What a nice surprise!

There was a knock on my door the other evening. I opened it to find a young boy standing on my steps.

"We came for a visit." He told me. I replied with an "ok, I will be out in a moment." 

Come to visit? I didn't recognize the boy straight off. I looked out the window to see three horses in my yard. It took me a moment to realize that one of those horses was Sam.

We took Sam in several years ago. She was an unwanted horse, not by us but the previous owners. When the drought sucked the life out of the soil, we decided that we couldn't afford to feed her and the cattle. A friend of ours knew a family that was wanting to start an Autism horse therapy ranch. Turns out we knew the family. And we happily donated Sam to their project. Do you remember our goat Zombie? The black and white goat who was raised with our dogs? He is also there at the ranch. Their son and Zombie were fast friends, so I told them to take the goat as well.

They came by to say hi/bye and to tell us how Sam is doing. Turns out she is very popular at the ranch, and has turned into a very gentle and wonderful trail rider. I was thrilled to hear that. Sam seems happy.

The ranch is called Abe's Hearts and Hooves (link will take you to their Facebook page). They do horse therapy for autistic children, women and men of low income families. 

It was nice to see Sam doing so well.

Horse Dumping

This is just rumor for now. I tried to find a news story or something to back up what I have been hearing. But nothing. However this isn't surprising as local news does lag behind the country chatter.

With hay prices now topping $110 for a large round bale, and the quality of the hay being so poor, it seems that a few horse owners have decided to take their horses out deeper into the country and dump them like an unwanted dog.

Rumor has it that a local man that cares for a handful of horse, woke to find 4 extra ones in his pasture. Someone had driven up to his field gate and let their horse out onto his pastures.

Last night a woman showed up at my house to inform me that someone had dropped (shot) a horse along side a road. Non residential. She watched as the dog food people picked it up.

It's sad state. With hay growers shipping their bales to Texas because the prices are higher, we here are struggling to find anything. The bales we bought are so light that it only lasted 2 weeks. We have another 2 weeks worth, but after that I don't know.  We might end up butchering everything but the calves.

Do you remember Sam?

For those of you that don't, Seminole Wind (Sam) was a horse that Good Neighbor had given us. We had her for awhile, but when our plans fell through, we were unable to keep her.

I donated her to a horse therapy program for low income Autistic children called "Abe's Hearts and Hooves".

They don't have a website, however they do have a Facebook page. You can find it here>>>Abe's Hearts and Hooves.

One of the owners came by yesterday to let me know how things were going. She's one of the more popular girls, the kids are loving her. Turns out this was indeed the best thing for Sam.

Play it again Sam

Husband and I have been secretly trying to find our horse Sam a new home. With us not moving to the farmstead, Sam was nothing but another mouth to feed. I hardly needed her on 5 acres. We didn't advertise her, just asked a couple of people

I got a phone all, seemingly out of nowhere, from a woman I don't ever remember meeting. She said that a friend of ours had told her we had a horse for sale. Her and her husband and 3 boys came over to meet Sam. All 3 of her boys have different and varying levels of autism. While the oldest boy rode Sam around the yard, I spoke with the woman. She was starting a nonprofit for low income families who has children with autism. The program is equine therapy. Her youngest had made remarkable strides in speech and responsibilities ever since they started doing it with him.

We do have a equine therapy ranch in the next county over, but it is expensive. This one would be through social services only. And for those well under the poverty level. As we talked her youngest spied out our goat Zombie. I see there are some new readers, even in my long absence, Zombie is a little billy goat that I hand raised along side 2 dogs. If you were to ask him, Zombie would tell you he was indeed a dog. The youngest boy wasn't quick enough with the affections, and Zombie butt him in the stomach. Nothing too hard mind you, just enough to get his attention. The boy began laughing, no, not just laughing but cracking up! This in turn got me giggling. Zombie took this as a signal to keep playing, and the young boy kept egging it on. The woman and I continued our conversation.

Next thing we know Zombie is giving the boy a ride over to the garden area, both seem very content with each other.

The program is called Abe's Hearts and Hooves for Autism. It is the brain child of her oldest son. After his equine therapy session (parents do the therapy using neighbors horses) the boy said to his mother that he wished others could do the same as him. After lots of calls, legal council and a bunch of paperwork, the family began contacting business and individuals about donations and they purchased their first horse. A mistreated pony. The couple are excellent horsemen. Grew up training horse, but life has a way of steering you away from the things you love, well at times anyway. They have been working on this pony and he is now doing wonderfully with the children.

They fell in love with Sam.

The asked me how much I wanted for her. I knew what price I had quoted to another that was interested in her, but I always try to do one good did for the year and the year was rapidly approaching the end. I looked toward the garden where the youngest boy had hold of Zombies tail, and Zombie was happily leading him around. I made her a deal.

You can have Sam free, if you take the goat.

She was shocked, and readily agreed to it. She had been prepared to pay for Sam. But this is a wonderful charity and I just couldn't see myself selling her Sam.

After they left with her I got a phone call from the family, updating me on Sam. She seemed to be enjoying her new role with the boys. And Zombie is a hit with all the kids. Who knew I was raising a therapy goat.

Another week passes and I get another phone call. Sam is gone! She walked over the fence, and they were out looking for her. I told them I would call if I saw her. I left the front gate open and headed to town. When I returned I spied Sam standing at the back gate waiting to be let in with the cows. Guss she missed them.


Back to her new home she went. She belongs there.

One for the Are you Kidding me File

First off a big HAPPY BIRTHDAY to Medium and Wallene!


Yesterday I was making cupcakes for Medium's school party when the phone rang. "your horse is stupid" Came the voice of good neighbor "bring a lead rope, she's hung up in the fence." I grabbed the pink lead rope that good neighbor had first brought her over in and walked to his house. He was standing next to the fence petting and cursing Sam. I was expecting a leg through the fence like she has done twice before. Instead what I found was half her body over the fence and one rear hoof tangled in the fencing. "You're Kidding me Sam!" I exclaimed. Good neighbor shook his head at me. Bad Dog neighbor stood outside with his dog watching us.

Good neighbor didn't want to cut the horse fence, I suggested cutting the wire that secured it to the post and pushing the fence down, as I had to do with her last time. So we worked on it, and a few moments later Sam was free. Good neighbor told me that he has a shot gun for her. I laughed. Good neighbor gave me Sam because she threw him. I have not had a problem with her, except for this fence thing. As soon as we were finished Bad Dog neighbor walked over with wire cutters, saying "guess I was too late." But as he was walking over Good Neighbor mumbled, "of course when all the work is over he comes." I bit my lip in a smile.

I lead Sam home and tied her. Finished my cupcakes and went to see Medium. Turns out Medium is a head taller than all the kids in his class! I knew my boys were big, but didn't realize monstrous!

Home again, then Husband came home. We walked out to the garden chatting when Uma came running through the ditch next to the road. She was out of Good Neighbor's field! All together now "Are you kidding me!?!"

I ran into the house and grabbed the coffee can o' cookies and went to the road. I called "Yup yup" Uma looked at me then ran across the road to Bad Dog neighbor's. I yelled for Large as Husband jumped the fence. It is Husband's cow. Large came running and I gave him the bucket. I didn't have shoes on. I ran in to get them and another bucket to bring in the cows that were still in Good neighbor's field. There was little need for that, because they had all heard the yup yup and came home on their own. As I went back out, Large had gotten Uma back into our yard, Husband was laughing.

Turns out that Uma did to Large what all the cows do to me. Came running, skipping and clicking heels together high in the air as fast as possible, then suddenly slams on the brakes just before hitting you. Large has never been on the receiving end of this treatment and had flinched as though he was about to get trampled. I laughed and told him just wait until you have all of them coming at you like that. I have yet to get run down.

This morning I have to go out and check fencing and re-secure everything before the cows can be let out.

We had dinner and I went to read for a bit. All the boys and husband were passed out on the couches in the living room, I in my own bed. Buckets began to bark the intruder alert. I sat there a moment listening. Then I heard a man's voice scold Buckets. I grabbed the rifle and ran into the living room. "Husband! Husband!" he sleeps like the dead "HUSBAND!" told him someone was out there. I took the rifle and went hunting. I am sure they heard me yelling at husband and left quickly. But I searched, rifle ready. I didn't find them. I told Husband next time I am not waking him, but just heading out. He didn't like the idea but understood that he isn't easy to wake.

So how was your Friday?

I like you guys

you always manage to crack me up.

Looks like I will be having a niece some time today.

I should have a very long post about the rabbits coming next week.

New coop going up and maybe even building that smoke house.

I forgot to mention, my brother's girlfriend's father built a very cool outside furnace. I talked with him about it when I was up in Fort Scott. It is something that Husband was wanting to do, but now we know some one that has done it, and can improve on his version.

Speaking of Husband, he is one of my issues. This might sound a little odd, but Husband and I are getting married. What!?! But. . . Some of you are new here and do not know the story of Husband and I. We are legally married, however I had no idea that we even got married. Husband came home one day and told me to sign something, as it was for insurance. I signed it and the next day Husband comes home from work and tells me that HR at the motorcycle builders shop had married us. You can marry by proxy in this State. But I want to actually get married, with friends and family around. It has been several years now, and I think it was time. Husband on the other hand feels like it is just play and wasn't really into it. And I was feeling a bit put out about it. But after a few days of talking about things, and him realizing that it crushed me that he didn't want to have a wedding that he finally agreed to it. We have a date, but not a year. Not sure if I could get it all together by the date this year. But I will let you know.

Murrial jumped the fence into good neighbors yard. Good thing that the cows being over there is ok. However, fence jumping is severely frowned upon in our home. So looks like barbed wire (or Bob's wire as Small says) will be going up. Sam had stepped through it and got stuck again the other day. It will stop her as well. I need to talk to Good Neighbor about what he is growing over there. I called the cows home and here they come running, so bloated that there bellies where bouncing out to their sides. Reminded me of running with out a bra. Yes, it looked uncomfortable. I was worried about bloat, but that doesn't seem to be the case, everyone is pregnant and that helps it out a bit. The largeness of it all. But they are very happy cows, and Sam's butt is getting a little too big. She will need some extra walking time.

I was doing dishes when I felt something small and furry on my barefoot. At first I thought it was the gerbil out of it's cage, but when I looked down, it was a chipmunk. Good thing I am not girlishly afraid of rodents. The cat (pepper) thought to bring me a gift. How sweet is that?

It was Sam's adventure

Sam, for those that don't know, is our horse.

Our Good Neighbor decided he now longer wished to mow, and with that a gate was put in between our back fields and Sam and the cows have been grazing there. Every night, just before dark, I call everyone back in, and shut the gate.

Sam is glutenous. Comes from being a horse. Yesterday morning I walked out to open the gate. The cows were standing around, being impatient about the ritual. Sam however had decided to take matters into her own hand. She tried to step over the cattle fencing. She ended up with one leg tangles through the top link and through the horse wire on good neighbor's side. I had to cut the fencing to get her leg out. I told her that next time she needed to jump, not step over the fence. Wonder what has happened this morning.

For those of you that have canned enough of the tradition veggie recipes, I have a list of unusual ketchup's, with recipes and what they are good with here>>>You say Ketchup - I say what kind.

Now that's professional

Woke with a massive migraine. You know the ones where everyone around you must die. This caused me to forget to ask husband to leave cash for the farrier.

You read that right, a farrier. We finally got one. Of course it is the horse neighbor's farrier. But she had agreed to work on Sam's hooves while she was working on theirs.

Noon, I was told noon. I choked down some meds and coffee (the combo helps when skull cap doesn't) Rounded up Sam and stood in the ditch. Sam enjoying her greens, while I stood in the sun, nauseous, hot and in pain. Everyone but me was late. Not sure how long I stood there, it felt like hours. Finally they arrived and I brought Sam over.

Sam wasn't as co-operative as she could have been. But what would have taken husband an hour to do, seemed to be finished in 20 minutes. Sam got smack a couple of times for trying to kick, but otherwise she did relatively decently.

Alas, the cash I forgot to get from husband! Luckily I had a money order that I had yet to fill out and some paper cash and quarters. I was able to scrounge up just enough to cover the bill.

I feel better that Sam was able to get a professional to trim her up. We must have been doing a decent job of it ourselves as the farrier had nothing bad to say about the condition of her hooves. I think we have been leaving them a little long, but not anything that would hurt her.

Now I am smoking some skullcap, hopefully if will finish the job that the meds and coffee started.

Why is she doing what she is doing

The youngest member of our family is doing fine Here he is giving Medium a tongue lashing. The Kid seems to be a little slow, of course husband has been walking around calling him special in that Church Lady voice. He seems a little weak, but is alert. He is also flat footed on his front feet. Can't find info about this problem.

I also had to look up why Sam was lactating. If she is pregnant she should drop her foal today at the latest, according to the horse pregnancy calculator. Unless she was tagged between fences by a Shetland, then she would have had to been expose right before we got her. But I did find some info that it could be menopause (which I think she is a little young for, but what do I know) or it could be a false pregnancy.

Almost forgot to mention, A few more vendors have been added to The Homesteaders Way. If you are in Southern Illinois you can find a soap and cheese making class. I will be adding yet more vendors today.

Sam's new trick

Outside, underneath the spigot attached to the house, is an old metal wash tub. We usually keep this full of water for the dogs. Sam however has discovered it. I don't know if you want to call it laziness or spoiled, but when it is empty, instead of walking to the barn to her own tank, she is picking up the wash basin and throwing it against the house. And if you aren't out there within a few moments, she will do it again.

Don't Wrestle a horse. It only gets you a broken finger

One of Large's friends came over fr a visit the other day. As I stood on the front deck and explained to him that Large was away, I saw that the friend neglected to shut the gate.

:"Hurry, go shut that before Sam sees it." As the boy ran for the gate, Sam saw it. She ran, I ran, and she got through the gate. I jumped grabbed her mane, and was ragged off. Some how I managed to get my hand up higher on her neck, and pulled her head back while telling her whoa!

My middle finger was suddenly purple and huge. Lest we forget the throbbing pain.

I put my shoulder into her chest. Turns out my little girl is in desperate need of some love, and she really didn't want to stand still for me. I screamed at the boys to grab me her lead, what I was given was a child's lasso.And the friend not knowing what to do with it. My throat was burning, almost as though someone had punched me in it. I explained to him how to loosen it and put it over her head. But he was scared of her. I was able to manage it. And Sam and I were back home shortly after.



Husband was crawling around, literally hands and knees in the lagoon. Can any one say eeeewww?

And we got the flu last week. What fun!

Only so many words

Sam, our escape artist, helped me feed the cows before the sun was up

Murial and Courage eating the hay that Sam pulled down for them.

Can you spot Winston's budding horn?


Jack is starting to look less like a kid, and more like a billy.

I had a hard tie getting pictures yesterday. I decided to slowly turn the camera around and show you what I have to deal with,

Why are there horses in my kitchen?

The last night of the city garage or since there was a lack of that, yard sale. My wonderful husband and I came home to find that someone had tied are gate shut rather badly. Someone that isn't use to doing such things, I would hazard to guess, it was our first clue to the possibility that someone had been to visit. That is itself is a little odd. Most our visitors are neighbor's and they have had plenty of practice tieing our gate shut.

The next clue that someone had been over was that even in the dark of a country night, we could see the our back door was hanging wide open. Thus bringing out the girl within me. No way was I going in first when I have this strapping, handsome, manly man at my side. "you go in."

He tip toes in, reaching for the rifle that is placed in an easy for a very tall person to grab place, when I hear, "Someone left us horses."

I, doing the most logical thing, look about the yard, attempting to see what he was seeing. No silhouette of any horses. Again I hear. "There are seven horses." My boys run into the house, I followed no too closely. I have a need for self preservation. My oldest, Large, came to the door after only being in the house a mere second, laughing, "Mom, someone left us 7 horses in the kitchen!"

"why are there horses in my kitchen." My mind racing to figure out the juggernaut of a jigsaw puzzle that would allow for 7 horses to be standing in a single wide trailer's kitchen. See, you're thinking it out to.

I saw them as soon as I walked in the door, 7 horses all in a cage at my feet. "Those are chickens. And who in the (expletive) was in my house!" Again, my husband said slowly, "you have HORSES in your house."

How slow am I, Hooter, my dear friend Hooter, whom I have talked about before. He has always called our chickens horses. I am so slow. Hooter had driven passed a swap meet, and stopped to take a look. He spotted the birds, and bought all the hens the guy had, then promptly brought them to our homestead. I simply adore him, just wish he had been sense when it came to the woman he dates.

Right now I am sitting in my broken truck, borrowing my neighbors wifi. When I tried to get wifi, I was told by AT&T that no one lived out here, the federal government also informed me that no one was here, and when both of them o all existential on you, you start to wonder, do I really exist. Any how, it is pouring. I don't have a modem to use dial up, so will be canceling that and trying to get a wifi service at the same time. It might be a while before I am back to posting regularly, and never before the earth warms up a bit.

The rooster isn't in the hen house.

My oh my, what an August it has turned out to be! It has yet to reach the traditional 120F mark with 100% humidity and no rain. Instead it is in the mid 70's, my house if wide open and canning hasn't turned my house into a sauna. The rain has been plentiful, enough to keep us from watering the garden and not so much that the garden is flooded. The grass is lush, unlike the normal dry and brown, with a smattering of prairie fires. The cows are loving it. The Ladies, minus babies, are grazing my front yard as we speak. We have only mowed twice this year, and the was the ditch next to the road, we mow good neighbors and horse neighbors as well as our own. But they both have been on top of it this year, mowing ours as well. It's nice to know neighbors at times.

I had a dream the another night that a neighbor had come to my house and chewed me out for my cattle. In reality she has complained that they have woken her up at night. How did she know they were mine? She has cattle in the fields behind her (not her field, not her cattle). There are more in the neighboring fields as well, but I guess she knows the sound of my cattle really well. They have never woken me up and they stand right outside my bedroom window. Sammy is another story, she will stuck her head into the window, and whinny. Scared the begeebers out of me the first tie she did it. Speaking of Sammy, I discovered that she is terrified of thunder. I was standing on the back porch yesterday, when thunder shook the ground. Sammy tucked her tail between her legs and bee lined it to the barn. Most the time she will just stand out in the rain looking miserable.

Small is turning out to be the best herding dog I have ever had ~giggle~. That boy has those cows wrapped around his stern little finger. He helped me round them up last night before and during a storm. No they didn't get out, I am just keeping them in the back pastures at night now.

Would somebody please explain to this rooster that he doesn't belong in the mud room?
edited to add, it smells like someone is burning a marijuana crop. hhmmm. . . think I need to do some outside chores for a while ~wink~

I'm hurt

I went to get everybody's snack to them for the evening. Sammy (horse) decided that Donkey (sheep) shouldn't be allowed to have a treat. And some where or another I got into the mix and now I am hurting. My back from my spine to my left bicep, and now the shoulder blade of my right side.

This will be a very long night

Watching makes my back hurt

I call this one, tattooed man riding crooked.

A Horse, A Gate, and a Neighborhood

Sammy, an 11 year old quarter horse, saw her chance. Someone had left the gate open. She looked around, one human was using a maddox to remove a cactus like plant from the ground, the other was watering in the garden. Of course the two children were sitting right there, looking at her, but she knew they would never tell. Sammy took her opportunity and ran with it. She was out the gate before anyone at her homestead was the wiser.

She ran a few houses down, and decided to call in on a few friend of hers. Ones that she sees from only one side of the fence, now she could see what they looked like from the other. She approached the fence, but her friends all seemed to be busy. Clover and her rider spotted her, and they came racing over. The rider gasped Sammy's name, and jumped off Clover to approach her. Sammy wanted nothing to do with the person, and turned. She ran as hard and as fast as she could. She could hear shouting from both humans and horses.

Back at the homestead, Phelan, the human woman that was watering the garden, was walking out from the back of the house when she saw that the front gate was wide open. "Did I lose a horse?" she called out to no one. One of the two children that watched Sammy leave told her that yes, the horse walked right out. Phelan saw the cowboy hat of her horse neighbor "did she come back?" he asked. Phelan was confused for a moment. "Did I lose a horse?" She asked again.

The horse neighbors informed her that the other neighbors said she had ran to the west. They grabbed their lasso's, lead ropes and halters and grain buckets and headed west to find the rogue mare. They walk a half mile, the sun was setting quickly. No sign of the mare. Suddenly headlights lite them up, and another neighbor came pulling up. "You went the wrong why, she was headed east. There was only room for one of the three walkers in the car, the woman decided to stay on foot, while the man in their search party decided to take the ride and get to the east faster.

The two woman of foot chatted, and giggled nervously about what might happen. When they made it to the east, yet another neighbor was standing in the road. Him and his wife told us that there was no sign of her, and that the car and driven around the block. They were getting concerned because twilight was fading, and soon it would be too dark to see.

The horse neighbor and the car returned without the horse called Sam. The horse neighbor decided to get the tractor with the flood light and see if that would help finding her. Phelan walked back home to get a much needed drink, and to get her own car, driving the opposite direction than the horse neighbor.

On her journey west, and then back east on a different road, she found her husband and her two children that had watched Sammy leave. Unknown to her, they too had taken up the search for the lost Sam. They were having no luck at all. Bad thoughts rushed Phelan, like she was in the corn fields. Visions of her being hit by a car swirled in her head. She made it back onto her road, headlights blinded her. Slowly Phelan approached, she could see the outline of some one walking in front of the blinding lights, towards her side of the road. It turned out to be the wife horse neighbor.

"We found her!"

"were was she?" turned out she had been in a field only 3 fields away from her own She was hot and sweaty, for she was enjoying her freedom. The horse neighbor had her with his own lead, and offered to take her home so that Phelan could find her husband and her two children that were walking the dark streets. Phelan offered some milk as a think you, it was turned down. Instead the only reward that horse neighbor wanted was,

"You can't move. We really like you as neighbors".

Coffee's Brewin'

My back door is wide open and I am watching the sprinkler take care of the garden on this cool morning. Not sure how long this cooler temperature will be here, I would guess not very long, so I will be heading out in a few minutes.

I am back to waking up real earlier, a least working back to getting up early. It's a little late this morning, 630 am, but by next week I should be awaking consistently at 530 again. This is so I can get the chores done before the 100F hits.

I was weeding late last night, in the twilight, and it hit me. I can't fail, not this time. Not sure why or where the thought came from, because I was thinking of something completely different. But it is now there, I have a ton of work a head of me, and I don't have the luxury of failing this time. This is no longer hobby or a way to stretch the budget, this is the budget. Milking is back on track, the garden is lushes and green. So far, so good.

I meet my 15 year old niece for the first time this weekend. She lives in Colorado with her mother. A sweet girl, looks just like her mother. She rode a horse for the very first time here on the homestead. I was thrilled to finally meet her. Sad it had to take so long to do so.

Medium is riding Sammy (horse) all on his own. He is very proud of it. I am proud of him as well. He seems to carry his own very well with her, showing her who's boss and she responds nicely.

Late last night, husband and I were on the porch, the dogs wouldn't stop barking. I thought the Murrial and Courage where just snacking along the fence line. But it was husband that noticed it was miniature horses. Great! Why is it that out of all the people in this area, we always get to spot the runaways, and put them back. Of course the owners weren't home. So I just pushed the ponies into their front yard and shut the gate. I have no idea where they belonged, but I have seen these people pen donkeys in their backyard.

Coffee's ready.

The enemy

Yesterday I was walking through the house, when I glanced out my window. Seven cows, one horse and a sheep were running along the fence line. Normally it would be a couple cows, the horse doing the chasing and the sheep trying to keep up. Instead it was the horse, the sheep and all the Dexter's in a tight group. This glance got my attention, and I took a second.

Small my five year old was the culprit. This short, skinny, half naked child was chasing the animals with nothing but a grin.

But to be fair, that ornery grin can get me to run as well.

I'm tired of disclaimers

Before I start today's tale, I have to warn you against trying this at home. Or do not do unless you have been taught by a professional, or you are desperate because people can't keep their word and things had to be done.

Two different farriers have broken their word. One would think in their line of business they would keep appointments, because word of mouth is important. At least word of mouth is what brought me to call them in the first place. But it isn't the first time, and bound not to be the last time I was forgotten about. Sure something could have come up, they got distracted, what ever, but they could have called. Sam's hooves were desperate for attention however, they were starting to crack.

We have watched farriers over the years, for various reasons. And a couple years back we had bought a farrier kit. It has been sitting gathering dust. Yesterday I was getting very concern about Sam, hoof damage was likely if something wasn't done.

Husband agreed, and so last night when he got home from work, we cut Sam's hooves. Of course this was our first time actually doing it, not just watching. Sam was wonderful for us. She stood and closed her eyes, either sleepy or bracing for pain. We are not as fast as the professionals, nor as brave. We probably could have trimmed the hooves shorter, as we still hadn't seen the light pink of new growth, but the are trimmed up nicely and the cracks are gone. That was the important thing. If the cracks were too high, she might come up lame.

Now I would tell you step by step, but I am not in the mood to. The info is easy to find. And as I am not a professional at it, you can bet someone would leave not very nice remarks about my telling you. And I am grumpy. I am forced to quite smoking, no smokes makes Phelan a grumpy gal. Just can't afford that one and only addiction that I have. I will do my best not to be sharp with anyone, but this is a head's up.

Sam's happy. I don't remember if I told you or not. Sam's paperwork has her name listed as Seminole Wind. Kind of pretty if you ask me. She managed to sneak past my husband yesterday. Went and visited some neighboring horses. She ignored me and my treat bucket, but we finally got her wrangled and back home. That will teach hubby to leave the gate open too long.