Kristin and Breezy

Talk about hot. I went to Burbank yesterday to watch Kristin and Breezy show. Getting out of my air conditioned car and into the heat, took my breath away. Guess it was around 105 there and very little air was moving. I found Kristin sitting in the stands dressed and ready to show. She had a long sleeve blouse on and of course her hat and jeans. I felt so sorry for her and we where in the shade. About 45 minutes before she was to inter th pen, she had to go warm up her horse and put on her chaps. I worried both she and Breezy would fall over from the heat. They made it into the pen and ran the course with little trouble, even showing off a little. I was proud of both of them. Now, how do you cool down a horse while riding in 105 degree heat? Kristin was walking Breezy around outside (no shade) and they both looked very tired and weak. Got some water for Kristin and that seemed to help a little but Breezy was still pretty hot. He finally cooled down enough to squirt him off and my bet was he was a happy baby after that.
8:30 a.m. this morning Kristin and Breezy are getting ready to do it all over again. They will show around 2:00 p.m., the hottest part of the day. The arena is indoors but still hot hot hot.
I am keeping my fingers crossed that they both handle the heat and do well.

Hot Hot Hot

And it is only the end of June. The pool won't be ready until August if we are lucky. Actually it might be ready before then but the yard landscape will take some time. Everything is dead in the yard so we are starting over. Trying for a tropical theme with plants and tree's that can handle the heat and don't drop a lot of flowers and leaves into the pool.

Miss Daisy is doing fine and we decided to breed her back to one of Jeanne's studs. She will have another baby in about 11 months. I have worked out a deal for free lessons in exchange for allowing Miss Daisy to be the baby oven. She had a nice colt by My Key T, so we hope she will throw another nice baby by Rumble or Spirit, not sure which one is the Daddy. Wendy has two baby mini's, Cooper and MyKey. They are very independent little boys.

Baby Arrived

Finally Miss Daisy was ready to get this show on the road. Wednesday June 7th around 10:00 p.m. Daisy gave birth to a baby boy. She had a hard time because the baby had a leg twisted around and behind her neck. Danny and Jeanne DeBruce, owners of the Ranch where Daisy foaled were there and pushed the baby back inside Daisy and pulled the leg foward. Out came a long legged colt very healthy and active. I will put a couple of pictures for you to see on this page. One will be of the colt about 15 minutes old and the other will be the next day when he is 12 hours old. Wendy, is actually the owner of the new colt. When we purchased Daisy, Wendy paid for half, the half that was in her tummy. So I have a driving mare (Daisy) and Wendy will be learning all about breaking tiny horses. Should be lots of fun. Happy Trails, Lynell

Baby Watch

Poor Miss Daisy, it is so hot and she is so very large, and the baby is still rolling around in her tummy. Wendy and I go visit her everyday. I take her for a short walk and let her hang out with us at the barn. She is being monitored 24/7 and they say she is the quietest mare they have had in a very long while. Last night however, she started to pace and get very hot, as in warm. She paced most of the night but cooled off and was calm and collected by morning. Jeanie, the lady that trained Miss Daisy, put a box fan in her stall today to make her more comfortable. I bet she has the baby in the middle of the night, tonight or tomorrow night. Just a guess on my part, we shall see. They will call us when she starts labor. It usually only take between 10 to 30 minutes from the time she goes down. They had one baby this season deliver in 5 minutes. These little horses don't mess around. Happy Trails, Lynell

Summer is almost here

Dirt Person
I decided to write in the blog today after a 4 month dry period. Really, I can't tell you where the time has gone but lots of things have been getting done around the old farm house. Actually, if you want to know how things are going just check in on Wendy's blog page and you can see pictures and activities we have done over the past few months. Http://wkanderson.blogspot.com
Miss Daisy's picture is on Wendy's blog and you can see she is about to pop. Her foal is due around June 1, 2006. I am soon to be a Mother again. Of course Kristin doesn't really like haven't a mini for a sister but if she has to have a sister, a mini would probably be her first choice.
Pug is well and not liking life much these days. Wendy has a puppy named Jazzy and Jazzy is driving Pugsy crazy. Pugsy will not stand up for herself unless it is over food. No food, no fight back! It is sad to watch her be run around the house. She finally gives up and takes a running leap into my lap. I protect her for a while and then, down she goes again for more abuse.
Kristin and Dave are selling there house, the time is right and they are ready to move on. Not sure where but local for sure.
My brother Ed is happy and working the AA program. He had a bad spell for a while there but I am so proud of him for picking himself up and starting over.
I feel good these days for a broken down old P.E. teacher. Retirement has taken some getting use to but I have the hang of it now. Life is GOOD!

Where Did January go

You would think being retired I could get things done, wouldn't you? Well I guess it just doesn't work that way. I keep busy everyday doing this and that and before I knew it, Christmas was over and it is February already.
We did get a doghouse finished for the dogs during the month of January. My brother turned another year older and I lost almost 20 pounds. Don't get all excited for me, 20 lost and 45 to go!
Miss Daisy is finishing up her cart training and soon we will be traveling the streets of Norco.
Actually I am the one that should be in training, and I should have been learning all last month but for some reason, I just didn't get over to join Miss Daisy in her lessons. I will do better this month for sure!
Oh, I did trade in my P.T. Cruiser for a 2006 3/4 ton Ram Truck. Had to have a way to pull the travel trailer so bye bye Cruiser. Wendy pulls the horse trailer with her truck and I handle the travel trailer, sounds fair to me.
Found a fun place to take the horses for trail rides. It is about 10 minutes from the house and we trailer over. It is a Regional Park and it is designed for horses, bird watchers and nature walks. Very cool place, lots of nice people riding everywhere and miles of trails. Last time we where there we saw two Coyotes walking across one of the hill sides.
Well I guess this pretty much brings me up to date. During the next two months, Wendy will be working on getting a covered bull pen constructed and the pool should just about be ready to break ground. Like I have said before, LIFE IS GOOD IN NORCO!

December Already !

Gosh, it is December already! Since I have been retired, I have been twice as busy as I was with a full time job. The move to Norco was the best thing that could have happened to me. The people are friendly, there are horses everywhere you look, and soon I will be riding the trails daily.

My miniature horse should be arriving from Oregon any day now. She is trained to pull a small two-person cart. The way I figure it, my dog Pugsy and I have lots of miles to cover if we are going to meet the other horses in the neighborhood.

Wendy’s new horse will be here Thursday. Her name is Smarty and she is coming from Tennessee. This is a picture of Smarty in a show however Wendy is not the rider.As soon as she arrives we will have three quarters horses on the property plus Miss Daisy (my mini horse). Talk about being busy. It will be a fun busy so I don’t really care.

I have been able to watch my daughter ride her new horse a few times, this past month. I really enjoy seeing her ride. Kristin is a very graceful rider and she makes it look so very easy, and I know it is quite the opposite. She is one talented young lady and I wouldn’t say it if it wasn’t’ true!

Well, Happy Holidays to All and to All a Good Night.

Happy Trails

Had a great time this past weekend. Wendy brought home from the stables in Huntington Beach, her mare and Kristin’s gelding for us to ride Saturday and Sunday. We were able to trail ride both days. It was especially fun for me to be able to ride with Kristin and Wendy. I don’t own a horse and almost never get to ride, so the weekend was extra special. I will try and put a picture or two of us together during the ride on this blog page. Never really sure where the picture will pop up but here goes nothing.

By the way, I just looked at the pictures after publishing them and they came out on top of each other. Sure isn't the way they look on my draft. Told you I don't know what I am doing.
Happy Trail to You!

Love at first sight

This is a picture of Miss Daisy on the lower right corner. She has just come off pasture with her baby and she is in foal again. She will clean up nice when the time comes. Right now she is being trained to pull a cart. She is 33 inches tall but is a little heavy in this picture. When she finishes her training she will be shipped to Norco California to become my new pet.
On the left is a picture of her husband, but just remember he never has to give birth so he stays in shape. Looking at them next to each other tells me Mikey isn't picky. I am sure Miss Daisy probably has a good personality and that is what attracted them.

Spam Comments

Because life is so short and I get excited to see who has commented on my blog , I have put in letter recognition on my comment page. This will stop much of the Spam comments because the spam will not be able to recognize the letters to re-tpye. Comments welcome but advertisement stay away!

Life in the Slow Lane

Well, it has been a while since I last updated my blog. I think when you are retired each day seems to slip by and you tell yourself, "that's alright, I will get to it tomorrow." Now, as you can see that can lead to a lot of tomorrow's slipping by with out updating my blog.
Speaking of slipping, I went to Pechanga Casino with Wendy the other day and boy have things changed. The last time I visited a Casino the machines actually had arms to pull down that started your game. I didn't even know how to play these new video slot machines. Yes, I feel very very old. Push the wrong button and you end up betting half of your money on one push. I only did that once on purpose and two other times by accident. My money went pretty fast when I pushed the wrong blinking button!
I tried reading the instructions to the games and also felt old but this time you could add stupid. I thought coming to play the slots for a little while was going to be fun. Heck, I never even knew if I won or not there were so many buttons flashing and numbers showing. You think you are playing a nickel machine but by the time you bet all the lines you are at a .45-cent machine. Oh it pays you now and then, a huge 15 cents here and there. Bet .45 cents get back .15 cents, such a deal.
Now that wasn't the case for Wendy, she would sit next to me and win. Not big bucks but played for a long time and leave with the money she started with. She would put in five bucks and follow me to the next machine cashing out with 30 bucks. I, on the other hand, would put in five bucks, and another five bucks and another five bucks and all the while Wendy would be hitting and keeping her start up money alive.
Actually everywhere I sat, the person on my left would hit small winners and Wendy would hit small winners on my right and I would, put in five bucks and another five bucks and another five bucks and that is how it went during our visit.
Got that out of my system for a while!

Settled in

Well, I am now in Norco and happy to be here. The move was like most moves, busy and stressful. Wendy, my room mate did most of the work and so she should. After all it is her house, I am only a renter:)

The barns are up and we have one new horse at this time. It is a quarter horse mare that Wendy will be breeding her stallion, Max. I purchased a mini horse and she will be arriving next month. She is in foal and will be having her baby June of next year. Wendy will be the owner of the baby and I will use my mare to pull me in a cart, on the trails of Norco. We hope to find a nice gentle quarter horse mare for me as well. There are miles of trails here in Norco and we plan on enjoying as many as we can.

I still go back to Chino and help with a computer class on Wednesday's at the Senior Center. The gal that lived next to me in Chino, is learning to use a computer and she is the one I attend class with on Wednesday mornings. Ended up I assist the teacher with the beginners and we all have a good time.

That is about it for now. Until next time.....

Busy Days Ahead

Whew, have I been busy! Lots to get done before the move. Everything seems to be coming together, despite this hot weather.

We have been spending some time in old town Norco. It's been really fun to visit the restaurants and meet the local people. Everyone has been very nice.

Here is a picture of the barn that is already on the property. Corralman is coming to put up some corrals and cementman is coming to do cement work and fenceman is coming to do the dog fencing. There are alot of "men" coming to do work at the homestead.

On The Road Again

Well, where to start? I love Chino and being a Dirt Person but we will be leaving it soon. Wendy purchased a new home in Norco. One acre of property with 3,300 sq ft of space assigned to animals only.

The house in around 4000 sq ft, big enough for us not to get in each other’s way! The Ironbark home will close escrow around July 28th, while the new home closes on July 6th.

Mover and packers are doing most of the work but there will be plenty for us to do. The new property as a two-stall barn with a tack room between the two stalls.

Norco has 90 miles of riding trails. This will be a new adventure for me, my very own Horse! Starting to like retirement.

LIFE IS GOOD

Lazy Days of Summer

It isn't summer yet but in Chino the temperature is getting hotter with each day.
The pool is staying around 83 degrees so that means I get wet each day. Reading while walking around the shallow end of the pool is what a retired person calls, multi tasking.
Doing a little volunteer work at the Senior Center these days as well. Ends up that I know more than lots of the Seniors when it comes to basic computers. Each Wednesday, I assist the computer teacher with her class. Never thought I would feel smart about computers but the students in this class, very very beginners, think I am a genius.
Average age of the class is around 70; of course I am the baby at 56 years young.
Wish I had something a little more exciting to write but I live a simple life.
Signing off from the Valley of the Dirt People

Mothers Day

Mothers Day started by Kristin, Dave and Wendy attending the Church I go to here in Chino. I think they enjoyed the service. Of course the topic was a little rough dealing with, “letting go of the reins.” I did have trouble in that area with Kristin. Did my Best but didn’t let go the way I should have. I think she forgave me and realized it was out of love and worry not control.
After Church we went to breakfast and enjoyed catching up on what has been happening in each other’s lives. Now the real adventure begins. After breakfast we went on a critter hunt through the streets of Chino and Ontario. I practiced my animal sounds and managed to call a couple of turkeys over to the side of the road where we were parked. I think they liked me just a little too much if you know what I mean.
Next stop I called over the cows using my best moooooo. They came over and watched Kristin as she took some pictures of them for the memory book. There are lots of critters in Chino and our surrounding cities. We had a good time.
Finished up the visit with homemade banana strawberry smoothies for Dave and Kristin.

Del Mar Horse Show

Just got back from attending the Del Mar Show. Wendy showed her horse Friday, Saturday and Sunday. We took Wendy's new fifth wheel travel trailer and we stayed on the show grounds. Lots of fun, and way more rest, not having to drive too and from the grounds daily.
Wendy did a great job showing and her Max (Horse) was a very good boy. This was the first trip she made in the new trailer. All went well! Very relaxing.
I had a tooth extracted yesterday. Can't say that was a pleasing experience! Now I need to wait for the hole to heal. In about three months, a post goes in. Wait another couple of months for that to heal and then an implant will be installed. Last thing is a crown and all done with that tooth. I am such a big girl and so very brave.
Kristin and Dave will be going to Church with me on Mother's Day. It will be the first time they have attended my Church. After moving to Chino I needed to find a Church that I was comfortable in and I found one just down the street.
Because of the tooth extraction I will not be able to have my left knee replaced until that is finish and totally healed. That is O.K with me, not looking forward to another surgery. My right knee is feeling better each week so I am happy I had it replaced. Enough for now!

Progress

Well, the good news is, I am off all heart meds. Passed all my tests and only have to pass a stress EKG before going in for my left knee replacement surgery. Going to wait until my right knee is 90% pain free before replacing my left knee. According to the Doctor that takes 6 months from the day of the surgery. I am only starting month 4 of my rehabilitation, so I have a little more pain to handle.
The new rules on Workman's Comp won't let you have more than 24 visits to rehab without requesting special circumstances. Because my knee keeps swelling up, I am getting 12 more sessions. So I will cut the visits down to two a week and hope my knee starts to cooperate.
The sun is out in Chino and it is getting warmer daily. I can still see snow on the mountain tops across the way, but it is melting fast. Looking forward to watching Wendy ride her horse at Del Mar next week.
Wendy just purchased a 29 foot fifth wheel travel trailer with three pop outs, lots of room. We will be staying on the fairgrounds in the new trailer during the show. It will make things so much easier.
Life is Good! Love, Lynell

Birthday Bubbles

Great Day,
My daughter Kristin and friend Wendy took me to a movie and out to dinner. It was all about me day. Kind of nice once-in-a-while! They gave me wonderful personal gifts, the ones you usually wouldn't buy for yourself. The day ended with a warm bubble bath and candles lighting the room. It is so nice to be loved!

Feeling Better

It has been almost 2 and 1/2 months since my knee surgery. I can finally say, the pain is gone when I am doing nothing and much much better when active. Down to one pain pill a day and almost ready to stop that one.
Of course this only means the left knee could be done sooner. After my echo cardiogram on the 30th of this month, maybe we will know what happened to my heart during the last surgery. All is fine now but I don't want another surgery until I am sure nothing is really wrong.
Broke off half of a root in one of my back teeth. It had a cap on it and no root left anyway but they pulled the splite piece out and now I need to fill the hole. That will take an inplant. So before I can get my left knee replaced, I will have to finish all the work on the tooth first. Could take about 2 months from what I am told. Has to do with removing the tooth, putting in a post, and building a new tooth to fit. All procudures take time between one another. Guess that is why it takes so long. Sure hope it isn't painful. Doesn't sould like much fun.
Growing old is not for sissy's