February Gymkhana

We had a show last Saturday and it went well. Lorna succeeded in beating her brother in all but 1 event. This has given him the impetus to practice more in hopes of beating her in April.




Lorna is really bummed that she will be missing the March show while her brother will get to ride. Her and I will be in Bakersfield at the regional contest for Sweet Adeline's. Personally I'm hoping the gymkhana show gets rained out so that she won't miss anything :) She is very happy that she has 5 halters pre-ordered for next month though. Paul will deliver them at the show and collect the money and any more orders before our club's big 2 day show. Lorna will be busy braiding halters, reins, hobbles, saddle crosses, and neck collars in preparation for selling at that show.

Other than that we've been exceedingly busy. I've been sewing, the kids have been catching up on school, and Paul has been busy with work. We have plans to go away for a weekend at the end of April when my mom is visiting. Our plans have morphed from a romantic getaway to a little coastal town to a visit to Las Vegas. The rooms at the little town would have cost us more than the entire weekend in Vegas. Since we are night people it also makes more sense to go somewhere that has stuff to do at night. I'm really looking forward to getting away no matter where it is!

Update

It's been a busy week.

The costume project seems never ending, every time I think I'm finished something else comes up. I had to make an extra top for someone who gained a good amount of weight since I measured and now I have to make another one for a member who hasn't been attending rehearsal. She won't be going to contest with the chorus but she will need a costume for other performances. If I do this again I will be more careful about stipulating things before I start.

Here is a couple of the tops (corsets).





Hopefully I can remember to take the camera to rehearsal on Thursday so I can post pictures of all the pieces together.

This last weekend was the annual Whiskey Flat Days festival that attracts 50,000+ people to our valley. We had absolutely beautiful weather so we ended up attending 3 full days. Saturday the kids rode in the parade and Sunday Malachi dressed Jasper up and won first place for the theme in the pet parade.



A little over a week ago Lorna's gymkhana horse tried to kill herself. She sliced open her neck. We have no idea what she hurt herself on but if the wound had been any further in either direction she wouldn't be with us anymore. We can take the stithes out on Friday just in time for the next gymkhana.



About a month ago Lorna took some of her Christmas money and purchased a tack braiding kit off of Craigslist. She's spent the last few weeks perfecting her braiding skills and finally finished a couple of pieces. I showed one of her halters to a couple of people in our gymkhana club and she already has a few orders. She will be spending the next few months braiding in preparation for the large 2 day show our club is holding in April. We are hoping she sells most of what she makes so we can buy more supplies and she can actually start recouping some of the start-up costs. This mixed with the jewelry designing she and I do together and the sewing I do will be the focus of the booth we plan on hosting at the various craft shows around our valley. Walking around and looking at all the items available this past weekend further strengthened our resolve to start selling more in person. It will be a great way for Lorna to earn a bit more money and to get us more exposure in the local community. Some things just sell better in person where the customer can handle the items and see the quality for themselves.

I just got a call that my serger is finally fixed. Is it a bad sign that they couldn't give me a total yet? I'm just hoping the cost comes in under the quote since it sounds like they didn't have to replace the board. I'll be glad to get my own machine back, the loaner seemed like it was really cheaply made and I miss all the bells and whistles my machine has!

Brocoflower revisited

We finally got around to eating the weird looking veggie last Saturday. I really liked it. It had the consistency of cauliflower but a mild broccoli taste. The rest of the family didn't care for it, too much like cauliflower for their taste. I ended up broiling it with a mix of other veggies so we didn't do anything fancy with it. Broiling is my favorite way to cook most veggies. I can mix a bunch of different types with a little olive oil and garlic and then throw them in the oven until they are done. You get to actually taste the veggies and it's easy.

We received brussel sprouts about 2 weeks ago and at first everyone complained. Neither one of the kids had ever tasted one but they had heard all kinds of horrible things about them. I stir-fried them with some onion and garlic and added a little soy sauce when they were finished. Paul and Lorna fought over the leftovers they liked them so much. We have just enough for one more dinner and they keep asking when we can have them again!

Bad News

My serger is dead :(

After talking with the repair place yesterday I expected Paul to be bringing home my machine today. Instead I was told that the machine has either a burned out motor or board or both. Estimates to repair it are high, not as high as buying a new one but still way more than I wanted to spend. The repairman thinks it's a manufacturer's defect. I don't have the receipt anymore since it's out of warranty but we contacted the place I purchased it from to see if they have any paperwork. Even if they do, there is no guarantee that the repairs will be covered.

I was just praising my machine to someone a few weeks ago. Knowing this isn't something I did makes me rethink whether this is such a great machine. The repair shop has sent home a loaner while they work on fixing my machine. Supposedly I'm going to love the loaner, but when I looked it up online I was not impressed with the machine's functions. At least I'll have something to work with while I wait. I have a whole bunch of stuff I need to get finished this weekend so I'm really happy they offered the loaner.

Hurray!

I finished our taxes last night and e-filed them! If we didn't have a huge refund coming there is no way I would have started them the day we got our last tax document (Monday). Now we just have to wait a little over a week for the Federal refund. I already have most of it spent, refilling emergency funds and paying some bills. Unlike last year there is no way I can pay all of the bills off but I can get a huge chunk taken care of. Those darn medical bills from my fall last July just keep getting in the way.

I'm still waiting to hear about my serger but most of my work for the chorus is finished. We've started cleaning the house but got sidetracked by an emergency fix to the horse pen. Two of the horses got bored one night and ate one of the the wood posts that was holding up their shelter. By the time they were done it was the thickness of a pencil in one spot so we had to disassemble it. We bought metal posts this time but with Paul working so late, the kids and I are having to put it up ourselves. Hopefully we will get the rest of it up today. I need another 6 hours in the day to get everything finished that I need to get accomplished!

Weird Veggie

Every once in awhile we get a really weird vegetable in our organic veggie delivery. This weekend it was a broccoflower. I had to post pictures because it looks so weird!

January Gymkhana and stuff

I can't believe it's been almost a month since I last posted!

I'll start with the gymkhana show for this month.

Lorna picked up her new gymkhana horse a few days before the date of the December show but we were rained out. That gave her over a month to work with Sequoia before the next gymkhana. All that worked showed at this month's show. I haven't seen smiles this big since before her pinto mare died last year.



Lorna and Sequoia are still getting used to each other but they did very well in their first show. The rode some A times and even a AA time. Once Lorna keeps her from ducking into the obstacles they are going to be very fast together.



Malachi and Amigo are still doing great together. At this point Malachi needs to focus on keeping his riding clean as he goes faster. He has a bit more incentive now that Lorna and Sequoia are riding so well. They actually beat Malachi and Amigo in 2 events :)



At the beginning of December I took on a project making costumes for our Sweet Adeline's chorus. What should have taken me 3 weeks has taken 2 months. It's one of those projects where whatever could go wrong has gone wrong. The problems culminated in my serger breaking over the weekend, right before I finished the last 2 pieces. I'm so sick of these costumes right now. With the exception of these last 2 pieces, one of which is mine so it's really not the end of the world, I will have the main costumes done today. I still have head scarves left to do but I figure those can wait. The costumes turned out fantastic though, especially considering I made up the patterns to fit our needs.

Since all of my time has been taken up with sewing, the house is an absolute disaster. I kept expecting to finish this project so I put off all the cleaning. The rain and snow of last week haven't helped the house at all with the mud everyone has been tracking in and I'm really behind on laundry. At least I can't complain that I'm bored :)

Christmas Day

We took the kids to the lake yesterday to ride. It was a beautiful day and the area we went to was mostly empty. We've lived in the valley for almost 4 years and this was the first time we've gone down to the lake shore.



Studly didn't care too much for the water.



Amigo loved it and spent lots of time playing in it. This is my favorite picture of the day. I love the reflection of Malachi and Amigo in the lake!

Wild Mustang Video

I don't know how many of you know about the controversial stuff going on with the BLM and the roundups of mustangs. In short, the man in charge of the BLM has been doing a huge number of roundups in the last year or so. At the rate he's going there aren't going to be any free roaming bands left. The lands that supposedly can't support the mustangs are then being given to private cattle ranchers with grazing permits. Private groups are fighting this man with letter writing campaigns and lawsuits. Even when favorable rulings are given to delay the roundups, the BLM has gone ahead with their plans. Here is an entertaining video that one person put together about what's been going on.

Hottie

We lost another horse this morning. As I was going through my pictures I realized I didn't have any recent ones of her. The last one I took was in early May and she had grown so much since then. It didn't seem important to snap pictures as Malachi rode her or as the kids ponied her with the other horses because she was young and I figured I'd have many years of picture opportunities.



I should have taken a picture of her when I went to the vet to say goodbye yesterday but I forgot my camera and was too upset. I was focused on getting those last few nuzzles and kisses that she offered. Hottie was our foster horse but I intended to pay for her early next year so that she would be officially ours. We picked her up right after Ginger, Lorna's paint horse, died earlier this year. She would have been 4 years old next month, she was way too young to die. She coliced late Thursday night but we thought we got her through it. Friday morning we saw she was distressed again so we took her to the vet. The news was a lot worse than we expected. The vet tried medicines and fluids but nothing could get through the impaction in her bowels. The vet did a necropsy this morning after putting her down and found that even if she would have made it through it probably would have happened again due to internal problems. It's been hardest for me because Hottie was supposed to be my horse. She would follow me around the pen when I went out to brush her or feed treats. She would come running as soon as she heard my voice hoping for a scratch or a carrot. She was really sweet and I'll miss her terribly.

Snow

We got about 7 inches of snow on Monday.

For those of you in the Midwest that's not such a big deal but for our area that's huge. Paul left Monday late morning for work only to turn around and come home because the snow was piling up. By the time he got back up here we had 7 inches on the ground and he got his little car stuck right around the corner from our house. We took the truck and pulled out the car, barely. The truck's tires were spinning and it was fishtailing as we tried to get the car unstuck. I refused to drive the car around the corner so Paul put the truck in the driveway and then walked back for the car. He almost didn't make it home because the car got stuck again. There was nowhere to pull the car off of the one lane road so we couldn't safely leave it. He stayed home yesterday because the roads didn't start clearing until late. He almost didn't make it out of the driveway this morning because the roads are so icy.

The temps were in the teens this morning and my washer has been frozen since Monday. We were supposed to pick up Lorna's new horse yesterday but that has been postponed until Friday. As of right now we are supposed to have a gymkhana show this Saturday but there is rain in the forecast for the next 3 days so that may not happen. The snow is beautiful though and we very desperately need the precipitation.

Thanksgiving Traditions

It's the time of the year I almost dread, the holiday season.

Most activities stop because everyone is soooo busy. I'm really not sure what they are busy doing because this is one of the slowest times of the year for our family. Very little happens :(

With that said I'm seeing all kinds of posts on other blogs about turkeys, casseroles, and pies. Hmmm. No turkey here. No pies, no ham, no casseroles, no big dinners. That's right, we have ruined our children's hopes of ever being normal by not cooking them a big Thanksgiving dinner. I think we went to a big family dinner once when Lorna was a baby but maybe not.

We will spend the day munching on various appetizer type things and just relax. Maybe I'll even be able to convince the rest of the family to help me clean the house since I've been ignoring it while I work on a huge sewing project for our chorus. Exciting day we have planned right? I think the best thing about the day is that we get to sleep in and there is no pressure to do anything out since everything is closed :)

Disappointment

Lorna is going through some major disappointment right now.

Due to a misunderstanding between Paul's boss and corporate we won't have the money to pick up her new horse this weekend. His pay plan is a very complicated melding of commission, travel allowance, additional assistance, and bonuses. That means that until he gets off of the additional assistance he cannot earn more than a specific amount even though he is technically a straight commission rep. All of this means that she's going to have to wait until some time in January until she can pick up the new horse.

It doesn't sound like that big of a deal but because of the way the gymkhana season is scheduled this means that this season will be a complete wash. She won't have enough shows left to earn anything on the new horse and the horse she's currently ridding isn't capable of much yet. This will make 2 seasons with virtually no awards or progress. When you're 14 and driven that seems like forever.

Fourteen!

It's hard to believe but Lorna is turning 14 today!



It seems like just yesterday that we brought her home from the hospital. This past year has seen a lot of challenges for her and I'm proud of how she has handled everything. She's seen a number of disappointments and she has made a number of decisions that have made me proud. I can honestly say that she is a joy to be around! I know it's not normal for a teenager's parents to say such a thing but it's true.

Once again she has decided to skip dinner out in favor of tickets to a horse expo at the beginning of next year. She has chosen one of her favorite dinners for tonight, shrimp pasta. Of course being the weird person that she is there will be no cake because she hates it. The major excitement for her will come this weekend when she picks up her new horse!

Novemebr Gymkhana

This past Saturday we had yet another gymkhana show.

Lorna has decided to pull Sierra from gymkhana for the foreseeable future because neither one was enjoying it. Lorna is going to give her some time off with the hope that Sierra will mature and end up making her a good endurance prospect.



Lorna rode Studmuffin and he did really well, he continues to progress with each show. Lorna originally planned to finish out the season on him but she's getting a new horse this weekend. This one is a patterned gymkhana horse that has lots of potential. We may end up pulling Studmuffin from the season as well so she can concentrate on the new horse. I've actually been riding Studmuffin the past few days. He seems content to just walk slowly around the neighborhood so he may just end up being my mount until I progress enough to ride the other mustang we have.



Malachi and Amigo blew me away this past weekend. It amazes me that they have only been doing this for a year. Malachi started the season as a solid "A" rider but he has started bumping up into "AA" times. They did amazingly this past show. At first Malachi wasn't too happy about bumping up but he's starting to become a bit competitive and has decided he wants to finish the season as a solid "AA" rider. Amigo still has lots more to give him so we shall see where they end up topping out.

The Good Life

Years ago when we had cable we used to watch this show called "The Good Life". It was about people who had made some radical change in their life and found what they considered the "good life." Each episode was very different and we found it inspiring.

Last week I finished a book called No Impact Man. If you aren't familiar with it, it's about a man and his family who try to live a no impact lifestyle for one year in New York City. There are many things I don't agree with in the book like global warming being man-made and such but the book was enjoyable because it wasn't preachy. It was more about the journey the author and his family took. It really made me think.

On one of the last pages he wrote, "Who determines what the good life is?"

I've spent a lot of time working on conserving energy just because I think it's important and I like saving money :) We support local businesses whenever it's possible and it makes financial sense. We eat better than ever because I care about what we put in our bodies. The biggest obstacle I've come up against is how to cut back on our car usage. I think I've been going about this all wrong though. I don't want to do this because it makes sense in our lives but because I felt like it was the next logical step in conserving resources. It doesn't make sense for us, Paul makes his living by driving so I can't really do anything about the 5000 miles a month he drives. We can't walk, bike, or even ride the horses anywhere because of where we live. Driving is the only way to get around. Maybe I'm just rationalizing because I no longer want to feel guilty for how much fuel we consume, but our life is going to involve driving a lot and I'm not going to feel guilty anymore.

We haven't figured out what our "good life" is yet but I do know it's going to include a lot of driving!

Car Woes

About a month ago Paul's little commuter car started giving us problems. It lost all power when going uphill. Our mechanic told us the engine needed to be rebuilt. We didn't have the $2000 to have a rebuilt engine put in so we decided to try it ourselves. After a month of frustration we got it running only to have a few other things go wrong. $500 later we still didn't have a running car and it was going to take more money to fix.

After much discussion and $1000 in gas spent while he was driving my truck to work, we decided to buy another car. Used cars are expensive! We found that newer used cars were only a little bit less than new cars. Not only that but it is really difficult to find vehicles that don't have lots of options which add to the overall price. We contemplated purchasing a new car but, just like with the used ones, it was impossible to find a stripped model and none of the others were within our price range. We have 2 small used car dealers here in our valley. After searching the lots in the big city and checking out the lots here in town we decided to buy something locally.

We financed the vehicle through our credit union and did all the paperwork in about 1 hour, most of that time was spent at the bank waiting for the paperwork to print. The transaction was the easiest and most pleasant car buying experience we've ever had. The car was priced about $1000 below what the dealers in the city were asking for a comparable vehicle, there was no haggling, and the money stayed in our valley. Paul got a 2008 Chevy Cobalt and I got a hug from the car dealer owner who sold us the car :) I can't say I'm thrilled with having a car payment again but the amount of money we will save in gas will more than pay for that payment and the extra insurance!

Procrastination and Motivation

I should probably say lack of motivation!

I can't seem to make myself get anything done recently. I read books for fun, I cook when I have to, and school is getting done on a regular basis but that's about it. We have just reached a milestone, 3 years in one place. This the longest we have lived anywhere since we got married. I wonder if that has anything to do with my detachedness. I don't have a move to plan for or anything to really look forward to right now, so I've fallen into a rut.

One thing I'm hoping will help is redecorating each room. Nothing really fancy but maybe new paint and curtains. I want to start with our bedroom which is the only room we haven't done anything to since we moved in. Of course before I do that we really should get a new bed, the springs along the edge of the mattress have broken and are poking out the sides. Since it's obvious we aren't going to sell the house I really want to make it a home and not some place we detest so much. I really think our dislike for where we live affects our attitudes about everything. I'm hoping to change that!

Paul's new job is going spectacularly. His new company has been so helpful and actually called to ask if he was doing okay and needed anything! This wasn't his boss but corporate! The pay has been better than originally promised and the support has been wonderful. I'm really happy that things are going so well but I can't seem to get excited about anything.

I guess that's not completely true. I'm excited about the new puppy I got last week.



I rescued him from the shelter and I couldn't be happier with Jasper. He listens well, he's almost completely house trained, he's quiet, and he loves everyone.
All he really wants to do is lay next to me wherever I am. This has gone a long way toward improving my outlook, now I just need to get motivated!

October Gymkhana

The kids had another good gymkhana show this past Saturday.

Malachi and Amigo continue to do well. They are running solid A times and Malachi has informed me he is happy with where he is at. He's not very competitive which totally baffles his sister. Amigo is capable of running consistent AA times and maybe even AAA times but Malachi just isn't very interested. I'm happy as long as they are running clean patterns and Malachi continues to enjoy himself.



Lorna's new horse, Studmuffin, did exceptionally well. He's running straighter and is still enjoying the work. Lorna enjoys riding him because he doesn't fight and tries to do everything she asks. I wouldn't be surprised if they speed up and start running consistent A times by the end of this season. It will take a bit more work to get him running the patterns a little more cleanly but he did really well considering this was only his second show.



Sierra is doing better. She threw a 3 year old tantrum during barrels, deciding halfway through the pattern that she was done. Other than that she bumped up into A times in 2 of the events which was a first. Lorna is pleases with her progress so she will continue taking her to shows this year.



Once the upcoming endurance ride is over we are going to be making a few decisions where Lorna's training is concerned. The gymkhana trainer she's been working with has made it very clear that she doesn't like Sierra, or any mustang for that matter. It makes for an impossible situation where lessons are concerned. We are looking at other instructors in the area in the hopes that they can help Lorna and Sierra get past their issues. Maybe a change of venue will help them both get past this road block they seem to have hit. Since Lorna is so competitive it has been difficult to watch all the other kids pass her by. Everyone seems to be getting better and faster while she seems to be standing still and even though she doesn't complain I've noticed she isn't happy. We looked at a number of horses before Lorna bought Studmuffin but it's difficult to choose a horse for 2 very different types of riding. She had the opportunity to purchase a patterned solid AA gymkhana horse but she passed it up to purchase Studmuffin. Although she doesn't regret the decision I wonder if we made a mistake, she would be enjoying gymkhana so much more if she wasn't stuck with two horses that are running FC times. I know that in a few years things will be better but when you are 13 a few years seems like forever.

Real Estate Buyer Etiquette

I have no idea if there is such a thing but if not there should be a rule that you don't skip places that you make appointments at.

We got a call from a Century 21 agent in our valley who wanted to come show our place today. I'll be quite honest, I've really let the place go since putting it on the market. We haven't even had one showing so I just got to the point where I don't care. We told the agent that she could come anytime after 4 pm. Since I don't have a working vehicle at this time I took a camp chair and sat at the far end of the property with the horses. It was out of the way enough that unless someone came looking for me they wouldn't see that I was even home. I watched as the agent pulled up, stopped her car, and then proceeded to drive away.

3 hours of intensive cleaning and they didn't even get out of the car! It's quite a drive up here so it's not like it was just on their way to another listing. Why drive all the way up here and not even peek in the house? Then the agent had the nerve to call Paul and lie to him. She said they ran out of time and didn't make it up to our area. When Paul said that was strange because I had seen them drive by, she stammered a bit and said they just ran out of time. Why lie? If the people were put off by the drive or the house itself I would much rather hear that than be lied to!

I'm ready to just pull the house off the market. Our agent isn't even attempting to sell the house and I doubt anyone would be willing to even come close to the price that we owe on it.

On a happy note: Paul's first few days at his new job have gone well. He's very positive and upbeat. He got his first sale today and met a few people who are very interested in ordering stuff in a few weeks. Now if we could just get his car running life would be wonderful!