Heading to Colorado

I didn't post the day after getting home with the tractor, or the rest of this past week about the tractor. I don't know if it was jet lag, or the wine, but I felt miserable the following day. 2 days later, I still had a tiredness and soreness behind my eyes. Iwas better by Thursday but still tired. The weather had changed about every day this week, besides the traveling that we had done, and I think my head couldn't keep up with it. I finally took some Sudafed, and the ache went away.

The tractor got off the trailer, but it was too muddy to drive it around. I hope to have pictures up sometime in a week or 2. I may not have time this next week, as I'll be preparing a vendor booth for the Nebraska Horse Expo in Lincoln, March 11-13.

Yesterday, we drove another 7 1/4 hours to Colorado to visit Sara, Jake and Makenzie. We are bringing 2 year old Makenzie home with us on Monday and her mommy is coming Thursday. They are planning on helping me at Expo. Wish hubby and I luck with a 2 year old in the house again. It's only been about 22 years since our 3rd child was that age!

I wished we would have stopped and got better pictures of the Sand Hill Cranes. They were every where there was a pond in central Nebraska. Huge flocks!

Sand Hill Cranes of Nebraska

Helicopoter looking for oil

Colorado Prairie

Grasslands of CO


Antelope

Makenzie and Caden

Makenzie is our almost 20 month old granddaughter who lives in Colorado. Caden is our 19 month old grandson who lives near us in Lincoln. They are so much fun!

We don’t get to see Makenzie as often as I would like. Last year, when she was a baby, it seemed like we were out every other month until Christmas. This year, we only came at Easter, and I was out in June. But Tom “Pop” wasn’t able to make it then. I was traveling back from Steamboat Springs after completing a Centered Riding Instructors Update Clinic. I was staying the weekend at Sara and Jakes, so Jacob and Amber came out for the weekend.



The cousins were together for the first time since Christmas. That was fun to see both grandbabies playing together.



Until this weekend. Tom hadn’t seen Makenzie for 6 months, and it was time to come for a visit! Tom took 2 extra days vacation time, making an extra long holiday weekend,. We are enjoying it! Micah is along and that is fun for Sara to have her brother here.

We were able to leave early enough Thursday to be here for supper and to spend a couple of hours with Makenzie before bed. Sara had to work today, Friday, so Pop, Micah and I got to spoil Makenzie, but her daddy kept an eye on us to make sure we weren’t letting her get away with too much. Lol



Makenzie is a talker! Imagine that with me as her grandma and her “momma’, who also does her share of talking! She babbles on, but I can tell she is telling us something, that’s for sure. Every now and then, a word comes out that we know, and if you listen carefully, you can tell what she is implying. What a vocabulary already.



How many times can we read the same book in 1 day? Night Night is a favorite. She loves books with animals in them. Today, I found all but 1 of her puzzle pieces and we spent some time finding the right spot for those pieces in the correct puzzle.

We went outside and went to the playset.



She and I spent time on the swing and slide while the guys mowed the grass in the front driveway area. Pop weeded her play area while I went up the steps with her, then had her sit at the top of the slide, while I went back down the steps to help her slide down. After a dozen times, we went to see what the guys were doing.



After lunch, Pop laid down to nap. Makenzie thought he should wake up and put on her shoes again. She couldn’t get over that he didn’t have hair on top of his head. Lol She liked patting his back, and belly, too.



We also visited Pody numerous times. Pody doesn't look as fat as he did in June!



I know, I know, she should have had her helmet on. But Uncle Micah was leading her outside to see Pody, and he sat her on bareback while she was petting him. Uncle Micah's hands were holding her the whole time. Pody wanted to follow them around all the time. I think he likes Makenzie as much as she likes him.

But guess what they have out here? Snakes, but just not any snakes, but rattlers! Oh my goodness! Jake said he saw his first, and only one, a couple of weeks ago, while feeding Pody, he heard it move in the grass! Luckily Sara was home and Jake kept an eye on the snake while she got a shovel. Makenzie is not allowed to wander alone, which she never does, but now my eyes are 20’ in front of me.



Makenzie got to ride the tractor with her daddy.



The guys worked on her rabbit hutch while she and I watched. She is going to be raising some markets bunnies, and starting a college fund.



She has a John Deere bicycle and loves it!

Makenzie helped me to work on the computer.



She loved looking at the pictures.

She is suppose to be napping. I’ve drank another cup of coffee, and have had a snack and taking my vitamins. I think I can keep up with her for another couple of hours. I hope so anyways.

I may be ready to sit down tonight, but I sure am loving spending time with my little sweetheart.

Trailering Chex to Colorado

Easter, 2009! A 4 day weekend! We headed to Colorado! This was part horse business, part store business, part trailer trading, and part seeing family. It was so much better to travel 7 ½ hours over 4 days instead of 2 or 2 ½ days!

We left Friday morning with a 4 horse trailer, yearling colt, and 30 bales of alfalfa! We are selling a horse and some hay to our daughter, who wanted to buy our little reining colt, Chex. She is planning on starting him under saddle and showing reining.

Chex was brought into the barn about 4 weeks ago with the other 2 yearlings. Two stud colts needed castrating, all 3 needed their hooves trimmed, all 3 needed their yearling vaccinations, 2 had wolf teeth removed, and since Chex was leaving the state, he needed blood drawn for a Coggins test and health papers. The vet and farrier were scheduled the same day to get this all done! Worked like a dream. Sedate, castrate, vaccinate, give a shot of antibiotics, pull wolf teeth, and trim hooves, on one yearling at a time, with each one done within a ½ hour time frame!

A day later, all 3 were turned back outside to be with their buddy, Red, the older gelding who is babysitting them. Two of the colts didn’t move too fast! Honey, the filly acted just fine, even though she was slightly sedated the day before to have her wolf teeth pulled. She actually acted too fine! I increased their grain to put on a little weight, and Honey was feeling good! Kicking out as she ran around her lot. She made me watch my back side as I carried in hay and grain each day. The other 2 were swollen and walked slowly. One colt was fine after a week, but this time, the other colt took 2 weeks for the swelling to subside. And this colt happened to be Chex. He didn’t put on weight during this time, and I could feel ribs. Then about the time I was going to call the vet, the swelling decreased in half, and a few days later, he was back to normal. Whatever was inflamed, had finally healed. I was glad! I was starting to get a little concern and thought an infection had set in, even though the colts were given a dose of antibiotics.

I had started giving the yearlings alfalfa to put on some weight. We backed our trailer up to the barn and loaded 30 bales into the first 2 horse stalls of the trailer. I wanted to make sure that Sara had enough alfalfa for 2 months to continue building up his weight. I’m sure Chex will drop some weight in the move, and I want to make sure he has the best nutrition available to keep his weight on, especially as he is still growing. All the yearlings are getting tall and lanky. Alfalfa hay and 4# of Nutrena Compete each day should help promote weight gain and growth. He needs some fat cover over those ribs!

The next morning, it is time to load up for the trip to Colorado. And Chex hasn’t been in a trailer yet. The night before, we lead Chex and Red to the barn. In preparation for separation from his buddies, Chex spent the night in a stall, with Red in the stall next to him. The next morning, the trailer was in place in front of the barn door. Part of the barn door was closed so that only the opening of the trailer was seen. The back trailer doors were opened and the stall divider was collapsed to make room for both Red and Chex to be loaded at the same time. Then once Chex was loaded, Red could turn around and be led out.

Loading didn’t go as planned. Not bad, but not as easy as Chex walking in on the first try either. I thought for sure he would follow Red in, especially since his grain bucket was there. But he was interested in the cats, and in the cat’s water, and just in smelling the trailer, but not going into the trailer. After 10 minutes, we unloaded Red and haltered Chex. We didn’t want him trailering with a halter on since he was going to be loose in the back part of the trailer. After loading Red, we tried leading Chex up to the trailer edge, and while Tom pushed and I shook the grain bucket, we got Chex up to the trailer again. Then Tom stood behind Chex while I shook the grain bucket. First 1 foot stepped into the trailer, then the next, and as he took a bite of grain, he stepped into the trailer with all 4 feet! He definitely was interested in his grain, so I set the grain bucket down up at the front of the 3rd stall, unhaltered Chex, and as he ate his grain, we lead Red out and closed the doors.

Tom lead Red to his lot with the other 2 yearlings as I watched Chex eat at his grain and hay. He didn’t whinny or act up! What a good boy! We moved the truck and trailer to the gate entrance and closed the gates. We drove the 2 miles to the highway and I got out and checked on Chex. He was just standing there, looking around. No whinnies, no kicking. Wow!

We traveled 2 hours without stopping. I checked on Chex as we filled up with gas. He just stood there, looking outside the rear window. I still can’t believe how good he was doing. We made 2 more stops, and each time, Chex just stood facing front. One time, he turned his head and looked at me while I talked to him. The last stop, he didn’t even turn his head. He just stood and dozed.

Once we got to my daughter’s house, we backed up to the round pen. We opened the gates and trailer door. After a few minutes of hesitation, Chex stepped out as he saw Sara’s horses, in the other pasture, come up to the round pen to meet him. He trotted around the round pen for a few minutes, then settled in to eating some hay that was ready for him.

I must say that this was the easiest trailering experience with a young horse that we have had. And he trailered by himself!

Now for trailer business. We traded in our 4 horse Exiss for a 3 horse Trails West with a living quarters. No more sleeping in the cold! We’re driving home today and it pulls wonderfully! Pulling empty so I hope it pulls the same with a horse or 2 in it.

And finally, this weekend, we spent 2 ½ days with our 4 month old granddaughter, Makenzie. We were able to watch her 4 month pictures being taken. We went to church on Easter morning together. As I held her, she looked at a picture of Jesus on the wall, and started cooing and smiling at him! Just like Jesus was talking to her and she was smiling back! I know that Jesus loves the little children!

As I gave her an evening bottle last night, she dozed off so peacefully. Her little body was cuddled in close to mine. It was so comforting to rock a little and pat her bottom. I laid her in her crib and covered her up. We said goodbye this morning as she cooed and smiled at us, her fingers in her mouth.

Within a few short years, Makenzie will be trailering with me, and Caden, too! I’m planning our rides together already!

Chex and new friend, Zip