Light the Night 2019

One week from today is our annual Light the Night fundraiser. I'm a little nervous because I've been so out of the loop. But I decided to take a chance and have the fundraiser during the Tri-State Horse Expo and hope that we get more interest. I've failed in advertising so hopefully people will help spread the word.


You're asking what's Light the Night?


It's a way to honor your loved ones, both two-legged and four-legged. It's my favorite fundraiser. For a $5 donation, we will light a luminary in honor of your loved one. Just tell us the name of your loved one, and we will personalize the luminary.


We will light the luminaries at dusk. I also take individual pictures and try to tag those that donated. It's a pretty amazing thing to see. All those luminaries glowing in the dark.


I just hope that we have a great turnout and that there are no more storms. There's rain/snow predicted for the next five of the six days and they aren't even talking about the weather for next weekend!


But we'll do it rain or shine because it's at the Tri-State Horse Expo at the W.H. Lyons Fairgrounds. We hope to see you all there. And if you want to donate, just let me know. You can send donations through paypal at www.paypal.me/borderlands

10 Year Anniversary

Tomorrow  marks the 10 year anniversary of me blabbing on blogger. It's crazy to think that it's been only 10 years. The first post I talked about was daylight savings time. And sure enough, 10 years later, daylight savings time is this weekend.


I am excited for it so that we can do more outside. Although with three kids, it's a bit more challenging. But I think everyone is ready for some fresh air. Now if we could just get rid of the snow. When I look back at the pictures from 10 years ago, I have to chuckle at myself. So naïve and so innocent. Boy how we have changed and been molded by our lives.


We are supposed to get another winter storm, so I may reminisce and go back through the blog and see what I talked about 10 years ago. We have seen many horses come through our doors and said good bye to many as well. It breaks my heart to think of all those that we have lost but I am glad that we were the ones that were with them in the end.


Here's to another 10 years. Maybe next time I'll talk more about daylight savings time (or maybe in 10 years someone will do away with it!)

And We Are Back

Did you miss our adventures? Hard to believe it's been almost six months of no blogging. These last six months have been a whirl wind of adventures. I have lots on my mind so I  may break this into a couple of different posts so I don't overwhelm and shock you after such a long absence!


So the reason for my absence from blogging? Well if you'd scrolled through the blog, you'd see that I had a baby at the end of September. I took advantage of my work's maternity leave and took the full 12 weeks. I'll never get that time back so I want to take advantage of it! If I've learned anything from the Sanctuary (and my kids) is that time is precious.


Fast forward the 12 weeks and I went back to my paying job. But instead of my old position, I went to a new position. Yup, that's right. Why not throw a wrench into everything and try a new job along with a new baby! Well, it's not really a new job. It's one I've been doing but at a minimal allocation and now I can focus on it. It's a good move for me but I'm struggling to adjust. It's like night and day between the two projects I worked on.


One week in to the new job and poof, partial government shutdown. I dont' work for the government. But I am a contractor to the government which meant no work. So I did get to enjoy another month of hanging out with the kids. It was fantastic. It made doing chores easier and making sure I got to see the horses in the daylight instead of only in the dark, which is the norm that time of year.


At the end of January, I went in for a medical procedure. Don't worry. It was planned and I'd known it was coming years ago. But with the shutdown, I figured it was a good time as any. That meant I was out on short-term for another five weeks. I was also restricted to not lifting more than 20 pounds. That was (and still is) a problem.


I'm now back to work but still have the restriction on me for another couple of weeks. I didn't realize how much I lift and how little 20 pounds actually is. Oh well, live and learn.


But now we are back and I can actually keep you up to date with what's going on, which isn't a lot. The horses have survived with my absence of blogging. I am still fairly active on Facebook so check out the pictures there. Everyone is happy and healthy and fat as ever.


We are headed into another storm starting tomorrow so everyone is still wrapped in their blankets from the last two storms (and severe cold snap). It's been a crazy winter for sure! Luckily I've been able to avoid being on the roads for most of it.


But now that i'm back to the paying job, you'll see me posting more here than before.


So hang on, we are going on an adventure!

Christmas Wish List

Was Christmas draws nearer (in only six more days), the horses at the Sanctuary have their own Wish List for Santa. I told the horses that if they wanted Santa to bring presents, that they'd have to keep it under a certain dollar amount (because otherwise, they'd be wishing and asking for semi loads of hay!)


So here's the horses' Christmas Wish List if anyone is interested in helping us put these presents under the Christmas tree.


Mayhem would love brushes to keep her red coat nice and glossy (all usually under $10).


Lace would like some Buteless to keep the aches and pains away during the chill of winter. Her knee and fetlock are really starting to bother her (costs $50 but lasts a month).


Dude would like some Dumor Weight Booster so he can continue to pack on the pounds and be top dog in the herd (is only $20).


Jim would love to have Dumor Senior Feed (or any type of senior feed). He's the oldest resident and deserves to enjoy his warm grain mash every night (Dumor Senior Feed is under $20 but the other brands are right around $20).


Tommy would love a salt block. He prefers to scrape off the salt with his teeth rather than lick it off (salt blocks are around $5 a block).


Skippy would love a Himalayan salt block so he doesn't have to share salt with  Tommy (these salt blocks are a little more spendy than the white salt blocks but are around $10).


Maverick would love some toys. He's destroyed other toys and he's getting bored now that the nights are so much longer (depending on the toy they range from $10 to $25).


Zeke would love Ramona Feed to keep him fat and sassy (this is the only feed not available at TSC, Campbell Supply, etc. It's available at the Ramona Feed Elevator or A Bar K in Sioux Falls).


Brego would like some over the fence feeders so he can enjoy his grain without having to share with the cats (these run about $10 per feeder).


Chaos doesn't know it but he'd really like some dewormer. He may not want it but he'll appreciate it later! It's like getting socks and underwear for Christmas. When you're a kid, you hate the idea but as an adult, you love it! (Dewormers range from $2 to $10 and are always needed even if they don't know they want it)


Rain would love to have some Nutrena Safe Choice Original grain. As the winter sets in, he'll need to be grained to keep his weight up. (Safe Choice Original is around $15 per bag)


King would love some Purina Strategy so he can keep his plump figure. (Strategy is about $16 per bag)


All of these items are located at Tractor Supply Company and many are also available in Campbell Supply, Runnings, Bombgar, etc. So take a peak and see if there's anything you'd like to help put under the Christmas tree for the Sanctuary horses!

Still Here

Man o man has it been awhile! Well, to reassure you, we are here and doing well.


I am just now returning to the paying job which means I'm in front of a computer a bit more than before. All I had before was my phone, which is somewhat easy to update Facebook but impossible to blog.  I'm not sure how well I'm doing in getting back into the routine of things.


I seem to be forgetting more than I would like. But I'm going to blame the hubbub of Christmas and all the kids' activities.


If you haven't been following us on Facebook, well, the horses are doing just fine. I'll have to post some pictures later but they are all wearing their wooly coats, standing in front of the hay bales, enjoying the weather.


We've actually been having some really nice weather the last few days. Temps are in the mid 30s and there's no snow right now. I worry for our pastures, although the bottom pasture is flooded due to all the tiling going on.


We are still getting asked to take in horses but we are even more limited on time so we are slow to take in any more. I'm hoping the new year will be easier and I can figure out the proper balance between the paying job (which is new...I switched right before I went on maternity leave), running around with all the kids' activities, family events, and caring for the horses.


We are desperately in need of volunteers to help with everything. I know when people see "volunteer", they think that they have to be physically here. In fact, all the stuff I need done, is all online. I'm dropping the ball on so much stuff and losing out on opportunities left and right. So I need eyes and ears and a whole heap of help from others right now until I can figure out how to juggle everything.


I really want 2019 to be an amazing year. I have lots of social media posts to share but still need to get there.


But for now, just wanted to say HEY! We are still here and to say, we'll be back shortly with more updates.

Welcome our Newest Resident

There's a new member of Borderlands Horse Sanctuary. Please meet my son, Graydon. He was born September 20th, ten days earlier than planned and a week earlier than scheduled. Everything went well, although I was surprised that the doctors and nurses didn't seem to take me serious when I said I was in labor. Apparently having had two babies prior didn't hold any leverage.

But all is good. I blamed Hurricane Florence. Actually, the Tuesday and Wednesday prior, we'd had lots of rain. I had a feeling that the rain storms would bring my baby sooner. I thought maybe he'd come Tuesday or Wednesday but instead he arrived Thursday afternoon. So I was half way right in thinking that the storms would bring my son sooner than expected.

We've been fairly quiet at the Sanctuary since then. There's still so much to do but there's so little that i can do at this point. I'm restricted to doing what I did before I had Graydon, although the doctors didn't realize I was doing way more than I probably should have. But I'm taking it fairly easy and doing what needs to be done but nothing extra. 

We've had requests to take in horses but this is the reason why we have been closed to intakes. I'm not going to handle horses that I don't know. I barely handled our Sanctuary horses, there's no way I was going to handle horses I had no history on and risk getting hurt. Because I was "advanced maternal age" I was taking everything with as much precaution as needed.

We won't be doing any intakes for a bit longer until after I've healed a bit  more. This is my second c-section but I'm still taking it slow. I'm just under three weeks out so still taking things easy. I was told the other day that I was doing pretty well for having had a c-section. I don't really have much to go on. The severe and excruciating pain I went through with my first is all that I have to compare the second two births. Nothing will ever compare to that experience.

So for now, this is where I am, snuggling with my son. 

We are headed into winter faster than expected. There's snow in the forecasts to the west of us (by just a few miles) and we've been having rain for the past three weeks But because I'm the sole caretaker of the horses, I'm doing the best I can to keep the horses comfortable. We have hay in the pens and have given up thinking the pasture will feed the horses. They are still allowed to graze the pasture but the hay is now a permanent item in the pens until next spring. 

I may continue to not be around much. I'm still on Facebook more than I want to be so if you want to catch up on the latest, check us out there. 

Taking a Break

You may have noticed a lapse in blogging or any other posts (unless you're on Facebook). We are going to take a short hiatus from the blog (and possibly Twitter). We will still be on Facebook sporadically but the blog will be a bit quiet for the next couple of weeks.


No worries, nothing is wrong. I'm switching positions at the paying job, my medial issues are flaring up so I'm not able to do nearly as much as I'd like, and the days are getting dreadfully shorter.


I don't expect to be back on to post again until the beginning to middle of October.




We are also still closed to intakes. The Board of Directors and I will reconvene at the end of October to re-evaluate opening our doors to a deserving senior in need of a soft landing.


Unfortunately our doors will remain closed for as long as I stay silent on this blog. It's not ideal but that's just how it's going to have to be for a little bit longer.


If you need anything, please check us out on Facebook as I'll try to stay a bit more up-to-date there.


Until then, Happy Fall!