Picture Sunday

More to share later but wanted to post pics. Head to Madison for some family quality time.

Thor and Zeke

The Girls - Mayhem, Queen, and Babe (in her old blanket, will get pics of her new blanket later tonight)

Pity Party

I'm rolling up on a pity party. For those that want to stay chipper today, just skip this post. I'll try to post again tonight with pictures.

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I'm feeling a little sorry for myself.
I've been quietly working on something and it fell through.
And it mostly fell through because of me.
It's nothing big or earth shattering.
And in truth, it would add to my already busy days/stress, so I'm sure it's actually a good thing.

The problem I have is that knowledge is power.
I have that knowledge and the person I was working with only has the very basic knowledge.
There's nothing wrong with it but I hate seeing the consequences of basic knowledge versus a few additional years of knowledge.
Not to say that I know very much but I know enough.

Unfortunately money has more power.

Another Busy Night

We have another busy night ahead of us. Luckily tonight the temps should be above zero so I won't have to worry about putting anyone in the barn.

Jim was overly grouchy last night even though I pulled him into the haybarn to snack on some grain. He seems happiest when he's in the barn munching on alfalfa and grain.

This morning Queen once again tried to bite me. But I was egging her on and was expecting a nip. She HATES that blanket. It's not the best fit for her so I'm on the prowl for a new one. I did get a catalog yesterday that had some cheap blankets. I haven't had time to look at and research the blankets. Hopefully tomorrow night I'll have a little bit of time.

The weatherman is talking colder temps with wind. I can take the below zero temps when the wind is calm. But when the wind is blowing, the horses get cranky and life gets more "interesting". Keep your fingers crossed we'll have a quiet and happy night.

Deep Freeze

We're definately headed for a deep freeze. Guess I better get stalls ready for the upcoming below zero temps.

From the National Weather Service:

Today: Partly sunny, with a high near 4. Calm wind becoming west northwest between 5 and 8 mph.

Tonight: Mostly cloudy, with a temperature falling to near -8 by 8pm, then rising to around 1 during the remainder of the night. Wind chill values as low as -19. Calm wind becoming south southeast between 10 and 13 mph.

Thursday: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 17. South southeast wind 9 to 14 mph becoming northwest.

Thursday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around 2. North northwest wind between 5 and 13 mph.

Friday: A slight chance of snow after noon. Mostly cloudy, with a high near 21. Calm wind becoming south between 6 and 9 mph. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Friday Night: A slight chance of snow before midnight. Mostly cloudy and blustery, with a low around 1. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

Saturday: Areas of blowing snow. Mostly cloudy and blustery, with a high near 6.

Saturday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around -7.

Sunday: Partly sunny, with a high near 4.

Sunday Night: A slight chance of snow. Mostly cloudy, with a low around -4. Chance of precipitation is 20%.

M.L.King Day: Mostly cloudy, with a high near 6.

Monday Night: Mostly cloudy, with a low around -14.

Tuesday: Partly sunny and cold, with a high near 0.

I forgot that this weekend will be a three day weekend. It's a rather pleasant suprise. Life is so much easier when I can putter during the colder days. The horses are always less crabby when they can get into their stalls sooner. I guess the Farmer's Almanac was right.

Cheat Sheet

Thought you all might like a quick peek at each horse at Borderlands. I was able to snap a few pictures before the camera froze up due to the below zero temps. Sometimes when I mention we have 17 horses, people give me a funny look. I'm sure they think I'm pulling there leg. To prove them wrong, please meet the horses of Borderlands:

Rabbit Choker Nikki..aka Rabbit
Registered Quarter Horse Mare
19 years old

Tommy
Grade Shetland Pony gelding
11 years old

Skippy (I can't remember his registered name)
Registered Mini gelding
8 years old

Peppy Cutter King...aka King
Registered Paint Gelding
13 years old

Chaos
Grade Breeding Stock Paint Gelding
6 years old

Rain
Grade Arabian Gelding
12 years old

My Blazing Skip...aka Dude
Registered Quarter Horse Gelding
14 years old

Ivan
Grade Thoroughbred Gelding
9 years old

Zeke
Grade Arabian Gelding
17 years old

Jim
Grade Tennessee Walker Gelding
22 years old

Brego
Grade Quarter Horse Gelding
6 years old

Thor
Grade Belgian Gelding
23 years old

Maverick
Grade Quarter Horse Gelding
6 years old

Sam
Grade Belgian Gelding
22 years old

Babe
Grade Appaloosa Mare
29 years old

Mayhem
Soon to be registered Quarter Horse Filly
Seven Months Old

Queen
Grade Appaloosa Mare
33+ years old

Forever Chores

Everyone is snug in their stalls tonight. I'd taken today off because of the threat for blowing snow. I have to make sure I can make it home to feed everyone. I puttered along doing chores because of the foot high snow drifts. 2.5 hours later and everyone is happily eating and I'm finally in for the night (before it gets pitch black out).

There wont' be any snooze buttons in my future. With everyone tucked in their stalls, chores will take at least an hour. Hopefully everyone will be cooperative.

I tried taking pictures but it was so cold out that the camera froze. If it ever thaws out, I'll post pictures. I just looked on the weather and it says it's currently five below. I was afraid to see what the wind chill was.

I think it's time for me to put my feet up and relax for a bit.

Blankies

The snow continues to fall and we've already accumulated six inches (I think, it's all turning into a blur any more). Luckily our neighbor came and plowed the driveway again. I do love that neighbor.

The winds are supposed to pick up tomorrow and the temps are supposed to drop. I threw blankets on a few, more to make myself feel better than anything else.

Sam is in a blanket until spring. I left it on too long over the last storm and he now doesn't have a winter coat on his withers or rump.

Rabbit is in a blanket until spring. She was too thin going into winter so I left it on and now she has no winter coat, except on her belly. She doesn't seem to mind her blanket.

Queen is in a blanket. The blanket will come off after this storm. She has a hefty winter coat but has a hard time warming up after she gets wet. She absolutely HATES her blanket (or any blanket for that matter).

Babe is in a blanket. The blanket will come off after this storm. It's not the greatest blanket but she's the only one that seems to be able to wear that blanket without much mishap (knock on wood). I'd like to get her a new blanket.

Rain is in a blanket. I haven't decided if he'll stay in it until spring or not. He was so cold the other day when the wind wasn't really blowing and it wasn't snowing all that much. I'm guessing he'll be in that blanket until spring. At least he looks really cute in it.

Zeke is in a blanket. The blanket will come off after this storm. I figured there is no sense in letting these blankets just sit inside when they could be doing some good. Zeke doesn't normally get to stand in the leanto so I'd like him to have an extra layer of protection. He gets a bit chilled so I have to keep an eye on him. The blanket should help matters.

Jim is in a blanket. The blanket will come off after this storm. I'm afraid that Jim is a hard keeper during the winter months so I want to baby him a bit. I think he's starting to acquire the taste for beet pulp. I'm going to have to try out a small scoop on him and see what he thinks. Jim ripped out the blanket that he's in. Hopefully he wont' completely destroy it before the end of the winter season.

I need to find someone who is willing to work on ratty blankets. Unfortunately I have one more blanket but it has to be repaired before I can wash it. But the repair people want clean blankets. It's a catch 22. I'm guessing I'll just have to scrap that blanket, but we'll see.

I'm still looking forward to spring. I'd be willing to take even a cloudy day over all this snow, below zero temps, and blowing wind.



The following picture is of Sam the spring after he went downhill with ulcers and a cold. He looks much better now. I almost hate showing the picture but I wanted to point out that it does take a very long time for a horse to gain back weight but it only takes a few short days/weeks for them to drop a bunch of weight.

Luckily Sam is snug in his blanket tonight to ward off the cold. I'm still overly protect of him after he got sick last year and lost so much weight. He looks a thousand times better now. I need to get a few pictures of him so you can see his current weight (and see how cute he looks in his blanket).

I liked the picture because of all the green grass. Oh how I wish for green pastures (instead of the impending snow/blowing snow storm).