... from the sky, from the Earth, from a
scrap of paper, from a passing shape, from
a spider's web... We must pick out what is

good for us where we can find it.

-Pablo Picasso

Photo Contest

Neighgirl is having a photo contest on her blog with the theme being horses (woo hoo!).

I narrowed my pictures down to seven that I really liked but had trouble deciding on which photo to enter so Mom made the final pick of Sundance and the lake. :)

Surprise! Dad found this lovely nest in some lilac bushes that line the driveway.

From what I've been able to find online, it sounds like it's a paper wasp nest. The detail and the size are amazing (I forget how many inches it is... I know it's over 8 inches from top to bottom)! It's hard to believe we never spotted it before. Then again there were leaves and flowers protecting it.

I'm just glad nobody was home when I took that picture.

"Some people come into our lives and quickly go. Some people move our souls to dance. They awaken us to new understanding with the passing whisper of their wisdom. Some people make the sky more beautiful to gaze upon. They stay in our lives for a while, leave footprints on our hearts, and we are never ever the same."

-Unknown

"People always say that, when you love someone, nothing in the world matters. But that's not true, is it? You know, and I know that when you love someone, everything in the world matters a little bit more."
-Jodi Picoult

My Shoni Girl. She's so photogenic... when we're separated by a fence.

I find that with Tabasco and Shoni they are much more people oriented and when they see people they just want to be around them. I'm not sure if it's because they are mustangs and because they trust us or if it's just their personalities (or maybe both!).

These two seem over the top though. Anytime I am trying to get pictures of them I have to try and run away to get far enough back to take a picture. Shoni is worse. As I'm running I'll usually hear rapid hoofbeats and when I glance over my shoulder there's Shoni keeping pace right behind me with an innocent expression like, "Hey, where are we going?"

As far as "issues" go, I can't complain too loud. I love being around them as much as they love being around humans so it all works out. And when I can't get far enough away? Well, that's where the fence comes in handy. ;)

"The best thing about the future is that it comes one day at a time."
-Abraham Lincoln

I absolutely love that quote. When your burdens seem to multiply faster then you can keep up, sometimes it's a little more bearable if you take things one day and one step at a time.

On the other hand, I'm already ready for summer. If the next couple of cold months went by a little faster, I definitely wouldn't complain (even if the ice on the lake can be beautiful to look at).

Big plans in the works for 2012 and it is going to be a busy year with the horses. I'm going to be sending Tabasco and Shoni off to a trainer and will hopefully be blazing trails with them by summer. I would like to send Sundance off as well for a refresher. If you don't see horse trainer posts by April... yell at me!!! lol

I'm also curious what your opinions are about saddle starting horses. Do you think it's enough to send them off for 30 days of training or do you prefer to send them for 60 days? Do you have any big plans for your horses in 2012?