and "Asado" or "almuerzo" and "cena!" I love what a farm girl Brieanne is! She's amazing.

She made me wish I lived in a trailer out in the middle of nowhere. The sky was so BIG and gorgeous, everything around us was so beautiful. They are living a very simple life, going to bed with and rising with the sun. They are unfettered by the complications of modern technology that so many of us are dependent on. The kids are learning early about farm life and work. They are living in harmony with God's creations and are more in touch with them.

We had a yummy lunch of avocado, tomato and cheese sandwiches. While we talked, the kids loved running around with the animals and playing around the nearby pond. Of course, Lala fell in! After the sun got a little lower we took a wonderful walk around the property up and down the hills. The goats and the dogs came with us. We picked a bunch of beautiful wildflowers. Brieanne knew the name of every single one! There were tons of California poppies everywhere. It was wonderful! A huge part of me wishes I could do what the Rices are doing. I am very impressed and proud of them.

After our walk, we had a DELICIOUS dinner of sauteed broccoli, garlic and mushrooms in butter and a barbequed roast. WOW. It was really amazing, Brieanne is such a talented cook. It was dark when we were done and I wished I could just crawl into their bed and spend the night!! ( and maybe never leave?) The frogs were out and croaking like crazy. It was sooooooo pretty--God's lullaby to us. But instead we had to get ready to go! On our way out, we stopped at the pond and Bella and Tristan picked up some frogs!! Lala was too scared but cried because she wanted us to bring one home so badly. It was hard leaving. I can't wait until we can go back again.