Really funny how badly I miss the barn.  It is not just the horses but the smells the sounds and the noise free environment.

I live on a FIVE lane highway!
Yep in a 1930's stone cottage with very little room where my dear husband runs an international business (for the time being) Actually for the last 9 years!   But with this economy he may not be around much longer?   Only time will tell.

I took the feed to the barn
Dumped it out into each of their bowls
Took my 30 minutes making a hundred trips up and down the field so to spread out the hay and keep them from pooping near my barn.

I have to get a farm worker to help me clean out the water container now that my back is so bad.  I can lean over and scrub it IF I lean on the side the entire time using my hips instead of my back... But I can't just stand over it and use my arms.

So in order to make my life easier.
I have been bringing SMALL amount of feed home
Sweet Pea has to have extra calories than Navarre or she will LOOSE lots of weight in the winter. ...
So Dried Pressed Alfalfa for her... Not heavy when dry but a pain when wet! So an hour before I go to the barn I boil a pot of water... Take the Alfalfa to the car... and then the water... Pour the water into the bucket in the truck  and that is ONE bucket to the barn... it sits gets mushy... and is the first trip INTO the barn yard once I make it there!

Next is Navarre's feed.. it is such a high fat content it too takes boiling water to make it work, but it only takes about 30 minutes to get mushy... and he will not eat it if it is too hot!  So...
a second bucket, but this time with only ounces of feed I can carry it and the feed to the truck at the same time.

Then I get all the supplements together... pour them in a plastic sandwich bag... I have the oil at the barn...

Daily supplements..
Feed through fly control for both... While I've been sickly... (only one week of missing the barn) I noticed the flies were coming back!  Yep only a week of no fly control and it is noticeable... SO as I have always done, I am making sure they have this YEAR ROUND!   I was one of few barns this year with little to no fly issues!  LOVE it!

They both get oil... Rice Bran during the day... and Corn oil at night...
     Why two different types... Well... Rice Bran is about $30.00 a gallon and Corn oil is about $10.00 so if I can make it spread out and cheaper over time not hurting my kids too much I will.  I have learned too much corn oil with stop the process of Vitamin D so I keep it to a minimal and at night as it burns hotter for them, and less sun at night... ha ha ha...

ONLY for Navarre
Natural Vitamin E.
Smart Pak E with Selenium
Daily electrolyte
Herbal additives ... as he gets NO real feed only rice bran so he needs what he is missing

Sweet Pea gets only one other thing...
A cool calorie! She needs so much more than I can give her... this is what I have.  I would rather only have to use this in the summer but it tends to assist me in keeping her weight on her for winter as well, but gives her NO insulation or heat in the digestion track... so I try not to over use it...




Then that third bag of feed to pour into Sweet Peas alfalfa once I'm at the barn makes life workable...

Then I can only take out a flake or two at a time so that takes a good 30 minutes or longer the issue is not the hay it is making sure I do not loose my footing going up and down the hill at the barn into through the barn mud lot and into the mud pasture lot!   Yes I know... but the slope can easily pull a muscle.  Slip a disk, or hurt the one ruptured...


I hate my meds...
I take acupuncture Thursday ...
and get my Cortisone Shots Friday...
Physical Therapy Tuesday

So hopefully we will be on our way SOON getting back to normal..
But again what is normal? right?


lead into tomorrows post...

I brought home some of the hay strings... WHY... well it kinds goes back to things I saw on line again. Now that I am not outside brushing my kids, cleaning up their environment I am going through my own with a fine tooth comb.  Getting rid of trash, papers, and things I've never used...

I have piles of magazine pages I am now ready to let go.
I have piles of folders I am ready to give away.

I am eager to clean my things out use what i can... and do what I can with what I have...

So... All those strings in the barn... What can I do with them?