Should I?

Last night was 4-H ride night. Curly is still having lameness issues, so E had to ride Chance. A few small jumps were set up in the arena for the girls to practice with; E has decided that she really likes jumping. This does not help my blood pressure.

While we were there, I saw a couple of horse-for-sale flyers posted on the tack room door. Times are tight, feed is expensive, and we're all beginning to see more and more animals up for sale. The two from last night are priced to sell (only $500!) due to divorce. A friend (our barn manager) knows the owner and the animals and says that they are good, sound horses. So should I go look at them????

There are two things holding me back at the moment. Number one is the lack of available feed. Good hay is scarce around here at the moment. I was given a couple of new leads for hay suppliers last night, though. :-) The second thing holding me back is E's back and forth on what she wants to do with horses. The last couple of times she's ridden, she's really enjoyed the arena stuff and jumping. The two horses listed at our barn happen to have ridden only trails up to this point in their lives. My hunch is that they'd go nuts riding around in circles in an arena.

But....there will be more good animals coming up for sale in the next little bit - and I'm sure that some will also be priced to sell like these two are! So, I guess I just talked myself out of looking at these two particular animals...but left the door open for future purchases!

Fruitcakin'

All of the horses out at the barn were jazzed up by the blowing wind and cooler weather yesterday. You could hear thundering hoof beats all over the pastures and we watched as they bucked and ran everywhere. It was fun to see...but of course Curly appears to have taken it a bit too far and now has a sore leg (right rear). We think he must have slipped in a muddy spot while fruitcakin' around. Will he ever be sound again????

(Side note: "Fruitcakin'' has become a favorite word....I heard the barn manager say it yesterday and it just made me smile. So descriptive and silly! I love the imagery it creates in my mind.)

E spent some time picking Curly's hooves (found two stones), putting linament on his leg and just generally loving on her horse.


R, on the other hand, found a warm spot in the barn and curled up in the hay to play.


By the time we left, she had finger-crocheted an incredibly long yarn chain.

I love the horse barn....

Barn Therapy

E had a terrible day at school earlier this week. Lots of tears and general hormonal upset. After talking it all out I asked if she wanted to go out to the barn. She wasn't too sure but agreed to go anyway.

We spent an hour or two cleaning and riding and loving on the horses. When E got in the car to go home she said "Mom, that was just what I needed." All was right in her world again.

So we have a new deal - whenever she feels like the day has been too much and her emotions are out of control, all she has to do is ask to go to the barn. I promised to find a way to get her there, no matter what.

If only all our problems could be so easily taken care of.....

English, anyone?

Taking Chance for a spin.

E. had an opportunity to ride a different horse out at the horse barn yesterday. Chance is a beautiful Morgan with a pretty little gait. E's never ridden a gaited horse before, so she wasn't sure what she should expect. After trotting around the arena a few times she decided that posting, and English style riding in general, has a purpose after all! Bouncing along in her big ol' Western pleasure saddle wasn't all that comfortable. But she did enjoy Chance's floaty canter. She also really liked the fact that he actually responds to her leg cues, unlike Curly - whose first response to any request is a big "No!"

After spending some time riding this new guy E. has decided that taking some English riding lessons might be fun. Our barn manager has offered Chance for our use while Curly heals, so this is a definite possibility. And who knows, maybe a gaited horse is in her future!

Land Lust

When we first moved to our town, I was overjoyed to finally own a home. And the place we purchased was especially nice, having many beautiful gardens and an absolutely magnificent maple tree in the backyard. The lot wasn't big, but it was all that I needed and wanted. And the fact that my husband can walk to work in 10 minutes is a huge bonus, too.

Over the past nine years my husband and I have overseen some pretty big remodeling projects to make the house fit our lifestyle better. And I'd like to think the changes we've made have improved the quality of our old house.

Then I discovered my love of horses. And guess what - my perfect house doesn't seem so perfect anymore.

I want land, lots of land. Okay, maybe not that much, but definitely more than my current .16 acres. I check the real estate ads obsessively now, looking for the perfect lot to build my dream barn, um, I mean house, on. My ideal place is still close to hubby's work - preferably within bicycling distance - and at least 3 acres. I've even picked out some house plans that I think I'd like to build. (I've researched sustainable building and alternative energy sources for home heating for many years -- so wanting to build a house such as the one in the link is nothing new.) Unfortunately, the land around here is not inexpensive anymore. I found my perfect lot - to the tune of $325,000! I'd like to spend that much on the land and the house. Then I'd still be able to possibly build my dream barn....

Complicating the whole issue is the fact that hubby M doesn't want to move. That 10 minute walk to work is extremely important to him, plus he just plain likes our house.

I'm constantly torn by my desire to own our own acreage where we keep our horses, a couple of goats and the random chicken. But our current setup works okay. Sure, I have to drive 20 minutes to go see the horse, but by boarding I gain the freedom to travel and I also benefit from the social aspects of being at a barn with lots of people around.

If only I could find a lot to build my strawbale house that was next door to a place to board the horse, all within walking distance of work.....

Upset tummy or....

In between herdsmanship duty assignments at the county fair last week we made quick trips out to the horse barn to check in on Curly. He was terribly lonely out there while everyone else was playing at the fair grounds! He became a regular "pocket pony," following us everywhere we went.

On Monday, however, he wasn't so lively and just stayed in his stall the whole time we were there. Plus he had eaten only half of his breakfast. This is very unusual for our boy - he's typically a big vacuum, sucking up every last bit of hay he can get his lips on. So many things could be wrong and we hated to see him so not his normal self. Being concerned, E. had grandma drive her out to the barn again on Tuesday.

Then we found out what had happened...and it wasn't tummy trouble. Or at least not honest tummy trouble! Curly had been let out to graze in one of the smaller areas near the hay barns...and the stinker broke into the storage areas and ate 1/3 of a bale of hay! No wonder he didn't eat his breakfast!

It's County Fair time!

E's 4-H club has been in high-gear, getting ready for the upcoming fair. Yesterday we spent the afternoon cleaning and decorating the stalls that will be used by our group. Hard work, but fun too. Our club is made up of relatively young members, so we have decided to not kill ourselves trying to win the herdsmanship competition. The kids will work hard to keep their animals healthy and happy, but hopefully we won't have any of the falling apart that occurred last year.

Here's some pictures of yesterday's fun:

Cleaning the stalls before we bring in our animals...

The kids cleaned them inside and out...what a big job!

Finishing up our education display board..."Know Your Alpha Bits"

Fixing the club sign....

We are all looking forward to a good fair experience. I think E might be a little sad that she's not showing Curly...but only a little!