This is our family blog,
set up so that you can be
one step closer to our
daily lives.
We've got TWENTY feet
(often more) going in
and out of our house
every day, out of which
comes a lot of stories!
Who are the other two feet,
you ask?
YOU! Our guest!
...like right now, that I wonder why I am putting myself and family through all of this stress of moving to a new home when I have a perfectly wonderful one right here. I have an extremely exhausted husband, confused dogs and cats in need of attention, horses desperately needing exercise, family and friends I ought to be spending time with, a house needing to be cleaned (here I am blogging - but it is the easiest way to keep up with family & friends right now), paintings needing to be finished and a garden and a pile of books just waiting to be enjoyed. I'm not even going to tell you how pitiful my prayer life is right now....
BUT I know this is what we need to be doing for so so so many reasons. I won't go through them all, but here's three very good ones:
I must say, the reason to the far left is an especially sweet and cute one!
My sweet "Pony" is 14 today! She's now spent more than half of her life with me, which I am so thankful for!
She is the best horse in the world, not because she's got great bloodlines or won any competitions or has great conformation or anything that usually justifies being the best. Kahlo is the best because of what we've been through together and what she has taught me about life, patience, forgiveness and devotion. Thank you, God, for using Kahlo to teach me these life lessons and for creating her! Happy Birthday, Kahlo! I have some carrots and a whole bag of horse treats that are on their way to you! :o)
Who wouldn't want horses at their house!? Ok - I can think of a few times where one might not want a horse at their house, but we are So looking forward to living with ours! Saturday, we decided, would be a great day to do a trial run with the horses at the farm to see if their were any problem fences or if Shine would even load onto the trailer, since she's only done it once willingly! I am happy to say my sweet Shine loaded right onto the trailer without hesitation. Sam was her handler since I was so nervous about it all, and she did great! I should have taken a picture - I was so proud I felt like my heart would burst! What a great little horse she is growing up to be (if you've never trailer trained a young horse, you probably don't realize what a big deal this is!)! The horses loaded and unloaded with no problem and Sam did great driving the truck and trailer on those bumpy, narrow, winding country roads. Once we arrived, they immediately started going for the green, green grass! The horse and pony next door called out a greeting, but ours were too busy eating. We decided to let them "hang out" in the pasture before our ride to let them get adjusted. Here you can see them in the righthand corner of the picture under the trees:
We later had a great ride exploring the front and back pastures. I think Shine had the most fun. She enjoyed getting to tag along with us again, like she did when she was a foal. She ate and ran and bucked and rolled and generally had a great time! She even ran into a tree when she was galloping downhill too fast. She'll have to work on those breaks! After our ride, we let them relax again in the pasture. They divided their time between staring at the cows and bulls behind our property (Kahlo was such a watch dog!), grazing under the trees, teasing the horse next door and running up to the donkey to make him bray. Reagan really likes the horse next door. She seems to be wanting a friend. Shine and Kahlo are big buddies (Shine makes all the effort). Shine does whatever Kahlo does, so Reagan feels alone sometimes I think. We do need to find another horse to board with us so she can have a buddy! While the horses were relaxing, we did a little work inside ( I say a little, because we were tired already!). It was neat to be in the house and look out of the windows and see the horses grazing or running.
Later, Sam's brother and sister-in-law came by to see the house. It sure was a wreck, but I am anxious to see how it will turn out in the end. If they hadn't been dressed so nice, we would have put them to work! :o) I wish I had gotten more pictures of our fun time, but you will just have to come and see for yourself!
It is so strange for me to scroll down and look at those snow pictures... Life is bursting so quickly from everything right now!
Can you tell the difference in temperment of these two dogs? Yeah.
And since no one, not even the one person who reads my blog (thanks, Mama!), posted about their Springtime projects, I will write about mine for my own entertainment!
First off, we are having a foal. Since we don't know when Reagan's date of conception is, we don't know when the foal will come, what it will be (horse or mule) or what it will possibly look like. Honestly though, I don't see how Reagan can keep going and growing. She's eating 24/7 on grass and hay in addition to 6 + pounds special pellet feed with vitamins and corn oils added in three times a day. She's a machine! So, when will the Little Rea Rea come? Any day now is my guess. I'll get worried if we end up in April and there's no baby yet...
I'm also trying to work with Kahlo more.. I want to train her in several things such as barrel racing, trail competition and endurance. If we just stuck to one thing I think it would be boring for both of us. Plus, the more time we spend together and work on challenges together the better we will both be!
Another Springtime project is the beginning of the vegetable garden! Some of our seedlings have begun to sprout and we have plans to till up and compost the would be garden area. It is our first attempt to grow anything edible and neither one of us know all the little insider tricks of the trade as far as gardening goes, so I'm not expecting too much but nonetheless it is exciting! Our own little Recession Garden!
Of course, we have lots of little house projects going on as well. I'm currently looking for tiles to replace one or more of the sections of the floor part of the hearth were there once were tiles. Expense and availability are the major roadblocks at this point. I just can't justify spending 3.75 per antique white tile right now, yet I want things to be as historically accurate as possible, so I am wanting salvaged tiles, but will take reproductions. They are such small areas, but big focal points and one of the major traits of old houses - cool fireplaces! I don't want to skimp on these. I did pay a high amount per tile for the dining room fireplace, but it only needed a few tiles and they are so unique - I'm CERTAIN no one makes them anymore for any better of a price.
I'd also REALLY like to get the mudroom in shape, finish the remaining woodwork in the kitchen and put in some cabinets in the laundry as well as putting the finishing touches on decorating these areas. Oh yeah, and a new door for the art studio... and curtains... and the black board... and on and on and on! You old house people understand!!!
I know it has been mentioned here before, and if you know me at all you know that we bought a horse for my husband. Horses are largely considered property. They are sold, traded, leased, etc. Just like a house has a history of buyers, important owners and a plat book, horses have a little history that follows them as well. I mean, if you've read Black Beauty you know what I am talking about. Now, if your horse is a purebred, his or her history is much more easily traced. Kahlo, my horse, has more of a verbal history with interests than her paper history. And Sam's horse, Reagan... well... hers is a very colorful one - and I'm not saying that because she is a Paint. I won't bore you with the details of buying her - only horse people really care to know all of that. But if you have every been close to an animal or a child that is not your own you know what I mean when I tell you that I see something in her eyes. Not a good or really even a bad something... Everything is not OK. Somewhere along the way, something has hurt her heart and I'm determined to get to the bottom of it. The trouble with animals is that they can't tell you with words.
I love Reagan. I love her different than Kahlo. I worry about her different than I do Kahlo. Kahlo was hurt in her past, but it was in a completely different way. It was fear. Though her look was mostly consumed with fear and looking a little lost there was still fire there. She was still willing to fight. And fight she did! But that fearful, lost look is gone now. Reagan looks as though she's tired of caring and she's given up. She just wants to be left alone. Her eyes are dull. She looks down. i still see a bit of a spark there, but I honestly feel as though she has decided not to love anything again or to be attached to anything again. That's the best way to describe it.
Due to this burning worry I have for Reagan that i just can't shake, I've talked to anyone horsey who will listen about her behavior. I've bought books. I've spent time with her. I've poured over anything on the Internet that I can find about her, and, believe it or not, there's quite a bit. She's had anywhere from 6 to 10 owners in her 13 years of life and lived in at least 6 different states in the northeast to the deep south. She was auctioned off on April 15 of 2000 starting at 5,100.00 (We DID NOT pay that much for her by any stretch!).
While living in Virginia, she and her foal were stolen for 3 days, then returned. She's had AT LEAST two foals. One, a 2002 mare (registered)named Buckeye Two Two. The other, born in approximately April of 2003 was a filly I do not know the name of. I found pictures of her this evening. It really touched me to be able to know just this little bit more about her. Here she is:
Look at that face! How I wish I could know her more!
When the two of them were stolen, they listed Reagan's personality trails on the flier as follows:
Very Friendly. Loves people. Very protective mother.
That is what affirmed to me more than anything that something happened to Reagan either gradually or sudden that hurt her. She runs away from us and other people when she sees us coming. When we saddle her up her ears go flat against her head and she tries to bite. I would have thought of it as a possible pain or previous injury, but once you get on, she's totally content. Loves people? Who broke that trust? What happened along the way?
I realize that many of you are thinking to yourself that i need to get a life - she's just a horse! But God has given me a huge heart for animals. I can't shake this concern I have for her. Maybe this love of animals will fade if I have children of my own. Thus far it has only gotten stronger.
I want to know more about our Rea Rea simply because I want to help her and have her know she can trust us again, and mostly that she's come to the last stop. She doesn't have to worry anymore.
Are not five sparrows sold for two pennies ? Yet not one of them is forgotten by God. ~Luke 12:6
Even the sparrow has found a home, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may have her young— a place near your altar, O LORD Almighty, my King and my God. ~Psalm 84:3
I don't when I last blogged, though I know all I have to do is scroll down and look. April. Ok. So it has been a while. We are doing well here. There have been a few changes for us, but it all seemes like they've first begun so long ago it is silly to talk about them now.
Anyway, Sam's last post was a bit too serious and current event-like for my taste, so that's what finally prompted me to post. Not that I don't want him posting about his thoughts on various issues... but all we really want are funny stories and pictures right? I can do the picture thing but my mind is too muddy for a funny story today...
I've missed being a silent observer of your lives! So for all of my silent observers here, have some pictures!
Sideways Sam during the Thanksgiving pumpkin pureeing fest of 2008 that went until the wee hours of the morning...
Middle stages of pumpkin processing
Final product - too much to eat, so we froze it. A LOT of it.
My pony, just as beautiful as the day I got her 6 years ago!
I guess I haven't posted with previously noted fervor over the past two weeks due to illness and starting a new job. I've been either here or there, cleaning the kitchen or making dinner and the like. The new job is horseback riding lessons, which is fun and rewarding, but also a huge change in pace for me since I have been working from home for a while now. Plus, my brain is a little fried from doing so many lesson plans... I don't know how teachers and homeschoolers do it all! Lesson plans for this week:
Private art lesson for rambunctious 7 year old that must include learning one of the elements of design while having fun
Private art lesson for calm, type A personality, artistically talented 4 year old that will include concepts and instructions that she can understand while having fun with art
Riding lesson for 5 y. o. boy on a horse that won't budge that must be safe, yet very fun
Riding lesson for 5 y. o. girl who's mother stands beside you the whole time and caused the last instructor to loose her job (oh, no, I'm not nervous at all...)
Riding lesson for 6 y. o. girl who's mother wants her to learn every possible element of horseback riding that will give her every advantage in the world before they move in one month
Hunt-Seat Riding lesson for teenage girl who has put me on this huge pedestal (I haven't ridden hunt-seat in about two years...). If I don't satisfy her English riding needs, the family may relocate to another barn, causing my barn to loose about 600.00 a month - no pressure!!!
Group Riding lesson for 3 girls, 11, 12 and 17 (the 17 y. o. has never ridden before - the other girls are way ahead!!!).
Riding lesson for girl I have never met and cannot pronounce her name
Overall curriculum for 5 day horse camp this summer that I will be running, to be presented to management ASAP
Whatever else might come up this week...
Please let me just say that of all these children I am currently teaching (except for 2 that I have not met yet), I truly have no complaints with them. They are all sweet and as obedient as children can be. I love kids and I love teaching. It's just coming up with all of these different plans, none of which have the same objectives or method of execution...
And also, we are still in the throws of negotiation with the little cottage house that we currently live in. It's beginning to get a little ridiculous, if you ask me. We are at the point were it is make or break and we have to consider that the house may not get another offer anytime soon at which we will have to rent it out - NOT at all what we want, but we can't keep paying two mortgages. Oh, and I was sick for about two weeks. I knew I was sick and probably needed some meds, but I had to go to work, which wore me out all the more. Plus, I felt it really was just a cold and my body needed to fight it off on my own. Had it not been for my dear, sweet husband buying Pride and Prejudice on DVD (the Colin Firth/ Jennifer Ehle edition) I may have not been inspired to move at all those two weeks and would have sunk into a bored stupor (we packed up all of our books for the move). Oh yeah, and we are renovating the Foursquare and packing up this house, too. Oh yeah, and I started up that business last summer...
But back to move exciting things like Pride and Prejudice, DVD.... It was great because if I did not want to watch all 6 hours of it (like the embarrassing mother scenes, Mr Collins painful proposal or bad Lydia) I could skip to my favorite ones, like Lizzy and Mr. Darcy's dance at Netherfield, Mr. Darcy's first proposal, Elizabeth first visits Pemberley, Lizzy plays Georgiana's piano at Pemberley, Mr. Darcy's renewal of his addresses, etc. etc. etc. I could even watch the same scene over and over and over again. If you like the book and DVD, this all needs no explanation. You know exactly how I feel...
And on sickness....I think my healing was largely due to "MeMe's Firecrackers." They are these crackers my MIL makes that have crushed red pepper flakes and cayenne pepper on them. It will clean out your sinuses in no time flat! Made me feel so much better. Also, I made myself some cheesy cauliflower soup. I had a meat aversion while sick (a food aversion in general) and this is, for the most part, a vegetarian soup. So yummy. Every time I eat it I feel like someone loves me... I guess it's a comfort soup of sorts.
Oh, and in further affirmation of my fried brain, I discovered this video. I made Sam watch it over and over last night. I was just cracking up and he sat there with a blank stare.
Anyway, you've probably already seen it, but it's funny.
All that to say, I'm caving on coming up with all of my own curriculum. Sam has to go to the local home improvement super store tonight and there is a book super store just a feet away. I buyin' some teachin' books so I can start learnin' some kids more better.
At least, that's what the perturbed large, white cat in my house would say if he were me or my husband right now. The House of Many Feet has been plagued with a cold of sorts including stuffy ears, whiny voices, unbridled emotion, runny noses, swimmy heads and stomachs that can not be rendered peaceful.
In short, Sam and I are both sick. BUT someone has to run the house and we both have sad eyes, pouty lips and watch to watch OUR favorite movie on the couch (he wants action and shoot 'em up - bang bang! and I would prefer something with horses in it or kissing and captivating romantic speeches) and be served soup or McDonald's. We are out of toilet paper, we need some gatorade, shaving cream, milk and something for me to cook. Sigh. I also have to run to the banks, buy dog food, horse feed and various grooming tools for a very demanding mare that is shedding her winter coat.
In honor of home inspections being finished/over (and going rather well for an 86 year old home), household illness, my inability to make coherent comments on other blogs and type correctly I am taking the week off from blogging.
How do you people with kids do it? Murrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr....
OK, and the big things too. They get me here and there. And I'm not trying to be a "Debbie Downer" as my husband says. It is the little things like, you know, having your house overrun by fleas (Stephanie?). Fleas are little, but when you're in the midst of fighting them, it feels very big and costs big. How a certain brown dog (not naming any names) barks to the heavens EVERY TIME something in the outside world moves.
And then there's people. People. The things they do.... I think that's what's really been on my mind this week. Things I don't understand. Something happened in our town this past summer. Things that I am not sure should have been revealed were revealed this month. Things were made open to the public. There are many, many people who have been hurt because of this. It shook foundations, made some people laugh, made others "cast their stones" crying, "hypocrite." It confuses me. It keeps me awake. It disturbs me. I don't know how to process it so that I can move on. I don't know that it is even worth dwelling on, but I don't feel that I can move past it until I process it. There's nowhere in my brain for it to go. That's what I am struggling with. I don't know if it is bad, evil, weird, laughable, sinful, accidental, intentional, curious.... I feel so strange thinking about it and I don't know WHY it is bothering me. Why do I want to understand it? Why do I want to know more? WHY? Why am I so disturbed by it? Who can help me make sense of this? No one comes to mind. And I keep having dreams. In them I loose everything and no one understands my pain. I'm not safe anywhere. Sam wakes me up and says I am crying out in my sleep.
I also realized that it is the 10th today. Things are OK and it is the 10th. But now that I know that it is the 10th, I'll be worried about the 11th, 12th, all the way up until the 16th. Yesterday I rode my horse. Like mad. Up hills, down hills, running, fast, almost falling sometimes. It was fun, but a very rough ride. Should I have done that? Am I going to be sad tomorrow? Later? I don't know if I can wait another 8 months...
I also don't know if I can stop riding. It is one of the only things that really cleanses my mind and takes me away from my worries. It's like, for a little bit, while I am on the back of my horse, my fingers woven into her long white mane, things blur past me. I'm in control but I'm not. For a moment, running so fast through the trails, we outrun all of my problems and worries. Nothing is as fast as we are.
But I always have to return to the real world.
When I finished cleaning her (Kahlo-the horse) up after our run through the woods, I put her out in the pasture and gave her a bulging handful of apple treats. I rubbed her face and told her goodnight. As I walked away, she did as well. I was staring up at the stars, walking to my car, and I turned back to look at her again. She too, had walked a ways, but was also looking back over her shoulder at me. "We had them all beat for a moment, didn't we?" I said softly. We both stood that way for another second, then went back to our corners of the world. It was a sweet moment. If you have a horse, perhaps you understand.
I've also been thinking about some of the blogging I have been meaning to do. I'm getting there. Maybe I can now since I've gotten some of this out.
I very much enjoy my time with my horse, Kahlo, but for more reasons than just one. The barn is a place where I can escape everyday life, be out in nature (which is where I feel closest to God), care for my sweet friend (Kahlo), ride with the wind or relax on the trails and be with my good barn buddies. Two of my closest barn buddies are Ms. Leah and Ms. Nancy. Even though I do not have as much life experience (is that a good way to say it???) as they do, they still let me hang out with them! They share their troubles and their joys and they listen to me as I share mine. They were there when I was single and sometimes brokenhearted, they were there when I met and later married my sweet husband (they had LOTS of advice, too!) and I know there will be many more times for us to share in the future. They trust me with their hurts and struggles and I do likewise. On a more joyful note, we share happy times too! I'll never forget my Lingerie Shower or The Time in the Woods when they gave me The Wedding Night Talk! Eeeeeee! We just recently had birthdays (Ms. Nancy and I share one!) and birthday celebrations, including Ms. Leah's Mexican Fiesta! We are due for another party this weekend (it's gonna be great!) and hopefully a nice ride. Let's not forget about the Rita Rain Riders!!! I have never laughed so much on the back of my horse before - and while running through the rain! I guess what I am trying to say is: These are my friends, and they are GREAT!
Ms. Leah, Me and Ms. Nancy celebrate a wonderful birthday!!!
Peek-a-boo! Kahlo and me - Idon't think she's having as much fun as I am!!!!!
The picture below was taken before I was married. Kahlo was excellent during the photo shoot. Isn't she such a pretty girl?!
Kahlo is (as of 3/23) now 10 years old! We've been together for 5 years now and it has been a fun and exciting ride! Ha! She is one of the many ways God has blessed me. She is healthy, sweet and a fun friend to ride around with! I love her and the environment she is a part of, both the outdoors and the wonderful people who have horses, too. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, KAHLO!
I must say, the reason to the far left is an especially sweet and cute one!
I feel a little better now! :o)
I'd also REALLY like to get the mudroom in shape, finish the remaining woodwork in the kitchen and put in some cabinets in the laundry as well as putting the finishing touches on decorating these areas. Oh yeah, and a new door for the art studio... and curtains... and the black board... and on and on and on! You old house people understand!!!
Look at that face! How I wish I could know her more!
Sideways Sam during the Thanksgiving pumpkin pureeing fest of 2008 that went until the wee hours of the morning...
Middle stages of pumpkin processing 
