Scenes from the Easter Egg Hunt

Sponsored by the Colorado Driving Society

 

Part 1 - Easter Cuteness Contest

Cuteness overload!

Eeyore!

Part 2 - the Easter Egg Hunt!

The goal - fill your basket with eggs!

Everybody out to the hunting ground!

Find an egg and hurry back!

When your horse is at a halt,

the helper can dismount,

and put the egg in the basket.

Hurry!

he who gets the most eggs wins!

Part 3 - Potluck!

Wishing you an Easter filled with friends and fun.

A Winter Wonderland...Again

It was a rough day on the ranch yesterday - cold and windy with lots of snow.  This morning we woke up to sunshine and 0 degrees F (-18C).  We staggered down to the barn, did the morning chores, and took a quick look around.

the lunge pen

Behind the lunge pen and under the snow is the arena pad.

David and I are both itching to ride.

It'll be a bit longer now.

bunny print

I don't know why it looks inverted,

but I like the toe prints.

It quickly warmed up to the 20s - time to dig out.

I always breathe a sigh of relief

when the driveway is clear.

How silly, when I-70 is closed

from Denver to Kansas.

David always breathes a sigh of relief

when he's cleared the way for

Waste Management.

Good job,

snow blower,

truck and plow,

and

David.

St. Patrick's Day

I've wanted to share this beautiful commercial from Horseware of Ireland, and St. Patrick's Day seems like a good time to do it.

To me, it speaks of the passage of time with our own horses and with David, the love of my life.  When I look at David's senior horse Reggie, I don't see his gray temples and loss of muscle tone.  I see a younger version of us all.

Reggie at 3 years old, with David and me

When I look at Reggie's grumpy old face, I see Young Reggie, and I see past him to David's first horse.  David bought Skipjack as a 3 year old, fresh off the range in Wyoming, and transformed him into a fabulous event horse.  We had so many happy years with this great horse. 

David and Skipjack

We've always kept our horses all the days of their lives, and tried to give them the best life we could.  It's been a great ride.  I hope we have many happy rides ahead.

The next time I get all St. Patrick's Day-sloppy-sentimental, I'll tell you about my horses, past and present, Endive, Hans and of course Paj.  But I probably won't get all sloppy-sentimental...until next St. Patrick's Day.

 

The Snowiest Month

Did you know that March is Colorado's snowiest month?  Yep, it is.  And sure enough, we are having another blizzard.  The horses are on lock-down.  That's not popular.

Don't let this sweet face fool you...

Paj has just about had it

with lock-down.

That is not a happy horse face.

Tomorrow will be much nicer, and the boys will get out.  But today, the snow is whipping across the plains as the wind rages at 50mph. 

My orchids are brightening up this nasty day.  I bought my first orchid off the dying-plants-on-sale table at the grocery store about 10 years ago.  It's bloomed for me every year ever since, sometimes twice a year.

January...

and still blooming today.

My newest orchid was a Valentine's Day present

from my Valentine.  Aww.

But I have something even better to brighten the snowiest month - good news on Ben.  You may remember that Bob's Clydesdale Ben was very ill in August 2011 with hepatitis.  He spent some time in the hospital, and we have monitored his blood every 3-4 months ever since.  It's been good, and he acts like a healthy horse, but still I worry when it's time to draw blood.

Ben's test vials.

The one with the red top is for the GGT (gamma-glutamyl transferase) test, and the other vial is for the CBC (complete blood count) test.

The results?

Drum roll, please...

Normal, all normal!

Good boy, Ben.

Ben and David

We love you, buddy.