Christmas Horse & Calendar Reveal - December 18

First Post of the Day

Christmas Horse of the day

Snickerdoodle, The Holiday Pony Playset. (Screenshot from Breyer.)

Produced in 2021, the piece has a pearly finish

and came with a blanket and costume along with a doll.

It's a pretty piece but sadly the masking on the mane and tail of mine was not done well and is disappointing.

Cinders (2024), Tinsel (2023), and Mia (2022) have followed Snickerdoodle in the Holiday Pony Playset series, but that series does not seem to sell too well. Three of the four releases are still currently available on Breyer's website.

Advent Calendar Reveal - Day 18

A water trough!

An Unexpected Distraction

Our church held a conference this weekend and there was a special Saturday evening service that I attended with Craig last night. Tim and Loni were there, too and when we chatted with them, I had an interesting conversation with Tim.

Tim: Been out to the barn recently?

Me: No, I just can't. Well, actually, I have gone, but I just can't bring myself to drive down the lane right now.

Tim: You need to go to the barn. (Big smile.) There's something you need to see.

Me: What? Why? Is Sultanna back?

Tim: No, not yet. But it does has four legs. (Even bigger smile.)

Me: Did you get a new horse??

Tim: I sure did. Hokey needed a friend.

Me: Really?? Wow! What is it? 

Tim: It's a three year old gelding.

Me: So, what's its name?

Tim: Well, that's a long story and one I want to tell you in person when you see it.

Someone else stepped up to talk to Tim at that moment and pulled him away, so Craig and I sat down in a pew, my mind spinning with the news. A new horse! I could not wait to see it.

The meeting started and I was SOOOO distracted.

My mind: Horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse,  listen to the service, Lynn! Horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, concentrate on what's being said, girlie! Horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse. (Turning and whispering to Tim and Loni who were sitting behind us, "I am so distracted now and it's all your fault! Stifled laughs from them.) Horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse, horse...

That distraction went on the entire meeting. All I could think of was the new horse at the barn. 

I'd planned to run out to the barn after the service, church clothes notwithstanding, and something that we've done before.

Craig helping me check Snickerdoodle (Sultanna's brother) and Sultanna after church a few years ago when Tim was out of town. (Snickerdoodle was a bit of an escape artist and needed more frequent checking.)

But, on my way to my car, a very dear friend intercepted me and asked if I had a minute. She is moving next week and wanted to give me my birthday present before she left. By the time we finished, it was too late in the evening to head to the barn.

(Her gift was a very special gift, one I will share here soon.)

Today's plan is to squeeze in time to go see Tim's new horse, hopefully with Tim there, so I can learn his name and the story behind it.

I think I may finally make it down the lane to the barn today.

Stay tooned! 

Snickerdoodle - the Doll & Accessories

Today we will take a look at the dolls and accessories that came with Snickerdoodle. I'll be honest, I am disappointed in the quality of them all. 

I do love that the doll's tee has Fireheart, one of the 2021 Premier Club models embroidered on it.

The doll is articulated but the knee joints on mine just barely bend. She cannot be put into a seated position, either on a chair, the ground, or in a saddle.

Snickerdoodle's blanket was cute and so were the halter and reindeer antler hat. A closer inspection though, showed some issues.

The halter is made of elastic. That will make it easier for little (as well as older, AHEM!) fingers to put it on Snickerdoodle and take it off. But elastic loses its stretch after repeated use. And, I don't care for the hand stitching - longer stitches like that pull out much more easily that small hand stitches. 

The reindeer hat is a single layer of satin with a ring of white fabric glued to it and very flimsy. The antlers are hand stitched (with long stitches again) to the hat. With no finished edges on the fabrics, that hat is not going to stand up to a lot of handling. (They may have fray-checked the edges but I can't quite tell.)

The stockings are okay but a closer look showed unfinished edges on the fur - mine are shedding fur as a result.

I have never negatively critiqued a Breyer product like this before. I understand that mass production means that time is money and therefore shortcuts are taken. But I have issues with the quality of the pieces. This product is marketed as a playset and it is not going to stand up to extended play from little hands. 

It's also expensive - maybe Breyer is counting on that being too steep a price for parents to buy the set as a toy for their child and is marketing this for collectors who will not be playing with it.  Fair enough. But social media feedback has been that many collectors find the price a bit steep, too. 

I'm a bit on the fence - I know how much work went into the sewing aspects of the doll, halter, blanket, and hat and that it is costly to pay workers. But, I would've liked better quality.

Snickerdoodle & Snickerdoodles! (A Recipe)

Snickerdoodle and the holiday playset have arrived! I had to buy them - not only do I like the mold, but I have spent a lot of time with the horse, Snickerdoodle.

The real Snickerdoodle (left) with Sultanna and Craig. Snickerdoodle is Sultanna's full brother and was bred by Tim, but Tim sold him a few years ago.

The model was wrapped separately from the doll, blanket, and other accessories.

She is lovely! I happen to like pearlies, and her legs, mane, and tail all shimmer.

 

Her face is nicely detailed and I had plans for showing her at my next live show.

Unfortunately, she is not live show quality despite her gorgeous face and shading.

The mane was poorly masked from her withers to her poll.

Her tail has the same issue. So disappointing!

Having said that, showing isn't my priority - collecting and enjoying what I collect, is. And I do like her.

Tomorrow I will share photos of the doll, blanket, and accessories so stay 'tooned. In the meantime, here is my recipe for... what else? Snickerdoodles!

Snickerdoodles

Cream together 1 cup butter, 1 & 1/2 cups sugar, and 1 teaspoon vanilla. Beat in 2 eggs.

Add 2 & 3/4 cups flour, 2 teaspoons cream of tartar, 1 teaspoon soda, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. (I omit the salt.)

Mix well. Roll into balls and then roll each ball in a cinnamon sugar mixture. Place balls on parchment paper or greased cookie sheet and bake 8 - 10 minutes at 400 degrees.

Note: The original recipe called for whole wheat flour but I have adapted this for white flour. You may wish to bake these at 375 or even 350 degrees, too.

Sunday Evening at the Barn

Sunday night I headed out to the barn just before it turned dark. I love that time of day as things wind down for the evening, the sky turns beautiful shades of color, and the horses are relaxed and happy to hang out with you.

Diablo, Abby, Sultanna, and Hokey. (Abby is licking the bars of the gate because she drooled some candy cane juice on them when I gave her her treats.)

 Hokey is my favorite of Tim's horses. He's intelligent and gentle, and he loves a good neck rub!

Tim and his son-in-law, Brandon, were in the indoor arena of the new barn working with Snickerdoodle.

A plastic shopping bag attached to an old golf club makes a great tool for sacking out a young horse.

I was impressed at how unperturbed Snickerdoodle was - Tim also threw a big rubber ball at him, under his legs, etc. and Snickerdoodle didn't spook or protest. 

Not bad for a two year old!

Tim is also working on bitting up. This is only the second time Snickerdoodle has had a bit in his mouth.

Tim had long reins on him and drove him a bit, and then longed him. Again, no protests from Snickers.

Brandon was going to step on a stool and put some weight on his back, but I had to leave before that happened as I had company coming for dinner.

Long range plans, according to Tim, are to train Sultanna and Snickerdoodle to drive and then use them in events, pulling his collection of antique vehicles. I think a matched pair of palominos pulling those will look really neat!

In the Good Old Summer Time

As you can probably tell from all these blog entries connected to songs, I love music. My minor in college was music, and believe it or not, I used to sing and perform opera. (Not any more!!)

This song is from 1902 and is an American Tin Pan Alley song with lyrics by Ren Shields and music composed by George Evans. In 1949 Judy Garland starred in a movie named after the song's title.

In the Good Old Summer Time
In the good old summer time,
In the good old summer time!
Strolling thro' the shady lanes,
With your baby mine;
You hold her hand and she holds yours,
And that's a very good sign
That she's your tootsie wootsie
In the good old summer time.

 These two are constantly together...

... and usually hot on Abby's heels "strolling thro' the shady lanes."

They follow her everywhere, and crowd me for attention when I am visiting my girl.

Sultanna (above on the left) is a three year old filly bred by Tim, and Snickerdoodle, a two year old gelding, is her full brother. Sultanna is very gentle and quiet; Snickerdoodle is a little more assertive and likes to poke his face into mine.

 I think he wants me to be his "tootsie wootsie!"

And if that's the case, then he's going to get a big buss on the nose every time he pokes it into my face!

Hmmm, maybe we aren't tootsie wootsies after all!

Just like the other herd members, Sultanna and Snickerdoodle are in good flesh and enjoying our beautiful "good old (Indiana) summer time." 

Cheeky Snickerdoodle

Like Trouble, Snickerdoodle likes to stick his nose into whatever is happening. Today, Ian and Mila were with me and helping me feed Abby some apples and carrots. Naturally, Snickerdoodle came up to see what we were doing.

 He poked his nose in my face, and so I planted a kiss on his muzzle.

 He pulled his head back, not sure that he like smooching with me.

 But he quickly changed his mind...

... and came back for more!

Horse Wrangling...

Or... why I don't live with my horse.

I've lived with my horses, and there are many aspects to having a horse at home that I love and even miss. But I just don't have the energy or the time to do the upkeep of the property and horses now. And, if there's  a problem, I can't drop everything and take care of it.

Such as what happened today.

I had visited with Abby and was turning to go home when I noticed that Snickerdoodle was loose and in the hay field. (I can't tell you how many times that boy has gotten loose. His name should be Houdini.)

Tim is in Arizona visiting grandchildren, so it was up to me to catch him. I hurried back to my car, popped the trunk, and grabbed a halter, lead rope, and pig whip (to shoo off the other horses, especially Trouble, who is notoriously curious) and returned to the main pasture.

As I went through the gate, I saw Snickerdoodle lift some loose wires of the fence and step back in with the rest of the herd and then stand there looking innocent.

I had to do something, but what? I texted Tim and let him know what had happened and then decided to put Mr. Houdini in the small paddock. I approached him, and as soon as he heard the jingle of the chain on the lead rope, he shied away from me. His sister and Abby, however, were quite ready to be friendly and so I decided I would see if I could not catch the little stinker through them.

Shooing off Trouble, Hokey, and Diablo with the pig whip, I opened the gate to the paddock. Eager for the fresh grass, Abby and Sultanna trotted through, with Snickerdoodle right behind them. Hah!! Got him!

Tim texted back, agreeing with my solution, and telling me he had a friend out who would come haul water for them.

I haltered Abby and put her back with the older horses (much to her dismay; she got an extra candy cane as consolation), checked to be sure all the gates in the paddock were secure, and started the drive home.

I'd gone a few miles when I got another text from Tim asking me to put some hay out for them that he had in the new barn. I turned around and went back, found the hay to which he was referring, and put it out for the miscreant and his sister.

Abby looked at me hopefully from the far pasture, but I had had a bad migraine earlier this afternoon and just wasn't feeling well, so I hopped in the car and headed back home.

I love my horse but I am glad Tim usually deals with all the extra "fun" a herd can provide!

Telling the Younglings Apart

Sultanna and Snickerdoodle are full siblings and nearly identical. Sultanna has a a right hind sock and is just a bit bigger, but I still have a difficult time figuring out who is who at times.

For example, Sultanna is on the left in this photo. She's the bigger and older of the two, but she's standing on an incline and looks smaller.

It was while I was taking their picture Sunday that I realized there was another difference between them that would help me identify them.

 Snickerdoodle still has some of his baby fuzz in his forelock.

While Sultanna's mane is adult smooth.

She's also green broke, so when Tim is working her, I know which is which!

Is She or Isn't She ?- Part II

Years ago Abby's predecessor, Amy, surprised us by foaling a colt. I was living in Illinois and my sister was caring for Amy and had her on pasture board with a couple of other horses. One of them was a yearling colt who was more grown up than anyone realized.

Fast forward to last year. Snickerdoodle was put in with the herd as a yearling during the spring. I didn't think too much of it as I was busy dealing with the illness/deaths of my mother and mother-in-law and my own spinal surgery. I thought the colt had been gelded sometime during the summer and was surprised to learn he was still uncut during a chat with Tim in September when he mentioned he was having Snickerdoodle gelded in the coming week.

My first thought was to wonder if perhaps Abby might now be in foal. (You can read the blog entry from that day here.) I check Abby for cuts and injuries every time I see her. And now I am checking her belly and udder, just in case.

 I took these photos Thursday afternoon when I stopped by after school. I did not have barn shoes on so I did not go into the stall to see her. The light was terrible but I wasn't looking for beautiful photos. I wanted to get a picture of her sides.

I succeeded at that enough for me to wonder. Is that just a hay belly and lots of winter coat? Or is it something else?

I have a three day weekend and plan to spend some time at the barn. I'll have barn clothes and shoes on, and be able to make a better examination of her.

If she is in foal, this could be an interesting spring!

Loose Horse!

I was visiting with Abby up by the old barn this afternoon, and like usual, counted noses. Snickerdoodle wasn't around. I scanned the pastures for him, and caught sight of him over by the new barn, all by himself.

I couldn't tell for sure because I was so far away, but it looked like he was loose. He was right next to the small paddock, but was he in it or on the other side of the fence?

I hopped into my car and drove around the property to the new barn to find out.

Yep! He was outside of the fence, all right!

I keep Abby's halter and lead rope in my trunk, so I popped the lid and grabbed them and my leather gloves. I also unwrapped and pocketed several peppermints - I'd never given Snickerdoodle a treat before, but I wanted to have something to entice him, just in case.

As I walked over to him, it was clear he knew what I intended, and he turned away from me. I paused, and so did he. Speaking in a gentle tone, I held out my hand and offered him the treat. He took a couple of hesitant steps toward me, but as soon as he heard the chain on my lead rope jingle, he backed off again.

At this point, Karen, who lives in the new house on the property, came up behind me. She had seen Snickers was loose from her windows and had come out to help. Turns out Snickers had been out overnight, too! She'd caught him this morning and then walked the fence, but couldn't see where he'd gotten through. So she'd put him back in with the other horses and had been keeping an eye out the window, just in case.

Together we herded the little escapee back through the gate of the small paddock and then into the main pasture with the other horses. We then added some rope between the posts of the fence where we suspected he was pushing through.

Tim is out of town and due back tonight. Karen is going to keep an eye out her windows and call me if she needs help rounding up Snickerdoodle again.

I would not be surprised if I get a phone call.

Abby's Friends - Snickerdoodle

Instead of focusing on Abby each post, I thought it might be fun to do an entry on each member of the herd. All the horses except Abby belong to Tim, and three are currently living elsewhere - Dolly is out in Williamsport with her third foal, a filly, and Sultanna, Dolly's first foal, is at a farm in West Point for training.

Dolly's middle baby is a yearling colt named Snickerdoodle.

The light in the old barn this afternoon was dim as it was partially cloudy outside, so you cannot see his gorgeous coat color.

But you sure can here! Snickerdoodle is a registered Quarter Horse and full brother to Sultanna and Dolly's newest foal (who has not yet been named.)

(Drat! The sun went behind some clouds again!) He's the lowest in the herd hierarchy and is quiet and very approachable - he seems to like being around people.

 Look at that backside - you can tell he's a Quarter Horse!

When he was foaled, Tim let my daughter, Lisa's class of 4th grade students compile a list of name suggestions. (They were very heavy on the names of candy bars and food. Go figure.) Tim chose "Snickerdoodle" or just "Snickers."

I don't know what Tim's plans are for Snickers or Sultanna. I know the newest filly belongs to the stallion's owner so I may never meet her as she is about an hour away. Snickers and Sultanna are almost perfectly matched in coloring and markings, and a gorgeous shade of gold. I would not be surprised if they end up staying with the herd!