I Wouldn't Have It Any Other Way

It's been a while-and somewhere in the midst of all this stuff going on, Spring has sprung! This time of year is always busy-but somehow, this year it seems busier than ever. Between schooling the girls, work and horses it appears the time got away from me!

There has been so much I've been wanting to share,so here goes: My main focus in the past month has been moving our horses closer to our home. Because we live in a borough, (or town, for those of you not familiar with the term, we can't keep them on our property.) Not that we have any room, mind you, but it would make it oh-so-much-more convenient! I'm happy to say we are now at a gorgeous farm nestled in Buchanan Valley, just five miles away as opposed to fifteen at our previous barn. The drive is absolute heaven with the beautiful orchards and mountain views.
It doesn't hurt that there is a fabulous winery on the way-Ried's! I teased Kathy Reid that as soon as I can figure out some back trails, I am going to ride my horse over for a lovely glass of wine....

Arriving at the barn, we have a welcoming committee... (Teagan the cat).
And here is our little barn mascot, Lucy (a sweet corgi puppy.)
Oh, and don't forget the neighbor's dog, Daisy!Here are the cute minis that always brighten our day!
It hadn't even been a week at the new barn and our 29 year old mare, Imp (Impressionable) thought we didn't have enough on our plate and decided she would choke late on Friday evening, March 23, less than one week after our move. Let's just say the vet muttered under his breath as he was shoving a tube down Imp's throat, about 10 p.m. in the evening, that he had only seen one other case like this, and it didn't end well.

We prepared ourselves for the worst. I had always envisioned these types of things would happen peacefully, and our animals would quietly pass, with no pain. I don't think people are ever quite ready to handle when the time comes to say goodbye to their beloved four legged friends, but I tried to get the kids in the right mind set. I was so proud of how my girls handled it all-so calm and mature, for the most part. I felt like I was an actor in a movie, playing a role that I wasn't really prepared for.

We spent the night in our van-(I have a new-found appreciation for mini-vans as places to actually get some sleep,) checking on the poor mare every hour. Each time I went to her stall, I held my breath, fully expecting the worst, but lo and behold, that feisty little mare held her own. By the next morning, she had stopped the uncontrollable shaking (a side effect from tranquilizers) and her labored breathing was back to normal.

We were instructed to administer 28 horse pills a day (antibiotics) and 2 pounds of mash every four hours for the next four days. Doesn't that look yummy!

The big concern was that she had aspirated some fluid in her lungs and that she might have pneumonia. (We got very good at taking her temperature. For those of you who have never done this, trust me, it's a real treat and it doesn't involve the front end of the horse!)

And, because she doesn't really have any teeth in the back of her mouth, we needed very soft "grass" hay for her to dine on. It was pouring rain that day and we couldn't take her outside to graze. Being the end of winter, most everyone was at the end of their supplies of hay because the grass was coming in so locating this type of hay was next to impossible. Thank goodness for a little angel named Mary on a farm up the road.Horse lovers, unite!

I'm happy to say dear "Impy-do" as we have lovingly nicknamed her has fully recovered and enjoys eating her daily mashes-I have managed to get it down to a science and am happy to say I only am feeding her once daily now because of the all the wonderful grass that has now come in.

Don't ask me about my aussie sheperd, Ella, who decided to ingest a bar of Ivory soap two weeks later.....yes, "Throw Up Dog" is fine.
Me? Well, I'm a little worse for the wear, but I wouldn't have it any other way. xoxo Andi

The Winter Blahs

(Taken on one of my daily trips to the barn)

Okay, I admit it; the weather and this time of year are really getting to me. I make no bones about it; I am pretty sure I suffer from that "sunlight deficiency" thing. I just feel "gray".

Its a real problem; the past couple of days its been hard to get motivated. I am usually the one that keeps everyone focused and moving; it seems when I slow down, everyone becomes out of sorts.

I am trying the "fake it until you make it approach", also know as "one step at a time." Usually I have at least a spark of creativity that carries me through the tough times. Right now all I have is the knowledge that "this too shall pass." Boy, am I full of insightful cliches today, or what?

Armed with those useful tidbits of advice, I offer these images for your viewing pleasure: I call this one "Waiting"


I don't know what I call this one but I love the idea of focusing on ordinary things and transforming them into the extraordinary:

One of my many favorite parts of my dog Ella is her sweet nose and her whiskers.......On a sidenote, its not so wonderful when she shoves it in my face in the morning to wake me up at 5 a.m., but I am trying to be positive here.

And, I know I am spoiling the surprise for what we made for my Mom's birthday this year, but I just had to share:

She has been very much into birds lately-maybe because she recently created a beautiful quilt for my sister who is expecting her first child. It has a sweet little blue bird theme:

I guess in retrospect, I have managed to muster up a little creativity. It just hasn't given me that glowing feeling. Here's hoping Spring comes soon. For the time being, I will just focus on trying to appreciate the little things and take it one step at a time.

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.