Yummo! I just made another pizza and we ate the whole thing! Shame on me! If you were here, I could share it with you, instead of eating it all! So come and get some!

Today we went to Helmsburg to an antique store/ junk store, but it was closed. So we drove closer to Columbus and visited a big flea market. We had been there before but it has been four or five years ago. We each found a couple of items and I found a perfect little cooking pot, that I wanted but I didn't want to pay 14.00 dollars for it! So E said he would buy it for my birthday. Sounds good to me, so now I have a wonderful addition to my cookware. Oh, and I found a nice cookbook too. Don't tell E, since I already have too many cookbooks. S if you come up here soon, I will give you a bunch of them, if you want them. There are all kinds of different cookbooks.

It is time for getting in the firewood for the winter. Saturday a week ago was the first time we have been to cut wood. We went to the same place as last year. It was so hot and muggy on that day!! I thought I would melt! Here is a photo of our first time in the woods for this year.

Here we backed the tractor down into a ditch to get it as close to the tree as we could get. We attached the chain to the tractor and the tree and after E cut off the smaller limbs, he puuuullllled that tree right up out of there and up onto the flat at the top of the hill. We have just been laying them out up there on the hilltop, to cut into stove lengths later, after we get these tree tops all trimmed and easily accessable. Here is the tree just before he started up the hill with it.

I usually drive the tractor and haul the logs up the hill to the log yard. I have to get off the tractor and (set the brake, of course) and unhitch the chain and go back to where ever E is cutting the limbs off of the next one. Then he attaches the chain and off I go again, to the log yard. If it is in an area that I don't feel safe, or is an especially big log, then E will do it. But it saves time for me to do it, when I can. I will be glad when we are done for this winter!

Life at Stone Ridge has its ups and downs. Last Monday, when the manager arrived at work, he found one of the recipient mares dead in her stall. She had a three month old filly, still nursing. Enrique, who does the weekend feeding, says she was fine at 9:30 PM when he did the barn check. But we are all suspicious. He has had sick horses at the farm before, and says, Oh, she be alright. She be alright. He is supposed to call the manager, but rarely does. This time it was too late. We will never know what really happened. It was a big job to get her out of her stall, as she was bloated and stiff at 7:30 AM, when she was found. Had to remove her with the tractor. (How else do you get a 1000 lb horse, that is dead and stiff out of her stall?) It wasn't a very good day for anyone. She was our favorite one of the recipients. Her filly is doing ok, but when we bring in the other recipients and their babies, at 4:00PM, she starts calling, looking for her mother, I guess. Otherwise, she is a calm, quiet little girl. Here she is, photo taken later this past week. She is a very pretty filly, and they are pinning a lot of show hopes on this little girl. This photo doesn't do her justice at all. She is so feminine, and petite. She gets turned out with another already weaned filly so she won't be too lonely.

Then, on Friday, when we came to work, the manager says, did you see the cow???? Huh? Cow? This is an Arabian Horse Farm! No, really, did you see the cow? It is in a stall in the lower barn! We could not believe our eyes! There was no cow when we left on Thursday, but there stood a cow, in one of the horses' stalls!

Well, it turns out that Mr. and Mrs. G went to the County Fair the evening before, and there was a little girl, bawling her eyes out in the cattle barn. She had raised this pretty steer for 4-H and couldn't stand the idea that it was to be sold for slaughter. Mrs. G couldn't let that happen to the little girl, so they bought the young Jersey steer, and had him delivered to the barn with out telling any of us. So there stood Bucket, when we arrived on Friday morning. His name came about

because he was an orphan and was raised on a bucket!! He is very gentle and easy to handle. But very lonely, as he doesn't have any bovine friends at the horse farm. He loves to be scratched and groomed. He has lots of different sounds. When he hears us come into the barn, he talks and moos, and when he sees you are leaving, he sounds so lonely. He stands in his stall and stares at the window, but it is up too high for him to see out of. Monday we are supposed to turn him out for part of the day. I hope it makes him happy. Here is what we saw when we came in on Frday!

I have been riding Maddie! Do you think she is old enough? At 5 years old? Well, I would think so. I have always ridden my other young horses at age 3, but somehow, Maddie sort of got put aside, while other things got done. And as she isn't getting any younger, I put the saddle on her about 2 weeks ago and with E's help, I rode her! He led her around with me on her, then walked in front and she followed him, then I rode her on her own, and she has done a good job. She has not put a foot wrong, at least so far. I need S. to come and ride with me now, and get Maddie used to the trails. She is so bored with her life in the dry lot. She has developed an annoying habit to entertain her self. She plays in the water tank, and sticks her tongue in and out of the water, rapidly, making weird sucking noises. She isn't drinking, just playing in the water. It really irritates E. But she has nothing to do all day, day after day, after day. So she entertains herself. Here is a photo that E took of us this evening.

Here are some random shots of some of the babies at the horse farm and some of the other residents. Enjoy!

I have been at Stone Ridge for three weeks now and it has gotten easier. I have callouses on my hands again, and the rest of me has toughened up too. It is still hard work, but I can keep up now, at least.

Enrique had a mishap with the riding lawn mower. It was a zero turn mower, that they had begged for, for years. They have had it for the three years that I have been gone, but on Friday he was mowing around the large pond and got too close and drowned it in the pond. He went in too, up to his armpits. They had to drag it out with the tractor. It is completely out of commission and we don't know if it is totaled or not, until it is taken to a repair shop for an estimate. OOOPS!! Mrs. G was away at the time at her mothers funeral, so she doesn't know yet. I'm just glad it wasn't me!

Friday a week ago, Ed and I were standing in the kitchen looking out the window and saw a cat creep up under the bird feeder, stalking a bird. I walked out onto the front porch and she came right over to me. I started to pet her and she was so skinny that there was nothing under the fur but bones. I went into the house and got her a bowl of cat food and she ate and ate. She was the most skinny cat I've ever seen. She was around all day, eating and wanting to be petted. While we were doing chores, she disappeared. About 20 minutes later she reappeared in the yard, along side the garden fence. And she had brought a little black kitten back with her! The kitten was skittish and we couldn't get near it. The mamma cat sat out in the yard a little while and then she and the kitten were gone again, back into the woods along the drive way. It seemed like she brought it out just for us to see her baby. The next morning the kitten was asleep in the hay in the dog house that is on the front porch. After work when we went to do our feeding she and her baby were in the garage. Ed was standing nearby, waiting for me to finish what I was doing at the time, when he said"we have another one"! And there were two babies with her! Both of them black and very skittish, most especially the second one. She moved them to the tall grass, weeds, and brush that is behind the barn, for a couple of days, bringing them into the barn to play and eat, then taking them back at dark. After a couple more days, she took them under the house, bringing them out and letting the eat and play, while we were out and about. Now they are on the front porch most of the time. She hides them during the day when no one is home. One of them is friendly and approachable now, but the other one doesn't seem well. It is very skittish, but it doesn't play much, and just sits or sleeps. I just might take it to the vet, if I can catch it, as the vet is open late on Tuesdays, I think. Here are some photos of them.

Here is a photo of a nest of barn swallows at the horse farm. They were just a coupleof days from leaving the nest. There are about 24 nests of these birds scattered around various places in the barn. This one is right in the center of the stall, above the stall light fixture. Aren't they cute?

Here is the flower garden that I made last summer. Some one had put down plastic bags, then a 6 inch layer of dirt and on top of the dirt were this large limestone rocks. Some of them were as large as my fist. I dug all of that out, dug down and turned the hard yellow clay and put old rotten horse manure and rotted shredded leaves in it and dug all of that in. Then I planted it with garden phlox, purple, pink and one called Bright Eyes. Several different hostas, and purple coneflower. Also yarrow, (a pink one), a yellow lily, columbines, a few gladiola bulbs, and a few other things that I can't remember. These were all 'found' plants. At the home where I worked with my little boys, some previous owner had made a large perennial garden. Then when I went to take care of my boys at Grandmas house, I was told I could have what I wanted of the plants. So this is what it looked like when I started.

This was (above) last fall, just after planting it. And this one(below) was taken yesterday.

This is the planting of hostas, that I had planted earlier this year that I wrote about before, that the dog got into and tore it all up and dug out all of the plants and some of them were in sad shape, shredded and broken. I took this photo yesterday and they are slowly growing back to their former beauty. It will probably be next year before they get as large as they were before that fiasco, but at least they are alive. These came from the same place as my other flowers in the above photo.
Any one hungry for homemade pizza? It sure was tasty! Had sausage, pepperoni, ham, mushrooms, green peppers, onions and mozzarella cheese on it. I made the dough too, but would use a different recipe next time. There was too much of the crust. Yummo!

Ok, I survived the first week, working back at the horse farm! I would come home 5:15 so tired I could barely put one foot in front of the other! It seems so much harder this time, than before. For the last two and a half years, I really haven't done this much physical work, and I'm paying for it! I have been using the weedeater for hours, it seems like, grooming horses, cleaning stalls, cleaning the barn, dumping and cleaning water buckets and refilling them. Helping bring the horses into the barn in the afternoon.

There are five mares and their foals, three of which haven't been handled hardly at all and are as wild as a deer! I've been working with them sometimes, just getting them so they will trust me a bit, and can be touched and rubbed.

Here is a picture of the mares and babies. These are all recipient mares. The babies are embryo transfer babies. One mare is a nurse mare, because the birth mare tried to kill her baby and the vet and attendant. The nurse mare was brought in from Kentucky and she and the baby bonded and she is doing a fine job of raising her Arabian filly, even though she is a Quarter Horse mare.

Not much has changed around there. Enrique is still there, and they have a new manager since September last year. I like him, he is easy to get along with.

Here is a photo of an unusual bird to find in our yard. I went out to put the horses fly masks on and when I rounded the corner, this is what I saw! It is a Peahen, we think. Or maybe a juvenile Peacock? Anyway, she was visiting our chickens. A little while later, she flew up on top of the horses run-in shed and the dog spotted her up there. That scared her and she took off flying and landed in the neighbors still uncut hayfield. The dog couldn't get to her and she didn't come back. Our only neighbor that has a peacock says it wasn't hers, but if it came back she would like to have it. But we haven't seen it since.

Last Sunday we had a good visit with the family and got to see David, Danielle, and Isaiah for the last time before they move to one of the Carolina's. I didn't know until we had left that they were leaving in two weeks or I would have taken more photos, and for sure a group photo. But I didn't know that.

Here is a photo of another cute couple, my baby sister and her husband. Aren't they cute?

Surprised you again, didn't I??!

Yesterday, Ed came home early so we could go and get a load of hay. Spotty thundershowers were predicted, so we wanted to get going. We got two loads, each one with 110 bales of hay on it. The farmer and his two helpers, put it on their hay wagon straight out of the hay baler, then Ed and I transfer it too our trailer to haul it home. It is hot, dirty, and scratchy, but hey, the horses have to eat, and they said thanks for all the hard work! Now we just have to get 400 more bales. Hopefully, 200 of those will be our own hay, waiting to be cut and baled. I really do dread all that work, as it is too much for just the two of us, but you do what you have to do.

Here is the scene of the crime:

And we have arrived at home at the barn and are about to unload and stack it in the loft. There are 90 bales on the trailer and 20 on the truck. I unload the trailer while Ed is in the loft, catching the bales as they come off of the elevator and stacks them. After loading and unloading 220 bales of hay last night, I was pooped! Did something to my finger because now I can't hardly use it. Hurts like 60!!

Here are some photos I shot of the farmers cows, while waiting for the baler to 'do its thing' on these windrows of hay. Do cows have personality? I wouldn't know, never having had much to do with cattle, but these girls look entirely different and number 23 was very interested in what I was doing. She came the closest and stayed the longest, watching me, so very curious.

And guess who was hiding behind all the 'girls'? This big boy!! I'm glad I was on the other side of the fence!

I found a very interesting bread recipe a couple of months ago and yesterday I decided to try it out. It is simple to do and tastes wonderful. It makes two large loaves. Here is the link to her recipe: http://suzannemcminn.com/blog/2007/12/19/grandmother-bread/. And no, it is not supposed to have any fat or oil in it! I was kind of skeptical about that, but the bread was perfect. She writes an interesting blog, and I have been reading it for months now. Ed likes this bread and also said it makes good toast. (He compares everything to what is purchased in the store, so for him to praise something homemade is a BIG step up!



My little boys are in Missouri for the next 7 weeks, with their mother and their maternal grandparents. On Monday, I'm going to Stone Ridge for a talk with Mrs. G, and a temporary job for the summer. From what I have heard through the grapevine, things haven't been all that wonderful over there. Things like an employee mistreating the horses, etc. That one is now gone. She told me they have five new foals, and several other young ones, so I am guessing my day will be full. I'm not looking forward to the drive over there or the long work day,(6:30-5:00) but it is a job.



Enrique called me here at home yesterday to confirm that I was coming back. He didn't believe it! He is collecting and freezing the bumper crop of mulberries and wants me to make mulberry jelly again. I told him I would if I could have some for myself too. I think a couple of years ago, when he froze them, he had about 14 gallons of berries!!! I made 4 cases of jelly from them, in pints. Of all the jellies and jams that I have made, I think the mulberry is the most popular. It just can't be beat, on a toasted, buttered Enlish Muffin!

Do you want to try another wonderful recipe? Ed does not like rhubarb, but he loved this, and it was soooo goood!! Here is the link to the best rhubarb recipe that I have ever eaten!
http://smittenkitchen.com/2007/05/crumbling-crisp-convictions/
Enjoy and tell me how YOU liked it!!

I thought an update might be in order, before someone starts yelling again! Here are a few random photos, now that I have my camera back

This is a wildflower called Dutchmen's Britches. We went for a walk back in the woods and came across lots of these growing along the path.

We have finally dried out enough to get in our garden without standing in the mud. Everything is growing well so far. We want to cut our hay, but the ground underneath the growing grass is still squishy! It needs cut but we just wait...and hope it doesn't rain anymore for a few days.


It seems that the gnats are much worse this year than last. If you try to work in the garden, or just go outside for anything, they are buzzing you, getting in your eyes, hair, walking on you! Yuck! Here is a photo of the horses that I took this morning. Notice all those gnats? I covered the horses with flyspray, but it only seems to work a short time, then they are after them again. Do you see all those insects buzzing around their heads? EEEEK!
We have a family of wrens nesting on the front porch. She built her nest in an old tin can that was laying on its side on a shelf. Here she is with a caterpillar, ready to hop up on the shelf. They are fun to watch, very busy little birds. They also have a beautiful song, that the male sings frequently, through out the day.

Here is the Hamburger Bun recipe that you wanted, Mom.

3 1/4 cups all-purpose flour

1/4 cup sugar

3 teaspoons instant yeast (I used 1 pkg. of Rapid Rise yeast and added it to my dry ingredients)

1/2 teaspoon dried onion flakes or 1 teaspoon of onion powder, optional (I didn't use either)

1 teaspoon of salt ( I used 3/4 teaspoon)

2 tablespoons of melted butter

1 egg

1 cup of warm water

In a mixing bowl, place flour, sugar, yeast, (onion powder if using) and salt; mix well. Add egg and melted butter. Add water and mix and mix dough until well combined. Turn dough out onto a well floured surface and knead for 10 to 15 minutes or until smooth and elastic, (dough should still be quite soft.) Place dough into a greased bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and sed aside until doubled in size. (mine took 35 to 40 minutes)
Divide dough into 8 or 10 pieces. Shape into rounds, and place on greased baking pan and let rise for 30 to 40 minutes. Bake in 375 degree oven for 12 to 15 minutes or until golden. These were sooooo good!
Here is Elliot. I think this photo that I took this morning, shows his sassy personality! He is terrified of anyone other than Ed and myself, but he is a playful, sassy, friendly little cat. He is also a good mouser.

We should be starting to get pullet eggs near the middle or end of September, then there will be all the fresh eggs that your little heart desires. At the moment we don't have enough eggs for ourselves and all the people that want them. Our neighbor lady has been buying all of our eggs that she can get her hands on, as 17 of her hens were murdered by a neighborhood dog. I have two people that buy eggs regularly, besides her. So there aren't enough to go around. When these new ones start laying, we will have about 33 layers. (At the moment, we have 13 hens.)Neighbor lady says she can sell any eggs we won't need! We will see what developes.

Hanging begonia on my front porch. Isn't it beautiful?

What a Week!

Whew! We had some nasty storms, beginning on Wednesday as I arrived home from work. I jumped out of the truck and ran and got the horses into the barn and into their stalls, when the sky opened, with thunder and lightening for background music! I stayed in the barn until it let up a bit, then dashed for the house. But the storm only intensified when I was inside. We had 3 inches of rain in short time and 60 mph winds! Then at 4:25 the power went off...and didn't come back on...the next morning...it was still off...and that night it was still off, and the next morning it was still off! What? And the temperature was 88 - 90 degrees! Finally, at almost the exact minute to 48 hours, the electric came back on, at 4:30 on Friday! We had the fridge and the two freezers hooked up to the generator. When we wanted a shower, we would unplug the freezer and fridge and plug in the pump to the well. And do the same to fill the horses' water tank. Oh, how I appreciate running water and electric lights! so many little things that we don't think even think about, such as brushing your teeth, doing a load of laundry...it all takes water, that we take for granted.

On Friday, just as Ed arrived home, we had another nasty storm that dumped 4 1/2 inches of rain again! All told, we had over 9 inches of rain, in a couple of days! Electricity went off again a couple of times during this storm, but came back on and stayed on.

The uncut hay took a beating, and lots of it is laying down flat, instead of standing up. We are hoping it will stand back up and everything will dry out long enough to get it cut and baled.

We went to the grocery store this morning, but forgot to get Hamburger Buns. I had plans to grill some Venison Burgers for lunch. Since we forgot to get them, I decided to make some. I had a recipe for Hamburger Buns that I have had for 3 or 4 years. I dug it out and whipped them up and popped them in the oven, and oh, yum, were they good! They only raised for 40 minutes and then raised on the baking pan for 20. They baked for 15 minutes. They were soft and light, and just so good.

We have decided NOT to send Maddie to some one else to get her started to ride. I will do it myself. Why pay someone else to do what I can do? And I wasn't for sure that I liked some of their training methods. Since she is our baby, I will do it my way, that way I won't have to undo someone elses work. She couldn't call me and tell me that she didn't like what they were doing to her, so we will keep her home and do it ourselves.

I put the saddle on her last weekend and worked her in it and walked her around and she didn't care about it at all. She paid it no attention at all, so I'm sure that she will not be a problem to ride.

Baby sister came up yesterday and spent the day. We sorted through the photos of the wedding that she photographed a couple of weeks ago. We did some tweaking, cropping, color adjusting and put them on a CD for her client. They really looked nice and she was pleased with the end result.

Last summer at someones yardsale, we met a man that is one of our close neighbors, but we didn't know him, or that he was a neighbor. We spoke about horses, and he invited me to come and visit his wife and talk to her as both he and his wife train horses for people. But with one thing and another, I never did it. Yesterday as we came home from town, with nothing pressing to do, Ed and I stopped at their place. It is just one county road over from where we live. We asked about their training methods, feeding practices, as everyone does things differently than the next person. Checked out the barn, and the other horses that were there.

Ed and I have been discussing getting help with getting Maddie started under saddle. I don't bounce like I used to, and don't want to get hurt, so this is why we were seriously checking them out. We were there for an hour, talking with them.

Today, they came over to our house to check out Maddie and see what they thought. (Said she was a good looking horse.) They invited me to come and ride with them also. So this afternoon, I saddled Katie and rode back on the trails on the Nature Conservancy that is behind our property to meet them. That is where they also ride, teaching young horses to be 'trail smart'. We rode for an hour, and Katie was really sweating, as this was only the second time she has been ridden this year! Me bad! She (and I found out me too, are so 'out of shape'!)

We have decided to take Maddie over to them for a short time to get her under saddle. I have done a lot of work with her already, just have not rode her. One day this week, we will load her up and take her over there, along with her own hay, that she is used to. They live close enough, that I could ride her back home when it is time to bring her home. I have been invited to stop in as often as I wish to see her or see them work with her. Which I will do. As often as everyday, most likely.

I have been working on my flower garden and also have added a long row of Hostas to the front of the house along the front porch. They were large well grown plants, and I had mulched it and it looked so nice! I tied Sam (yellow Lab) to the back of the truck that was parked nearby and came in the house. Came back out about 45 minutes later and that &#*@&^%#* dog, had dug them all out, tore them up and dug holes all through the bed that I had them planted in, which was about 15 feet long! I could have easily killed him with a hoe! (Not really, but I sure felt like it). It wasn't his fault. I should not have tied him with in reach, but he has never done anything like that before, so had no reason to expect such devastation!

Anyway, I gathered up the pieces and replanted them. It doesn't look nearly as nice as before but they are all growing, albeit, slowly.

I can't take photos, because a certain someone, has borrowed my camera, (boy, do I feel naked without it!) therefore you will just have to imagine what it looked like that day when I walked out on the porch! It still maked me angry!

I'm sure there are other things I was going to write about, but they have left me. It is nearly 11:30, and my brain says, Enough for now. Will catch up another time.

It has been a while since I have been on here. Life hasn't been much fun lately.

We had a thunder storm during the day last Thursday and when I got home from work at 4:30, our Yellow Lab, Sam, had dug out from under the gate of the back yard and was not to be found. He is utterly terrified of thunder, but has never dug out before. Usually he just gets really jumpy and stays in his dog house. No sign of him on Friday either. He got out one other time a few months ago, but came back on his own. On Saturday morning when we left to do some shopping in town, we put up two signs, one was a mile from our house and the other was about a half mile the other direction. We arrived home about 4:30 PM and there was a message on the anwering machine from a lady that said she had picked up a large male Lab on Thursday afternoon as she was coming home from work. She said he appeared to be pretty scared. (He is a very gentle, mellow dog.) Someone stopped to help her lift him into her truck and she took him home with her, keeping him in her garage. She took him with her to work the next day as she has two dogs of her own and couldn't keep him. (She works at a vet clinic in the next county.) After work on Friday she took him to the Humane Society. It was after they had closed for the week end that we found out about all of this. Ed stopped in at the Humane Society today, after work and it was our Sam! After posting bail for him, they let him have him. He was glad to be home and we were sure glad to have him back!

A couple of weeks before this incident we had to put our Chow, Penny to sleep. She just stopped eating, and would drool constantly. She wanted to eat, but if fed a teaspoon of broth, (at the vets recommendation) she would almost immediatly throw up. We tried everything the vet suggested, and were giving her meds from the vet. But she couldn't keep anything down, yet she was mostly bright eyed and was eager to be petted and loved on. I took her to the vets on Wednesday and we did what the vet suggested to treat her. But it wasn't working. She couldn't even keep water down. I took her back to vet on Friday morning and she rehydrated her and gave her more meds, for nausea, antibiotics, and I don't remember what else, also additional examinations. I took her home and we followed vets advice. I took her back on Monday and she had lost 5 pounds. I left her for the vet to try whatever she thought was best. But nothing was working. On Thurday morning I went back and we put her to sleep. The vet suspected stomach cancer, but wasn't sure. Enough of her blood work came back normal to puzzle the vet. I gave the vet permission to do an exam after her death, and she called me at home to tell me that Penny had advanced stomach cancer. It came on her rather suddenly. A month before this she was her usual happy, eager self. She was only 8 years old.

During all this going on with Penny, I went to the local clinic to have a mole checked out and they refered me to a dermatologist in Bloomtown. After a biopsy, I had a Basil Cell Carcinoma removed from my head. It was in the hairline, at the top of my forehead. It stood up from my scalp and I would hit it with a hairbrush or whatever and it would bleed. One of the little boys I take care of bumped it and made it bleed, so I just thought it was time to get it checked out. So now it has been removed. The Dr. said she got it all, even the roots, and it shouldn't come back. I am happy about that, to be sure! Thank you, Lord!

We purchased some railroad ties to use around my garden, and I can hardly wait for some warm weather so I can scratch up the garden! I want to try Lasagna Gardening. We have lots of stuff to add to the ground to make a rich planting bed. But it is way too wet to do anything with! I have onions to plant!! among other things!

Here are a couple of photos of our new babies. They will be a week old on Friday.

Here are a couple of Sam and Penny.

This one of Sam was taken several years ago, he is 12 years old now.

And here is the second of the quilt squares that I had made for the quilt raffle for the horse rescue in Maryland.

The horses had their feet trimmed for the third time by the new Barefoot Trimmer and I'm liking his work more all the time. Their feet will take some time to get 'right' again, but there is already improvement. he is prompt, and gets done in a reasonable amount of time. The last guy would take 3-5 hours to trim three horses!! EEEK!!

Well, I'm all talked out now, so this will have to do for those of you that are yelling that I need to update, so here it is!

Our local paper had an article on Hypertufa. I had never heard of it before. There would be a class in town at the Hilltop Gardens on how to make your own hypertufa planters. It looked so interesting that I emailed them that I would like to attend. A couple of days later I received an answer that the class was full. Another one would be scheduled. That one was yesterday. It was lots of fun. We were given the recipe to go home and make our own. We each made one while at the class and since they have to cure a week before they can be taken out of the forms, I won't be able to bring it home until next Saturday. Here is a link if you would like more information about these intesting planters.http://www.squidoo.com/Learn-Hypertufa-Garden-Art

The instructor said they needed 12 people to enroll to be able teach the class and they had 90 people register! They had to put on several classes to accomodate everyone.

I love gardening and flowers. Can't hardly wait until it warms up outside. Did I mention that I hate winter? Ick! I want to get my hands in the dirt again!

My new Barefoot Trimmer is coming again Tuesday afternoon. His first time was January 14. I'm anxious to hear if he thinks Solomons feet have improved since his last visit. I think they have. Solomon is going to be 19 this spring. He is 16 hands, and has big feet and a huge head! He is a registered Tennessee Walker, flaxen maned, red roan. He has always even as a very young horse, grown a thick, long coat in the winter, more than any of my other horses. His legs are so hairy, you would think he was a draft! I helped bring him into this world and he will always be my baby. He used to be my primary riding horse, but he has arthritis in his right stifle joint, from an old surgery when he was a 2 year old, so he is mostly a pasture pet. I can ride him on level ground for short periods, but that is all. He will always have a home with me.

Yesterday, we had some really nasty weather here. We already had about an inch of snow, but during the day yesterday it started to snow a little, soon turned to sleet with some rain. Temperature was 19 degrees. I usually work from 8:00 to 3:30. I always worry about our three horses when the weather is bad and I'm at work. Their lot is seperate from the barn, across the driveway.

The horses have a large run in shed at the north end of their lot, and their heated water tank is at the south end of the lot. When the ground is frozen they don't want to walk all the way down through those frozen hoofprints to drink. They will once a day, but don't drink as often as they should. And what is the shed for? To keep them out of the weather if they so choose. But if the weather is nasty, they almost always stand outside in what ever weather we are having. We have a hay feeder in the shed and they will eat their hay, even take naps laying down in the shed. But let the weather turn ugly and they stand outside!

After putting them inside, and giving them a slice of hay, Katie gave me a warm, whiskery kiss. Made it all worth it. Frozen fingers, heavy winter clothes, cold feet, the whole winter thing. Have I mentioned that I hate winter?

When I arrived home they were outside, had icicles hanging on their whiskers, manes, everywhere. They looked at me with hope and anticipation to "get us out of here!" Of course I did, but that is the reason we built the shed, right?

Sawdust and Woodpeckers

I love to feed the birds and watch their antics at the feeder. Here is a photo that I took Sunday morning. Last winter there were four of these Pileated Woodpeckers feeding. Usually I only see one at a time. This was a surprise. Her is more information about these large birds:

http://www.nhptv.org/natureworks/pileatedwoodpecker.htm

My horses will sleep well for the next 6 to 8 weeks or so. This afternoon, after work, we had a load of sawdust delivered. It is clean, bright and beautiful and smells good too.

My husband is quite ingenious. After shoveling the sawdust one too many times from the back of a pickup truck, he remembered using a grain elevator on the farm where he grew up. He found a used one for about 60.00 and set it up in our barn doorway. He had previously fully enclosed one of our stalls, except for a small section above the doorway, for the top of the elevator.

We had the sawdust dumped from the truck right on a huge tarp, right next to the elevator. We shoveled it into the hopper and the job was done in no time and bedding is ready to use. I feel so much better now, knowing it is there.

I was pleasantly surprised to receive an award from Victoria at http://victoriacummings.blogspot.com/ . This award came from Diane at Mind Sieve dwmindsieve.blogspot.com . You can go to her site and pick up your award also. She asks that it be passed on to 10 of your favorite blogs. Here are a few that I enjoy reading. I don't have 10 to pass it on to, but I'll do my best. I am not a computer whiz as it took me most of the day to figure out how to do this! I really do need some computer classes!!

1. http://theseanproject.blogspot.com/

2. http://adventuresinpetsitting.blogspot.com/

3. http://adventuresinpetsitting.blogspot.com/

4. http://naturalhorsejourney.typepad.com/a_natural_horse_journey/

Here is one of my quilt blocks that will eventually be made into a quilt and be raffled off for the Days End Horse Rescue in Maryland. Here is the link if anyone wants to check it out. http://www.defhr.org/ I have my other one half done. It is very different from this one.

Maddie hates to be out in the rain. Since it was 60 degrees today, I left them outside. It rained off and on all day, but the wind was gusting to 50 miles an hour at times. She was getting irritated. She would sling her head in a circle, round and round. It sure looks like it would make her dizzy, but she does it often. She does it when she is impatient to come in for her supper too, or if she thinks the weather is just too icky for her delicate self. She doesn't like mud either, although that is all we have around here right now. Solomon is very stoic, he just takes whatever comes and doesn't bat an eye. When it comes to getting shots he acts as though he never feels them, he doesn't flinch or move a muscle. Poor Maddie starts to tense as soon as the vet walks up to her. She is such a princess. It will be fun this summer. She will be 5 in May, and I still haven't ridden her yet, but this is her summer to become a trail horse!

Meditation

Cleaning horse stalls. Is this an icky job for you? Do you like doing it? Maybe I'm the odd duck, because I like cleaning stalls. Turning chaos into neatness. This is my quiet time, time to reflect on the happenings of the day, on the horses, on life in general. Sifting out the crud and laying a new bed down. Sorting my thoughts and pondering problems. When I worked on the Arabian Horse Farm, we had 2 barns, total of 27 stalls. I liked doing it then and I still do, even though now I only have 3 to do. Since I'm not paid to do it anymore, my three are enough. The horses enjoy them and our young cats like playing in it too.

I'm really getting so tired of cold and mud. I want to ride, but I hate being cold with a passion! And all the mud makes it so sloppy everywhere. If I were to ride ( I don't have an arena) it leaves deep hoof marks and pockets in the ground. We live on a hill, so it is either up or down hill to ride to anywhere, and when it is so soft everywhere, it really tears up the ground. So I don't until it dries up somewhat. But I'm itching to get back in the saddle!



On another note, had a wonderful visit with Mom, and two sisters. They came up to visit Moms dentist and get her dentures adjusted. We went out to lunch at Panera Bread and visited a couple of other shops. I had my little boys with me and they were very good boys. Being 2 1/2 years old, you expect them to be a bit unruly, but they were so good. No, they weren't sick either!

Having had a metabolically challenged horse, I am being extra careful with the remaining three. I never ever want to go through that again. So...one of the best things I can do for their well being is to feed them a balanced diet. They are on dry lot only and that makes it extra important to get their nutrition the best that it can be. We buy our hay in summer and usually get 600 bales to last us until the next season of hay is cut. We have purchased our hay from the same farmer for the last 4 or 5 years. It is a mixed grass. We have bought it for 2.50 a bale until this last summer. We had such a drought that there wasn't any hay to buy. Hay was brought in last summer for 8.00 to 10.00 a bale for small squares of grass hay. I've recently seen it in our local paper for 5.00 to 8.00. Our farmer sold us his for 3.00 and we feel blessed to have gotten it. It was mid October when we got the bulk of it as the weather was not very cooperative. Ok, back to the balanced diet. I sent cored hay samples to a Forage lab and had a sugar, starch and mineral analysis done, so that I would know if there were deficiencies of any minerals in the hay. Once I received that, I could then balance the hay properly. I had some help to interpret the analysis, then purchased the needed minerals and add them to each horses' supper.

Horses were designed to eat forage, not sweet molasses and other sugars. It is especially important to a horse with Insulin Resistance. Sugar is a death sentence, as in developing laminitis. It is a devastating disease and very painful for the horse. Having been through this with my Rocky Mountain gelding I am doing everything in my power to avoid it with Solomon, Katie and Maddie. Even though I don't think they are IR, I want to give them a solid, balanced diet.

Do they like this new diet? (I have only been doing this since January 3, this year). I suppose the minerals taste funny. Katie picks at hers but it is almost always gone by morning. The other two eat it with no problems. The trick now is to find something that she thinks is yummy to mask the flavor a bit. I expect to see a difference in their coats when they shed out in the spring. I did this for the Rocky and it made a visable difference in his coat and in his general well being.

Is this a lot of work? Not really. Is it expensive? Not really. It could be, depending on what the hay was missing or an excess that would need to be balanced out. Since the horses are not where they can range far and wide to feed themselves, it is up to me to give them a balanced and complete diet, right? I think so. I will do my best to keep you three healthy.

Apple Spice Cake

1 stick of margarine (I used butter as it is what I had on hand)
1/2 cup solid shortening
2 cups sugar
4 large eggs, beaten
2 cups flour
2 Teaspoons ground cinnamon
1/4 Teaspoon ground cloves
1/2 Teaspoon ground nutmeg
1 Teaspoon baking soda
1 Teaspoon salt
5 cups peeled, cored and chopped apples
1 cup chopped pecans
1 cup seedless raisins

Prheat oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a Bundt pan. ( I think a 13 x 9 inch would work well also).
Cream together the margarine (or butter), shortening and sugar.
Add in eggs and mix until fluffy.
Mix in flour, cinnamon, cloves, nutmeg, baking soda and salt.
The batter will be very creamy.
Fold in apple chunks, pecans and raisins.
Pour into the prepared pan and bake for 40 minutes. (I had to bake mine for 60 minutes in a Bundt pan, but a 13 x 9 would likely bake about 40 minutes).
Bake until a toothpick comes out clean.
Remove from pan (if using a Bundt pan) and let cool completely on a wire rack.

Frosting

5 Tablespoons butter
1/2 cup firmly packed brown sugar
1/4 teaspoon salt
3 tablespoons milk
1 1/2 cups confectioners sugar
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract

In a small pan over medium heat, melt the butter. Stir in brown sugar and salt.
Cook, stirring until the sugar melts.
Add the milk, bring to a boil, and pour into a mixing bowl.
Cool for 10 minutes.
Stir in confectioners sugar and vanilla.
Beat well. ( I wanted a soft frosting so I added enough more milk to make it 'pourable' over the Bundt cake). Add more confectioners sugar or milk to make is as thick or thin as you like.

I took this to work with me and was told it was 'to die for'!

Katie, the Mom

Solomon

Maddie, the daughter

I found this "Horse Quirks" on another horse lovers blog and thought I would list some of my horses' strange quirks too. There are lots of things the three of them come up with but here are my six:

1. Maddie has this weird thing she does with her tongue that just drives my husband crazy! she sticks her tongue in and out rapidly and makes slurpy noises. And she especially like to do it if she can find a puddle or even in the water tank.

2. Katie has this cute habit of holding up her right front leg, folded at the knee, while she is waiting for me to put her supper in her feeder.

3. Solomon is a licker. He will lick my hand for a long time. It is almost like a kiss, so glad to see you again!

4. Katie will lay her head on your shoulder and shut her eyes. A horse hug?

5. Solomon will eat anything as a treat! If he hears a crinkle of paper or a wrapper, he will come from anywhere as long as he is within hearing distance to see what you have brought for him! The mares are a bit more picky.

6. Maddie plays in her water so often at night that she has to have the bucket locked to the stall wall. She will kick it and throw it around and bang it back and forth. The more noise the better!

So why do I have such a hard time 'updating' my blog? Is my life so outrageously boring? Sometimes I just sit here and wonder what to write and why am I doing this. I enjoy 'writing'. Used to write letters of up to 6 or more pages, to friends and family. Somehow this has sort of fallen by the wayside. Don't really know why but...

Anyway, here are a few things that have occupied my attention lately. Last Saturday we had an appointment at the vets, to take Penny, our female, 6 or 7 year old, black, chow dog, and Taco our 12 1/2 year old male barn cat, for a visit. Penny has allergies so bad that she scratched non stop, and she was losing her hair. She looked and smelled awful. The vet gave her a steriod shot and on Tuesday she will start her Prednison pills. We have tried baths, changing her food, nothing has helped. This is the last resort. Allergy testing is too expensive, about 260.00 the vet said. Not an option.

Taco has had some kind of cancer on his nose for about 5 years. (Can't remember what the vet called it). It didn't bother him until lately. It had recently started to eat into his nose and bleed. He was not a happy cat anymore. So we helped him to cross the Rainbow Bridge. Now he is playing and laying in the sun to his hearts content.

I have come to the conclusion that the farrier that we have been using for the last year and a half was not doing my horses any good. Solomons feet seemed to just get worse and worse. The shape of them was changing and not in a good way. So I went online to some Barefoot trimming sites and found a new farrier. He came last Monday, and trimmed all three of the horses. He did say it will take about 3 months to get Solomons feet back to where they should be. He knew the previous trimmer and wasn't impressed with his work at all. This new guy is accredited and graduated from a Naturel Barefoot Trimmers school in Georgia. For those of you that don't know, a Barefoot Trimmer is one who is trained to trim horses like the feet of the wild mustangs in the west. It is the most natural way for the horses' feet. Shoes are a necessary evil for certain situations but barefoot is the best if possible.

Caught a 24 hour stomach bug somewhere. Thursday I felt fine until I got home from work. I was chilling, and couldn't get warm. Took a hot shower and went to bed. Couldn't eat, didn't want to eat. Food was revolting to even think about! I feel better now, but still haven't eaten much of anything. Just not hungry.

I have been a member of an online discussion board for several years. This is on my favorite horse trainers website. Someone on there suggested that we make a quilt and raffle it off to benefit a Horse Rescue located in Maryland. Here is a link to view the rescue:

http://www.defhr.org/ One of the women that works at this rescue is also a membe of the list. She related the story of a pretty dramatic rescue of about 70 horses that weren't being fed or cared for. Those of us that wanted to, are now making quilt blocks to be sent to another list member that is Florida. She will put all the blocks together and make it into a quilt. We can design our block in anyway that we want to. I have one of mine almost done. When it is finished I will post a photo of it. I've never done anything like this before and loved the idea of people from all over the country doing this. Isn't the internet a neat thing?

A New Start

I think it is high time I updated, even though I don't have anything to blog about. In October I purchased a new (used) Digital SLR. It takes a good bit of studing the manual to figure out how to use it to its full potential. I spent quite a long time today, trying to learn how to turn on some of its features, but still haven't figured it out. But I will!!! But it takes nice photos.

Here are some of the photos from the clan, gathering at Rachels' house in Etown, Ky. for our family Christmas.

Getting ready to eat!

Some of the desserts on the side table. Good eatin', Gregory!

All the girls! and the littlest musician!!Here are some photos of Elliot that I took yesterday. He seems to think that we put the birdseed out to make it easier for him to catch his dinner! (He hasn't even come close to catching anything, and yes we really do feed him well and he doesn't 'need' to catch his next meal!) He spends a lot of time here, even though this is the farthest I've seen him climb the post.

It is a rainy cold evening in December. Is this what is meant by 'a long winter evening'? Remember all the 'stuff' that we were saving to do on a 'long winter everning'? That we didn't have time for right at that moment? Well, now that it is here, I don't remember what I was going to do, with all this 'time' on my hands!! Oh well, there is a never ending list of things that need done. So much for those long talked about and anticipated 'long winter evenings'!! I'm ready for April and warm weather.

Here is a photo of my Orange Christmas cactus. Charlotte gave me 4 or 5 pieces of one of hers, last Christmas and this is what it has become. They are all planted in this one pot. It sat out on the porch until I was afraid it would get frost bitten, then I brought it inside. It is sitting in our unheated laundry room and it gets COLD in there! So far it hasn't seemed to bother it.

I made the Cushaw Pie recipe and it is surely a keeper! E loved it! It doesn't seem to be as intensly flavored as a pumpkin pie and it also has a tiny hint of lemon it. It is just so good that you can't stop eating it. Now, if I just knew where to get my hands on another Cushaw Squash! I had enough of this one to put some in the freezer for a couple of future pies. I also saved some seeds from it and we will plant them next summer and see what we get. Are Cushaws a hybrid? I don't know.

Gotta end all this suspence over the new kittens name! I had the most votes for Gypsy, but E will only call her Nuisance! He isn't particularly fond of cats and he especially doesn't care for a cat that likes to rub on you or be all over you. And Gypsy is just a puddle of love when you pick her up! She just melts, and purrs so loud. He thinks cats should be skittish and do their job of catching mice, but leave him alone. I like a cat that enjoys hugs and cuddling. And Gypsy is on little cute 'love bug'!

Here is the recipe for the Amish Sugar Cookies. If you make them let me know how you liked them. I think they are just the best sugar cookies I have ever eaten!

Amish Sugar Cookies

1 cup granulated sugar
1 cup powdered sugar
1 cup butter
1 cup vegetable oil
2 eggs
4 1/2 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp cream of tartar
1 tsp baking soda
1 tsp vanilla

Beat first four ingredients well, then add eggs. Mix well. Add
dry ingredients and vanilla. Drop small ball of dough on lightly
greased cookie sheet. Sprinkle with sugar. Flatten dough with
bottom of a glass. Bake 375 degrees for 10 - 12 minutes. Makes
about 5 dozen cookies.

Here is a photo of my little guys, wearing their Santa hats. It is very hard to get them to hold still or sit or stand together, long enough to get them both in the same picture! They are 28 months old now.