A Little Help From My Mom

My surprise visitor was...... my momma! You might remember her blog Copper Pony's Cowgirl......she quit blogging a few years ago.

She had a pretty little copper gelding named Dusty that she had to re-home.

I love this photo. Dusty was such a handsome boy!  And my mom looks so pretty here, too!

 I can only imagine that having to re-home your first horse must be so hard, even when you know it's the right thing to do for the horse. Dusty had a dropped hip and some soreness issues that caused him to have behavioral issues on the trail from time to time. He really needed to be retired as a pasture pony and couldn't do the trail riding that my mom likes to do. He is happy living as a pasture pony on a farm now. We was such a character and we all still think about him and miss him a lot. My mom also went through some other big changes in her life the past 3 years, but that is her story to tell.

However, mom has a new horse that she has started working with. Guess what? He has spots! And he's a BIG boy at 16 hands. His name is Forest. He's had professional training but needs a refresher. My mom says he has a lot of personality and she is enjoying getting to know him. I can't wait to meet him this summer when she brings him to the ranch!

My mom only stayed with me one night but she was a tremendous help! She really knows how to buckle down and get stuff done when you need her to. Ranch Boy remodeled my out-dated bathroom into a bathroom/walk-in closet. Basically, he took out the big tub (which I didn't use anyway as we have another one- it was just storage and filled with STUFF. Like suitcases, a show saddle pad, clothes, a chandelier, and My Boy's winter horse blanket....) Once emptied of the tub, that space became the closet. I got new flooring (goodbye carpeted bathroom) new paint on the walls, a new sink, new fixtures......it's almost done and it's SO nice! While this has been happening my clothes and toiletries have been spread out across multiple rooms in the house. A bit of a challenge for a prego gal!

The other grand thing about this is that the baby's closet is now full of HIS things- not my clothes! Yes, I am a bit of a clothes hoarder. But hey, I lived in the city and had a job for eleven years where I had to dress up a little. Even though my ranch attire is mostly jeans, boots, and tees, it's still hard to let go of some of those other items. I have been nesting and cleaning and purging out a lot since baby has been on the way, however. If you really saw how many bags have left our house to be donated, you'd be proud of me.

I will get some photos of the projects in the next week and try to get them posted.

I hope you all had a fabulous Easter Sunday!!

Ranch Girl

Shaggamuffins and Spring Green

A few days ago we had almost 5 inches of snow. It was crazy!! I had put away the trough heater and had to dig it back out and hook it up again because I could hardly break the ice with a metal stake the other morning.

Today, however, it was very spring like! Even though I am 4 weeks from my due date, I couldn't resist haltering up Luna (in the pasture) and grooming some of that winter hair off of her! She loves to be brushed and just stands there on the lead line, sometimes poking around in the groom tote. She is like My Boy that way- she's very patient and a "stander." I am so spoiled, I do not have horses that fuss around much while being groomed or tied.  (Luna does fuss a bit for the farrier as I mentioned in my last post, but that is another issue.)

Afterward grooming, I decided to let the ponies out to nibble on the beginnings of spring green in My Boy's old pasture.

{Even though there was hardly anything to nibble, I think my horses made some other ponies very jealous!}

That pasture needs to be harrowed, then I hope to grow it up and use it as a grazing pasture for them for a couple hours a day.

I think horses look awful this time of year! The transition to spring is almost worse than their winter coats. I looked back at photos of my horses last summer and thought wow, they are so pretty! They clean up nice- whew, you kinda forget that after looking at the fuzzballs all winter!

Luna is going through her roan chameleon stage....she changes every day. She'll finally really lighten up by the beginning of summer. Next time I groom her I need to take a tape measure out and see how tall she is! Now that the weather is getting better, I am excited to think about my horses again. However, with a new baby on the way, I going to be realistic about how much time I will spend until I am well under way being a mama. At least I am lucky enough to have my Ranch Boy around (he's a work at home family business kind of guy!) to be my babysitter so I can get some pony time!

I have a special visitor coming tomorrow! I will fill you in at the end of the week. I hope to get a few more posts off before Junior Ranch Boy is born!  Wish me luck (in both of those tasks......)

Ranch Girl

Trimming Day

My horses had their time with the farrier yesterday afternoon. I'd already had to reschedule once due to rain. Even though it was snowing in the morning when I fed, it stopped soon after, quickly melted, the sun came out, the wind picked up, and the ground was dry- including my ponies and their hooves!

Luna actually wasn't that bad for the farrier, considering I've done hardly any work with leg and hoof handling this winter (excuse: snow-ice-pregnancy.) Ranch Boy helped hold her since I didn't want to fuss with her when she hops around on 3 legs or tries pulling her leg from the farrier (both of which she did her fair share of.) She wasn't any worse that she's been for any other appointment. She'll get better- she's only just 3 and started out wild!

{Luna is losing a ton of hair and starting to turn into a "roany pony" again!}


However, the farrier said she was actually better than a 2 year old off the feedlot that he did last week. That one bit him, kicked him twice, and actually just threw herself on the ground. He only got her fronts done. Luna doesn't do anything intentionally mean, she just gets anxious and tired of standing on 3 legs and sees what she can get away with. My farrier is very patient with her and really tries to give her her leg for rests when she is being good, and hangs on for dear life when she pulls so that she doesn't learn she can get away with it!

She has great hooves, however. She was overdue for a trim but her hooves had held their shape. The farrier said she has a nice thick hoof wall. While My Boy hadn't quite shed his frog and had a slight case of the beginnings of mild thrush, Luna's hooves looked great all around.

{My Boy thinks farrier visits are exhausting! He was a perfect boy, as always!}

It feels nice to have this done! Now I don't have to worry about it until after Jr. Ranch Boy is born and I'm recovered from that. Next time I'll have shoes put on My Boy so we can get ready for spring riding. I'm going to try to keep Luna barefoot.

Until next time......

Ranch Girl

Productive Day

My Ranch Boy was most helpful today! He loaded and unloaded 29 bales of hay for me (about a ton and a half.) We were able to find it from someone who had a little leftover. This time of year people either have made it through winter and have extra to get them to the first spring cutting, or are running out and trying to find it! I was able to get this orchard grass for $170 a ton. That beat getting timothy in town for $17 a BALE! Now I should have enough to get me beyond the birth of Ranch Boy Jr. so that is a relief.

The other morning it was kind of nice outside. I'd looked out the window and noticed Luna taking a break from her morning hay. I decided to go halter her, check her out, and groom her. I admit I haven't done this in months. Between being pregnant and dealing with poor footing conditions (snow and ice) everything has finally melted off and was starting to dry, before a little wet snow Wednesday morning.

Awful I-Phone self-portrait of me!

Luna was so good for me, I was very proud of my yearling. She even let me spray detangler in her mane and use scissors to snip off some of her long wild pony fetlock feathers. I led her around the pasture (just putting the leadrope over the nose of the halter for some extra "umph" should she get silly) and we practiced backing, turning on the forehand, and yielding the hindquarters. I will do this again a few more times before the farrier comes out next week because I know she'll be a bit of a challenge for him. I can't wait to get her going again this summer after Ranch Boy Jr. is born!

Here is my silly pony a few hours later after I tossed her ball in for her- and, after she'd ROLLED her newly groomed self around in a bunch of mud and horse poo! Stinker! (Notice cleaned and trimmed fetlocks. Not as good as with clippers, but as good as this preggo gal could squat down and do!)

We have a lot of deer around the place and noticed these three hanging out near the meadow and I snapped their photo before they ran up the hill. I think they were enjoying a nibble on the green grass that is beginning to sprout. It is so great to see finally see some green!

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Ranch Girl

So Many Changes Around the Corner!

It's been so long since I posted! I have been SO busy! I will post a bunch of photos which will hopefully catch you up on the going-ons!

We've had a crazy spring of weather! Rain, snow, wet, mud, wind......this particular morning my ponies couldn't finish their breakfast, they were too obsessed with watching a small herd of elk in a nearby pasture.

 

A particularly cold, wet, snowy morning. This is the eager "thank goodness she's coming to feed us!" look.

I had some visitors in town last week....my aunts Desert Rose and A Cowgirl's Grace. They, along with my mother, helped me paint and work on the baby's nursery! My aunt commented here that Luna is as big as My Boy!

A few of the cowpoke touches in the nursery I thought you might enjoy seeing....

 Daddy's cowboy hat.

Handmade chalkboards by Ranch Boy....

Gotta have a Woody doll....a John Deere, and chrocheted cowboy boots!

I hope your March is off to a great start! I am only working part time now starting this week, so hopefully I will have more time to post.

Ranch Girl