Lake Mary Prom Pics:

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Ashley and Retto finish 2nd in the Preliminary/Training level at Rocking Horse Schooling Show. Ashley felt this was a good show because it clarified what she would be working on for the next couple months before she levels all the way up to Preliminary. Retto's favorite part of this show was the corn chips and gatorade at lunchtime.

Aquatica:
Highlights: The Commerson's Dolphin! Very cool little cetacean that swims around looking adorable while the kids shoot through a tube in their exhibit. The highlight for me would be the Rapid River. How fun was that? A high speed lazy river! Only negative is that the life guards allowed my daughter to sink me repeatedly and then scolded me for wearing two life jackets. Other than that it was a good time.

Our Bash at Buca di Beppo: "Raise your hand if you ate too much."

A Story From My Daughter's Beautiful Mind:

Our story begins in Africa, on the vast and open Serengeti. The sun is setting, but the action has yet to begin for the quiet inhabitants of this lonely savannah. As the lions arouse from their naps, and the wildebeest finally retire from the watering hole, an eager chimp by the name of Chip is about to discover an adventure that will change his life. He slowly slinks away from his family, grabbing vines that found themselves in front of his path as he goes. He is careful to be quiet; to get caught would mean big trouble, his parents strongly disapproved of him sneaking out. The Serengeti was dangerous, everyone was aware of that, but it was an even more serious matter for an innocent monkey like Chip. He made his way out of the trees, and without looking back, he ran away from home, and safety was soon extinct.
In another part of the Savannah, a young and rebellious lioness named Zara was about to begin her first ever hunt alone. She was beautiful, and desired among all the young hopeful male lions. She crept out into the pitch black night, her heart racing as she began the slow process of waiting for unfortunate animals to come into sight.
Let us take time from our young adventurers, and look deeper into the world that they live in. The Serengeti is a harsh place, in more ways than a human could ever imagine. Or could they? There is a constant battle for everything, food, friends, popularity, and most importantly, survival. More fights then usual had broken out among all the different species in the recent weeks. Lions were taking advantage of their popularity and began to use it against the other animals, monkeys became gradually more annoying, the zebras took their weirdness factor to a new level, and the wildebeest continued their bullying as always. Everyone’s frustration levels had peeked and they were ready for a fight.
And now back to Zara, our pugnacious lioness. She waited patiently as a gazelle sidled slowly into view. But then, from afar, she hurt a distant rumbling noise. The earth beneath her began to viciously shake, as if to dare her to stay put. She stood her ground but her breathing quickened. Louder and louder the noise came. Zara finally built up her courage and glanced over her tan shoulder. And just as she did, she was hit violently and was thrown to the ground as if she were a rag doll. Darkness soon overtook her, and she drifted into a deep sleep.
Chip laid his soft brown head flat against the cool sand. He was trying to decipher what he had just seen. His mind told him that it was indeed a herd of wildebeest and a pack of hyenas running at each other and soon colliding at top speed. His heart didn’t want to believe it though. Such fighting was just so depressing! The different cliques of animals had been arguing and throwing punches with their paws for as long as everyone could remember. It was all a fight for popularity, and who was the “king of savannah”. But the fights had turned fatal, which was what this fight was displaying. Suddenly, the dust cleared and the animals separated. Chip gingerly rose from the ground, and his heart stopped cold when he saw what was lying next to him. It was Zara, the princess, coincidently the daughter of the most prestigious being on the Serengeti. She was unconscious, and bleeding from a puncture wound at her hip. Chip was torn two ways, either he leave this girl whom he was raised to hate, or listen to his heart, and help another being in need. He mulled this over in his mind, and he was soon dragging the limp lion into the forest.
The monkeys were furious! The elders were appalled at even the suggestion that they help this animal from another species. “She is a lion! She is cruel and stubborn and vain!” they shouted. Chip attempted to explain that everyone was different, and species do not define who you are, but they didn’t listen. He dragged her still farther, refusing to give in. He nursed her back to health until the morning sun rose to announce a new day.
Zara steadily woke, in a place that was foreign to her. She was startled, but the pain her side kept her from sitting up. Beside her sat a chimp, a young one she guessed. She pinched her nose at his scent; she had heard nothing good about these chimpanzees and had never been this close to one until now. “How are you feeling? My name is Chip, I’ve been helping you regain your strength ever since you were hit by a rogue hyena, please refrain from eating me, I have helped you, and now you can be on your merry way and we will continue life as we always had.” Zara was taken aback by his bluntness, and was then surprised at herself when she responded, “life as it always was? Why would you accept that back with open arms? All I’ve known my whole life is segregation and misjudgment, young chimp, allow us to be friends, for you are kind as I am.” Chip had never smiled wider.
Back on the open savannah, the most colossal battle of all was just beginning. The elephants had sharpened their tusks, the hyenas were shouting taunts and laughter, the lions roared, the chimps pounded their beady little fists and the earth shook with rage. They hated each other, for reasons they did not know. Zara and Chip sluggishly made their way to the battle field, their hearts racing with dishonest courage and bravery. They tried not to ponder about their duty ahead, they could hardly believe themselves and the decision they had made.
The predators and the preyed on took their stances, looking at each other in the eye with utter disgust. They despised every species that they didn’t belong to. Zara gave Chip one last feeble glance, before they both bounded into the center of the field. “What is this?!” shouted the monkey king. “Chip, Get away from that blood drinker, she could eat you in one swallow!” Zara smiled toward both of them. “I could eat you Chip, and for that reason you animals should listen closely to what I have to say, hear me now!?” The animals feverishly nodded their heads. “We have been fighting for ages fellow animals! Not because of well rounded reasons, but because we are scared of being different! We strive to be exactly as our leader commands and we have never once stepped outside our races for friendship!” She winked at Chip, and his tense facial expression turned to a grin. “I was hurt today by a rogue hyena. I fell unconscious and bleeding at the hip. I could have easily fallen under a vulture’s claw, but an unexpected chimp came along, and took it upon himself to help me in my time of need.” Chip then stood, and carried himself and his small little hands, his tiny torso, along with his big heart, to center stage. “Open your eyes!” He shouted with a voice he mistook for someone else’s. “We are all the same! We have a heart, a mind, a body, and a soul, so why then animals are we so prejudice to each other? Let us change the way we live, let us open our hearts to each other!” for a moment the whole crowd was silent, but as Zara glanced around at the animals, she slowly smiled. Nostrils ceased to flair, pounding had come to a complete stop, eyes had turned kinder, and she knew a new age had begun.
In the months that followed that fateful battle at Elephant Field, there had been a great number of changes that took place. First it began with the lion kingdom thanking the chimps for their help given to their young princess. Then soon all the animals could be seen conversing with each other, relaxing together, even the gazelles and the wildebeest soon stampeded together! Life had changed in the savannah, for the simple reason that someone had the bravery to be different, and the courage to listen to their hearts, help one another, and be blind to different races and species.

~Ashley Mancuso

Nina:

We said goodbye to our beautiful Nina Kitty yesterday. She was an inspiration to us all. Her courage and indomitable spirit will not be forgotten. I have never known a more courageous animal. She will be missed.

Back to Sanesville:
After the craziness of Spring Break I realized how nice it was to get back into our routine. Andrew always seems to find new places to do his homeschool. Today it was by the pool with Luka.

Against the Sky:

I captured these two against the sky last night during their lesson with Kyle. This was a bank to bounce to bank and angled verticle combination. They had some technical things to deal with, I just needed that great sky in the background.

"How cunningly nature hides every wrinkle of her inconceivable antiquity under roses and violets and morning dew." ~ Ralph Waldo Emerson