Today was amazing. Well, if you don’t count the fact that it’s the beginning of January and still a little cold for my taste. And if you don’t mention that today was my husband’s first time to get bucked off a horse. It was sunny with no wind, a Sunday afternoon, and he said we’re crazy if we don’t go for a horse ride today. So we did. Here’s how it went:
by Cowgirl on December 24, 2011
I absolutely love Christmas. It’s my favorite holiday, and all of the excitement and anticipation that comes with the shopping, giving, and receiving is what makes it fun. Growing up kind of makes that excitement fade, until you have kids of your own, and then you get it all back watching them exclaim over their gifts. If you’re like me, you just can’t quit thinking about what might be in that package under the tree with your name on it. I’m everlastingly curious but too principled to peek. So this time of year always gets me giddy with excitement!
Snow is coming! The kids are excited with the prospects of sipping hot cocoa, listening to Christmas music, and watching the heavens swirl their magical crystals into sparkling drifts over our front steps. I’m not looking forward to doing chores in subzero temperatures, no matter how pretty the snow is. When the water tanks freeze over and I can’t peel the layers of frost-covered hay off of my big round bales to feed my horses, winter isn’t fun anymore. If only we could enjoy the snow without it being so cold…..
It’s that time of year when people like to ponder the good things that have come their way. I see the trend of daily status updates on Facebook, where everyone is counting a blessing along with each day of November, and while it is inspiring to read their grateful comments, I haven’t joined in the fad yet. I have looked at the blank where I’m supposed to type my comment, and ten minutes later I’m still sitting there, overwhelmed with my thoughts….the blank just isn’t big enough. I have so much to be thankful for.
A horse buddy of mine asked the question on Facebook the other day, “What do you do about barn hands?” She wasn’t referring to people you hire to help out around a stable, but rather the calloused and dried out things on the ends of your arms. All of the horse people chimed in with their remedies for this problem, and it was easy to see that if you have horses in your life, your hands will tell the story. Mine are cracked, calloused, dry, and sometimes even dirty….it just comes with the territory of being around horses.
You might be surprised at how often I question my own common sense when it comes to owning horses. We have five now, and that puts both me and Cowboy Dad in a sort of panic to justify the expense and trouble that we go to in order to keep them. I think many of my readers believe that I live on a massive expanse of Western range, complete with howling coyotes and grazing cattle, where I train horses all day, bake my family a luscious dinner in my country kitchen, and ride off into the sunset with the love of my life. Well, I hate to ruin that impression, but to tell it a little more accurately….
Our weanling stud colt is just a handful. I had forgotten what it’s like having a horse this young, but he is certainly a lot of trouble. The main problem is that he has got too much energy and not enough experience. Watching him careen around the farm full-tilt is entertaining until you see him run into something. Owning this colt is like having a teenager who just got his own drivers license and is anxious to demonstrate his skills. It’s exciting, it’s entertaining, it’s often hilarious…..but it’s also scary.
by Cowgirl on October 13, 2011
I finally got a chance to test drive the new horse last night. We have been in the process of building new pens for our feeder calves through the summer, and all of the portable panels for my round pen were being used to complete the half-finished pen. So last weekend we finished up that project, which allowed me to set up my round pen and try riding the new buckskin mare for the first time. I was anxious to see if our craigslist purchase was a good find or a big mistake.
by Cowgirl on September 22, 2011
When we went to pick up the new horses last week, we took my mare Daisy along. Not as a travelling buddy, but because there was a horse sale going on in a town along the same route, and we decided to consign Daisy in it and just see what might happen. We have talked about selling her several times, and buying two more seemed a tad bit excessive, and the trailer was going that way anyhow, so we took her to the sale with a reserve price firmly established in our minds.
“Did you mean to leave this out here?” asked my husband, as I was pitching hay into the horse’s feeder. I looked up to see him holding what appeared to be a black mud crusted length of coiled rope. “What is it?” I asked. “The new halter.” Sure enough it was the brand new bright purple halter we had bought, and me being the forgetful person I am, I had evidently taken it off a horse and dropped it. Only now it was mud soaked and trompled in manure, sporting a new horrible color and the smell to match it. How do you clean a halter? I was certain it would never look new again.
by Cowgirl on September 13, 2011
News flash! We have new horses! We saw a classified ad, made a phone call, took a road trip in the rain, wrote a check, went back with the horse trailer, and look what we got: a sweet little buckskin mare and her four month old stud colt! This should come as no surprise if you know us well—we have been looking for a buckskin horse for about four years, and have skimmed through countless horse classifieds in search of the perfect one. And in true horse-collector’s fashion, we bought not one, but two!
by Cowgirl on August 23, 2011
When I was a kid, my sisters and I would go out at dusk and ride horses in the summertime. It was usually too hot during the day to enjoy riding, and though we often rode anyway because the ranch work required us to, the evening rides were always the fun ones. We would ride […]
by Cowgirl on July 30, 2011
When I was a kid, my favorite days were the long summer ones when we spent the day horseback. There was always something to do around the ranch…either moving cattle to a different pasture, checking the wells to make sure there was adequate water, or riding colts always prevented boredom from overtaking us. But I can think of some stories when we just had too much time on our hands.
by Cowgirl on July 11, 2011
It’s been a great July so far! I’ve been spending a lot of time in my garden lately. It’s the time of year when the young plants are trying to bear, and the weeds are often getting the better of things. This is when I usually lose control of it and give up, just wading through the weeds to pick vegetables here and there. But I’m trying to keep up with it this time around….hence, I haven’t had much time for my blogging.
by Cowgirl on June 29, 2011
I happened to find another really cool cowgirl website that I wanted to share with my readers. It was when I typed in “cowgirl” in the facebook search bar that Cowgirl Finesse popped up as one of the options. So out of curiosity, I clicked on the link and became a fan of their page. Cowgirl Finesse sells all kinds of western accessories—belts, purses, boots, tack, jewelry, and more!
by Cowgirl on June 18, 2011
In light of the Father’s Day weekend, I thought I’d share a couple of stories about the father of my kids, affectionately referred to on this blog as Cowboy Dad. While my husband would never claim to be a cowboy, I call him that because I think he has some old fashioned characteristics that remind me of an old west hero. Knowing him, he will cringe as he reads this, because if Cowboy Dad has a fault, it would be that he denies the credibility of all compliments. But he is the best person I know.
by Cowgirl on June 11, 2011
We scheduled our trip west this spring so that we would time it right to go along on the big cattle drive up Pass Creek to summer grazing in the mountains. This morning began as every morning does on my parents’ ranch: (my husband would interject, “Slowly!” here—ha ha!) with a big breakfast, a Bible devotional, and some long drawn out discussion about which person is to ride which horse, and what other horses might be taken along in the trailer for substitute mounts, and what horses have been shod and which haven’t
by Cowgirl on May 31, 2011
I’m thrilled to be starting another year with lots of fresh ideas, helpful horse advice, and some really great horse stories. My excitement stems partially from our just getting back from a good visit to Idaho where my parents live. We had the opportunity to help them move their cattle up to summer pasture in the mountains, and it is an all-day cattle drive, so I have seventeen miles of beautiful photos to share with you, not to mention a bunch of good stories. I love visiting my family out there—the scenery is always beautiful, the air is so fresh and clear, the horses are inspiring, and it just feels good to be around the folks who know me best.
by Cowgirl on April 21, 2011
Here in the midwest things are changing. It’s unbelievable what a week’s worth of rain can do for the dried up roots of winter….everything in Iowa is magically green! Our horses are anxiously awaiting turnout, greeting me with whinnies whenever I appear. I love watching them canter out to graze, usually bucking or tossing their […]
by Cowgirl on April 19, 2011
Spring is right up there on my list of favorite things. There’s nothing more refreshing than new flowers, baby calves, twittering robins, and the earthy smell of overturned dirt. It always gives me a sense of excitement and anticipation of the even better season of summer that’s coming. Spring brings so many reminders of the good things in life.
