Goodbye to Skippy

Yesterday my sister had to euthanize Skippy, her Paint gelding. He'd suddenly begun to drop weight and had been diagnosed with cancer a while ago, so it was time.

He was thirty-two and she'd had him for twenty years, so Skippy had had a long, happy life.

Skippy was also blind in both eyes and had been from birth. He always had his head cocked so he could listen well, and as a result, the muscles on one side of his neck became quite large while those on the other side atrophied.

Skippy and my granddaughter, Trinity.

Blindness did not hold Skippy back. He was happy and friendly, and as the first picture showed, could even be ridden.

Lisa and Skippy.

Rest in a very well-deserved peace, Skippy You will be terribly missed.

Gentleness in Spite of Fears

Despite her terror at times, and the fear that can well up in her and make her bolt, Molly has NEVER, EVER growled, snapped, bitten, or acted aggressively toward any of us. Which is why I do not worry when Mila, who is quite enamored of Molly, crawls over and lays down with her on the big pillow.

 Molly is very gentle, and she lays quietly and allows Mila to touch and pat her.

 Mila talks to her (and sometimes brings over the doggy toys)...

...and they get comfortable together. Molly sometimes goes to sleep and never tries to get away from Mila or acts like she wants to be alone.

She has made tremendous progress in the two months we have had her, and still has a long way to go, but I am all the more protective of her because she does not act on those fears and threaten Mila or anyone else.

There is a very sweet personality in this girl, and we are seeing glimmers. I look forward to seeing more.

Ulysses is Here!

I have never been a fan of Chris Hess' Legionario III mold.

Until now. Wow!

 The first offering of the 2018 Vintage Club, Ulysses, is stunning!

These photos taken with my phone do not do him justice. He is much darker than he appears, a true black like Breyer's old blackest charcoals, and his gloss is heavy and even.

 I love that one of his ears is black and speckled with just a hint of pink poking out.

I thought his belly decal was blotched until I looked closely at it. If you look carefully, you can see the Andalusian silhouette outlined on the left.

I was disappointed when the 2018 Vintage Club offerings were announced. (And even considered dropping out, even though I have been a member since the beginning.) I like the Grazing Mare and Foal, the San Domingo is okay, and I'll just tuck the free Stablemate on the shelf. (I'm not much of a Stablemate collector.) But please tell me how on earth Weather Girl is vintage? Even dressed up in vintage colors? (I'll likely be selling mine.) 

Well, if the others are as nice as Ulysses, I will be very happy and glad that I remained in the club. I may even change my mind, like I did with him, and keep my Weather Girl.

A Snow Day is a Sew Day!

We had a surprise snow day today, although it was really for ice, not snow. No local or regional forecasts predicted the sleet and freezing rain that we received, and so none of the roads had any applications of beet juice, sand or salt in preparation. The roads quickly became very, very slick, and so almost all area schools canceled classes for the day.

Including mine. And let's be honest - what teacher doesn't love a snow day? An unexpected opportunity to sleep in a bit, read a good book, catch up on a few chores? I'll take it, and today I chose to make my snow day a "sew day."

My horse room also houses my sewing machine and supplies.

I cut and stitch away while sitting in the midst of my collection. It's hard to explain, but I feel very content as I work in my favorite spot in our home. I love looking up from my stitching to see a conga of Lady Phases or Huckleberry Beys, my glass cases with my Hagen Renaker Circus Pony collection, and all the other pieces in my collection. It simply makes me happy.

Today I was sewing Valentine pillowcases for two of my granddaughters, Mila and Kate, both of whom turn two this year and so will be getting their holiday pillowcase sets. The year a grandchild turns two, I make them a set of holiday pillowcases and send one to them in the mail a week or so before each holiday.

I make one for Valentine's Day, St. Patrick's Day, Easter, Memorial Day/4th of July/Labor Day, Halloween, Thanksgiving, Christmas, and their birthday for a total of eight per child. (I have never found New Year's fabric that I felt was child-friendly so I skip it.) We have thirteen grandchildren and two more on the way, so needless to say, I have sewn a lot of pillowcases!

We expect more icing tonight, so tomorrow may be another day of no school.

 If so, I'll be back up in my horse room, puttering around and sewing more pillowcases. And feeling very, very content.

A Surprise Gift

Yesterday when church services concluded, a little girl came running down the aisle toward me with a piece of paper clutched in her hand. "This is for you," she said with a shy smile.

She'd drawn me a picture of a pinto horse in a pasture!

I thanked Rowynn, told her that I loved it and would display it on my fridge, and gave her a hug. She trotted off to Sunday School with a big smile on her face. I had one, too - I was very touched that a five year old would take time to draw me a picture of my favorite animal.

Why the random horse picture out of the blue? The backstory is that Rowynn's mother, a friend of mine, had dropped by in December to give me something with Rowynn in tow, and while we were visiting, had told me that her daughter was a horse lover like me. So, I'd invited them both upstairs to see my horse room where we'd chatted about horsey things for a bit.

Rowynn had been stunned at seeing my collection - it turned out that she had a model horse or two, but she had never seen so many models in one place before. Apparently she went home and changed her Christmas list, adding more Breyer horses to it.

Santa obliged, and I got a gift from one horse love to another.

Together at Last!

Finally! A break in this terrible weather! The temperatures have risen above freezing and the snow has been melting for the past two days. Yesterday afternoon I figured that the lanes to the old and new barns might be clear enough to attempt a barn visit.

 I was right! The lane to the old barn was clear of its ice and snow. I could see Abby at the west hayrack, munching hay as I parked my car.

She heard the car coming and recognized it. Before I could even start my walk to her hayrack, she was eagerly coming up to the gate, softly nickering to me.

I'd brought some carrots and we had a lovely reunion of carrots, petting, soft breaths, and scritching.

 As I was returning to my car after our visit, I turned back for one last look. To my surprise, she was watching me, too. That put a smile on my face.

That is the longest I have ever gone without being able to get out to see her. Thank goodness for Tim who has four wheel drive and gets to the barn every single day so that I do not have to worry about her during my absence.

But even though I know she is checked daily and gets good care, it is still nice to be able to look her over with my own eyes, slip her some carrots, and hear those lovely low nickers of welcome. There is something about being with my horse that makes me feel happy and content.

Childhood Favorite Made in Japans

My brother has been in the hospital for the past few days and so my time after school has been spent there instead of at the barn or doing model horse related things. So, today I am posting some pictures of the MIJs I pulled out when I cleaned the hobby closet.

My very first pieces in my "play collection" (1963 to when I found out about Ellen Hitchin's club, IMPHSA in 1970) were Japan chinas. They were played with and very, very loved. Here are a few of my favorites.

Black Diamond, a Lefton Saddlebred. He was in pieces and I had him professionally restored about ten years ago. One of my favorites.

 Bobol, a gift in sixth grade from my friends Bobbie Sue and Carol (his name is a combination of theirs.) Unknown make.

 Counterpoint, a Little Bit sized Lefton and named for a horse in a childhood favorite book, Scarlet Royal.

Mollasus, a traditional sized Rossini piece. She has a special place in my heart and for years was the "mother" of my woodgrain running foal, Needles. (One of my first Breyers and a gift from my dad when I got braces.)

Old Maude, my sister's drafter and her favorite china, a Brinns/Inarco piece. This is actually a duplicate I found and bought, but I do have the original Old Maude, too!

When I stopped by to see my brother last night, he was no longer in critical condition, had been moved out of the ICU and into a regular room, and had had the ventilator and other tubes removed. I think it will be just a few more days and then he will be moved to a care facility for a while and our lives will return to a more normal routine.

Which means I will have time for Abby visits and hobby puttering. Stay tuned!