Thoughtful Thursday

I was thinking I was glad no one had a camera today when I was doing chores. I would have been embarrassed, humiliated and anything else you can think of. Poor Amelia had a run in with first the goat, then Pepper and then me. The goat head butted her in the rear, Pepper wouldn't let her by and she knocked me head over tea kettle, splat on the ground on my back looking up. She looked at me like oops, I am sorry. Do you have any idea how big a 13 hand horse looks when you are laying on the ground. She looked like a Belgian Draft horse. She just trotted over and went into her stall. I lay there groaning. I am fine, just some sore spots.

Then on a more serious note, I was thinking of families and how important they are. And I was thinking about our DIL Debbie and her sister Donna. Now Donna can be abrasive and has a past of drugs and who knows what but they are all each other have. When their dad died this past weekend, Debbie did not call Donna and Donna heard about from a 3rd party on Monday. Debbie can't understand why Donna was so mad. I told Debbie that should have been her second telephone call. She told me she could not deal with her. I have been thinking about that and praising God that our family is relatively close. Not that they don't have their disagreements about life styles, and other junk but God help anyone who said anything about siblings. My sister and I are very close even though we live far apart. I just don't get this disfunction.

Then I was thinking that this was a beautiful day. I should have gone riding.

Thankful Tuesday

No pictures. My camera went on strike for some reason. Darn.

I am thankful tonight for the garden I had. I have tons of squash in the freezer, a lot of zucchini ground and in the freezer. A lot of applesauce and apple pie filling in the freezer and today I made tomato sauce. I will have to figure out how to add what spices because the recipes I have found all have stuff in it that I don't want. Five pounds of tomatoes don't make a lot of sauce however and that is about what I had left. Five pounds. Still have carrots in the ground. I did not thin them too well and they are odd shaped but still good.

I need to tell a joke on myself. Well, it will be a joke to you but not so much to me at the time. I cleaned stalls, worked in the barn and decided it was such a nice day I would ride Pepper for a little bit bareback. I thought, everyone rides him with just a halter and I would. Well, I got on him. I have to be high enough just to swing my leg over and that is what i did. However, Pepper did not want to go for a ride anywhere, he wanted to eat grass. He put his head down and eat he did. The rope I had tied on to his halter so it was like a bridle came untied and I had one rope and he was determined to put his head down and eat. I had to sit on him until Bob got home because I can't get off without being able to step on to something and in the middle of the lawn, nothing. I thought Bob was going to have a seizure laughing at me. He got Pepper over so I could get off and I had a loud conversation with a horse that knows he is king of the universe. Next time I get a bug to ride bareback, and I do love to ride bareback, he will have a bridle on his little black head.

Now that you all have had a good laugh, talk to you tomorrow.

Monday

A busy day and no pictures. I worked in the house alot of the day. The maid didn't show up. Oh, I don't have one? Darn, I keep waiting.

Bob and my project this week is cleaning the barn. He has filled it with so much stuff that there is not room to get thru there hardly. Its dodge and dart around sprayers and such. We made a good start today. I found some horse blankets that I knew I had but could not locate. Now they need to be washed and Amelia will have a warm blanket when the weather makes it prudent to put one on her. I still need to buy Ditto one. Bob got several things put up on the loft.

I picked the stalls and it was so much easier on my back. Now to be disciplined enough to do it every day. I know that the horses appreciate it too.

Our daughter in law lost her father yesterday. I wish I could say something to help her. She is strong but not as strong as she is making out to be. She has been his primary caregiver for years. Rest in peace Ray and Debbie our prayers are with you.

Sunday

This is my Saturday Smile picture on Sunday. We stopped on our way to church this morning so I could take this picture. The sun was shining thru the fog. It was so peaceful and beautiful.

Today Fast Eddie went to a new home. A lady showed up right after we got home from church with her trailer. Her 10 year old daughter officially bought him. I put him on Craigslist for $200.00 and got $160.00 for him. (I paid $40.00) A good profit huh? Bob said I could go look for another buy like that anytime. Most importantly though, I am sure he went to a loving home.

THEN, I went back to the job I knew I needed to do today and that was to clean stalls. Oh my aching back but they have nice fresh clean stalls all newly beded. Its a big job but if I did it every day it wouldn't be such a chore.

Amelia was much better about being caught this evening but Pepper was a brat. He thought he was a mighty black stallion. When Bob caught him he told him off and Pepper just looked at him like Oh well, it felt good to run;.

Saturday

I went to Ellensburg yesterday afternoon and spent the night in the motel. I had a WSH Board Meeting this AM till noon. It was a good productive meeting I think. Like a lot of organizations, not just horsey ones, we need to figure out how to do things that work differently than it has always been done. The drive over was totally inauspicious. Just putzed along.

The drive home was the same. For that I am greatfull. The only thing wrong with the day was Katie was supposed to do the chores and because I got home she left. I don't mind doing them but was very tired. Bob was irritated when he called and I was doing them.

After getting so tired driving yesterday and today I am maybe giving driving to Mississippi by myself next spring another thought. I don't know. Will have to price airlines and give it some more thought. I really wanted to drive though. Or, maybe I will invite a grandchild to go with me. I don't know. I have time to think about it.

Amelia did not want to come in this evening. I was just going to put her halter on when Bob called me on my cell phone. When the others came in first she said neener neener, can't catch me ......... but I did. She took a pop at me with her hind legs, missed me completely but got spanked for it.

Bob went hunting today for a while. He sat on a hill and watched deer in the valley then left. He is at a BackCountry Horse Meeting this evening. I would have liked to have gone but am just too tired. He went straight from our friends house who he went hunting with.

It is supposed to start raining tonight. We need it but am not looking foreward to the dark dismal days. Those are always hard for me.

Thoughtful Thursday.

I was thinking today about how beautiful Rusty is. Isn't that mane something and I have not even brushed it for a long time. She is proud of it.

I accidently loaded two of the same pictures and I can't remember how to delete one of them. Anyway I thought this reminded me of the Micheal W. Smith song of the 80's Friends are friends forever. They really are friends. Yuma too but he did not want his picture taken today.

And this is my thoughtful picture of Fast Eddie. I put him on Craigslist today for $200 obo. He must go to a good home though.

I have been thinking of alot of things today. Why do grown up kids worry you more than when they lived at home?

Thinking of how much I love our animal friends.

Wednesday - An adventure

No pictures, it was too dark. This afternoon about 3:30 we received a telephone call that our cows were out. All 9 cow calf pairs and and extra cow besides our neighbors 2 cow calf pairs. The cattle were on 100 acres up near Old Town just outside of Newport in Idaho. Now would you not think 100 acres and they would be satisfied? Well guess not because the knocked a gate over and went meadering up the hiway to Priest Lake. Someone chased them off the road. We hitched up the trailer and at the last minute I ran and got Pepper, tacked him up except his bridle and loaded him

We got up there in daylight, Pepper and I went in search of the wandering cows . We found them eating comfortable in someones front well manicured front yard. I got them headed toward where they were supposed to be. Pepper thinks chasing cows is just too much fun but he didn't much like the deer bounding out in front of us. We got the cows back in their pasture. Bob and John started putting up the panels to make a holding area.

Mind you all this time it is raining pretty hard and I am sure I looked like a drown rat. I was headed down this long driveway to another gate so I could go in and close gates so they could not head out for who knows where again. The lady who shares their long - probably a mile long driveway came down the driveway and I was getting off as far as I could go. She stopped rolled down her window and told me I should not be riding a black horse at night, she could hardly see me. I thanked her, got thru the gate and had a laughing fit. Its nearly dark, pouring down rain, the rain in dripping off my helmet and she thinks I am out riding for fun. Come on now. Doesn't every one do things like that.

I got the gates all closed and went back to where the panels were set up and we went in search of the little herd. They were in a copse of trees. Now they all know Pepper and did not think they had to move. Much yelling and whooping and they went out. Have you ever tried to ride thru trees when you could not see the limbs. They don't feel well when they smack you. I was glad I had a helmet on. It took the brunt.s

The rest of the story is just mediocre. They went in the little pen, we got half into our trailer and half into Johns and they are all in their little winter pasture here. John thinks I am wonder woman and the guy whose place they were supposed to be at told me I was one tough broad. I guess that was a compliment. Pepper was wonderful. I know he had never been ridden like that in the dark and he did everything I asked. He got an extra scoop of grain tonight.