Patience is a virtue.

One that I greatly struggle to obtain.  So to update you on my "in limbo" post.  The very basics are that an opportunity has presented itself within my husbands company.  One that if it works out will require us to move.  Most likely to a new state.  The good part is that the move would bring us closer to family.  That would be a huge blessing in our lives.  Now I am going to go all nostalgic on you so you may want to stop reading about now.

6 years ago this month actually is when we moved into this house.  We moved from northern Indiana.  We lived within 20 minutes of almost my entire family.  We had a babysitters, family get togethers and a great support system.  My husbands job brought us about 3 1/2 hours south east.  It could have been much worse.  At least we were in easy driving distance but still far enough away to make visits quite far apart.  Especially once we started accumulating animals.  It makes it very hard to just pick up and go when you have all of these animal babies to care for.  We were excited about the prospect of moving to a new place and starting a new life in a new place.  That ideal quickly came to an end after just a short time here.  We kind of realized how good we had it.  We had no one in our new town.  We had never even visited here before we made the move.  It took a LOOOONG time to build a new support system of friends.  I mean it took years.  It was very hard on us as a young married couple having a baby about every year and a half.  In a new place with a bunch of babies and no help.  We spent about the first two years trying to move back.  Then we got through  the toughest part and really started to stand on our own two feet. 

A few years into it we started growing roots so to speak and grow where we were planted.  We grew physically as a family, we also grew emotionally as a family.  There is something about not having anyone else to depend on that makes you either split or depend on each other.  Thank God we chose the later.  We started making our life what we wanted it to be.  Growing our little hobby farm and living our dream.  We are truely content and happy with where our life is.

Then this prospect has presented itself and we really had to figure out what was best for us.  We are a family unit and that is what is the most important thing to us now.  Honestly the idea of living closer to family and friends kind of scared me at first.  When I lived there before I was a different person and I need to remember that.  It was only 6 years ago but the changes that have taken place in the last 6 years in me, my relationship with my husband and our family are amazing.  They have been wonderful changes.  I do feel it will be a great thing.  As long as we can continue to stay close the way we are now and grow together we will be just fine.  No matter where we live or who we live near it will all be okay.

We should know more details by the middle of next week.  I will keep you updated as I know the details. 

Disapointment.

Today was opening day for our pumpkin patch.  Sad to say it was a flop, ahhhh, deep breath.  It is hard, it is hard to put forth an effort, put your heart out there trying to fullfill  a little dream and fail.  I cannot look at it as a complete failure.  I still have 4 weekends left to make a go of it but it is not a good start.  It was an awful day as far as weather.  It has rained here 2 times in the last 3 months and today of all the days it rained.  The high was 60 and the drizzle that started in the morning has not completely come to an end yet. I have to look past this and just move on otherwise I will drive myself crazy.  It is heartbreaking. 

No one showed.  Well I shouldn't say no one I had two friends that came by to show some support and help.  This makes my heart happy and I am grateful for these friends.  Literally rain or shine they were there for me and that means the world to me.  But no other customers showed up.  We were all set up and ready to go in the morning but we gave in and came in once the rain really started to come down. 

It is what it is and there is nothing I can do.  It does not help that I could be at the world equestrian games right now and I had to torcher myself by looking at the weather in Lexinton and it is beautiful.  God knows and I just have to remember that and not get too consumed with disappointment.  He is in control.

In limbo.

The Pumpkin Patch is moving ahead dispite whining on my part.  The bad part is that no one really has a whole lot of sympathy for you when you got yourself into the predicament in the first place.  Most things are in place and other than it being kind of cold this weekend I am looking forward to seeing how it goes. 

There are ALOT of other things occupying my thoughts and emotions right now and I am in disbelief that this has all come at the same time. I am a bit at my wits end with it all and am ready to, well, be out of limbo.  I cannot share right now what is going on but by the end of this week I should be able to.  Though God has been known to test my patience a bit in situations like this so it could be longer.  It could be very exciting and scary at the same time.  Or it could turn out to be nothing and all of this worrying  is needless energy lost.  That is the thing about limbo you don't even know how to feel.  That is where I am and that is what is consuming my thoughts.

I should update on all of the animals but there is not a whole lot.  Which is good when it comes to animals.  They are all healthy and happy.  I did get a duck yesterday to add to our petting zoo for the Pumpkin Patch.  I am sure the animals with have to do some adjusting with a bunch of kids coming in and invading but I know they will do fine.  Especially since we got a nifty candy machine to dispense food for the children to feed the animals. That will make the adjustment much easier.  They love grain.

Thats it, so I will update you soon and let you in on all of the craziness that is going on as soon as I get the details.  Pray the details comes soon!

Pumpkin Patch

Those followers that are horsey people please check out my other blog dedicated to my OTTB.

You see this sign?  Isn't it cute?  Decorated nicely and well done, right?  Yes, I thought you would agree.  I like the sign but the one thing I am having a hard time figuring out is WHY IS IT IN MY FRONT YARD????  It is not in my yard because I had too much time on my hands and thought, hey, I should start a business.  No that would not or could not be true.  It is not in my front yard because, well I am a business type woman and really belong starting a business.  Nope thats not it.  Hmmmmm, think, think, think, oh yeah I think I got it......

One nice fall day about 2 years ago I was mowing the grass.   Two years ago mowing the grass was heaven.  I had a 1 year old, 2 year old and 4 year old and I couldn't hear anyone cry with the mower running, ahhh peace and quiet.  Opps did I just say that out loud?  I would never ignore my crying babies, no, not me.  Anyways, that is neither here nor there.  Beautiful fall day, me, peace and quiet, and thoughts actual thoughts were going through my brain.  "Wouldn't it be so cool to have a pumpkin patch?" (this is me talking to myself, just incase you were wondering) . "It would be so fun!  Someday the kids could help out and it would be a little family business!  That is such a great idea!  I mean we have the land.  Even the animals.  What fun!  I want to do that."  Can you hear the excitement in my voice?

Well that is the begining of the end.  If I get something in my head, no matter how hair brained it might be, I have a habit of following through and making it happen.  There are some that may consider this a good thing.  For my poor poor husband he would have to disagree with those people, strongly disagree, I might add.

So that is it, that is why that sign is sitting in my front yard.  That is why my stress level is through the roof, my to do list has reached and all time record length and well my home, my childrens schooling and many other things have been placed on the back burner.  I am going with the explination that my children seeing first hand either how to or how not to start a family business is more education than the public school could ever offer.  An entrepenurial education.  Yeah that one sounds good, right??

Come, come to our pumpkin patch, take a pony ride and pet the goats, swing on the tire swing, pick out a pumpkin and take a hay ride back to the corn maze, wander the corn a maze, eat a caramel apple or a personal pumpkin pie or both.  Make some memories with your family.

Please otherwise it will be a lesson in what not to do :)

Changes here and new blog.

If you haven't noticed that horse related stuff seems to be taking over this blog then you probably haven't been reading.  This blog was meant to document my life as a wife, mother and farmgirl and it is taking a different direction.  So I want to separate these two subjects and I will hopefully be able to better balance the posts in each.  So here you will still be able to read the general goings on here around the farm.  From the kitchen, garden, barn, school room and where ever life takes us.

My other blog  Slow and Steady wins the race  will be dedicated to the training/retraining of me and my OTTB Steady Smiler to be eventers.

Thanks all for reading.  You make doing this so much more fun!

Rodeo?

What is the deal?  I was already having a not so good day.  I go out to take a ride because it is my therapy on days like this.  I always finish on cloud nine.  Well NOT today, Steady had other plans in mind.  I rode a horse today.  He was in my pasture and looked like my horse.  He was a pretty reddish brown with a star on his head and a funny little non-commited snippet on his nose. 

 I could have sworn he was my horse.  So I tacked up and he was as quite as a lamb.  His head was low as I brushed him and was practically taking a nap by the time I was ready to head to the arena.  The first sign was when he refused to walk out to the arena.  He sometimes stops but after a second moves forward, not today.  Kelcie comes up to me and says "Mama are you gonna wide(ride in Kelcinese)"  "Yes sweetie I am", "Are you gonna wun(run)", "no, I am not gonna run".  "Can I wide with you?", "ok but just for a little bit".  So I pulled her up and we walked around, no problem.  Then it was time to start working, he has had 3 days off sans the chiro.  After about 10 minutes the pony ride ride time was over so I plopped Kelcie to the ground. 

That is when it all started going down hill and I think Steady's evil twin appeared.  He was HOT to say the least.  Any leg pressure was sending him into a canter.  I am talking about leg pressure to get him to bend.  Something we have done a thousand times and whooops canter.  I could barely hold him back.  And if you have never ridden a racehorse I will tell you now that is not a good feeling.  You know the power behind that bit and it is not a force to be taken lightly.  And it is not like he has been off of the track all that long.  It has only been 9 months since his last race.  I hate pulling and pulling on his mouth.  I hate it, but what are your options when the boy won't take the hint to slooooow down.  So we troted and trotted and trotted.  It soon became appearant that this energy was not quickly dying.  Though he did become a LITTLE more under control. 

We cantered to the right with little problem.  He was high strung but controlable.  Then to the left, not so much.  He started in and then started drifting way out to the side, cantering sideways.  I used some outside leg to try to get him to turn and move forward and....then.....wait...for.....it..........the....RODEO began!!!  Ahhhh you butt head what are you thinking.  This horse has not once ever bucked on me.  That is why I am thinking that someone switched out my sweet fun to ride liver chestnut.  This was the closest I have come to falling off in well at least 15 years.  I wasn't really that close.  My feet didn't even make it out of the stirrups and I was thrown off balance some but relatively kept it together.  Pulled him to a stop then headed straight to the barn.  He was very happy to see that he got what he wanted.  Little did he know that the only reason we were headed that way was to get the dreaded lunge line.  Back to the arena we went and I put him to work.  I wasn't going to stop until I was confident he was prepared to listen.  Let me tell you he can handle ALOT of work and it not even phase the boy.  So not willing to let my children go without dinner I knew he was gonna outlast me with that energy of his. 

I decided to get back on and make sure he knew that behavior was not going to be rewarded by getting off easy.  We trotted a bit then picked up the canter.  It was a little to the side but not nearly as bad.  Around again and again after about the 5th time he went around nicely and we were done.  Even as I was trying to cool him out he was just speed walking.  What is wrong with my boy.

Well I think it probably has something to do with 3 days off.  We will have a talk with the chiro about 3 full days off.  But I think I know the true culprit to the sudden surge of energy.  I recently upped his feed to 15lbs a day of equine senior.  And no I didn't up it all at once it has been gradual for the past few months.  It is supposed to be a cool energy feed but still I think 15lbs a day of any feed could get to you.  I just don't know what to do.  He is finally starting to put on a little weight for the first time since I owned him.  I am sick of seeing him skinny.  I don't want him to be fat, just healthy and healthy looking.  So I up his feed to fatten him up and at the same time make him loco.  Do I really have to choose: skinny or loco???

Horse crazed

I am fully preoccupied with my horses.  I just can't seem to help it.  I am going about my regular tasks all the while thinking about, next time I get to ride, I wonder if Steady needs his feet done, I really should work with Lily, maybe me and Elaina can ride later...and it goes on and on.

So my blog then is seeming to be dominantly occupied by horsey posts. 

I have mildly decided that since I posted an add on craigslist trying to sell Lily hasn't gotten any responses, that I am going to turn her into a little eventing pony.  She will be great with the dressage end of it.  I will have to see, though, if she is capable of the cross country/jumping end of it.  I have started with lunging.  I will be doing ALOT of lunging for a long time and that is how we will start.  When I deem her ready I will try lunging her with Elaina on her back.  I don't know how soon that will happen though.  We will just see how it goes.

Now on to Steady, he is just a dream.  I am happy, excited, thrilled, elated to announce I believe he is FINALLY starting to put on some weight!!  At least I think he is.  It is something kind of hard to gauge because you never see a huge jump over night.  It is slooooooow and so you can't always see a difference, but he is looking a little less ribby. 
I am loving how soft he is in he mouth.  He is really moving into the bit and now we are working on bending to the right (common issue with OTTB's.  They only run to the left at the track) and trying to even him out with his balance.  He is just a dream to ride.

I took a friend riding yesterday evening.  It was her first time on a horse.  She rode Moonlight and he was a good boy for her.  He has a tendacy to be a bit stubborn, especially if he knows you don't have the control.  But it was over all a good experience for a first ride.

Now horses is by far not all I am up to but horses are the therapy to get me through some of the other stuff.

School is in full force.  We have to take the time everyday to get our lessons done.  Not always an easy thing to do.

I am opening up our property in October and starting a pumpkin patch.  So I am overwhelmed with trying to get everything in order for that.  But that is an entirely different post.

That is it for now.  Sorry for being so choppy in my thoughts but this is how I end the days.  Mind racing, heart full and thoughts jumbled.  It all means...it...is...time...for....beeeeeeeeeed....zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz