That's January in Indiana!

Second Post of the Day

It was dark when I took the dogs out this morning, but there was enough light for me to see that we'd had both ice and snow overnight.

Daylight proved me right. I enjoy a light snow, but ice? I go right into hibernation mode.

The dogs weren't too eager to go out, but they did what they had to do. Quickly.

The back yard patio wasn't any better. Luckily, Pepper and Tammo are well trained and don't go haring off into the hinterlands which means that I can stand in the kitchen door and watch them while they are outside.

Although Florido Boi Tammo has been known to do a few gleeful circuits around the back yard after a fresh snow has fallen.

Later this afternoon the temperature is supposed to rise above freezing (it's 20 with a wind chill of 2 as I write) so we will have to contend with the ice for a good part of the day. Looks like Zoom church for me today (with a nice mug of hot chocolate while I watch.)

That's January in Indiana for you!

Stay warm, all. And don't forget the Give Away! See today's previous post for the details. And I have figured out a prize that will be announced tomorrow. I think you will like it and it is very appropriate in light of recent blog entries.

Stay 'tooned!

Welcoming in the (Icy) New Year

 First Post of the Day

This meme fits us perfectly. We really did experience all these things across the state of Indiana two days ago.

(Apparently Illinois experienced them, too.)

The day was warm and humid and then a storm front came through.

With a cold front following it, high winds were screaming and soon tornado warnings were popping up, 

including one for us (the bottom red box on the map.) Nothing was confirmed; apparently it was a quick spin up that did not last. Grateful! (Unfortunately Illinois suffered some heavy tornado damage in a few towns.)

When the cold front blasted through, the temperatures dropped quickly causing wind gusts up to 50 mph. It howled around the house, and we kept the dogs on leashes when we took them out. (Although they declined several offers to leave the house - a rarity for Pepper and Tammo.)

When I got up at 5:00 the next morning, we had had an inch of snow and the wind chill was below zero.

That's Pepper you can barely see on the driveway - she came back inside quickly.

The snow was crunchy - we had had sleet before the precipitation turned to snow. (That's why the snow is shiny.)

As the morning progressed, the winds died down but the temperature remained low with even lower wind chills for another day before it finally warmed up to the mid twenties.

I hibernated. With the ice that was under the snow coupled with the cold, I did not want to risk going outside. Craig didn't either, and neither dog complained about missing frisbee in the park. In fact, like us, they were reluctant to go out all day!

This morning isn't much better. After snow yesterday, then rain and sleet, I checked my weather app when I awoke and saw this:

They weren't kidding. When I stepped out onto the patio to let the dogs out, it was covered in ice. 

It's only January 1 and already I am so ready for winter to be over.

Having said all that, Happy New Year, ice and all! 

It's the Year of the Horse (beginning February 17) and I hope there is a horse for everyone in it, including me.

There & Back Again

Second Post of the Day

(Full marks if you caught the double entendre on the post's title.)

I made it to the hospital safely this morning and although the roads were dicey and slowed me down, I was on time for my appointment despite the hazardous drive.

The snow was coming down hard but it was so pretty out, I had to take a picture before I left.

West Lafayette sits atop a very big moraine with the Wabash River flowing along the base of that moraine. Lafayette, where the hospital is located, is on the other side of the river.

That means you have to go down a very big hill and then over a long bridge to get to Lafayette. And the flip is, you have to go over that bridge and then up a long, steep hill to get back to West Lafayette.

Not fun on days like today when there is fresh snow and ice. But I made it there and back again, although I passed a three car crash in Lafayette and a car that had plowed into a pole (and was obviously totaled) just outside my own neighborhood.

I was mistaken about this morning's procedure. It was not a Caudal ESI, it was a Bilateral Sacroiliac Joint Injection and more involved than the last one. There were two doses of numbing and then longer doses of medication into each side of the pelvis.

The two sacroiliac joints are the red lines in the diagram and the place where the pelvis connects with the sacrum and spine.

It was uncomfortable but over soon. In recovery I felt shaky for the first couple of minutes, and then suddenly everything went back to feeling normal. I was home by 9:00.

Now I hang out at home and wait and see for the first couple of hours. My doctor said to expect it to hurt more for a while after the numbing meds wear off and the body adjusts to the medication in the joints. That could take a few days.

So, I plan to grab some lunch, maybe read for a while, and then snooze for an hour or so with Pepper and Tammo under a fluffy warm blanket.

More on the show will come tomorrow. Stay 'tooned! 

Monday Morning Complications

 Well.

This week is getting off to an unusual start. I have to be at the hospital at 7:15 this morning for another procedure (more below). And it is snowy and icy, too.

Anyone else suddenly remembering Craig's not one but two falls on the ice the past two years? Both with significant head trauma? Yeah, me, too. And needless to say, I am not looking forward to the drive across town to the hospital this morning. 

Still, the snow is pretty. These were my snapdragons yesterday afternoon. Aren't they lovely?

The patio and the back yard early in the storm.

My reverse Dalmatian will go outside but Florida Boi Tammo keeps telling us he can hold it just a little longer. 

Last night, reports became coming in of snarled traffic on I-65, the interstate that runs through Indiana.

As well traveled as that interstate is, when it closes, you know the roads are not in good shape anywhere. 

We've had at least another inch of snow overnight, and are under a winter advisory for 1 - 3 more inches today. Hopefully the roads will be clear and not icy when I leave home for the drive to the hospital in a bit.

The procedure? A Caudal ESI or Caudal Epidural Steroid injection. My spine is numbed and then the space between the vertebrae and the spinal cord receive an injection of steroids. The goal is to stop the pain so I can stand again and not need to use a walker.

Just before the Feast, I had one injection and it worked pretty well. This time I am receiving two, one on either side of the sacrum.  (I have spina bifida occulta; my spine did not close completely at that site and I have a hole there.)

My doctor is REALLY good and while I felt some pressure on my back, the procedure last time was absolutely painless and I didn't even realize when she was done. I had to remain under observation for 15 minutes afterward, and then I was able to drive myself home. 

I'm expecting the same today and then I will be home by 9:00 or 9:30 this morning, depending on how the roads are. Hopefully I will get another blog post written, too. Wish me luck on all that.

Stay 'tooned!

A November Hodge Podge

Not a mish mosh post this time; I'm changing things up and doing a hodge hodge post! Which is essentially the same thing, but hey...

Lots of things are happening, here in my life as well as in the hobby world. First, some news that made me really happy. There's a new model horse blog - Mel Grant's  Mel's Model Horse Collection.

The second line in her very first blog post referenced Lewis Carroll (Alice's Adventures in Wonderland and Through the Looking Glass) and then and there I knew that this was going to be a blog I wanted to follow.

I met Mel at the first FAMulous Collectibility Show in 2019 and she and I have been friends ever since. Nice woman, excellent writer, and she knows model horses - what a great addition to the hobby's blogging world Mel will be.

There is a link to her blog to the right under "My Blog List." Go check it out; you'll be glad you did. I'm already looking forward to Mel's next post.

Moving on to Breyer news, I'm late in sharing this and no doubt ya'll know already that Breyer has announced the 2026 BreyerFest Celebration model. (Photo by Breyer.)

I think she is lovely - I like the mold and I like her soft color. It's been a while since I actually kept the Celebration Model for my personal collection, but she's a keeper for me. 

Breyer also released Killington, big and small, yesterday. Collector Club members can order the pair until November 6 and then, if any are left, they will open sales up to everyone.

A vintage mold that I conga and its mini me? In silver filigree? I never even read the text in the advertisement - I clicked on the Buy It button and ordered them! (Photo by Breyer.)

ELauer, one of the winners of the September Give Away for the Halloween keychains and wristlets, sent me a photo of what she'd done with the wristlet she'd won. A little Fall decor!

It made a perfect neck wreath for Breyer's Welsh mare. With her permission, I sent the photo on to Cambria and Titan who were thrilled to see their work used that way.

I ordered my second copy of Dr. Seuss' Horse Museum - this one to give to Teacher Daughter Lisa to use in her classroom.

To my dismay, the packer had used white tape of some sort and taped the book to a box insert - with the tape on the dust cover!

I could not get the tape off and was concerned the cover would rip so I contacted Amazon for a replacement.

That is the third problem with Amazon shipping I have had in two months. Just before the Feast and then again this past Monday, I received empty Amazon packages. When I reported them, I was asked if I was sure the package was empty or if perhaps I'd just missed the package on my doorstep because they had a photo of it having been delivered. (Which they then sent me.)

Both times the missing orders were buttons for making sleeve buttons. I'd had four custom orders for Trade Shirts from the Feast and the customers had asked for specific sets of sleeve buttons for the cuffs.

Two of them wanted a pair of the flat brass ones but I only had one set; no problem, order more of those buttons and make them.

Except... the replacement order would not arrive for two weeks and I needed them within a day or two.

Fortunately, the customer was very nice and said another pair would be fine.

I sent them several photos of the metal sleeve buttons I had in stock

and they selected this silver pair. 

The customers were local and I dropped the shirts, sleeve buttons, and a bonus little girl's petticoat off in the afternoon.

The woman who ordered this trade shirt asked me if I could make something out of any leftover fabric from her shirt. It was a bit of a squeak, but I was able to get a petticoat from it. I can't wait to see aunt and niece wearing their matching clothes at the next Feast.

I've been checking the weather frequently as the Happy Trails V/The Dan Patch Show gets closer. We've had accumulating snows as early as October in the past and I was hoping that that would not be the case this year. To my dismay, I saw the first snowflake icon on my weather app yesterday.

Two days after the show - we are good. Looks like we may deal with rain, but that's no problem.

Meanwhile, Montana Mama Sarah (who has had several snows already) discovered that hubby Todd was doing some "holiday decorating" while she was in Idaho playing Gimme to new baby Elise May.

After speaking with Brooke, I am going to set up the show Thursday instead of Friday. (Which works well for me - Tim and Loni are hosting a hay ride out at the barn Friday evening.)

Yesterday I sat down at the sewing machine and made a show apron from the leftover Standardbred fabric.

I already had one made from another racing themed fabric, so I pulled it out,

folded them both up, and added them to the donations tub for the raffle. With that, I am calling it good for donations although I expect some will arrive on the day of the show. I'll add those to the raffle table then.

Belle and I met up at a spaghetti supper last night. We had done the old high school trick, texting beforehand and asking, "What are you wearing? Are we going cowgirl?" 

Finally, we were going to wear the tee shirts we'd bought together!

We had a lot of fun going matchy-match with our boots and tee shirts. (And horseshoe necklaces!) 

Belle is doing so well with Sultanna. She is riding a lot and is really growing in her skills. She's discovered the joys of horses and it's fun to be a part of that journey with her.

Believe it or not, there's more mish mosh hodge podge I could write about, but that's enough for today. Have a good one, and don't forget to go take a look at Mel's blog!

A Simple Beauty

Saturday was sunny but still very cold here. Nonetheless, I decided to brave the rural roads and go see Abby. I figured I could do a drive by the northwest pasture and if they were way out there, I'd go back home rather than call them up or walk out to them. 

The lane to the new barn has a slight rise and naturally that's where some drifting snow was deposited. But I made it up without too much difficulty and was pleased to see that the horses were up by the new barn.

No long walk out to see my girl - she was right there in the nursery paddock.

A snow-selfie was in order. Not unexpectedly, Two Socks wanted to be included, too.

I had to stop when she began nibbling on my coat from behind. (Sultanna had joined us, too.)

The treat of the day was carrots which Abby quickly scarfed down. And then as she always does, she licked the bars of the gate.

The metal bars. In temperatures that were well below freezing.

If I stuck out my tongue and touched that gate, it would stick to it; why does Abby's never do the same?

Looks like Two Socks in finding some humor in the thought!

Summer or winter, Sultanna is beautiful. Look at those snow crystals on her nose! I couldn't resist planting a big kiss on her right then and there.

Of course, I did the same to Abby and Two Socks.

And then I turned off the water to the trough and started trudging through the snow and back to my car.

It's a pretty snow, light and fluffy, and not too hard to walk through.

And there is a simple beauty in the late afternoon sun on a snowy January day.

Lucky me to get to enjoy it.