March 2016

RICK
When are you going to Scotland? Carol is so organized! When we went, we didn't reserve rooms anywhere, we just bumbled along. I guess we were lucky we didn't end up sleeping in the car . Once we ended up over a pub. That was interesting.... We want reports!!!

CB
What's on the agenda today?

TRUDY
Funny how you hate the time change and I love it . I hate the fall time change, though. If they would leave it like it is now, I would be happy about it. I like long afternoons.


Donnie took a vacation day yesterday and worked all day. He trimmed Trinket and Zippy, and cleared a lot of brambles and such from one fence line. Tired guy. Today the farrier is coming. He is only going to do Ivan and Areion.

ARK ... 15 May / 1 June.  I hope I'll be able to "blog" like I've done in the past utilizing Carol's scrapbook as a guideline.  One posting per day of travel....or maybe I should say one day of travel per posting. Carol just is NOT that brave about traveling w/o knowing WHERE she's gonna sleep at night , etc.

I'm s-l-o-w-l-y  inching along taking out fence posts  Maybe by the weekend I'll have them all out.

HAPPY ST. PATRCKS DAY!!!! Everyone is Irish today.

ARK: I HATE the time change, both ways. Just pick one and leave it that way, don't care which one, I am terrible with changes in my daily schedule.

My dentist appointment went well. Dr. Wilson said if she didn't know I had been having so many problems she would just think my gum looked a tiny bit red. YEAH....hopefully whatever I had going on in there, that no doctor or dentist could diagnose is finally gone.

Not much going on around here this week, all is quiet, just the way I like it.

YAY TRUDY...........nothing to worry about from the dreaded dentist yesterday.
Whew.

RICK.........your trip sounds great..........and daily check ins and small report sounds really super.

Hey, CB, LOL. Are you & Harry surviving the rugged pace of kids? I'm sure you're having a ball. How was the Stampede? Hope the kids loved it.

TRUDY. We have a popular bar/pub here called Fibber McGees, owned by an Irish immigrant of 20 yrs. It's going to be crazy today, I bet. Everyone have a great
Irish grand day.

Happy st paddys day!

Our schedule was this:
Sat nite dinner and to bed!
Sun morn brkfst at home, then off to wild animal safari and zoo. its great, a bus ride thru the park hand feeding the animals and petting them and lots of pictures clyde the camel was just a riot with his big lubberly lips! lol
Sun evening, fish hatchery and feeding the hungry trout.
Sun dinner at home showers and bed.

Monday went to branson
Watched amazing pets show, pretty good.
Checked into hotel, baby nap....
Mon nite, dixie stampede and dinner server during the show and to bed!

Tues we hit some amish stores and chocolate factory outlet, and got a movie to watch after we got home.

Weds morning off to amusement park and spent the day.....I have Never been to a park built on a hill, man the walking was hard on us! but did a few rides and then joey met his brother who was passing thru for dinner and we came home and met with the notary for closing on our va loan
Then I made brownie delights with ice cream, whipped cream, cherrie on top.....oh yum....

Everyone fell into bed and even the baby slept all night! then fixed breakfast and packed them up and off to home they went.....
Don't mind admittin, we r tire but happy!

CB, that sounds like a lot of fun for everyone! The older kids will never forget it. I'm so glad you got the loan all squared away. It's been a good week for you.

This isn't funny, but I think hereditary...jessi sprained her ankle.....wheweeeee it was swollen, nuthing broke, had xrays......now they say the apple doesn't fall far from the tree.......teehee....

I guess I need to go put on my green shirt we r going to the cafe....they do make some good strawberry daiquiries.

Well ya'll keep fingers crossed that I behave tomorrow and Saturday!  Robin and I are going to the Dixie Horse and Tack Sale in Troutman, NC.  I honestly intend to just look!!!  I swear!   However I'm not making any promises!  I will be looking at prices of maybe an easy entry cart/buggy and harnesses.  I am semi-in love with an 8 yr Belgian or Haffie cross, can't determine his breed mix, 14.1 0r 2.  Rusty (hate that name for a horse) is a t-total in-your-pocket boy, he'll even leave his hay pat just to follow you for petting and attention, he gave me hugs and bobbled his lips on my face....................I'm hopeless, absolutely hopeless!  Buggy/cart may be the way I need to go, at least for now and if I get brave enough to ride again, Rusty has been ridden and trained by the Amish for both pulling and riding.  According to his owners and Rose (where he is boarding) he is completely road safe, even with semi's driving around him.  No spook in him!  We will see how things go.......

ARK, you were looking so good on Ivan in your lesson, so proud of you both.

CB, if you and Cinnamon weren't so far away, I would come take a peek!  I just truly love to have a horse in my life, but I fully realize I must be more careful now, heck I'm not even completely healed from my last taking chances!!!   So happy you and Harry are happily tired from your trip and visit and that the loan is all squared away.

ELLEN, because I missed it somewhere, exactly where are you wintering?  And when are you coming back to the lake?

RICK, you are making much progress on your defencing project!  Keep at it young man and you'll win!  Can't wait for the Scotland blog/narrative.  We can all visit through you and Carol's travels.

TRUDY, so glad your Dentist visit went well, I was always terrified of Dentist visits but went and went and went, just wasn't blessed with very good teeth and gums, oh well you can't win them all I guess!

SYD, I'll bet that little Irish business is swamped today. How's your weather holding, stifling hot already? I know you do all outside chores super early to beat the heat, very smart methinks!

Guess I'd better pack my little overnight bag and get some shut eye! Later gang!

Rose, I am so glad you are beginning to look ahead to another possible horse. Driving would be a whole new adventure.

I am in El Paso, Texas, but will be heading north on Monday, so home on Wednesday. The weather here is soooo perfect this time of year. I'm hoping it will be well on the way to warm days by the time I get there.

Weather going to chill off again....ya may want to stay longer. hubby and I caught a virus from kids.....ugh.....took today off.....havnt gotten out of our pjs.....I feel like a pull cord lawn mower that doesn't start....

Kids r home safely. was a really awesome time.

Rose, other than having age..cinnamon is so well behaved.she will have some good years toting kids around and teaching them to ride....she loves any and all attention. tank will be working with the older kids, basics and learning to rope....he will like the attention too....so I think if I can't really have extras they r going to a good place..as good as I can get for them with a buyback agreement....I can go see them too. people seem really nice. so that brings us down to just 2 rocky and daisie.....we will see how it goes traveling with horses and see how our health goes.
But am glad u r going to try driving...we r getting older, but we rnt quitters...even if we have a mini we pet in the backyard or just keep interested in what our friends r up to with their trusty steeds and supporting one another in any and all endeavors.

Keep on keepin on y'all.

Ivan and I had a big adventure today! We went on a trail ride at Pandapas Pond Park outside of Blacksburg, VA with our riding instructor, Lori, her mustang, Tonto, and her dog, Chase. It was so much fun! The weather was perfect clear blue, and other than a bit windy, a great day to ride. We rode a couple of hours and butter wouldn't have melted in Ivan's mouth. We went on a loose rein the entire way and he was the very horse I wished for all my life. When we got about a mile from the trailers on the way back, a helicopter started circling overhead!    It kept flying low back and forth over us, very noisy. We were out in the woods and had no idea why this helicopter kept buzzing over. The horses were wonderful, no spooks or fright at all. We couldn't hear one another speak, it was so loud and low. We got back to the parking area and found police cars and lots of people with cameras. It turned out there was a forest fire on the mountain across the highway from the park and the helicopter was using the pond to scoop up water and dump it on the fire. We couldn't see the fire, but we could see the smoke and the helicopter running back and forth. Lots of excitement! The horses loaded on their trailers despite it all, and when they finally let us out on the blocked highway, we made our way home just fine....

Ark, without even trying u found excitement! see, it really does just happen! lol. glad u had a great ride.
Is the fire out, seems funny with your climate having fires...now idaho, happened a lot!

Hubby and I still have a tummy virus....ugh......jessi said the girls are fine now, so I hope it is shortlived......I'm outgassin the bulldog tonight....he even left to sleep in other room...everyone includin the dang dog is a critic!

I didn't even get my dishes done today, said heck with em......fed the critters, ate lightly and jus had a blahhhhhhh day!

I found some canadian bulldogs for sale, going to have to go look.....

Sweet dreams....

ROSE
How did your trip go? Any prospects? If you were considering a more pony sized cart, i would tell you about Zippy's. I think his cart pulling days are over and i will probably sell it. Zippy is staying somewhat lame in a front foot and with having Cushing's, just doesn't have the energy he used to. He is 25 years old, and retired, i guess. I will sure miss doing those parades with him!

CB
Sorry about your bug!! I hope you are feeling better this evening! The fire is surely out, it has rained all day. There was another one up past Roanoke, too. The weather had been very dry with low humidity, then windy. They had been warning people about being careful all week. I guess they were right. Today the mud is back.

ELLEN
Safe trip! It is going to possibly snow here on Sunday. I would wait a few days, too. It will be back in the 70s by mid-week. It is very chilly here today after several really nice days.

Our former wild tomcat, Dorian Grey Cat, is already taming up! He is letting us pet him and is meowing at us when we go outside. We let him out of the cage a few days ago when he started asking to be let out. He seemed to need those caged days to recover, but is doing well now. He lets Donnie brush him! Did I tell you that Donnie is a closet Cat Whisperer? His secret is out!

Oh those bulldog puppies were so darn cute..................need I say more?

Lol about donnie finally coming out of the closet....kitty likes him!

Tired....hittin the hay early....

Nite!

Trudy, our plans for coming home to pa are coming along, hope to see you and george.
We will be there the 2nd, 3rd, 4th.july. taking in the millville carnival and their frenchfries and carmel corn. we will be camping at shady rest campground, eyersgrove. its easier to have the dogs that way. so hope to see yas!

Where did everyone go today?

Good morning everyone..busy couple of days here in PA. Saturday we went to a wedding at our church. Little Gus Gula got married. Guess he isn't little Gus anymore. He is one of the most intelligent kids I ever met, a young Bill Gates, a real nerd and his new wife Rachel fits him well. It was the wedding of the nerds. LOL I sent Ash a photo of the wedding and she said "it looks like you are at Harry Potters wedding, Gus looks just like him." LOL

Anyone watching Little Big Shots on Sunday nights? WOW those kids are amazing, so talented. If you get a chance watch the episode where the 5 year old little girl hypnotizes the animals with her touch & song. A dog, rooster, frog, lizard and bunny.

CB: Keep us posted on your arrival here in PA, I sure do want to get together for a visit. It's been a long time since got to visit.

ARK: That is such a great photo of you and Ivan. What an experience that had to be with the copters flying all around. We didn't even get a snowflake from the storm they were predicting. YEAH.

ELLEN: Have a safe trip driving back home. Prayers going up for safe travel.

ROSE: Praying you are healing quickly and if and when you jump back into the horse business you find the right horse for you.

Have a great Monday everyone, 2 quiet days here then Ace had a vet appointment, on Weds. Poor doggie, going to the vet completely freaks him out. I have those pills Doc gave me last time and will try one out on him. It's awful to see my sweet cat loving dog turn into Cujo at the vets office. He remembers all those operations on his head when he was a pup.

TRUDY
We didn't get a snowflake either, just the cold and wind. Fine with me! I am so over snow this year! I bet that was a sweet wedding. Good luck to them!! I am glad they found each other. Donnie found me, there is someone for every geek!

The ride Friday was very entertaining... Our lessons have really helped us. Ivan is so much easier to communicate with these days... as when my knee was aimed at a passing tree, just a touch on his side with my leg and he moved over to the center of the path. My knee really appreciated that. Ivan was so incredibly good the entire day. Lori was fairly concerned about the helicopter since her horse is a mustang and may have been rounded up by one. If so, he didn't react to it. It was a good ride.

Today I have a dental appointment to get my new tooth implant installed! Finally. It will be great to be able to chew on that side again.

CB
Did you get a new puppy?

Heading back north today. Sure hate to leave a good friend and good weather.

Good morning all...........

Wow, spring already. The weather map for the NE is sure stormy for today.
Here, we are to have a couple of cool days with clouds and possible rain. Full moon almost here so the night is clear & bright so far. Heavens, next week is Easter.

We had gone to Tucson last Thursday for a visit with some of our summer
gang. We left Thur. late afternoon and returned Saturday afternoon. We all had fun, and, of course, were worn out on Sunday. Anyhow, we did some hiking Fri & Sat but mostly laughed and ate. Yesterday had dinner with the kids.

One of my friends is moving to a lovely newer home way out of town at the base of the mountains...........so, today I'm g going with her to see it while she makes some decisions as to how it's all going to go. She just completed a 3 day garage sale so she cut the junk way back and sold her household furniture to buy new.................LOL, now she has 2 empty houses. Her hubs is going on vacation for two mos. LOL. I'm kidding but he wishes he could. The whole family is excited and the grands are getting a perimeter fence as it's wild country out there. They haven't had horses for a few years but want to get a couple of older stable mules for riding and their grands to have fun with. The barn and corral are really nice I hear............anyhow, a big adventure day today.

I haven't see Big Shots........what channel?

ELLEN..........have a safe drive home...........

ARK, love your picture!

CB, tell us about your new bulldog puppy...............I'm guessing you couldn't walk out without one.

Gm....I had to come home without one, but they were too young to come home yet!

Rose, we will be in loris sc last few days in june, hope to get a meetup for a cuppa.

Ellen, safe travels.

Ark, hope ur weather stays nice so u can get ready for ur big ride.

I think our luck ran out on catching colds or allergies r hittin us like crazy...we both feel miserable. we had a hard frost last night, took a toll on my flowers that were blooming.

is it dead? I don't know, its not moving.....discussion between hubby and me today when we pulled into our driveway a big ol turkey flew into our truck and landed on the hood......

Poke it......well find a stick and I will.....finds a stick, I say, u poke it! right before he got the stick to it it flared up and flopped wings in our faces and took off again!

Scarin the chit out of us......

Be still my heartbeat.....

Tonight finds me just outside Oklahoma City. Made good time all day. Hoping for the same tomorrow.

CB
Zombie turkey . Donnie's truck that we had just bought got hit by a suicidal cliff jumping turkey. It hit the front corner on the driver's side. A little higher and it would have gone thru the windshield at 55 mph. Killed that bird dead. Donnie brought it home and skinned it. Then we baked what turned out to be the worst turkey we ever had. It was like the one on Chevy Chase's Christmas Vacation movie. Dry and tough as nails.

ELLEN
Stay safe!

GRAYMARE
The thought of moving again gives me the chills. Good luck to your friend!

TRUDY
I have my new tooth! It is so nice having a full set of teeth again... I can eat on both sides... . I probably couldn't get thru airport security, I have a lot of metal in my mouth.


Hay guy is finally coming tomorrow afternoon. i was going to go knocking on his door, I am down to 4 days of hay left. So of course, Lori is also scheduled to come tomorrow afternoon for lessons. And it will be in the 70s !!

CB, just keep reminding me when you are in the area, of course we'll have to a cuppa or two, and a lengthy chat!

ARK, whatever horse/pony I finally get, it will be between 13-14 hh, so it will be pony size, just am going to have to learn to harness up and find a cart and harness.  Will have to be a stout little pony/horse to haul my fat butt around.......

GM, I'm like ARK, I would consider it a tragedy if I had to move again!!

ELLEN, hope you are safely at home by now, or at least very close!

Ya'll would have been proud of me at the Dixie Horse Auction this past weekend, I was only tempted about 2 dozen times and seriously only once, with a racking Gypsy, if the trailer had been with us, the mare would be with me today, 5 years, rode like a dream............they ran about 600 horses and mules through so I think I did pretty good!  Robin and I are going to another sale this coming Saturday, fingers crossed again please!   There was one pony mule who was probably the smartest and cutest equine there, he would actually follow his owner (w/o a lead) even into the sale barn and there was a helluva lot of racket and commotion in there and then would let his owner mount and sit and watch the sale.  unbelievably calm and sweet!

The very preggo Gypsy (Missy) at the barn is still preggo (she was due the first week of March)!

Better get something done and get ready to fix supper!  Later

Back home again, in Indiana.... (music note here) I got in late last evening. I had planned to stop a few hours out, but got there and it was still early and I wasn't tired. So, I just kept going and got here a little before midnight. The car will be unloaded today.
I miss the bright blue southwest skies. It's cloudy here and I haven't seen clouds since I left.
My yard is still a mess. The ice didn't hold up long enough to get the logs cleared off. It's going to be a long process now. They'll load some into an old rowboat, go to the public access, load from boat to trailer, then up the hill to the barn. It's gonna take a while. I'll help pick up the little stuff.
My tulips are up about 6 inches now. They might be blooming in another week or so. We planted a bunch of new ones last fall and they seem to be doing very well.