Horse Fair News

Well I found the blue sparkly halters. They had been put away in the bridle case along with lead ropes. We only were able to get 7 of them so Evan will wear plain black and one of the mares will wear one of our new blue ones. Karin arrived after work and together we worked on the play script for the fair.
Rhoda and Lee's dog Ruby came in heat today.

Rhoda called Buddy's owner to set up a time to bring her to their place in Indiana and got terrible news. Buddy, the King Charles Caviler Rhoda and Sarah use for a stud dog, got loose, ran out on the road and was hit and killed by a car. Rhoda was able to find a male Cavapoo the owners are willing to stud out. He is not proven as Ruby will be his first. Sure hope he is very fertile, it is extremely hard now-a-days to find people willing to stud their dog out.
Mocha's stall card for the fair is now packed with the other cards. She is such a hairy little black horse that we are explaining to everyone that Amy put her in a dryer and SHRUNK her Friesian.

Our stalls are in barn 14 aisle E for the Horse Fair. Sure hope we get a good turnout. We have well over a thousand presents and prizes to give out. Remember this fair is KID friendly. If your son or daughter likes horses they are going to LOVE this fair. There are many different breeds to see including Andalusians, Fell ponies, Arabians, Shires, Gypsy Vanners, Mules, Spotted Drafts,  Clydes and really cool demos to watch such as trick riding and Mounted Archery and of course Friesians. Why there is going to be 3 Friesian stallions at this fair, Evan of course then one of them is a very rare chestnut Friesian Friesian, along with Albert who will be driving a carriage.

YOU WON'T want to miss this FAIR. Exactly a week from today the fairgrounds open at 9:00 am, want to see the schedule? CLICK HERE. Tickets can be purchased at arrival but if you want to save a little money you can purchase them cheaper on-line by clicking HERE. 

Noisy Transient Neighbors

Around 9:00 am a tremendous noisy chattering surrounded the house. Emma and Ebby ran to the patio door and started barking and when I looked out there were thousands of red winged blackbirds in the yard. I grabbed the camera and opened the door but they took off  swarming all around, landing in the trees and Valiant's field

 and all of them voicing their displeasure at being disturbed. It really was an incredible sight.

The noise was also incredible. Each bird chattering at the top of their lungs.  I didn't stick around, instead took the car up to the trailer and started bringing down all the show trunks. It took two carloads to get them all down to the house. Each one was gone through, the stall fronts organized and material washed. I still need to work on tack and to find the show halters. None of those were in any of the trunks and yet I thought all of the trunks were unloaded. They must be somewhere!
The house is a mess, it looks like a hoarder lives here with trunks and boxes all crammed into the family room. Karin shopped and picked up some supplies to hang stall guards. We want the stall doors open as much as possible so the mares can hang their heads out for attention.
Sally, the lady in charge of stall assignments of the Illinois Horse Fair told us today we are in barn 14 aisle E. We even have that extra area right before our stalls to decorate and set up our popcorn machine. The man bringing down our bedding and hay was contacted and they will meet us there at  on Wednesday Feb 28th. Karin and I have a plan to fill the 2 horse trailer and the new truck Tuesday night with everything needed, meet the hay guy late Wednesday afternoon, unload and start on decorating the stalls. The only problem with this plan is we will not make it back in time for church since we have to wait for Karin to get off work on Wednesday.  Thursday morning I plan on leaving here around 8:00 am have the horses there by 9:30 am to start bathing. We have 10 to wash. Once that is done we should have enough time to finish the stall decorations before checking into our hotel.
The information stall cards were made and printed out. Mark got home as I was finishing up with those. I'm too tired to do much more tonight.

Icy Frozen Driveways

Lots of ice this morning, after that hard rain yesterday then 20 degrees this morning the gravel drive was solid. The ice landed on rocks and froze them to the ground creating a walking obstacle course. Mom fell on our walk today. She just skinned up her knee and wrenched her shoulder but didn't want to quit the walk so Diane, Ruth and I lifted her up and off we went again.  When we got back from the walk I took the picture below of our Japanese Maple.

 The skids on our shoes were for sure needed today. The next job was to take Sangria and Oksana along with their foals into the stalls for their grain. Yesterday was the first time I saw Serenity eating the grain and today she got her own bucket. It is always a good sign when they enjoy grain before they are weaned, it makes weaning go so much better when they can't resist that.  The arena was cleaned up while they were eating then they were taken out to the field next to Valiant's paddock. I needed to move a round bale in Ribbon's old paddock where these two mares and their fillies will be living for a while to keep them out of the mud. Sangria went right over to Valiant and started showing. We do NOT want a February baby and Valiant has been known to break all the boards even breaking the electric fence when a mare in season is in that field so I had to get a bale in the paddock and move her as fast as possible.  Evan also needed a bale.  Before putting the tractor away I moved a few more bales back from where I had dumpped them last night trying to get Oksana free.  Rhoda sent a text that she and Sarah were on their way out with a gift. Rhoda bought a brand new purse for me. My old one was pretty shot so she transferred everything out of that one into the new one and then pitched my old. It was good to see Zion again, I really missed her smiles and giggles from being on vacation with her for that last week.

Rhoda, Sarah, Zion and I went over to great grandma's to see the new floor in her basement. Fedi and Tyler are almost done with that HUGE job from when mom's pipes broke that first week in January when it got down to -18.  Faith was over so she and great grandma Rhoda both got to play with Zion. Babies are just so much fun. 

I was pretty exhausted from yesterday and this morning's work so once I got home from mom's house laid down and took an hour long nap.  That nap was exactly what I needed.  Mark drove mom and me to church tonight. Tim Roecker had the service. Billy Graham died today and during the service Tim read a few of his quotes. It really wasn't about Billy, it was all about Jesus, His death on the cross to pay for my sin. It really was great to be in church.

Hard Work

I thought my day would go well but that is not what happened. We had warm weather this morning 66 degrees and lots of rain. I wasn't too worried about the horses since the weather was so warm and then the temperature started dropping fast. At 1:00 pm, Sangria and Oksana were standing out in the rain which meant both of their foals were also. Silly mares, they could have been in the shelter. Both of those mares and their fillies were brought into the stalls and grained. The weather report was really bad with the temps falling into the 20s with the rain continuing as sleet. I made the decision to lock them in the indoor arena for the night. A water tank was hauled in and the horses turned loose. I had to stay and watch the fillies, they were having a ball running around, bucking then dropping to roll. Both Sangria and Oksana also rolled, all 4 grinding the arena sand and dust into their wet bodies.
They were left for the afternoon.  A good hearty beef stew was made for supper. While that was cooking AC Central was turned on. I was listening to Rick Kaisner when Mark got home from work.  We ate a quick meal then he had to leave for a late estimate. At 7:30 pm I went back out to the barn to check on the horses in the indoor and to clean up any manure. Sangria and her filly were fine, it was Oksana and her filly who were not. Somehow they had gotten stuck between the back of the barn and the last row of hay bales. Oksana was all tangled up in this big roll of drainage pipe and could not move.  Her filly was behind her trying to nurse from behind and neither could back at all. They were stuck with the barn wall on their left, the hay bales on their right and the hundred feet of drainage pipe wound around all of their legs. The only way to get them out of this predicament was to first untangle the pipe from underneath the horses. Both of them stood quietly for this even as the pipe was hitting their bellies as I worked to pull it out, picking up each hoof. Once that was out, the tractor was started and I started moving bales, a LOT of bales . I finally got them out, cleaned up the barn and back to the house by 9:30 pm exhausted and filthy. 

Shaeya's Turn to SHINE

Israel got to go on the walk today. It was raining just before the walk but was barely drizzling during. He couldn't figure out why we were walking on the same drives without actually going somewhere. After the walk we got dressed warm and brought Sangria, Serenity, Oksana and Darla inside and put them in stalls. The rain was a cold rain, the horses seemed to be fine but with these two youngest foals I thought they should come in and dry off. Oksana and Sangria were thrilled as they get grain when they come inside.
Shaeya was in the indoor arena working with Evan. He was nervous at first with the sound of the heavy rain pounding on the metal barn roof but Shaeya soon reported he YAWNED and not just once. We have been working hard to get Evan to relax and today was a breakthrough.  Once Evan was put away Karin and Shaeya each rode 8 horses. Their bottoms were sore after that work out. When we walked in Karin was working with Jenis and just finishing up. It is so cool to see Jenis rear and hold it. The two pictures below are of the same rear.

Shaeya was warming up Ayanna for Karin and having a ball on this big mare that is such a big mover.

Israel was put to work cleaning manure out of the indoor.

He is a good helper for grandma Judy.  He had lots of fun today working.  Shaeya will be in the youth judging at the IL Horse Fair on March 3rd and will be riding Oksana in the walk, trot, canter class. So today we wanted to watch her canter but not just Oksana. We started her out with Jenis.

Israel needed to go down to the house for a restroom stop, as soon as we got back to the barn he was put to work cooling down Jenis after her work out.

 He likes that job!

I needed to go to the stall barn to take Sangria and Serenity out for a few pictures before putting them back in the paddock. Serenity was laying down and just stayed laying down while I brushed her. I asked her to get up to brush her legs and she stood quietly without being tied while I gave her a quick once over before taking her outside for a few pictures.

When I got back in the barn Karin had Israel doing another job, he was using the clapper to help desensitize the mares while Shaeya and Karin were riding.

 He loved that job too. 

The next mare Shaeya was asked to canter was Zalena.

 That went well but it wasn't until she got to ride Rosalie and asked her to canter when the BIG smile came out.

Shaeya even sat BIG Rosalie's BIG trot.

 Indy, Galena and Anna were worked while I was out of the arena so I didn't get any pictures of those 3 working. I brought Oksana in but left Darla in the stall. Darla will need to get use to being left in the stall while Oksana shows at the fair. Both Karin and I were well pleased at how Shaeya worked with Oksana. She was very responsive to Shaeya's aids, slipping into a canter with no hesitation when asked. 

It is Shaeya's turn to shine! Karin told her that she must be careful or her character will be ruined. She will be handling the big beautiful Friesian stallion Evan at the fair, riding Oksana in the show, then is the Christmas tree for the play. She is going to get so much attention that it is going to be hard not to get a big head! The SCHEDULE for the 2018 Illinois Horse Fair is now up. If interested in finding out when the Horsemeister play and  Shaeya &  Evan are on click HERE. 

When Shaeya was finished with Oksana, Darla was brought over from the stall barn to the arena and then out to the field with her mom so I could get a few pictures for the website. Darla is 5 months old and will be weaned as soon as we get home from the fair. She is such a friendly filly and very well behaved for her age. 

The day just seemed to fly by. This evening big thunderstorms came rolling through scaring Emma until she tried to climb under my desk.  We are having heavy rains tonight but at least it will stay warm not dropping much below 60 tonight and staying warm tomorrow. 

Dress Rehearsal

It was only 16 degrees outside when we awoke so Mark got the fire going to warm up the house. We had no working coffee maker and just made a cup of tea this morning. Thankfully we had church to look forward to, lots of great coffee there I just had to make it until lunch. David Obergfel had the morning service and Craig Stickling had the afternoon. Stephanie gave us Israel for afternoon service plus he got to come home with us to spend the night. Sarah arrived with Zion right after we got home from church and Israel was a good help holding Zion while we took off the coats.

Karin arrived at the barn to find the foal paddock had a leaking waterer. Mike was called and he came right over to fix it. Amy Koch arrived with her mini Mocha and her pony cart. We needed to introduce our mares to the mini. They all took her in stride except for Galena who was afraid of this strange looking horse. 

 The characters started arriving around 3:30 pm

 Play practice went well. It was suppose to be held in the outdoor arena as the temperature had reached 40 degrees but with the snow yesterday then the big thaw today the outdoor arena was pretty sloppy. They decided to hold it out in the field. If you would like to see the rest of the play practice pictures click HERE. Phil and Anna came over with Braelyn, Taegan and Kensley and the girls found the jewels from the Mardi Gras parade.

They had a ball playing with them. Gertie and Dennis came over also for the evening. We had a good visit while the grandchildren played with the new toys. A bit later David Kellenburger arrived with 10 boxes of candy for the Illinois Horse Fair. Karin wanted gummy worms to give out and gummy worms she got, lots and lots of them.
Mom made a big pork chop dinner for all the horse riders. Sarah and Nolan went over there for dinner and brought us back an entire meal. We had a long day with lots of company.

From Sunshine to Snow

What a difference 900 miles makes when traveling straight north. We left last night at 6:15 pm, right after the sun went down in warm sunny Gulf Shores, Alabama to start our long 14 hour drive back home. We were hoping to surprise the husbands by showing up 12 hours earlier than expected except Diane told mom and mom told Mark. Sarah had to call Nolan so he could meet us in Bartonville. The only husband surprised was Lee. We drove into his driveway at 7:30 am to drop off Rhoda to a very happily surprised husband at that house. It was also below freezing. We pulled in at the Hanna City farm at 8:30 am. Mark was out spreading clover so I made a quick breakfast, unpacked the suitcase, started a load of laundry then headed out to the barn. Shaeya and Sadie were working with Evan in the indoor. Karin helped me move a new bale in the last paddock for all the foals, Sangria and Oksana and another bale in the middle paddock while Shaeya and Sadie put Evan away and brought out Galena, Zalena, Jenis, Oksana, Anna and Indy. Below Shaeya and Sadie are warming up Oksana and Jenis while Karin rides Anna. As soon as Karin finished with Anna, they switched horses.

 I finished working outside, Mark finished spreading the clover just in time for lunch which was chicken noodle soup. I'm dragging today, tired from the trip and just plain cold. Mark got the wood burner going and I took a short nap on the couch while waiting for the room to warm up. Within an hour I awoke, looked out the window to see big fat fluffy snow flakes dancing in the air as they fell from the sky. These flakes were coming down so thick it covered the ground within minutes. It is a beautiful sight but one  so far removed from yesterday's warm temperatures, white sand, bright yellow sun, gorgeous blue sky and clear blue water that I can't help but believe we came back just a few days too soon.

The snow stopped after dropping just a couple inches, but this batch of snow is wet and heavy so Mark cleared off the patio and a walk way out to the garage before supper.
 We had a wonderful trip, enjoyed the sunshine and water but I'm glad to be home and really looking forward to crashing in my own bed tonight.

Walking To the Lagoon

We had kind of a strange morning. The sun came up and out bright, not a cloud in the sky. Even before we had breakfast cooked we had a thick fog roll in and cover the sun and even the Gulf. Thankfully after breakfast specifically 8:40 am the sun burned off all the fog and off we went for our walk, this time heading toward the lagoon. That is a bit more than 4.5 mile round trip. When we arrived we found pelican's feeding at the lagoon.

 Rhoda took my phone and snapped a picture of Diane and I. Amazing to think that Diane has had both her hips replaced and I've had just 1 hip replaced and yet we can walk the 5 miles to the pier yesterday and 4.5 miles to the lagoon today.

 The beach wasn't terribly crowded up by the beach houses.

 But the closer we got to the high rises the more crowded the beach became. We just kept marveling that here we are in February (usually the slow season) and the beach is crowded with many people swimming in the gulf waters.

We made it back to Diane's condo by 10:30 am, ran up to the condo and changed into our swimming suits. We could hardly wait to get into the pool to cool off. That pool does great at that job. Diane even dove in but as soon as she came up she came OUT.  Beth came over and we enjoyed the sunshine, visiting and lunch pool side.

We had another wonderful day.