My Little Red Barn, Lori's new horse

Videos of our first ride!

There is a place in eastern Washington called The Feed Lot. It is a place where unwanted horses go that people don't want anymore. They come in all breeds & ages, young & old. Sometimes they are just sick or injured and the owners just don't want to deal with them. Sometimes really nice well bread horses end up here just because of the owners bad circumstances. From this Feed Lot they are shipped to slaughter houses in Canada & Mexico where the meat is then sold to markets around the world. However this feed lot is a bit different. The owner allows a volunteer group to come in each week, evaluate some of the horses and try to find either foster care or get them adopted. THIS is where Lady came from. 

Lady's feed lot name was Dinah. She arrived at the feed lot in December 2011. I actually saw her posting on the Rebel board, but didn't have the money and we were not set up yet for horses. (We had just moved in here) A sponsor paid her feed lot price and a foster home was found for her. Not long after that her foster caregiver got sick and she was moved to another foster home and re-posted on the Rebel board. At this point my neighbor wanted to buy the young Thoroughbred (Honey) that was given to me earlier this year. So we sort of did a trade, she paid for Lady but got Honey. Anyway, Lady is here now and I am soooooo happy with her!!! 

The reference in the videos to my Lacey horse, (for those who don't know) Lacey was the beach rental horse I use to ride. We had a rare and very strong bond. It broke my heart when I had to leave her to move to Texas. While in Texas the ranch and all the horses were sold. There will never be another Lacey, but I had hoped I could find another horse that could fill the void, and Lady is that horse!            

Recent News

We have not written much since May so it's time to up-date .

Lori has recieved her African Grey Geese.And all 10 of them are growing fast.They are going out in the pasture and will follow Lori around peeping all the way.She's liking that.I have to admit that it is real cute.Maybe she will post some pictures soon.
Also we've received 15 French guinea hens.They were just put out into the barn a couple of days ago.They are so smaller at 2 weeks old.Hard to beleive they will be bigger than chickens soon.Will have to wait and see how they develop.
The 2 horses,Honeydew and Snoopy,are doing great.Lori has been riding Snoopy a few times.Last Friday she got bucked off and has a few sore spots still.
Actually she  just fell off when the pony took a turn a bit faster than she was prepared for.Either way..she hit the ground and has been a little tender lately.Hope she heals soon.
I am still unemployed.But I'm working on it.There are several prospects locally that I'll be pressuring shortly.

This weekend I will be going to Depoe Bay,Oregon for the 5th annual Oregon Rockfish Classic.It's a fishing competition on kayaks.They are expecting over 50 people to compete in this event.I'll be going down on Thursday to set up ,meet and greet,and get ready for the tourney.I have made a cool trophy out of driftwood,a couple of carvings I've done ,and a treasure chest.It looks way cool.Will be attaching a 1st place ORC 2012 tag on it Friday so it will be ready for the winner.
This should be a great time .Get to meet many folks that I've only "talked to" on-line.They are giving away lots of awesome prizes to the competitors that get decent fish,then having a big award ceremony/potluck.I'm pumped for this.
I'll post more when I get back home.

My Little Red Barn, new stall & electric done

I got the wall for the second stall done, the barn now has 3 sections. The plan was to have the middle for feed, tack & supplies. One end stall for the geese & one end for the guinea hens. But the early addition of the horses has slightly changed things. As you can see I have put the hay in the new stall. The barn has a hayloft but until I build a pulley system I have no way to get it up there. I will get that done before winter. 


Doing the electric was way easier than I thought it would be! I still need to get some large U nails to attach the wire cables to the ceiling rafters. There is a light switch in the garage but I might put one in the barn too later on. 


The goslings will be here Wednesday, they will stay over night in a brooder set up in the house then they will go into this "Chick Corral" until the guinea arrive on the 30th. Then the goslings will go out in the stall and the guinea chicks will go in the "Chick Corral". 





Mark helped me with the chicken run frame and I was amazed at how quickly we got it done! This will be a temporary outside in closer to keep the babies safe until they are big enough that the crows & hawks wont bother them. Then it will be taken down. It is smaller than I had planed but it wont be needed for long. 


I am really loving working on/in the barn! As I sit in my spot reflecting, I still have many more projects to do. But I look forward to them as I am LIVING the dream! 

Lori's Hat Project & Mark's Wood Spirits

 The photo on the left was my favorite hat I got in Alaska that got left behind. I have been looking for a replacement but have not been successful. I did find a hat with a similar shape though but couldn't find the same stile hatband. As I was searching I stumbled on a bead craft website that just happened to have the same kind of bone beads as on the original hatband. So I decided to try & make one myself! 

I had to buy all the pieces separately, even the brass setting & stone was bought from different places. I was very pleased when the stone arrived & actually fit in the setting! To my amazement I actually did it! It isn't perfect or exactly like the original but nether is the hat. All in all I did a good job and it is close enough that I am very happy with the end result! I'm thinking about making some more to sell with Mark's carvings! =)

Mark's Wood Spirits 

 Mark has been carving like crazy! He has even sold a few already! The top right & the second from the top on the left he has carved as trophies for a fishing tournament coming up. He also has photos of the step by step making of the kayak. (above right) When he gets around to it he will post that later.


I can't tell you a lot about these, Mark will get on later to edit this post with descriptions. He is doing an incredible job bringing out the spirit with in the wood! And he is now trying out some larger chainsaw carvings for yard art! He has started on his first one and it is coming along great so far! 

We will be getting a both at the Tokeland Wood Fest July 28 & 29th. 

Hope to see you there!            

Unexpected Guests

A lot has happened since my last post and I have been very busy! It all started the weekend of April 21st. My son and I made a trade of his Canon CMOS Pro camcorder for my Native kayak. He came to visit and we went to Ocean Shores Duck Lake to try them out. It was a beautiful warm early spring day, we had a great time kayaking, taking pictures & video. We even had the opportunity to video & photo some new baby ducks! Of course we saw lots of deer too. As we were cruising through one of the canals we caught a couple of raccoon begging at someones sliding door! We had a lot of fun and decided that it was a good trade! We got home late but I down loaded a movie maker software to play with the video later.                                                                                              

We had planed to just hang out Sunday so we got up late and eased into the day. I wanted to show off the work I had done in the barn before Chris left and decided to fill up the bird feeder while waiting for him to come out. As Rowdy & I came around the back of the house my dog froze in a defensive stance looking at something just out of my site on the side of the house. 


I think everyone has some kind of childhood fantasy that stays with them, once we reach adulthood we realize how silly it is and store it away somewhere in our memory to be pondered on in some lazy daydream knowing that there is no way for it to come true. 


Well on that warm, sunny Sunday morning my childhood fantasy came true! As I slowly walked up to my dog, what he was looking at came into view. Standing there in my yard looking back at us were two horses!!! The little one even nickered a greeting! My first thought, of course this is the one time in my life that I don't have a halter!


I grabbed the dog & ran into the house in a total panic and shock. I don't even remember this part, I must have gotten something I could use as a lead, yelled something about keeping the dog in the house in between saying over & over "horses in the yard!" Truns out I didn't need the lead, by the time I got back out  to the yard the horses had walked right into the pasture and all I had to do was shut the gate! 


AND if this wasn't amazing enough, it took almost two weeks to finally get a hold of the owner, when I did he said that his situation had changed and he couldn't take care of them any more. He said that if I wanted them I could have them! Mark & I talked about it and even though it is much sooner than we planed we can make it work. So "My Little Red Barn" has new occupants and our little farm family has grown by 2 horses!!

We don't have any history on the horses, just the little bit that the old owner told me. The first one I want to tell you about is the pony, Snoopy. He is an Appy gelding about 13.2 hands high. The vet told me he is in his mid 20's and in good health. He also told me that like dogs the smaller horses live longer so his age shouldn't be a problem. He has exceptional ground manners & has had some good halter training in his past. He loves attention and nickers to me when I come out. He is just a little pushy at feeding time but that is getting better every day. I suspect he has had some good riding training as well but I wont know for sure until I ride and evaluate him which I will do in the next couple of days. I am pretty sure he will be perfect for the kids!


Mark has been calling the big bay thoroughbred mare Honeycome. She is almost 16 hands tall, just right for Mark & all the adult kids! However she is only 6 yrs old. She also has good ground manners, she loves attention & will come right up to you in the pasture. She is sweet & good natured but I get the impression she is use to getting her way. If you walk up to her with a halter or rope in your hands she will run away. We have already had a couple lessons on this & she is getting better. However once the halter is on she is real good! The old owner told me that she was not broke when he got her, said he had her for about two years & did all of her training & that he has even hunted with her. So basically she has had no formal training. I have not decided for sure how I will proceed with her yet. It will depend on how well she does with the lunge line, with & with out the saddle. 


In between taking care of the horses I did get the barn done. I just need to do some finishing odds & ends to get it just right. The new stall I built is now being used for hay so I have not put up a gate like I had planed. The small stall will still be used for the geese & guineas hens. I will have some photos in my next post. I still need to build the outdoor run for the birds, I need to get on that, the goslings will be here next week!  


So the moral of this post... 

Don't ever give up on your dreams! Sometimes they do come true!!    

        

Landscaping

While I was at the local hardware/lumber store getting supplies for the barn, I saw that a bunch of their gardening supplies & plants were on sale. I bought 2 fruit trees, an ornamental flowering cherry tree & a purple lilac bush. Oh and I have a small Japanese maple. I also got some cool purple & white daisies for the raised flower garden in front of the house. I was a little ahead of myself for getting this stuff now (landscaping & gardening was scheduled for next week after I finish the barn) but it was a great deal on the trees. Also the weather report says rain after today. So, today I will quickly finish the wiring and most of the barn stuff can be done inside, rain wont matter. Then I will get the trees planted. This is what I got from left to right, 


Senetti Violet Bicolor. Black Tartartian Cherry, Pink Flowering Cherry, Liberty Apple, Katherine Havemeyer French Lilac & a Japanese Maple of unknown type. I will have to get one more each of the fruit trees for pollinators. More about that later. The photo to the right is where I will plant the fruit cherry trees so that I can see them from my office window. Mark would like the apple trees in the pasture.


I will plant the ornamental cherry, lilac, maple and some of the flowers in the front yard by the mailbox. The photo to the left is before, on the right is after.


It turns out that I will have a couple surprises! First is the flowering cherry, as I was planting it I noticed the label showed 3 different kinds of trees and it wasn't specific about what kind was actually in the package, however "Autumnalis" was hand written on the top of the label so I am assuming that is the type I got. I spent hours searching Google for information. It's going to be a lot bigger than I wanted for the front yard, 25 to 35ft! But from what I can gather it will be a very impressive tree. It blooms in early spring (before most trees) large double pink/white blossoms, followed by the green leaves. Later it will have small black berries that the birds will like. In the fall the leaves will change yellow & bronze before dropping. (sweet!) THEN it will bloom again around November/December if the temp is mild. So all in all, except for the size this is exactly what I wanted!

The next surprise is the lilac bush. I love all lilac bushes and there were several kinds at the store. Personally I don't think there is much difference between them except for the color, I like the dark purple ones so that's what I got. They all smell good but there is only one that takes me back to childhood memories of warm summer fun filled days. After planting the one I bought I looked it up, this one is considered to be an old fashioned heritage lilac and is said to be the most fragrant. Wouldn't it be great if this turns out to be the one I remember!


The last surprise will be my poor Japanese Maple that I bought at a garage sale last fall. These plants are very expensive & I got this one for about $5.00. The thing is that there are several varieties of maples. There are small, medium & large trees and shrubs. The surprise is that I have no idea which this is! Only time will tell and that is why I planed it where I did. Whatever kind it turns out to be, it will look good there.

Next I need to decide what to do with the raised brick flower beds I started last fall in front of the house. Originally these beds were going to be 4 rows high and planted with flowering shrubs. Then I decided to wait until the house was painted but I have no idea when that will be. So I thought for now I would  plant some petunias & pansies, but I didn't like any that I saw at the garden shops. However I did liked these purple & white daises and they were on sale, but after getting them home I discovered they are better suited for planters than in the ground. So now I'm back to where I started with these flower beds. I will replant the daises into small planters that I move around to wherever I want them and decide later what to do with the flower beds. 


I love all my little projects, it feels good to be working outside again! 

My Little Red Barn, more cleaning

Now that the goose stall is done, time to get started on the main part of the barn. This space is an open area a little over twice the space of the goose stall. It has a very sturdy manger, the ladder to the hayloft and 2 metal hanging cabinets. As far as cleaning goes it isn't nearly as bad as the goose stall was, the walls just need to be brushed down, mostly to get ride of the spiderwebs & their inhabitants. (not an easy job for someone with Arachnophobia!) However the floor is going to require some more scraping! Here are some more before & after photos. 
Before                                                                                              After 

Because we really like chicken and that I can't grow them for some reason, we have decided to get some guinea hens too! (they are kind of like big chickens, more about them in a later posting) So that means that I will be building another stall! The middle section shown here will be for tack & feed. This will be the smallest area in the barn so to optimize the space & because the manger will not be needed, I decided it should be removed. It was a much harder job than I thought it was going to be, but it was worth it!! After I install the other stall wall this extra space will be quite noticeable. You can't see the middle section floor real good here, I had to do some scraping but it cleaned up pretty good. I still have to brush down the walls & clean the cabinets, but for the most part the center section is done. 


Today I will be working on the floor in what will be the second stall. (lots more scraping to do) Then brush down the walls & clean out the corners and I will be DONE with the cleaning! I am hoping I will have time to make a lumber store run & maybe get started on the stall wall! I would like to get this all done by Friday so I can get started on the wiring. Because I am adding a second stall (and the middle section) the wiring will be a bigger project than what was originally planed. 


Oh, I would like to take some time in the next couple days to do two side project. We have a couple of morning doves hanging around and a kizzillon song birds. I want to build a small feeder on the fence behind the office and one on the fence outside the living room hoping to encourage them to stay around. 


Time to get to work!!  

My Little Red Barn, the goose stall

Wheew! What a job! It took several days & a lot of hard work but the goose stall is finally done. Below are some before & after photos with a description of the work done. 
           Before                                                                      After

If you click on these you can see more detail. This built in feeder was firmly planted so I figured I would keep it, but as I started cleaning I saw how impossible it was going to be to clean under & behind. As you can see, I decided to remove it. I had to chisel the old muck cementing the support board to the floor. Then I had to take it apart board by board before I could get it off the wall. I'm glad I did. I think the stall will be more functional with out it. See all the dark areas on the walls in the after photo? I had to use a hammer & chisel to clean it! I got all the muck off but as you can see the wood is still stained. I don't think that will be a problem though.
           Before                                                                      After

These photos are of the other side of the stall. The first thing you will notice in the before pic is that weird shelf thingy. I could not come up with any idea of what it could have possibly been used for, nor what reasonable use it could be for me. (except for a head banger) So I took it down. The cleaning on this side was much easier. I still had to do some scraping but even with that it only took a couple hours. When I was cleaning up that pile of muck in the corner I found a couple old rabbit pellets, I thought I was pretty smart solving the weird shelf thingy mystery! That little blue box in the lower corner is where the power wire comes into the barn. It needs to be covered so the geese don't peck at it. The plywood box I have on it in the after pic is not screwed in yet, I was going to wait until I installed the power plugs & lights. It's a good thing to because I found something better to protect the wires. But the electrical is an other project so I will explain/up date on that post. 
           Before                                                                      After

This was the hardest part of the cleaning! I had to use a chisel & hammer on this whole section from where the feeder was to the gate! You really can't see much of a difference in these small pics, click on them and you can see in the bigger photos. They must have had some kind of bovine in here, it's the only thing I can think of that could have splattered the walls in this manner. This mystery however, will most likely remain unsolved! It was a hard shitty job, (literally!) But now that the project is done, as I relax in "my spot", I reflect on all the times I helped in OTHER people's barns, seeing how happy they were when a job well done was completed! I remember all to well how jealous I was, I couldn't help it! I wanted so badly to be one of them! Now as I relax in "my spot" I realize that finally (I) am one of those other people, in (MY) barn! Now this might sound selfish to some, but after a lifetime of having this dream, I am finally living it and happy doesn't even start to covey how I feel!      

Finally! Spring is here!!

We have a TON of things planed for this summer. Instead of trying to explain each one on this post I think I will just list them all here then post on them individually as we work on them. 
The Little Red Barn,

• Cleaning, it needs more than I thought!
• Set up small stall for geese & guinea fowl. 
• Build a temporary enclosed run outside of small stall
• Make a brooder for the babies for when they arrive
• Install power outlets & lights

Get property ready for horses.

• Fences, one corner where the deer & elk jump over needs to be reinforced. Since the fence is just livestock wire we should probably string a hot wire along the top. The wood fence needs painted. Besides looking better, it protects the wood.  
• The pasture needs some work. It is overgrown with mounds of old grass & mole holes. I am probable over sensitive on this subject than needed, but many years ago I had to put a young filly down because she tripped in a mole hole while running & shattered her leg. Besides the grief it was very expensive! So spending a little more money now could save a lot in the long run.  
• We need to install gates in several places.
• There is an area by the barn that is covered with large black (sharp) rock. This HAS to be removed or covered. For a horse, this stuff would be like us walking on class! 

Horse stalls & arena,

• The barn was not built for large livestock so we need to build some stalls for the horses & a steer (or maybe a buffalo) I have drawn up the plans for a 3 stall shed. 
• We will be fencing in the area between the house and the pasture as a small arena. It will be used to teach horse & rider basic riding.

Paint the house, garage & shop. This is actually a HUGE project, I don't know if we will get it all done this year. We will start with the house & see how it goes.

Landscaping,
This house is not very old & there has been NO landscaping done yet (except grass & even that is sparse in some areas) This project is still mostly in the planing stages. So this list will probably be modified or totally change by the time all is done.

• Fruit Trees, we will for sure plant 4 trees, 2 apple & 2 cherry. These will be located just behind the white fence on the shop corner of the property. There is a good chance this will be done with in the next 2 weeks so stay tuned for up dates!
• Veggie garden. This project is only in the maybe stage right now. This will be another BIG project. We will see how all the other projects go this summer, maybe I will start on it this winter to have it ready to plant for spring.
• Flowers, deco trees & shrubs. I have already started raised flower beds in the front of the house designed for some shrubs, but then realized that we should get the house painted before planting any thing close to it. So for this year I will just plant some flowers in it. This should be done with in the next 2 weeks.
• I have a small Japanese Maple plant. These plants range from small, medium & large bushes AND trees. Depending on which one this is will determine where it should be planted. Because I have no idea which one this is I will put it in a large pot and put it in the yard where I would like to plant it. I will plant it in a permanent place after I determine if it is a bush or tree. THIS needs to be done ASAP!  
• I would like to add a small landscaped area by the mailbox. I want a small deco tree of some kind, a couple flowering or interesting bushes & some flowers. I will probably put the flowers in pots so we don't have to mess with digging up the grass. If done right this can look cool!

I am sure there are many more things to list here but the frost has burned off and it's time to get back into the barn! I really want to get the cleaning done today & maybe get started on the outside bird pen! I will do an updated post (with pictures) tonight!! 


Try to take a moment today to appreciate mother earth's bountiful spring rebirth!