Saddle Fail

The day after Christmas I came home from work to find this...

 Well, I always find Kit Kat, but the saddle was something new.  J had talked about buying me a saddle for Christmas and we had looked at some.  He brought this one home for me to try out.  I wanted a wide saddle for Otoelene.  None of my current ones are wide enough for her fat self, and put too much pressure over her shoulders. (as is evident from the dry spots there after I ride.  A dry spot means there was too much pressure to allow the skin to sweat.)

 This was a used Circle Y., Martha Jose barrel saddle. 

 It was very comfortable.

And I thought it looked pretty nice on Otoelene. 

 The rigging was a little different than what I am use to, but I figured it out. 

J looked pretty good in it too.  But the problem was, it wasn't a wide tree saddle.  I have seen saddles rock on other people's horses but never had one of mine do it until this one. 

You can sort of see how the back of the saddle pops up.  It was even worse at the canter.  When I rode her, the trot was ok, but I could feel my seat being lifted up more and coming down harder on her back at the lope.  Then, after I got her sweaty, there was a huge dry spot (meaning too much pressure) all along the tree.  So, back to the store it went.  When I told the salesperson the problem, he said I probably didn't need a wide tree then.  But then he remeasured the saddle and said, "well, this isn't a wide tree after all."  So now it is back to the drawing board.  Nothing seems to workout for me the first time it seems.

Coupon Saturday #38

I had a different post that I was trying to do with pictures and video from my NEW IPHONE!  But I was doing an update and now it seems to be frozen.  So, back to the regular stuff with my old camera. 

 The last Coupon Saturday of 2019 was a success.  I needed a gallon of milk.  So, of course I wanted to make that cheaper.  Instant savings on $15 of AirWick, razors, cat food, overage on dog food and some Christmas ornaments 50% off, pushed my total over $25 for my $5 off $25 to work. 

Success, a gallon of milk for $1.26 (plus that hateful tax).

Merry Christmas

 Merry Christmas.

 The parties are almost over.  But I had some time Christmas Eve to give myself an early Christmas present. 

 With the sun shining and the temperature in the 60's, I just couldn't resist a ride on Otoelene. 

 We took a spin around the farm, loped through the bottom, had 3, count them 3 open gates!  Saw the goats,

 some cattle,

 and the dogs.

Then, she acted like this tree was actually the lock ness monster.  But we made it past and got back just in time before company arrived for a wonderful gathering and dinner. 

Merry Christmas everyone.

Good Weather

Sunday looked like it was going to be the last good weather for awhile.  So I took advantage of it and took Otoelene out for a spin around the farm.

 The temperature was nice but you can tell by her mane that it was a little breezy.

 Such a nice and peaceful walk during such a hectic season.

 I did spy a problem though.  A log had rolled down the hill into the electric fence around the bull lot causing it to pop.  Actually, Otoelene may have noticed it first because she didn't like the noise.

 When I got back, I told J about it and we took a little walk out to correct the issue. 

There are always lots of little things to keep you busy on a farm.

Paralaphostrongylus tenius Strikes Again

J is very good at his job.  The other day he spotted one of the goats walking funny, dragging a rear leg.  

 This time it was Socks, one of our pet goats.  You can read about her start Here.

We got her to the barn, I dewormed her twice with 2 different products and gave her a short acting steroid for a few days.  After a week she is doing much better.  As soon as the other goats work themselves back near the barn I think we will turn her back out.  I think it helped that she was a pet so she hasn't been stressed staying in the barn and being worked with. 

I didn't take a video the first day.  This is yesterday, it still shows some neurological deficits.

Coupon Saturday #37

It had been 2 weeks since I made it to Dollar General for a Saturday scenario, so I think I might have gone a little crazy.  The cashiers was even worried that they hadn't seen me for 2 weeks.  That might be a sign of something, but I'm not worried about that right now. 

 Anyway, this one was actually during the week.  It was too good of a deal to wait for Saturday.  There was a chance they would all be gone.  So, I sucked it up and paid $1 for 4 Snuggle scent boosters.  Cards were free and Glad wrap 25 cents.

Then my Saturday hauls started.

(The milk belongs on the next one.)  I have decided instead of just getting stuff to make the lowest out of pocket, I will get something I want and try to make it cheaper.  This one I wanted the Honey Smacks and TP.

Definitely cheaper.

Once again, the milk went here. 

The mask things were supposed to be free with purchase of the shampoo, but it only took off $1 each instead of $2.  Because I can't stand it not working out, and I didn't want those things anyway, I returned one.  So, $3.20 instead of $5.20 for the milk.

Here I was after more cereal, on sale 3/$6. 

It's nice when what you want gets cheaper.

And here, I wanted the Coke 2/$7.

I think I had a successful week.  About $17 plus tax out of pocket for things I would buy anyway, and a savings of $128 for all the free stuff. 

December Mud

The mud has begun.  It seems once it starts this time of year, it never dries back up. 

 Even though we sent 97 head to the feedlot last week, J still has the replacement heifers and the smaller calves to feed. 

 J carries the fed out in 50 pound sacks and dumps it in the feeders. 

All that stomping around can sure created a mud hole.  And these pictures were taken a couple of days ago.  It had rained and sleeted all day today, so tomorrow will be even better.

Just Another Maggie Monday

I thought I might try a new feature, Maggie Monday.  For those of you to young to remember, The Bangles had a hit song Manic Monday.  So, just a little play on that.  

 Anyway, Maggie has grown into a beautiful, friendly and protective dog. 

 Sometimes a little too protective when she barks and tried to run the cattle and horses away from the goats.

 She had gotten bigger than I expected, but still not quite as large as Bumble. 

And not Maggie but Jewel, just thought she was pretty too.

Party Success

We had 36 R's (and 2 dogs)  at and in and around the house on Saturday.  Getting ready for the crowd definitely slowed my blogging down for the week.  The weather was beautiful and everyone enjoyed the view. 

 I don't have the official photo yet with all of us in it but I did run upstairs to snap this one while everyone was gathering.

 The five siblings were all glad to be together again.  Papa R is the oldest at 86.

 A lively gift exchange followed the meal.  Uncle Jerry ended up with the worst of the gag gifts which he somehow forgot to take home and I now have them.  Looks like I have something for next year already.

 But the kids had fun playing with it.

 Good thing we had lights in the barn, because we had some people that wanted to ride.  Hank was a trooper as usual.  He is so calm and steady.

 And Pep, who has only been ridden maybe twice in the last two years, was super horse.  She was the one everyone wanted to ride to be able to trot on.  Hank may be wonderful but his trot is murder.  Pep on the other hand, is a western pleasure champion!  And two people that had had bad experiences in the past on (but mostly because they came off unexpectedly)  got up the courage to ride Pep.

36 people can leave a bit of a mess but I had some good help cleaning up.  After I got the bucket and mop, and showed him how to use it, J mopped the entire kitchen for me.  V and M were a great help too.  M brought his turkey fryer, so we had one fried and one roasted turkey and a ham. Now since everything is already decorated, I can just coast into Christmas.

Early Christmas Tree

It's been a busy week.  Thanksgiving of course, lots of good food.  Then my brother came over, with 2 sisters, and helped me rearrange furniture and hang pictures and mirrors to get ready for J's family.  About 30 or so are expected to show up this weekend. 

 That meant we needed to get our tree a week earlier than usual. 

 They were pretty big this year.  But with a little trimming we were able to get it into the house.

 Between the step stool and the 8 foot ladder, I am slowly getting it decorated.

Sadly, E had to leave to start her new job in Georgia.  She won't be home for Christmas, but she did stand in front of the partially decorated tree for a picture.  Maybe I can photo shop her into the traditional family Christmas photo.