Tasha, and a Little Mugwort For My Day..

Yesterday I, as I occasionally sometimes do, had little moments of doubts here and there throughout the day about where my life was going. I have discovered very deeply WHO I am and what I'm all about these past 4 years (mainly the past 2 and 3 but the previous leading up up to this path), some very, VERY significant synchronicities have come together just at the right time during this path to self discovery and I am VERY confident at who I am..so like I said it's not often I come to doubt myself but I occasionally do. I am human, and still a young'un yet..years before my wiser crone days. Years before the wolf who walks with me now, passes me off to the crow.

I have had many spiritual dreams over the past few years, "visits" as my witch and gypsy guides have told me, and "visions" as my native american aunt has told me. All the same, I have many roots that go in different directions, yet they all come together to form...well....ME. I have seen things appear before and around me andf in my dreams at just the right times when I have needed them. Positive and only rarely...negative forces. I can wash away the negatives very quickly, even when attacked suddenly...once being a very unexpected assault late one night (with my sleeping huisband next to me). I fought it off, yet 5 years ago, I would not have been experienced enough to fight these dark negatives off. I am getting better, and stronger, and wiser to see them before they attack. It's rare, but they happen.

When the negatives DO attack...if your "shields" are weak, you become a victim. Weak and weary, lost, confused, bitter, sad, hopeless, angry yet not knowing how to stand against the darkness, and falling...cowering into yourself. Sometimes you THINK you are strong....some people show off their strength with ignorance; Judgement, Belligerance, Curse words, Mockery, or the inabiltiy to understand. Some people hide behind someone else, or try to bring someone else into their lives (a new mate) to "protect" them. But what is all of that? That is a shield, yes, but just as NEGATIVE a shield as what is trying to penetrate you. None of that will help you fight off the negatives, or live a better life, or be viewed as a strong person who can hold their own if you fight back with fake, cowardly shields.

You have to go deeper. You CANNOT be afraid to look beyond the veil. It is there for you....you just have to connect to it. How? By grounding yourself. Centering yourself. You can't be centered if you're all out of whack on the inside. How do you do this? You have to ask yourself...How much negativity do you hold inside? Why? Do you live for the past or the future? I have met so many who dwell on the past, the hurt...the pain...the wrongful doings by another to them. And so many who dwell on the future....what they want, what they have to have....or that "perfect" someone who hasn't yet entered their life. Waiting for someone to come along to make THEM happy again. But why does someone else have to be responsible for making YOU happy? There's those empty and fake shields again.

Find beauty in simple things, to start. Ground yourself.

When you look at a horse in a field....do you SEE the horse? Or are you thinking what you're going to have for supper, or the laundry you still have to do that you've been putting off, or that purse you want to buy...or that person who made you angry yesterday....or the idiot infront of you at the grocery store who couldn't find their debit card and made YOU wait forEVER? Can you at all connect with that horse? Instead of thinking PAST the horse with your own thoughts...look at the horse and study it for what it is. Find the uniqueness and beauty in it, even if it's a skinny, raggedy ol' thing. Forget about the past, the future, look into the NOW. Connect with that horse, the RIGHT NOW of that horse. The white blaze that runs down its nose, its softness in the eye, that maybe it has made some children very happy in its life; study the horse's full contentment of being, despite the few nagging, biting flies. If you look at that horse and think "that must suck to be a horse", then you've released a negative thought against something so harmless and simple that you can't see infront of you, and are having trouble grounding yourself. You are all about yourself and wrapped up INTO yourself that there's no room for barely even you, let alone anybody else near you. How can there be room for anything (or anyone) else if you are not whole on the inside? Are you whole or are there holes?

Now I'm not saying go out and hug a tree....just learn to find the good in all things, the beauty. If it's a negative thing, learn to block it with shields you have built from knowing who you are...but don't meet it with cocky-ness, or beligerance, because that's just ugly. If it's something you immediately assume is negative because you don't understand it...understand it FIRST, then decide whether it's not for you. That too, is a shield. A shield of understanding, using a thought process instead of quick judgement, nodding at someone you don't agree with and refraining from a chain of cocky cusswords. Intelligence over ignorance gains respect, unless that ignorance is trying deeply to understand with a calm demeanor, and that beholds all my respect in the world. People who think they have to blow on a bullhorn to get attention or to get their opinion out..have something missing.

Energy. The next thing in being centered. Your energy circulates around everything you are....everything you are inside. Your energy radiates, and people can see and feel that. What kind of energy are you radiating? Is it positive, negative? Does it "must suck" to be that horse, or can you see that horse with a quiet inner and outer beauty about it? A beauty you can show someone else who may think "it must suck to be that horse"..?

Negative and dark forces...how do YOU deal with them? How CAN you deal with them? You can't unless you are comfortable in your own skin, with solid, whole shields of understanding and balance. Sometimes you need guidance by someone with patience, so you can be TAUGHT how to develop your shields (as I myself have needed guides these past few years, and still need to be guided), and that is good, but don't RELY on someone else to go deeper FOR you, they can only guide, you have to do the digging and rooting all on your own.

Like I said, I sometimes even fall a little when I have a negative force I am dealing with. A little hole pops through my shield that I thought was so strong from balancing myself these past years, but there it is...the hole. The negative force seeps in with a sinister cackle. I was a bit down in the dumps yesterday.

At one point yesterday..aside from my issues... a friend of mine mentioned having a dream with animal ghosts in it, and that she had thought of me. I giggled a little...and mentioned to her it may have been her spirit guides from her animal totem paying her a visit. They will do that sometimes, when you need them (even if you may not think you do, they know just when to come). I told her to put a little mugwort under her pillow, as mugwort helps dreams reveal themselves a bit better.

Last night before bed, I was stewing over the negative force seeping through my shield, and my main issue was that if I was really a good mom or not, and if other moms are more "hip" and "cooler" than me that my kids would be more drawn to that (I am, as you know, part Amish, lol!! <~~kidding). My views are old fashioned, but not totally uncool. But also while I am showing my kids how to see a goat for what it is or how to gather an egg out from under a cantankerous broody hen without getting pecked, other moms are at the mall buying their kids the latest fashions and in line to buy the newest Wii game that just came out. Then I worry...will my kids grow up wishing I was like the other moms? Should I become hipper, and cooler? I wear prairie skirts, holey jeans, and own one pair of boots. I spend my days gathering beans from the garden, separating bickering roosters, reading up on new recipes for soaps and bread. How cool is that...I mean really?

And, as it usually happens, I unintentionally called on the "guides", or my archetypes. One of those is Tasha Tudor, who came to me in dream last night. We made salsa together. We walked through the garden together, picking tomatoes and hot peppers off the vines, and she didn't speak a single word. I didn't either. We gathered the vegetables in a bucket and brought them inside, and in her kitchen, on her butcher block, we sliced up all of the onions, peppers, peeled and crushed tomatoes. Tasha reached up into her hanging herbs and pinched off cilantro. What is salsa without cilantro?

I studied her hands, old and wrinkled and calloused, yet so wise and steady. They worked with confidence, never missing a beat. She knew exactly what she was doing. After awhile, she stood aside, and merely pointed at me to finish the task of combining all the ingredients together. I was nervous, she was watching me....I was unconfident in my ability to add just enough this or that. Would she see my flaws? Would she judge me if I added too many peppers or not enough? But after awhile, as I studied the way she guided me, with a pleasant face and non judgemental energy..I relaxed, and felt more at ease. The more I relaxed, the smoother my hands became. I stopped being a fumbled nervous mess, but realized Tasha was seeing me through something that was really not a big deal, it's just salsa. Salsa is what you make it. It's what YOU make it. I began to taste here and there....yes, more cilantro. Another pepper or too for a bit more heat, but not too much. A little more lime I think.

The salsa turned out beautifully in the end, but even though it seemed right the moment I finished it...salsa is better when left to sit overnight or longer. All the ingredients need to intermingle and rest with each other for awhile, Get used to each other. They're all different things suddenly thrown together, so they need time, and the flavors will be amazing.

Tasha was not making salsa with me....she was teaching me a lesson that I needed very much, at that very moment. She came to me when I needed her, as she has in the past, as has other visits from other things (animals, etc). She spoke not a word...because it was for ME to figure out. She guided me, but I guided me as well.

Those are things you can't see...if or are one to think "it must suck to be that horse", then you can't let anything else in to help guide you, if you can't see the beauty or connection of things, you have blocked the guides that can help you build your shields of knowledge.

When I woke up this morning, my foot shifted and felt something on the bed. I sat up and looked, and at the foot of my bed was a baggie of mugwort. I had set it out yesterday and forgot I had left it on the bed. LOL!!

Anyway, my lesson from Tasha was too see myself for the now, what I am teaching my children, who I am. I am not a hip mom with all the latest gadgets and celeb gossip, and that's ok. They will see me for what I taught them, even if it's not until their 30's. Right now I'm just an uncool mom, lol, and I am SO ok with that. I cannot allow negativity to penetrate my shields, or if it does even a little...I know how to repair it quickly.

Mugwort, anyone?

Come Sit With Me, Let's Feel The Whispers..

I sat up on the hill by the garden this evening, the skies settling into a pink and purple dusk. The cool green grass underneath me, and perfect gentle breezes lifting my hair up just enough to taunt a playful kitten in my lap to swat at the blonde strands as they swept across my chin and neck.

"Hey now," I playfully scolded as I plucked his paw off my collarbone, "let's put those claws away, Mister."

Winnie, Truffle, and John, the farm dogs (not one over 10 pounds) played tag around the garden and, as it seemed, I was "base", as one would come careening around the pumpkin patch and collapse by my bare feet as if to say "SAFE!". The kitten in my lap didn't pay them any mind, he was still stalking my strands of hair.

Dusty was quietly making his "rounds" in the garden; carefully inspecting the tomatoes, then the cucumbers, and then over to the green beans, picking off a few to bring to me for approval. "Oh those are good ones!" I praised.

He is very proud of his garden, and tends to it diligently. He knows when things are about ready to pick, and when they maybe need another day or so. A very important job for a five year old!

Baby Sam toddled around behind Dusty for a bit, picking off a few cherry tomatoes and tossing them to the dirt. After awhile he went to the little wooden wagon and climbed in, then back out, then back in, 'cause he could.

Isabelle came out of the house just as a breeze caught her by surprise, sending goosebumps up her body. "It's COLD tonight!" she said softly, rubbing her arms against the chill.

"Ohhh it's PERFECT!" I cheered. Isabelle came up to the garden and stood over me, watching as the dogs chased and tore around the yard, literally ripping up bits of grass as they went. It was very comical. Little John can turn on a dime, and leaves zigzag tracks all around the place. He gets to going so fast ya can barely see his legs pumping underneath him.

"Come sit with me...." I lovingly invited, pushing the kitten aside and motioning to Isabelle to sit in my lap. Down she came and got situated. I wrapped my arms around her and pulled her in close, she leaned into my warmth.

It was certainly a cooler night, very unusual for mid-July. No humidity, no mosquitos. Isabelle's hair was long and wavy from the braided pigtails she had had in earlier, and when the breeze picked up again it too swept her strands across her chin and neck. She reached up and pulled it back away from her face.

The trees were swaying with the winds, leaves rustling like an early-autumn evening.

I turned my lips to her ear. "Let's feel the whispers in the breeze." I said quietly.

She turned her face slightly "Huh?" she asked. "What do you mean, "feel" the whispers?"

"Well", I explained, rocking her gently in my lap. "There are stories out there, waaaay out in the fields and farms and woods. Old stories and secrets and memories from long ago."

"Like Little House On The Prairie? Like THAT long ago?" she asked genuinely.

"Yes," I smiled. "And even stories before that time, and some after that time." Izzy was listening carefully.

"And sometimes, when the wind blows just right, and at just the right speed like tonight, it can gather up those stories and secrets and memories from the fields and farms and woods.... and carry them along and make whispers out of them..... But they don't speak to you in words you can hear with your ears."

"They don't?"

"No", I continued. "If you sit quietly and listen closely, as the breeze comes in around you, you can feel those stories and memories, and it will SEEM like you can hear them, even if there are no words.... Girls in aprons and bonnets, ladies in button up shoes and petticoats. Horses and buggies clip clopping down the road.....Ornery boys throwing rocks at their sisters" I giggled, pointing to her little brother who was now trying to drive a stick in the ground next to the bean plants, unaware we were speaking about him. Izzy smiled.

"So", she said. "I don't actually hear words, I feel them from inside, like in here?" She tapped on her chest.

"That's right!" I said, happy that she was sort of understanding.

We sat and enjoyed the splendor of the evening, the skies turning into darker purples and grays now. Dusty chasing the first few fireflies of the night. Sam tossing handfuls of kibble to the cats out of the feed bin. The ducks and chickens were quietly settled in.

I looked down at Izzy, who was gazing out past the garden towards the fields as some nice breezes blew in..
..and I think she was listening closely to "feel" some whispers, hehe!

:)

Adventures In Homeschooling!

I did it! After 2 years of research, I have finally picked and purchased our first homeschool curriculum! EEEK! I am so excited and can't wait to recieve our package in the mail! Now, I'm not 100% positive that we are going ahead with homeschooling YET, but we're going to try it out for a few weeks before public school starts and see how we like it. If we love it, then we'll keep on going! Isabelle so far is liking the idea, and I have given her advantages and disadvantages of both sides so that she can think about it. She has already drawn this really cute picture of our farmhouse with a bell-tower ontop and a sign that says "school" on the front!

WHY homeschooling, you ask? Many reasons! For one, I like the fact that my children will be able to work at THEIR pace at home, and NOT the pace at a public school. Dusty LOVES to talk about things that he's learning, and tries to absorb every little thing about it before moving on. In public school, he can't sit and ask his ten thousand questions about a topic. No, the teacher must move on, whether he's "got it" or not. Isabelle is a FAST learner, and catches on quickly to most things and is ready to move on before the rest of the class. It doesn't mean she is ready to be put in a higher grade, it just means she's ready to learn something else but she has to wait for the rest of the class.

A lot of public school is standing in line, taking turns, waiting for the teacher to help you, recess, walking to and from the cafeteria or gym a few times a day, bathroom breaks, and then they come home and do homework. I can't tell you how many hours are spent on homework every night AFTER getting home from school! I mean, the parents are homeschooling anyway at night, lol! And dear me if the child is sick for more than two days, oh the homework and lectures they have missed and have to catch up on!

Last year, Isabelle was the first on the bus; it was an hour ride to school, and an hour back. Now granted, bus time can be a great opportunity to socialize or just relax and unwind, but she and the other elementary children were mixed in with high school students and were exposed to a LOT of high school drama and "issues", and I am sure some profanity and who knows what else! Homeschool, we can start at 8am, and be done by 1 or 2 pm or keep working until 3 if we want! Then homework will have already been done during the day, and the kids can read for an hour or so in the evening as their "homework".

Socializing? A lot of people wonder about how homeschooled kids get socialization! There are wonderful outlets available for homeschooled kids, we are already looking into the homeschool PE they have up at the community center. Plus, Isabelle can do an elective such as learning to sew or 4H or some other outlet. Also, I have just joined a small group in the town next to us who gets together to do group field trips once a month! How cool!

The other things I have planned are incorporating homeskills into our curriculum such as gardening and cooking! And cooking and math go together! I will be doing a TON of art with them also, and we'll do field trips to art galleries and look for things to photograph and paint or draw. Dusty LOVES to build so I will work with him on learning structures and shapes.

As for the curriuclum that I am SO excited about, I ended up going with Heart Of Dakota (www.heartofdakota.com). The curriculum has a fantastic layout of daily tasks, and what I love most about it, it has a "Charlotte Mason" type feel to it.

To those not familiar with Charlotte Mason, here is a little run-down of who she is and what she believed in as far as teaching methods, taken directly from www.simplycharlottemason.com:

**************
"Charlotte Mason was a British educator who lived in the late 1800s and early 1900s. Her method, the Charlotte Mason method, is centered around the idea that education is three-pronged: Education is an Atmosphere, a Discipline, a Life.

By “Atmosphere,” Charlotte meant the surroundings in which the child grows up. A child absorbs a lot from his home environment. Charlotte believed that atmosphere makes up one-third of a child’s education.

By “Discipline,” Charlotte meant the discipline of good habits — and specifically habits of character. Cultivating good habits in your child’s life make up another third of his education.

The other third of education, “Life,” applies to academics. Charlotte believed that we should give children living thoughts and ideas, not just dry facts. So all of her methods for teaching the various school subjects are built around that concept.

For example, Charlotte’s students used living books rather than dry textbooks. Living books are usually written in story form by one author who has a passion for the subject. A living book makes the subject “come alive.”

She taught spelling by using passages from great books that communicate great ideas rather than just a list of words.

She encouraged spending time outdoors, interacting with God’s creation firsthand and learning the living ways of nature."

*******

I just LOVE that!
As far as Heart Of Dakota goes, it IS a Christian based curriculum, and those who know me know I am spiritual but not religious. However, although I am spiritual in a metaphysical nature and free spirited in a hippie manner, I love Christian morals and infact I love reading the history of the Bible, but if it begins to feel a little too overburdoning for me in the "Jesus"/teaching style, I can omit a little here and there.

The other thing I love about Heart Of Dakota is that it can be adapted to other age levels, it is VERY flexible! The reading is awesome, you can go with their reading selections or make up your own list of books (this is especially good if I want to go on a more fantasy route like The Hobbit or something of that nature). However a lot of their selections are pioneer and prairie based books which I simply adore! But I want my kids to find their own adventures in books as well, and Heart Of Dakota lets you be a bit independent like that!

I'm not sure how the math and science will be but we'll cross that bridge when we get there (IF we get there, lol), we can always supplement with our own program if we don't like what HOD provides. That's what's so great about it!

All in all, we're ready to give homeschooling a shot, but in the end, it may not be for us. We won't know til we put forth some effort in trying. ;)

I will keep you all posted!




(haha, couldn't resist!)

Is That Semen In Your Hand, Or Are You Just Happy To See Me?

Today I had to make a run to Drexel to my horse vet, Dr. Paul (Tall Paul). He's the one who doctored Luna when she got her hoof sliced up in barbed wire nearly two months ago. She, by the way, is doing better, but I had a bill to pay, and it was looming over my head.

So I made the drive to the little country clinic and walked into the front office where the receptionist sat taking appointments. The Doc didn't seem to be around so I went ahead and politely settled most of the bill with her and got my receipt and balance due.

I walked out of the clinc and back to my car and got ready to leave, when I saw Doc running like mad out of the clinic to stop me, lol!

He was in his usual green coveralls, which today were covered in....in....well...bullsh*t....literally.

And he was holding......in his hand......umm....a cone shaped vile of fresh .....um....of fresh semen....bull semen.

The Doc, covered in sh*t, was smiling at me and inquired after Luna while holding up this delicate vile of semen to prevent spillage, if only he knew how he looked from my view, lol!! We talked of Luna and he asked about the goats (he doctored Marzy last spring when she was ill) and was happy to hear everyone was well.

Ahh, the country life! LOL!

Panic On The Farm..

I groomed John today, our little half Truffle/ half Winnie farm pup. We have seemed to have kept him back as a permanent resident, as his other 3 brothers have all found loving homes. Why? I don't really even like him much. Bays like Winnie, barks at all my clients pulling up. He didn't take up much after Truffle, only in looks. Truffle is quiet, gentle, and retarded, but an endearing retarded. John is annoying, like his mama.

But today....I gave him a haircut and he looked EVERY bit like his daddy, Truffle! And lo! As I shaved him down in a short summer cut, I discovered he even had little brindle markings JUST like Truffle! I had never seen that before! But there they were, little random splotches of brown here and there! Not as patchy as Truffle's (brindle is a rare color for poodles). This makes me wonder if his twin brother...Joe, who now resides in Ohio with the Reiter family, has also brindled out? I know he did already have a few hints of brown patches just like Truffle, but now I'm curious as to his coat pattern.

After I groomed John, he looked and felt fantastic! He ran around the farm and dived nose first into the grass to "wash" off his groom, lol! He pranced high and proud and wiggled hi butt. Even Darin commented on how much he resembled Truffle now, with his new 'do'.

After being in the house for some time this evening, we all went back out to enjoy the cool weather and troll around in the garden a bit.

Oddly enough...I had noticed we were missing a body somewhere. the children were accounted for....but we seemed one less......dog...??

Calmly I called out for John...but he was nowhere. He didn't come to his name or to my usual kissing noises. No big deal...he's around.

A few minutes later...still no John. Truffle and Winnie were present, Boots and Jeans the farm kittens....all "little" bodies were here, but no John.

I walked around the house calling him. I looked far and wide, he was no where. I looked under the porch. Nothing. I checked the groom shop, where maybe he had snuck in behind me and then I walked out, shutting him in unaware. Nope. No John.

This was not usual for him. My heart sunk for a moment. His new haircut...fresh clean, adorable little puppy....isolated road....did someone take him? Did I care really? I thought I didn't like him anyway, annoying little pup, John. Chewin' my farm to pieces. Couldn't leave nothin' put...he had to drag it off somewhere then watch as we all searched high and low.

I walked around the house again, and out to the barn, I hollered out for Darin..he had not seen him either. John was gone. I was now in panic mode.

I walked out to the clothesline, yelling his name. I stopped and listened. Nothing. I called some more, nervousness setting. Ya happy now Rach? John's gone. Your rid of him!

Not moving from the spot I was in, I looked down. Literally...looked down.
There was John. In his new do, but with stick-tights all over his face! JOHN!!! I was never more relieved to see that little retard! Apparently, the water bowl was dry and he had gone down to the creek to get a drink.

I will be able to sleep peacefully tonight, knowing he is safe and sound!

Why though? I don't like him anyway, right? Hmm....


Stupid dog, scarin' me like that. *giggle*


;)

The Horse Whisperer...With A Message...

If Kindness, Fellowship, and Horsemanship were put in a bag, shook up, and dumped out..you would have the Daily's of Wild Horse Ministries...Paul, Lenora, Dan and mother Joanna, a horse whispering family out of Louisiana who tour the country gentling colts and spreading the word of God. Thanks to our Outpost Cowboy Church just over on the Kansas side, myself and the other members got the wonderful pleasure of meeting this family firsthand, and left feeling...well....christian!

Paul Daily, the "dad" of the bunch, takes young colts who are sometimes wild and headstrong, colts who have no path set before them, and uses his keen horse sense combined with his faith in God to gentle these animals without nary a hand placed on them.

He works WITH the horse, not against it.

Paul takes a colt and puts it in a round pen, not knowing a thing about it or having any previous experience with it beforehand. Now, when you're a wild colt, you're going to flee and fight to stay wild and free. You're going to run AWAY from resistance. That's all very well for some, "but wild and free", says Paul Daily in his deep southern drawl, "means the horse has no real purpose in life, just as with people. What is this horses purpose?" he asks the crowd.

Paul would work this horse in circles, letting him feel the need to run away and stay free. 'Round and around he went in that round pen, staying away from Paul and desperate to keep his carefree life just the way it is.

But there's just one little problem for this horse..."you see," explains Paul, "in the path of life there is Satan".

And there he was, Satan himself was right there in that round pen with that horse (literally).... but THIS Satan was in the shape of a large black lab. "Satan" the labrador would chase the young colt, stay at its heels, circling him, trying to keep the colt under HIS control. "Satan is here cuz he wants to cause problems".

After many circles and getting a bit tired, the colt decides to stop, and when the colt stops, so does Paul. The colt moves out again, and so does Paul. After awhile, the colt stops, and so does Paul. The colt turns his head in towards Paul to face him, and that's what Paul was waiting for.

"You see there?" he says. "This colt is deciding 'Hey, maybe if I can accept you in my life, I can stop running and see what kind of purpose you have for me'". explains Paul. "Same with accepting God into OUR lives, we have purpose, and He can guide us to what that purpose is, if we stop running and hand ourselves over to Him."

Now, one thing Paul makes very clear to his audience, he is merely a tool of God, he is not playing the role of God. He is only using a reference pertaining to the horse for the message he is trying to spread.

Then Paul got out a long "stick" with a glove attached to the end of it, and used this for an outstretched hand to try and stroke the horse. The horse, of course, was fearful of this and ran away. Paul followed the horse wherever he went, trying to stroke him with the glove. Eventually, the horse decided to stop. Still scared, the horse tucked his rump under him as the "hand" touched him. After awhile, the hand became...not so scary to the horse...and the horse began to accept it. It actually turned into a good thing, as the colt started to relax and accept this strange hand that was reaching out to him. "Just like God's hand, " says Paul.

After awhile, Pauls' young and beautiful daughter, Lenora Daily, stepped in to continue where Paul left off.

If sweet tea had a voice, it would sound like Lenora Daily's. That southern drawl and gentle nature mesmorized the horse, AND the audience. She started ground working the colt, getting it used to giving in to pressure points when and where she applied them.

Lenora would keep applying pressure until the horse eased in to her touch. "Now he's real confused at what I want outta him, but he's startin' to give in to my touch cuz he's uh learnin' it's easier that way. Same with God, if ya just let him into yer life, things become clearer and less confusing over time."

She stroked the horse, charming it under her magical spell, and prepared it for its first ever saddling.

She rubbed the horses belly. "Whut you doin' thar darlin'?" asks her daddy atop his horse.

"Wail daddy, I'm uh rubbin' this horses' belly so's thar's no dried mud'er cockleburr's thar...so when I saddle'im he doesn't go uh buckin'". She then looked at the audience "Any of you ever have a cockleburr in yer life?", which was met with rounds of laughter.

Dan Daiy brought out the saddle for Lenora, and after little refusal from the colt, had the cinch tightened up and ready to go. A few rounds were made as the horse settled in to the feel of the saddle.

Dan got on his horse, and with daddy Paul also inside the corral on his horse, Lenora stepped in the stirrup and gave one big bounce, testing the colt for acceptance. In one swift motion she was astride the horse, who had a bewildred but otherwise "ok" look about him.

With Dan and Paul to keep close to Lenora, the colt took his first steps with Lenora on him. First a walk...then a trot...then a good lope. The colt started to get a little ornery, and Lenora was beared down and ready for a good buckin'. Paul was in the colt's way, and a deep southern accent she hollers "Here I come DADDY!!" as the colt was about to blow. But...it didn't blow. It settled back down in a lope and all was well.

It was a glorious and successful first ride. The colt was already a more well rounded animal, accepting of the human hand, and having direction in his life. He was no longer resisting the hand that he was once feared....and would ya know it, after handing his trust over to what he once fought against...

...that pesky Satan was nowhere to be found in the corral bothering that horse anymore.

A life lesson to think about.

The training lesson ended in a beautiful prayer, just as it hand opened with. I was moved and touched by the whole experience.

I took many photo's during the entire session, and was unaware that anyone was paying attention to me. But at the end of the prayer, I overheard the pastor say over the intercom mumble soething like "you might wanna grab that young lady takin' the photo's and see if ya can get her to sned some". I heard it but had no idea he was speaking about me.

I went with Elyssa to buy a few of the t-shirts. They were $10 each but I only had enough to buy 3, and I wanted 4. Putting the 4th back, I handed the $30 over to the sweet lady selling them. Strangely, she only took $20 and pushed the other 10 back at me, AND let me have the fourth t-shirt.

She says sweetly, "you take that 4th shirt, and you take the money, and how 'bout ya mail me some of them pictures you got today? Is it a deal?"

I was floored that they would want MY pictures, but they did. They really DID! They didn't even know if I was a GOOD photographer or not! I struck the deal and away we went, humbled and proud to be a part of such a great community of people. I will get their photo's in the mail for them (I also opened their own photo account so they can see them sooner).


Opening prayer:



Dan Daily:



Paul, the colt, and "Satan"



That darn Satan makin' a mess of everything, and keepin' this horse wound up!



Lenora works her southern charms over horse and crowd..



Saddle time..



"Here I come DADDY!!"



Lenora, sending her calming energy..



This horse was so relaxed after she was done with him, she couldn't get him on his feet! Took her dad and brother to rock him back to his feet!



Ending prayer..



This one moved me to pert'near tears, when members of the Cowboy Church joined in the prayer circle..

CURSES!!

It's nearing midnight, the dogs were in an uproar just a moment ago so I went outside to check it out (anything in the middle of the night is my job...babies crying, dogs barking, creaks from downstairs).

I opened the back door and the smell hit.....A SKUNK!! The dogs had stirred it up enough to get it to SPRAY!! ARRGGHHH!!!!

The worse part about it is....I HAD LEFT A WHOLE LOAD OF CLEAN LAUNDRY ON THE CLOTHESLINE!!!

Excuse me whilst I @$%$%^$#$#%$$^%!!!!!


Whew....there.....I'm better now.
Off to bed to deal with this tomorrow.

A Prairie Summer...

When the late spring breezes blow in from the fields and farms, my children are there to take in the scents it has collected along the way. Elyssa and Dusty sit on the front porch swing, Elyssa gently keeping a steady "chi" of rocking motion for her younger brother to enjoy. Isabelle soon joins them, and together they gaze on past the front yard into the neighbors horse pasture.

The usual morning chores already done; up by 8:00 or 8:30, dressed, beds made, hair brushed, breakfast eaten, teeth brushed. Then the divided chores of feeding and watering the animals, hanging loads of laundry on the line (Elyssa and Izzy's job), then the team effort chore of throwing corn to the chickens while Elyssa steals the eggs. See, the garden is delicate as it grows, the chickens are not free ranging as they would delight in the yummy veggies and fresh tender greens. So while they are cooped up in the....errr...coop while our garden grows, the younger children distract them with corn while Elyssa darts into the henhouse to steal eggs, sometimes right out from under the butts of cranky broody hens. Well, not the crankiest of hens, Elyssa is still not daring enough to subject her hand to a pecking, and a hardy peck they will! I will have to show her how to lift a cranky hen up off her nest gently by the neck and snatch with the free hand.

By 10 O'clock, they are usually finished up and the day is theirs for adventure.
Elyssa and Isabelle grabbed a book and some towels off the line and climbed over the field gate and snuck off for the woods, Dusty tagging along behind them. They followed the horse trail, over the creek, and found their favorite and "secret" reading spot.

I snuck in behind them with camera in tote and this is what I found:



It was such a beautiful moment that I thought back fondly of the children of the 1800's or early 1900's, and other than clothing and some updated novels they were reading, I saw little difference in the era's.



A snapped twig under my feet revealed my presence, so I took the opportunity to take some photo's (I take so many they literally go about their day without noticing me, which is great for candid shots..did I use "candid" in the right context? Hm, anyway..)

Licorice the pony joins the reading circle:



Beautiful Elyssa caught in thought:



Licorice and Boots the kitten meet:



Truffle the farm poodle watches Boots and Jeans climb a tree..



Boots and Jeans, Masters of the Wood:



Getting a tongue stuck out at me..





Yellow shirts are a mother's godsend, especially when your children play in the woods..



While I scrubbed bathrooms and tended to the garden, the girls hung laundry..




The children had an opportuntiy to watch a little tv this afternoon, but 20 minutes later I came around the corner with baby Sam on my hip and saw the tv on...but no kids. That's when I spotted them out on the porch swing, taking in the breezes and sights of the beautiful day. They chose to carpe diem over television, I must be doing SOMETHING right!

Elyssa was head chef in the kitchen today with Izzy and Dusty as her apprentices, and together they all measured and stirred and made brownie hearts for after supper (it's where they make regular brownies and rip their hearts out..ok ok...that was bad). No, they are brownies made from scratch and baked in heart shaped pans! They turned out beautifully and we will have them after my supper of cornbread and chicken bake.

As a matter of fact, I smell the chicken just about ready to come out of the oven, I'd better wrap this up and call in the kids (yes, they are STILL outside)to wash up and set the table.

Prairie Blessings!

It's The Little Things....

Isabelle goes to her daddy's every other weekend, which she thoroughly enjoys! She can't wait to go over, and he lives in a cute little subdivision in a rural town (rural, but my, as with many little towns, it is growing quickly!).

Isabelle has the best of both worlds...truly. She may not know it now, but she has all the fun of country life over here, and all the fun of "city" life over there. I mean goodness, WE don't get the ice cream man all the way out here, but at her daddy's, it's fun to grab some allowance and rush out the door with her two step-sisters to flag down the delicious truck! Or hopping on her bicycle and riding down the sidewalks, saying hello to neighbors as she passes!

Each of her two homes are different, but each very rich in "things to do". She is very lucky!

The other day, I picked up Izzy from her daddy's. He leaned into my car and seeing that her two little brothers were in the backseat, he pulled out some money and handed it to her. "You go buy you and your brothers some ice cream at Sonic, ok?"

And we did! It was so very nice, and Izzy "bought" her brothers some ice cream, she felt very important, lol! It's the little things like that which Izzy will remember (and even her brothers, that Izzy's daddy is cool like that, lol!), and stir up nice memories of her daddy slipping her some treat money, and also very thoughtful to join together both her worlds with something as simple as ice cream. :)

A Horse, A Bird, A Garden, and a Birthday..

Yes, the little bird STILL follows Shunami everywhere she goes, it warms the heart to see. Although Licorice the pony is also out in the big pasture now (the new filly will be turned out tomorrow), the bird is still faithful to Shunami as it flits from tree to weed to just hopping alongside on the ground.

Here are the latest photos!











We had some pretty vicious storms come across the Kansas and Missouri plains yseterday, which devastated many wheat fields and other crops. It came through our little town but wasn't near as strong, still though, our garden took a beating. I had taken this pic of it the other day, before it became a twisted and gnarled mess (it even ripped up some tomatoe cages!)



All is well here other than that, and we are planting a few more things in the garden to replace what was lost, plus some pumpkins! A few years back we planted pumpkins too early and had them by mid July! The vines were dying out before October had even arrived!

Tomorrow is my sister's birthday, but tonight we all went to a bar-b-que place for some good eats and to celebrate! We had a great time and I am stuffed to the brim! Isabelle got to visit with her cousin and uncle whom she doesn't see too often, and Dusty played with cousin Phoenix and found great joy in spitting spitwads through a straw at people! Thanks brother Kevin, for teaching my children how to do such ornery things! Hehe! *smack*

Snake and Salamander Are Friends..

It was like childhood again, the elementary days when my best friend Amber Harris and I would go looking under rocks for ring-neck snakes. Yesterday as I tipped over the small horse trough out in the pasture to empty the water and scrub it out, I found two little cuties in the bare spot under the trough...a little ring-neck snake and a little salamander (or at least I think he was a salamander). It was nice and cool under there, dark and damp and perfect for a home sweet home, if that's your flavor of style.

I gently picked up the little snake with the same excitement of discovery as if I were 10 years old again. My little boy Dusty was enthralled with it, yet at the same time, a little uneasy to touch it. I held it out for him to view, and gave him the whole "don't pick up any snake because it may be poisonous" bit, even though Amber and I were snake savvy at 10 years old, and stupidly fearless. Dusty is only 5, I need to show him which snakes are good, and which are bad, so by the time he is 10, he can be just as savvy and stupidly fearless as I was. Hehe!

After a little photo shoot, I returned the snake back to his home, and after I scrubbed the water tank out, I set it upright and gave the snake and salamander their "home" back.

"O Hai Ther"



Snake and salamander





Blessings!

As Fate Would Have It..

I was perfectly content with my little herd of mares, Shunami, Luna, and little pony Licorice. Snickers the ornery stud pony had found a new home, and peace had been restored to the herd. Luna, being holed up and out of commission with her wounded hoof (which by the way is slowly healing), meant we only had one riding horse, Shunami.

No matter, no one has an interest in riding other than myself, so one riding horse is all we need. Even then I am not able to get out much.

But then I popped onto our local online farm and garden sales Thursday afternoon, and right there infront of me was a new posting just listed for a little mare, all of 14 hands, nearly being given away. Not uncommon really...horses are practically being given away due to the failing horse market these days, I nearly gave away Snickers last week myself. A good home was far more important than the money anyway, and I screened my callers well. Some buyers out there you have to be careful, not so good intentions.

What caught my eye about this little mare was her young age, only little more than 2 years old, but she had a soft, gentle eye. The kind of soft eye you usually see on an older, "been there, done that" mare, or a well aged and wise ol' dobbin who could tell you stories of the miles he'd seen.

This little mare was special, and was going to go quick at her price. I balked...telling myself I didn't need her...we're all set with what we've got. But I didn't have time to balk for long...she was being sold the more I sat on my hands. I sent an e-mail to the sellers, then realized they had a number listed.

Ugghh...I thought to myself..I do NOT need to call, I do NOT need to be doing what I think I am going to do. Even if they e-mail me back..I'll just ignore it and let them sell to the next person. Yes, let them sell her to someone else. They've got someone already anyway, I'm sure. I'm sitting here long enough...this will pass. Let her go. Let her go.

I grabbed the phone...and dialed.

Ah!! Voicemail!! Perfect! I left a message anyway, then hung up. I am only one of a thousand calls probably, this horse wasn't meant to be mine. Sweet relief, they'll never call me back. She is being sold right now to someone else.

I tip tapped on the computer a bit, still with this little mare in the back of my mind, but already "letting" her go, because she wasn't mine anyway. Never would be. She was being loaded up in a trailer probably right now, of to her new home.

Thirty minutes had past, she was gone. Still, I was startled when the phone rang next to me. Probably a grooming client. I looked at the caller ID. No way.

"Hello?"

"Hey there, this is Chuck, I'm returning your call on the little mare".

My stomach lurched, but I figured it was a courtesy call to let me know she was well on her way to her new home, and to thank me for calling anyway.

"She's a great little mare, " he continued. What? I was thinking...what? She's still there??

I listened and responded, and found myself asking questions about her. This man was friendly and knowledgeable, not a horse dealer in the slightest. He could tell me everything about her, and for good reason, as he had rescued this girl from a sale barn when she was 4 months old and raised her since then. This wasn't JUST a horse for sale, she was his "baby", even though he wouldn't admit it out of his own words.

The only reason she was for sale, she wasn't going to be the size he had hoped, for what he was planning to ride her for; extreme horse riding. This is Extreme Sporthorse Competitions that is very demanding and...well...extreme. She just wasn't going to finish out to the size he wanted, and was reluctantly selling her. His nine year old daughter had another horse she was riding, and with heavy heart they posted her for sale.

I had beaten the odds, I knew at the price they had listed her for...I was backlogging their phone line with other people trying to get in! But here he was, returning MY call!

I drove out to see her Friday night, and it was love at first sight...no question! I was eager but didn't want to appear so, as anyone experienced in horse dealin' knows it is to be done with no signs of anxiousness, as there would be little room for dickering. Still, there WAS no time or room to dicker around, I wasn't about to ask for even a DOLLAR off this horse, she was worth triple or even quadruple the asking price as it stood, even with a failing horse market. Inside I was jumping for joy, Chuck and Suann, Harley's owners (yes, her name is Harley!) were most honest and upfront, there were no secrets, they told me evrything about this darling little girl.

Their nine year old daughter jumped up on Harley and walked her through a pole pattern, and she did wonderfully. For as young as this horse was, she was doing things and acting like a seasoned broke trail horse.

There was no doubt that this little mare was fate, and my heart was doing somersaults as I handed them the few measly bills they wanted out of her and she was loaded into my trailer. There were tears from Suann and dear young Hannah, yet Chuck stood strong, he had an Extreme Horse rider image to uphold. But... I think if truth be told, a tear would have fallen as well...if no one had been looking.(shhhh Chuck...your secret is safe with me...oh yes..and to the few who read this blog).

I drove the hour ride home with the little mare in tow, and once home I put her in the corral to settle into her surroundings. I couldn't believe I had went and done it! But it was the best "impulse" I have had ina long while! This little mare is a jewel, a genuinely sweet soul, and here she shall stay.

Shunami has lots of wisdom to share with her, and can raise her up well and teach her the ways. And in return, this little mare can raise up some children as time goes by, teach them about horsemanship and riding, perhaps even pull a wagon for us someday.

As for Luna, she has not been replaced, only "retired" for a bit as her wound repairs quietly. Perhaps our new addition will help Luna heal faster for fear of BEING replaced..lol!

Here is our new addition with her soft eye and pure heart! A little thing yet at two years old, but has plenty of time to grow! She is truly a diamond in the rough, but a huge thanks to Chuck and Suann and Hannah who saw SO much more in her at the sale barn that day, and then raised her right and waited for me to come and get her, fate indeed!

Blessed Be The Lady!

This early morning as I was entering the kitchen for my morning shot of caffeine, I just HAPPENED to glance out the window at the "pool", which is nothing more than a 2 foot shallow large round cattle trough. For just a moment, I thought I saw something IN the water but disappear behind the wall of the trough. There is a flotsam and jetsam of toys floating in the trough for the childrens' amusement, but this, as split second as it was, seemed to be floating at a much faster pace than the rest of the toys.

I decided to go on out the back porch and check it out, just to be sure. And as soon as my feet hit the brick of the patio, I could hear a warbled "mewing"! Oh my goodness! I peeked over the side of the trough and sure enough one of our farm kittens had fallen into the water and was treading laps!! The poor thing!! Lord/ess only knows how long he had been in there! There was not enough water for him to grab onto the side and pull himself out, and no sturdy toy to grab onto! I reached in and scooped his cold wet body out of there.

It wasn't but yesterday I had a feeling about that trough, that something was going to happen like that with one of the animals. Last year I had had a dreadful fear of filling it up for the kids to play in as a pool, and then having an animal (or baby Sam!) fall in and not being able to get back out while no one was out there. I had set a patio chair in the water when the kids weren't playing just incase it happened again, the critter would have a safe place to get up on and to keep from drowning.

After I saw that Jeans the kitten was no worse for wear, I put that patio chair back in the trough! Now if he or his brother Boots happens to fall in, they'll have something to get up on and climb out!

He's ok folks, but had I not been at the window looking out....it may have been another half hour or longer before I did chores..and who knows what his fate may have been! How long he had been out there before I DID see him, only the Universe knows.

I shall call her...Spirit Cat..

The little grey Mama Kitty vanishes as soon as I think I see her, then reappears somewhere else. I have called her Spirit Cat, and after much milk, fresh eggs, and tuna, I believe I have persuaded her to stay.

Sadly though, I only see one of her kittens with her, a tiny grey female. She and Spirit Cat live under a trailer out by the barn. It is where I set their food out for them. The other animals have not accepted them well, but things are changing. Seems they adjust to any animal who is either born here or is brought in by me....otherwise they are promptly escorted off the property by either Gat the large farm cat, or the little dogs, Truffle and Winnie.

It has been trialsome, but Spirit Cat is slowly being accepted by the other animals here, although she is still not coming too far out from underneath the trailer. She is still hissing and being hissed at, but no one is running her off anymore...now it is more of a ranking order.

Spirit Cat and baby Spirit Kitten (we'll find another name), welcome to the farm!

Many Things..

A busy day today, but a few updates and then I am off to bed.

Shunami's little bird friend from yesterday was no quick love affair, today the bird remains a faithful bonded friend to Shunami wherever she goes in the pasture. Flitting from place to place, tree to fencepost, or hopping along right next to her hoof!

The Mama Kitty has come back today, only with one kitten this time. I was sad to see that one of her babies was missing, but it could possibly turn up later.

Luna is doing better, still guarding her hoof carefully and not putting much weight on it while resting, but she IS using it! So this is good to see.

I groomed dogs today, and the pastor of our little Cowboy Church brought his dog to me, and what a pleasant little fellow he was to groom! For only a 5 month old puppy he was a very well behaved little man!

Izzy is getting over a sinus infection, and seems to be feeling better today. Little Sammy is a bit snotty but feeling fine otherwise. Dusty was a busy little worker bee while helping his Daddy "build" things out by the barn.

I am spent, and I am signing off for now, silver moon beams and dreams!