





HAVE A GREAT RIDE!
Just when things began to look up for me….Wade ended up sick. He has been home from school all week with fevers and coughing. The boy that normally runs and jumps everywhere he goes has begged me to carry him up and down our stairs each day. He has not gotten out of his pajamas, and has eaten only one meal a day for the whole week. I keep telling him that I think he is beginning to grow roots into my couch cushion. Poor guy.
In the meantime, I have been trying to catch up on some of my own barn work and riding. I have several things to do in order to leave for Florida in a few weeks. Yesterday Dr. Yates came to give Gus and Murphy their booster shots and draw a coggins on Gus. He also did Isabelle’s fall shots since she had not had them done before I bought her. Today Bobby McMichael came to float Gus’s teeth and check on Murphy’s. Gus was sharp, as apparent by the fact he keeps destroying my rubber snaffle bit. Murphy had been done this year by his former owner, but had a small baby tooth that needed to be pulled. The chiropractor is coming out on the 26th of December to work on Gus and check Murphy. My trailer has an appointment for the 10th of January. I have decided to rent my own apartment this year in Ocala, so all of the rental paperwork and deposits were completed yesterday with Carlton Arms. My final paperwork was faxed to the Rocking Horse show organizer yesterday as well. We are now officially entered in the first Rocking Horse Show of the season.
Yesterday I jumped Gus for the first time since November. He was extremely flat and bored with the small fences, but got himself together once I raised them up to a height he respected. I was very happy with him, and I fell back into a rhythm after awhile. Murphy was a bit squirelly yesterday, and I think that the warm weather and heavy training in Ocala will benefit him greatly.
The goals for Ocala 2013 are many.
1. compete and COMPLETE my first intermediate
2. evaluate Murphy’s ability to be an upper level prospect and decide what to do with him
3. Hopefully qualify to do a two * event at Ocala in April
4. work on a writing project I have been trying to find time to complete
5. watch a ton of lessons and take a ton of lessons
6. get back into running everyday—-get fit!
In the meantime, I have been unable to complete my Christmas shopping and wrapping with Wade home 24-7. I have only a few days left……..
It has been a long couple of weeks…..beginning with a sinus infection and ending with what I think was bronchitis. I have been so sick and exhausted this past week that I haven’t even ridden my horse (s). Normally it would be a perfect time for a little break from the boys, but I have about 4 weeks before we head to Ocala—and 5 weeks until our first event. I hope to begin riding again tomorrow.
Several things have happpened since last I wrote……
Isabelle Blue has been ridden by the cowboy a few times. She was great one day and naughty the next. He will be coming out again this week to ride her twice. On the positive side, she has been getting much better about getting her feet picked, standing in the cross ties, and standing quietly at the mounting block. Kate has been taking lessons on lunging and general groundwork with her, and she seems to be getting along very well with Isabelle.
On Thursday we had our annual Boarder/Employee Christmas Party here at our house. Almost everyone was able to be here! Our house was bursting at the seams, and I told Jeff that it must be time to build onto our house……he didn’t buy it.
Jeff spent the day outside working on farm chores. It was great to see how nice the south barn looked after all of the construction equipment and random trash had been cleared. We still need to put the rubber mats in the stalls before we move horses in, but hopefully that will come soon!
I have lots and lots of Christmas presents to wrap, some still to buy, and baking to do (not really the baking, I just threw that in to see if you would chuckle).
Lots of things are happening this week. Today was a non-horse day for me. It was fantastic. I spent the day doing laundry, cleaning my house a bit, re-decorating my Christmas tree (we put different lights on), and doing some craft stuff. Wade and I went on a date to Panera. As usual, he charmed me with his conversation…….and his “bread mustache” .
Things are starting to take shape in the South Barn! All of the new stalls and doors are finished. Tomorrow they will finish the new back door to the barn and fix some leaks in the roof. Hopefully we will be able to move some horses in soon!
After a few months of videos, pictures, secrecy, trips to Indiana, vet inspections over the phone, and hundreds of texts and emails….the day finally came for Kate to get her Christmas present. Jeff and I surprised her with a 6 year old Hanoverian/Percheron cross mare from Forresthill Farm in Indiana.
Here’s how it went down……..
Jeff and I pretended to be taking an “anniversary trip” last Thursday and Friday. My mom and my in laws were in charge of the the kids while Jeff and I headed to Indiana. It was perfect timing because Jeff was supposed to install a bridge a half hour away from the farm where the horse was. On Friday, while Jeff installed his bridge, I hung out in the hotel lobby. After Jeff was finished with work, we headed to Lafayette to pick up the horse.
She loaded well, and we headed home. The “story” was that we weren’t coming home until Saturday. I called my mom to tell her that one of my horses (Murphy) had been sick and needed his blanket put on for the night. Elizabeth supposedly had forgotten to do it earlier in the day. My mom said that she would run Kate back to our farm to put it on him……it was 10:30pm by that time.
Jeff and I got the horse out of the trailer, threw her into Murphy’s stall, tied a big red bow on the door, and put a sign that said “KATE’S NEW HORSE” on the door. My in laws showed up to witness the surprise, and we had them park behind the barn so no one would see their car. We ( Jeff, me, Ann, and Jim) hid in Cavalier’s stall —-with Cavalier—-across the barn aisle. We turned out the lights and waited for Kate to arrive with my mom and Wade.
They finally arrived. Kate was a bit confused by the trail of peppermint pieces that led to Murphy’s stall.
When she got to the stall where Murphy usually stayed, she found a card from us, a big red bow, and the stall sign. She started to get the hint. It was fantastic! We videotaped it all from Cavalier’s stall without her seeing us. She threw the stall door open and ran in to hug her new horse. Wade finally saw us, and we all started laughing. Kate was still in shock, but smiling from ear to ear! We spent the next hour and a half taking pictures, calling friends, and petting the ginormous new mare.
****Kate spent the next several hours awake in her bed trying to come up with a name for her new horse. The next morning she declared her name to be “ISABELLE BLUE”. The names came from one of her favorite authors and one of her favorite book characters.