#kewanee

[unteriors]

N Main Street, Kewanee, Illinois.

[desertdollranch]

Sierra made a few new friends over the summer. This past week while school was out, she took them out for a ride in the hills at Canyon Creek Guest Ranch, which her family owns. Her older sister Jillian brings up the rear to make sure everyone's doing okay.

Time for souvenir photographs! That's Gwendolyn on Penny and Olivia on Steps High.

Sierra on Horsefina.

Kewanee on Picasso and Jillian on Whinnyfred.

You may remember a few weeks ago when Sierra opened a pumpkin patch for her big Girl Scouts project. To reward her for doing that so well and raising lots of money, I bought her a beautiful new saddle.

The silver and turquoise accents are so pretty! It was originally sold as part of the Truly Me Saddle and Awards Set.

[aryburn-trains]

CB&Q Budd Observation

Chicago Burlington & Quincy Railroad observation (either 225 or 226) on Train 11, the westbound Nebraska Zephyr, at Kewanee, Illinois on June 6, 1961.

[maddiehphotography]

6-14-2017

swish swish

@pkuehl pt. 1

Instagram : @maddieh512000

[desertdollranch]

I had another delightful camping trip with my new little friend, Kewanee!

It's been scorching hot here all this week, so to cool off we went up to the mountain town of Red River and camped in the tall pines at 8600 feet/2643 meters elevation. See above our beautiful campsite!

Kewanee's favorite thing to do is to string a hammock in the shade of two trees and relax.

She also spent some time playing with her new toy horses that I bought for her at a local souvenir shop.

In the hottest part of the afternoon, we kicked off our shoes and ventured into the town's namesake river, which in some sections is very shallow.

Much of New Mexico is high elevation desert, but in the northern part of the state we do have some extremely tall mountains that get lots of snow in the winter. In the spring and summer, the melting snow keeps the rivers running even when the weather is hot and dry.

Kewanee was sitting on a rock drying off her tootsies when we saw something very special!

It was a family of bighorn sheep! Including one sweet little lamb. These animals usually prefer hanging out on top of mesas and rocky mountainsides. But I bet the soft green grass and cool water down on the ground was too tempting for them to resist. We held very still and quiet, and let the sheep pass without disturbing them.

[desertdollranch]

Earlier in October, Kewanee and I went on a camping trip to see the leaves changing color in Pecos Canyon, near where the mighty Pecos River originates. It was so beautiful despite the on-and-off rain.

The last picture is of a native Chickasaw Plum tree we found growing by the river. The plums are about the size of grapes, perfect for little doll hands.

I harvested a few handfuls for Antonia, so that she could sell them at her market stand.

[desertdollranch]

Welcome Kewanee, my new Via E Dollfriends doll. She's #196 of 500 dolls to be produced. Kewanee is from the Pokagon Band of the Potawatami Tribe, based in the state of Michigan. She and her family have come to live in sunny New Mexico for a while, and Kewanee is excited to start making new friends.

Via E Dollfriends are dolls that I don't see around very much in the doll collecting world. They're about 18 inches tall with some variation between each doll. They've got jointed elbows and knees, fingers that are individually formed rather than molded together, and a space between their big toes so that they can wear flip-flop shoes. The hair is really nice quality for rooted hair.

[desertdollranch]

Kewanee and I spent the past few days exploring Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, in western Colorado. As you can see, we had a great time! The canyon itself is breathtaking--in some places it's 2000 feet/600 meters deep! The ancient, exposed rock tells the life story of Earth over many millions of years. The Gunnison river flowing through the canyon down below seemed so far away, even though we could hear its roaring in the distance.

Kewanee is such a fun little buddy to bring along on outdoor adventures. She's always down for anything, and never gets tired or bored.

The best views were from the south rim, although the solitude of the north rim was nice. Our campsite was lovely as well, so much so that it was especially sad to leave it when our trip was over.