Day # 2 with Morning Glory ~

Due to lack of a resident Palmer Alarm, I woke up and shuffled into the kitchen for my customary and mandatory, cup of coffee.   As I was just lifting a fresh, hot cup up to my lips I glanced out the kitchen window to see...a black blur!

Oh boy, a black blur around here can only mean one thing.  Pony has (yet again) escaped the pen.  The pen Morning Glory was in, the Pen that was supposed to keep my new Foster baby safe and sound, the Pen that was to provide comfort and safety!!

No coffee for me.  I donned a random pair of boots, the ugly coat and a pair of gloves.  Part me of me was still whining about lack of coffee, but I went out side to find Morning Glory in the pasture with the big horses.  She insisted upon charging at my biggest horse.  He took exception to that and snorted at her with pinned ears and squinted eyes.  She merrily trotted off with the entire herd following at a safe distance.

If the Palmer alarm had been present, the moment that Pony escaped the pen I would have been alerted.  Not so now, I have to look out windows and stuff!  For those of you who don't know it, Palmer is a boarders horse, and she moved to warmer climates and sold Palmer to a place up North.  No more Palmer alarm.  We were hoping that perhaps another would step up and fill the need.  So far, no takers.

But I digress, I did the thing that any sane person would do in the early morning before coffee, I bribed Pony with grain,  and donkey and Morning Glory followed.

I put pony in the round pen, donkey was left to wander the yard as per the norm, and I took Glory into the barn to play with her a little before putting her in the round pen with Pony.

I decided to work on some tricks with her. We worked on Obeisance first.

First try

This is how it looks when it first starts, the horses always try to back up instead of bow down.  The hardest part is to teach them to put their legs forward and rock back.  It starts like this and becomes refined as time goes on.  The fact that she was willing to do this much is pretty good.  A horse lowering it's head that low with a stranger really shows a lot of trust for the human. This puts them in a very vulnerable position.  Since horses are prey animals they are very aware of such things.  We use this trick quite often with Mustangs and burrows to help them to gain trust of humans.  AFTER we do many other things first of course (lest you think I dive right into this sort of thing)

Second try

After the first try, I brushed her, worked on some join up, picked up all four feet, brushed her a little and then we did it again.  Above is her 2nd try.

After her second try I decided to go ahead and give her a great brush out and straighten up her mane, tail and forelock.  I don't generally brush out mane and tail because I like it to be long and flowing, brushing it breaks the ends.   

Miniature horses worth their salt are supposed to look like mini Arabians.  So, I am teaching her to pose like the mini Arab she should look like.

Learning to stand like an Arabian.

For the critics out there, yes, I know she needs to have feet squared and slightly parked out to look like a "real mini."  Yes, I know Arabs have one leg back. 

 (see below)

packy sam a miniature horse at a horse show. 

Above is a photo of a miniature horse at a miniature horse show.  I hope to have miss Morning Glory looking like this by spring time or so.  This means the purchase of some SMTG, but that's okay, as I need it for all of my guys anyway.  (The Big Dumb Dog ate my last bottle) 

The last photo is our last try of the day, I went ahead and asked her to do Obeisance one more time before ending our session.  She just got here after all, I need to give her some time to adjust to everything before pushing too hard. 

Last try! 

Look how well she is doing already!!  This is only the third time I've asked!  This girl isn't going to stay her very long.   

See you all tomorrow with updates of the fun we have at that time!

My new Kitchen Island,,and Cat Buffet...

This Blog, brought to you by:  My nagging Daughter Duchess Zaney, who insisted on photos and the story...

They said it couldn't be done, they said it would take too long.  They were right about the too long...but it WAS done.

My kitchen is notorious for not having cabinets, and the cabinets it does have are rickety and not so pretty.  I seriously need some counter space and some storage space.

I wanted a nice kitchen island...I looked them up online...they are expensive.  I don't want one that bad...but I dooo.

Sooo, cue the old bathroom vanity.

Two Bathroom Cabinets Nailed together

Side-view

 We took two old bathroom vanity cabinets and nailed them together.  Then Added a top (plywood)

Before the top

We had to ad some shelves to the vanity of course, because as you know bathroom vanities have no shelves.  We also had to add a lot of inner wood to make that cheap whateveritisboard strong enough to be part of our kitchen.  Next...paint.

Starting the painting process

Okay...the part that Duchess Zaney has been waiting for....are you ready Duchess?

The marbled top...

The Finished Product!!

 The little piece on top of the island is a Marble cutting board.  I know it still needs some handles, and I have to put the casters on the bottom.  But I am very proud of this ~ it has really come a long way!  Finally, I know the large door on the left needs to be hung the other way so it opens left.  I will get to that as well.

close up of the top

Another close up of the top

Taaadaaa!
The Island was much more difficult to do than the Cat Buffet.  Why do I call it a cat buffet you ask...or maybe you don't care and just want to see the photos. (Duchess) I call it a cat buffet because that is where I put the cat food so that the dogs can't reach it.  The cat food was moved into the "no dogs allowed" living room briefly while these items were painted, dried, etc.

SO...now for the Cat Buffet

Cat Buffett before

Cat Buffett Before ~ close up. 

Yes, I know ~ these are not great photos.  Listen, I wasn't planning on posting to the blog (because I am lazy and don't have time for this happy /posty stuff.  However, my loyal fans nagged ~ I mean begged, so I remembered half-way through the whole remodel to take the photos.  However, if you look closely you can see what rough shape this thing was in.  This was actually the top portion of some sort china cabinet that was left in the house when we moved in.  I got rid of the falling apart bottom part, and let this part lay around in the kitchen to hold tools while we worked on the rest of the house.  Then it sort of gained squatters rights in the kitchen, and the cats really liked it...so it has been here in the kitchen ever since.  I promised myself that over the Christmas break from school I would get several things done around here...well getting rid of this eyesore was one of them.

testing the painting 

This is the bottom of the cat buffet.  We added 2x4's to the bottom to elevate it just a little bit, and while it was upside down, I tested some paint patterns on the 2x4 that wouldn't show.

Handles from the Cat Buffett

When we removed the hardware from the Cat Buffet, I noticed how very heavy the handles were.  Hmm....they were completely black, totally....above you can see the back side of one of the handles they were all even darker than that!  The one in the white dish is mid-soak in flour, vinegar and salt.  The one that is face-up is wiped off and looking pretty coppery!

Putting on the doors

Sneak peak at the marbled top and the pretty cleaned up Brass Hardware ~ the doors were being put on...I was practically hopping up and down with excitement...much to the annoyance of my assistant who just wanted me to hand the screws to him on command!

The finished product! 

The top

close up of the top

 The difference on this is amazing.  I love the way this looks.

Here they are in all their glory!

This poor kitchen sure has come a long way...in case you have forgotten where we started with this whole thing...let me remind you...

When we first began

After wall paper removal, prior to painting the walls. 

 There you have Duchess Zaney!  We have come a long way baby!!

My Miniature Horse Foster Project....

So, let me start at the very beginning in regards to my new Foster Mini...

My friends mom the enabler sends me little facebook messages all the time in regards to animals needing foster homes or adoption.  As if I really don't have enough animals around here.  

Well, in a weak moment, I clicked the link...that was the first step to my journey down the fostering road...I read the story of Hoosier Hooves and Hounds organization: http://hoosierhoovesandhounds.org/

They had taken in several miniature horses from a place in Indianapolis that had all of the animals confiscated.  Several of them were Equines.  The conditions they were kept in were deplorable, and there were signs of abuse as well.  There were even animals on the property that were deceased.  It was so very sad to hear about.  So, I offered to take in a foster, leaving the decision of which mini would be best suited to come here up to the director of Hoosier Hooves and Hounds.  

After going through the proper steps of being interviewed and filling out the necessary paperwork and applications, I was approved as a foster home for a miniature horse.  

They were kind enough to bring her to me.  Her name is Morning Glory.  She is about 3-5 years old and she is doll.  She is a little paint with one blue eye.  She is very sweet and gentle.  She arrived today, and we put her in the pen with Pony. 

Pony and Morning Glory

 I intend to train her to trick train her this winter in the comfort of the barn and train her to cart next spring/ summer when it is warmer.  I think that will help to be very adoptable!  I am so excited about helping this girl to find a new forever home.  I get the benefit of playing with a horse and someone else gets the benefit of giving a wonderful animal a forever, loving home. 

I will post updates on her progress on this blog for those of you that like to keep up on the daily adventures around here.  (yes, yes, I know I am way behind) 

So, today, is day one, and I am just going to let her hang out with Pony and get acclimated.  Tomorrow, I will take her in the barn and play with her a bit and see what we can do from there.  I took the halter off of her right away so that the impressions on her nose will go away.  Check back in tomorrow for what happens on day 2. 

The lovely, Morning Glory

Worthwhile Online Shopping..

We all know that anything and everything can be purchased on the net now days.  I am a big fan of internet shopping.  Sure, I have had the defective product from Amazon a time or two, but those are the risks you take even in the brick and mortar store, if you don't' take the thing out and test it right there.   So far I have not encountered anything that can not be fixed one way or another.

One of my very favorite places to shop online is Petfooddirect.com.  I get my cat and dog food delivered every month to my door.

Taste of the Wild Cat Food

Solid Gold Wolf King Dog food Large Breed

 I love it for so many reasons:

• I don't have to drive (huge plus for me)
• It's cheaper to have it delivered than it is to drive out and get it.
• I never run out of food and have to scramble to get it before kitty /doggie breakfast in the morning.  
• As you use petfood direct, they give you "points"  

~ A word about points -  normally, I don't like the stupid "you get points/rewards/etc"  from companies.  That's because it's usually something like ~ you get 5% off of some item you would never use/ order anyway.  It's useless.  It clutters up my inbox with more crap that I don't want to see or care about.  I get delete button cramps.  Not so with petfooddirect.com reward points.

With Petfooddirect.com reward points you can put the points towards stuff you already get, to get an even bigger discount (hurray) OR you can use the points to donate to a shelter!!  They donate food to a shelter (both dogs and cats)  I love the idea that I am feeding my animals and by doing so, I am helping animals in need to eat as well.  I don't even have to do anything other than what I am already doing.  It couldn't be any easier.  I really appreciate that they thought of that.

http://bit.ly/1HVYZfx

Yep, this was a shameless plug for one of my favorite companies.  I think that people in general don't say enough good stuff about good companies any more.  We can all read complaints by the dozens about any company.  Finding a company that makes you happy is worth sharing.  So, I decided to do.
In fact, I think I shall make a habit out of it!  When I find a place I like, I shall post about it here.  I can share the wealth, and hopefully others will benefit from it.

 With that said ~ enjoy your day.

Aarya

This is Aarya.  She is a purebred Highlander kitten.  I just love her pretty blue eyes.  She is available, but I am sure she won't be for long.

Cats are EASY to train!

     Okay, Highlander cats are easy to train.  

I always tell people how easily Highlander Kittens are trained.  Here is Wolfie, I am teaching him to sit up on his hind legs by holding my hand up and saying "up" to him.  When I want him to "box" with me, I curl my hand...he is still learning, so got a bit overzealous in the boxing portion.  Wolfie is 8 wks and 5 days old.  It's never too young to learn!

This guy has so much personality, if I needed another cat, I would probably keep him myself.  He is ready for adventure!  He is ready to conquer the world...he rather makes me think of "Scrappy do" from the tv series Scooby do.  If he had a voice, that is what he would sound like. 

Wolfe LOVES to learn, now that he knows sit up and is learning "box" I wonder what else I can teach him.  I am thinking the next item would be to jump from chair to chair like the wild cats in the circus.  Like I always tell people, we are only limited by our imagination on what we can teach these cats to do.  

As an added bonus, whomever adopts Wolfie, we be adopting a really cool trick trained cat!

  Wolfie is available at http://foreverkittenscattery.com 

Christmas Kittens!! - Classified Ad

Christmas Kittens!! - Classified Ad



I can't believe these babies are still here!  My big boy "Wolfie" is huge and he has a huge personality to match!  He wants a home with kids!