Thursday 1 October 2009

The trail riding went well this past weekend, we didnt get there in enough time to spend a long time on the trails, but Michelle and I did a short ride and Kendal got to compete in the games that had been arranged for the members and it was amazing to see her change from a nervous 12 year old when we first arrived into a confident rider who just didnt want to go home! She was trotting and cantering around the whole camp area and went for a short trail ride after the games with Danny and his wife (our new friends). The pictures are a few from our day and the one of the gal and puppy were a chance snap which I really liked. No cropping here this is as it came out of the camera with me laying on the floor shooting up (I was sitting on the fenceline of the arena shooting the games and they were standing a bit down the rail watching too).

Can you believe it is October already? Our temps here are already getting close to freezing for the lows, we always have a few bouts of "Indian summer" but with the strange weather we have been experiencing this past summer I done know what to expect. We only got two cuttings of hay and on the one field only one and it is ready to cut again now but the temps are too cold to cut and get it dry enough to bale. Oh well that is life I suppose and typical of Indiana, yet another variation of summer, I have been here going on 8 and a half years and every season has been different, keeps you guessing LOL.

I still have too many horses but I just can't take them to a sale, the implications make me feel ill. So it is going tobe another long winter.

I am starting my first job on Monday, my first official employment since arriving here in USA. It has been incredibly hard to find even that position because I have never officially worked here or contributed to Social Security because my time was taken up with the care of Larry and the horses. It is a menial job, and short term, but an income, and has the potential to become something more permanent. It is also close to home so I dont have to worry about travelling long distances in these coming winter months if it turns into a full time position. Wish me luck LOL.

Hope you are all well ((((Hugs)))).

Lori
xx

Saturday 26 September 2009

Michelle, Kendal and I went to our last show early this morning. We got lost and arrived 10 minutes before the first class which was also our first class!!!! Michelle threw her clothes on and I tried to patch BB up and we flew into the fray LOL.

Unfortunately she didnt fare too well in her first two classes but in her three with Kendal she had started to warm up and she brought home a first in Color, second in Youth Halter (10-13 yr old) and a 4th in Youth Showmanship which was combined with one entrant with an older division. This show let us see how far Kendal has come in confidence and even though there werent stacks of entrants, she did a great job, watch out for them in 2010 LOL!!

The first pic is one I took of her after I gave her a leg up onto BB after her classes holding her ribbons, blue for first and red foir second, and the fourth place is hiding behind, and the second pic is of BB when we put her out in the muddy field about an hour later and she got right down and rolled all that beautiful cleaning off that we had done LOL. I swear she was smiling at us, look at her mouth, she is grinning LOL (click on pics for larger version).

We are going to take Kendal for her first Trail Ride tomorrow and they are going to have a small contesting show at the club which we are hoping she will ride in, even if she only walks for the first time (barrel racing, poles etc.). I have a feeling she will enjoy it, I know if it wasnt limited to kids I would sure be in there too!!!

Hope you are all having a great weekend. (((Hugs)))

Lori
xx

Wednesday 9 September 2009

On Sunday Michelle press ganged me and hauled me and Wiggle, Dosie, Kendal and herself off in the trailer to the 4H grounds about 2 miles from us to do a bit of riding in a decent arena as we are limited for space here. These first two pics were taken right before we were getting ready to come home. I had been plodding around on Wiggle bareback while they were working, you will also see their pics further on in this post. Of course it was the second time I had ridden Wiggle ever so I didnt really know what to expect. She is a bit lazy and had to be wacked on the butt with the end of the reins to get faster than a walk out of her. Michelle grabbed my camera and just shot a few frames, these are two. It had just started to rain too.

This second picture is a case of Wiggle being a rodeo horse when I wacked her to get her to canter LOL, I was whooping up there rodeo style LOL, michelle loves the way her mane and my hair were going in the same direction (click on pics to see larger views). After she had got that out of her system she cantered across the arena beautifully. (note the crooked saddle pad and the stirrups too short LOL and the hand holding the rein so I could get more than a walk out of her, in other words dont look at my form it is dreadful but it was fun and next time I will do better.

Here are two pics of Kendal on Dosie who is Wiggle's father although he is no longer a stallion. She was very nervous about cantering him but they got the job done and by the time they were finished Dosie was tired but she wanted to carry on so is over her fear.

Here she is trotting nicely along the rail on Dosie

Michelle was the first to ride her boy though, she hasnt ridden in 6 years and very little in the past 30 and they looked really good out there, he was a breeze thanks to Drew for his work and to Michelle for her work and her love for this horse. I am so glad he is back with her because she loves him dearly.

Here she is cantering with him. This was just after we had arrived and his head should have been lower but he was checking everything out but he still rode like a champ and Michelle was so happy.

Well that was Sunday, lots more happening but I will end for now. My last show of the season to shoot is this weekend, the Pinto Futurity in New Castle. I hope the almanac is right is says we are going to have snow for Thanksgiving, but after that we should have a pretty dry mild winter, we can only hope.

Hope everyone is doing well, please remember to check my Etsy site out, link is at the top of the page of this blog, some of the items would make nice gifts. I am planning on putting up some more Christmassy stuff and also a 2010 calendar in the near future. ((((Hugs))))

Lori
xx

Wednesday 12 August 2009

Where to start!!!! So much happening over the past 2 weeks. The photo is of the Monarch butterfly about half an hour before it started emerging from the pupa. I had to go out just after I shot this and when I came back an hour later there was a butterfly fully emerged, so I missed the whole thing!! Pics of that to follow.

BB and Kendal won their class at the Indiana State 4H Show and got 3rd overall in the halter horse division!! Not a bad deal for their first year showing considering the first and second plkaced horses had been competing for a few years at least, the one was in her last year of 4H (18 years old). The judge and other exhibitors had nothing but good things to say about this pair. They just do each other justice. Unfortunately I dont have any photos as I was shooting a Pinto show while they were there but I have a few pics that Michelle and Kendall took but havent had time to edit them yet.

The Pinto show was very hot and although not as successful as they hoped, it was a good weekend and enjoyed by all. I am still trying to get the ordered photos out which will help with the bills tremendously!!!!!

Annette sold another filly for me, Dawn one of the 3 year olds which is great and possibility of Taxes being sold too but probably at the end of the show season, everything is so crazy right now with shows every weekend that the people havent been able to come and look at him yet. He is looking awesome, I will try to get photos of all the horses down the road soon.

Other than that lots happening but I am starting to feel really human again and things are looking up, I hope it will continue this way.

Hope you all had a great weekend too. ((((Hugs)))))

Lori

xx

Saturday 27 June 2009 - After the chaos

Well that was quite a week, dont know how Kendal and Michelle do it because they were out there in that heat showing one animal or another since Sunday last every day, I have been hiding at home a lot of that time with the airconditioner!!

I did spend Thursday at the horse show in 92F heat and I suffered a little after that, on top of which there was a storm that night and the apple tree took out my powerline so with a minimum of about 80 even through the night and no fans or anything was not a happy experience.

The pic above is of Kendal and BB. This particular shot was taken in Showmanship where she didn't place, lots of lessons learned in a class of 18 horses. The moment of glory was before this was taken, I will edit a pic and post it later, was when BB took Grand Champion Halter Horse at the show!!!! We were thrilled because she beat some really good horses. The rest of the classes were not too successful, she took a 4th and 5th in riding on April (walk/trot) and took a 3rd on April in Pony Halter.

We learned a lot over this past week about the dos and donts of showing horses LOL but overall Kendal did a fantastic job all week with all of her animals. A very hard working a dedicated 12 year old for sure and she deserved every bit of it. I have stacks of pics to go through and hopefully will get them up a few at a time on my blog over the next few days. With this extreme heat I am avoiding being outside as much as I can. In amongst all of this we baled hay and spent 2 days putting haybales in the barn (or should I say Stan and Zack and Kami did). I wasnt much help because I can't tolerate this heat. I have had heat stroke before and after you have had it once your tolerance is even lower and I have been feeling it.

Enough about me, this post is dedicated to Kendal, her mom Michelle, April and BB and all the other critters for a job well done!

(((((Hugs))))))
Lori
xx

Sunday 21 June 2009 - Show Day

Well show day has finally dawned. Michelle hasnt been in a show ring for nearly 30 years so she was thrilled to get a first in the color (Paint & Appaloosa) Class and a third out of 10 entries in the Open Halter with BB.

The two horses who beat her were great horses but what really made it special was when one of the older members of the family who showed those two horses came over to us and told us that he had picked us to be the winners!!!! Wow how great is that. Michelle was over the moon.

Kendal took a second in the Halter Pony class and a second in the walk trot riding class. I am so proud of them all because this was a first for the two horses and a first for Kendal and a first for Michelle in a very long time and they sure did us proud.

I just picked two pictures from the day, it was VERY hot. Poor Kendall had to go on to show her Chickens and she has Goats and shows a dog in agility, so the week will be very busy.

Of course I came home after the horse show and collapsed in a heap, the stress was just too much LOL but I am very proud of all four of them. We learned a lot of lessons along the way, especially Kendal which I am glad we learned at this show because that will make her performance at the 4H Fair Show on Thursday just that much better.

Wish us luck. (((((HUgs)))))))

Lori

xx

Wednesday 3 June 2009

Just a quickie, pretty much holed up inside today as it rained most of the day and my leg was really paining me so I put it up to rest it and did some computer work. Hoping to be able to start cutting grass tomorrow for hay baling.

This is a pic of Kendal again which I shot on Sunday evening.

See y'all 2morrow

Lori
xx

Tuesday 2 June 2009

Today has special significance for me in many ways but I wont go into them. Sorry I have been away so long. I hope some of you are still out there. Lots of changes and responsibilities been happpening over the past 2 months and I am slowly muddling through them all.

I am going to try to post a picture every day, I have stacks that I have shot and not even edited or looked at but am starting to get the urge again, so here we go again, I am giving it another try.

Todays pictures are of an 8 year old mare that was a foal when I first arrived here in the USA and her new owner Kendal. The mare was born on 1st April and her name is DB April Dawn. She spent two weeks with a trainer when she was a 4 year old being broke to ride then went to Iowa and lived in a huge pasture 365 days of year with our other mares to have babies. She only had one baby in 3 years and came back when I went to fetch the horses last October with my new Palomino baby.

Kendal and her Mom Michelle have been long time friends of Larry and Michelle used to ride for Larry and her daughter has her natural talent with horses. April can be a bit of a handfull and have a real attitude but basically she is a wonderful mare. Kendall is showing her and BB the big Blue Roan mare in 4H this year and these were taken last night at a 4H clinic at the Fair grounds and I am so proud of them both. This was the first time for both of them in an arena with other horses and they were fabulous and considering that she has never really ridden and the horse has hardly ever been ridden, makes it even more special.

I will keep updating this story as we go.

I will try to keep this up again so hope you will all hang in there with me. Don't forget to check out my Etsy shop, there is a link on this blog, might just be something you can't live without LOL, I have made a few sales Woohoo!!

(((((Hugs))))) to you all and thanks for hanging in there with me.

Lori
xx

Sunday 7 December 2008

Here is Kendal our budding new horsewoman who is going to be taking April who she is riding and possibly BB to the 4H events and some pinto shows next year. This little girl is a natural horsewoman, it is quite amazing to watch her when you consider she has hardly ever riden unattended. She has an amazing balance and seat, I am very excited to see how they do next year.

Hope you all had a nice weekend, it is stil in the 20s F here for highs so the horses have been cooped up for over a week now and are bouncing off the walls.

Lori
xx

Sunday - 16 November 2008

I am going to address the post from yesterday and the replies I have had from a few people regarding this situation in a seperate post but wanted to do a post as an update on what is happening here on a personal level for those of you who don't want to get involved in the other matter.

This is the one filly I brought back from Iowa a few weeks back, she is the two year old filly Dawn's momma and her name is DB April Dawn because she was born on 1st April 2002. Now bear in mind that this filly has just spent nearly 4 years in a huge pasture with no human contact other than to be fed with a herd of mares and a stallion.

She had two weeks training on her to break her to ride before she went to Iowa and only had one foal out of the three foaling seasons which was Dawn. The young lady with her is Kendal, the daughter of a friend of ours who used to come over and did a bit of work with April for a few weeks before she went to Iowa. Kendal has never ridden solo, without being on a lead rope and someone on the other end of it. We took April out of our field, worked her for a bit, put a bridle and saddle on her and Kendal jumped up on her and was walking and trotting around the arena like they had been doing it all for years, after only about 5 minutes!!! Not only is Kendal a natural horsewoman (it is amazing to watch someone who "has it" when they first start riding) but April is a great minded mare. We are hoping that Kendal and April will be able to compete in the 4H County and Indiana State Fairs next year along with BB the mare who's picture I had in yesterday's post. BB will be her halter prospect and April will be her riding prospect. This is a very dedicated 11 year old and is not happy with someone doing the work for her and then handing her the reins, she does all of it herself. I do have pictures of her looking at the camera, but thought with the internet the way it is at the moment I would rather post this one. Here April is just following her around without any lead rope and turning stopping and walking off with Kendal with no aides other than her voice and body language. I am very excited about this venture, I am not competitive so this is a great opportunity to get some of our horses out there for people to see and then maybe we can sell some of them to good caring homes. Hopefully she will get a few Pinto shows in next year too.

We used to do Catblogging Friday here on blogger and I have got so far behind that I rarely post as you have all seen, so here is a belated Friday catblogging picture. It is my barn cat Sylvester having a good old scratch. He is my best mouser in the barn LOL.

It is absolutely freezing here today, we had about 1.75 inches of rain over two days which was great but now the temps are plummeting and we are barely coming above freezing with wind chills below freezing. Al the horses are indoors because the wind is blowing, if it wasnt windy I would turn them out but the wind just makes it unbearable to be out there and I am sure the horses feel the same way.

I will be making another post later, I am just preparing it and trying to get some facts and links to go along with it. It is going to be a looooong post be warned LOL.

((((Hugs)))))

Lori

xx