Happy Fall!

First Post of the Day

Those who have been reading the blog awhile know that I follow meteorological seasons (January 1, Winter begins; March 1, Spring begins; June 1, Summer begins, and September 1, Fall begins.)

This morning I have a pumpkin candle lit here on my desk and it is sending the smell of Fall into my office. Today I plan to switch out my Summer door mat and wreath at the front door for ones for Fall. I will also change the pillows on the park bench for ones celebrating the new season.

This is my favorite time of the year, and bow howdy, it sure feels like Fall here in western Indiana. False Fall continues and I am wearing sweaters and even put an extra blanket on the bed last night!

One of the old apple trees up where the farmhouse used to be has dropped its apples. Tim went around and picked most of them up - otherwise the horses would stand under that tree and gorge themselves. There's a bucket of them near one of the gates and I offer each horse a couple when I check the barn.

I love the early Fall sounds in this video from yesterday - the crickets, the breeze, the sound of the horses' legs swishing through the grass...

After nibbling on the apples, they ambled down to the trough and drank some fresh water. 

What is it about those sounds of horses out to pasture? It makes me feel relaxed and peaceful inside, and as though I could stand outside with them all day. Maybe I just will!

Happy Fall, ya'll!

The Lure of Apples

 Since the beginning of time,

apples have been a tempting treat.

Nash and Pepper would do a lot for a taste of an apple (especially if it is one that I am already eating.)

The horses are always game for an apple or two as well.

My children and the pony pals and cowpokes love homemade applesauce,

especially when it is made from varieties that my parents grew on our orchard.

So, with the holidays fast approaching, I have been making and freezing lots of homemade applesauce to serve at Thanksgiving and Christmas.

And that means apple spaghetti for the horses!

Hokey literally stakes a claim on some of it.

and quickly gobbles it down. (Catch that Thanksgiving pun? Hah!)

Dolly enjoys hers. (That's snow on the grass in the foreground. Winter is definitely here.)

Someone would like me to get off the couch and get busy on the next batch. (So that I will toss him the occasional piece or two.)

Six gallons of sauce from Mutsus, Cortlands, and Northern Spys are in the freezer. Hopefully that will be enough for my apple-loving family.

Staying Cool

Beach Son Kyle and his family just left on the last leg of their five week cross country trip so I'm able to post regularly again. "Meanwhile, back at the ranch..."

We continue to be under a heat advisory with temperatures in the 90s and heat indices up to 105.

Tim is out of town and so I am the one in charge of daily checks and making sure the horses have plenty of fresh water.

I love to watch horses drink - their ears tip back and forth as they swallow.

See anything floating in that trough? (Beside some grasses and leaves.)  I accidentally dropped an apple into it when feeding it to Abby. 

She and Hokey both played bobbing for apples while they tried to catch it. Finally I reached in and grabbed it for them.

Sultanna in her beautiful palomino-ness.

The forecast is for the high temperatures and heat indices to continue though the weekend. It's been over a week, and we need cooler temps desperately. 

With a bucket of apples from the ancient apple tree out in the pasture, we may be playing some more bobbing for apples, just to keep cool!

Abby's Fine!

Tim is a great barn owner. He manages the barns, pastures, and herd very well, and Abby and her buddies thrive under his care. I have not had a vet bill in seven and a half years! (He gives the horses their shots and deworms them.)

He's also been thoughtful enough to keep me posted on how Abby is doing as I recover from surgery - I haven't seen her for nearly two weeks! I'd hoped to go out a day or two after I got out of the hospital and even sent him a text to find out which pasture the herd was currently in so that I could plan for any walking that I might have to do.

Tim responded with this text and several photos of the horses enjoying apples that he'd put out for them.

 Hokey, Trouble, Sultanna, Abby, and Diablo enjoying an apple treat.

While I miss my girl terribly, it is also a tremendous relief to know that she is well cared for and that I can wait until I feel up to visiting her.

Juicy Apples Lead to...

The teachers at Hershey know I love horses and have Abby. Sometimes they put treats in my school mailbox for her - an apple, a pear, candy canes, and other goodies.

This fall my little horse has been living the life of Riley - four times I have been given BAGS of apples for her! She likes apples almost as much as she likes candy canes, and their sweet juiciness gets my hands just as sticky as the candy canes do.

So naturally, Abby has to lick all that juice off.

Ever been licked by a horse? Their tongues are soft, but they are also huge.

See what I mean??