Good morning (afternoon now)! It's foggy here, and now drizzling. I missed my opportunity to ride Lance before the rain started because a friend called and we talked a loooong time, but connecting with friends is important. He and Ollie got to run and play in the arena last night for quite awhile, so at least he got some exercise then – and probably would have had even less than usual to give me today.
Still no tree or indoor decorations here, but last Friday after school, Brian put up Christmas lights outside. By the time Rick got home with his mom in tow for Brian’s birthday supper, the house looked very festive. Other than missing a spot to put presents (not that we go overboard with those), I am not missing having a Christmas tree. I did get to go to an annual Christmas party I enjoy last Sunday. It meant leaving Brian home alone which I do with trepidation, but it seemed to work out okay. (Or at least what I don’t know won’t kill me….) And several of my horse acquaintances who were there have come out on the other side of teenage boys and lived to tell about it, which is always encouraging to hear.
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| Birthday boy in the jacket my sister sent him |
It was a busy weekend, starting with prepping for that Friday birthday supper. My MIL spent Friday night here so she could ride with us to a church where Brian's bell choir was performing the next day. Saturday evening we went to a talent show (where the bell choir performed again) and senior class fundraising dinner at the school; we went early to help, then Rick left early to clean out the clogged-up woodstove and pack while I stayed for the full program and all the clean-up afterwards. At o'dark thirty Sunday morning I drove Rick to the Portland airport, getting back before sunrise (and son-rise), took a short nap, got the son to RISE so I could take him to work, came back home (the scenes below caught my eye on the way home),
picked him up from work, came back home, then took him to Salem for the third bell choir performance of the weekend. 😳
Something I haven't mentioned before is that I'm tentatively horse-shopping. Lance is so compromised that when it comes to a riding horse he is no longer my "mental health mustang;" instead he is my "heartbreak kid" – and could end up being my neck-breaker. At first it was all online window-shopping, without seeing anything in my price range of real interest. Then I looked up a Morgan sales flyer I got last spring and contacted one of the breeders who had advertised in it, resulting in a road trip with a friend to see his horses. None suited me, but he told me about one he had at a place closer to me that I've since looked at as well. This last horse does interest me, but I have two big obstacles – hay and husband. We didn't have enough hay just for the horses and sheep that we have, not to mention what we’d need if we added a third horse, and hay has been really hard to find around here. And my husband has been predictably poo-poo on the idea, although there are mixed signals. (I have enough funds set aside for the purchase, but I do need to have Rick to do the pre-purchase exam and I want his consent. Many moons ago he bought a horse without consulting me 😡 and I am determined not to do the same to him.)
That is a rather long explanation of what transpired yesterday. The Morgan's helpful owner had texted me the name and number of someone with hay for sale (and offered to haul it for me 😮 which of course I couldn't accept without a commitment to buy his horse), and yesterday afternoon was the only window of dry weather and available time (the seller's, Brian's, and mine) to get a load. So I left work early enough to wrestle the sideboards off our flatbed trailer, pick up Brian from school and drive nine more miles SE to the hay seller's.
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| A treat for the eyes before the unloading began last night |
Folks, I've been spoiled by our favorite local grower. His bales are 60# or less; that's 68 three-string, 100# bales. But beggars can't be choosers, and I was just thankful to have found decent hay relatively close without breaking the bank! Most of it was loaded for us on the farm; when we got home last night it was pure man- and woman-power to get it stacked in our barn, and we were both hurting by the end (and still are). There is NO WAY I could have done this without my strapping son's help! Now I have to wait and see if my husband will relent on the horse....
My latest gift-knitting project is coming along; I think I’ll finish them in time to gift them for Christmas:
Gotta pick up the kid from school so bye for now from . . .
8 comments:
Wowzer, what a news filled post! Hard to know what to comment on, but also feel like you've caught us all up on what's been happening. Thanks for taking the time to do so. I've been wondering how things have been going. (Life is never dull, is it!)
Mama Pea, the 'life' I enjoy most would probably be considered dull by most people's standards, so all this activity is challenging, to say the least!
It is posts like these when I realize just how far apart in age we are ... this body of mine could not keep up with that level of activity! And, of course, when I see your young son - who is growing and quite tall - and who I am convinced will outgrow this difficult period at some point - we are at different life stages for sure. But I remember those times.
My son is now 46 - with a young family of his own and still committed to the "old" family he grew out of. I am blessed. And I know you are too. Young males can be a challenge - but let me assure you - so can young females! Raising humans is the biggest challenge of life (they don't tell you that before you get pregnant HA!) - and can make you feel like you will break - but you will come out the other side. I feel sure of it. HE is surely blessed to have you guys as parents. He may not know it now - but as an adult looking back - he will see it. That is exactly what happened to me. And when it did - it was like the sun breaking through clouds for me!!
Oh ... and I seldom met my children's "boy/girl friends." My current daughter-in-law was the SECOND one that we got to meet and know because ... as my son said ... "she fits in our family." Ha!
I used to think this artificial separation that my kids put between me and their dating folks was unusual. Not so. And, who was the FIRST one we got to know? A girl that was totally wrong for my son and our family and when she showed her true colors to my son by cheating on him and breaking his heart to pieces - I realized that NOT knowing some of these dating folks in advance was a small blessing to my own piece of mind. Nothing I could/would do would change minds and all that it would do is make me unsettled and unhappy - without the power to change things. We dodged a bullet with the first serious girl friend ...
You've shared some of your journey with your son privately, so I KNOW you know these struggles and MORE, Elaine. That makes your encouragement that much more ENCOURAGING; thanks! As for the age differences, I realize that in 14 years (the difference in our ages) I probably won't be able to move 100# bales. But in 14 years my son will only be 32...HOPEFULLY at a wiser and more stable point in his life....
I do hope you get a ride-able horse, Michelle. It is such a necessary part of your sanity! I am always amazed when I see a photo of Brian at how tall he is. It makes me realize how long I've followed your blog (and had you as a friend - such a treasure). There is no way I could handle a 100# bale of hay. I struggle these days with my 50# bags of chicken feed. As far as going treeless this year, sometimes it is a good idea to just relax for the holidays. There is less cost, less fuss, less to do when the holidays are over. xo
Interesting post. I really hope it works out with the horse. Fingers crossed for you! I was surprised that anyone still made 100# 3-string bales of hay. I don't think I've ever gotten any over 50# here. Pound for pound, these are so much more expensive than round bales, so that's what we always get. They're a bear to get into the hay loft, however! A good workout and always a sense of victory when we do, lol.
I'm cautiously excited for you about the new horse :-) :-) And sorry that you seem to be constant chauffeur service . . . And completely amazed at the physical work you seem to do so easily. And yes, I'm sure you must have been sore - but I would have been prostrate. For days. :-D
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