Bill has been working with Spice to get ready for some shows, the first of which is this weekend. Her longe lessons have been going well and she has allowed Bill to clip her ears, muzzle and bridal path without a fuss. Luke may also be shown this weekend. He is at our trainer’s right now and we just need to get his registration transfer finalized before we can show him. Trainer Andy told Bill that he really likes Luke and still can't believe he's only two - and a "late" two at that. So many people have commented on Luke's height that it makes us doubt ourselves and we are going to have to double-check to be sure we didn't lose a year in there somewhere!

Well, Maggie has rejected her new house and opted to work very hard (grunting all the way) to get up the step and then the pallet and then the 6 inch threshold of her old house instead! Pigs, hhhmmmph. Ungrateful, that’s what she is. Her new house has a sunroof, for heaven’s sake! Maybe she likes her privacy too much to change, or maybe she’s stuck in a rut, but now we are back to figuring out how to take the house she’s used for more than ten years and making it more user friendly. First thing, we need to hook on the tractor and try to move it to a better location for sunshine and fresh air, since she doesn’t move too far away from it anymore. We’ll keep you posted.

Sandy and Matilda gave Bill a run for his money the other day. When he went to get Roxy and Chester, the gate didn’t quite close behind him and he didn’t notice. “Hey, gate’s open, let’s go!!” Out came Sandy and Matilda – they had a good romp in the neighbor’s field before Bill got the halter back on Sandy. Actually he couldn’t have done it without little Sarah, who helped get them into the back pasture.

We moved the horses around a little, putting Pharaoh and the yearlings on the west side pasture and Cookie and Frosty on the big pasture. That lasted about an hour, till Java knocked down two top boards and then jumped the fence to get at the young ladies. Once with them in their pasture, he had no idea what do with them and simply began to graze alongside. Isn‘t that funny? The grass was greener, and then…..nothing. So we’re now trying him out in the very big pasture, of course building up time on grass each day until he can be turned out for good. His companions will be Frosty and Cookie, and they will clean his clock if he so much as looks at them cross-eyed. That kind of humility will do him good, Little Big Man.