Time to Move On...

Remember this?

This crazy photo served as my title cover for all these years--a little tweaking now and then. You'll never know how much thought I put into designing it.

This blog was to be about a middle-aged couple that decided to buy some land and learn to raise critters and food.

I wonder if anyone noticed the type of garments on the clothesline. The pink dress was symbolic of my life off  the farm. Get it? Yeah, I'm that obsessed. And that little spot for the pink dress--fairly proportionate of the time I spend off the farm. I am a homebody. I love it here. Why would I want to be anywhere else? Each little branch and twig is part of an actual photo from our farm. The cherry blossoms bloom near the garage. That pine branch tipped with a perfect cone stands in the yard between the house and barn. There's our barn and garden in the background. Nekoda, Sadie, Derby and Nanny, Chubbers and Paint Girl, Mr J and Buddy all got special placement on my cover.

Why would I want to be anywhere else?

 Oh, yeah. Winter.

I used to call it my favorite season.

Maybe many of you know what I'm talking ablout.

These last two winters have been killers--record lows every other day, record amounts of snow fall, record number of days below zero, record number of days with wind chills below zero degrees kelvin...
Okay, that last statement might have been an exaggeration, but the others weren't far from the truth! I was ready to pack up the RV and head to Florida--but I would have never gotten it out of the driveway! That's reason #1, but let's just try to forget about winter for now.

Situations change. Goals change. Dreams change.

When we moved here, we were both employed making pretty good money. I planned on this place being paid off before retirement. Things changed.

The place we worked at was closing and we didn't want to transfer. Seeing the writing on the wall, Ray and I retired. We adjusted our belts and stayed. But slowly, we are being taxed out of our dream.

We could probably stay here for the rest of our lives, but it would mean doing little else. Between taking a chunk of our income and all the upkeep, we are pretty much tied to this farm. Not a bad situation to be in, mind you, but nonetheless, tied.

We have been here for over eleven years without a vacation together. It's not easy finding critter sitters. We didn't mind. It's like vacation where we live. But we still wanted to see the country some day (reason #2--We made a big step in that direction this past fall. That will be the subject of my next post.) so we're planning on down-sizing in the next year.

It was hard to change my cover photo...hard to say goodbye to a time that was so wonderful. But new wonderful things are on the horizon, and I wanted my blog to reflect that. The old 'blahwg' name is also gone. I was reluctant to change the name, but most of my regular followers are no longer blogging. So I guess it truly is time to move on. I can't wait to tell you about my plans for this blog, and for the future! But this post is getting rather long, so you'll have to wait.

A Pony for the Freezin'-a** Winter?

When I was a small child, I discovered the joy of reading.  This was one of my favorite books.  It was given to me by a teacher for my achievements.  It may very well be the first indication that horses were in my future!  I'm going to see if I still have this one.  It's overdue for a  re-read.

Keeping a pony for the winter sounds a bit romantic, doesn't it?  My best recollection is that a little girl wanted her parents to allow her to board the pony for a carnival that used it for rides during the warmer seasons.

Oh, if only I could talk my dad and mom into that!  As a child, I can imagine that I thought the only hurdle for the little girl was convincing her parents how cute they were and having a fence around the backyard.  HA!

Well, now I'm all grown up and have two ponies for the winter!  (They're not really ponies, but full-sized horses, and last winter there were three.  R.I.P. Buddy.)

Talk about a fantasy world... True, I don't remember much about the book; but I do remember there was no mention of carrying 5 gallon buckets filled with water through ten- inch drifts of snow and ice, being extra cautious not to spill any on her for fear of frostbite from the below-zero windchill!  Nor was there any mention of pushing a wheel barrow through that deep frosty mess.  Or how about trying to dump said wheel barrow only to find the cargo frozen to the bottom of the cart?  

I'm fairly certain there was nothing written about miles of extension cords trailing to heated water buckets, or having to clean out those hanging buckets when that cute little pony decides to use it as a port-o-john!  I'll bet that sweet child never twisted her ankle by stepping down wrong on a frozen... uh... dumpling.  I don't recall if the girl in the story had a dog.  If she had, it would have been fun to watch her little dog running from the stall with... uh... dumpling stains on his pretty white face.  

Yes, keeping a pony for the winter isn't exactly a romance, but I do enjoy the break from the heavier smells of summer and the biting flies.  I like that I can clean both stalls without stopping to wipe the sweat from my brow.  And there's nothing better than a horseback ride through fluffy white snow on a sunny winter day.  A big plus is walking through the paddock without sinking ankle-deep in muck.  

Now, if only we can get back to normal temperatures and I can dump this cold... I will ride off into the sunset on my pony for the winter.

Before you go...

Rae, over at Weather Vane is having a give-away!  See what I've got my eye on...

Don't you agree it would look lovely in my blue country kitchen?

I used to say, "I never win anything!" but not anymore... I won a signed book last month!  Maybe I'm on a roll.  Or maybe I'm just wishin'.

Ice Fog on the Farm

Most of these shots are from the 2nd week of January.  We had lots of heavy fog for several days.  It was a beautiful site to behold!  It wasn't as shimmery as ice on the branches, but it wasn't as damaging either.  The frozen fog left very artistic detail covering everything   ...even the deck boards.

 

Click on this close-up...
 

Doesn't the smoke from the wood burner make it look even colder?

 

  

  

  

  

 

Sweet Baby James was right...

"the birches seem dreamlike on account o' that frostin'... "

  

But don't worry...  I stayed toasty warm while enjoying this view from the edge of my bed:

Monochromatic Morning

 Our first snow of the season fell last night.

I love waking up to a world I've missed for months!

This black and white view waited outside my bedroom door .

The bare trees seem even darker against the pure white snow.

The valance over the kitchen sink is trimmed in crystal drops.

They appeared more like icicles this morning!

At a different angle, you would have seen the smoke,

billowing up from the outdoor boiler...

a sure sign that winter is near.

Though the snow was light,

the sead heads bowed in respect

of this symbol of winter.

The paling green of a willow bush

peeks through the tender reeds.

Here, you see the willow is losing its battle,

succumbing to the shorter days and chillier nights.

The horses don't notice the temperature dropping.

Their furry coats have grown plush,

insulating them from the brisk air.