December 2011 Snow....

It was PERFECT......on the day of our Christmas Party ....it snowed.  It took me an extra 1/2 hour to make the trek BUT it was beautiful!!!   The farrier was meeting me @ 8a & we were both late......he trimmed both Tia & Bud & the barn was all ours - Kayla & mine if you will :)   We completed morning chores & then turned the horses out in their now white pastures......one by one they seemed to notice the newly fallen snow :)

                                                                Dinky was first.......

                                                              Along comes Casino....

                                        Black Jack could not get out quick enough.....

                                                              Then Ms. Regal....

                                                 Ah....the one & only Buddha.....

                                           Tia & Wilbur........

                                                     And can't forget  Chucky  :))

          Here he is wishing everyone a very Merry Christmas & a  Happy Healthy New Year :))

Barn Christmas Decorating 2011

I'm happy to be " back on " ....as our old computer died & we are up & running w/ our new one - lets hope the photos can be posted correctly :))

This year, we had some extra elves to assist us w/ taking the barn from its normal look to a wonderful Christmas theme.  Jin & Bernadette were more than happy to  make the long trek from the city to the country & join in the festivities.  I had brought a thermos  of HOT water for our hot chocolate, whipped cream, cookies & several new Christmas decorations.  The stage would have been set EXCEPT on my way to the barn, I was doing a duet w/ my Trisha Yearwood CD & looked up in time to see a yellow light - I had NO idea how much time I had before it turned red!!  So.....I applied the brakes w/ gusto...forgetting  the  thermos in the front passenger seat.  Yep - it went flying to the floor & imploded inside& steamed up all  my windows.  Now I have a soggy car mat & fogged up windows hindering my view of the outside world.  The defrost was of no use....the only solution was to open the windows & freeze....did I mention the temp outside was a single digit....7.    Needless to say, it took a while to be able to drive & see out my windshield w/ the heat on inside.   A memorable trip for sure.

When I finally reached the barn, I removed the soaked mat & empty thermos ( by the way when I shook it - it sounded like a million pieces of teeny tiny glass rattling around....which is exactly what it was @ this point )!

However, once I was inside..... Bud's nickering @ me & others following his lead....all calmness was restored :))   I introduced all the new members to Jin & Bernadette & we began the Saturday morning routine of mucking ,spoiling, watering ,spoiling, haying & grooming the horses.  We also took a break & went in the house to inhale some hot chocolate & cookies.  Nothing warms the chilled body & soul like comfort food :)

Once back in the barn, we all took decorations & went our way.  No empty space was ignored - the rafters, stall doors, grain room, hay door - you get the picture......

                                             Bernadette& Jin took on rafter duty :)

                                                       And did a marvelous job :)

                                Kayla mastered the big door w/ 3 of the giant ornaments

                                      We started to put the garland around Dinky's stall........

Until Doug arrived & had the great idea of placing them the other way so we could have lights!!

 

                            As you can see.....Dinky is VERY festive in his decked out stall :)

                                                    Then we moved on to the stalls.....

                                                                   Stall baskets......

                                                                  Stall doors.....

                                                         The hay  & tack  room   doors.......

                              As well as the lockers......there was NOT a locale undecorated :)

                                                And it took  a village :)

Once we had the surroundings all Christmas-ed out ............ it was time to start on the equine.

Bernadette performed her magic on Tia

                                           While Jin & I worked on the Buddha......

                                      I was hiding trying to keep him still w/ no cross ties......

                                           Of course, Kayla did her BlackJack

                                             Notice the different ear topper ??

                                      Casino was more interested in eating the garland........

                                      And Dinky was @ a loss as to WHAT to think :))


We ended our day by turning the horses out,re-mucking, re-watering,  filling their troughs w/ goodies & feeling very happy & blessed to have these magnificent creatures in our lives  :))

The Newest Lil Member

As the barn gets filled to capacity....one rather short member of the herd is Dinky.  He is over 30 years old & was a show pony for MANY years before being allowed to "retire".  

                      Here he is being groomed by Kayla......

                           Who fell in love @ 1st sight!!

                 His tail was a mess from being loose in the pasture

                        But was quickly restored with TLC...

                 He is turned out w/ 3 other horses during the day.

And - believe or not - rules the roost!!!  He & Casino are buds BUT the other 2 give him PLENTY of space....it's too funny  :)

                   Massive Chucky can't believe his eyes!!!

He is such a sweet lil guy and as you can tell - he just makes it to see out his stall  :)



He is a wonderful addition to the barn & I'm already excited @ kids day next Spring.....he'll be a huge hit!!!

Full House......... Almost

There have been some changes @ the barn recently & hardly any room left in the "inn".  The Buddha's ole roommate has returned PLUS some new ones.  It's SO fun to have the majority of the stalls filled again w/ these magnificent creatures.

          Wilbur has returned - he along w/ Casino are original members :)

                                 Here's Casino....

                      Meet Max.....he's the resident stud.

                  Can't forget Chucky - he is SO handsome & big!!!

              The Buddha & Tia aren't quite sure @ all these new changes...




Regal & Blackjack are still there too .....w/ most of the stalls filled - it is very heart warming to hear all the nickers & whinnies when you first walk in the barn.  I'd love to think it's b/c they all love me - but I do realize it's really all @ my delicious carrots I bring every Saturday !!


Thanksgiving is this week & I truly feel thankful for the opportunity to be part of these beautiful horses' lives.  Thank you Patty & Doug :)

Melanie Meet My Menargerie

I invited another friend to Wisconsin & she readily agreed.  Melanie has ridden English most of her life & is an instructor @ the barn that I volunteer @ on Mondays.  We met almost 4 years ago & became quick friends while grooming horses. 

                        Mel & Tia meet for the 1st time

                    She & Tia were trotting away in no time :)

It went from a very chilly morning to an absolutely beautiful day & we ended up w/o our coats!!

        The Buddha & I were content to be the photographers this week :)

                     Cantering away on my beautiful mare....

               They made quite an attractive pair, don't you think?



She also rode the Buddha & was amazed how wonderful & easy he was to ride. She & Tia did some "moments" while riding BUT they ended up respecting each other & became buddies.  I look forward to Mel's return visit & I'm sure T does too :)

" O " Really???

Being October already - one must take every advantage of the time left for riding. Today was VERY cool & VERY windy & the horses were as 'up' ( full of energy ) as they were going to get.  My friends were going to make a return visit & ride with Kayla & myself....so....we lunged & rode the horses before they got there.

           You can tell from our dress & head attire - it was CHILLY!!!!
          Bernadette is on Tia, I'm on the Buddha & Kayla is atop Blackjack.

       Here we have Bernadette on Tia, me on Blackjack & Jin on the Buddha.

Always something to learn....Kayla was teaching me how to ride saddle seat on BJ.

             I was teaching Bernadette how to un-tack western.

  And Jin was learning how to calmly walk horses into the barn after being ridden.



Thee biggest surprise was ....when we were in the barn....Trisha & her Mom pulled up w/ the baby  - Lil O - & I got to hold him for the 1st time :)))  My camera was "full" & in the barn while we were in the house ergo no photos....grrr! 

We were all tired, cold & wind blown - but you would not have been able to tell since our smiles & laughter kept us all warm...not to mention all the horse hugs we gave :)