Short Timer

Likely this will be the last update until I return home on 5/23. I have streamlined things just about as much as I can for DH. Pills have all been halved, directions written, phone numbers put back up in both the barn and on the fridge. Gene knows all the answers to my "pop" quizzes, although he has not committed the vet's number to memory. I've gotten to the important items in the pantry, extra dog biscuits and treats, an emergency bag of cat food and the grain bins out in the barn are as stuffed as I can make them.

The gawd awful ugly baby blue suitcase is down from the top of the closet and sits waiting for me to stuff it this weekend. I'm down to hours really and most of them are going to be spent home, with the critters and the husband, taking walks, brushing horses and donkeys and just giving everyone that extra dose of love and attention to hold them while I'm gone. I do it more for me than them. We got the nasty bits out of the way, like nail trimming, earlier this week.

Everyone, have a wonderful few weeks! I'll catch up with you all on your own blogs. I'll leave you with this rogue's gallery of parting shots. I stop in myself to see the pics of the little buggers when I'm gone.

Pogo

Charlotte

Smoochie

Peter

Miss Bea and Rodger

Stella

Robin

And the one who always misses me the most, Jack.

And They Call This Spring?

You can call it any old thing you like, looks like winter to me! Cindie, not a good time to visit. ;)

Today though, today might look like spring. I'm hoping so. Everyone is looking forward to some sunshine.

As you might imagine, things have kicked into high gear here. Lots to do and very little time to get it done in. I leave a week from Monday and return home in May. Usually, the daffodils are just blooming and if I'm lucky, the wild dogwoods will still be showy.

It was a busy week, with a long to do list. Most of it terribly mundane. This week will be more of the same and add in toenail clipping just to keep it all interesting. I did get two more spring/summer tops done before packing up the machine and taking it down to Medford for it's spa treatment. Both Burda patterns. I liked the 7220 pattern so much (this one in navy linen with lobster ribbon),

I decided to have a go at another Burda offering.

The pattern number for those that care is 8100 and it fills a deep need in my pattern arsenal. That of a simple woven t-shirt type top. I am not gifted with sewing knits and much prefer the coolness of a light cotton top to a clingy t-shirt. With a nice shape, darted, three sleeve options and two neck options this is a fun versatile pattern. I can do just about anything with this from embellishing to easily changing the neck shape. It uses a reasonable amount of fabric and is pretty quick to make.

While my main sewing machine may be gone I still have my wonderful Brother sewing/embroidery combo machine and made good use of it. Nothing says spring like lace and pink skulls huh?

Along with packing I'll be working on all the looms this week. I'm hoping to get the towel warp off the Hollandia and have a towel or two to pack into my bag for the folks.

And of course, I have built in lots of time to spend with the furkids. I miss them all so much, but Gene gives me daily reports. Sometimes I hear about angels, other times devils. :) So fair warning, the blog will get pretty quiet until the end of May, but I will try to keep up with everyones blog while I am gone!

Parting shots: Bed wrestling.

Escape is not an option.

Super Saturday

Oh my what a busy day Saturday was here! The day dawned, crappy. Snow, wind, cold, hail, grapple. You name it, we were getting it. It was also the day picked for my regular vet to pack up her Subaru and come up into the mountains for a farm call with tech Nic.

It would never do, so after cleaning and getting an area set up for exams and shots, I headed down to the valley to taxi everyone up our mountain road. For those that have never had the pleasure of seeing or driving on Highway 66 in Southern Oregon, it is carved into the side of a mountain. Some places there are no guard rails and the ones that they do have are the little 2 foot high metal bands. For those who don't drive it often, it can be quite intimidating. So down I went and up we came. Horses slated first for exams and rabies shots. Nic got some exposure to horse handling, which in Dr. G's practice is not needed, but he's trying for vet school and equine and other large animal studies are a large part. Dandy was our chosen for a mini anatomy lesson and he was such a good boy. The only problem we had was taking a pulse. Vet's like to take a pulse above the hoof. It's a good indicator of any hoof/lower leg problems which are common in horses. Now Dandy is use to making life easier for the me and the farrier. The minute you reach below the knee on any given leg, he lifts his foot up for you, and holds it there. For the pulse taking, it needs to be down and bearing weight. It made for some pretty funny moments. Neither Nic nor Dr. Gurney got a good pulse. Dandy was getting impatient not understanding what they wanted. He was picking up random legs left and right. Finally, someone took a hoof and held it for him. He had a BIG sigh, and relaxed assuming he had fulfilled what was required. Thinking about it now, I should have suggested grabbing a brush, because once he feels a brush on his legs he knows to stand. Next time. As mentioned at the beginning, weather was awful, the barn floor soggy and flooding and it was probably a great reminder to Dr. Gurney why she no longer does big animals!

After horses and donkeys we moved into the house to get clean and warm up then started in on the house dogs. Four were due for shots, so four got exams. Peter, with his heart murmur, was put on Enalapril. Dennett had been on it for years and I believe it made a huge difference in longevity and quality of life for him. There was nothing else remarkable to tell. Everyone was good, Stella ( who didn't need a anything) was a pest, Rodger came down to be fussed over and picked up. Nic and Dr. G played pass the fat kitty for a bit. Jack didn't bite anyone. We had tea, inspected looms and then Gene drove them back down the mountain while I fed everyone. It was a long day, but everyone is now up to date on rabies and that is a big load off my mind coming into the spring and summer. We are prepared should there be an outbreak here. It was wonderful having this farm call too, much better than dragging dogs down to the office

and having a second vet up just to do these shots on the horses and donkeys.

Parting shot: Navigating the big cheese chunk. And you thought she was getting tired of her "queen for a day" photo shoot huh?