Stuck Twice

We had to stop on our walk to take the picture below. The boys hanging over the gate asking Mike for attention.

Each morning they show off for us, following us as we walk, making sure we are watching then rearing and bowing. The show they put on is always entertaining. What is funny is when we aren't looking they come galloping over to the fence to make sure our eyes are on them. At work the massive amount of letters were all processed but it took until 1:00pm to finish typing in the last request, too late to get the Bibles ready to mail out. The post office wants them there by noon. Phil was hauling equipment out to Skylines and offered to take the Bibles down to be wrapped which gave me enough time to head out to Middle Grove. Karin left a message that the 2 Friesian mares, Zalena and Ylse have broken out in hives. Diane came with me to drop off Bonnie and bring back the mares. Below is Bonnie after she was let out of the trailer.

She was so thrilled to be out there. The 4 wheel drive option is not working on the truck but the road in looked reasonably dry. There is no good place to turn around on the road so in we drove where we promptly became stuck. Between Diane driving and me pushing we were able to get out, decided against getting the mares and headed back but met Karin on Middle Grove road. She offered to go get the mares so we turned around and headed back to the field. This time I thought I was so wise and only backed in a bit but when I went to go forward it was no go, stuck again. We left the truck and trailer and hiked over the hills to get some pictures of Karin bringing the mares.

They were so far away and the sun in our eyes, there was no way to get good pictures. The zoom was used to get a few closer pictures as they saw Karin coming with the bucket. Below are Sangria and Jewel with their foals coming at a gallop to see Karin.

The most wonderful part of that trip out there was to see Holly's reaction. She was the first to greet Karin and when Diane walked up to her she let Diane pet her and touch the halter. Remember Holly was the rescue mare that had real trust issues.

Karin was soon surrounded by horses.

She haltered Zalena and Ylse and they were brought back to the trailer. Both mares have gotten into a bad weed and both have broken out with ugly weeping bumps all over their bodies. Diane held the mares while Karin helped get the truck unstuck. Once the truck and trailer were on the paved road they were loaded. Oh how I miss 4 wheel drive! Steven was riding Valiant when we arrived back at the farm. The mares were put away and will be worked on tomorrow. There was a neat email from Kres waiting for me. She is a lady that shipped semen from Raven last year and even better she included a picture. She writes: Dear Judy, At the end of the summer, things were really busy around here. I really enjoy reading your blog, but I don't always get to it everyday. I also have the blog in my favorites, so I don't always see your home page. I must have totally missed the days that you talked about Raven's passing, and I apologize for e-mailing you so late about it. The day I figured it out, I think I cried most of the day. I know how important he has been to you and your family and I can't imagine how hard it was for you all to let go. I love Freyja so much that I was really looking forward to another Raven baby. I had always thought that someday I would be able to meet him in "person". Then I realized that I have met him. Every time Freyja nuzzles my cheek, I know Raven's spirit is in her charm and intelligence. When I look out and see Freyja's grace and beauty, I know I am seeing Raven. I am so glad that you stuck with us and that we were successful the second time around, and I am grateful every day that Freyja came to grace our lives. I'm glad you have Valiant and Evan to carry on. Freyja's training is coming along very well, and she's growing up so fast. She was 12.2 hands the last time I measured her when she was 4 months old. (she's about 4 1/2 mos now). I'm attaching a photo that we took last week. You can't see Belle's face, but I didn't crop her out so you could see how tall Freyja is next to her. No more walking under her mama's belly! Oh yes, she was brown for a little while, then went to all black again (within a few days!) when she grew in her winter fuzz. She also has white hairs sprinkled through, so she will probably turn dappled grey gradually, like her mom. How beautiful will that be!! Again, I'm so sorry, and I'll keep in touch. Kres Monday P.S. How is Darcy?

Now doesn't Freyja look EXACTLY like a purebred Friesian foal!