Horses Across the USA

Some people play the license plate game when traveling, trying to see a plate from every one of the fifty states. It's fun and a good way to pass the time during long drives. But I prefer a different game.

I play Horses Across the USA, a game I made up where I look for horsey items along the roads and highways we travel. I don't mean pastures full of horses and barns, I mean signage, vehicles, etc. I snap a photo and count it as we drive past.

The last ten days Craig and I traveled through Indiana, Kentucky, Tennessee, North Carolina, South Carolina, Georgia, and Florida in order to visit our children. As you might imagine, I did very well at Horses Across the USA.

 The CHIN! While not outwardly horsey, how could I NOT snap a picture of BreyerFest's host hotel!

There are a surprising number of semi-trailers which have equine logos, like Black Horse Carriers, Inc.

I would love it if my home address included the word "horse." (Interesting combination with "stamp" and "church, though.")

Winnebago makes tiny trailers they call "Minnie Winnies." 

I really wanted to stop by Horsetown on our way home from Florida, but it was a sixteen and a half hour drive and we just didn't have the time.

Another semi - there are artists in our hobby who could come up with a MUCH better logo that that green Sc!!

 Pelham is probably not really named after the bit, but it is still a horsey reference. 

 Another place I wish we had time to stop and visit!

Not the best photo as it was getting dark and a truck blocked my view of the sign until the very last minute. Kentucky is my favorite state to visit or travel through.

Try playing Horses Across the USA the next time you are traveling. These are only a sample of what I saw - you'll be surprised at just how many equine references you find!

Tim's Accident

Tim and his wife, Loni, are some of our dearest friends.

 Tim helps my granddaughter, Addie, saddle up Diablo for a ride.

A horseman from Canada, Tim manages his horses and property very well and gives the herd excellent care, day after day.

But horses being horses, Tim currently looks a lot like the cowboy he was carving a few weeks ago.

 What made me smile when I saw it in the barn lounge now makes me wince.

Since Craig and I were heading out of town for ten days, I sent Tim a text to let him know that I would not be out at the barn for a period of time. As always, my message was tongue in cheek about Abby's "needs." The response I received back was unexpected.

I got that text and immediately texted back, asking for more information.

What is cut off in the text is that Tim went on to say that it was not Sultanna's fault. 

Next I texted Loni to see what I could find out about the situation.

She confirmed that Tim had had surgery - something I assumed would happen since he said his clavicle had been shattered. And I could tell that she was doing horse duty, at least for that day. Not that I am worried about the horses being checked daily - Tim and Loni have two other friends who are horsemen and will help do the daily checks, fill the water, etc. The pasture is still good and able to sustain the horses without adding in hay.

Wishing I could do something, but 1,000 miles away, I sent some flowers to Tim and Loni "from Abby." And I had to laugh at that last sentence in Tim's text acknowledging them.

We will be home on Halloween, and at the top of my to-do list is not unpacking and laundry, but a barn visit and seeing how I can help Tim as he recovers from his accident.

What Do You DO All Day?

When I was a stay at home mama, I got asked that question a lot. With six kids hanging onto my hands, clinging to my legs, and chattering all at once as I stood there with two very full grocery carts, I was often tempted to respond with an incredulous, "Are you serious? What do you think I do??" (Trust me, stay at home moms work every bit as hard as those who have a full time job, and sometimes ever harder. I have done both, and I know.)

I was a bit surprised to be asked the same question once I retired, though. "Gee, Lynn, now that you're retired, what do you DO all day?" Well, as a new retiree of just a few months, here's what I am doing with my time:


1) I work on sewing projects.  I just made our most recent grandchild, Susan, a blessing gown.

I especially like the scalloped lace where the bodice and the skirt meet and then where the scalloping overlaps at the hem.


2) I shop for fun, horsey clothing for my grandchildren. Like this onesie I found for Susan.

 (Okay, I admit that I buy them non-horsey things, too. )

3) We visit with our adult children. Cole works in the Nashville music industry and meets a lot of celebrities in his line of work. Rarely does he send me photos, but once in a while he meets a celebrity who is so exciting, he takes a selfie and sends it to me.

Like this one he took at the end of September with CHUBBY CHECKER!! (I had a fan girl swoon when I got that text!)


4) I spend time with the dogs.

Molly and Millie spend the day with us a couple of times a week while Lisa is at school teaching. A puppy mill mama who we rescued last December, Molly has terrible anxiety and fears, and never could quite get over her nervousness around us, especially Craig. (I suspect she was hurt by a man. More than once.) She fell in love with our daughter Lisa, so Lisa and Millie took her to their home a month ago.

As you can see, Molly is incredibly happy living with Lisa. I miss her, but am glad we still see her several times a week. And, she is much more relaxed around us, too, which helps heal my heart.


5) Retirement gives me more time with my out-of-town children when they come through for a visit.

This is Sarah, our oldest daughter, who lives in Aurora, Colorado and is a Health Education administrator for the Aurora Public Schools. She came into Indianapolis for a conference two weeks ago, and we went to a high school football game where a fundraiser was being held via a game called "Cow Plop Bingo." (Only in Indiana do they put a cow on the football field during the second half and wait for her to plop!)


6) Now I have time to relax and enjoy my yard, including this early October afternoon when it snowed big heavy snowflakes for over a half an hour and I could stand at the window and watch.

(Normally in my classroom I would be sympathetic to the kids' excitement and let them watch for a few minutes, but then we'd have to get back to business. No more of that for me!)


7) Speaking of former students, many of them have remained in touch over the years, and sometimes those who were horsey come join me at the barn for a visit with Abby.

 (Yes, that is drool coming out of Abby's mouth. It was red clover season when this photo was taken.)

8) I spend time with the in-town grandchildren, sometimes babysitting, other times just getting together for some fun.

Craig and Lukas are very special buddies.

 Marshmallow shooting with Ian and Mila at our home this past summer.

9. I drive my dear friend, Kathy Nimmer, to her speaking engagements around the state.

I get to hear her remarks and help Nacho get her where she needs to go. (He is an amazing guide dog and does far better than me in helping her. I am definitely second fiddle to that good boy!)

10) I spend a lot of time in Abbyland.

 (I tried to get Tim to change the name of his facility to Abbyland - just look at all the free advertising going down the Hoosier highways, but he wasn't  too excited about that.)

Abbs and me.

11) And I spend time in hobby land, both at home, at shows, and at hobby gatherings.

Nancy Falzone's Hagen Renaker collectors' get together, November, 2017.

12)  Lucky me, I spend a lot of time with Craig. We've been married almost forty-two years.

He retired four years before me and is an old hand at it by now. 

We serve together in the Indianapolis Temple of our church (The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) and travel down weekly to assist those who come to the temple to worship. We love serving together there.

13) Relaxing with a good book in my new comfy retirement chair happens almost every evening.

And sometimes during the day, too. I absolutely love to read.

So, what DO I do now that I am retired? 

Well, I think I may be busier now than I was when I taught full time. While I miss teaching terribly, even achingly at times to the point of tears, I am learning to embrace this new stage of life. 

I am discovering that the real trick is to find joy where you are, whatever stage in life it might be. 

Hay Plus High Winds Equals...

While all that hay in our neighborhood hay field was drying in windrows and waiting to be baled, a cold front blew through the area.

And when I say, blew, I mean BLEW - winds were recorded at 65 mph!

Needless to say, the hay is no longer in those nice neat rows.

 In fact, most of it is gone.

It's been blown out of the field and scattered across the road, bumping up against fences and buildings.

  And wrapped around the trees that lined the road.

Stop and speed limit signs, gas pipes, anything that protrudes from the ground has hay wrapped around it.

It is a terrible mess, and I have no idea what the farmer plans to do to get it cleaned up.

Haying on the Edge

Our neighborhood is built on what used to be one of Purdue University's agricultural research farms. It is a huge tract of land that spans most of the distance between two roads, one on each side. But for some reason, a ten acre parcel on the east side of the neighborhood was whittled away and stands empty.

It is used as a hayfield. As you might imagine, I love having a hayfield in my neighborhood!

 When they are cutting the hay, the air smells so good, and I enjoy watching them cut, rake, and bale the hay.

 Sometimes they do rectangular bales and other times they put the hay into round bales.

Depending on what stage the hay is in, it's also a haven for wildlife - foxes, deer, geese, rabbits, and even hawks who prey on those animals. (A Cooper's Hawk spends a lot of winter days sitting on a speed limit sign next to the field, surveying for any movement that might lead to a meal.)

The farmer has just made his final cutting of the year and the hay has been raked into windrows in preparation for baling.

Rain is in the forecast soon. I wonder if he will try to beat it or wait a little longer for the hay to dry and cure?

Santa Tim's Workshop

Fall is such a beautiful time, and when there are horses around, it is even better. It is my favorite time of the year and, in my opinion, the best time to be out at the barn. It's cooler, there are fewer bugs and no mud, and the sun gives the world a golden tone.

There is a paddock made of old wooden fence posts and boards behind the old barn with some trees shading it, and it's a great "meeting place" for Abby and me when the horses are way out in the northwest pasture.

I can walk out through the paddock by the new barn and then across the northeast pasture and call to her from there.

She always comes - this girl likes her treats and she likes people.

After a relaxing visit the other day, I needed to go into the tack room and check my tack trunk for something so I headed back to the new barn. To get to the tack room, you have to walk through the lounge, and as I opened the lounge door, I saw this:

What looked like Santa's workshop!

Lots of wood chips, knives, wood blocks, beef jerky, whittling gloves, and cans of pop. Tim had been doing some whittling!

There were some pieces that had just been started,

 some that were about halfway done,

 and a few that were completed!

 They were absolutely charming!

I am not sure if these are Christmas gifts for his family (Loni, Tim's wife, occasionally reads this blog so I cleared it with him before posting any photos, just in case) or if Tim is just making them for fun, but "Santa Tim's" cowboy workshop is well underway.

Indy as a Therapeutic Horse

Indy was one of those horses that enjoyed people and never pinned his ears, nipped, bit, or kicked. So, when my friend Linda Duesterhaus was exploring starting a therapeutic riding program, she asked me if she might be able to use him as one of the mounts for it.

I had a few questions (insurance was one, in case someone got hurt), but Linda was able to answer them to my satisfaction and so I gave her the green light to borrow him and Sugarfoot, my kids' pony.

I got to help train Indy for the program. We put him into the paddock and rolled wheelchairs around him, we limped around on crutches, bumped into him with both wheelchair and crutch, made lots of noises, sudden movements,  jumped around, flapped our arms... anything we could think of that might  happen while he was being ridden and startle him.

Indy passed with flying colors, and Linda's program began.

I actually have this photo framed somewhere in my closet of photos and albums. I have been poking around in there and looking for it, as it is one of my favorite pictures ever taken of Indy. (The other is the one in a previous blog entry where he has three kids on his back.)

We made the front page of the Features section.

I didn't realize that the story continued on another page when I took the photographs of the article. Oops! I'll have to get back into the closet and see if I can't find part two.

It was really meaningful to be a part of Linda's program. It melded two of my great loves, kids and horses together, and made a difference in the lives of those who attended.

Writing about Indy has made me teary a time or two - he was such a nice horse. I keep his old stall nameplate hanging in my office where I can see it every day, and when I do, I cannot help the smile that spreads across my face.