Horses we loved before

Today I'm wearing a little piece of Levi close to my heart.  I don't wear this locket very often because when I do, I get all nostalgic about Levi, what a great pony he was and what a loss he was to our whole family.  Lots of people probably barely remember Levi.  We didn't even have him a whole year.  And those that do remember him are reminded that he wasn't perfect. I remember one showmanship class where I wanted to beat him myself for not standing still for Sophie. Levi came to us with needing an attitude adjustment.  It literally took one ride and he decided he would remember that he was broke.  From that point on he was a good boy.  He could be lazy at the lope- it wasn't always the prettiest, but he was honest as the day was long.  Even little Sophie got her leads with him every single time.  And walk/jog he was unbeatable.  Literally.  He and Sophie were undefeated that season.  He could move out so pretty in English and he was a solid trail pony too.  He just was a true blessing to our family.  We were offered plenty of money for him but he was meant to stay.  Until we lost him in that tragic accident.  I will never look at random rocks in the pasture the same.  Dang it - now I’m all sad.  Miss that lovable pony.  

Thinking about Levi usually leads me to think and remember the others that have graced our pastures for the past 10-11 years.  Our new family asked Libby and I how many horses we have had.  So we made a list.  Ummm…. it's a lot.

Precious: (AQHA)

Stormy: (asshole mini)
Shy: Shi Bar Doc (AQHA)
Taron: (AHA)
Goldie: (Shetland)
Little Star: (Shetland)
Romeo: (Pinto/Arab cross)
Chic: My Honey’s Dreamgirl (APHA)
Buddy/Trooper: (donkeys)
Lieba: Leave it to Lieba (Haflinger/POA/Random Amish pony cross)
Shadow: EZ Dreamin’ Shadow (Morgan type pony)
HP: O&E’s Little Hot Shot (mini)
MaryAnn: MaryAnn Double A (mini)
Momma: (mini)
Ariel: (mini)
Triton: (mini)
Delilah: (mini)
Sampson: (mini)
Thunder: (best mini ever)
Taz: Westwind Fantastic (POA)
Susie: Westwind Susannah (POA)

Licorice: Westwind Licorice (POA)
Sally: Sailin’ Susie (POA)
Dolly: Westwind Dollybar (POA)
Jenny: Westwind Jenny (POA)
Razzle: JE Chocolate Zipper (POA)
Kid: Oh Kid Oh (POA)
Cinch: (cutest mini ever)

Chevy: EZ For You to Say (POA)
Vegas: EZ On the Eyes (POA)
Gretchen: Dutch Diamond in the Rough (POA)
Pearl: JWW I Am a Bright Girl (POA)
Shadow: Cutie Shadow S (POA)
Cash: Dutch Majorly EZ (POA)
Bling: Dutch Suddenly EZ (POA)
Fancy: EZ On the Paparazzi (APHA)
Cutie: Dutch Major Cutie (POA)
Bibble: Diamonds Make it EZ (POA)
Cher: Dutch Rock N Roll (POA)
Meg: Indys Mega Millions (POA)
Noel:  CV’s Wish Upon a Star (POA)
Giggles: Shez No Kid (POA)
Chip: Nicks Chipped in Chocolate (POA)
Rye: Dutch Rhythm N Blues (POA)
Quincy: PVP Quick Impulse (POA)
Rex: Dutch Respect This Major (POA)
Rev: RT Review My Spots (AQHA)
Maverick: REI Zipped in Gold (APHA)
Buddy: It Ain’t EZ (POA)
Sammy: Suddenly Sammy (POA)
Itty Bitty: Westwind Super Dream (POA)
Bebe: Dutch Black Beauty (POA)
Ella: Ella Enchanted (POA)
Daisy: Skip A Pulse (POA)
Levi: Super Dream Pants (POA)

Cotton: One Night Stand (POA)
Zippy: Country Time Zippo (AQHA)
Oscar: And the Oscar Goes To (APHA)
Koda: Peridots Colonel Zip (APHA)
Donkey: (donkey)
Sassy: (mini)
Heiress: BEA Night Heiress (AHA)
Cooper: DLS Dudes Coop (POA)
Darla: Bonanza Skipper Darla (POA)
Luna:  Majorly Kidding (POA)
Gracie: (pony)
Chance: REI Cadburys Bonanza (APHA)

Saam: Suddenly All About Me (POA)

Ellie: Maid Ya A Dream (ApHC)

Ace: Gettin Shameless (AQHA)
China: Maid of Copper (ApHC)
Coupe: PS Hes Got the Goods (AQHA)
Kuzco: Jamaican Double Dutch (POA)

There are quite a few on that list that we still know where they are and get updates on them and their new families.  But there are a couple on the list I would love to hear about and miss.  If you know of a former horse/pony or own a former horse/pony of ours, don’t be afraid to check in and share how they are doing.  We love updates!  Share pics in the comments if you can.  

Merry Christmas!

Greetings Friends and Family!

Time for the annual Christmas letter.  I’m going to work Tim into this whole Christmas card/letter thing slowly, so no shenanigans this year.  Just a boring old letter.  But don’t you DARE put your letter down because our lives are so fascinating it is worth a read.  (OR just humor me and pretend we are cool.)

So… let’s see.  Well, nothing much happened this year for the girls and I.  I only met the man of my dreams, got engaged, moved to St Charles and the girls switched schools.  But hey - nothing major happened. (insert winky face here)  Quite honestly, 2016 has been a whirlwind and we have so much to talk about!

Tim and I started dating in March.  No, we did not meet on sixthgradeteachers.com, but yes, we are both sixth grade teachers.  And yes, we did meet online. Hey - maybe we should start a teachersonly.com.  Goodness knows only teachers are crazy enough to date other teachers.  Tim also refs basketball, football and volleyball.  I’m sure over the years I have seen him dozens of times and maybe even yelled at him or called him names.  Luckily I didn’t make enough of a butt of myself that he remembers me.  Whew!  However, even as his fiance I’m not afraid to point out when I think he’s not making the right call.  He always seems to have a reply though or a threat to kick me out of the game.  You’d think by now he would have learned that I view threats as a challenge.

The girls and I moved to St Charles to join Taylin, Carter and Tim towards the end of June.  It has been quite a change for everyone.  Tim, Taylin and Carter had to learn to live with a neat freak.  It isn’t easy living with me, especially for a trio of proud collectors.  But they accepted us with open arms, smiles and joy and we are one big, happy and slightly crazy family today.  It took many loads to Salvation Army and Goodwill, and by loads, I mean truck and trailer loads (not trunk full) but we managed to whittle down two households of stuff into one.  Hopefully we won’t be missing anything other than Libby’s copy of the original Pete’s Dragon that she has been whining about.  How was I to know she was emotionally attached to a VCR tape?

My girls had to learn about big families.  We’ve gone from holiday and family gatherings of 12 (including us) to holiday and family gatherings of 30 or more.  We are so blessed to be a part of a fun loving and close family that welcomed us all with open arms.  Carter and Tay have had to learn about horses and the giant time suck that they are.  But so worth it as any of my horse crazy friends and family will understand.

It has been a challenge to have 4 kids all in the upper grades and all so active in activities.  We love it!  Keeps us on our toes and despite synchronizing our schedules/calendars (really Tim - it’s almost 2017, time to ditch the paper calendar), we still have to daily figure out who is going where and how everyone is getting home.  Taylin, Sophie and Carter are currently full swing in their basketball season.  Sophie and Tay are also balancing the start of a JO volleyball season which will carry through until spring.  Sophie, Taylin and Libby all recently performed at the DE musical, The Wizard of Oz.  Thank you to all the friends and family that attended their performances.   Even though we are in the depths of winter now, we know that spring will be here before we know it.  Spring brings track season, softball season, more riding and horse shows and more. Good thing we love busy.  

Libby got her license this year and Carter completed driver’s training so will be driving soon as well.  Good thing to have more chauffeurs to get everyone to and from where they need to go.  Libby has kept busy working at Graham’s Arena and riding and working with our own horses as well.  She also helps out at the Village Square when she can. Tim continues to milk, ref, coach, teach and I’m pretty sure “save the world” might be one of the tasks on his to do list.  We have a pretty high opinion of him at our house.  I’m still teaching at FC and waitressing at the Village.  I’m also quite sure that “picking up of all random things” is one of my job titles, at work and at home.  

For the horse loving folks, we currently have 4 horses, but we can’t say we have a horse of a different color.  We have a bay (Ace), another bay (China), a bay WITH a blanket (Kuzco) and a palomino (Coupe); all under the age of 4.  We do have a couple breeds represented though.  We have a POA (Pony of America), appaloosa, and 2 quarter horses that will also be registered as a palomino and a pinto.  We hope to be ready to hit the SEMSCA show circuit this May and get to as many shows as possible.  Hopefully with less rainouts, rain delays and general mucky mess.  

Well, I am sure there is more I could say, never been at a loss for words myself, but I had better wrap it up before I bore you all to tears (and run out of room). Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays from our house to yours.  

Tim, Melissa, Libby, Carter, Sophie and Taylin

Laundry

There is no such thing as being caught up on laundry.  Especially when you have a teenager, or three.  But I'm blessed with Libby.  She does all her own laundry.  At least I got it right with one of them.  I don't know where I have failed with the others.  But hey - I'm not taking all the blame for Tay and Carter and there has to be hope yet.

1.  Inside out?  I'd be so happy with inside out.  Why can't the children take their clothes off without balling them into a little wad.  I keep threatening to leave them like that so that they can learn.  When they get their clothes back dirty, moldy and wet, would they learn?  No.  I'd just have more damn laundry to do.  It's not just a random sock here or there.  Every. Single. Pair. Of Jeans.  The other day it was a tshirt and a sweatshirt that were pulled off together.  Of course they were inside out, with the sleeves still balled up inside.  Sigh.

2.  Yep.  And still wadded up with the legs inside each other.  How is this even possible?

3.  Have you ever washed a bouncy ball?  I have.  And I dried it.  Guess what?  Bouncy balls do not pass harmlessly through dryers.  That was an expensive $.25 bouncy ball.

4.  AND of course this.  And it doesn't have to touch a person.  Sometimes we just don't want to put them away so they go straight from the clean clothes to the dirty clothes.  That's fair, right?

Thank goodness Tim helps with the laundry.  Coming home tonight I was wrapping up some odd jobs and went to pull a load out of the dryer.  And it was not only dry, not only taken out of the dryer, not only folded, but put away.  I'm still recovering from the shock.  

But we do have one thing that we don't see quite eye to eye on.  Help me out here.  Sometimes you wear clothes for only a short time so they aren't dirty enough to put in the laundry.  What do you do with these clothes?  I put them back in my closet.  Tim throws them on the floor.  *shudder*  I guess we need a chair.  (Still shuddering)

Winning an argument with a flourish

The other day Tim and I were having one of our “deep” conversations and I asked him if he thinks it is weird that we haven’t had a real argument yet.  We disagree on things but typically it’s kind of ridiculous and we end up laughing about it.

For example:  

Tim has been having muscle cramps so he talks about eating more bananas.  I tell him that’s an old wives tale.  That he needs more water and more potassium, but that bananas aren’t the best source.  He goes to try to prove me wrong and googles it (insert eye roll here) and finds an article that says they are good for preventing muscle cramps.  So of course I have to google him back with several articles. He diplomatically points out that each article says that bananas are a good source of potassium and that they can help prevent cramps. So I clarify, pointing out an article that says, “For a week you would need to stock up with more 10-12 bunches of bananas. You would be competing with Curious George in banana consumption to keep your daily allowance satisfied." Of course he has to come back with how he loves Curious George.  At this point it is game on and the game must be won through humor and sarcasm.  So I hit him with three memes.  

His response is that I’m so funny.  So I hit him with another.

To which he responds something about me being amazing.

Last response was just “hurry home”.  Melissa for the win.

Now… in all seriousness, we are going on 9 months without an actual argument to speak of.  Both Tim and I have talked about it.  We know that at some point we are going to disagree on something that is a big deal and probably going to have words.  I mean, it’s inevitable, right?  

But I have to say, that there is something completely different being in a relationship at our age. A person has learned so much. You learn what is important, and it isn't winning an argument. (For all my teasing earlier.) It isn't all about never challenging your partner either. It's about being able to listen to each other's viewpoint knowing that no matter win or lose, the important thing is that your partner feels that their opinion is valued and considered. And you sure learn to balance what is a big deal and what isn't. And of course it helps that Tim has the patience of a saint.

What the heck MN?

What the heck Minnesota?  Really?  Why do I live in this state?!  I’m not sure some of my friends from southern locations can fully appreciate what Minnesotans go through.  A month ago we were having a beautiful fall.  The temps still reached the 50’s and even a couple of days in the 60’s.  We all knew winter was coming, it is inevitable.  But we blissfully went about our lives pretending that maybe this would be one of those freak years where we got a reprieve from the bitterness for a while longer.

Then December rolled around.  The weird thing, as I see it, is that Minnesota didn’t warm us up to the idea that we live in hell.  It just drop kicked us into late January after Indian summer.  Now that just doesn’t seem fair.  Ambient (and I only know that word because of this damn cold) temps aren’t making it out of the single digits and windchills are stuck in the negative, up to -30 some mornings. My students haven’t been outside for recess in days and I’m sick of the boots and wet feet smell in the hallway. Another round of snow (it snowed every day last week) is set to hit us Friday and last into Saturday.  Another 6 - 9 inches are expected Friday.  I’m sure that we need it because the 8-12 we got last weekend wasn’t enough of a snow pack for good old Santa to land his sleigh.  

BUT… I’m always working on seeing the positive side, so I’m going to play a little game called “finding the good”.

The bad: We are getting more snow tomorrow and into the weekend.  The good: It’s pretty?

The bad: The wind chills are in the double digits below zero.  The good: Shivering burns calories.

The bad: It easily takes 10 minutes just to get extra gear on to walk from the house to my car INSIDE the garage.  The good: I discovered a scarf I forgot I had.

The bad: Everything freezes.  Everything.  Water bottles, water buckets at the barn, snot, eyelashes, breath…  The good: Everything freezes.  Even dog poop - easier to pick up and doesn’t smell.

The bad: Driving in crappy weather conditions is now the norm.  Ice, blowing, drifting, etc…  The good: It’s pretty?

The bad: Chapped lips, chapped hands, chapped face, wind burn.  The good: I now smell like scented lotion and chapstick 24/7.

The bad: I’m so cold all the time that I constantly have to be wrapped in a blanket.  Even at work.  The good: I’m getting plenty of use of all the blankets we own that don’t get used in the summer.

The bad: It’s too cold to ride.  The good: The horses aren’t wasting calories they need to stay warm.

I know there are positives to winter.  My favorite holiday of all time is in winter, and snow does make the Christmas lights sparkle.  Some people love snow sports however, my favorite snow sport is racing to get inside as soon as possible.  There is an excuse to drink hot chocolate.  Movies and book nights are a lot easier to explain and who doesn’t love snuggling under a quilt?  But me, not being a big fan of this fourth Minnesota season, I’m counting the days until spring.  

Good News/Bad News

So I’ve debated about sharing this blog for a couple of days because it isn’t exactly “feel good” in many ways.  But it is real life, and that is something I’ve always tried to keep my blog about.  If you’re looking for a “feel good” funny blog, this one may not be for you.

Does anyone else break bad news with the old “do you want the good news or the bad news” trick?  It’s an old standby of mine.  People always want the bad news first.  Weird.  Well, the other day I had to pull it out again.  While driving home from work on Saturday, Little Red (as we have dubbed the Sentra) apparently rusted through a muffler.  So my version of good news was that the bad news was the muffler had issues.  The good news was that the car now sounds bad ass and much hipper than before.  I don’t think Tim agreed with me.

A couple days pass and Tim gets home from milking in the morning after taking Little Red.  He comes in with his version of good news/bad news.  I don’t like his, his is bad news/worse news.  So his worse news was that Little Red was now sporting a leaking tire.  And the bad news was a headlight was out too.  My first reaction was “when will we catch a damn break”.  And then we both went about our morning and the mad rush to get ready.  

When going to leave I stopped by our room to say goodbye and found him folding laundry.  (Yes - he is a unicorn and yes I am keeping him.) I could tell he was worrying.  I had just spent a sleepless night worrying about money and we had talked the next morning about how worrying wasn’t going to fix or change anything.  So I knew what he was worrying about.  As I hugged him to leave I whispered in his ear that the only bad news he could ever give me was that he was leaving me.  His response was that would never happen. So my reply was, “see, no bad news.  The rest is all just news.”

I said that to make him feel better.  But the reality is, as soon as the words left my mouth, I felt a weight lift off my shoulders.  I had finally spoken my truth.  What I believe in my heart.  All the other stuff I had been worrying about; this whole court nonsense, the financial stuff, the problems with the car… it’s all just stuff.  

Think about it.  My family and friends are happy and healthy.  I have amazing, talented, funny, sweet kids.  I have the most loving, courageous and kind fiance.  We have food on our table and a roof over our heads, clothes to wear and clean water to drink.  All the rest is just stuff.  I know this!  Why do I need to remind myself sometimes?  Money isn’t going to make us and sure as heck isn’t going to break us.  Not when we have love in our hearts and in each other.  Just needed a reminder of how blessed I really am I guess.  That’s the truly good news.  

Happy Anniversary!

The other day (probably like a month ago - but in my world “the other day” can mean any time from yesterday to two years ago), someone’s status on Facebook was a list of the important dates in their relationship with their significant other.  I had a little chuckle to myself as their list looked like a typical relationship with varying dates from varying years.  I imagined Tim and my list to myself.

First met: March 2, 2016

First date: March 7, 2016

First family date: March 22, 2016

First family holiday with in-laws: March 27, 2016

Move in together: June 2016

Engaged: June 28, 2016

First dance: August 20, 2016

Married: January 20, 2018 (still to come…)

Etc…

I know there truly isn’t any such thing as “typical” when talking relationships in this day and age.  I saw a meme back when I realized I was going to be dating again that pretty much sums it up.  

I talked about this with a friend going through dating woes one day too.  At our age we don’t want to waste time.  People are looking for that instant connection and impatient for it.  Clocks ticking and time becomes a very real thing after 30, but even more so after 40.  But some of us weren’t looking for another relationship.  You could say I had had enough of relationships for a while.  I was looking for fun and meeting lots of people.  But my heart had very different ideas.  Again, a simple meme pretty much sums it up.  

Why did he have to be so perfect?  God knows.  And I’m not using slang.  Only God knows why he waited to put this perfect man into my life.  But when you know, you know.  And neither of us wanted to waste one more minute waiting for our lives together to start.  There are people who will never understand and others who don’t really care to, but I love us.  Our timeline may not be typical, but it’s us and ours and I love it.  I have a framed quote in our bedroom that says “Every love story is beautiful, but ours is my favorite.”  It couldn’t be more true.

Various news sources give advice on what not to put on Facebook about your relationship. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry/10-things-you-should-never-post-about-your-relationship-on-facebook_us_56819133e4b06fa68880d067   One of the things it warns against is lovey dovey, gushy posts, and I quote “your Facebook friends are probably just rolling their eyes”.  Well, my Facebook friends (and my kids) are just going to have to suck it up, scroll past and deal.  Because I’m not going to stop declaring and sharing my love, happiness and excitement.  And quite frankly, I hope I set an example for others to share.  Maybe if we shared more love and were happy for others more instead of rolling our eyes, we could turn Facebook around a bit.  Less hate and more love can’t be a bad thing in my book.  

With that said, happy 8th month anniversary honey.  Best 8 months of my life and looking forward to many more years together.  You have been a blessing not only to me, but my girls as well.  We are so lucky to have you in our lives.  You are my happy.

PS - For the record, I 100% agree with almost every other aspect of that article.  Especially posting unflattering pics of me.  That would create a war he wouldn’t win….