Pictured is Ian showing off all the award finery from the Region 10 show.
Now on to Canadian Nationals in Regina, Saskatchewan in mid-August to win there!
E-I-E-I-O
Roasted Vegetable Recipes
2 weeks ago
Sunday, June 13, 2010
Legacy's Renoir earns Region 10 Top 5 Placement
Tonight (Saturday, June 12), Legacy's Renoir and his trainer Erik Haff were awarded a Top 5 Ribbon in the Arabian Stallion Breeding 2 Years & Over class at the AHA Region 10 Championship Show! Renoir was the best behaved in the class and we are very pleased with that.
Pictured is Ian showing off all the award finery from the Region 10 show.
Now on to Canadian Nationals in Regina, Saskatchewan in mid-August to win there!
E-I-E-I-O
Pictured is Ian showing off all the award finery from the Region 10 show.
Now on to Canadian Nationals in Regina, Saskatchewan in mid-August to win there!
E-I-E-I-O
Thursday, June 10, 2010
AHA Region 10 AOTH 2010 Champion Arabian Breeding Stallion
Ian showed Legacy's Renoir in the Arabian Breeding Stallion Amateur Owner To Handle class this morning and won Champion!
Renoir and his trainer Erik show on Saturday evening in the Arabian Stallion Breeding 2 Years & Older class and we're looking for another wonderful result there too.
E-I-E-I-O
Monday, June 07, 2010
Arabian Horse Association’s Region 10 Championship Show
Just a quick entry to tell you that Legacy’s Renoir will be shown this week in two stallion Halter classes at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds during the AHA Region 10 Championship Show. Renoir qualified to show at the regional level last month when he was shown during Sahara Sands.
The first class is on Thursday morning, June 10, (classes begin at 8 a.m.) with Ian in Arabian Stallion Breeding Amateur Owner To Handle (AOTH means the horse’s registered owner must be an amateur and serve as his handler), class number 307.
Renoir’s second class is number 408 on Saturday evening, June 12, starting at 6 p.m., Arabian Stallion Breeding 2 Years & Over (Renoir is an 8 year old stallion). This is an Open Class, meaning the handlers are most likely professional trainers. This comes with lots of pomp, circumstances and politics! Renoir’s trainer, Erik Haff of Lonesome Dove Training Center will show Renoir in Saturday’s class.
Our goal is to qualify to show at the national level, so Renoir and one or both of his handlers must finish in the Top 5. The two national shows are Canadian Nationals in Regina, Saskatchewan in mid August and U.S. Nationals in Tulsa, Oklahoma in late October.
There is free parking and no admission to the Region 10 Show, which runs from June 10-13, with lots of classes. In addition to the Halter classes, you can enjoy English Pleasure, English Show Hack, Hunter Pleasure, Country English Pleasure, Western Pleasure, Reining, plus the crowd favorite, Native Costume. Both purebred and Half Arabian horses are shown. There are food and other vendors on the grounds, so come spend some time and cheer us on.
If you would like to see the full show schedule please click here.
That’s the latest from the Auld Macdonald Farm.
E-I-E-I-O
The first class is on Thursday morning, June 10, (classes begin at 8 a.m.) with Ian in Arabian Stallion Breeding Amateur Owner To Handle (AOTH means the horse’s registered owner must be an amateur and serve as his handler), class number 307.
Renoir’s second class is number 408 on Saturday evening, June 12, starting at 6 p.m., Arabian Stallion Breeding 2 Years & Over (Renoir is an 8 year old stallion). This is an Open Class, meaning the handlers are most likely professional trainers. This comes with lots of pomp, circumstances and politics! Renoir’s trainer, Erik Haff of Lonesome Dove Training Center will show Renoir in Saturday’s class.
Our goal is to qualify to show at the national level, so Renoir and one or both of his handlers must finish in the Top 5. The two national shows are Canadian Nationals in Regina, Saskatchewan in mid August and U.S. Nationals in Tulsa, Oklahoma in late October.
There is free parking and no admission to the Region 10 Show, which runs from June 10-13, with lots of classes. In addition to the Halter classes, you can enjoy English Pleasure, English Show Hack, Hunter Pleasure, Country English Pleasure, Western Pleasure, Reining, plus the crowd favorite, Native Costume. Both purebred and Half Arabian horses are shown. There are food and other vendors on the grounds, so come spend some time and cheer us on.
If you would like to see the full show schedule please click here.
That’s the latest from the Auld Macdonald Farm.
E-I-E-I-O
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Spring comes to Wildwood Road
It has been a busy few months, which is my only excuse for not posting! We really love this new farm. Because we moved here in November, these warmer months with all the blooming stuff is all new to us. I don’t even know what’s planted in the numerous gardens. That said, things are beginning to come up. As a novice gardener I suspect we have a few day lilies, some peonies, some very thorny rose bushes and several different types of hostas. The miniature lilac bushes and raspberry plants that we transplanted from Stanchfield are in leaf, so they made it through the winter. The lawn is vast and much of it is either dandelions or creeping Charlie. We will try and wrestle it back to grass that we can enjoy in bare feet. Ian needs to tune up the riding lawnmower, which runs for a bit before spitting to a stop. Poor thing, we really have used it for jobs well beyond what the manufacturer intended.
Ian continues working as a consultant with a rural crop insurance company as a client. They are nice people and the projects are very interesting. Ian and trainer Erik both showed our stallion Legacy’s Renoir at the Sahara Sands Spring Classic on Sunday morning, May 2, at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds. Renoir took a first place with Ian and a third place in the open class with Erik. Ian also showed a 2-year old purebred filly for a friend in Wisconsin. The filly did well too. Our next show stop is in June 10-13 at the AHA Region 10 Championship Show also held at the fairgrounds.
The horses here on the farm all wintered very well. We have no foals coming this year, but we are going to breed mares this year for foals in 2011. In fact, we are going to breed a purebred American Saddlebred foal by crossing Amber's Mayday with Famous Echo SCA for a Saddlebred pinto foal in April 2011. We will breed Legacy’s Renoir to four of our own mares this year; three purebred and one Anglo-Arabian (crossed with our Thoroughbred mare Yukon Miss). We will breed Arabian mare MAF Last Dance ("Mona") to American Saddlebred palomino stallion Goldmount Royal Design (we own him now, but “Roy” stands at stud near Sioux Falls, South Dakota) hoping for another full-bodied, great moving, palomino Half Arabian foal. We are breeding a new Arabian mare, Adieu NR, to Conway Arabians’ champion stallion Noble Way to get a well-bred high stepping purebred.
We still have the three dogs – Lady, Buddy and Tucker – plus the cats Tiger, Tonic and Zeus. There is another cat that shares food with Tonic in the barn, but she’s timid and I’m trying to tame her so I can get her vaccinated and spade. Even though all of our boys are neutered she would no doubt find a roaming Tomcat and then have the kittens here. Uff! We have two chickens, Trixie and her son Rooster. I will order chicks from a hatchery soon. Chickens are marvelous at keeping the ticks down and there is nothing quite like collecting my own farm fresh eggs.
We still have four adult Pilgrim geese (3 white ganders and 1 grey goose) The goose decided out of all our many acres the best place to nest was in the garden on the south side of the house. She sat on 13 eggs for the longest time and hatched 5 female geese. However, this goose is not the best mother, as she lost the three she hatched last year. I left the five hatchlings with her until Ian and I found them huddled sans mother next to our front door. We had been running errands all that day and were too tired to do a proper gosling set up so they spent the night in our bathtub. I did let Ian shower first! LOL The next day Ian brought an empty 100-gallon stock tank into the garage where we lined the bottom with newspaper and wood shavings. I clamped a heat lamp to the side, put in a waterer and a small pile of goose feed and, voila, gosling heaven! It is topped with chicken fencing to prevent them becoming cat snacks! They are happy and growing. As soon as they have some feathers I will transfer them to the chicken coop with its fenced area. I pick them up and cuddle these soft yellow sweeties with the idea they will be friendlier to humans. The adults do protest hiss, but do not run after people and are easy to shoo out of one’s way.
My 85-year-old mother has been at the Minnesota Vet’s Home since the end of February. She has recovered nicely from her mid-February stroke. She really enjoys her life there and the care is very good. We talk almost daily and I try to make the 90-minute drive into Minneapolis about once every 10 days. Mom and I usually enjoy lunch together in the dining room and I check in for brief face-to-face hellos with her care-giving staff. Mom has been asked to participate in the Memorial Day ceremonies at the Vet’s Home, representing women in the armed forces.
Last weekend, Ian traveled to the Canadian Maritimes to attend his daughter’s graduation ceremony from culinary school. Due to being bumped from an overbooked flight, Ian flew to Halifax, Nova Scotia and drove to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island to spend Saturday with Alexandra. She will come to Minnesota from her new digs in Montreal for a much needed vacation in late May. I look forward to seeing her.
Last month we bought a two-horse, slant-load, bumper-pull trailer from friends in Pine City. This allows us such flexibility! We have missed having a trailer. This one is small enough that we can easily pull it with our F-150. This Friday we are taking Mona to South Dakota to be bred to Roy. We will be gone overnight (woo-hoo a night in a hotel with Ian) and will get to visit with some of our horse-loving friends whose paths we usually cross during February at the Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show in Arizona. We are looking forward to this. After Mona’s confirmed in foal we will go back to collect her. Roy will stay put through the 2010 breeding season. Mayday will soon be ready to bring home from Eau Claire, Wisconsin too.
That’s the latest from the Auld Macdonald Farm.
E-I-E-I-O
Ian continues working as a consultant with a rural crop insurance company as a client. They are nice people and the projects are very interesting. Ian and trainer Erik both showed our stallion Legacy’s Renoir at the Sahara Sands Spring Classic on Sunday morning, May 2, at the Minnesota State Fairgrounds. Renoir took a first place with Ian and a third place in the open class with Erik. Ian also showed a 2-year old purebred filly for a friend in Wisconsin. The filly did well too. Our next show stop is in June 10-13 at the AHA Region 10 Championship Show also held at the fairgrounds.
The horses here on the farm all wintered very well. We have no foals coming this year, but we are going to breed mares this year for foals in 2011. In fact, we are going to breed a purebred American Saddlebred foal by crossing Amber's Mayday with Famous Echo SCA for a Saddlebred pinto foal in April 2011. We will breed Legacy’s Renoir to four of our own mares this year; three purebred and one Anglo-Arabian (crossed with our Thoroughbred mare Yukon Miss). We will breed Arabian mare MAF Last Dance ("Mona") to American Saddlebred palomino stallion Goldmount Royal Design (we own him now, but “Roy” stands at stud near Sioux Falls, South Dakota) hoping for another full-bodied, great moving, palomino Half Arabian foal. We are breeding a new Arabian mare, Adieu NR, to Conway Arabians’ champion stallion Noble Way to get a well-bred high stepping purebred.
We still have the three dogs – Lady, Buddy and Tucker – plus the cats Tiger, Tonic and Zeus. There is another cat that shares food with Tonic in the barn, but she’s timid and I’m trying to tame her so I can get her vaccinated and spade. Even though all of our boys are neutered she would no doubt find a roaming Tomcat and then have the kittens here. Uff! We have two chickens, Trixie and her son Rooster. I will order chicks from a hatchery soon. Chickens are marvelous at keeping the ticks down and there is nothing quite like collecting my own farm fresh eggs.
We still have four adult Pilgrim geese (3 white ganders and 1 grey goose) The goose decided out of all our many acres the best place to nest was in the garden on the south side of the house. She sat on 13 eggs for the longest time and hatched 5 female geese. However, this goose is not the best mother, as she lost the three she hatched last year. I left the five hatchlings with her until Ian and I found them huddled sans mother next to our front door. We had been running errands all that day and were too tired to do a proper gosling set up so they spent the night in our bathtub. I did let Ian shower first! LOL The next day Ian brought an empty 100-gallon stock tank into the garage where we lined the bottom with newspaper and wood shavings. I clamped a heat lamp to the side, put in a waterer and a small pile of goose feed and, voila, gosling heaven! It is topped with chicken fencing to prevent them becoming cat snacks! They are happy and growing. As soon as they have some feathers I will transfer them to the chicken coop with its fenced area. I pick them up and cuddle these soft yellow sweeties with the idea they will be friendlier to humans. The adults do protest hiss, but do not run after people and are easy to shoo out of one’s way.
My 85-year-old mother has been at the Minnesota Vet’s Home since the end of February. She has recovered nicely from her mid-February stroke. She really enjoys her life there and the care is very good. We talk almost daily and I try to make the 90-minute drive into Minneapolis about once every 10 days. Mom and I usually enjoy lunch together in the dining room and I check in for brief face-to-face hellos with her care-giving staff. Mom has been asked to participate in the Memorial Day ceremonies at the Vet’s Home, representing women in the armed forces.
Last weekend, Ian traveled to the Canadian Maritimes to attend his daughter’s graduation ceremony from culinary school. Due to being bumped from an overbooked flight, Ian flew to Halifax, Nova Scotia and drove to Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island to spend Saturday with Alexandra. She will come to Minnesota from her new digs in Montreal for a much needed vacation in late May. I look forward to seeing her.
Last month we bought a two-horse, slant-load, bumper-pull trailer from friends in Pine City. This allows us such flexibility! We have missed having a trailer. This one is small enough that we can easily pull it with our F-150. This Friday we are taking Mona to South Dakota to be bred to Roy. We will be gone overnight (woo-hoo a night in a hotel with Ian) and will get to visit with some of our horse-loving friends whose paths we usually cross during February at the Scottsdale Arabian Horse Show in Arizona. We are looking forward to this. After Mona’s confirmed in foal we will go back to collect her. Roy will stay put through the 2010 breeding season. Mayday will soon be ready to bring home from Eau Claire, Wisconsin too.
That’s the latest from the Auld Macdonald Farm.
E-I-E-I-O
Monday, March 01, 2010
More color comes to the farm
Last week four horses were hauled home to their farm in Wisconsin (Thank you, Erik). Two of which were the sisters I mentioned some posts back that were ribby and needed equine dental work. Having had that done, they will surely continue to gain weight and be in dandy shape come spring. I'm happy to report that my girlfriend and her husband are in much better health and are now able to care for their own horses – it's all good.
Last week, Flirting With Color ("Flirt") joined our herd. We got her from a dear friend and feel very blessed. Flirt is a four-year-old Half Arabian, bay tobiano tri-color pinto mare. Her sire is Color Of Fame, a pinto American Saddlebred and her dam is sired by purebred Arabian champion, DS Major Afire. Flirt is 16.2 hh and still growing. We plan to start her under saddle this year and show her in coming seasons as an English horse.
In fact, with no foals coming this spring, we have several horses we will be starting under saddle when the weather warms: three-year-old chestnut AE Psymbolic gelding, Pskye, three-year-old bay RSA Troublesome filly, AMF Troublesome's Kiss, and four-year-old Half Arabian chestnut tobiano pinto gelding, AMF Xtreme Kiss, by Pinto World Champion Saddlebred stallion TF Xtreme. There are the 2008 and 2009 Renoir foals to work too with hopes of showing them later in the season.
In May, we are also looking forward to having Ian’s daughter Alexandra as our guest for a few weeks after she graduates from culinary school in Canada. Alex will turn 21 years old later this month and on March 9, her father turns 54!
E-I-E-I-O
Last week, Flirting With Color ("Flirt") joined our herd. We got her from a dear friend and feel very blessed. Flirt is a four-year-old Half Arabian, bay tobiano tri-color pinto mare. Her sire is Color Of Fame, a pinto American Saddlebred and her dam is sired by purebred Arabian champion, DS Major Afire. Flirt is 16.2 hh and still growing. We plan to start her under saddle this year and show her in coming seasons as an English horse.
In fact, with no foals coming this spring, we have several horses we will be starting under saddle when the weather warms: three-year-old chestnut AE Psymbolic gelding, Pskye, three-year-old bay RSA Troublesome filly, AMF Troublesome's Kiss, and four-year-old Half Arabian chestnut tobiano pinto gelding, AMF Xtreme Kiss, by Pinto World Champion Saddlebred stallion TF Xtreme. There are the 2008 and 2009 Renoir foals to work too with hopes of showing them later in the season.
In May, we are also looking forward to having Ian’s daughter Alexandra as our guest for a few weeks after she graduates from culinary school in Canada. Alex will turn 21 years old later this month and on March 9, her father turns 54!
E-I-E-I-O
Mom moves to the MN Veteran's Home
Last Thursday, Mom was admitted to the Veteran's Home in Minneapolis as a resident! We have been waiting for this since we learned in November that because of the stroke Mom had in October she would not be able to safely live alone again in her assisted living apartment.
Mom was invited to stay with us on the farm while she waited for her Vet's Home room to become available. She moved from the transitional care nursing home on January 18, to our dining room that we converted into a main floor bedroom. We settled into a routine together and really enjoyed our living situation.
On Saturday evening, February 13, while we were watching the Winter Olympics, Mom showed signs of another stroke – droopy left side, garbled speech. I called 911 emergency and gathered info about her medications, allergies, and medical history, while Ian comforted Mom as we waited for the ambulance.
We went to the nearest hospital in Sandstone, Minnesota, where Mom was stabilized. A CT-scan confirmed she was not bleeding internally, so she was transported to Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC), the regional trauma center and where most of Mom's doctors practice. It was a long night for all of us. Ian and I got home from Minneapolis on Sunday morning in time for morning chores. Mom spent one night in ICU and was transferred to HCMC's neurology ward for observation and more testing.
Initially, Mom seemed very weak and still confused so I called my brother Mark who lives in Maryland to come and visit. From one day to the next, we both saw Mom gain strength and return to what I will term as her 'near normal self.' It was such a relief to have Mom show everyone that she was very determined to get well.
After a four-day hospital stay, and to build up her physical strength again, Mom was transferred from HCMC to Benedictine, the transitional nursing home where she had been before coming to the farm. Mom was there only one week when her Vet's Home room became available and she was transferred!
Mom has a very nice roommate, Catherine, who is also new to the Vet's Home. The two have bonded and are learning about their new surroundings together.
Ian and I brought Mom's belongings to her to make her room both familiar and useful. She's got cable TV and a room with a lovely view of Minnehaha Falls Park. In addition to her daily medical care, Mom will also work with a physical therapist, an occupational therapist, become enrolled in its free dental program, have access to the library with its high-speed Internet access computers, and be able to attend non-denominational church services on-site that are held in a beautiful stained glass chapel.
Surely one of Mom's favorite new things is her cell phone, which she uses to stay in touch with family and friends. When we brought it to her, Mom exclaimed: "I have always wanted one!"
E-I-E-I-O
Mom was invited to stay with us on the farm while she waited for her Vet's Home room to become available. She moved from the transitional care nursing home on January 18, to our dining room that we converted into a main floor bedroom. We settled into a routine together and really enjoyed our living situation.
On Saturday evening, February 13, while we were watching the Winter Olympics, Mom showed signs of another stroke – droopy left side, garbled speech. I called 911 emergency and gathered info about her medications, allergies, and medical history, while Ian comforted Mom as we waited for the ambulance.
We went to the nearest hospital in Sandstone, Minnesota, where Mom was stabilized. A CT-scan confirmed she was not bleeding internally, so she was transported to Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC), the regional trauma center and where most of Mom's doctors practice. It was a long night for all of us. Ian and I got home from Minneapolis on Sunday morning in time for morning chores. Mom spent one night in ICU and was transferred to HCMC's neurology ward for observation and more testing.
Initially, Mom seemed very weak and still confused so I called my brother Mark who lives in Maryland to come and visit. From one day to the next, we both saw Mom gain strength and return to what I will term as her 'near normal self.' It was such a relief to have Mom show everyone that she was very determined to get well.
After a four-day hospital stay, and to build up her physical strength again, Mom was transferred from HCMC to Benedictine, the transitional nursing home where she had been before coming to the farm. Mom was there only one week when her Vet's Home room became available and she was transferred!
Mom has a very nice roommate, Catherine, who is also new to the Vet's Home. The two have bonded and are learning about their new surroundings together.
Ian and I brought Mom's belongings to her to make her room both familiar and useful. She's got cable TV and a room with a lovely view of Minnehaha Falls Park. In addition to her daily medical care, Mom will also work with a physical therapist, an occupational therapist, become enrolled in its free dental program, have access to the library with its high-speed Internet access computers, and be able to attend non-denominational church services on-site that are held in a beautiful stained glass chapel.
Surely one of Mom's favorite new things is her cell phone, which she uses to stay in touch with family and friends. When we brought it to her, Mom exclaimed: "I have always wanted one!"
E-I-E-I-O
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Mom visits the Auld Macdonald Farm
In my October 29 and November 24 posts I wrote about my 85-year-old mother, Joyce, returning home to her apartment after a stroke and how that happy return was short lived. Mom just could not cope with being alone in her apartment and she needed the security and comfort of 24/7 care. There were services that would have aided Mom during the daytime hours, but there was nothing available for overnight, which was a frightening and lonely time for her. Mom returned to Benedictine Health Center and soon felt much safer.
After weeks of observation, tests and doctor visits, it was determined that Mom could no longer live safely in her assisted living apartment. Mom completely agreed saying just thinking about the list of things she would need to keep track of to navigate a normal day was just overwhelming. Of course, this made the decision to give up her apartment – a place she'd lived for almost 20 years – much easier.
In November, I got Mom on the admissions list for the Veteran's Home of Minneapolis. Mom served in the US Air Force as a registered nurse. She and I toured the facility, found it to be very nice with plenty to do and we began the admissions process. Mom is now at the top of that list and as soon as a bed opens she will be admitted.
In mid January, Ian and I invited Mom to come and stay with us on the farm while she waits for the room to become available. Mom was very lonely and bored to tears at Benedictine. Our farm is 90 minutes drive north of the Twin Cities and I didn't get in to visit as often as I would have liked. Phone calls just don't replace holding someone's hand and enjoying a nice face-to-face chin-chin.
Mom uses a rollator (a wheeler walker) to get around and because the bedrooms are upstairs and the only bathroom is on the main floor, we converted our formal dining room into a place for Mom. We had emptied her apartment and brought all of her belongings here, so we used Mom's own furniture (including a piano) and pictures to make it homey. It works nicely and Mom is enjoying it.
Mom's insurance covers having an RN come weekly to set up her meds (which I administer) plus an occupational therapist, a physical therapist and a home health aide (for bathing) come twice weekly. Mom's doctor visits and medication costs are covered by the Veteran's Administration as a benefit. Nice!
It is so nice to have Mom here for these weeks. We have lived together several different times during our adult lives, so we have a connection and understand one another. It helps that we adore and admire one another too. As an added bonus, Ian and Mom have their own mutual admiration society going too. Our three dogs and two housecats take full advantage of Mom as another person to pet them and to curl up next to.
I have found that there is more structure to my days. Mom needs meds given at 9 a.m., 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. plus pain pills as needed for pain, but no more than six times a day. I have set alarms on my cell phone to remind me. I fix Mom three meals (she eats like a bird) and make sure she has healthy snacks like a sliced apple or orange. I don't do daily this for myself or Ian, but I'm happy to do it for her. LOL I've learned many things, like Mom needs a lighter weight coffee cup versus the earthenware ones we use, and to fill it only half full versus to the tippy top with hot morning coffee.
There are so many things to sort out and stay on top of. Little old people have a lot of things going on – there are appointments, scheduling rides to appointments, getting prescriptions filled, setting up future appointments, and the list goes on! For Mom, I handled her changes of address (you cannot believe how many magazines she subscribes to – and reads!), cancelled the cable TV, telephone service, Internet service and made sure these companies bill properly (some didn't and got their butts chewed!). There are tons of filling out forms, making photocopies and then filing things properly so I can find them quickly, knowing Mom's various types of medical coverage, which doctor is for what, monitoring her bills, and finally becoming disgusted with her bank's customer service and changing institutions. Plus, with Mom's short-term memory loss there are things she just doesn't remember (a doctor's name, what was said at an appointment, why she's taking X medication, etc.), so I must investigate. Thankfully, I have her durable power of attorney and am the agent for her End of Life Directive – in Minnesota these documents open doors and get all my questions answered. I have come to really admire all that Mom coordinated in her day-to-day life before her October stroke. I had no idea.
I've gone through her clothes closet – something I've threatened to do for decades – and tossed out or cleaned/donated everything that was not her size or was in tattered shape. No one wants their mother looking like a bag lady. Now, in addition to having clothes that fit and are easy for her to get in and out of, Mom's well stocked with socks, brasseries and underpants (I refused to buy white, what's the fun in that? But I did get 100% cotton). Next on my To Do List are shoes. I hate the one pair she has, but the pairs I’ve bought haven't fit right so I'm still working on that. A girl's gotta have more than one pair – even on her 80s!
The next semi-urgent item on the To Do List is to go through Mom's book boxes (again, you cannot imagine the number of books this woman owns!) and find the three that are owned and now overdue to the Minneapolis Public Library!
E-I-E-I-O
After weeks of observation, tests and doctor visits, it was determined that Mom could no longer live safely in her assisted living apartment. Mom completely agreed saying just thinking about the list of things she would need to keep track of to navigate a normal day was just overwhelming. Of course, this made the decision to give up her apartment – a place she'd lived for almost 20 years – much easier.
In November, I got Mom on the admissions list for the Veteran's Home of Minneapolis. Mom served in the US Air Force as a registered nurse. She and I toured the facility, found it to be very nice with plenty to do and we began the admissions process. Mom is now at the top of that list and as soon as a bed opens she will be admitted.
In mid January, Ian and I invited Mom to come and stay with us on the farm while she waits for the room to become available. Mom was very lonely and bored to tears at Benedictine. Our farm is 90 minutes drive north of the Twin Cities and I didn't get in to visit as often as I would have liked. Phone calls just don't replace holding someone's hand and enjoying a nice face-to-face chin-chin.
Mom uses a rollator (a wheeler walker) to get around and because the bedrooms are upstairs and the only bathroom is on the main floor, we converted our formal dining room into a place for Mom. We had emptied her apartment and brought all of her belongings here, so we used Mom's own furniture (including a piano) and pictures to make it homey. It works nicely and Mom is enjoying it.
Mom's insurance covers having an RN come weekly to set up her meds (which I administer) plus an occupational therapist, a physical therapist and a home health aide (for bathing) come twice weekly. Mom's doctor visits and medication costs are covered by the Veteran's Administration as a benefit. Nice!
It is so nice to have Mom here for these weeks. We have lived together several different times during our adult lives, so we have a connection and understand one another. It helps that we adore and admire one another too. As an added bonus, Ian and Mom have their own mutual admiration society going too. Our three dogs and two housecats take full advantage of Mom as another person to pet them and to curl up next to.
I have found that there is more structure to my days. Mom needs meds given at 9 a.m., 5 p.m. and 9 p.m. plus pain pills as needed for pain, but no more than six times a day. I have set alarms on my cell phone to remind me. I fix Mom three meals (she eats like a bird) and make sure she has healthy snacks like a sliced apple or orange. I don't do daily this for myself or Ian, but I'm happy to do it for her. LOL I've learned many things, like Mom needs a lighter weight coffee cup versus the earthenware ones we use, and to fill it only half full versus to the tippy top with hot morning coffee.
There are so many things to sort out and stay on top of. Little old people have a lot of things going on – there are appointments, scheduling rides to appointments, getting prescriptions filled, setting up future appointments, and the list goes on! For Mom, I handled her changes of address (you cannot believe how many magazines she subscribes to – and reads!), cancelled the cable TV, telephone service, Internet service and made sure these companies bill properly (some didn't and got their butts chewed!). There are tons of filling out forms, making photocopies and then filing things properly so I can find them quickly, knowing Mom's various types of medical coverage, which doctor is for what, monitoring her bills, and finally becoming disgusted with her bank's customer service and changing institutions. Plus, with Mom's short-term memory loss there are things she just doesn't remember (a doctor's name, what was said at an appointment, why she's taking X medication, etc.), so I must investigate. Thankfully, I have her durable power of attorney and am the agent for her End of Life Directive – in Minnesota these documents open doors and get all my questions answered. I have come to really admire all that Mom coordinated in her day-to-day life before her October stroke. I had no idea.
I've gone through her clothes closet – something I've threatened to do for decades – and tossed out or cleaned/donated everything that was not her size or was in tattered shape. No one wants their mother looking like a bag lady. Now, in addition to having clothes that fit and are easy for her to get in and out of, Mom's well stocked with socks, brasseries and underpants (I refused to buy white, what's the fun in that? But I did get 100% cotton). Next on my To Do List are shoes. I hate the one pair she has, but the pairs I’ve bought haven't fit right so I'm still working on that. A girl's gotta have more than one pair – even on her 80s!
The next semi-urgent item on the To Do List is to go through Mom's book boxes (again, you cannot imagine the number of books this woman owns!) and find the three that are owned and now overdue to the Minneapolis Public Library!
E-I-E-I-O
Tuesday, January 12, 2010
Happy New Year!
Winter has certainly found us. We have had several days of double-digits below zero temps and it looks like almost the entire US is suffering with this 'cold snap.' I am so happy with our bright yellow and red Ritchie fountain. It is so nice not to have to drag water hoses and to plug in and pay the bill for heating the 100-gallon water tanks in the pastures. However, since there's no water in the barn, we still have to schlep hoses to fill those tanks. This wrong will be rectified in the spring when the barn area and building are renovated. I'm counting my blessings and the dollar savings on our electric bill.
Speaking of the electric bill, well, the heating bill in our new digs actually, I must say this geothermal system is really nice. We have no propane or wood/corn pellets bills (or any of the related work to keep the stove fed) and we are as toasty as can be. Our December bill to run the heat pump was $130 versus to fill our pellet stove and run the propane heater that ran us $600 a month at the Stanchfield farm. True, the two farmhouses are not exactly comparable, but I can count the money staying on our account as well as you can.
The horses are well, but I have some that are ribby and I don’t like that at all. There is a combination of things that cause weight loss in horses; worms, poor nutrition among them. We deworm the herd at set intervals, and sometime this year I’m hoping to have each horse diagnosed as to how often they actually need to be dewormed. There are some that only need to be done four times a year, others need it monthly. The common practice is to deworm monthly or to feed dewormer pellets as a top dress with a horse's daily grain. However, research has shown that worms, like viruses, are becoming resistant to deworming drugs so our regimens are not working as well. This is why each horse should have its own fecal egg count number and be dewormed accordingly. Click here for more info on worms and fecal eggs count.
If a horse is not pregnant (late term), in training or being pleasure ridden regularly, I don’t believe in feeding grain. In the winter, the hay we feed is sufficient, and that coupled with good shelter and 24/7 access to water keeps most horses very happy. There are other factors like disposition, age and bad habits that should also be factored in – some horses are just nervous nellys that do energy sucking things like pace the fence line or stall weave or wind suck and these types are a challenge to keep at a healthy weight and if it drops they need help to recover and maintain, especially when the weather gets cold.
In our herd there are two mares, Eve and Mara, full sisters, who have been brought in from the pasture and are now blanketed and fed the high fat/easily digestible senior equine feed twice daily. Today, our vet, Jennifer, power floated their teeth to restore the needed grinding surface. Florida-based equine vet, Geoff Tucker, has an informative site on Equine Dentistry. Geoff’s site also has a video on the floating process.
I expect with these helps the sisters will now pick up the weight steadily and be in really good form come spring.
On the personal home front, our Christmas Day and New Year’s were as we like them; quiet, uneventful. On Christmas Eve during a break in a three-day snow storm, we went into the Cities and took my Mom to lunch at Mall Of America’s Napa Valley Grille. Mom (age 85) had a series of mini strokes in October and has had to give up living in her own apartment. She is on the list to get a room at the Minneapolis Veteran’s Home and while she waits for that to come open Mom lives at a transitional care facility in Minneapolis. Mom is doing well but has problems with her short term memory. She writes in a journal to help with remembering visits/appointments, medications and people’s names. This works and gives her comfort. Ian and I will empty Mom's Minneapolis apartment this coming weekend and store her belongings here on the farm.
Ian is Ian; happy at work, happy at home. On the weekends we enjoy unpacking more of our stuff and finding places for all of it - hanging the artwork is the most fun.
This week brings us a mid-January thaw with daytime temps in the high 20s and low 30s, however there is still plenty of winter left for us here on the frozen tundra. We smile every time that geothermal system kicks in!
E-I-E-I-O
Speaking of the electric bill, well, the heating bill in our new digs actually, I must say this geothermal system is really nice. We have no propane or wood/corn pellets bills (or any of the related work to keep the stove fed) and we are as toasty as can be. Our December bill to run the heat pump was $130 versus to fill our pellet stove and run the propane heater that ran us $600 a month at the Stanchfield farm. True, the two farmhouses are not exactly comparable, but I can count the money staying on our account as well as you can.
The horses are well, but I have some that are ribby and I don’t like that at all. There is a combination of things that cause weight loss in horses; worms, poor nutrition among them. We deworm the herd at set intervals, and sometime this year I’m hoping to have each horse diagnosed as to how often they actually need to be dewormed. There are some that only need to be done four times a year, others need it monthly. The common practice is to deworm monthly or to feed dewormer pellets as a top dress with a horse's daily grain. However, research has shown that worms, like viruses, are becoming resistant to deworming drugs so our regimens are not working as well. This is why each horse should have its own fecal egg count number and be dewormed accordingly. Click here for more info on worms and fecal eggs count.
If a horse is not pregnant (late term), in training or being pleasure ridden regularly, I don’t believe in feeding grain. In the winter, the hay we feed is sufficient, and that coupled with good shelter and 24/7 access to water keeps most horses very happy. There are other factors like disposition, age and bad habits that should also be factored in – some horses are just nervous nellys that do energy sucking things like pace the fence line or stall weave or wind suck and these types are a challenge to keep at a healthy weight and if it drops they need help to recover and maintain, especially when the weather gets cold.
In our herd there are two mares, Eve and Mara, full sisters, who have been brought in from the pasture and are now blanketed and fed the high fat/easily digestible senior equine feed twice daily. Today, our vet, Jennifer, power floated their teeth to restore the needed grinding surface. Florida-based equine vet, Geoff Tucker, has an informative site on Equine Dentistry. Geoff’s site also has a video on the floating process.
I expect with these helps the sisters will now pick up the weight steadily and be in really good form come spring.
On the personal home front, our Christmas Day and New Year’s were as we like them; quiet, uneventful. On Christmas Eve during a break in a three-day snow storm, we went into the Cities and took my Mom to lunch at Mall Of America’s Napa Valley Grille. Mom (age 85) had a series of mini strokes in October and has had to give up living in her own apartment. She is on the list to get a room at the Minneapolis Veteran’s Home and while she waits for that to come open Mom lives at a transitional care facility in Minneapolis. Mom is doing well but has problems with her short term memory. She writes in a journal to help with remembering visits/appointments, medications and people’s names. This works and gives her comfort. Ian and I will empty Mom's Minneapolis apartment this coming weekend and store her belongings here on the farm.
Ian is Ian; happy at work, happy at home. On the weekends we enjoy unpacking more of our stuff and finding places for all of it - hanging the artwork is the most fun.
This week brings us a mid-January thaw with daytime temps in the high 20s and low 30s, however there is still plenty of winter left for us here on the frozen tundra. We smile every time that geothermal system kicks in!
E-I-E-I-O
Thursday, December 03, 2009
Happy December
We enjoyed our Thanksgiving Day in our new farmhouse together with my Mom, son Richard and our friends Marcia and Dan. Dan brought scalloped corn, which was so yummy. Marcia brought my favorite bagged salad from Costco. Ian did a magnificent job with the turkey and all the fixings.
The night before Richard and I made three pies - pumpkin, sweet potato and apple. He joined me in the kitchen and used his iPhone connection to find me a sweet potato pie recipe. We settled on a recipe by Food Network’s Alton Brown. It calls for yogurt and I used a one pound can of sweet potatoes packed in water versus all the extra work using raw ones. It is a crowd pleaser.
That iPhone is a cool thing. I love everything Apple, but I don’t like that its linked to AT&T. Of course, we just renewed a two year-contract with Verizon Wireless. Besides, Ian and I are rather old school using laptops for our Internet connection and cell phones for calling people. Ian never texts and it is rare when I send one. I don’t know that we would use an iPhone, its droid cousin or even a Blackberry as they’re intended.
The November weather was unseasonably mild and only today have temperatures dipped to near December normal. We don’t have snow yet, but I have been getting bids from locals who do residential snowplowing. Ian and I kicked around the idea of getting our own snowblower but these cost in the neighborhood of $1500 and having someone plow the driveway and area in front of the barn will cost $35 a time. Even if we have a winter with record snowfalls we won’t come near needing to be plowed out 40 times! Besides, it’s nice to have someone else out in the subzero temps moving the snow around.
I am determined that this winter season we are going to do some kind of winter sport! The candidates are cross country skiing or snowshoeing. We’ve got plenty of our own acreage to explore and as long as it’s not double digits below zero being outside in the Minnesota winter (properly dressed) can be exhilarating.
We continue to unpack and organize the house and while the weather cooperates we are able to complete major projects outdoors too. Having the Ritchie waterer up and working will be such a blessing. Ian spent last Saturday with a rented trenching machine digging a 100-yard long trench (for its electrical supply) from the house to the pasture where the Ritchie will be mounted. Yesterday, Don came first with a backhoe, followed by a dump truck load of sand and later a skidsteer to prepare the insulated water line and placement area. Once its concrete pad cures, the bright yellow and red waterer will be placed -- we're looking at this Saturday. The Ritchie is located on a fence line where horses in both pastures can drink from it, giving the herd 24/7 access to pasture, water and shelter.
The Christmas tree has been placed in the living room and when I locate the boxes of ornamants it will be decorated.
E-I-E-I-O
Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Thankful on Wildwood Road
Where does the time go? I guess I have a bit of an excuse as Ian and I have been busy buying a new 80-acre farm, packing up the old one, turning over its keys and then moving lock, stock and barrel – all since I last posted!
Ian and I began moving ourselves from the 10-acre Stanchfield farm using a rented U-Haul truck and stock trailer on Friday morning, November 6. We handed over its keys on Saturday afternoon, November 14. The first night we spent here in the Wildwood farmhouse was November 7. We are still settling in trying to find the best place for all the bits of our stuff. The weather has been unseasonably warm, sunny and completely cooperative.
All of the animals moved very well. We only had a moment's nonsense from our Saddlebred mare and she was quickly apologetic. Even this year's foal crop of four loaded and traveled well. I wondered if we would survive loading the Pilgrim geese, but Ian's a clever lad and all four were on the trailer snuggled safely amongst things before they knew what hit them. They are very pleased with the new digs as Wildwood Road has a pond not far from the house and they spend more time floating than patrolling.
Ian has this week off from his consulting gig and we’re making the most of it. Yesterday, we went into Minneapolis to visit my 85-year-old Mom, who returned to a nursing home again as she copes with panic attacks, some disorientation and short term memory loss following her mid-October stroke. Mom is getting excellent nursing care and therapy while we wait to see how her circuits rewire. We all hope Mom’s fog will lift and that she will be able to return to life in her beloved 17th-floor apartment overlooking downtown Minneapolis. We children stand by to help Mom with decisions about where the safest living situation may be given whatever her circumstances dictate. Time will tell. Mom will spend Thanksgiving Day with us on the farm, along with my son Richard and two dear friends.
After our visit, we did our Thanksgiving Day grocery shopping, which filled the fridge to near capacity. We bought a 14-pound turkey that is defrosting slowing atop a shelf in the garage. I’m keeping an eye on it so that we don’t die of some dreaded disease. Martha Stewart says as long as it doesn’t thaw out to warmer than 40 degrees, we’re good. I had contemplated buying one of her birds, until I detected shock in Ian’s voice when I told him the smaller of the two offered was 'only' $69.99 plus $20 shipping & handling. Evidently, at that price point it was not a good thing. LOL Our young turkey from Wal-Mart as $9.36.
We came home to find our farmhouse and yard bathed in light coming from the dusk-to-dawn light the local electric company had installed on a pole. We had one of these in Stanchfield and ordered one for this farm as soon as we closed. Being away from city lights certainly is nice for stargazing, but it is no fun when doing evening chores!
Tomorrow, Don will come from Pine City to install a Ritchie Omni 2 in the pasture to provide warmed water to the horses year round. I am ecstatic at the thought of not having to lug a hose from the house to fill 100-gallon water tanks installed with electric heaters to keep the water from freezing. In fact, there will be no more tank filling at all -- just the occasional clean out. Woo-hoo! The Omni 2 has the capacity to water 40 horses and we will place it so that it will handle two pastures this winter. In the spring we will fence so that it waters four pastures.
Since I last posted we bought a 1997 Ford F-150 white/tan extended cab pick up truck. This sure makes hauling hay (and anything else) easy. We’re going for 30 square bales later today and its bed and load capacity works great for fetching one large round bale at a time for the herd pastured outdoors. I will admit this does get old and I expect we’ll buy our winter supply of large rounds soon.
That’s all the news that’s fit to print from the Auld Macdonald Farm.
E-I-E-I-O
Ian and I began moving ourselves from the 10-acre Stanchfield farm using a rented U-Haul truck and stock trailer on Friday morning, November 6. We handed over its keys on Saturday afternoon, November 14. The first night we spent here in the Wildwood farmhouse was November 7. We are still settling in trying to find the best place for all the bits of our stuff. The weather has been unseasonably warm, sunny and completely cooperative.
All of the animals moved very well. We only had a moment's nonsense from our Saddlebred mare and she was quickly apologetic. Even this year's foal crop of four loaded and traveled well. I wondered if we would survive loading the Pilgrim geese, but Ian's a clever lad and all four were on the trailer snuggled safely amongst things before they knew what hit them. They are very pleased with the new digs as Wildwood Road has a pond not far from the house and they spend more time floating than patrolling.
Ian has this week off from his consulting gig and we’re making the most of it. Yesterday, we went into Minneapolis to visit my 85-year-old Mom, who returned to a nursing home again as she copes with panic attacks, some disorientation and short term memory loss following her mid-October stroke. Mom is getting excellent nursing care and therapy while we wait to see how her circuits rewire. We all hope Mom’s fog will lift and that she will be able to return to life in her beloved 17th-floor apartment overlooking downtown Minneapolis. We children stand by to help Mom with decisions about where the safest living situation may be given whatever her circumstances dictate. Time will tell. Mom will spend Thanksgiving Day with us on the farm, along with my son Richard and two dear friends.
After our visit, we did our Thanksgiving Day grocery shopping, which filled the fridge to near capacity. We bought a 14-pound turkey that is defrosting slowing atop a shelf in the garage. I’m keeping an eye on it so that we don’t die of some dreaded disease. Martha Stewart says as long as it doesn’t thaw out to warmer than 40 degrees, we’re good. I had contemplated buying one of her birds, until I detected shock in Ian’s voice when I told him the smaller of the two offered was 'only' $69.99 plus $20 shipping & handling. Evidently, at that price point it was not a good thing. LOL Our young turkey from Wal-Mart as $9.36.
We came home to find our farmhouse and yard bathed in light coming from the dusk-to-dawn light the local electric company had installed on a pole. We had one of these in Stanchfield and ordered one for this farm as soon as we closed. Being away from city lights certainly is nice for stargazing, but it is no fun when doing evening chores!
Tomorrow, Don will come from Pine City to install a Ritchie Omni 2 in the pasture to provide warmed water to the horses year round. I am ecstatic at the thought of not having to lug a hose from the house to fill 100-gallon water tanks installed with electric heaters to keep the water from freezing. In fact, there will be no more tank filling at all -- just the occasional clean out. Woo-hoo! The Omni 2 has the capacity to water 40 horses and we will place it so that it will handle two pastures this winter. In the spring we will fence so that it waters four pastures.
Since I last posted we bought a 1997 Ford F-150 white/tan extended cab pick up truck. This sure makes hauling hay (and anything else) easy. We’re going for 30 square bales later today and its bed and load capacity works great for fetching one large round bale at a time for the herd pastured outdoors. I will admit this does get old and I expect we’ll buy our winter supply of large rounds soon.
That’s all the news that’s fit to print from the Auld Macdonald Farm.
E-I-E-I-O
Thursday, October 29, 2009
Wildwood Road in the snow!
These photographs were taken last winter. I don't want you to think we have snow in Minnesota yet!
E-I-E-I-O
E-I-E-I-O
Mom returns home!
Yesterday, after a 9-day stay at Benedictine Health Center, I returned Mom to her south Minneapolis apartment. She seems to have recovered nicely from her October 13 stroke and is well enough to return to living on her own once again. Her 17th floor apartment has a million dollar view of downtown Minneapolis and she really loves her life there.
Mom has dinner and visits with other residents in the building's dining room six nights a week and there are many services available to her should she need them. Mom has someone to clean her apartment and do her laundry weekly and thankfully my younger brother Matthew and his wife Connie live within five minutes drive.
This afternoon Mom has an appointment with her main care doctor and a follow up appointment scheduled with a neurologist next week. The hospital care at HCMC and the intensive physical and occupational therapy she received at Benedictine really helped Mom get back on track.
All good news.
E-I-E-I-O
Mom has dinner and visits with other residents in the building's dining room six nights a week and there are many services available to her should she need them. Mom has someone to clean her apartment and do her laundry weekly and thankfully my younger brother Matthew and his wife Connie live within five minutes drive.
This afternoon Mom has an appointment with her main care doctor and a follow up appointment scheduled with a neurologist next week. The hospital care at HCMC and the intensive physical and occupational therapy she received at Benedictine really helped Mom get back on track.
All good news.
E-I-E-I-O
Thursday, October 15, 2009
Wildwood Road
During the first weekend in November we will be moving from Stanchfield to our new home; a larger farm in Brook Park, Minnesota, which is 25 miles further to the northeast. Pictured is the 1918 two-story, 3-bedroom, remodeled farmhouse that sits on 55+ acres. There is a barn, a chicken coop, a large outdoor run-in shed and plenty of pasture for the horses.
E-I-E-I-O
Doctor JET
PICTURED: Connie, Mom holding Tucker, and Matthew.
My 85-year-old mother, Joyce E. Tiffany (known as Dr. JET to many), is in ICU at the Hennepin County Medical Center (HCMC), the regional trauma center. Mom was found unconscious on the floor lobby just outside of her 17th floor apartment in the wee hours of Tuesday morning. My brother Matthew, who lives in Minneapolis with his wife Connie, called me on Tuesday morning and they remained with Mom throughout the day.
I visited Mom at HCMC on Wednesday morning. She was not sedated and sleepily looked at me and then her eyes brightened with recognition. A breathing tube was in, so she could not speak. Mom is breathing on her own, the tube is just for fresh air and the plan is to have it taken out as soon as all the tests that requires her to be physically still are completed (hopefully today).
When I talked with Mom, squeezed her hand and patted her shoulder she nodded or shook her head in reply to my questions. She was not in any pain, she was warm and comfortable. How precious the words I love you are.
Yesterday’s MRI revealed that Mom has had two small strokes; one that triggered Tuesday’s events and one some time in the past.
Today, the docs have ordered a brain MRA scan, which is used to specifically evaluate the vessels of the brain for aneurysms, stroke and AVMs (vascular malformation)
Because Mom will not need to be sedated once the tube is out, she will be able to talk and we hope to learn more about how the strokes may have affected her. When I was there yesterday I saw none of the signs I usually associate with people who have had strokes.
I am going back to HCMC tomorrow (Friday). Matthew and his wife Connie visit Mom daily and the docs call Matthew with updates that he passes along to friends and family.
Mom is receiving excellent care. We are taking this day by day. It is scary and at times overwhelming – this is my mother – but I tend to click into my intellectual, problem solver mindset, which I am sure is the best way forward to help her. My brothers (Mark & Matthew) are ever loving and supportive, as are my husband, Ian, and son Richard.
E-I-E-I-O
Tuesday, August 11, 2009
August August
This is certainly one of my favorite months. In Minnesota, August is absolutely summer; warm, green, bountiful and established. July was the third coolest in Minnesota history, a month that saw no readings of 90 degrees or higher anywhere in the state, which lead to slowly ripening crops, but fewer mosquitoes and certainly better sleeping. True to itself, August has brought back the warmer temperatures, more rain and our need for the oscillating fan.
The foals are all growing well. I was surprised that Mara’s colt, Marrakech, born a chestnut like the others, is beginning to turn grey. There is an entire genetic science that I don’t confess to understand, devoted to equine coat colors. The following explanation comes from the UC Davis Veterinary Medicine site:
“The Gray gene causes progressive depigmentation of the hair, often resulting in a coat color that is almost completely white by the age of 6-8 years. Horses that inherit progressive Gray can be born any color, then begin gradually to show white hairs mixed with the colored throughout the body. Usually the first signs of gray hair can be found on the head, particularly around the eyes. Gray is dominant; therefore a single copy of this gene will cause a horse to turn gray."
Mara and her full sister Eve (both are grey colored) had Renoir colts this year, yet, Eve’s colt, Memphis, remains his sire’s deep chestnut. As I said, I don’t begin to understand, but I’m happy to have the diversity.
Something else I noticed is my “grey” versus “gray.” I am positive I grew up spelling this color with an ‘e’, but apparently, gray is a color and grey is a colour. Who knew? I’m chalking it up to osmosis, which like equine coat genetics I barely understand.
Ian and I share many passions; horses, love of travel, writing, and food! We eat well, and like many residents on this continent ways too much, but that is subject for a completely different blog. However, there are times when we get into foodie ruts; serving up salmon, shrimp, chicken, pasta, homemade pizza or salad in enough varieties to publish our own cookbook. Last week, we freed ourselves and made delicious wontons stuffed with a mixture of crabmeat, cream cheese, minced water chestnuts and Chinese chili sauce. Ian put together the mixture and handled the pan frying.
I did the wonton stuffing and folding, which took a few tries to find the correct amount that did not seep out the water-slicked edges or burst the delicate wonton pasta square when I folded it into a triangle pocket. I am glad the end product was tasty, because assembling them went from adventurous to tedious with amazing quickness. At one point, as Ian was patiently waiting for me, I remarked that I wouldn’t like to be trying this at speed with someone like Chef Gordon Ramsay of TV’s Hell’s Kitchen yelling at me. We tossed a salad and dipped these bronzed beauties in a mixture of sweet duck sauce and Chinese mustard. Delightful! For brunch, I spread the remaining mixture on open-faced hot dog buns and put them under the broiler. Nice, and much easier than stuffing wonton squares!
E-I-E-I-O
The foals are all growing well. I was surprised that Mara’s colt, Marrakech, born a chestnut like the others, is beginning to turn grey. There is an entire genetic science that I don’t confess to understand, devoted to equine coat colors. The following explanation comes from the UC Davis Veterinary Medicine site:
“The Gray gene causes progressive depigmentation of the hair, often resulting in a coat color that is almost completely white by the age of 6-8 years. Horses that inherit progressive Gray can be born any color, then begin gradually to show white hairs mixed with the colored throughout the body. Usually the first signs of gray hair can be found on the head, particularly around the eyes. Gray is dominant; therefore a single copy of this gene will cause a horse to turn gray."
Mara and her full sister Eve (both are grey colored) had Renoir colts this year, yet, Eve’s colt, Memphis, remains his sire’s deep chestnut. As I said, I don’t begin to understand, but I’m happy to have the diversity.
Something else I noticed is my “grey” versus “gray.” I am positive I grew up spelling this color with an ‘e’, but apparently, gray is a color and grey is a colour. Who knew? I’m chalking it up to osmosis, which like equine coat genetics I barely understand.
Ian and I share many passions; horses, love of travel, writing, and food! We eat well, and like many residents on this continent ways too much, but that is subject for a completely different blog. However, there are times when we get into foodie ruts; serving up salmon, shrimp, chicken, pasta, homemade pizza or salad in enough varieties to publish our own cookbook. Last week, we freed ourselves and made delicious wontons stuffed with a mixture of crabmeat, cream cheese, minced water chestnuts and Chinese chili sauce. Ian put together the mixture and handled the pan frying.
I did the wonton stuffing and folding, which took a few tries to find the correct amount that did not seep out the water-slicked edges or burst the delicate wonton pasta square when I folded it into a triangle pocket. I am glad the end product was tasty, because assembling them went from adventurous to tedious with amazing quickness. At one point, as Ian was patiently waiting for me, I remarked that I wouldn’t like to be trying this at speed with someone like Chef Gordon Ramsay of TV’s Hell’s Kitchen yelling at me. We tossed a salad and dipped these bronzed beauties in a mixture of sweet duck sauce and Chinese mustard. Delightful! For brunch, I spread the remaining mixture on open-faced hot dog buns and put them under the broiler. Nice, and much easier than stuffing wonton squares!
E-I-E-I-O
Sunday, July 12, 2009
Meet Macaroon
It turns out our prize Arabian broodmare, Khatalina Bey, is not pregnant. She had been confirmed pregnant last fall, but things can happen. So, only four foals this season.
As I mentioned in my last post, (VG Antazia) "Taza" was due on the 21st with her first foal. Well, she decided to give us a firecracker of a surprise by delivering on the morning of Fourth of July in the pasture! I was walking toward to barn to do morning chores when I noticed a tiny horse making its way around the pasture. I had turned Khat out with the herd, rather than sequestering her in the foaling stall, and I thought it was hers. Then I saw Khat eating in the back pasture and Taza came into view guarding her foal. I ran to the house, where Ian was still in bed with his morning coffee and hollered for his help. Ian joined me in the pasture in the same quizzical state of mind, “Taza?” I haltered Taza while Ian picked up the foal and we ushered both into the foaling stall.
Taza blessed us with a beautiful filly with no premature characteristics. She has face markings very similar to Renoir's and his same dark chestnut color and the four white socks must come from mommy. We have named her Macaroon.
Yesterday, we went to the annual Isanti County Rodeo. We watched bull riding, steer wrestling, bareback riding, tie down roping, saddle bronc riding, team roping and barrel racing. The working partnership between cowboy and horse is always amazing to see. There were cowboys from France and Australia on the circuit, as well as Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Nebraska, Mississippi and our five-state area; Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, South Dakota and Iowa. The rodeo emcee noted this tour began in Wyoming in June and his comedic foil, the rodeo clown, quipped, “No wonder, the rodeo and divorce go hand-in-hand.”
E-I-E-I-O
As I mentioned in my last post, (VG Antazia) "Taza" was due on the 21st with her first foal. Well, she decided to give us a firecracker of a surprise by delivering on the morning of Fourth of July in the pasture! I was walking toward to barn to do morning chores when I noticed a tiny horse making its way around the pasture. I had turned Khat out with the herd, rather than sequestering her in the foaling stall, and I thought it was hers. Then I saw Khat eating in the back pasture and Taza came into view guarding her foal. I ran to the house, where Ian was still in bed with his morning coffee and hollered for his help. Ian joined me in the pasture in the same quizzical state of mind, “Taza?” I haltered Taza while Ian picked up the foal and we ushered both into the foaling stall.
Taza blessed us with a beautiful filly with no premature characteristics. She has face markings very similar to Renoir's and his same dark chestnut color and the four white socks must come from mommy. We have named her Macaroon.
Yesterday, we went to the annual Isanti County Rodeo. We watched bull riding, steer wrestling, bareback riding, tie down roping, saddle bronc riding, team roping and barrel racing. The working partnership between cowboy and horse is always amazing to see. There were cowboys from France and Australia on the circuit, as well as Texas, Oklahoma, Missouri, Nebraska, Mississippi and our five-state area; Minnesota, Wisconsin, North Dakota, South Dakota and Iowa. The rodeo emcee noted this tour began in Wyoming in June and his comedic foil, the rodeo clown, quipped, “No wonder, the rodeo and divorce go hand-in-hand.”
E-I-E-I-O
Wednesday, July 01, 2009
Happy July
Happy Canada Day to our Canadian family and friends. Looking ahead to our own Independence holiday weekend, we will entertain guests with BBQs on July 3 and 4. The third is my mother’s 85th birthday and my brother Matthew and sister-in-law Connie will come from Minneapolis with Mom for the festivities.
My brother Mark, who lives in Maryland, visited the farm on June 22. We had a good visit and ate dinner together. Did I remember to take any pictures? No! Darn it.
I have a sneaking suspicion that our mare Khatalina Bey is not pregnant. Our breeding calculations had her due June 19, and she’s not delivered yet. Khat is a full-figure mare anyway, so her plumpness may just be her. That said, she looks pregnant, and we’ve watched for a variety of signs that she will deliver soon, but there are none. She was confirmed in foal last fall by our vet, but sometimes things happen. It’s not unheard of that a mare is two weeks or more overdue, but I think that window is closing. So, if Khat does not foal, we only have Taza due later this month, around the 21st.
Meanwhile, the other three colts are doing well. Only Memphis and Marrakech are pictured. Madrid would not cooperate - he just wanted to play hide-n-seek and my camera is not quick enough to catch him! They share a large paddock together with their mothers and spend the days playing with each other.
On the 23rd we took in Tucker, another miniature poodle. He came to us through our dog groomer, the same person we got Buddy from, and had been rescued after being abandoned inside a house for two weeks without food and water. Tucker was there with two larger dogs and several cats. The situation got so bad that when Animal Control entered the home, the cats had been eaten, and Tucker, found in the back of a closet, may have been next on the menu. He is 14 years old and moves much slower than our vibrant two-year-old poodle Buddy. He gets along well with both Buddy and Lady and there’s a kind of détente with Tiger the cat. As the days go by, Tucker’s feeling better and more assured that he’s landed in a good place.
E-I-E-I-O
My brother Mark, who lives in Maryland, visited the farm on June 22. We had a good visit and ate dinner together. Did I remember to take any pictures? No! Darn it.
I have a sneaking suspicion that our mare Khatalina Bey is not pregnant. Our breeding calculations had her due June 19, and she’s not delivered yet. Khat is a full-figure mare anyway, so her plumpness may just be her. That said, she looks pregnant, and we’ve watched for a variety of signs that she will deliver soon, but there are none. She was confirmed in foal last fall by our vet, but sometimes things happen. It’s not unheard of that a mare is two weeks or more overdue, but I think that window is closing. So, if Khat does not foal, we only have Taza due later this month, around the 21st.
Meanwhile, the other three colts are doing well. Only Memphis and Marrakech are pictured. Madrid would not cooperate - he just wanted to play hide-n-seek and my camera is not quick enough to catch him! They share a large paddock together with their mothers and spend the days playing with each other.
On the 23rd we took in Tucker, another miniature poodle. He came to us through our dog groomer, the same person we got Buddy from, and had been rescued after being abandoned inside a house for two weeks without food and water. Tucker was there with two larger dogs and several cats. The situation got so bad that when Animal Control entered the home, the cats had been eaten, and Tucker, found in the back of a closet, may have been next on the menu. He is 14 years old and moves much slower than our vibrant two-year-old poodle Buddy. He gets along well with both Buddy and Lady and there’s a kind of détente with Tiger the cat. As the days go by, Tucker’s feeling better and more assured that he’s landed in a good place.
E-I-E-I-O
Saturday, June 20, 2009
Meet Memphis
This chestnut colt was born on June 6. He is a purebred Arabian, out of VG Evening Echo ("Eve"), an Aladdinn Echo mare and sired by Legacys Renoir. We also own Eve’s 2007 purebred foal, VG Pskye, sired by AE Psymbolic. Like Pskye, AMF Memphis is quite leggy and like his two Renoir brothers, AMF Madrid and AMF Marrakech, he’s also very friendly. The three colts and their mommies spend their days together in a large paddock, enjoying the sun, being outdoors and learning herd socialization.
We’ve got two more Renoir-sired foals coming yet this season. Khatalina Bey is due any time now. She bore a beautiful filly last year (AMF Renoirs Bey B) and we’re looking for a repeat performance. The last foal is due near the end of July to VG Antazia, “Taza”, a beautiful, 14-year-old, flea-bitten grey Tazaman daughter. This will be Taza’s first foal and we are really looking forward to the result.
On Monday, the vet was called to suture Madrid’s right eyebrow. He banged against something harder than his head and the skin burst into a 4-inch cut. The doc gave him some ‘happy juice’ intravenously and Ian held his woozy body steady, while I cradled Madrid’s head and neck as the vet worked. He also got an injection of Novocain at the suture site and then intravenous antibiotics. We give our foals a Tetanus vaccination the day they are born, so he didn’t need that. Madrid is healing nicely, the sutures will dissolve in a month and there won’t be any visible scarring.
Ian and I have been taking weekly riding lessons for a month now. He is learning Saddle Seat and I am learning Hunt Seat. Our instructor, Cathy, is a WSCA Judge and we really enjoy the way she teaches. We ride at her farm using two of her pinto Saddlebreds; Ian aboard Gypsy and me atop Profit. Because we are learning different disciplines we each have our own hour with Cathy.
In July, we will go to Sauk Centre, Minnesota again for the Great Arabian Get Together Horse Show. We will show Psyke (who is now a gelding) and Lookin For Trouble (2004 purebred, black bay, Sirius Trouble gelding). Both geldings will be shown in halter classes and we plan to have trainer Erik Haff show Trouble under saddle in a junior horse (5 years and younger) Hunt class too. Trouble and I have won many ribbons together. I love showing him and he’s matured into an even more beautiful horse.
The apple trees that blossomed so beautifully look to have lots of apples growing. I plan to collect bushels from both trees and will preserve ("can") multiple quart jars of sliced apples. The ones I put up two years ago into apple pie filling really tasted good in the depths of winter. I may make some applesauce too. I remember my mother and grandmother made this when I was a kid.
I’ve been weeding and watering our two garden areas; the hosta garden that encircles a Scotch pine and a raspberry patch that borders the mare & colt paddock. Both gardens are growing well. I like planting things, but I would not say I’m a gardener because I’m not big on regular weeding, although I’m working at getting better. Grandma used to walk the garden’s edge in the evenings and pick a handful or two of weeds each time, which kept the weeds from getting out of control. Now that I’ve spent time getting both areas weed free, it’s easier to employ her way-of-work.
We are really pleased to have Darrah working with us on weekends this summer. Her love and knowledge of riding and horses is wonderful and she's got some cool training tricks up her sleeve too. Darrah lives in Richfield and attends William Woods University equine program in Missouri during the school year.
Tomorrow is the Summer Soltice. The weather has been so pleasant these last few days; sunshine, blue skies, temps in the 70s and 80s with mild breezes. We have fired up the grill a few times already. One time making Beer Butt Chicken, which is slow roasting a whole, BBQ sauce covered chicken as it sits perched atop a half can of beer (this can be done using a cola product too). It is so nice to be in Minnesota in the summer!
E-I-E-I-O
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
Meet Marrakech!
This morning I was greeted by another handsome Renoir colt. His dam, Mara (sired by Aladinn Echo out of AF Anticipation, a Gamaar daughter), had already cleaned (dropped her placenta), and was nuzzling the foal, which was already dry and folded comfortably on the stall floor. Like his sire, he is chestnut in color, and he has a prominent star and two rear socks. I telephone Ian, who was breakfasting in the house, and asked him to bring the Tetanus booster. We also cuddled the young fellow and swabbed his bellybutton with disinfectant.
We’ve named him Marrakech because his coat color reminds us of a Moroccan spice.
Proud mama Mara gently calls to him and brushes his butt with her nose as he nurses.
Older brother Madrid is doing well and enjoys his afternoons in the outdoor paddock with mommy Elly.
Our two apple trees are in full bloom and I thought I’d better snap some pics before they’re all gone. Enjoy!
E-I-E-I-O
Double The Fun results
Double The Fun is two regional Arabian Horse Association qualifying shows conducted at the same location over the same weekend. Ian and trainer Erik Haff showed our two-year-old colt, Pskye, in a series of halter classes. Here are the gratifying results:
North Dakota Arabian Horse Association Classic (Region 6)
Friday evening, May 15
Class 108 Arabian Colt 2 Year Old Breeding: First Place
Class 109 Arabian Colt Junior Champion & Reserve: Grand Champion
Class 113 Arabian Stallion Breeding All Ages AOTH: First Place
Northern Minnesota Arabian Horse Association (Region 10)
Sunday morning, May 17
Class 280 Arabian Colt 2 Year Old Breeding: First Place
Class 282 Arabian Colt Show Champion & Reserve: Reserve Champion
Class 283 Arabian Stallion Breeding All Ages AOTH: First Place
This was Pskye’s second trip to a horse show and he handled it very well. The scores from both judges were good and we’re pleased with the feedback that the new scoring system provides.
VG Pskye (“Sky”)
Foaled June 2007
AE Psymbolic x VG Evening Echo, an Aladdinn Echo daughter
Pskye is a well-bred horse with an excellent future, but it will not be as a breeding stallion. He is being gelded and we will show him again later in the season. Pskye will also begin learning skills laying the ground work to start him under saddle in 2010; his three-year-old year. He looks to be a fine Hunt prospect.
E-I-E-I-O
North Dakota Arabian Horse Association Classic (Region 6)
Friday evening, May 15
Class 108 Arabian Colt 2 Year Old Breeding: First Place
Class 109 Arabian Colt Junior Champion & Reserve: Grand Champion
Class 113 Arabian Stallion Breeding All Ages AOTH: First Place
Northern Minnesota Arabian Horse Association (Region 10)
Sunday morning, May 17
Class 280 Arabian Colt 2 Year Old Breeding: First Place
Class 282 Arabian Colt Show Champion & Reserve: Reserve Champion
Class 283 Arabian Stallion Breeding All Ages AOTH: First Place
This was Pskye’s second trip to a horse show and he handled it very well. The scores from both judges were good and we’re pleased with the feedback that the new scoring system provides.
VG Pskye (“Sky”)
Foaled June 2007
AE Psymbolic x VG Evening Echo, an Aladdinn Echo daughter
Pskye is a well-bred horse with an excellent future, but it will not be as a breeding stallion. He is being gelded and we will show him again later in the season. Pskye will also begin learning skills laying the ground work to start him under saddle in 2010; his three-year-old year. He looks to be a fine Hunt prospect.
E-I-E-I-O
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