Because Sometimes Things Just Get A Little Crazy

I don't know about anyone else, but the past couple of days have just been nuts. I feel like I haven't had a minute to just sit and breathe. Between back to school shopping for the girls, playdates, doctor's & dental appointments and family stuff, I wonder if summer is really the "slow down" season I remember it to be when I was young.

I feel like I am always rushing,rushing,rushing and it frazzles me. I worry that the girls will pick up on this, and what effect it will have on them later. Last night I was reminded that I need to put my life in better perspective-I have gotten too caught up in things that just won't matter in a hundred years. I was on my way over to pick up the girls from a friends' house and was running late as usual. Its funny how the timing can be just so perfect sometimes. (And, before I share this, please accept my apologies for not being able to embed this video on my site because Youtube removed this convenient little feature for whatever reason.) I just had to share the most timely, heartwarming,incredibly gut-wrenching yet wonderful, wake-up-to-reality-song that the radio decided to play just for my benefit:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p4ySSg4QG8g

(you will have to cut and paste this, I am so sorry, but I promise it is well worth it!!!!!!)

After tearing up for a half an hour afterwards-(hey, I'm a girl, its my perrogative) I knew I wanted to share this with you today. It is my wish for you as you go about your day that you will look at things just a little differently the next time you start to stress. And remember, someone out there loves you very much!

Summer is Almost Over

Seara from Forgotten Treasures Equine-Come visit her here: www.forgottentreasuresequine.com

There, I've said it. If you are like me, you don't even want to think about what's coming down the pike in a few weeks. Dare I say the word? (School) Yes, I'll admit during the summer months it can be some what challenging with the girls trying to keep them busy, but I do enjoy having them home with me. And, I am sure alot of you are in the same boat as we are, and vacations are non-existent due to the high cost of gas. We have had to be a little more creative this year, however, I think that E and M will have some nice memories to look back on.

No, we haven't attempted any theme parks yet, and I know I am depriving my kids, but this week I am helping out with a pony camp at Hummingbird Hill Farm where the girls are enrolled. This is their third year doing this and it is a blast! What little girl wouldn't want to spend their whole day with horses? The theme is centered around horse shows, and tomorrow, we will be participating in a little in-house show at the farm to demonstrate what we have learned.

Last month, they got to go to a Girl Scout Camp in Fairfield where they also enjoyed themselves and made lots of new friends. We also attempted to go camping at Assateague Island for the weekend at the end of May. (It was cut short by a tornado watch, but nevertheless, we still managed to have a good time.)

I guess I was prompted to think about all we have done this summer because the girls just got their teacher assignments for the year and in the letters the teachers sent out, they asked each student to have something to share on what they did during their time off. This in turn made me think about what I have done, and I can't say its been a whole lot, other than working.

I do have sort of an obsession, though. Since we placed Thor, I have been tirelessly searching for a new addition to our family. I made friends with Kathleen, who runs FORGOTTEN TREASURES EQUINE RESCUE, www.forgottentreasuresequine.com,who was kind enough to assist me with our very difficult transition. We are so grateful to her for all she has done, and I promised her it would be one of my missions to help her in any way I could to place these very special horses and any future sweetie pies she rescues. She has some wonderful treasures for adoption, of which Moonie is our favorite:

They will be hosting an open house, so be sure to mark your calendars:
SUNDAY---- SEPTEMBER 28, 2008 FROM 1-4 PM
If you would like more information or have any questions, it would be best to direct them through the FTER website.
Thanks, Kathleen, for all you do!

Fascinating

On a recent trip to D.C. we thought it would be fun to take the girls to visit some of the memorials. I thought this was very profound. Thomas Jefferson was brilliant.

May Abundance Be Your Constant Companion

Don't you just love cool, one of a kind things? I love this plate! In my next life, all I want to do is design pottery with designs like this. This is soooo me!

Lay Back and I'll Fan You

This is what we came home to yesterday after running errands. I have to laugh because the night before, my husband was complaining that his pillow smelled like a dog. I told him to quit his complaining, it was all in his imagination. We don't allow our dogs on the bed, so this was quite a surprise. I would love to set up a video camera to see what other things are happening when we aren't here.

Here's a great example:
These people were always finding water all over their pool deck and furniture every time they came home after being away for a few hours. They thought the neighborhood kids were watching for them to leave and using the pool. However, they could never catch them doing it. So, they set up their video cam and left. This is what they found.

This pretty much says it all...

Letting Go

It was an extremely difficult decision, but we decided as a family it was time for us to retire our dear horse Thor. Father Time was catching up with our regal, gentle giant and we could all tell his heart wasn't in his job anymore. The change in his demeanor was gradual; and it didn't help that arthritis was starting to get the better of him. In his early years, I was told that he had been part of a leasing program at a fancy show barn. I can only imagine how hard he must have worked and how many ribbons he must have won for his riders.

Now, at 23, he was participating in daily lessons at our barn where we boarded, and we would watch him as he slowly trudged around the arena, (it was usually his job to work with the beginners) and you could almost read his mind as he shuffled: "Here we go again, I am so tired of doing the same old thing, day in and day out." You could tell by his demeanor he wasn't enjoying it at all-the twinkle wasn't in his eye anymore. He just seemed worn out. We approached our trainer about taking him out of the lesson string. We understood this would also affect us financially, but his well-being was more important. (We had been fortunate to have an arrangement where she would use him in her weekly lessons which offset the boarding costs.)

We rescued our sweet boy Thor three years ago from a family who was relocating out of the area. I remember how thrilled we were to even be in a position to be able to provide him with a good home. How proud we were-I am sure anyone who has ever added a fur baby to their family can appreciate that surreal feeling-the "pinch me, am I dreaming?" feeling; waking up every morning to rush out to the barn to convince ourselves we really had a horse!

I have loved horses for as long as I can remember, from when I was a little girl. I told everyone when I grew up I was going to have a stud farm in Switzerland. (I must have gotten that from one of the books I checked out during my countless trips to the library.) I guess life got the better of me; I grew up and lost my dreams. Then, along came another little girl who helped me to re-discover them again. It seemed that she lived, breathed and dreamed about horses 24/7. If E could have had a horse come live with her in her room, why, she would have shared everything with it including her underwear. Her idea of the perfect horse was somewhere between "My little Pony" and "Pie" in National Velvet, both of which she was a huge fan. (M is not "horse crazy" like her sister; she tells me she prefers dolphins and wants to be a marine biologist or dolphin trainer when she grows up. On the other hand, give her a brush or a rake and she really enjoys grooming the horses, or mucking out a stall. Surprisingly,she is just not into the riding.)

E and Thor became fast friends. He was always well behaved, almost to the point of being aloof to the adults. With the children, he always seemed to sense he needed to take extra special care. It was not uncommon to find E and Thor walking in the arena, after a lesson, cooling down, with E chattering away. On one occasion I asked her what she was saying. "Oh, I'm telling him a story," she would say, very matter-of-factly, and off they would go. Other times, you could hear her singing him a song.

I know E understood why we had to find Thor another home. She is a practical kid, and she is wise beyond her years. It took about a month to place him, thanks to a lovely lady I contacted who runs a local horse rescue. She was kind enough to put me in touch with some potential buyers, and we eventually found a gem of a gal who exceeded our hightest expectations. It was obvious this person really cared about Thor when she came for her initial visit. She asked all the right questions, and she and Thor seemed to hit it off almost immediately.

We all heaved a sigh of relief once we drew up the agreement. It isn't so easy to place older horses; everyone wants the younger ones, and the seniors come with their own set of issues to deal with. However, they make wonderful companions and are excellent beginner horses because they are so calm and experienced. I am sure you have heard the term "bombproof." Most have that "been there, done that attitude." They are wonderful confidence builders.

Still, it didn't make it any easier the night before Thor was to go to his new home; it was then that reality hit like a ton of bricks. E sobbed her heart out for three hours straight. It took everything in me to hold it together. I started second guessing myself if I was doing the right thing. I began wondering myself how I could do something so terrible. After all, when you get an animal, its supposed to be a commitment forever-and I felt like I was doing the absolute unforgiveable. Somewhere between the sobs of "How could you do this, Mom?" and, "You are a big meanie!" that part of my brain that rules my heart started making mental notes of all the things that I could sell on Ebay to cover the upcoming costs of monthly board if we decided to keep Thor. We could make do with one car, I think-and, maybe I could sell one of my kidneys? Do they even let you do that on Ebay? Any parent knows the feeling, it usually hits late at night when you are at your weakest, and all kinds of scenarios start playing through your mind....

Eventually,hours later, when E finally fell asleep, the logical side of my brain started kicking in. I knew this was really the best thing, and that Thor would be so much happier not going around and around in little circles in the ring anymore. It still didn't fill the hole in my heart.

The next day, my brave little girl woke up and said the most wondrous thing. "Its okay Mommy" she said, with a big smile, "I'm feeling better today." She reached up and gave me a kiss and whispered in my ear, "Thor gets to make someone else's dreams come true today."

I cried all the way to the barn that morning.

Kids, they are amazing, aren't they?