by Cowgirl on April 9, 2011
“I’m so busy I don’t know whether I found a rope or lost my horse.” A co-worker read this quote aloud to me yesterday from a t-shirt catalog she was thumbing through. As I laughed aloud, I thought, “That pretty much sums up how I feel.” Spring hasn’t really even gotten into full swing, and I am feeling left behind and swamped by undone projects.
by Cowgirl on April 5, 2011
I have a friend here visiting from Australia for a couple of months, and we went horseback riding yesterday. It’s finally starting to warm up here in the midwest, and with warm breezes beckoning, we put on our riding boots and headed out to the farm.
by Cowgirl on March 31, 2011
My grandma was an avid horse lover. Maybe not as horse crazy as I am, because she had too much work to do to spend any time on horses. But I think that horses were always on her mind. I don’t know what kind of fool I’d be if it weren’t for my Grandma, but I sincerely doubt that I’d be the horse crazy fool that I am.
It’s been awhile since I’ve had the chance to just spend the day following my horse around. But today I was thinking back to when I was a kid, when I would be at the barn all day, not necessarily riding, but just spending time with the horses. There’s a lot to be said for getting solid hours of horse time.
by Cowgirl on March 19, 2011
Every body’s got a tale to tell, and if you’ve been as enthusiastic about outdoor activities as I have, chances are you have some scars as reminders of your experiences. I noticed a scar of mine the other day, which made me start thinking about how I got that scar, which made me wonder just how many scars do I have that are horse-related? I have to say, almost all of my scars have a horse story behind them.
by Cowgirl on March 10, 2011
One of the hardest things in the world is saying goodbye to a pet or animal that you love. I have lost several horses during my life, and each occurrence was something I felt I would never quit hurting over. So much of grief involves the frustration of being helpless to remedy the situation
Some of my latest musings have been on the attire related to the western horse person. I saw one of the local “cowboys” at the gas station today, he was driving a Ford Escort and stepped out to pump gas wearing a starched western shirt, cowboy hat, boots, spurs, and nasty-tight Wranglers.
by Cowgirl on February 2, 2011
I’m feeling a bit of cabin fever today. This is our second day of a blizzard here in the midwest, and it really puts a damper on my mood. I did venture outside once, to feed the horses and make sure their water was thawed.
by Cowgirl on January 24, 2011
I stepped outside this morning At nearly half past eight. The sun had not yet awakened, Though the morning hours were late. I stood upon the doorstep And wondered at the sight Of the million, trillion snowflakes That had fallen in the night. I shuffled to the horse barn, Snow almost blocked the trail. The […]
by Cowgirl on January 22, 2011
If you haven’t read the first part of this cowgirl story that I wrote last spring, you might want to, in order to gain a full appreciation of the story I am about to tell you. It involves Blacky Lawless, our black angus bull, who holds no respect for human, horse, or handgun. He is […]
by Cowgirl on January 17, 2011
These colder winter days make everything harder. My barn chores take twice as long; I have to dress up in heavy warm clothes that I hate, scarf, hat, gloves, and snow boots; the hay is harder to unwrap from the bale, the wind whips all the particles back into your face as you pitch it, the ice and snow make it difficult to carry grain to each paddock; and the water needs checked often to make sure it’s not frozen, etc….
by Cowgirl on January 5, 2011
My parents live in a valley in southeastern Idaho framed by two mountain ranges. The view out of the front window of their house is usually breathtaking, with snowcapped mountains even in the late spring and summer months. They raise alfalfa hay, beef cattle, mules, and Quarter Horses, and it’s always a real treat to get to spend some time on their ranch.
by Cowgirl on November 30, 2010
When I was a kid, we had a paint horse we called Peppy. He was a half brother to both Kokomo and Apache, but he had inherited much more of the Shetland attitude than the other two. He was a naughty pony.
by Cowgirl on November 25, 2010
The prettiest horse on my parent’s ranch in Idaho is a 2 year old buckskin AQHA filly named Docs Honeycomb. She is the 2008 baby out of their big bay mare, Steel Hickory, by their buckskin stallion Docs Cold Cash.
by Cowgirl on November 11, 2010
We recently took a trip to Idaho to visit my folks. We got to ride horses, go on a cattle drive, take a lot of horse pictures, and enjoy the Idaho scenery while there. They were having beautiful fall weather and we really enjoyed our stay.
by Cowgirl on October 18, 2010
It’s an exciting time for us horse people. One reason I love harvest time is that it opens up more miles for me to ride. Crops reign over all the land here, and every square inch that is tillable is used for farming, leaving only roads and waterways left un-plowed. So most of the year I stick to the dirt roads for my horseback riding.
by Cowgirl on October 15, 2010
There’s something to be said for watching horses graze. I’ve never been one to keep a pasture ornament in my backyard merely for the satisfaction of having one, because I love riding horses and working with them. But there is so much enjoyment to be gained from simply being around a horse.
by Cowgirl on October 13, 2010
I talked to my sister on the phone today. She was excited to share her big news with me: she bought a stud colt and two fillies at a production sale last weekend! We had a good hour of “horse talk” and she told me all about every horse they looked at.
by Cowgirl on October 6, 2010
Sunday afternoon I drove the pickup and trailer over to my brother’s place to pick up two horses. He and his wife are selling their acreage and wanting to move out-of-state, and they think for all practical purposes they should pass on being horse owners right now. So the horses are coming to our farm for further training and evaluation of their potentials and hopefully find their ways on to bigger and brighter things than being pasture ornaments.
by Cowgirl on October 2, 2010
Next time you are doing math in your head and grumbling while you figure up how much money the horse, tack, hay, vet trips, etc., etc…are costing you, head out to the barn and just watch your wife or kids riding and working with their horses. Or even better, if it’s not normally your habit, why don’t you go on a ride with them? You may unexpectedly discover that you can understand why this is so important to them.
