Mustang Days 2010 Over -Great Fun

What a wonderful weekend. Not quite as many people yesterday at the demo's or today at the trail competition but enough for us to have a good start for this next year.

This is Marilyn the winner of the Mustang Division. She rode her old mustang Gelding and scored the highest points of anyone. She was excited and so were me for her. Now the old boy may go into retirement. Congratulations Marilyn.

Katia won the inhand with Bella, Shannon on Skeeter (a mule) won the Open Division, Mike won the novice division and Rachel(also on Skeeter) won the Jr division. Congratulations all of you it would not have been a success without the competitors.

There are so many people to thank. Each of the club members who competed and worked, it would not have happened without your help. To the judges who sat out there waiting for competitors for 3 hrs. To Alexa who sat at the top of the hill and diligently sent the competitors out every 10 minutes. To Pat McGowan for so many things. Not only did he stamp Mustang Days 2010 on the headstalls that I got at the last minute, he rode the course and then rode with a couple of others who needed a helping hand. He is fun besides. Most of all my dearly beloved Husband who tolerated me panicking at the last minute, who supported me, who did whatever I asked him. THANK YOU ALL.

I did work with Sage a little bit when I got home. George gave me some hints yesterday at the demo. I must work with her and try and see if that works for me. She stood and looked at me with both eyes when I went in to her pen. A first time. Progress - one step at a time - some small - some larger.

I will post more pictures of the weekend tomorrow. Right now my bed is calling me. I hear it.

Blessings

Busy busy

I have pictures but am too tired to post them or much of anything. It is Mustang Days weekend and that is what I have been doing. The trail is marked, and that is ready to start registering people. Now if it runs as smoothly I will be rejoicing. The demos tomorrow hopefully will be good too.

Am doing well with Sage. Have been spending a lot of time with her and the lead rope. I would not say she is leading but she follows me on a loose rope around the round pen. I will be back on track with pictures next week. Probably no blog till Sunday or Monday either.

Blessings

Tired body and tired feet.

I am so proud of Sage. She is getting it. I mean GETTING IT. She doesn't lead but follows me on a loose lead back and forth and a little foreword. No one to take pictures. I am petting her pretty easily on the side she did not want me on and that is really big progress. I can walk right up to her rub on her shoulder and neck and snap on the lead rope. All in the round pen. Like I said I am SO proud of her progress this week.

After Bob got home we went over to Busy Bee and walked a trail course for the challenge. Its long up and down hills but we did it. My body is rebelling though and I will go to bed soon. We will ride it on Friday morning. We may have to revamp some of it. It may be a little bit of a challenge for some. We will see. Wanted a water crossing but none could be found.

Tomorrow is Angela's day to do a compliance check on Amelia. That irritates me because they told her from Burns it wasn't necessary but she is going to. That will be OK though. I don't mind. Just not a good week.

Blessings.

A day at Calico Acres in Pictures

This is an abundance of photos from around the farm. Maybe more than you want to see at once so I won't be insulted if you don't look at them all. This is the gate so Sage can go to the round pen. She will go if no one is around. I have only caught her in their once. Her little pen is her hidey hole.

These were teeny little feeder fish when we originally bought them and put them in the water tank. There is one more. They have really grown. I have not fed them in 2 years. They keep the tank pretty clean. We have fish in two of the tanks.

Cody going out to eat this morning. He did not want to go out originally. I don't think he had ever been out in a pasture. He loves it though.

Chemmy. He loves the green grass. We put them out 2x a day for 2 hrs.

Yuma. He wonders what took me so long to let them out.

Lindy is doing 100% better but is not at 100% yet. We have found her a new home though and she will be leaving on July 5th. when they get home from vacation.

Rusty thinks she is pretty awesome to be able to get out to eat. She doesn't always go in so easy.

Raven in the alleyway going out of the pasture. She was a good girl this morning.

This is the cow that hit the panel that hit me in the head.

The rest of the cows having a break after eating breakfast.

Wrangler. He is such a nice horse.

Abby is the one headed for the gate. She belongs to Katie.

Ditto and Liberty relaxing in the sunshine.

She looks a little pathetic doesn't she. Amelia is on a dry lot diet and we are not among her favorite people. Her mane needs brushing out. That may be on my agenda tomorrow.

Pepper. I have written a lot about this boy.

Wild Rose AKA Rosie. She is a wonderful pony. She did not even get excited when a moose came by today right close to her. Just looked at it like what the heck are you.

The three musketeers.

Sage

She let me walk right up to her today and snap a rope onto her halter. She drug me around pretty strenuously for quite a while but we finally got it down more or less. When Bob got home from work he came and manned the rope and she had some real temper tantrums. I mean REAL TANTRUMS. She through herself down on the ground several times. It scared me but finally it was like she said, OK I guess I need to give to the rope. Bob could pen her face. She is a stubborn one but later I could walk in and walk right up to her and rub her shoulder and neck. I did that a couple of times. Tomorrow will be back to the rope. I did rub her shoulder on the side that has been a no no once. I undid the rope from that side too. So today, I would say we made progress.

Oliver. The one horned goat.

Part of our hens. I made that waterer. Saw it in a book. We have 30 hens. Right now we sell all of the eggs that we want to.

Lemon Balm. It smells good when you rub the leaves. I don't know what you use it for but I love that lemony smell.

The south side of our garage. He will finish the front tomorrow. The new door will go on when he is done. Then maybe, just maybe it will get cleared out so I can actually put my car in there. Isn't that a unique idea.

So that is a little trip around Calico Acres Farm on a sunny June day.

Blessings,

More Rain

Tomorrow is my sweet daughter Nikki's birthday. Actually her name is Nicolette but she has been Nikki since she was born unless she was in trouble. She is 4 in this picture. She was really small.
She is in the 6th grade here. She thinks I dressed her funny but she looked like the other kids. She was a good natured kid most of the time.

This was taken when we camping a couple of years ago. We had such a wonderful time, just Bob and I and Nikki for the better part of a week. Of course our horses too.

If they lived closer she would have a horse but they live right in town. She rides every time they come over. Her hair is long again.

Happy Birthday to a great daughter.

It rained so hard today it was another day of not working with Sage. Darn it anyway. It cleared up after the chores were done, eggs washed and put away and in my jammies. I looked out and the sun was shining. Maybe that is what it will do tomorrow. Can always hope huh?

Don't forget Mustang Days this next weekend.

A Day of Pouring Rain

No pictures today. It just poured rain from sometime in the night to this evening. It was not a wet day. After Bob went home we went out and worked some in the rain in the yard. He had to unload some panels out of the little horse trailer and we had a brief respite and I went in to work with Sage for a while.

I am so excited and wish I had taken my camera so Bob could have taken pictures. Sage would not go out to the round pen so I told her we still would work on some things. I used the rope instead of a stick and I tossed it around and over her for a while. That is not my best thing - tossing the rope. I had it laying across her back at her withers. I just stepped up to her and rubbed all over her shoulder and neck. It was the very first time I have touched her that I have not had to work my way up with the stick. I did it several times and she kept swinging her head at me and snapping and I kept popping her nose and yelling and starting over with her. She finally let me mess with her halter and rub her cheek and then it started pouring again so I went into the barn to work out of the deluge. I am glad she likes her shelter.

Bob and I went for a little drive this evening and had ice cream cones. A fun evening. I had gotten him a DVD player for our new wide screen TV and watching him trying to connect it was a riot. He gave up. He is more technically challenged than I am and so we will wait until help arrives.

Blessings

A Beatuful Day in My Neighborhood

Tomorrow is Fathers Day. I always feel a tinge of regret on that day the same as on Mothers Day. I miss my Daddy. He was always Daddy, not Dad to me. He died of lung cancer when I was 17 and a senior in high school. I have so many wonderful memories of him. I wish I was where I could go put flowers on his grave tomorrow but I am not.

And then there is the father of our six children. Two are in heaven as I have said before. He has been a good dad and has worked hard to see that the kids had what they needed growing up. Now they are grown up with kids of their own and good dads too. Two of them, the others are moms.
I love this picture of Bob as a little boy. Notice the cowboy boots even then. He rarely wears anything else on his feet.

I went yard saleing for a while today. Found two dresses, brand new in my size for 2.00 a piece. Beautiful sundresses. Found some books which I always look for. It was fun anyway.

Then I came home and worked with Sage for quite a while. She seems to like the round pen and I could still get up to her by rubbing her with the whip. She had a problem getting from the little pen to the round pen. She does not seem to like going thru the gates, She will get used to it. I was really proud of her. She did not seem so jumpy in there as in the pen either. We will get back at it tomorrow after church. It is not supposed to be so hot. I think my arms are a little pink. I don't burn much but I do need to use sun screen.

So to all the fathers - God bless your day in a big way.