Deer Park Farms

Saturday, December 5, 2009

One Step Closer

Finally, the trenching project is behind us!!!! Now all we have to do is finish the plumbing and wait for Victor's friend Jose to come out and set up the electricity! Then running water, electricity!!! Holy moly. Never thought this day would come!

The guys worked all day, but not as long as they thought they would have to, as they ran into the pipes and cables that had been laid when the barn was first built which meant that they didn't have to cross the rocky drainage area that lies between the dam and the barn...we'll test them out on Monday - HOPEFULLY it'll work!

Thank God for the Home Depot Trencher!

Loading the trailer to take the machine back; it's a good thing we have the Suburban!

Gabby came out to hand walk the boys, and for the first time in ages, they were super well behaved! At least some of my work is paying off! She offered to let me keep them at her place during the wet months in exchange for helping her out with chores and cleaning the stalls. I'm considering taking her up on the offer, as it would be so much easier to have a little "break" for a while. They would only stay there until the fields here dried up. We'll see.

My big boy. He's doing so well!

The dogs cleaning up Frank's dropped grain!

Ellie waiting for mommy to finish feeding the horses!

After returning the rental trencher to Home Depot, Ellie and I hung out together while Jeffrey watched a football game that apparently could NOT be missed (I still don't get that). We took a shower together - one of EG's favorite things to do. She would stay in there for HOURS if I would let her and the water would stay warm! Then it was off the the linen closet. We have a deep linen closet, with a large open area under the first shelf - in fact, it's so big that Jeffrey, Ellie and I can all fit down there. I kept telling Jeffrey that if I had had an area like that when I was a kid, I would have been in there ALL the time! Needless to say, the rest of the night we were in and out, open and shut, back and forth.

I was able to go to breakfast with my friend who is going through chemo and radiation. I'm so proud of him. Even with all this crap, he hasn't changed a bit. He's lost a bit of hair, but other than that and a big scar on the back of his head, he looks just as happy and healthy and handsome as he always has. His girlfriend is awesome - and so incredibly supportive; I'm so glad that he has her!!!! His attitude rocks, and while he admits he's ready to be done with everything, he's staying positive, is confident, and is kicking this thing in the butt. We spent most of our time laughing about old memories and crazy stories that we have together - and then having moments of "Oh man. Oh man. Oh man. How did this happen." Then back to, "Remember when so-and-so did such-and-such." He has such a huge heart and I know I, for one, am rooting for him!

I'm hoping that we'll be able to get our tree tomorrow, but we're dependent on Colin since he's the one with the pick up truck! We have SUPER high ceilings, and even though the bay window where we put the Christmas tree is lower than the rest of the room, it's still 12' high. Jeffrey is the type that if you can fit a 12' tree, you GET a 12' tree. If you can do the biggest - it's not an option, it's a requirement! Ha. Our tree last year took me three days to decorate! Who knows what'll happen this year! Hmmm. We'll see.

RANDOM PHOTOS OF THE DAY

Farm Days

Vets must love me. Seriously, it's got to be running joke amongst them seeing how high I can get my bills. It's either that or my dogs and horses are trying to say I don't write about them on here enough, and they deserve more attention. I could see Boots and Frank both pulling a "Click, Clack, Moo" situation, can't you? One day I'll wake up and Boots will be standing there with a note in his mouth saying he needs more publicity or something.

So, yes, you guessed it - I spent the day yesterday dealing with vets - again. It ended up not being a huge deal, and one that I could have dealt with alone, but at the time I didn't know that. That's the biggest down side of not having ever before been the primary care giver to my horses. I recognize something's wrong, follow my gut, and then even if I know the horse is ok....I call the vet. I don't yet trust my instincts.

We really don't know what happened with Frank - there are a few possibilities, but whatever it was, I apparently did the right thing because by the time the vet arrived, he was doing ok. Suspicion is "tying up" (where their muscles seize up; it's basically a charlie horse all over their bodies), but he could also have colicked. Poor guy. I think a big part of it is that the cold arrived this week - it's COLD: cold as in 20 degrees cold. Cold as in their waters froze overnight. Wait, their water froze? Yeah. Another thing I'm sure that was a contributing factor - he had to have been a bit dehydrated.

Today we're trying to fix that. Jeffrey woke up early to go rent a trencher so that we can run water and electricity to their stalls. Victor brought along a friend, and they're hard at work in the freezing cold. We'll see how it goes and if it works!

Victor cut an old shovel to fit the trench

yes, that's frozen frosty ground...

I'm so frustrated with the horse situation. Avdoo is 6 now, and is barely started. I was making great progress with him over the summer, but now that the bad weather is here, I have no place to ride him because of the mud. They sink about a foot every time they take a step. With no extra cash lying around to fix this problem, I'm basically in the worst possible situation for being able to give them the exercise that they need. Avdoo is very level-headed, kind, smart, and laid back - he's not the problem. It's Frank. Having to have him on a high-protein, concentrated diet has given him so much energy, he's coming out of his skin. I can't leave one horse in their stall, and take the other because whoever is left behind freaks out - rushing around their stall, bucking, kicking, neighing, and essentially throwing a fit. Taking both of them out has presented quite the challenge because Frank practically jumps ONTO Avdoo, which makes Avdoo spook, and then it's just chaos. So where that leaves me is, well, in a pickle. Full-training is what they need, but that's out of the question. So what's there to do. Who knows. We're just taking it day by day.

Today we're dealing with their water situation. Win the small battles, Melissa, small battles.

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Cleansing Breaths!

Today was just full of cleansing breaths! I love deep breathing!

Mom and her high school friend Jenn came over for brunch today - and we had just an absolutely magnificent time! I made a squash tart, and served it with skillet potatoes and asparagus. I wasn't a huge fan of the tart as the goat's cheese made the flavor was bit to tangy for my taste. It had lots of possibility, and the asparagus and potatoes balanced it out fairly well. I'll try it again for sure, but next time will "tweak" it a little rather than following the recipe! Jenny liked it, though, so that's all that matters! Not sure why I didn't get a picture of the ladies, but next time!

Squash Sage Tart

Apple Cider Breakfast Potatoes

This was my back-up plan if the tart sucked!

We had such a good time, that I've decided I'm going to host a ladies' brunch once a month, keeping each event small enough to so that everyone can sit at one table! I'll probably start the series on Wednesday, January 13 (though I'm considering also hosting one this month). There are a few open spots for that day, so let me know if you want to take one of them by emailing me personally at pearlynerfect@aol.com!

I was up fairly early prepping and doing a little decorating before Mom and Jen got here. I still have a long way to go, but I've got a lot of the basics done. I collected lots of fallen bows (thank God for the wind!), and am still waiting for further inspiration in the living room. I think getting our tree will be a big part of inspiring me - each year seems to take on a personality of its own!

Dining Room Fireplace...Ed, Jeffrey, Me, EG, Jake, Colin, Mom

My mother is truly talented...she made this out of a block of clay. This is Jake's stocking holder

My ice skating polar bear (mom always gets me polar bears, not sure why); I must have been about 10 when she sculpted him. Hannah has Mrs. Claus and Colin has a nutcracker. They're exquisite!

That's not Ellie Graye's; that's Jeffrey's

I've already changed this a bit, and need to figure out what I'm doing to balance out the mirror...

but I'm getting there!

My guests left after purchasing items for themselves and gifts for others, and I headed outside with Ellie Graye. We went on a long ride on the John Deere, trying to catch the geese as they waddled through the fields. Ellie just LOVES being outside.

She didn't take much of a nap, so she was tired all evening...she fell asleep on the way home from taking Victor and Lorena, and slept through my changing her diaper (including Desitin), changing her into her pjs, the dogs barking, the lights on, and my singing loudly trying to wake her up. At that point, I decided that I'd be heading to bed early tonight just like her. So she was in her crib by 6 pm, and I am hoping to be asleep by 9 pm tonight. I KNOW I'm going to have a well-rested, energetic baby at about 4 am. YIKES!!!! It's a good thing she was so damn cute today!