Ideas percolating...

We sure did get a lot of snow with that last storm. At least 4 inches, but probably more like 6. For our area, that is a very heavy snow. It has turned back to intermittent downpours now, but the snow was so beautiful! Fortunately, despite the horses' liking to stay out in the snow/rain when not eating a meal under the shelter, they neither of them got very cold. I didn't really see any shivering this time, so that is good.

I think I just might have had an idea about Andolu and the hoof boot situation. It could be a great idea or it could be a total flop - so I am going to test it a whole lot before I tell my idea, if ever. I am pretty excited about trying it, though.

Meanwhile, back in the house while snow piled up outside, I had fun this weekend. I was able to get my work done quicker than usual and we had company, which is always fun. I actually got to play a board game - Risk, which I love, although I didn't win this time. Must be losing my touch...

I am trying more and more different recipes and ways of preparing old favorites. I thought I was a pretty good cook, but now I am learning so many new things with this different style of cooking that we have had quite a few "interesting" meals lately. Fortunately the boys don't mind. It probably helps that they have both had their own not-quite-as planned meals too lately! I am really having a ball though, much more than I ever expected. I always felt kind of bad that I wasn't one of those girls who talks about how much she likes cooking. I wanted to be interested in it, but didn't really get why some people thought it was so cool. For you horsey people, just think of it as searching for the perfect supplements to add to your horse's diet, or the pleasure of getting an area totally clean and free of manure, or taking the time to groom until the horse's coat gleams. For lack of a better word, the housework is very "zen" to me just like horse chores are, although of course my counters lack fur and a personality. Thank goodness! :-D

None of us has much time to do chores, though, so we are still trying to get the living room and some other areas clean and organized. Right now my living room has my saddle, bridle, a couple new brushes, some wormer, and SmartPaks in it. I think that's fine, but I realize most people feel more comfortable sitting down in a living room not a barn, so I will need to relocate that stuff soon before we have company again. Bummer. The kitchen and dining room are probably the cleanest rooms nowadays. We'll just keep trying to take little bits of time here and there to clean things and hopefully the house will start to look really nice and neat soon.

I hope everyone had a good Valentine's day. The weather should clear up here soon and I want to take some pictures of the horses to put up as soon as possible.


L

Now for Snow!

Wow, it is coming down HARD out there. It looks to me like several inches before the storm is done. I guess this will be a four or five meal day for the horses. I try to save bran mashes for days like this, so I'll probably do a nice hot bran mash in mid afternoon. I guess I'll also be going through some rags drying them off - Just now as I was looking out the window getting pictures of the snow I noticed that they were both standing under a tree (which gives about three inches total of shelter) and had quite a bit of snow on their rumps. Well, if that's what you prefer!

By the way, Anatolian is almost back to being sound on asphalt. He's such a weird horse! I'm not going to try to exercise him for a few days though, I don't have the "worry energy" right now.

Gotta go. I hope everyone is having a nice, snug day.

L

Rain, sleet, mud...

I'm very grateful for all the rain in the last few days. It is much needed and I was really hoping for a good rain. Of course, I had just given Andolu a bath with shampoo right before it rained. Below: His tail then and his tail now - that is about the cleanest part of him, as he keeps rolling. I took more photos of him today, but he's too muddy even after getting some of it off to ride. Sorry, I'll get cleaner pictures of his whole self soon!

I did ride him today since the rain cleared up long enough to go out. It is rather frustrating though, because lately he has been off again on the left front. He is somewhat tender anyway with being barefoot again, but on wet, slightly soft sand his left front still was not happy. I have wondered about his knees ever since I got him and I am wondering even more now. So I hardly rode at all today, basically just enough to say, Yup, he's not sound. Mira was happy to be out, though - as usual. She kept (politely) asking my brother who was holding her to let her run. After a bit I handed him Andolu and took Mira running up and down a bit. She has always been so sound around the legs that if it weren't for her arthritic back I'd still be able to ride her. It is fun to watch her trot really big. Of course, when they lope together she is like a dainty toy next to Anatolian's big motor. :-) Anatolian was snorting and "getting big" as he usually does when watching her run, but he didn't try to pull my brother in order to follow. So yeah, he's not comfortable. If I thought shoes would help I would have him reshod, but it does NOT seem like a foot issue other than a bit of tenderness on harder ground.

The other frustrating thing is that after all this time he still really hates his boots. I have not been able to get him used to them at all, really. He tolerates them but does not like them or go well in them.

Oh well. Mira is happy and he at least is healthy, if not earning his keep. One of these days I'm sure I'll get Andolu's knees and fetlocks x-rayed to see what exactly is going on. Hopefully he'll snap out of this and be better soon, though.

And I am really, really hoping to start taking lessons in March so I can ride whether or not he is sound at the moment.

A few days ago I went out after dark, I believe to let Mira out after eating, and it had temporarily stopped pouring rain. I could see dimly that Andolu was lying down in the (COLD - why is that better than dry pea gravel?) mud and I had to go past him to get to Mira. I talked to him a bit as usual and he moved his head as I went by, but didn't bother getting up. After letting Mira loose I came back past him and said good night and he just looked at me. When I was almost to the house I heard him get up and mosey over to check to see if Mira had left anything, but he didn't bother to move until then. It was nice to see that he doesn't feel the need to jump up when I come by :-)

L

I am Horsaii!

Mugwump coined this word here and I think it is great. Read all the comments, they are very cool. I was going to comment but then I decided to put it into a post. Like the other horsaiis that posted, I cannot remember when I fell for horses. I probably saw horses first in story books. Anyway, I do think I was born with horsaii, because I don't remember ever discovering that horses were cool - they were always amazing and wonderful to me. The first time I ever got to ride one was when I was seven or eight at a circus. We were in the US on furlough and my grandparents took us to a circus and I got to ride the pony ride. (The adults knew they couldn't escape their fate as soon as I saw the ponies!) I believe my pony was a black pinto. I remember wishing desperately that they could untie the pony and let me ride him around. I was sure how I would do great and the pony wouldn't be bored then. I sat very solemnly the whole ride and petted the pony and tried to soak everything in as much as I possibly could. My little brother was really nervous on his pony, I remember that, and my older brother didn't want to ride, as I recall. Weird kids... I talked to the pony some and petted it as much as I could before I absolutely had to leave, looking back the whole time.

My second time riding a horse was later that same summer. My cousin, who was a teenager, had her own horse. I thought she was the luckiest person ever! He is still alive as far as I know - a bay pinto quarab named Classy (just about Mira's age, as a matter of fact). I got to ride Classy two or three times on our visit there, and got to experience my first fall there, too. It wasn't his fault, he just tripped when trotting fast and I flew off in a graceful arc and landed in a clumsy heap, losing my glasses. Maybe that was when me being horsaii was confirmed. I remember feeling really stiff and sore as I got up, but no WAY was I going to WALK back to the house. I couldn't lose my precious and limited riding time just because I fell off. So, I got back on right away. Classy was cute - he obviously was surprised and sorry that I fell off and happy that I was OK.

When I couldn't ride him, I spent every minute available out next to his paddock feeding him pieces of grass and talking to him and, yes, drawing him. I learned a lot about horse conformation during that visit and finally started drawing identifiable horses! :-)

My mother fortunately saw to it that us kids had plenty of books, including lots of horse ones, when we were in the jungle and I spent lots of time playing I was a horse, drawing horses, wondering how much it cost to feed them and how much land an acre was and trying to figure out how tack was arranged from pictures, and hoping as hard as I could that I would see a real live one again soon. Meanwhile, I read all the Black Stallion books and others and absorbed every possible bit of horse handling knowledge. At one point I remember that for a month or two I even collected all the weeds and tall grass I could find and put it in a pile behind our house and hoped and prayed that a "stray" horse would come wandering along (in the slum?!) that needed a home. If I was prepared already then of course my parents would have to let me keep it! Eventually my parents wouldn't let me keep stacking it up anymore...

What is your story? Do you remember the first time you saw a horse, petted a horse, rode a horse? Tell us about it!


L

Mira Today

Here is a photo of The Spoiled One. I picked a bunch of grass today so they had fun chowing down on that. While they were doing that I used the new camera to take what is seriously the best ever head-on picture I have gotten of her. I have GOT to clean her up really good and try this a bunch more times now. With the right grooming, pose, and background it would look fabulous. I love her ears, and Andolu's too. Does anyone else just love seeing their horses perk their ears as they watch you come over? I do!

L

Fencing photos

Here are some photos of the finally finished fencing project. It SOO nice to be done with it. There are a few little details left, of course, but it's done! I suppose a fencing professional would cringe, as it is definitely not perfect, but it should be strong enough and safe enough to do its job, so I consider it a good job.

I am discovering a downside to my wonderful new camera - everytime I take pictures of the horses I always cringe later at how much dust you can seen on them! I hate to immortalize bad pictures of them; on the other I probably shouldn't get so perfectionistic that I'll only post pictures right after a bath and thorough grooming and before they've been able to roll...

Meanwhile, they are doing well, although a few days ago when I went out to feed we had a little incident. Ever since it got dry and sunny I drastically cut back Andolu's feed amounts from when it was cold, in order to help him lose a little weight. He has gotten somewhat grumpy with "only" getting about 15 pounds a day. Anyway, they saw me come out and came running over to the fence, but Andolu, for whatever reason, suddenly double-barreled Mira. I saw it happen and saw her stagger but I was too far away to throw anything at him, so I yelled at him and then went into the house for a couple minutes (bad behavior = no food). I got some first aid stuff and went out again. By the time he was settled eating and I could tend to her, she had already developed a larger-than-my fist bruise right behind her right front leg and there a bleeding wound on her shoulder. Argh! The wound was already clotting but I put alum on it to help the clotting and then iced all the bruised areas for 20 minutes 3 times a day for the next day and a half. After that I did heat for a couple of days, and now I'm just watching it. She was definitely stiff the first few days, but seems back to normal now. I'm really glad it didn't require a vet visit!

The grass around here is growing really nicely so far. I've been taking some to the horses and I hope to start doing some rotation grazing soon.

L

Sun? Really?!

Wow, today we had nice sunny warm weather the WHOLE day - not just for a teasing hour or two. It was nice. :-D

I haven't posted new photos of the horses yet because, well, they both are enjoying sleeping and rolling in the mud. Mira is quite thoroughly grimy and Andolu somehow managed to get his legs completely muddy again right after I had thoroughly washed and dried them. Oh well. Hopefully tomorrow I can get them presentable enough for pictures.

My brother #2 and I are almost done with the fencing project, finally. Only a bit over 100' of fencing to go. It would be super fast to do except that this is the part where the ground varies so much that you have to do each section separately. It should take us only one more session, though. I'll try to post pictures of the new fencing; it looks nice. I am definitely a fencing freak. I just adore sturdy and safe fences. I do not, however, like white board fencing or some of the other "classic" fencing, simply because I can't help thinking how much work it would be! My ideal fence would be a nice thick 5' or 6' high hedge...

The other day I called Sis in Washington and let her talk to her dog, Kippy. It was Kip's first time hearing a phone call (outdoor dog) and she was hilarious! She kept trying to lick the phone and as Sis kept talking she started looking around in all directions and barking intermittently. Obviously she recognized the voice - I felt sorry for her that she could not see Sis, but oh well. Maybe she or they can visit this summer.


L

Two Years Horse-Blogging

So, as of yesterday I am starting on my third year of blogging. I was thinking about my horsey goals for this year just now, and decided I might as well put them down. Here goes...

1. Get into a routine of riding Andolu at least a little for four days a week. I hate to say that is a goal as if it was work, but I do need to schedule it or else I tend to try to get all my chores done first, which means it doesn't happen.
2. Build Andolu's endurance up slowly and keep him sound if at all possible.
3. Learn to post well and post without stirrups regularly.
4. Take lessons at M's, especially longe lessons to develop my seat.
5. Pony Mira at least twice a week with both horses staying calm and obedient.
6. Finish the fencing project.
7. Teach Andolu to bow.
8. Get Andolu strong enough to be well balanced and comfortable changing leads at the canter.
9. Go on a trail ride in the mountains with both of them!

That is a good starting place, I think. I guess the most important thing of all though is that he stays sound and I keep having time to ride!


Below is my original post and last year's New Year's post.

http://me-mira.blogspot.com/2007/01/new-year-new-blog.html

http://me-mira.blogspot.com/2008/01/one-year-anniversary-and-happy-new-year.html


Happy New Year to everyone! Hopefully 2009 will be a good one for us all.


L

Way cool... A great Christmas present.

This is so cool. My aunt and uncle (the nice and indulgent ones that I always stay with for the Horse Expo) came up yesterday to exchange presents and celebrate New Year's. Our present from them was the exact camera we had asked for!!! It was rather expensive so when we told them about it we said a gift certificate toward it would be great, but they went ahead and just got it! It is a really nice 8 MP, 4x optical zoom camera with some video ability, and when my brother was doing research it was said to be one of the all around best in its class. So, pretty soon when it stops raining and I can clean the horses up a little again I will be posting new photos!

Today has been a really nice day for a lot of reasons, even though it is now raining again. All that nice mud makes me sooo excited. Not. :-) But I haven't had any work to do today, which means I can just clean stuff and get caught up on important things like sleep. Ahh. I hope everyone else is having a good day too!


L

I'm back!

Wow, has it really been that long since my last post? Yikes... First, thanks you so much to everyone for your comments on The Dude's anniversary post. I am grateful for the well wishes, even if it took me this long to respond.

My excuses for my absence are probably best explained with a complete update on the horses, the house, and the Three Left Behinds (me, brother #1, and brother #2).

The horses have been doing well. The weather turned cold and frequently foggy/rainy/frosty several weeks ago so Mira's meals are all made with hot water now. (Andolu gets stuffed with grass hay to keep him warm). I've ridden Anatolian several times but haven't gotten into a routine yet. Bad me! He isn't making grumpy faces any more when ridden, which is a real relief because it tells me his occasionally bad attitude before the laminitis attack was from his feet, and now they feel better. I had measured his mouth a few times in order to get him a new bit. Mira's 5" snaffle always seemed too snug at the corner of his mouth, and besides I wanted a french link (double jointed) bit, since they can be really nice and mild. I bought this bit, but the 5.5" is definitely too large. Oh well, the joys of mail order! I need to return it for the 5" now. He did like it, though. I actually tried riding him in his rope halter (just in the driveway for a couple minutes) and he was quite responsive in that, too. So far so good. If it'll stop raining long enough I might get to ride tomorrow - I hope so!

Andolu was a bad boy in one thing though this last few weeks. I am almost finished replacing all my fence so that it is all 2" x 4" welded wire with electric tape on the top - I only have a couple hours and about 150' to go. However, with all the new grass Anatolian decided at one point that the double shock from a section that was still just two strands of tape was worth the grass... and yes, he pushed the posts and tape enough that he got through. I heard the dogs start barking really loud and looked out and absolutely freaked to see him milling around on the road. He was perfectly easy to catch, but I think it scared a couple years off my life! That part was immediately replaced to keep him from getting more ideas. Eek. Not a funny trick.

Mira recently popped a splint on her right hind. It is right below the one she had two years ago. At first I was totally mystified why she was lame - no obvious cause for a stone bruise, no swelling on the leg, etc. etc. Then I found a little bump below the old splint and realized it was tender. So that got iced for a few days and I am still trying to keep her from moving much, but she has been trotting around as normal as one can in this mud we have. However, it seems like every time I go out there I think the bump looks bigger than a couple hours ago and I always have to feel it to make sure it really is the same size. I swear Mira likes getting fussed over, though. The more I hover around and poke and prod and come out every couple of hours the happier she is.

The boys and I are going to go in on a new camera, so hopefully pretty soon I'll be able to show you guys pictures of the horses again!


Now, imagine this picture - everywhere I go outside nowadays there is a gray tabby running right in front of me, a fat pure black cat running all around me, and a smaller pure black cat lurking at a distance, all meowing at intervals and giving me meaningful looks. I am now the Feline Pied Piper. When the parents left I took over feeding the cats, which happens at least twice a day, sometimes more if it is extra cold. I haven't really spoiled them a whole lot; I do stick to a schedule, but I guess they are always hoping for more, because they won't leave me alone!


Brother #2 and I also feed and water and walk the dogs every morning and water plants (fortunately not necessary lately). With the animals and various other outdoor chores, it has been quite a juggling job to get everything done at the right time every day and still do my other responsibilities. It's funny, parts of the house are staying super clean and organized and parts... need some work right now. We've also discovered that none of us "kids" seems to remember to build a fire until it gets to be about 50 degrees inside. Once we start a fire, we do keep it going all day, but we haven't gotten in the habit of doing it every day yet!


I never thought of myself as someone who loved to cook for fun. I enjoy it, but there are always other things I would rather be doing. Well, I've been discovering that I really like running the kitchen and making healthy things. I've been making soup the traditional way regularly and am having a lot of fun with other dishes also. When I get the time I plan to try making eggrolls. Any other fun dishes you guys want to suggest I try?


Christmas was quiet but good. It snowed on Christmas day, twice! That happens about once in a blue moon in this area! That was fun. The parents up in Washington had over 20" by Christmas day, and my siblings are enjoying it, although it is weird to have to shovel pathways. It's mostly melted into mud now around here, as yesterday was mostly sunny.


Overall, it has been a very hectic couple of months as I have been adjusting to life "sort of on my own." I really didn't have time to blog, and maybe it was a good thing to take a break for a while. A little vacation. That is my story and I'm sticking to it! Anyway, I'm finally back!


L

A Whole Year!

Wow, it has been exactly one whole year today since I got Anatolian! I can hardly believe it has already been that long. He's such a smart guy and I'm so happy to be able to ride him again... Phew! I'm working on building his fitness up carefully again.

One of my favorite things about the Racehorse Dude is that he enjoys laughs and will work to get them. Thus, he taught himself how to do various things like his lip flapping trick because everyone always laughs when he does it. He likes to test his boundaries a lot, but the longer he's here the smaller the "tests" get - which is good, because I didn't like it when he used to try to nip! He kind of rules Mira too thoroughly (and she's too timid), but it has been very good for her to have him around, in a lot of ways.

He's a good boy, and as he is only 6.5 years old I hope to enjoy many more anniversaries with him.

L