Monday, March 12, 2012, Peaceful evening

The barn is always a source of comfort for me. In the early morning just after feeding, the only sound comes from the horses, heads buried in feed tubs contentedly munching on their food. A new day is about to begin. Heads begin to pop up as each horse finishes its grain, with the impatient ones stomping around in anticipation of turnout. In the late afternoon when I go to the barn to take care of Suki, the horses are often already in their stalls for the night. Depending on the hour of my arrival, most will have finished their grain and have moved onto their hay. Another one of my favorite sounds....the peaceful munching accompanied by the pleasant aroma of good quality hay.... The fields are beginning to become greener again, much to the horses' delight! With the mild winter and early burst of warm weather this is occurring earlier than usual.

Suki was still outside tonight when I arrived. As always, when I pulled my car up to the fence to park, she came over to wait for me to get out. Before Suki even makes a sound I can see her nostrils fluttering as she prepares to speak to me in her low, soft nicker. Cautiously she accepts a treat from over the fence (She was zapped by the hot wire last week) then makes her way to the gate waitng for me to take her into the barn. "I'm just going to get your stuff" I call to her. Knowing that some last minute grazing time has materialized Suki drops her head to the grass until I come out of the tack room. Suki's skin was particularly dry again tonight and she was quite itchy. But after a nice session of grooming and exfoliation, the skin was ready for moisturizing! She enjoys the massaging portion of the moisturizing as much as the exfoliation! Suki's feet also look a bit dry, and I seem to be out of hoof moisturizer. Looks like a trip to Leids this week. I also have used the last of the halter break-away straps (Nikki snapped hers the other day) so I will pick up a few of them as well. The straps certainly do their job well! Looking forward to my Tuesday ride on Nikki. The warm weather is expected to continue, so I will pull her wild mane again this weekend! I would love to pull Suki's too....maybe I will give it a try without sedation.....

Tonight I am sitting outside writing this post. Usually when I sit outside in the evening I am at the back of the house seated at the umbrella table with a glass of wine. But tonight I am on the front porch looking out over the mountains. My house sits up on a hill off of our very quiet street, offering a lovely view. The night chill will soon make me question my sheet/blanket choices for the girls, as usual! This weather is making me completely crazy! I would rather not have to stop at the barn before work in the morning to change Suki's blanket, but with the wide range of temperatures I am often forced to do that. It doesn't take long, but if I have also taken Isaiah to school that morning it just adds to the stress of getting to my office as early as I prefer! Allthough seeing the horses in the morning does make me feel happy! Isaiah has taken Isaiah to Tai Kwon Do so I have a quiet hour to myself. While I should be putting away laundry or doing some other household task I have decided to just relax for a little while.......