Cinnamon Sticks GUEST GROSGRAIN GIVEAWAY!!!!

Cinnamon Sticks GUEST GROSGRAIN GIVEAWAY!!!!

What a simplistic but fantastic idea!!!

The Fast and The Furious

I'm not repressed, I swear. I just loved the first Fast and Furious movie. The second sucked and the third was kinda cool to watch, but what happened to the cast of the first one that made it so great?

Hehehehehe - another movie is going to be released in a month with the original cast...

I love Vin Diesel.

Paul Walker isn't that too bad on the eyes either, but I'm a Vin Diesel type of girl. I mean seriously, with that name, and that body? Mmmmmmmm....I can't explain it. It's not my fault; it's like some basic animal instinctual thing.

That and I have a penchant for very fast little cars. Combined I could stay entranced for hours...I just want to reach out and touch. Ya know?

My city girl has to come out occasionally.

April 3rd cannot get here fast enough, and if I have to go watch the movie in the theatre by myself I will (but I'm going to do my best to get a date).

I'll be drafting an ad for that date this week...I'd prefer if he looked like Mr. Diesel.

Contest with a Givaway!!!!

Dear readers, I feel you are bored with my posts. I very rarely have many comments. This is my social network! I hope I have not peeved you off in any way. If I have, tough. But here's a fun contest I've been meaning to post for awhile and I hope this makes up for my boring, everyday life.

WE ARE EXPECTING!

Bet that caught some attention eh? No, not me. That requires a man remember, and I don't have one, but Daddy Chex (aka Rumba, the dancing queen) is! This is my fantastic Appendix bred horse that has become a wonderful brood mare due to her penchant to break in half when I ride her. It's said letting them have a foal calms them down and it's extremely true in this situation. In fact, she's so mellow, and since I have plenty of other horses, Rumba is now the perfect mother.

Background Info:

For those of you unfamiliar with horses and their gestation periods, here is a run down of a 'textbook' pregnancy. A mare is pregnant for an average of 340 days. It is not unusual, however, for a mare to foal as early as 300 days, or as late as 370 days. I even know someone who's horse went to day 402 with no problems!

During the last two weeks of pregnancy, the mare's belly will typically appear to drop and then look smaller as the foal gets into a birthing position during the last week. The muscles around her tail will begin to relax also as muscles begin to anticipate the future stretching during birth. Occasionally the tail will 'twitch' to the side as well. Her bag will begin to fill, more full during the night, and drying up a little during the day as she is more active. Within the last 48 hours before foaling the bag will stay full, and waxing often will begin to occur. This is when droplets of milk and colostrum form a waxing covering on the end of each teat. Every mare is different though, so all of the above may be observed or not. Mare's often show signs of discomfort, sweating and kicking or biting at their sides as they go into early stages of labor. A large percentage of foals are born in the early morning hours.

What I already know:

Rumba was pasture bred with her previous foal, so I did not have a good due date - but from what I did know is she was average, probably foaling between day 335 and 350.

I saw little evidence of her milk coming in until the last few days, and her bag was never completely full until she actually foaled. There was, however, a little waxing the night before.

She showed signs of discomfort the evening before and though her belly had done the classic drop and suck back up, she dropped extremely low the night before, and her muscles were extremely relaxed around her tail.

Her foal was born between 3 and 5:30 am.

She was bred April 12th - 15th, 2008 with this foal. If you calculate from that last day bred (assuming that's the day she became pregnant and not on day 1) day 340 would be March 20th, 2009.

Her belly is incredibly distended and hanging very low. She dropped this last weekend after I moved her into a better pasture for foaling.

I see no sign of any milk coming down.

"What? Are you talking about me?"

What you need to do:

1 - Pick her due date!

2 - Pick a time period (12am - 6am; 6am- 12pm; 12pm-6pm; 6pm-12am) when you think she will foal!

To get you started this is what I think - March 18th @ 12am to 6am - but I am not counting myself as part of the contest, so don't worry!

I will be giving away something fun to the winner! I've been trying to be creative lately so maybe perhaps I will make you something!

If you are a reader of my blog, but aren't a blogger, just e-mail me your answers and I'll post them for you!

I will keep the contest open until the end of next week as I'm going on Spring Break and probably won't be checking or updating the blog during the week of her anticipated due date. As soon as I'm back around a computer I'll give you all an update!

Sunday Laundry Shirt Dress GIVEAWAY!!!!

Sunday Laundry Shirt Dress GIVEAWAY!!!!

I am in LOVE with this dress! I want to win it!!!!
If you've never checked out this site before do so - this woman is amazing!

Good Day Sunshine

Oh My God was the weather beautiful this weekend. I mean tank top, soak in some sun, enjoy the great outdoors, beautiful!!!

Sorry no pics from this all as I was WAY TOO BUSY enjoying it!!!!

Quick run down of the weekend:

Friday Night - Enjoyed some liquid refreshments at my girlfriend's house. It was EXACTLY what I needed after the busy week I had!

Saturday - Was up early! Made breakfast for my friends at above mentioned girlfriend's house, cleaned out my chicken coop, discovered they had been laying WAAAAAYYYY up in the corner and had to toss a bunch of rock hard frozen eggs out (but yeah! they are laying again!!!), re-stretched my fences and saddled up Charlie.

Ponied Rebel out to my neighbor's field since we decided we needed to catch that pesky cow with the wire and rope wrapped around her leg. Loped around a bit looking for her, got her spotted, made a loop in my rope and cut her out...Charlie was doing great tracking her when I finally saw my opening. As she cut to the right I reached and threw the rope - exactly at the same time Charlie decided he didn't want to do this anymore and took the bit, ducked his head and gave a tremendous buck. I landed on the saddle horn and as he left the ground again I baled off since I was practically laying on his neck. I swear my brain hit my skull. Of course he just stood there so after we had a little 'talk' I got back after that cow and he was awesome. We've been having some bit issues and I really need to try something new - now. At least according to my still black and blue pelvis and inner thigh...and the whiplash....and sore shoulder where I slammed into the ground.

I basically was out for the rest of the day after we caught the cow and got the stuff off her legs. Obviously she could still run. By the way - I had to turn Charlie over to my neighbor after I threw and missed about 4 times. By then the stupid cow was just barely trotting around and it still took him 6 tries. BUT he complimented how awesome Charlie was! So I don't know what his big problem was. Maybe he was just feeling like he had to try and test me or something.

Sunday - Ground drove Maggie as she's going to learn to pull a cart next week! Took the dogs out, moved the mares to pasture so Rumba can get comfortable with it before she foals, and brought in a colt to work for my neighbor.

At 7:30, as I was getting out of a long needed shower my Carbon Monoxide detector went off. Huh? I re-set it and waited and sure enough, 4 minutes later is started to sound again so I called the Fire department and asked them to come check my levels. When I called the Realtors they said they'd had some faulty ones and to follow up with them. Well, I had CO in the house from that hot water heater that keeps blowing out. I keep in on low, but when I had turned it up, the exhaust is not drafting correctly and the levels were extremely high. The good thing is when I keep it closed up I have no raised levels in the house, the other good thing is it's getting fixed today.

Look for an upcoming contest!!!!

Ode to the Denim Skirt or
Why I Don't Dress Up or

Show Some More Leg!!!

(and why I don't write poetry)

I found you

On the clearance rack

The price was such a steal

I snagged you up and brought you home

I still can't believe the deal

With a sweatshirt

With a sweater

A sash tied round my waist

A button down or tank top

You went with anything

My boots looked great

beneath you hem

Winter, Spring and Fall

You made my wardrobe incredibly complete

The most versatile item of all

But then one

Bright, sunny afternoon

When heading home from work

While hitching up a trailer

Your side split wide open, dear skirt

There's reasons why

Cowgirls don't wear skirts

And this lesson goes to prove

When dressing up to show some leg

Be careful how you move!

R.I.P Denim Skirt!

And for a close up:

Oh how I crack myself up...

Ask Danielle...

I'm afraid I'm on my soapbox this morning. Question number one of the day (question number two is a happy one):

Why keep animals, especially dogs, if all they are is a lawn ornament?

I was woken up this morning by INSISTENT barking by one of my neighbors dogs. This is not the same dog I'm going to shoot, but rather an elderly, gentle, very sweet German Shepherd mix who is tied to the same post day in and day out and who has no contact with people other to be fed and watered. I talk to her while doing chores in the morning while she sits there and wags her tail. It's probably the most attention she gets each day.

If my dogs are barking non stop I want to know why. And if there is no good reason? I tell them to be quiet. Because of this they don't bark except to give warning when someone pulls up and then it's just a bark or two and they are done. I often get concerned if it continues. At 5am this morning when said neighbor's dog barked for an hour and a half did anyone come out to tell her to hush, see what was wrong, etc? No. Did I get up amongst my dog's protesting that they could not sleep any longer? Yes. Was there anything wrong? No. Or I'm sure one of my dogs would have let me know.

I also brush my dogs every few days, let them run, take them for walks and up to the mountains, let them ride in the truck, sleep at the foot of the bed and generally just love them as the great companions they are. Are they well behaved? Other that a little sassiness every now and then; they are extremely well behaved because I've spent a lot of time with them to train them to be that way.

Is said neighbor's dog well behaved? I'd say yes, probably because it's just in her nature, but she has got to learn some manners, and her owners need to seriously either find a home where she will be loved on (as cats, little dogs, big dogs and mostly all people have been put on this earth for her to wag her tail at and snuggle against), or spend some time with her. I feel so bad for her that it makes me feel guilty when I'm swearing at her at 5am in the morning.

What is so great about spring in the SLV?

For starters I always HATED spring until I moved here. Usually it is mushy, wet, yucky, icky, overcast and downright disgusting in Michigan. Here it is sunny, slightly damp, warm and breezy (ok - downright windy). But the point is it isn't gross.

It's amazing how quickly we've slipped into spring here. I only have to fill the woodstove once an evening and not at all during the day. I don't mind if the hose freezes each night because it thaws during the day. I don't need to keep a bulb in the pump house. My chickens are thinking of laying again. I don't freeze if I don't put a coat on to go to work. And I can sit on the porch each night and take in the inky blackness of the sky and the pinpricks of billions of stars as my dogs run around before we go to bed.

Spring is here!

Some other things to look forward to:

The endless fields of wild iris that will shortly be in bloom:

The fuzzy orange baby cranes going for strolls with their mums and dads:

"Stand tall for the lady, junior. Don't slouch"

Lazy Sunday

Well - nobody wanted my free stuff, so I closed comments and only one person it getting something. I'm assuming this isn't a real poplar 'tag' per se, but it's simple and fun! C'mon people! Where's your sense of adventure?! I was digging into homemade candles and good books this weekend in anticipation!

Anywho - helped load 7 tons (yes, 14,000 lbs) of hay Saturday, worked some horses, made myself a steak and potato dinner and crashed. I was supposed to rope down a cow who has a bit of wire twisted around her leg Sunday for a neighbor, but he called it off at noon as his girlfriend was being a pain and 'needed' him to spend time with her. Oh well. Wire cuts off circulation of cow leg = costly. Girlfriend mad = priceless? Why date someone who doesn't get what you do for a living? I don't get it and I could write a book about these gals everyone seems to choose over me, but I'm not going to go there right now. I KNOW my problem: I don't NEED a man - I just want one. Funny how that works in being passed over.

Since the wind kicked up some I used it as an excuse to clean house, brush horses, take the dogs for a walk, read and grade papers. Weather here is 'falling' into spring fast. Nights are double digits and days are hitting in the 50's. I'm so glad. It was a mild winter and early spring, but if it had been like last year I don't even want to speculate on all the other problems that would most likely would have happened. Everyone was pretty lazy as the as the afternoon wore on as the following candids show:

This is bunni's favorite spot; hanging off the windowsill. She's getting big and is extremely affectionate.

Wrigley is healing up fast! He's such a trooper.

He loves to lay in front of the woodstove. He's layed claim to the little carpet I use to catch the ashes on.

Maggie and Rumba bask in the warm spring sun. After I took this picture I went and laid on top of Maggie. She loves me to lay on her back and scratch her neck. She's such a good girl.
Charlie and Rebel wanted to see what was up too as I took pictures. Charlie got some lovin' too, but Rebel isn't too sure about being touched while he's laying down. He'd rather stand up and stick his nose in my chest. You can really see how big he is laying next to Charlie (the one one the right). Charlie is a rather large (15 hand) appendix, who is built like a brick ****house, and Rebel rivels both his height and girth. Don't mind my fences, they need to be re-stretched! What you lookin' at?

Dixie helping with the papers.

Out cold. That's what grading papers makes me feel like too. Can you believe she sleeps like that?

Free!!!

Totally forgot to post this! Busy and have a head cold...great combo - Got the idea from Alanna and decided to participate! Way fun!

The first FIVE people to respond to this post will get something from me!

My choice. For you.

This offer does have some restrictions and limitations:

1- I make no guarantees that you will like what I do, but I'll try!
2- It'll be done this month.
3- You have no clue what it's going to be. It may be makeup, shoes, bags, or a little invention of my own! I may draw or paint something. I may bake you something. I might send you a dust bunny from under the bed. Who knows? Not you, that's for sure!

Here's the catch - you must re-post this on your blog and offer the same to the first 5 people who do the same on your blog. Be sure to post a picture of what you win from me when you get it!

If you are one of my 5 and you know I don't have your e-mail address or snail-mail address please e-mail it! The link is on the left!

Life's Funny Like That!

This is for Debby on her last day of chemo!

You Rock!

And because we all need some laughs...

New Look

Thought it was time for my own look. With all that's been going on with me, I've been spending a lot of time just re-assessing who I really am, and who and what doesn't need to be a part of my life anymore. It's been refreshing!

I'm going to change the look of my header from time to time using my own photography. This is yet another thing that seems to have fallen to the wayside and I'm not going to let it anymore.

So I had a fun 3 day, men -bashing, v-day weekend! It wasn't so men-bashing as originally planned, since I hung out with guys as much as I did the girls, but we dubbed them honorary gals for the weekend anyway as long as they didn't cause any drama.

Friday evening started rough when I arrived home from a long day to find an antagonizing note on my door. I didn't let it get to me, but the longer I thought about it the more upset I was. I was at my friend's parent's house when the guy down the road stopped by and told me I was going to the bar. I haven't been to the bar here in 2 years and said no. I ended up going (twist my arm!) and had a blast! I ran into a colleague's son and we danced all night. I haven't done that in OVER 2 years (no, I'm not getting old, I've been repressed).

Saturday I chilled with the gals. I was a bit wore out from the night before and called it in pretty early, but was up Sunday in the mountains with a guy friend getting some dry wood for the woodstove and tooling around on the Ranger. I took the dogs with me and they had a blast! It was a beautiful day! I ended it by taking my friend's son to the Sand Dunes pool to soak in the hot water.

The Twin Peaks - Two 14er's I look out to from my house. Though we're about 20 miles closer and about 2,000 feet higher here!

Wrigley had to ride with me as he couldn't keep up! I took the last of his stitches out last night and had to open up a few of his scabs so he could keep draining (I know, gross, but it's either that or he gets sick) Yes - I got a little sunburned and it's not the most flattering picture but we were having fun!

Maverick and Dixie tearing it up in the tracks going up the Mountain! They were so excited to chase rabbits and bark at the coyotes they saw up there!

I spent my Monday off working horses. Maggie has been coming along great and I'm going to teach her how to drive a cart also. I decided it was time for Rebel to take a saddle. He's been so good, I put a surcingle on him last week and cinched him up tight and turned him loose to get out all the bucks, kicks and snorts - and then just get used to having something around him - but he just looked at it, looked at me, and went back to grazing. Little snot! I left it on him for an hour and he never did anything. So this weekend he only tried to eat the saddle and could have cared less how many times I lifted it up, set it on his back and took it back off. SO I cinched him up. I figured SOMETHING had to give and he'd freak about the scary stirrups banging around his belly, but he tried to eat those too. He wasn't too sure about being ponied by Charlie at first, but after about 15 minutes he was an old pro off both sides and would pace his walk and trot to Charlie's pace. I'm positive he's a keeper now (like there was ever any doubt with his breeding). I swear that barrel saddle was made for him and he's not even a full 2-year old yet! Yes, he's going to have some size to him! He's out of Pat Cohen breeding on top and Doc Bar and Sunfrost on bottom. His disposition is to kill for.

Please remember to support our fundraiser if you can! Our outreach is starting to work and the taste results are coming in! Everyone wants to go back for more! Just be sure to follow the directions!

Friday the 13th. Seems Fitting...

...for good reasons. Namely because it isn't special to me...ever. And it's kinda lonely. It's okay if you like it though, I just don't.

I get to watch little broken hearts today in my classes as roses and candy are passed out and they didn't get any.

I want to tell them it's okay. I never did either.

Thursday Update!

Real quick - it's been a crazy week! But I'd like to cover a few things. For starters Wrigley is getting the drain tubes out tonight. Maverick has cleaned him up real well where he couldn't reach the wounds, and that has helped things scab over. Stitches still need to stay in for another week, but we're doing good! Haven't seen the other dog, but I know they are letting him out at night unsupervised and when I catch him in front of my house I'm going to shoot him. Dixie always let's me know when he's out there - she's such a good dog.

Please support our fundraiser if you can! If not - forward it on to other's who might enjoy this item! It really is quality! Make sure to add "Go Farmer's" in the message box when checking out!

Also - as a wildland firefighter I cannot ignore what has been happening in Australia. Horrible bush fires have been ripping through parts of their country leaving behind hundreds of dead people and animals. To top this all off there has also been horrible flooding. I posted the following pics off Bush Babes blog. Those of you who can make donations to Red Cross for fire and flood relief, please do. Many Australians have provided support for us through many of our fire seasons, including California last summer.

My Class Fundraiser

As a teacher I am often asked to sponsor MANY, MANY things...one being a class. Every class is responsible for different events each year and spend a lot of time raising money for Prom during their Junior year. As a small rural community bordering 2 other school districts (and 5 potato fields) we basically have 'fundraised' the area out by Winter Break. This lead me to try and come up with unique and new ideas for fundraising that would reach a large amount of people with the least amount of work on our behalf. Please follow the directions to support the Sargent Class of 2011!!! I'd like to note this stuff is amazing!!!

This will be running through the end of May, so order as many times as you like for holidays, birthdays, 'just 'cause gifts', making sure you follow the directions posted below. We appreciate everyone's help in supporting our class!

When you make a purchase at http://www.englishtoffeeanytime.com/, a generous portion of the purchase is donated to the Sargent Jr./Sr. High School Class of 2011!!!

1. Go to www.englishtoffeeanytime.com and choose either milk chocolate, dark chocolate or white satin almond toffee by clicking on the appropriate button.

2. Select either the 8 ounce or 16 ounce size.

3. Go to check out and enter your credit card and shipping information.

THE NEXT STEP IS EXTREMELY IMPORTANT!!!

4. Enter the Fund Raiser Code "Go Farmers" in the space provided for a ‘Special Message to Friend or Loved One'. DO NOT enter the Fund Raiser code in the space for coupon numbers! You may also include a message for your loved one or friend and the "Go Farmers" will be edited out of the message.

5. Complete the check out process.

Your order will be acknowledged by e-mail and the toffee will be shipped according to your instruction in the order. Forty percent (40%) of each purchase, excluding the cost of shipping and handling, will be forwarded to the Sargent Jr./Sr. High School Class of 2011 to support their activities.

To insure that your purchase arrives at the appropriate time, please allow for 3 to 5business days for shipping.

Wrigley Update

Wrigley has 17 stitches and 2 tubes running from his spine and shoulder for drainage. With care and antibiotics he should be alright, but I have him with me at school so he can get his medication. Hopefully we won't be back to the vets until late next week, but I'm not liking a site that isn't draining right and am going to try to get it to drain on my own if it doesn't by this evening.

State law in CO is I have a right to shoot the dog. I don't have to poison him or anything and Animal Control only come out if I ask. Though I do like the anti-freeze idea, I don't want any other animals to get into to, like my cats, or their other dog who is a really sweet old dog - or even one of mine.

Aggressive dogs truly aren't to blame. It's their owners who have not conditioned them correctly. I don't believe any one breed is more aggressive than another - it is how they are raised. I have seen 'family' breeds, such as collie's attack people, and Rottweiler's and Doberman be the most gentle animal with children ever (Dixie is half Rott and is more gentle with kids than most people I know - she's even had fingers poked up her butt if that explains exactly how gentle she is).

Despite having talked with the owner's in-laws multiple times about the dog, the actual owner was unaware of the severity of the situation and was appalled to hear how aggressive his dog has become. He adopted the dog and has only had it for 9 months so essentially he's still learning a lot about the animal. He would not agree to put it down however, and we discussed if he truly wanted this liability. He wants to try and contain the animal, and I understand his viewpoint, but did tell him that the next attack will involve my shotgun and the police. He was very decent about everything and said the vet bill would be paid and he took full responsibility for the dog's behavior.

It helped I had a witness who was a big guy who had known the owner for years - everyone was calm and relaxed and I simply stated my case and showed Wrigley to him. My witness also commented on how aggressive he had seen the dog be on the few times he was over. It helped a lot to prove my case. I should be a lawyer, sneaky me.

Anyway - I'm not getting what I want, namely the dog dead. BUT, the owner is aware and so are the police. There was no altercations, which makes me happy, and I haven't even heard nor seen the dog since. I just hope there are no more problems, at least concerning me.

Thanks for the good thoughts -

Shotgun or Poison?

That dog next door attacked Wrigley this morning. All the puncture wounds missed anything important, so now we're watching to make sure he doesn't go toxic from swelling. Vet thinks he got extremely lucky the bites are around his shoulders. It was like watching somebody pick my child up and shake it and then throw it on the ground. That's what this dog did.

I got no apologizes as the 'owner' wasn't home. I told his in-laws to let him I'd like to know exactly who is responsible for the dog. I didn't shoot it right away because we share the same rental land, but I sure as hell spoke with the police this morning and there is going to be an itemized bill for all my loss - chickens, vet bill, taking off work, etc...

I'm no longer the nice neighbor. And Animal Control told me I have every right to do away with the dog as I wish. I'm just scared to do anything because I don't want them to go after anything of mine so I'm going to try and talk with the owner first.

Please pray Wrigley's okay.

The Gnomes Hate Me!!! and Other Adventures...

Part 1

Um -yeah - I didn't get much done this weekend. Well, I did technically, just not what I needed or wanted to get done. I did get my wood cut (cause I HAVE to) and I did get the pictures at school, but that's about it from my list. I did set up an appointment for the farrier - FINALLY!


I woke up at about 4:30 Saturday morning and couldn't sleep. Since I had so much I wanted to get done this weekend, plus grade school projects, I decided that I could start a load of laundry and read a little for some downtime. That's when I discovered this:


What is that?


Oh - I see...it's a broken pipe in my wall. Fun.


So that took up my morning instead - finding it that is, not fixing it. Then I was asked to help move cattle. I figured why not, since I could get at least one horse exercised...but only if they could help me fix the pipe. But that didn't happen until Sunday unfortunately - though it was an easy and quick, cheap fix. PVC is cheap and all I had to do was cut it and glue it back on with pipe glue and connectors. I think it cost all of $5 and I have 9 1/2 feet left for future projects.

So by Sunday late morning I started a load of laundry. The washer filled up fine, but then everything stopped. Huh? So I get to messing around...but what is that I see on the carpet creeping out from under the washer? Water! Is it my drain? Is it froze? No. Hmmmmmm.....So I have to run the whole cycle through to get the water out so I can tip it up and see. Hmmmmm....water is now POURING from underneath. Oh - maybe it's just the hose has wiggled loose. Easy fix right? Except that's not what it was. Instead I spent about 3 hours laying on wet towels I kept layering to soak up the water trying to figure out where the water was. Thank God I'm a problem solver. I found it! The water intake/outtake was cracked. It was SOOOO small, but the plastic was SOOOO thin that it would open up and the close with out pressure behind it. I epoxied it and now tonight I will see if it worked.

Have I mentioned before I need a man? Well, if I haven't let me now...I NEED A MAN TO BE A PLUMBER AND ELECTRICIAN AND ALL THAT OTHER HOUSEHOLD STUFF I HONESTLY DON'T CARE TO LEARN ABOUT!!!! Oh yeah - and to cut the wood to...And I do want a man that will do that stuff. Not actually just pick up the phone and call someone else to do it. Seriously.

In conclusion, the Gnomes hate me. They think I need a man too.

Moving right along....


Part 2
In case you all haven't noticed, I'm much happier lately even with all the 'daily inconsistencies" I experience. Let me explain this as quickly as possible. I have cut every person out of my life that brings me down, completely and equivalently - even if that meant I was losing out on job opportunities and help with rent and wood - things that could be potential stressful situations in and of themselves. Surprisingly enough I feel better than I have in 2 years. Go figure. Maybe it was mostly one person in particular...

So added to my list of things to do were my taxes - something that will help with the stress factor - and I'm happy to say they are FILED!!! Go me!

As usual my place was a zoo on top of everything else this weekend. Here are some candids I managed to catch:

What's that in my sink? Why?


Hey! Cool owl nest in my tree in the yard! Is there something in it? Let's get closer...






Al thinks he's an Owl! Actually, the neighbors dog -I- want -to -do- away -with -and -can't -do- anything- about, chased him up the tree. He liked it up there though! Well, early last week I heard the distinctive call of the Sandhill crane and looked up to see a small flock headed to the Blanca wetlands by my house. They are great indicators of spring, but I had ever seen any so early before. I was hoping they were the start of the migration to the breeding gounds here in the valley, and I was right! Because by this weekend I was seeing and hearing this! Spring has arrived! Yeah!!!

The poultry made it through the worst of the winter even though it's been REALLY mild (30's and 40's during the day in full sunshine and hovering on both sides of 0 at night). I lost two of my best layers to that stupid dog next door. And the rooster sunk into a depression afterwards and stopped eating and crowing and died this weekend. Poor bugger. I really liked him to. Now that spring has arrived they are all starting to exhibit sign of nesting. Hopefully eggs follow soon again! I also lost two guineas, not sure why, but am happy the rest pulled through as they really don't do extreme cold well. There are some frost bit toes, but as this pic show they are getting around just fine!

Things to do...

Find the gnome that keeps blowing out the pilot light in my water heater. Thought it was the wind, but not so much now when it happens 2x a day and there is no wind....stupid little bugger.

Make the chicken pen larger with chicken wire so they can 'free range' over more space, but not actually be in danger of my neighbor's chicken-killing dog (which by the way was missing this morning. I didn't do it, I swear - and I hope it's still gone when I get home today and they don't think I did it - cause I really didn't).

Cut more firewood

Get a farrier out here for my poor horses feeties!

Ride and exercise everyone!

Start the colt I'm breaking in trade for my hay

Clean the dog pen

Borrow a wheelbarrow and clean out the chicken pen

Take pictures for the yearbook of the Varsity B-Ball games Saturday night and Winterfest Dance

Win the lotto

Of course this is all dependant on weather and sanity.

YOUR Solutions!!!

I have the type of skin that's hyper-sensitive to EVERYTHING! I can touch my neck, get a red mark, and then deal with my students going, 'what's that? do you have a hickey?" and then I need to explain how my life is not anywhere near as exciting as that...unfortunately.

The stress from the last 4 months or so has been causing me to break out horribly. I've never been one for perfectly clear skin, but with this clean air and clean water out here I've never had many problems - until now. I know it's the stress, but this is getting ridiculous. I have tried a variety of products, but my problem is that anything that contains harsh chemicals aggravate my skin and make it worse, and anything I've tried naturally (some LUSH products, Neutragena, etc...) work well for a bit, and then it's like my skin becomes immune to it. So I do try and rotate certain things, but I'm getting a bit tired of making an art out of it. I've thought lately of home remedies and things that I can use that aren't going to cost me a billion dollars.

Does anybody have suggestions? I have combo skin. I never know if it will be too dry or too oily. I only use aloe as a moisturizer - everything else causes problems, plus it's soothing. Toners are too harsh. I need a good cleanser/purifier. I cannot use microdermabrasion - it causes my skin to become patchy. I do have a mint julep mask that I like and can use a few times a week also - but I find I really need to stay away from anything that isn't natural.

Help!

Identity Crisis

Make sure you look at who got awards below!

A few of my animals have identity crisis's (that word never does look right to me...)

Maggie the mustang thinks she's a dog. Dixie thinks she's a human. Maverick thinks he's superman. All the barn cats think they're dogs and come when I whistle. Izzy thinks she's a Rottweiler and growls when anyone come to the door. So naturally Wrigley had to find his niche right? He thinks he's a cat:

I'm a cat

I'm a Dog

I'm a cat

He 'problem solves' his way to the top of everything using anything that works as a step. Yes, he's on top of my bookcase sunning himself. That was via the dog bed, via the couch, via the papizan, via the window sill...

The Hamfatter Award

Okay folks - I know not ALL of you think I'm all that funny as I slowly loose my mind, but this here gal does - and has awarded me with the Hamfatter award.

The story behind the award goes something like this: Andrea decided to contemplate on where blog awards came from. Her sister said they were made up. So Andrea decided to make one up, and well, the rest is history because this is what she found out: The word 'ham' originated in the early 1880s from a song called The Hamfat Man. It was a black minstrel song about an awkward man. After that, people would use the term hamfatter when someone was trying too hard to be funny and not succeeding. That was ultimately shortened to the word ham. So she made an award featuring her goat Joe.

Yeah me right? Well, here's the rules:

1. Blog about the Hamfatter award, tell where the name came from (you can copy and paste, that is what I did!!)
2. Post the Hamfatter Award Proudly on your blog!
3. Pick 5 blogs that just make you laugh and link to them in your post!
4. Link back to the person who gave you this hilarious Hamfatter Award!
5. Let your blogger friends know they were awarded a little something!

So here's the 5 blogs I have chosen that make me laugh:

MiKael's Mania - raising horses and being nuts in the beautiful NorthWest! This blogger deals with serious issues daily and sees the humor in everything!

Nearly Green Acres - kids and pigs...need I say more?

Unrefined - work, 2 boys, 2 chihuahuas and an Etsy business...busy gal, but funny stuff when she gets around too it! I actually snorted laughing at a picture of her son while my students were taking a test!

BushBabe - An Australian mother and rancher - finding daily life 'down under' adventurous and funny. Oh yeah, and check out the Mystery Photo Contest!

The Virtual Couch - because she tells it like it is!

Okay - go out and laugh!

Lotto

Just go with me on this...

• I'm broke. Literally. I have $4 in my account until payday. I hope.
• No rich rancher is coming along.
• No really nice guy that likes the same thing I do is coming along.
• I'm stressed too.
• I stay in bed as long as possible each day so I don't have to start the count down to how long I can go until something comes crashing down (unfortunately Wrigley has me up by 6:30 each morning).
• When people say, "you never know what the day might bring..." They aren't kidding - and they obviously haven't met me or they might not use that term so liberally...

SOOOO....I think we need a lotto. I say I choose the categories in my life (teaching, house, livestock, the yearbook and woodstove may count as their own as well...) and we'll place bets on which disaster occurs in which category monthly. Send me $5.00 to get in the pot and we'll 50/50 it at the end of the month...depending on which disaster was the most life altering. If there are ties we'll have a tie-breaker (as I'm sure more than just one disaster will occur in a 30 day period).

I think it would be exciting for you all and would pay my groceries in the least...

What do you say? SEND ME YOUR MONEY!!!!

Update: guys, I have no money yet?! What gives? In response to some e-mails - yes this is a joke!!! No I have not gone off my rocker (though I may be getting close...)!!! But if anyone wants to take it seriously I'd be happy to take any money you have off your hands.

Strike of the Gnomes!

I seriously thought we had reached some sort of truce, especially since all my house plants had froze when the thermal coupler went out and they now had something to do....

I battled frozen pipes to my kitchen sink all day yesterday and as they thawed found out the drain also was frozen. What is so weird though is that it's been WARMER out and not near as cold as it has been!!! AND I always keep the cold on a drip....AND those pipes are tucked up under the house near the heat while the bathroom pipes are along an exposed wall and THOSE didn't freeze. Huh? The gnomes strike again....they were just waiting for me to become more complacent I guess. Also the damper on my wood stove broke and it's brand new. So guess what I'm doing tonight? My God I need a man...

Since my life is going to Hell in a handbasket...why not? Right?

So after hissing and running away from Bunni for a week, then following her around hissing at her, Izzy has decided Bunni is her long lost baby and has totally adopted her. It's hilarious. She tries to carry her around, follows after her 'talking' and giving good motherly advice....at first Bunni was like, 'what the hell?' - but now they sleep together and Bunni subjects herself to long baths from 'mom'. Izzy did that with Wrigley also when he was younger, but he's gotten a bit rambunctious for her lately so I guess she needed a new baby.

The SLV and the Craziness

The craziness first. Sorry - I'm not going into detail, because there is so much and it has made me feel so bad I don't even know where to start. Things are worse at school as I pick up more and more from the teacher that will definitely NOT be here next year. It's bothering me a lot though because I really like her and she was my friend. But mainly we think it's important that the students have learned how to write BEFORE they graduate. Go figure.

Also things are worse on the home front - here's just a brief outline:
harassing e-mails about my ex so when I forwarded them to him he's now mad at me like I did something wrong and I'm tired of getting yelled at, the neighbors dog peeing all over my cut wood for my stove, the neighbors dog attacking a horse while I was on it, the neighbors being dicks about it, my wiener dog getting hurt and that kitten in my house...and that's just the start.

You'd think I would be used to it by now... I can't quite figure out why I don't get a break. Every morning I get up and wonder what will happen today? I should write a book. Seriously. Anybody want to read about the daily strange things that occur. I promise that after a bit I get sarcastic about it all and it's more funny!

So yeah - I'm overwhelmed and pretty much depressed 2009 is not starting out any better...but hey! I'm still trying!

BUT - I thought I'd give you all the lowdown on Bunni - the little Manx kitten I have in my house. I took her from my friend who bred her because she was high maintenance and she was dealing with a newborn and the little boy who father the child also - plus she breeds dogs, has a grooming business and is a full time teacher - so I thought I could help a little.

Anyway - at first we thought she had Manx Syndrome when they have lost the nerves through their rear-end due to the shortened spine. Bunni, unlike my other Manx, Izzy, has no tail - whereas Izzy has a stumpy tail. So poor Bunni, for lack of better words, began to leak a little...and required a washing a few times a day. This usually leads to death, but as it wasn't real bad we wanted to see if she wouldn't be able to take care of herself to become a good outdoor cat. Things have improved immensely in the last few weeks and now I don't have to wash her up at all! Occasionally she doesn't get it all out, but she's really good about the litter box and is the sweetest thing. Even the big dogs let her curl up on them.

Funny enough she looks just like the kitten I lost from Izzy's last litter. The only girl she's ever had. See the no tail?! She's named Bunni because she 'hops' instead of walk - typical of Manx's, but she barely ever walks at all - so she looks like a little rabbit with short ears hopping around.

Also - The people may be crazy here, but it sure is pretty. This is the view out the East facing windows of my new house.














To the Southeast - Mt. Blanca To the Northeast - Great Sand Dunes

Happy New Year! and FREE FOOD!!!

FREE FOOD!!!
OH YEAH!!! Before I totally forget! That toffee link at the top of my blog? - OH MY GOD! This stuff is so amazing! It literally MELTS in your mouth!!! Try it out. They have this great little sampler pack for $3.00. s/h . I hate to say this, but it's better than most of the stuff I brought back from England.


I know, I'm a bit belated, but things are crazy here and I don't have internet at home anymore!

Just some highlights from the last two weeks to give you an idea (please remember most of this stuff is normal, or I wouldn't be me):

- Spent 3 hours sitting in the plane on the runway in Detroit trying to get home 'cause it was raining so hard in Chicago they couldn't see. Wrigley came with me and was such a good boy, but had decided he had it when we were trying to catch our connection to Denver and barked at everything. Oh well...he WAS quiet for over 8 hours. I was cranky too.

- Slipped shoving a log into the wood stove and split the bridge of my nose open. Two stitches and glue! Blacked both eyes slightly and had a killer headache for two days. It's better now though.

- Thought I was stood up on New Years and played pool at a neighbors for a few hours. Wasn't stood up as there was a family emergency, and spent midnight dragging my frozen hose under the house to thaw under the heatlamp. There was whiskey (because I thought I was stood up).

- Tried chopping wood and realize I'm a complete woose and now my back muscles are sore.

- There's a new animal in my house that thinks I'm mom. It's not my fault either. Hint: Meow

- Came into school and realized that the other English teacher has DONE NOTHING and is now on probation and will probably not have her contract renewed and yours truly has to pick up the mess - namely designing and publishing the yearbook by May. However, there is money involved which makes me happy as I really am broke.

Ok - that's it in a nutshell. So if I'm MIA on and off for awhile it's because I'm so crazy busy I'm not sure which way is up...or down...or both...

Finally!!!

Yes, I've finally posted some pics of Vegas. However if you want to see London and Paris you're going to have to see them here because my files are so huge!!! I just don't have time to resize them all. However I think these are a good representation of the trip! It's been crazy since I returned and I haven't had a lot of time to reflect on the trip other than it was great, I enjoyed London immensely and would love to go back - it was such a cool city with so much to see and do - and that I think I fell in love with Paris...unfortunately not IN love IN Paris *sigh* oh well...lol

But here's Las Vegas! I really enjoyed the city. I wasn't sure what I expected, but it wasn't the class I saw. The town is well put together and is quite beautiful! I could have stared all day at the architecture and attention to detail in each casino and hotel. The art alone was awesome and on top of it all everything was decorated for Christmas!!!

Christmas was wonderful and I actually ended the night at the theatre with a boy (totally random and unexpected 'date') and playing Wii bowling with him and fam until 1am. It was fun!!! Hope everyone enjoyed their Christmas! Right now it's sleeting out which has ruined my breakfast plans with a good girlfriend of mine, but we're going to try for lunch instead. Tonight's the Motor City Bowl!!! Go Central!!! I'll fly back to CO tomorrow so I hope everyone has a great New Year's!

Red Wings 4; Blues 1

Have I ever explained how much I love the Wings? Ever? I LOVE them! I'm not sure if it has to do growing up surrounded by hockey, or practically living on the ice since I was 5, or a combination, but I just LOVE them! Actually I really love Hockey and the Wings embody everything I love about it.

Anywho - Lesley and I met up with Kim, Yeimy and Jenni for dinner at the Brewery and then headed to the game against the St. Loius Blues. It was a great game, with early scoring and pretty decent opposition despite the other team having quite a few injuries. We then headed back to Royal Oak to meet a few more people at O'Tooles. Sometimes I wish I lived a lot closer for nights like last night. I do miss my friends and the social aspects of living close to them.

Michigan DOES need to the get that no smoking bit in effect. I SO DO NOT miss the smell of smoke on my clothes after a night at the bar.

Merry Christmas everyone! I hope everyone has a blessed few days with their family!

Hola From Detroit

I'm in town! I'm only here until the afternoon of the 27th and I have a lot of plans with my family, but I'd love to get together for lunch or whatever with people! Give me a call!

I think the plans tonight are to go to Royal Oak after the Wing's game too. This will probably be my one night out since I'm going to the Bowl game Friday night.

Check out the Toffee link I have above! I'm in love with toffee and brought home tons with me from London! This stuff rocks!

Garden Gnomes 5 / Me 0

I would write about Vegas (and Europe) but my 'gremlins' have struck again. If I could stop dealing with all their crap I might be able to detail my trips.

While in Vegas my furnace pilot light blew out and nobody could get in light for a day and a half. Now: no problem. Huh?

The faucet on the shower in the spare bathroom cracked and was running when I got home yesterday resulting in having to turn off the water to the house. No shower for me before school today. No problems with the pipes or fittings. Just the random faucet in a bathroom I've never used.

All my houseplants died. They were alive when I left and black and gooeyish when I got home. WTF? What the hell causes that? I've had them FOREVER. I'm trying to re-start them from the roots. Very strange. Actually downright worrisome.

The hose to the water tanks were left running (purposely) because running water doesn't freeze. It did last night and it wasn't THAT cold. Again, something I've never had happen before...

Vegas recap: I LOVED IT. For starters I was expecting fake and fancy. It was class. I loved the architecture and attention to details in the different hotels and casinos. I could have walked around all day looking at the different places. I loved seeing my friends and I think I've convinced Bolte to 'cross-over to the other side'. 'Cause afterall, everything's more fun with a little country in it!

It's a very expensive town however, and I wish I could have enjoyed a bit more of the entertainment...it's just all so pricey. I don't live on that kind of budget...ever.

The HOTEL was cool, but I think a bit over-rated and expensive overall compaired to other places. I did enjoy the HUGE bathtub that you could practically swim in!

What can I say about the NFR? It rocked? It was awesome? It was inspiring? It was SO COOL seeing the best of the best in person? All of the above? I may need to try and do this yearly it was so great to see!

OK - more details to come. I'll slide show both Europe and Vegas and give more details. Let me just get a grip on the Gnome problem...