Thursday thoughts...

Many of you know that my mother is terminally ill. Although I am infrequent in my blogging, hardly a day goes by that I don't think about it, but other things come up...and my priorities are rearranged. Life seems very fragile, emotional and somedays it is hard to think of putting a smile on my face......somedays I cry a lot. It is hard when someone asks how my mom is....awkward and hard for people to see my tears well up. Dying is a hard business for the patient, the family and the friends. Nothing comes easy, nobody wants to give up...it is easy to try and deny reality...but there are things you have to do, things you must say and breaths you must take. I am a "fixer"....and this is something I can't fix, can't mend, can't change......I hate it. There is nothing I wouldn't do to take it all away. The horse rescue business goes on.......horses are still taken care of, although my volunteers have taken on extra responsibilities and given me a lot of precious time with my mom. I thank them for their generosity and kindness and patience. I have days I am cranky, days I am tearful....and days I just don't want to talk....they take it all in stride...my volunteers, my friends. It has been so long since I wrote.....We have two new horses......Joey, a Quarterhorse gelding from the Enumclaw Auction kill yard and Derby (Kitty) from the Emerald Downs sale. Derby is currently residing at the Jones Farm until my life settles down. Joey has a pending adoption...he is a nice little horse who deserves a great life on a nice farm. We like him a lot. Derby (Kitty) is a big three year old TB filly......very beautiful and built like a tank. We were fortunate enough to have folks fundraise for us and Iris got her paddock filled with sand ...plus she got a full set of boots to protect her feet. So far she loves the sand and it drains nicely. Sand is very expensive but in this case so worth it. We are preparing for winter at the farms.......weekend chores keep us busy for a full day and then some. We moved the ever growing manure pile, spread sand, built bridges across our bio swale ditch, we are in the process of cementing the bridge ends so the timbers will stay in place, we cleaned the large paddocks, picked rocks, groomed all horses (bridle paths, banged tails, washed tails)....we cut some alder trees down from around the barn, patched some roof holes....still need to spread some gravel (does it ever end?)....still need some stall mats, still need to clean gutters on both barns, we changed all light bulbs to fluorescents to cut energy consumption down...we cleaned and re-designed the cat room (really nice job), broomed the cobwebs down.....in the midst of ordering hay....and we will order more sand for the short paddocks, plus put away some stall pellets....so we are busy as usual and always making a chore list. Thank God for the tractor...our best piece of equipment in the whole world! We have horses ready for adoption.......Lizzie is going nicely under saddle......thanks to her training by Cam Reeves and the courtesy lessons of Beth Anderson Ness and the courtesy riding of Sarah B....Sarah is riding and housing Lizzie to give her a lot of experience. Sarah reports Lizzie as bold on the trail and wanting to be the lead horse. Lizzie is a big girl of 16.2H....ready for you to ride dressage or trail...good manners, easy to handle....nice looking! Lizzie's teeth have been done, she is healthy and sound. No buck, no rear. We also have Baybee...a handsome Appy/Tb gelding, tall, well built......nice sport horse prospect! Raise him your way...healthy and sound, good weight, easy keeper! Call us or email us if you have interest or send someone our way..... Come and join us for our Wine and Dine Fundraiser on October 22nd, Gig Harbor Golf and County Club in Gig Harbor, WA at 6pm. Tickets are 28 dollars each or 50 dollars for two......prepaid in advance via paypal or check. Paypal to Rosemary@ponyuprescue.com or mail checks to PO BOX 1023, Olalla,WA 98359. Lots of great auction items.......yummy dinner and good folks! Come and join us. Pony Up fortune for today.......... Say it outloud or no one knows you said it at all.

Thursday thoughts

Many of you know that my mother is terminally ill. Although I am infrequent in my blogging, hardly a day goes by that I don't think about it, but other things come up...and my priorities are rearranged. Life seems very fragile, emotional and somedays it is hard to think of putting a smile on my face......somedays I cry a lot. It is hard when someone asks how my mom is....awkward and hard for people to see my tears well up. Dying is a hard business for the patient, the family and the friends. Nothing comes easy, nobody wants to give up...it is easy to try and deny reality...but there are things you have to do, things you must say and breaths you must take. I am a "fixer"....and this is something I can't fix, can't mend, can't change......I hate it. There is nothing I wouldn't do to take it all away.

The horse rescue business goes on.......horses are still taken care of, although my volunteers have taken on extra responsibilities and given me a lot of precious time with my mom. I thank them for their generosity and kindness and patience. I have days I am cranky, days I am tearful....and days I just don't want to talk....they take it all in stride...my volunteers, my friends.

It has been so long since I wrote.....We have two new horses......Joey, a Quarterhorse gelding from the Enumclaw Auction kill yard and Derby (Kitty) from the Emerald Downs sale. Derby is currently residing at the Jones Farm until my life settles down. Joey has a pending adoption...he is a nice little horse who deserves a great life on a nice farm. We like him a lot. Derby (Kitty) is a big three year old TB filly......very beautiful and built like a tank.

We were fortunate enough to have folks fundraise for us and Iris got her paddock filled with sand ...plus she got a full set of boots to protect her feet. So far she loves the sand and it drains nicely. Sand is very expensive but in this case so worth it.

We are preparing for winter at the farms.......weekend chores keep us busy for a full day and then some. We moved the ever growing manure pile, spread sand, built bridges across our bio swale ditch, we are in the process of cementing the bridge ends so the timbers will stay in place, we cleaned the large paddocks, picked rocks, groomed all horses (bridle paths, banged tails, washed tails)....we cut some alder trees down from around the barn, patched some roof holes....still need to spread some gravel (does it ever end?)....still need some stall mats, still need to clean gutters on both barns, we changed all light bulbs to fluorescents to cut energy consumption down...we cleaned and re-designed the cat room (really nice job), broomed the cobwebs down.....in the midst of ordering hay....and we will order more sand for the short paddocks, plus put away some stall pellets....so we are busy as usual and always making a chore list. Thank God for the tractor...our best piece of equipment in the whole world!

We have horses ready for adoption.......Lizzie is going nicely under saddle......thanks to her training by Cam Reeves and the courtesy lessons of Beth Anderson Ness and the courtesy riding of Sarah B....Sarah is riding and housing Lizzie to give her a lot of experience. Sarah reports Lizzie as bold on the trail and wanting to be the lead horse. Lizzie is a big girl of 16.2H....ready for you to ride dressage or trail...good manners, easy to handle....nice looking! Lizzie's teeth have been done, she is healthy and sound. No buck, no rear.
We also have Baybee...a handsome Appy/Tb gelding, tall, well built......nice sport horse prospect! Raise him your way...healthy and sound, good weight, easy keeper!
Call us or email us if you have interest or send someone our way.....

Come and join us for our Wine and Dine Fundraiser on October 22nd, Gig Harbor Golf and County Club in Gig Harbor, WA at 6pm. Tickets are 28 dollars each or 50 dollars for two......prepaid in advance via paypal or check. Paypal to Rosemary@ponyuprescue.com or mail checks to PO BOX 1023, Olalla,WA 98359. Lots of great auction items.......yummy dinner and good folks! Come and join us.


Pony Up fortune for today..........
Say it outloud or no one knows you said it at all.

So so Saturday

Up early.......drive to barn, let chickens out, let barn cat out....feed horses, take over my shift for taking care of my mom. Hot morning already, wash laundry, empty trash, lots of watering to do in my mom's yard and the Pony Up garden...horse troughs to clean, pastures to water, manure to pick up. As I always say, the chore list never quits. We have a lot to do today, amongst keeping an eye on my mom. I take a few minutes and watch my mom sleep...in sleeping she seems to be more comfortable and with her comfort, I feel better.

Iris is having trouble with her feet......chronic foot problems since we got her...not just blind, but lousy feet too. We were able to solve part of her problem with putting shoes and pads on the fronts....and now it seems we will have to do the same with the hinds. Winters is approaching and I am very apprehensive as to how we will keep Iris dry......her feet demand it. The weather is very dry right now and her feet are terrible. Washington is wet for six months out of the year. We need to start making some plans for how we will keep her comfortable....sand paddock and LOTS of stall pellets, pads on her feet. ...I am having some anxiety.. we love Iris and so do a hundred other folks.

When it rains.....it pours. While we are cleaning and working today, we discover that Joey has cut his face near his eye and it is swollen/ugly......we put some hot packs on it, get the scabs off.......and then place his fly mask on him. He is a good boy to work on, very patient with us..such a good boy. He is still nursing a swollen knee too, so we have not been on him yet.....but what a dream to haul, handle and work on. He came from the kill pen........he deserved better so we brought him home....just a little quarter horse gelding, nothing fancy, but he is well built and solid and we give him an A plus on his personality. Need a trail horse? Come see Joey!

Baybee is growing into a handsome boy.......he is huge! He kicked the stall wall last week (at his TB buddies Ollie and Jones) and he was lame for a few days...but doing better now. We have been working diligently on him picking his feet up without kneeling or laying down....today he allowed his feet to be cleaned without any drama. He really is a beautiful colt........someone will get a great horse......Need a project? Come see him...for adoption.

We are having our upcoming auction/dinner fundraiser in late October. We are so excited! Thank you to Jen B and Tara for heading this up. My time is not own lately...and it is a blessing to have them take charge of this for us. It is going to be a gala event and we want you all to come!

We built a new manure bin today for the far paddocks......thank you Ryan for taking charge of it.......and thank you to Susy for your undying loyalty and work....you are such a help..both of you. We also moved the ever migrating stall mats back......we have stall mats out in front of each stall so that when it starts raining....(as it ALWAYS does up here.)...horses will not have any mud in front of the stalls or loafing sheds.......we have LOTS of mats. People remark about it..and we laugh about it.....but they are totally necessary.

Speaking of our chore list.......it goes on and continues.....hogsfuel, gravel, sand....shavings bin...finish manure bins...buy more hay...buy more stall mats..(yes, we could use more!)...hay is always needed as our residents have big appetites! We need to raise funds for training, for dental work and medical care. Those sorts of things take a big bite out of our budget. Horses in training have priority in dental work.

We are thankful for our supporters.......and we give a big shout out to Cenex, Strohs, The Jones Farm, Cam and Carrie Reeves, Maci Padden DVM, Mike Alberts DVM, Julie Page DVM, Ray DeCent DVM, Lietz Hay, Beth Anderson Ness, Meghan Markham. Chalice Farms, .......we have so many people who help us.....we are very grateful.

I also thank my volunteers who have allowed me to take a break in my schedule, so I can spend more time with mom. I cherish every minute.....and I could not do this without you.

Pony Up fortune for tomorrow:

Say it out loud.....sometimes you just have to "say it out loud".

Enjoy your week!

Salutions for September

A new month......the farm is still busy, we are still busy, life goes on. Chores to do, lists to write and rewrite....sometimes I think I write them a million times.

The rescue is full! We took a new horse in last week, named him Dante and then promptly changed his name to Joe...or Joey.....a little chestnut quarter horse down on his luck with no place to go. Great manners and good disposition.....what's not to love? Joey will be available for adoption after an assessment ride this weekend...currently he is happy eating grass and hanging out. He has been dewormed and his feet will be trimmed this weekend.

We still have Baybee....and he is growing like a weed......so very tall and handsome and um.......spoiled. What did you expect from us? Manners? we forgot all the daily handling a baby horse needs. For two weeks he was quiet as a Mouse, meek and mild mannered......but now, he is comfortable with the routine, feels safe and he turned into a regular yearling...nippy and coltish. He may make the rest of my hair turn gray...baby horses...yikes. He also cannot give you his front foot to clean or handle.....he simply goes to his knees......you let him up and try again.......he lays down. Such drama.....we should have named him Hollywood.

We never got much of a summer but fall is definitely in the air now.......cool mornings, fog and of course it is dark earlier. Really brings to mind the fall chores and the winter chores that we need to get done.

We got most of our drainage ditch done or as we love to call it.."the bio swale"......sounds fancy huh? It really is just a ditch but we will call it whatever you like as long as it drains water. We have planted grass in it, made bridges across it........all is well with the ditch.

We say goodbye to Strohs Feed ......a long relationship with all of them and we will miss them and all they have done for us.....goodbye girls! We will see you around. Thank you for everything.....you are such good friends of ours!

Let's see .....the chore list goes on.......this weekend we will finish re-fencing the pony paddock, cut off fence posts along the bio swale, cement bridge placements, start on the manure shed, rock pick the arena, groom horses, clean out the big water tanks in preparation for winter...reset mats outside of stalls, buy more hay...go to the dump, clean out cat room, set out rat stations, cut brush along fence and take Joey for a test ride.

Our winter wish list for anyone who cares to see it:

Cement in the aisle way in barn......it gets slippery when it starts raining..it is really necessary for safety sake of horses and volunteers.
Gravel.....need to top off stall paddocks.
Sand...to top the gravel off in the stall paddocks.
Hogsfuel...for the paddocks at barn #2...to keep mud down and rocks out of hooves.
Hay fund.....we intend to store more hay for winter, we now have a second building and it provides more storage. We are full with inmates, so the hay goes fast. Local hay is great for the pony and the easy keepers but we also have to have timothy or orchard grass or a mix.
Railroad ties....to provide the back of the new manure bin
Three gates for the bottom of the long paddocks...this enables us to turn horses in or out easily.
Two gates for barn #2...to help seperate horses at feeding time.....stall kicking and fighting by two unnamed horses...ummm..just sayin....
Two mats for Iris' paddock, so that she has no mud at her doorway.
Two pallets of stall pellets......one at each barn. Iris will HAVE to have pellets as her feet cannot tolerate wet.
Psyllium pellets......we feed Psyllium pellets one week out of the month
Small amount of lumber to close in Beavers stall entrance...he currently has no wind break.
Salt holders for each stall...those little cheap ones.
We would love to have a sponsor for Iris... Iris has to have aluminum shoes about every six weeks, complete with pads in order to keep her feet healthy and pain free.
We could also use cleaning volunteers or morning or evening feeders. Some of the volunteers have full time jobs...and while we are grateful for their time...sometimes they could use a break.

Thank you to the people who have visited my mother or brought her food or flowers or cards......you will never know how much it has meant to her...but I promise you, it has meant the world. Please keep her in your prayers....such a rough time for all of us and we love her so much.

Pony Up fortune for tomorrow:
Life is exactly what you make it and then some.

Enjoy tomorrow.....tell you mother you love her.