and then there was Spring!

Spring came and went in about 48 hours. All of a sudden, it was 60 degrees, the sun shone brightly, the horses were naked, the paddocks thawed and produced copious amounts of mud, the horses rolled in the mud, and everyone was happy.

During this time, I was a very bad girl and totally ignored the doctor's orders, and spent many hours at the barn enjoying the sunshine and cleaning. Although, my main order is to not get my heart rate elevated, and to my credit, I dragged all of the cleaning out enough that it took forever but my heart rate stayed nice and low. SO THERE!

I spent an hour of my time yesterday grooming Lucy to absolute perfection, or as close to it as possible when she's still shedding like crazy. I purchased a Sleek EZ at Dover and it took me all of three seconds to fall in love with it. It's a shedding tool but with very tiny teeth, unlike a traditional shedding blade, which Lucy will not tolerate at all. She stood quietly for me to go to town with the Sleek EZ, and I got a lot of fluff out of her! I also pulled her mane to even it out a bit, gave her a bridle path, and clipped her legs. It was warm enough to give her a bath but I opted to wait on that until after the baby. It didn't matter; she looked beautiful.

Then, today rolled around. Once again it was quite warm, so I pulled the horses' sheets when I went to feed them lunch. They were all quite happy to be naked. The two geldings rolled almost immediately but the two mares were very busy stuffing their faces so I didn't see them roll. Later on, though, Maddy sent me this photo of Lucy looking quite pleased with herself:

Yup, that's my girl!

Sadly, the temperature is going to plunge tonight and it's pouring rain right now, so our brief taste of sunshine and warmth is fleeing us for now. Come back soon, Spring!

Amanda rode yesterday and had the most kick-ass ride. I am so glad I went to watch. She rode with determination and confidence, but also a soft touch...just what my princess horse needs! I was so happy to see Lucy going that nicely.

The biggest news is that I have been scheduled for an induction next Tuesday so by Wednesday, Hannah should be here! I am so excited for this to all be over with, and to meet my future pony wrangler.

Snow!

It snowed yesterday! Not a lot, but hey, I'll take it!

I took my camera to the barn, of course. I had an idea for a great shot!

Lucy was so cooperative and didn't mind being strung with lights like a Christmas tree. She is the best.

My entry for Aoife's Christmas contest
See Niamh's paper cut Etsy shop here: http://www.etsy.com/shop/TraceALine
See Aoife's blog here for more info:
http://lyssatra.blogspot.com/2013/12/christmas-contest.html

Brantley got to model, too.

Then we turned the two of them out to play. Hilarity ensued.

OMG, Brantley...

our two Arabians

Time to go in! I love that she trots to me when called. It helped that I had a cookie, too ;)

back in the land of the living

After a SECOND trip to the ER last week, I think I am finally, maybe, possibly on the mend. I hope so, anyway, because this sickness business is GARBAGE! I don't have time for this nonsense. I laid in bed Monday through Wednesday afternoon and that is just not like me! Kenny has been a superstar, getting up at 5am to do Lucy's stall so that I don't have to go during the day. Maddy and our other boarder have been helping out with PM feedings on days I just cannot do it. I am really grateful that everyone has been so helpful and flexible.

Yesterday I felt ok enough to eat something and today I woke up feeling pretty damn good, so I will do my best not to abuse my body now that it's kind of coming back to life.

Lucy had an acupuncture appointment yesterday that I dragged myself to the barn for and then sat panting on a muck bucket while the vet did his thing. That's the thing about pneumonia...you think you feel pretty good, then you stand up, or even just sit up! and you can't breathe for the next ten minutes.

Anyway, I made it there, and Lu was a good girl for the appointment even though it's been a month since her last one. Between our crazy schedules and me trying to die, we've had to cancel the last three appointments. The vet got six needles in before she started to have an issue, a new record. I have accepted that she will never be a willing pin cushion but given that she had a complete meltdown at the sight of ONE needle when we started, it's great that she will stand there now for six. We've discovered that she loves these treats that Maddy has. They're like horsey crack. They are small round cookies, about the size of a dime. I stand there while the vet is placing the needle and just shove these things into her face...and it works! Cairo is the LEAST food motivated animal you will ever find, and that can make training tricky at times, so I think it's only fair that my horse is the MOST food motivated horse I've ever met.

Today I am a teenie bit nervous, because it is hopefully the *final* follow up exam for Lucy and if it all goes well, she will be cleared to start working under saddle again. It will be just short of six months from the diagnosis at Tuft's to going back to work...a far cry from Tuft's initial guess of two months! But hey, we'll take it, and I'm just glad Lulu was an excellent invalid and did not get stupid when she was out of work.

Unfortunately I did have to request that Lucy and Brantley no longer be turned out together. I felt bad. The romance had started out well, the two of them nuzzling each other and sharing hay, but as time went on, Brantley became pretty protective of the hay and would not allow Lucy to stand by the gate. She was coming in with new battle wounds almost every day (and don't get me wrong, Brantley got his share too!) but she was surprisingly timid around him and I caught him really chasing her around a couple days in a row. The final straw for me was finding two new bite marks on her hind end and finding cuts on her hind legs from running in that tiny muddy paddock. So, I pulled the mommy card and broke them up. They actually seem a lot happier now, each with their own space and their own hay. I think maybe in the future we could try them together again but for now, it just wasn't worth the risk of her getting hurt when we are SO CLOSE to being able to ride! Luckily Maddy was very understanding and we have an extra paddock due to the fourth boarder leaving at the beginning of the month, so it all worked out very well!

hot tamale

Kenny and I were very busy running errands, going out to the movies and dinner, and then to a friend's housewarming party yesterday, so Lucy got the day off.

At the tree farm to cut down our Christmas tree!

Today when I got to the barn, she had just eaten lunch so I opted to do chores before riding. I cleaned her stall and then moved her from her paddock into one of the grass turnouts so that I could clean the paddock. She was high as a freaking kite, absolutely convinced that there was something super scary in the woods. I heard some rustling around, so maybe there really was something back there, but just watching the way she carried on made me really think twice about riding her! She was going around with her tail straight up in the air, blowing loudly, snorting, etc.

I had to put her back in her paddock, where she settled down immediately. I cleaned the paddock and then took her back out, brushed her, and we went into the indoor where I free lunged her. That seemed to really help calm her down, so I took a leap of faith and tacked up and rode. She was great! There were two other horses in the indoor with us and I think she liked the company. She was a little naughty at the canter to the left but going to the right she was perfect. It was super warm today and she was a disgusting sweaty mess at the end, so then she got a bath. All in all, not bad.

Her wounds are healing very well.

she probably got on the phone with PETA right after I
left. "she is such a mean mom!"

whiskers, dapples, and hot chocolate

I just love this time of year. Lucy's chocolate-coloured winter coat peeking through her sunbleached summer coat, the bugs subsiding, the cool weather sliding in, the humidity level falling, and the leaves on the trees hinting at golds and reds all make me feel nostalgic and content.

Lucy has been so good lately. With the cooler weather, I always worry that Winter Lucy will return. While I'm sure that she will perk up once it gets really cold, for now she seems simply content and happy to do whatever. We've been keeping a good balance between ring work and hacking out in the fields and on the trails. Earlier in the week I took her out for a breeze through the very field she bucked me off in not too long ago, and she was superb. I even rode her in the snaffle! Today, we had a short and sweet 20 minute school in the outdoor ring. I think she is in heat because as soon as I started asking things of her, she pinned her ears and gave me some attitude. I stayed consistent and didn't waver in what I was asking and she got over herself, but the attitude thing kind of surprised me, since she has been so happy to work lately. We'll chalk it up to hormones and hope it subsides in the next few days ;)

mare 'tude...I was like, you are preaching to the choir, Lucy!

that's better.

Here are some more photos from today - she got to have some fun in the paddock. She is a pleasure to watch move. I sometimes look at her and think, wow, she is a NICE horse. She looked so happy and free out there zooming around tonight.

I just love her whiskers

that horse can move!

early morning crazies!

She was getting a bit warm, so I took her blanket off.
Isn't this December? In New England? It felt like Spring!

Oh here comes Tony, the 17hh Shetland Pony.
Well, he thinks so, anyway.

Sheepish?

Tony ran around me in circles, taunting her! HE IS SO NAUGHTY!

Mom, seriously, you turn me out with this fool on purpose?

I bet he would taste really good.

Is this their inconspicuous look?!
"It wasn't me!"
"Or me!"

Then at the last second she sticks her tongue out at me...

And they're off again, leaping about their field.