White Fuzz Balls

Lily & her little goat buddies, Heckel & Jeckel are enjoying our mild winter. They are still able to graze on the lawn in December!

Girls, girls, girls...

My niece is visiting this weekend. Of course, the first thing they had to do was saddle up Lily!

1st Day of Hunting Season

I would hope that no one would shoot our precious Lily by mistake, but every year we cover her in blaze orange, just in case. Better safe than sorry!

All Tuckered Out

I just got back from another great ride on Lily. I had to pull out the phone camera 'cause she kept yawning over and over again...totally over-acting since we really didn't go that far! And when I put her back into her pasture, she took off full-tilt, so she actually had plenty of energy left. She's too funny!!

Between Lily's Ears

Everything looks better from the back of a horse!

Playing in the water with Lily!

What FUN! I'm so glad that we sent Lily away for training. She's back to being the horse that I knew & loved so much before the crazy freak that she was this spring. Yesterday afternoon each of the girls had a fantastic ride on her - by themselves! No lead rope involved, although I did leave it on her neck so that I could grab it if necessary. It wasn't. She listened to their every command, but only when they cued her properly. Now they can really learn to ride. Yay! Plus, I enjoyed a ride through the woods on her too. As a matter of fact, I'm headed out to ride her right now...

Lily in Training

My Paint mare, Lily, is currently in training with a friend of mine. The other day I drove over to her farm during my lunch break to get some pictures...doesn't she look like she's having fun?

Too cold for humans!!!!

Lily's frosty nose....

& Jim's frosty eyelashes...

Approx. 10 degrees below zero this morning!

Lily Kisses

Lily enjoyed a visit from the girls...

Lily, meet Lily...

'Oh, the weather outside is frightful...'

At least it wasn't snowing, but boy, was it blowing!! Lily is so fuzzy though, she didn't seem to mind at all - she was out exploring the pasture...

Our Flowers in the Snow

Lily & Daisy enjoy a visit...

Snow, snow and more snow...

Yesterday's photo of Lily was taken in the morning, before the storm started. Compare it with this one taken in the afternoon! See how the snow has made a blanket on Tillie's back? It's amazing how well her winter coat insulates her! Her body heat doesn't even penetrate it enough to melt the snow as it falls on her. I don't worry about the horses during snowstorms because they are so well prepared. We did throw them some extra hay though, because the overnight temperatures dipped well below zero degrees Fahrenheit and the wind was really blowing hard, so I knew that they would appreciate extra munchies...

Winter Wonderland

Lily doesn't mind the snow! It sure beats the ice that was covering everything last week - the poor horses were stranded out under the trees where there was still bare ground! Their hooves are absolutely useless on ice - it's scary to watch them slip and slide. A fall would be horrible..

Better Safe than Sorry

Hunting Season started this past Saturday. Here's Lily all dressed up in her blaze orange blanket! Every year my husband and I debate whether or not this is necessary - would a hunter really mistake one of our horses for a deer? Well, each year, somewhere, that does happen, so I always dress the horses in these blankets and braid orange ribbons in their manes & tails. Perhaps it's foolish, but on the other hand, I know that during the month of November I do not walk into the woods without wearing orange, so I don't see any reason why I would send my beloved horses out there without it...

From my front door...

So sorry I missed posting yesterday - I've injured my back, so I'm confined mostly to the couch, with a little bit of walking around the house allowed, as I feel up to it. I was racking my brain, trying to think of something interesting to post, and came up with this idea - repeating my very first post! Compare the view out my front door today, with the view back in February...

Last day of summer vacation...

Look at me on my own blog again! My older son wanted to practice using the timer on the camera. Which was just as well since I was holding the horses...and no, they're not really as close to the edge as it looks like they are, although plenty close enough. See how Tillie (big bay horse) is standing all hunched up? She didn't like being there very much! What a good girl to trust me!! What always amazes me, is that every time I ride the horses up there, they spend the first several minutes gazing around - I wonder how much they can take in and what they think of it all...

This is how the boys wanted to spend their last day of summer vacation. We hiked/rode up The Pinnacle, which is near our house. This huge ledge at the top of the mountain provides breathtaking views. We go up there a lot, especially when we have guests because it's a relatively short hike with gorgeous scenery, particularly during fall foliage.

Bottoms UP!!

The horses are all hot & itchy in their winter coats, now that spring has finally sprung. Yesterday afternoon our 4-year old Paint mare, Lily, was rolling in the snow, trying to cool off. She was soaked! She was having a grand time, playing and kicking up the snow!! It was so funny to watch her!!

Can I help?

My husband was shoveling a path to the horse pen this morning so that he could bring them their breakfast. They sure were anxious for him to finish!