Forget “Aaahhh Spring.”
Never-mind yesterday’s post. I was feeling optimistic. Today… well… we’ve been getting snow storms coming in all week, but today… that’s an understatement. I write this at 8:07 (after attempting to feed my animals with the feed truck, getting stuck sideways in our driveway, moving my DH’s land rover to the end of our ‘community road’, walking back, seeing my Dad, flagging him down, him pulling out our feed truck that was un-stuck-now-stuck-again in the ‘community road’, watching DH try to turn it around, getting stuck right next to our pasture fence, feeding the poor animals who’re begging to be fed as the hay is within reaching distance over the fence, pulling the truck out with the land rover this time, watching DH try to pack down the snow and make tracks for me to drive the truck through, round and round and round he went, jumping in the truck to finally bring her to rest at home…)
We’ve got about a foot and quickly building.
An optimistic llama.
Ever seen a perturbed llama? Now you have.
Ever seen perturbed barn kitties? Now you have.
How about a perturbed Granny Smith Apple tree?
Okay, so my point is, if you haven’t heard from me by the end of the week, send help immediately. This snow aint lettin’ up and I’m feeling buried alive.
And the power shall be out in approximately .29 seconds.
Eat your heart out Tracey, (and please feel sorry for me.)
Favorites Wednesday — Aaaahhh, Spring.
My neighbor’s house… with a little of my pasture in front of it, but they make a great combonation. This house is the original ranch house for our property, their property and the land that goes down in to town that has been subdivided. The original ranch being named ‘Mud Ranch.’ We bought the last remaining property from the actual family (the last piece they let go of) once one of the brothers died of old age and his wife couldn’t keep up ours and hers located in Oregon.
I shall not covet, but that house is gorgeous. They recently re-did it, moved it back off the road by a few feet, re-did the floors to inlaid pine with walnut patterns, vintage style wall paper, marble entry way with a sun room… it’s incredible the work they put in to it. I am thankful that this 1800′s beauty has been restored. It was originally a stage stop for the main stage coming from our big city an hour away by car. By stage coach, probably around 14 hours. So it is located on the main road coming into town, and I mean before they moved it back, that thing was right on the road. That’s one thing I am not envious of, our house is hidden from the road, and that’s the way I like it.
Our neighbors couldn’t be better though. They love to see our animals out their front windows, they’ve let us fence off part of their land for more pasture… free pasture, and they’re very handy with construction tools and cooking! What more could you want in a neighbor? No, really they’re awesome and we are blessed to be their friends.
These Boots Were Made For…
Walkin’, ridin,’ drivin’, shootin’, sittin’, –anything you durn well please!
I had such a response on my forbidden knowledge I shared with you the other day, some questions that needed answering, so here they are… my boots have their very own debut on their very own post.
Right there is why I bought the silly things. My husband and I buy American whenever we can and while I was shopping for some new boots this past August, everything was made in China! Yuck! What do they know about cowboy boots anyway? So, we kept looking… there were some really expensive Mexican ones (pretty fancy too), and these… well… pink boots. Yikes. What was I going to do with pink boots!? I looked for anything else, any other color that was made in the USA. Nothing, nada, zippo. So, I tried them on. Oh man were they ever comfortable!
“Dear, what am I going to do?! I can’t find anything I like; these cool green ones are made in China and are pinching my ankles,” I said.
To which my smart husband replies, “Get the pink ones, you’ll wear long jeans with them anyway.”
“Yeah well… alright. I guess I’ll buy extra long jeans.”
So, there you have it. The reason I have some oh so comfy, pink boots. Great for anything… especially wearing with long jeans.
Tag-Backs
Okay, I confess, I did a low down, dirty thing (I’ve since learned), to my dear friend over at Carpenter Creek and tagged her back on her mustang blog, Mustang Diaries (simply because I don’t know many others to tag!… really, I’m innocent!) So… she got back at me and requested that I (and a few others) post our “7 Goals for 2008.” She’s such a positive lady.
My Goals for 2008
1.) Raise my child, learn all about her, keep her safe and healthy.
2.) Brainwash her to love horses and kitties the same as I do… so far it’s working!
3.) Reduce my horse herd to four or three… that means one or two left to go!
4.) Build our sheep their very own castle to call home.
5.) Ride atleast every Friday this summer, (Hey Ma! Will you babysit?)
6.) Gain a more positive attitude.
7.) Saving the best for last… Grow closer to God, be an excellent wife to my dear husband, HM.
So… to celebrate my coming up with 7 goals, I will now NOT tag anyone with this. Now go, enjoy your tag-free blogs. 
This’ll Teach Me…
I was just aimlessly wandering around my ‘blogroll’ this afternoon and went over to check out what On The Shores of Carpenter Creek was doing today, and lo and behold! I have been tagged. Never been bit like this before so… here goes:
The rules of the game are this–
Once you are tagged, link back to the person who tagged you.
Post the rules on your blog.
Post 7 random or weird facts about yourself on your blog.
Tag 7 people and link to them.
Comment on their blog to let them know they have been tagged.
7 Weird/Random Things About ME!
1.) I don’t have seven people I can tag… I’m just a ‘blog baby’ yet.
2.) I LOVE to harass my cats. They love me for it.
3.) I hate mud… weird for someone coming from ‘Mud Ranch.’
4.) I’ve got a huge paranoia of potato bugs aka Satan’s Spawn. I’ve had night mares about them.
5.) I clothing shop by feeling the fabric… I’m very touchy feely.
6.) One of my favorite things to do is shoot my shotgun at clay pigeons… is that weird?
7.) I’ve got a deep dark secret that I’ve sworn only very close friends and family can know…
Being a self-proclaimed non-pink-wearer, this is detrimental to my reputation.
Okay, tagging those whom I feel comfortable to tag: Kenleigh Acres, Mustang Diaries, Natosha, Midwest Horse, Townie, & Simply Marvelous.
Mommy’s Little Stinker
Here’s a product of our photo shoot today. Annie was having so much fun rolling around and smiling. I got a bunch of good “6 month” pictures and am now playing with them on my Christmas present, Photoshop CS3. I’m learning a lot about that program through a book I just bought called “Scott Kelby’s 7-Point System for Adobe Photoshop CS3.” Wow… what a great book and so much to learn, in an easy way too! It’s definitely a good thing for people like me who have a hard time retaining their lessons. I kinda cheated though for the above photo and skipped ahead to use a lesson that worked with a person to get nice skin tones. But, it worked like a charm. Atleast I think so!
So, my little girl is now 6 months, starting the 22nd. She’s so beautiful and gets more so each and every day. She’s funny, keeps me entertained, and always keeps me busy!… Which is a good thing.
Meet Wiley’s Rosabelle
Remember this photo from back in December? This is Belle and her pile of hay. She’s what I would call our best broodmare. That’s all she’s done for us, but she’s done an excellent job. She’s a gorgeous girl, excellent movement, the dam of our best fillies (yes, she’s only had fillies to date), and is quite a personality. She’s now fourth horse out of five on the ‘totem pole’ so to speak, just above our red dun mare, Cali. She’s not to proud of her position because she’s been known to hold the lead position in the herd. Some how she’s been beat out by her daughter Annie, our gelding Sunnie, and our mare Etta (for sale, and that’s why she’s not listed on our “Our Horses” page). But, Belle is sure to let the cows know their place and isn’t shy about making sure her daughter shares the hay with her when she feels the need to join someone else in their pile.
Belle is sired by a gorgeous gelding who only sired just a few foals in his very short breeding career. Like us and our Sunnie, the owner was not wanting to breed any more and decided to geld instead of sell. Kiger Wiley Cayuse aka Wiley is his name and he is a cherished horse of a dear friend of ours. We had the priviledge of having him visit us for a year with the thought that we were going to buy him, but things just didn’t work out and we had to send him back home to Washington state. It was one of the saddest things I had to do; I really bonded with that boy. But! I am sure proud to own just a little part of his bloodlines through Belle and his granddaughter Annie Oakley.
Photo Credit: ©Hitzeman
He’s what is known as a seal brown dun, some people in the Kiger world just called him a bay but he is obviously not just a bay. He has a very distinct dorsal stripe and many other patches and markings all over his body showing just how dun he truly is.
Belle’s dam is Kiger Riddle Mountain Rose aka Rosie, who last I heard, is still a broodmare. She’s got a little more white than most Kiger junkies want, but she does have good conformation and I think has produced some nice babies, Belle being no exception.
Photo Credit: ©Hitzeman
The above photo was taken of Rosie and Belle in spring of ’98, when shortly after Belle was born. They were a beautiful pair and caught the eye of Wiley’s owner right away. She tracked me down when I bought Belle and sent me these pictures, of which I am very grateful.
So there’s more to my relationship with Belle than just another broodmare. She’s pretty special with a special history behind her.
Some advice for the younger generations…
Love him or hate him, he sure hits the nail on the head with this! To
anyone with kids of any age, here’s some advice.
Bill Gates recently gave a speech at a High School about 11 things they
did not and will not learn in school. He talks about how feel-good,
politically correct teachings created a generation of kids with no
concept of reality and how this concept set them up for failure in the
real world.
Rule 1 : Life is not fair – get used to it!
Rule 2: The world won’t care about your self-esteem. The world will
expect you to accomplish something BEFORE you feel good about yourself.
Rule 3 : You will NOT make $60,000 a year right out of high school. You
won’t be a vice-president with a car phone until you earn both.
Rule 4 : If you think your teacher is tough, wait till you get a boss.
Rule 5 : Flipping burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your
Grandparents had a different word for burger flipping: they called it
opportunity.
Rule 6 : If you mess up, it’s not your parents’ fault, so don’t whine
about your mistakes, learn from them.
Rule 7: Before you were born, your parents weren’t as boring as they
are now. They got that way from paying your bills, cleaning your clothes
and listening to you talk about how cool you thought you were. So before
you save the rain forest from the parasites of your parent’s generation,
try delousing the closet in your own room.
Rule 8 : Your school may have done away with winners and losers, but
life HAS NOT. In some schools, they have abolished failing grades and
they’ll give you as MANY TIMES as you want to get the right answer. This
doesn’t bear the slightest resemblance to ANYTHING in real life.
Rule 9 : Life is not divided into semesters. You don’t get summers off
and very few employers are interested in helping you FIND YOURSELF. Do
that on your own time.
Rule 10: Television is NOT real life. In real life people actually have
to leave the coffee shop and go to jobs.
Rule 11 : Be nice to nerds. Chances are you’ll end up working for one.
If you agree, pass it on.
If you can read this – Thank a teacher!
If you are reading it in English -Thank a Vet
Favorites Wednesday —
Yes, one of those frequent visitors to the pasture when the grasses are high and lush. When we have guests visiting they’re always pointing out these pesky animals and exclaiming, “Look! Deer!” Yeah, yeah, deer. We’ve got them all over the place and mostly they get in to people’s gardens and eat rose bushes and things you don’t want them to eat. They also love to jump out in front of your car at night just to dent the bumper a little. They’re funny like that… but, they are beautiful, regardless.
Trouble with a capital T
See what I have to put up with around here? Why I don’t get anything done? Yes, this big, fat, sweet, orange tabby cat I lovingly call “Dirt Bag.” Okay, so that doesn’t sound so sweet, but it is used lovingly and really his name is Jack Jack (after the baby in ‘The Incredibles’). He’s very spaztic, sociable, loves my two-legged baby (although he’s the eldest child), fairly protective of his family, and always in the way. So, aside from all my daily duties, this is most likely the reason for me not being able to accomplish on time posting on my blog.
Movin’ Sheep
Just got back from the big city today. We go down every Sunday to church about an hour away from our little home town. It’s cold out and they’re threatening more snow, but I highly doubt it. Seems like we get a big dumping of the stuff in early January and then it disappears until some light snows in March. Some how February ends up being in the 70′s although that doesn’t make any sense. Just wait 30 minutes, the weather will change!
But, we were able to get my mother-in-law’s favorite ewe back to her house before she lambs. “Phoebe” has been visiting our ram “Dudly” for the past four months or so… which has been far too long of a visit. Life gets in the way sometimes, but my mother-in-law Charlie is sure happy to have her back! She saw our horse trailer coming down the road and knew that it must be Phoebe back home for her lambing. My hubby said that it was a very cheap way of making his mom’s day. 
So, we’re glad to do it… finally. Next we’re going to move one of our ewe’s “Fanny Mae” over there as well because she is literally about to pop. Does your belly hang low, does it wobble to and fro? Why yes, hers does! We’re sure looking forward to lambing season, they’re always such a bundle of energy that welcomes in spring and the new grasses.
The Kigers — My thoughts in a nut shell II.
Yes, I am happy to make the decision not to breed. I am glad that life has lead me down this different path although it is different than my childhood dream of breeding. I enjoyed it while I was able to, but really it isn’t the best thing for me or the horses right now. I’ve learned that with today’s market, there are many many horses in need of homes, many horses being passed from owner to owner kind of like Black Beauty; a story that I really don’t think is for children although maybe it teaches us a good lesson? I really had a hard time watching my babies leave here and wondering who they would be passed on to. Sure, I could put in some excellent ground manners and hope for the best but people are people and they can sure ruin a good horse. Not that that has happened to me (that I know of), and I am very proud to be in touch with a few of my babie’s owners who are wonderful ladies (you know who you are). But there is still that ache in wondering… So, I find myself in the position of owning some beautiful horses who are wonderful in their own quirky ways. They’ll never be bred again (unless for my own use), my stallion was gelded and what a blessing that was! I am sad to see that so many people are still breeding, or are starting a breeding program for the Kigers today with all the wrong goals in mind. They are just doing it to make more babies. We don’t need more babies, we need more homes! There are so many excellent, proven bloodlines going south of the border to the meat market. What are we doing still producing? To me, that’s not good horse husbandry.
Some of my fellow Kiger lovers will laugh at me, they’ll think that I’m being some hypocrite, but I’d only be a hypocrite if I were still breeding. And yes, I’ve had some changes in thought, I’ve had some convictions, some changes in life; I still love the horses very much and that is why I’ve taken the new route. A route to promote the ones I have, not produce more.
And I did produce some beauties.
Favorites Wednesday — Ssshhh… sleeping baby.
This is one view I will miss this spring and probably next spring as well. The way a mama watches over her baby is something very incredible. I knew it from seeing the animals and their babies, but now I feel it myself with my newest. It is an amazing bond.
Annie Adele
My baby, Punky Brewster, Missus, Beautiful Guyl, Mrs. B, Fussy — Will be six months at the end of this month! My, how time does fly.
The Dam
This is an actual letter sent to a man named Ryan DeVries regarding a pond on his property. It was sent by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Quality, State of Pennsylvania . This guy’s response is hilarious, but read the State’s letter before you get to the response letter.
SUBJECT: DEQ File No.97-59-0023; T11N; R10W, Sec. 20; Lycoming County
Dear Mr. DeVries:
It has come to the attention of the Department of Environmental Quality that there has been recent unauthorized activity on the above referenced parcel of property. You have been certified as the legal landowner and/or contractor who did the following unauthorized activity:Construction and maintenance of two wood debris dams across the outlet stream of Spring Pond.
A permit must be issued prior to the start of this type of activity. A review of the Department’s files shows that no permits have been issued. Therefore, the Department has determined that this activity is in violation of Part 301, Inland Lakes and Streams, of the Natural Resource and Environmental Protection Act, Act 451 of the Public Acts of 1994, being sections 324.30101 to 324.30113 of the Pennsylvania Compiled Laws, annotated.
The Department has been informed that one or both of the dams partially failed during a recent rain event, causing debris and flooding at downstream locations.
We find that dams of this nature are inherently hazardous and cannot be permitted.
The Department therefore orders you to cease and desist all activities at this location, and to restore the stream to a free-flow condition by removing all wood and brush forming the dams from the stream channel. All restoration work shall be completed no later than January 31, 2006.
Please notify this office when the restoration has been completed so that a follow-up site inspection may be scheduled by our staff. Failure to comply with this request or any further unauthorized activity on the site may result in this case being referred for elevated enforcement action.. We anticipate and would appreciate your full cooperation in this matter. Please feel free to contact me at this office if you have any questions.
Sincerely,
David L. Price
District Representative and Water Management Division.
Here is the actual response sent back by Mr. DeVries:
Re: DEQ File No. 97-59-0023; T11N; R10W, Sec. 20; Lycoming County
Dear Mr. Price,
Your certified letter dated 12/17/02 has been handed to me to respond to.
I am the legal landowner but not the Contractor at 2088 Dagget Lane , Trout Run, Pennsylvania .
A couple of beavers are in the (State unauthorized) process of constructing and maintaining two wood “debris” dams across the outlet stream of my Spring Pond. While I did not pay for, authorize, nor supervise their dam project, I think they would be highly offended that you call their skillful use of natures building materials “debris.”
I would like to challenge your department to attempt to emulate their dam project any time and/or any place you choose. I believe I can safely state there is no way you could ever match their dam skills, their dam resourcefulness, their dam ingenuity, their dam persistence, their dam determination and/or their dam work ethic.
These are the beavers/contractors you are seeking. As to your request, I do not think the beavers are aware that they must first fill out a dam permit prior to the start of this type of dam activity.
My first dam question to you is:
(1) Are you trying to discriminate against my Spring Pond Beavers, or
(2) do you require all beavers throughout this State to conform to said dam request?
If you are not discriminating against these particular beavers, through the Freedom of Information Act, I request completed copies of all those other applicable beaver dam permits that have been issued.
(Perhaps we will see if there really is a dam violation of Part 301, Inland Lakes and Streams, of the Natural Resource and Environmental
Protection Act, Act 451 of the Public Acts of 1994, being sections 324.30101 to 324.30113 of thePennsylvania Compiled Laws, annotated.)
I have several concerns. My first concern is, aren’t the beavers entitled to legal representation? The Spring Pond Beavers are financially destitute and are unable to pay for said representation — so the State will have to provide them with a dam lawyer. The Department’s dam concern that either one or both of the dams failed during a recent rain event, causing flooding, is proof that this is a natural occurrence, which the Department is required to protect. In other words, we should leave the Spring Pond Beavers alone rather than harassing them and calling them dam names.
If you want the stream “restored” to a dam free-flow condition please contact the beavers — but if you are going to arrest them, they obviously did not pay any attention to your dam letter, they being unable to read English.
In my humble opinion, the Spring Pond Beavers have a right to build their unauthorized dams as long as the sky is blue, the grass is green and water flows downstream. They have more dam rights than I do to live and enjoy Spring Pond. If the Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Protection lives up to its name, it should protect the natural resources (Beavers) and the environment (Beavers’ Dams).
So, as far as the beavers and I are concerned, this dam case can be referred for more elevated enforcement action right now. Why wait until 1/31/2006? The Spring Pond Beavers may be under the dam ice then and there will be no way for you or your dam staff to contact/harass them.
In conclusion, I would like to bring to your attention to a real environmental quality, health, problem in the area. It is the bears! Bears are actually defecating in our woods. I definitely believe you should be persecuting the defecating bears and leave the beavers alone. If you are going to investigate the beaver dam, watch your step! The bears are not careful where they dump!
Being unable to comply with your dam request, and being unable to contact you on your dam answering machine, I am sending this response to your dam office.
THANK YOU,
RYAN DEVRIES
& THE DAM BEAVERS
The Kigers — My thoughts in a nut shell.
I am working on a few new pages that will be listed on the top. The newest, “Our Horses,” is up for viewing now. I just wanted to have a sort of home base for general information on my beauties and will be making another page for my sheep and for my cattle. Be watching for those.
But, I had started out with an explanation of the Kiger breed before the descriptions of my horses and then realized it would not be so fun to read each and every time you went on there to see whom I was talking about in my posts. So… I’ll leave it basic. I hope it works.
Anyway, on to my Kigers. They’re a breed that was discovered in south eastern Oregon back in ’77. A gentleman known as E. Ron Harding noticed the similarity in which these horses were built and the coloring was the primitive “dun factor.” The dun factor basicly turns a black horse into a grulla, a chestnut/sorrel in to a red dun, a bay horse in to a coyote / zebra dun (or various other terms). So he decided that these horses (originally found on the Beattye’s Butte herd management area) should be split in to two so that in case of natural catastrophe; the whole herd wouldn’t be wiped out. So, they moved 7 horses to the Riddle Mountain HMA and 20 to the Kiger HMA where they are currently found today.
Over the years, the horses have been touted as an all around excellent mount with lots of character, uniquely smart, gorgeous, and of course one of the last remaining “pure” herds of Spanish Mustangs managed by the BLM (bureau of land management). They took off in popularity and were found to be quite the novelty for people to own. I know many people might take offense to me saying they were a novelty, but that is what they are. The only reason I believe that is because their prices have dropped significantly, the buzz has worn off a bit, and people are moving on to other novelty breeds. I will assure you though, that I am a Kiger lover through and through. I adore my horses and my interest is always peaked when I see a horse that looks similar and I keep up with the action on the web about my favorite breed. They are quite something to behold, unfortunately the people involved with the breed have done a doosey and driven their reputation down. I am saddened by the effect I have seen on the in-fighting between registries and between fellow Kiger enthusiasts on who’s horse is better, what color is better, and what lineage is better. There are still those folks out there who are promoting the Kigers for what they are, beautiful mounts with a lot of all-around potential. A good handful of these people are extremely talented and and are showing just how versatile the Kigers are and can be in the right hands. There are others, like myself, who are enjoying them as backyard horses to go down the trail and participate in a local event of some sort when we feel the urge to get out and about. I admit, I am not a showman and never will be. It just doesn’t appeal to me. But, I do enjoy seeing a lovely horse, trained expertly and doing what it and it’s owner loves. It is a joy to watch and I’m always in aww about what they can accomplish as a team. The Kigers never cease to amaze me with their heart, drive, character, and grace. They have my heart.
I have recently decided, during my pregnancy with our first child, that I would not have the time I once did to devote toward my little breeding program I had started. I would not be able to work with the foals we were having and would be preoccupied with baby things other than horsey things. It was a sad decision, but I decided to geld my stallion and sell off some horses. Thankfully, I found some awesome homes for my beloved babies and do keep in contact with some still. I am grateful to know what they are up to. I am currently down from twelve to five and hope to get down to four or three in the near future. While the birth of my own baby has made me decide to sell off my Kigers, I look back and am thankful I did. I would not want to be a breeder in todays market…
To be continued.
Favorites Wednesday
Funny me, I forgot today was Wednesday until now. It’s been one of those weeks and while it has, it is refreshing to look at this little twist and shout manuever of our ’05 filly, Madame Mattie Silks. I took this of her in summer of ’07 while she was out having fun with her sisters. Mattie has since moved to Texas and is now the companion of a couple Fjord gentlemen and the apple of her new owner’s eye. We are so pleased that Linda now owns Mattie and is training her up to be an excellent little mare. This was one we had a hard time see go down the road.
Taking Power for Granted
If our power doesn’t stay on we’ll have to resort to one of these…
Okay so it’s not what it looks like, this only houses our pump for water but that’s besides the point. With how much snow we’re getting and have, I’d hate to go stompin’ out through it just to ”use the facilities.” Those pioneers sure were tough… I love my running water and power. It’s a wonderful thing.
Happy Birthday Frud!
To the most complicated simple person I know; engineer, designer, assembler, machinist, sparky, fashion conscious, wood stacker / collector, feeder of our livestock when we’re gone, card shark, bridge playing, tractor tracker, computer whiz, latte drinkin’, food beggin’, mashed potatoe makin’, picture taking hatin’, icy road slider, car wash beggin’, non-wood bowl eater, pa-in-law. Hope your day is great… and maybe I’ll make you another latte on the house. And this is the reaction I’ll get to that last statement…
Unexpected Visitors
I didn’t have to dust, vacuum, or do the dishes; my unexpected visitors this afternoon weren’t the picky kind. They didn’t expect me to take time out of my day to show them around or cook up a good meal (ha!), they just flew in and took a rest eating up what was left of the hay we fed this morning.
They were jabbering on about things geese discuss while I shot some photos.
They meddled in eachother’s affairs and gossiped a bit. They knew I didn’t know their language so it didn’t bother them to do that sort of thing in front of me.
Amongst all the noise, there was this sweet couple. They walked and talked with eachother for a while. He was truly concerned about what she had to say and you could tell there was some true love between them. Geese can be like that you know, especially when they’ve been “married” for a while.
But amid all the commotion of normal goose-dom, there was this little lady in the mix. I couldn’t believe what I was seeing at first and then the nice geese parted so that I could see center stage, the beauty that was amongst them.
She noticed me watching so put on a little show.
She twirreled and stretched and showed off her bright colors amidst all the brown, black and white.
She was a pretty site although the rest of the geese thought her colors were a bit audacious.
But she didn’t have any problem with her self esteem and knew that she’d win them over if they’d just get to know her.
You see, she was slight of build, not loud or intruding. She was simply enjoying the company of other geese, regardless of their backgrounds.
Maybe one day this handsome gander will see things her way.
Edited to add my find on the Greylag Goose.
Too Funny
Just got this in my inbox from a friend and had to share… edited to make it more family friendly.
MY LIVING WILL
Last night my sister and I were sitting in the den and I said to her, ‘I never want to live in a vegetative state, dependent on some machine and fluids from a bottle to keep me alive. That would be no quality of life at all, If that ever happens, just pull the plug.’
So she got up, unplugged the computer, and threw out my wine.
She’s such a _____.
Stormin’
It’s storming today, came in yesterday and last night was wild with all the wind. It’s been blowing so hard, (wish I knew the mph on the gusts) the power went out last night due to some power lines breaking. It was approximately one half mile from our house down in to town as the crow flies and we could see arching transformers like crazy. It was quite a show!
What scares me the most about the storms and winds is a huge oak tree that we have right inbetween our house and where we park our vehicles. I am always lying awake thinking of how horrible it would be if that tree fell. But, I’ve just got to have faith… and sometimes that is hard to do.
Our animals are miserable, they just want to hang out in the barn because it is so cold with the driving rain. They’re shivering and we just keep throwing food at them to build up little fires in their bellies. The sheep are doing well, they don’t mind so much as long as they have a wind break. The llama isn’t too thrilled, and I’m sure she’ll be one of the more grateful animals when we get the sheep shed built. Oh, the joys of animal raising and country living.
But, to leave you with some visions of better days, here’s some of our sheep.
Mud Ranch’s Violet — A favorite ewe lamb from ’07.
Sean — a ram lamb from ’07, Violet’s twin.
Mud Ranch’s Dot — ewe lamb from ’07.
The End(s)!
MRK Etta Place
One of our Kiger mares, Etta, a sweet and gentle natured addition to our ranch since ’02. She’s a very mild tempered girl with a shy but curious disposition. She is grulla in color which is found to be fairly rare. She’s had two colts for us, one in ’04 and the other in ’06. Both are very lovely in conformation and are mild mannered. Her ’06 colt is an extreme extrovert who likes to drag around feed pans, steal tools, play with the hose, and pester his fellow horses. His new owner thinks he’s the best of the best… we love to hear those sort of reports.Etta is a lovely lady, we thought you’d like to meet her. She’s a gentle lady, and a scholar.
The above picture was taken in Idaho in July of 2006 after she had had her foal. We traveled up to Idaho just outside of Montana to bring her home from a non-paying buyer. It was a long trip, especially her having a two month old colt by her side. She was a wonderful girl and really amazed me with how gentle she was. We had her in the back of a four horse trailer in a stall with her colt, and both were loose. I had no problems climbing in to offer water while her hindquarter was right up to the opening. She was lovely and really won my heart that trip. So many horses are spooky while traveling especially with a foal by their side, but Etta was placid and nice the whole time. She was easy to care for and showed her true colors.
Below is a picture of her colt Zapata when he was a yearling. A handsome fellow and a “super star” in personality.
But more on him when I introduce the foals of Mud Ranch.
Favorites Wednesday
I’ve decided to do a “Favorites Wednesday” where I will post one of my favorite photos either new or old.
The one I’ve chosen for today is of a mustang mare we used to own named MRK Huyana (which means “rain falling”) and her 2006 filly by our beloved Sunnie, named Dakota Raindance aka Rainy. We wish we knew what has become of these two, they’re such beautiful creatures with loving hearts.
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