JULY 2022

That's so cool ARK...............You're a champion in my book!!!
Congratulations!!!

WOOHOO!!!! Way to go, Ark! Congratulations.
I like the finish line on the ground too.

GRAYMARE and ELLEN:
Thank you very much! None of the rides were very long, but doing so many of them in a row was a bit taxing. Ivan gets a break this week and I will play around with Areion. She has some ground training holes that need to be addressed. Ivan was good for most of those rides, but went thru a spell of wanting to spook a couple of weeks ago. I think he got bored of the arena. (I nearly lost my seat twice.) We put Daisy in the spooky corner and cured that problem. He was good again until the finish.

The Virtual Tevis was worth doing. It got me outside and on Ivan way more than I would have done normally. I don't know if I mentioned it or not, but I was taking a prescribed heart medication for a misdiagnosed condition from November until mid-April when the local cardiologist then prescribed something different. While I was fazing out of that drug I had a stress test coming up, so I didn't take any meds for about three days. I discovered I had much more energy, could breathe normally, and life slowly returned to near normal, but I was way out of shape. That is when this Tevis Cup challenge started, coincidentally, just when I went off that drug. I could barely trot on Ivan for the length of the arena without running out of breath when we first started mid-April. I got stronger and stronger every ride and feel basically normal now. I never started the new prescription and went to the regional cardiologist specialist last week who said I didn't need anything anyway. I spent about 6 months barely able to walk up the hill from the barn... and scaring Donnie half to death, because of that medication for something it turned out I didn't even have. I had a heart loop recorder installed under my skin that showed I didn't have aFib at all. I have mild SVT. So riding Ivan in this challenge has brought me back to life! And getting a second opinion on medications is worthwhile.

Donnie made the finish line! He was great the entire time of the competition.

Congratulations ARK. Love the finish line!

I see you use those Shoo Fly boots. How do you like them? Do any of your horses try to pull them of themselves or the others? I've thought about getting them but I have these visions of them playing tug-of-war with them and destroying them the first time I put them on. That's what they did when I tried the hula skirt style fly masks with the little fringes hanging down. I'm still finding little strips here and there every now and then and it's probably been 10 years since I tried those.

I'm glad to hear that you're feeling so much better now. Also glad to hear you don't have afib. The miss diagnosis is scary though.

INDYAPP:
 thanks!  
 I do like the flyboots.  I have used them for years on Kazi, who had tender feet from laminitis.  It kept her from stomping flies and making her feet sore.  The ShooFly boots are very nice, they have vertical plastic spines in them to keep the boots from slumping down like the ones with velcro straps do.    You can see those on Daisy's rear legs.  
 I haven't had any problems with the horses trying to remove them on purpose, but Daisy has very thick bones in her legs that make fitting her with the normal size the other horses wear difficult.  She pops them off.  I need to buy some draft sized flyboots for her.  Daisy is the same height as Areion, but Daisy's legs would suit a draft horse.

 Of course, Tiberius sounds fairly rambunctious and may tear into them!  I would love to have seen the turkey chase!  

The troops will start arriving on Saturday and will be here for two weeks. Some will be here the whole times, others will be coming and going. I have the ice cream made - well, the first batch. It won't last more than a few days, if that. Just have to make the ganaché to go with it. That's easy.
Because they will all bring everything they need, I don't have too much to do. They'll be staying in three different houses. Mine is not needed.
Then, at the end of the two weeks, another family will be coming for three days and will be staying here. I'll be sleeping in the Hobbit House. And, I'll have to make sure there is ice cream for them; they eat a lot of it.

It's going to be hot all this week, but better next week.

ARK, Daisy is a beautiful mare..........

No rain yesterday or today, just hot in the afternoon.

Just slow summer afternoons........

Everyone have a good evening.........

Ark, where is your next Tevis journey? Are you continuing on?

It's hot here, but not as bad as it was in June.

My next door neighbor has a concrete planter on the end of their pier. Normally, it would grow plants. For now, it is growing ducks. A Mallard hen decided to clear out the middle section of it and make a nest in it. Last count there are 5 eggs with about another week and a half before they hatch. It's rather late in the year to be starting a new brood. She either didn't get the memo of the proper date, or this might be her second batch.

ELLEN so exciting to see baby ducks hatching.

I told you my story of Tiberius chasing the turkey. Yesterday morning I had a doe drinking at the horses water trough. Not saying it's never happened before, but it's definitely the first time I've see it. The horses never looked up from eating their hay.

It's heating up again here. Only to be expected, it's fair week! It's always super hot with a random thunderstorm thrown in during fair week.

I hope everyone has a great weekend.

ELLEN:
 No more Tevis until next summer, it's only once a year.  
 Awwww, baby ducks are so cute.  I have never had a duck, no ponds here and if they made it to the creek, they'd be in the New River and gone soon.  We are about 2 miles from where our creek joins the New River, which eventually joins the Ohio River, then the Mississippi River, then on into the Gulf of Mexico.  The ducks would be whirlwind travelers!
 I did have a duck in our house once, at our old place.  One of our cats caught a grown mallard and brought it thru the cat door.  Then she ate the breast and left us with a bloody mess in our livingroom floor.   Luckily the carpet hadn't been laid yet and the mess was on the subflooring plywood.  

INDYAPP:
 Our horses seem to accept deer.  We have five or six every summer that hang around the upper pasture and occasionally cross the barn lot.  I haven't seen them drink out of the water troughs, but they are up next to the barn.  They go down to the creek below the barn.  The good news is,  Ivan doesn't panic about deer on a trail ride if he sees one before it jumps in front of us.  It's those sneaky deer that leap out of a bush into the path that could get me dumped!

It's supposed to be 91 degrees here the next three days.  Donnie refurbished one of the barn fans today and will work on the other tomorrow morning, so the horses will have a breeze.  

I am getting a new bike!  Not like Donnie's bike, though.  Mine will be more traditional looking.  I want to get Donnie out on a bike trail and there are lots of them around here that unfortunately don't allow horses.   It should show up sometime next week.   We got matching bikes when we were in college, before we were married.  We had such fun riding them, and actually they are still hanging in our garage, but are sneaking up on 50 years old and are somewhat raggedy now.   Our new bikes will be no where near matching.  

Ivan has enjoyed his week off.  I have worked only once with Areion, it has been so hot all week.  I am ready for a little cooler weather.

It has been an "interesting" morning and start to the cousins' vacation. Two of them have Covid and won't be able to come until at least the end of the week.
One of the rental houses (VERY nice) has a washer that isn't working. A new one has been ordered but won't be here until the 8th. So, they'll be doing their laundry here at my house. The kitchen sink has a leak that needs to be fixed - hopefully today. As they were leaving home to come up here about 7:30, a HUGE storm hit here knocking out the electricity. Lots of trees were down, including one on my street. Three neighbors went right to work on that as soon as the rain stopped and within 30 minutes had it all cleaned up.
Finally, about 1:30 the power came back on this side of the lake. The other side of the lake where the cousins are staying didn't come back for another hour.
The storm is over, the sun is shining, and it's getting warmer. Things are gradually getting to some kind of normal. Their jet skis have been launched. Let the fun begin!

Oh brother ELLEN, other than that, what else is new? Hope things improve as
the week moves along.

Everyone have a good evening..............

Things are looking up. The sink was fixed with a new garbage disposal. The failing washer does work but is very noisy. It sounds like a jet engine taking off.
One of their jet skis quit working, but that turned out to be a loose battery connection, easily fixed.
There aren't any more storms predicted and the weather after the storm was just great.
More of the troops will arrive tomorrow and Monday. We hope the Covid couple will be able to come later in the week.

So, it's better.

So far, it's been a really good weather week. The troops are all here except for two who are recovering from Covid. One of them has tested negative. As soon as the other one does, they'll be on the road to get here. It's driving them nuts to not be here with the rest having fun.

If it wasn't ELLEN's storm that visited me on it's way to ELLEN's then it was a relative. Another big tree top came down right next to the the one that came down in the spring. I now have two giant tree tops in the horse pen that I need to get cut up and burnt. Currently not in the way or on any fences so they'll be sitting there for a while longer. I had a nice little tulip tree in the front yard that the wind was so strong that it broke the branches and they are hanging pathetically. I don't think I'll be able to save the tree. I bought the start from the local Master Gardner's club fund raiser 6 - 7 years ago. Poor little tree.

INDY, we had some small branches down from the past two storms, easily removed.
Several years ago we had to use a tractor and then chain saw the remnants and then
the city hauled it all off. It's work for sure but a source real pride upon completion.
You go girl!!!!!

Boy it was nice this morning............I. stayed out until 12 noon..........cloudy and breezy.

Hay delivery is Thursday so have to clean out the barn and get ready which only takes
about 20 minutes but it's like dusting, you're never done...........

Everyone have a good evening...........

ARK:  A BIG congrats to you for finishing the ride.  Praying for your health issue.  What a mess our health system has become.  Glad you got things figured out.

It's been so hot here, we have hardly spent anytime out of the A/C.  Finally things are cooling down and we had a little rain, just enough for the weeds to get a drink, the grass is still nice and brown and crunchy.

Finally talked George into having his John Deere sent out for service & to get a new seat, he has it all duct taped together.  Duct tape is a country boys life line.  LOL

My computer was hacked...grrrrrrr what a mess and expensive to get things straightened out again.  The security company called me yesterday, spent most of the afternoon on the phone with them.

Tomorrow is our big country girls tea party.  Nothing fancy this time, summer duds, shorts, tea, snacks and conversation.  In the fall we do our dress up like fancy girls tea party.

Friday I'm off to visit my girl Ashley, who is doing remarkably well.  She spent the weekend home alone while her dad went to his cabin for a little break from the stress of their lives and she did fine home alone.

Have a great week everyone.

TRUDY:
 That's amazing that Ashley can stay alone at home now!  Good for her!  
 Have fun at your tea party.  Sounds like a good time will be had!  
 That's funny about George's tractor seat.  Donnie's lawn tractor's seat is duct taped together and he bought a John Deere seat cover to hide it.  I guess it worked!


ELLEN:
 I hope the second Covid cousin is well by now and enjoying the group.  We've been having rain every day, so they would probably not be happy here this week.  Mud City.  At least it is cooler now.

GRAYMARE:
 How is your new puppy doing?  I bet she is getting big!  Did you take her to puppy kindergarten?


My new bike came in on Sunday!  Did you know FedEx delivers on Sunday??  Amazing.  Donnie put it together and yesterday we had a clear late afternoon, so took it down to the river path.  I like it!  It needs a few tweaks, but is very nice.  I hadn't ridden a bike since Donnie's 50th birthday when we rented bikes and rode down a mountain for 18 miles on a rails to trails conversion.   I discovered yesterday that I was not as balanced as I used to be on a bike,  I think it will take a few rides to get back to feeling totally comfortable again.   Or maybe I am just used to having Ivan catch my unbalanced self....   Anyway,  I can now go on the bike trails with Donnie.   I just ordered fenders for the bike so I don't have mud sprayed up my backbone.  

Nice bicycle, Ark. I hope you get lots of good miles on it.

My heart is breaking over the storms and loss of the people in Kentucky............
Pray for them...........

Wow. July is already over. Summer is whizzing by so fast. We have finally gotten a break in the hot weather, but it rains nearly every day. Donnie is working on my bike to put on fenders and a basket, then we may go for a ride along the New River tomorrow. There is a nice path that goes several miles along the river in the town of Radford. Thursday Ivan and I may get in a trail ride, we haven't done a thing since we finished that challenge. (Hot and/or rain).


Anyway, to get to the August page, go to: https://horsefriends.forumotion.com/t134-august-2022#14501

see you there!