Christmas at the Capital

We were again blessed to have the opportunity to decorate a tree at our state's Christmas at the Capital. It is so amazing to see all the different trees and those behind the decorations. It is not only an honor but a privilege to have this opportunity to showcase the horses that call Borderlands home.

I like to think that we not only represent Borderlands, but ALL sanctuaries and rescues doing amazing work in South Dakota. I hope that our tree sparks people's attention and that there becomes an awareness not just for senior horses but for the idea of rescue and sanctuary of animals. That there needs to be more awareness and more help in caring for these amazing animals should be of great consideration. Wouldn't it be fantastic if our jobs were eliminated because there was no need for sanctuaries or rescues.

We drove out Saturday afternoon after getting all our chores done (thank you automatic water for making life even easier!) and enjoyed some quality family time (it was much needed). Being surrounded by laughing and happy children is the best medicine for stress (unless it's a horse nuzzle from your favorite horse). We were able to get to the capital early Sunday morning before people arrived so that we could properly social distance and do our part with covid. We questioned attending but figured if we went first thing in the morning on Sunday, there wouldn't be many people. And we were right. We had our tree to ourselves the entire time with only one group of people showing up for about 5 minutes.

As excited as I am to have a tree at the capital, I want to encourage everyone to do what is right for them if they choose to attend Christmas at the Capital. I'd strongly suggest masking up, washing your hands, and staying home if you aren't feeling well. But if you can sneak over some time, it will surly get you into the Christmas spirit. Our tree is on the first level and one of the first trees to great you when you walk in! Check out all of our sanctuary horses. They each have a picture in the picture garland and a gold ball with their name on it (minus three horses in the picture garland because I couldn't find their picture; they were at Borderlands pre-cell phone and are buried in one of the computers).

I will leave you with just a few pictures of our tree representing Borderlands Horse Sanctuary

Life the Last Month

Life at the Sanctuary has been pretty busy the last month. The weekend before Thanksgiving, we packed up our bags and headed to the South Dakota Capital. We had been invited to participate in Christmas at the Capital. I'd only been there once before but love Christmas and so wanted the Sanctuary to be a part of it. We finally got our ducks in a row and were invited to participate. I love our tree. Each horse that has stepped foot on the Sanctuary is now adorned as an ornament on a fresh tree in the Capital. I love how it turned out. It's such a magical experience. I hope that we can do it again some time. I know I will be requesting to participate again. It really put me into the Christmas spirit seeing all the fresh trees and decorations and holiday cheer. It's rather magical. I'd highly recommend going!


The Tuesday after Thanksgiving was #GivingTuesday and #ForSouthDakota South Dakota Gives day! It was a jam packed ay of activities to showcase not just our Sanctuary but all nonprofits (that signed up) to see all the amazing work that these nonprofits are doing for South Dakota. There are so many out there I had no idea about. I so wish I could spend more time with each one getting to know them and learn more about their cause.  During #GivingTuesday we had each Sanctuary horse write Santa a letter asking for one small item. We are continuing to collect items to fill their stocking. It's great fun!


For the month of December, we are doing the 12 Days of Sponsorship to get our senior horses sponsored. By sponsoring a horse, we can open our doors to more deserving seniors. As of today, we have been asked to take in 35 horses. Some may laugh at that number as it pales in comparison to what they have taken in or what they get asked but of us, it's a huge number. For me, every no is a knife to the heart knowing that I can't help them. If we can't help them, who will. I can only hope that others step up and help those that we cannot. As it is, we did say yes to 5 horses this year, which is more than we have in the past.


So for the 12 Days of Sponsorship, we post a horse and their "Match.com" profile of sorts. It's great fun and it helps me see the horses for who they are and rather than the ailments that they may have. We don't introduce ourselves with our ailments first. We introduce ourselves with who we are, what we like and what we don't like. I need to step back and remember that. They are all horses and being a horse comes first. Treating their ailments as they grow older is just a part of Sanctuary life. It's a good lesson for me to remember.


And it doesn't end there! Tonight we are headed to Tractor Supply in Sioux Falls to team up with Almost Home Canine Rescue to put up a Giving Tree! We are so excited to have a Giving Tree again. We've gone in with other organizations in the past and had so much fun. Sadly our schedule is so busy we have to ride on coat tails for this event most of the time. Luckily Almost Home is very forgiving of my schedule and in all honestly, they hold a special place in my heart since we used to foster for them years and years ago!


So even though I'm so far behind things are looking up. And when I joke that things are so far behind... I mean so far behind that I ran out of socks and I either had a choice of wearing my 7 year old's socks (which are too small) or I wear hospital socks from some of my previous trips. Yep, that far behind!


Hopefully once our Christmas tree is up, I'll be more in the Christmas spirit again and we can have some holiday cheer! I do love Christmas and if you don't, we invite you to visit and hope to get you into the Christmas spirit with the horses!