Reflections of katlupe: hard winter

Showing posts with label hard winter. Show all posts

Monday, February 26, 2018

Spring Time Brings Hope

Horses have been chewing this stump to get the sap.

Today my mind keeps wandering. I think it is because I have spring fever. The sun is out and the snow is melting and the birds are in the woods and singing on and off. Not as much as usual. Our horses have been stripping the bark off the maple tree stump left in front of the paddock. Surprising how far they can stretch their necks to reach it. Even the stumps have the sap running and they love that sweet stuff. I remember my dad tapping the trees when we lived in Harpursville, NY, and going with him to empty the cans. He did not make it into syrup but kept it in the refrigerator in a glass jar and we drank it. It was good. I didn't know for a long time about making it into syrup. It still brings back good memories for me.

Winter means work!

It seems everything stops when winter arrives. At least here it does. Winter means work and lots of chores. Life around here then is not very pleasant. Nothing I can do to help because of my health. Makes me feel like a burden, but it is what is. Can't do anything about it during the winter. All the changes I can make have to take place the rest of the time, spring, summer and fall. That is my time. Working on a lot of plans or goals I have made and now with the promise of warm weather.

Dark Shadow & Patches

I can only say to do the best you can with what you have. No one can ask for any more than that. If you can't do the heavy chores any longer or have lost interest in raising animals and gardening, then just make changes to the kind of life you want. Not what someone else wants. Think of yourself for a change. It is not selfish, it is lifesaving!

Monday, February 24, 2014

Our Horses Enjoying The Winter Months

I took a walk outside with my camera a few days ago. The sun was shining and the horses were napping in it. They like winter better summer. In summer they stay in the barn during the day and only come out at night. In winter they like to sleep in the sun, roll in the snow and when they were younger, they'd buck, run and carry on.

I admit, I haven't been that active myself. In winter, I stay inside most of the time. I used to help my husband feed the horses in winter, but now I don't go out there at all. I am so afraid of falling and breaking a bone or spraining something. So when I get out on a day like this and can get some good winter photos of my girls I take advantage of it. They gave me some good shots!

People ask how can they survive out there in the cold. Horses are livestock. They are equipped to survive in the wild, and that includes the cold. I mean I would not take a horse from FL or Texas and put it in a cold winter without conditioning it. But these girls have always lived in this area so they are used to this climate. In all the years we've had these girls, they have only shivered a handful of times. In that case, feed them hay. In fact, our horses will skip the grain and go right for the hay as they know it will warm their bodies up fast.

We have blankets for them, but have rarely used them. For one thing, if you put blankets on horses, it keeps their coats from growing. And in winter, they really do need that winter coat. Even if you think its ugly. We worked at a thoroughbred racing farm, and that is what they did for the race horses, who were working races. But the others could grow their coats freely. We only put a blanket on if it was needed. Another thought is that blankets block the sun from hitting them. They need the sunlight and it warms them up too.

Usually one of the horses will stand guard over the other two while they are laying down. Then they switch positions so the other one can lay down too. Though out here, these girls get so relaxed that we will find all three stretched out sleeping without any worry about danger. No noises really bother them much. They are used to hearing coyotes, snowmobiles and four-wheelers, day or night. Pretty calm compared to how they were in 2000 when Georgie Girl and Dark Shadow came here. Then when Tawny came in 2002, of course, she was never the spirited girl the other two were.

Saturday, March 02, 2013

Winter Time At Peaceful Forest

Hobo doing her share of the wood work!

Winter is supposed to be winding down. It is still cold. We still have snow and keep getting more.It has been a very hard winter here at our house. The biggest hardship was the lost of Nikita. I don't think I will ever feel the same. I have had a hard time trying to write my blogs due to her passing. I have lost my feelings of happiness. Not only did I lose my father six months ago, but my Nikita, who meant the world to me. If it was up to me, I'd move from here. Sometimes it is easier when you are in a new environment and doing things differently than you did before.

During a whiteout, Tawny is rolling!

We went through our big load of logs and are waiting for another load that we should get next week. This was the first year that we had to purchase our wood. Cutting trees down gets to be too labor intensive as you get older. I am looking to change things so our life will be easier. I mean, we do need to have some time in our life that is more enjoyable and not just hard work.

Cook stove wood!

I have been trying so hard to sell my father's home. It is a trailer with an addition and was not in the best condition. But it sets on a pretty piece of land that someone could make into a cute little homestead. He grew a really big garden there and it has berry bushes and apple trees. I am keeping my fingers crossed that someone will buy it. I cannot afford to keep it going. And I cannot live there myself.

What is that??? Oh my, SUNSHINE!

Spring is right around the corner, and I start my seeds on April first. So I am eagerly awaiting that day. I have plenty of seeds ready to plant. My brother works at a seed factory now and he shared a lot of seeds with me. We should both have plenty of food growing this year. My father would be proud!

Tuesday, February 08, 2011

February At Peaceful Forest Homestead

I have been trying to write a blog post daily. I did well in January. February has been a very hard month for us. So instead of giving you a half hearted post, I am posting a picture of our horse this morning. It is very windy, cold and snowy here right now. Though that is not so unusual for NY state. It is harder for us this year, since my husband had an accident, and fell off the roof of our barn three weeks ago. He is working hurt and I am not much good at many of his chores since my legs are so bad.

Today I am worried about a friend and just cannot write a happy post to my readers. I am sorry, but will try to do better tomorrow. Hope things are better in your life than mine are today. Blessings to all my readers.

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