Love me a Spotted Mule

On Monday we had to take Logen back to OYCP in Bend. The trip would not be complete without a trip to Spotted Mule.
Shawn and I just love this place. Shawn's Dad used to shoe the owners horses when the Store was in Eugene by Valley River. I remeber going there as a kid and drooling over the saddles.

This is a picture of the entrance , where all the Jewelry , purses, Art, books are.

Ahhhh the tack area, My personal favorite. I can always find something star needs in here.
Like the new roping reins Shawn bought me :) I was going to buy some cheap hot Pink nylon ones for 20, and Shawn says " Hey these nice leather ones are only 35" Who am I to argue?

This is a handmade saddle of the owners that is on display. Just look at that amazing craftsmanship.

Mamma likey...

these too...

ohh and these.....

Shawn thinks he needs to channel John Wayne in this jacket.

I'd buy it for him, but wouldn't go in public with him in it. Kidding Honey of course I would.
Everyone is wearing them these days..

I am so going to make myself one of these. SOON

I can make this in a weekend for sure.

Now we come to the handbags. sigh... They all want to come home with me but alas, only one will this year.

What cowgirl doesn't love a little eye candy???

fun pics of trick pony

Bang Bang....





She's dead.

Kidding ! Don't freak out Grandpa.. Oh Geez now she's following me. I was standing on the bridge taking pics of her and here she came!
Hey my nose is runny can I wipe it on your jacket?

Look Mamma I can get on the bridge and look sweet like for a treat or sumfin...

I am trick pony..

Today was a glorious ride. I put her in the bitless bridle and she was calm and kind and attentive. I got to ride all alone today and I loved every minute of it. Sometimes alone is the best way to unwind and talk to your horse.

More trick pony pictures coming ! We have learned a new skill :)

Gratuitous BG post

A shot of the cupcakes I made for the Heart Transplant benefit show last weekend. Star was a nervous ninny and we didn't do so well. I should have really worked the bug-a loos out before hand. She surprised me with her goofiness, she is usually pretty relaxed at shows except for Drill Practice.

This is a picture of the BG and her pony slipper I bought for her a couple weeks ago. They have pink mane and tail AND when she walks the eyes light up! She sleeps with them and from what I understand it's quite the drama when she has to take them off to go somewhere.

So here are a couple of BG movies. I posted these for her so she can watch herself :)

So when I arrived at the house yesterday she didn't have her pony slippers on. The story was that she had taken them off and didn't want to put them back on . Her Mom says "BG if you don't wear them when Jocelyn gets here, she won't buy you things anymore."

and with TWO SNAPS UP she says :

" Mommy, Jocelyn WILL ALWAYS buy me things"

Whoa... Now not that it isn't the truth because I have and I will continue to buy her things, often.
In fact just last night Shawn and I were discussing her Christmas presents. No lie...


She is just hilarious ...

This is the same Hula Hoop Shawn and I bought for her back in June for her.
Amazing how much fun $ 7.99 can buy a little girl.

Is she not the cutest bug ever????

Need to learn to sit on my hands......

SP and I went to an Estate Auction last night, We were invited by JP2 as she knows the owner of the auction house.
I have never been a bidder at an auction just an observer.
Let me tell you I was giddy :) I also got schooled by SP on how to be a cool as cucumber bidder.. Next time I'll keep my excitement on the DL.
I bought these because I liked them, I knew they were valuable and that I could successfully SELL THEM.

Meito NORLEANS in Rosanne pattern.
$ 5.00 for the lot.
I will be posting these on eBay ASAP.

I have an insider in the biz. My Aunt is an appraiser and used to own an Antique Mall.
I wanted this Mahogany table, so I sent her the auction web link and she picked the same table !
This is not for sale :)

This is by her estimation early 1885 ish,
and I scored it for $65.00.
I love anything Art Deco and French-y. So don't think this chair wasn't on my radar for my Yellow french-y guest room. :)
I looked it over and found evidence that this fabric is the original and the frame was in excellent condition. It is more gold than Yellow but looks super fabulous in the room.

$ 55.00
Yeah me
So I called my Aunt this morning and told her of my winnings and she said that I did a most excellent job. She also agreed I need to keep my enthusiasm to myself when bidding.
SP didn't get the things he wanted, but there is always next time.
I am so thankful that SP likes Antiques as much as I do and we both like the the same era and have good eye about what we like and what we could sell.

After the Chair, SP took away my bidder card. :(
Buzzkill........

uhhhh I beg your pardon?

So I had some time to kill yesterday afternoon at work..

I decided to hit the " next blog " button at the top of the blog page.

It now scrolls through blogs about horses, weird this must be new. I used to get lots of other than English language blogs, Techno blogs, freakishly millions of baby and how to be Martha blogs, etc..

Well, I happened upon a random horse blog and something strange came over me...

Am I looking at my own page? Weird.. Yet no that's not me and that's not Star!

It was almost an exact replica of mine.... I mean the banner, the wording, the set up and the layout. **** shudder****

I thought, Oh gosh could I have copied someone and didn't realize it? So I look to see when it was created, uh.. it's only a few months old. That means they are copying ME!

So, to that person you know who you are because you obviously come here to read my blog.

I'm flattered but totally creeped out so could you please go copy someone else?


Thanks Much,

JP1

Run Baby Run

Last night was drill practice.

Terra decided she wanted to take Sis for a spin after we were done.

This is her going left and really really tired, this is not her SUPER SONIC fast direction. So this only gives you an idea of how fast she can be. This was really only a gallop, not her turn and burn.

No wonder I didn't have the " man parts" to turn the after burners on for a few years.

Now? Bring it! It rocks...

Where's the Beef?

Right here in the arena staring at us.
They found Star extremely interesting. Probably because she looks like a Holstein.
Star is very skeered of the bovine community. So am I as a matter of fact.
However we needed to get over our fear so when I came out to the barn it was cow working night, so I took advantage of the training opportunity AKA DEATH WISH. So our first job was to trot circles around the herd to calm them.
We fought with her HELL No and Spin for about 15 minutes EACH direction. Going left was acceptable, but going to the right was the the way that cows bring out fangs and talk like Satan.


She paid attention at first as our 2nd job was to stand in the corner so the herd doesnt get bunched up. As the other actual cutting bred mares were like Labradors chasing a ball, Star was more like a fat lap dog after about 30 minutes. While my arena partners mares had a constant bead on the black prey, Star had her back foot perched and her head down and snoring.
B>O>R>I>N>G.... We had to wake her up to get her to help move this big steer coming her way. Drama Queen had run out of drama.
It was a fantastic opportunity that was imperative in her training as a good partner for trail riding. But boy howdy was I tired, I literally passed out last night when I got home. Her antics don't scare me, they piss me off, so if we had to be out there until midnight we were going to work those cows. Dylan gave me a mini lesson on working cows and we did it by ourselves in the arena for another 10 minutes after everyone had left.
I KID YOU NOT, Sis actually got into the middle of the herd and was moving them, she actually got thumped in the chin by one and didn't hesitate just kept moving her body towards the herd! I was in shock and awe of her brain. Once she gets something it STICKS forever.

It was an amazing night, after she got over her jackassery, she actually got the gist of what I was asking and did it..... willingly... I almost started to cry it was that cool.

So here is video proof we actually trotted around the Devil Equine gnashing herd of sweet mellow super cute moo cows. ENJOY!

What I do in my spare time.

JP back in..

Let's see Shawn and I went to Columbia Equine Hospital ( Star's Vet) to meet some friends and hear a lecture on Feeding your Horse, digestive Anatomy and all things Colic and Ulcer from the Founder of PHN.
It was so educational, I learned so much. With our equine children you can never know too much right? I drug Shawn along but it was for a very good reason. I need to know he has my back when it comes to keeping her healthy. He was raised the ol' Cowboy way, 2 flakes of hay , coffee can of grain, have a nice day.

So here is Terra and Pauline. Former Livingstoner's.


Here is my friend Toni and her stepdaughter. First thing Toni blurted was these had better not be posted on FB. sheesh, this is blog fodder fur rillz sister...
Any who, they even brought in two equines that were at the opposite ends of the spectrum on the BC Scale. One was an 8 (Fat super cute Fjord) whom was missing his throat latch !
and the other was a you guessed it .. Thoroughbred with a BC of about a 3.

Ok, so when I am not doing horseie things or baking cupcakes. I make jewelry. Right now I have two big projects that I am under the gun with. My Mom's Christmas present, and the Book Markers I am giving to my Book club ladies this year. See my new LED lamp? that was a peace offering from Shawn due to his son's Taco Soup incident.
I have a TV to the left, no cable but Shawn got me one of those converter deals so I can at least watch something in there.

Aren't they cute? I am trying to do each marker with a touch of each ladies personality.
This is going to be such a fun project because it is something that will actually be used and enjoyed.
I am not so great with the wire work, so this is a good excuse to practice.

So there you have it ! This is how I spend my time. Any other spare moment I spend with Shawn. tonight is movie night.
I can smell the popcorn already !
Have a great weekend everyone!

The Princess speaks:

( Star is in today, JP1 is too busy to type)

Well a Fair Whinny and Hello everyone,

I just read her last post! Holy Hooves OF Mother Mary! When My Momma gets mad , boy does she get mad!
Thankfully I am rarely on the losing end of that. Whew... So Teacher Deb gave us some pointers for the next time Momma blows a gasket.

I'm the blogger today cuz Momma is busy helping her Friend T ( Momma of the BG my direct competition) put together a fund raiser Trail Show for a man who is in need of a heart transplant. All I know is that they talk on their ear boxes all day and she isn't telling me much, which is weird because she usually tells me everything.

So I was a huge success at the show, I would have totally won all blue ribbons, if it was a ribbon show. Jus' sayin.

I have totally got this " going to a show" deal figured out.

1. I get all my ear hairs trimmed, I make a huge deal out of this, Momma gets so mad. She says bad things and gives me the Momma death stare until I lower my head. She mutters something about " I don't have time for your drama!!!". How rude...

2. I get the deep scrub my hairs off version of a bath. She says horrible things like her NEXT horse will be brown. Well if she left my coat alone I will eventually BE BROWN! DUH !

3. She washes my tail like 40 times and is cussing like a sailor the whole time.

4. She scrubs my hooves.. HARD...

5. covers me from ear to tail and I have to stay in my room.

However, I was the prettiest pony there and everyone said so, even the Non-Judge-Judge guy and the Show Mom's were ohhh and ahhhhh ing at me. I pranced bigger just for them ya know.
My public wants what they want.

My Momma is a nutcase about when I go out to see my public fans I must be clean and presentable. Daddy agrees and whispers in my ear when Momma isn't watching " You had better behave and act like a lady"
When have I ever not acted like a lady ? Well there was this one time.. Totally not my fault man..

Thanks everyone for being so nice to my Momma , I loves her heaps.
Otherwise I'd have to hoof ya.

Star

Unless you want the claws, Don't poke the Mamma Tiger

So the BBFF is ranting on her blog about our Barn owner and her blatant disregard for her feelings and her also blatant breed prejudice against Gracie being a National Show Horse and not the breed exclusive club of AHQA cutting horses she raises and trains.

The BO has never done that to me, but I am WAY MORE apt to say something than she is. She is the Nice Pony Momma and I am the Mean Pony Momma.
So pull up your big girl pants, cuz Mean Momma is in DA HOUSE.

With that said, I have to get a few things off my chest as well.

IF YOU HAVE NOTHING nice to say about me or my horse, KEEP YOUR ****ing mouth shut.
If have ridden her once or ridden her a thousand times, she's gonna keep you on your toes. She speaks loudly if you don't give her the respect you ask her to give in return. Plain and SIMPLE FOLKS. IF she acted naughty a year ago get over it, I have, so has she. Horses don't hold grudges and neither do I . It's not about the last ride it's about the ride right now.

Keep your training, rider criticism to your damn self unless I am paying you to do so.
If you are my friend I expect you to sugar coat it to my face and tell others I suck, I just don't want to hear about it. I'll return the favor I promise.
If I am paying for your time, critique away, I don't expect you to be my BBFF, I expect you to tell me I suck and how to fix it.
ONCE AGAIN, PLAIN AND SIMPLE. This is not rocket science.
99.99% of the time I know something is going wrong and I need help that's why I called the trainer to come help me in the first place. DUH.

My horse does not and will not live in a bubble or specific discipline. Trail ride one day, drill another and WTC Show Diva the next. That is how we like to keep things interesting and frankly it's good for her brain and physique to do a variety of things.

Star is my child, you don't EVER outwardly criticise another woman's child or pony, it's the secret unspoken code of Mom's and Horse Women. This is a non -negotiable code.

IF you want to be friends with me I will promise this much:
I will love your horse as much as mine.
I will get up at crack o dawn to help you at a show even if I am not showing,
I will be your biggest fan in the stands and hug away the last place and celebrate the victories.
I braid manes and tails and give a rock awesome got get'm pep talk.
I will drop everything to help anyone who asks.

I only ask one thing.
Be kind in what you say as words can crush pride as much as uplift it.
WHAT WOULD JESUS DO ?
Jesus would go get me a Diet Coke and give me a high five and say
YOU ROCKED IT SISTER...

yeah that's what Jesus would do ......

Channeling Marlboro Man

Star and I had a show yesterday. It was a practice show only. No judges, no ribbons. It was first started as an event for the 4-hr's to get over stage fright. I SWEAR ON MY GRAMMAS BIBLE the 4-hr's SUCK. They had zero horse control and little or no arena manners.
We almost had two major accidents where they stopped right in front of me.

However, this little girl is a cutie pie, I know her Mom and she is a true horse girl. My biggest peeve with Star is when we stop she throws her head up, pisses me off to no end, so here we are doing the " get your head down dammit" trick.

We did our first canter classes EVER. I know our canter skills arent perfect, but I have to do everything myself. I dont have a 24/7 trainer, I can't afford one, so I have to read, watch videos , have an occasional lesson and plead with friends to video me so I can see the horrible posture I have acquired. BLECH.

I must say, Star was a amazing.. She couldnt have been better I was proud of her and myself for growing " a pair" and going out there in front of our friends and doing something scary.

I scratched the 2 Novice Walk/Trots and entered the Novice Canter classes instead. All last minute, I figured while I had the courage I might as well **run** with it.

It felt like we were running since her canter is HUGE, but BBFF said it wasnt as much of a train wreck as I imagined it would be. The first canter transition went badly but once we got our mojo I thought we did fantastic. Right in the middle of cantering a huge CLAP of THUNDER and Crack of Lightening shook the whole barn and Sis didn't even raise an eyebrow, she just kep cantering like a good girl.

Like I say all the time.

I sure love that goofy mare.

I'm so excited and I just can't hide it

My friend T called and asked if I would like to join their drill practices at the ranch.

Heck ya!

If you recall Sis and I started on a Drill team last Winter and it fell apart much to my sad disappointment. I absolutely loved every minute of practice and we really looked forward to it every other week.

Only the cool thing is now, I have the balls to haul a$$ at breakneck speed and am so looking forward to fun evenings with my friends and their ponies.

yeah!

What a week

So, sorry I haven't posted as of late. My life has been so mundane there hasn't been anything to post about. Since my family reads this, I can't spill the beans on anything or it will spread like H1N1 on a Grocery Cart handle.

Last week I decided to enter Star and I into a schooling show this Saturday.
My blog followers know for a FACT that I am OCD about planning and lists.

So then I get to obsess about the list and make sure it's all down to the detail.
My poor husband now just says " where is your list" , what have you checked off and what needs to be done on the list" Oy Vay... Poor guy.He is very understanding of my OCD tendencies and just rolls with it. He is saving my bacon Friday night by picking up Star after work at the Ranch and then coaching me showmanship at the show grounds.

This is a one day afternoon schooling show and I have still managed to make a list a mile long.
I still haven't decided what I am going to wear, that will be decided at 5 am Saturday morning.

See? My life is mundane.

Halloween was a snoozer, but we have precious pets and so we don't go out on Halloween, New Years or the 4th. There are too many freaks, noises and scary things outside. So the pups got spa day and some yummy treats while we watched a movie and handed out candy.. SNOOZE.

I tackled some long overdue projects aka Linen Closet.
It needed to be organized , but what sped up the process was Seamus the cat got his duma$$ self locked in there for about a day and while I didn't see any signs of an accident , I had to rewash the entire closet full of towels, sheets, tablecloths, you name it.

Oh and here is the best part.

I was being sassy one dark rainy night and the step brat was in my designated parking space in the driveway. So me being me, I decided to park SO CLOSE to him that it would literally be a feat to get the burb out of the driveway.That'll learn him right?

Yeah no, I managed to scrape the sh** out of the passenger door of my car on the Burbs bumper and it's going to cost me a pretty penny to get that fixed.

crap-ola...