For The Rest Of My Life.
Yesterday, for the first time, I was too tired to ride
Yesterday, for the first time, I was afraid I would be hurt if I was thrown
Yesterday, for the first time, I heard someone say my barn was too shabby
Yesterday, for the first time, I let someone tell me I was too pudgy to ride
Yesterday, for the first time, I realized I was old
Yesterday, for the first time, I had to face that I could no longer keep up
Yesterday, for the first time, I had to let go of my dreams
Yesterday, for the first time, I knew I was done
Today, for the last time, I felt warm, braided leather in my hands.
Today, for the last time, I ran my stirrups up so they wouldn't bang my friends sides
Today, for the last time, I released the buckles on the girth and watched my friend sigh
Today, for the last time, I slowly dropped the bit so it wouldn't hit his teeth
Today, for the last time, I buried my head in his soft, warm neck
Today, for the last time, I inhaled the sun and the dust in his long winter coat
Today, for the last time, I walked hay and horse hair into my house
Today, for the last time, I pulled off my boots and felt the sting of warm blood returning to my toes
Today, for the first time, I cried after my ride
Today, for the first time, I waited for the new owner's trailer to arrive
Today, for the first time, I set my boots in a box to go to the charity shop
Today, for the first time, I sighed at the wear on my riding gloves
Today, for the first time, I had no hay in my hair
Today, for the first time, I did not hear nickering when I opened my back door
Today, for the first time, I felt worse leaving the barn than I did when I entered
Today, for the first time, I had no one to check on before going to bed
Tomorrow, for the first time, I won't have to buy hay
Tomorrow, for the first time, I can stay in bed longer
Tomorrow, for the first time, I won't see the poo pile grow
Tomorrow, for the first time, I won't be able to fly on four legs
Tomorrow, for the first time, I will regret letting him go
Tomorrow, for the first time, I will be angry at God
Tomorrow, for the first time, I will be angry at myself
Tomorrow, for the first time, I will be glad to die
Day after tomorrow, for the first time, I will awaken in tears
Day after tomorrow, for the first time, I will know I was wrong
Day after tomorrow, for the first time, I will defy all the judgement
Day after tomorrow, for the first time, I will ignore my old bones
Day after tomorrow, for the first time, I will return the buyer's check
Day after tomorrow, for the first time, I will bring my friend home
Day after tomorrow, for the first time, I will take my boots out of the box
Day after tomorrow, for the first time, I will be reborn
For the rest of my life, I will have a horse in my yard
For the rest of my life, I will ignore the naive judging
For the rest of my life, I will watch the poo pile grow
For the rest of my life, I will have hay in my hair
For the rest of my life, I will track mud in my house
For the rest of my life, I will bury my face in his soft neck
For the rest of my life, I will let my soul fly
For the rest of my life, I will never be alone
Having a life threatening illness or accident (or if a family member or friend has a 'brush with death') we often are prompted to re-evaluate our life and make decisions on how we want to change our life, or live out the rest of our life. I have always felt that God wants us to be productive as long as able, even after retirement. And I also know He wants us to be good and faithful servants. Because I fail in this area, I didn't feel God had a reason to heal me. But I have come to realize we don't need to earn his grace and love. It is unconditional. But I do seek to know God's plan for the rest of my life and wonder if I can meet His expectations. So what is the purpose of the elderly?
In Crosswalk.com - As long as we have breath, God has a purpose and plan for our life. He’s not finished with us yet. That truth is an inspiration and encouragement for every senior to make the rest of their life the best of their life!
I would like to be a more Godly woman.
The second time I got up, I still did not feel well rested. Ughh! I whittled away the morning and part of the afternoon here at my computer; gaming, horse shopping, and doing some ranch business.
Finally I got out to the ranch to give Amiga a Previcox, which she spit out and then was really stubborn about letting me get it back in her mouth.
I decided we could both use some exercise and re-bonding time, so I took her on a short ½ mile walk down Hathaway and then back on our trail. I had wanted to see how much maintenance work the trail needed. It was a tad overgrown and there were several downed sticks and larger branches on it. I spent 90 minutes clearing it, not even making it half way down the trail. My stamina is not what it used to be.
Poker Joe was gone so I had a big salad for dinner.
I might have overdone the amount of work and roughage, because I started feeling a little crampy (both abdominal muscles and my intestines). So, I kept my after dinner walk short, only going around the church block.
Coming down the home stretch, Rose came out from the church yard to meet us. You can see deer in Brian's yard that were watching us. Then one doe (see yellow arrow) came across the road to where Rose had been in the church lot. I was too slow to get all of it on (video).
Rose came right over to greet Maggie and escort us home, where she would then get dinner.
They stopped to watch the small deer herd head behind Brian's, to the golf course.
Joe and I finished off all the recordings left of the Olympics. Some of the exciting track and field US wins I'd already seen on Facebook.
Sunday 8/18 - While here at my computer, I saw this hawk swoop in from the pond and land on our deck railing. These first two photos were taken looking past the cat tower by my desk. 
I moved closer to get a better photo from the living room, and the hawk took off just after I snapped this third photo.
Shirley and I met at church. It was a beautiful, cool morning; almost too cold for the shirt I was wearing.
When I got home, I headed out on the deck for an early lunch and to warm up. Rose was out there and Maggie joined the two of us.
It was a bit overcast, and barely warm enough in shorts and tank top. 
We all had a little nap. 
When the sun did come out, these two had to move to the shade and I was almost too hot. I had been planning to go to the ranch, but then just lost all motivation and desire. Besides, I was really enjoying the book I was reading.
Rose looks so content, it's almost as if she is smiling.
I did flea control, combing all four cats and actually even did Rose and the dog. After an early dinner, I took Maggie on a long, just over three mile walk.
Poker Joe was gone, and I was extra tired, so went to bed early. But my book was so good, I stayed up past my usual bedtime reading until I finished it.
I had an early morning doctors appointment with my regular physician for my annual blood work/check up so had to keep moving when waking back up at 6:30.
I really thought my sugar level was going to be bad after
having such a horrendous diet of mostly carbs, but actually all of my
readings were in the normal range except for the iron, which we already
knew was a bit of a problem. But it has gone up since I saw Dr. Davidson
a week earlier. 
← one cat
two cats →
I dropped into the wellness center to try to figure out the least expensive way to take a leave of absence. Joe had froze our account for the month of August, but I was ready to return now.
← three cats
As it turns out, freezing our account for the month of August is the best way to go. If I returned now, they would charge us for the whole month. So I need to wait until September. In the meantime, I'll try to start back slowly, working into weights just doing some light ones/easy work stuff here at home. 
The forth cat (Stevie) is by herself out on the porch.
On the way home from the Wellness Center, I dropped in at the library and turned in the four paperbacks I've read, and I got three more. I have been reading the James Patterson - Alex Cross series. 
After laying in the sun out on the deck, reading my new book, and taking a much needed nap, I went to the ranch to set up a confinement for Blackie. She hurt her leg a few days ago. This way she can eat and drink without having to move around much. I did some weeding and then chores for Karen, who had gotten tied up at a doctor's office. I was glad to see that Amiga wasn't too sore after running around with the boys this morning. Patty had sent me this (video). 
Next on the agenda was Mirror Lake Blast. Joe and I went early to get a takeout dinner from the mall. We met Shirley, Patty , and Micki there. Linda came later, after Joe had left. 
Micki and her emotional support chipmunk Lola (photo by Vernon Martin).
After Joe had been up dancing with me, and was going to
head back to his seat, Micki gave him her purse, with Lola in it,
because it made dancing difficult. I took this photo later. 
Another photo by Vernon. This is Shirley under her umbrella. We had a little pop-up shower, actually it was just some big raindrops, only lasting a few minutes.
The band was pretty good and there was a fair amount of dancing going on. I felt so much better this week than last week, and was able to jive a little more also.
I hope I can dance for the rest of my life.
Tonight we got to see a rare Blue Supermoon. I took this from the Druid Hills parking lot when I was on my way home.
I crawled into bed reading my new book, with Mama Styx down by my feet. After a few minutes of reading, I noticed a flea, that was very much alive, on top of the sheet up by me. Shoot! It's actually the first flea I've seen that was not on one of the cats.
I went to the pool from 1-3:30 and enjoyed sun, reading, and chatting with friends. I had planned to swim but the water was too cold for my liking and the air wasn’t that hot.
I picked up Lisa and we met Joe and her husband Nolan at Stonehenge. We ended up going to Casa Grande because of the long wait for a table at the golf course, and then we couldn’t even get the bartender to wait on us.
Wednesday 8/21 - I woke up itching and feeling miserable. Babe has been doing so much scratching, she has made sores and bald spots on her neck. I knew I needed to up my game on this flea problem.
I ended up having a very busy and productive day. I started a load of laundry and was at the dentist by 8 AM. No cavities, yay! I did some much-needed shopping at Walmart getting lots of supplies, including flea bombs for the house.
After stowing away everything I bought and starting a second load of laundry, I did a little catch up here at my computer. Joe helped me flea spray the cats as I put each out on the back porch with Stevie. Then I got the 12 bug bombs set up in various spots, and shut all the windows. Joe left for the ranch, taking the dog. I quickly went around and set off the bombs. I had a N95 mask on and moved fast. I was out of the house in no time. I spent the next three hours at the Druid pool, reading most of the time. I was the only one there the whole afternoon. 
Per flea bomb instructions, I went back to the house and opened windows, turned on fans, and would return in two hours once it was aired out.
I was off to the ranch. Banner, as usual, was out in the field all by himself, and our three horses were down in the shed waiting for dinner.
Maggie was in the ranch house, where Poker Joe had left her. She then helped me with chores. I fed her dinner while the horses ate and then (because we had an hour to kill) we went on a walk. We went the whole trail in the woods along our fence line. The back half that goes along Jim’s backfield, was very overgrown and there were several branches and a few trees down on it. 
I cleared off sticks and branches as we went. This one section was really bad (first photo). The second photo shows it all cleared and Maggie waiting patiently.
This one tree, at 'fern valley' was not movable because it weighed far more than 20 pounds. So I left it. 
I had observed the ground around this water pump has been wet for several days. Well tonight I noticed when the pump handle was down, but the spigot for the hose open, water kept trickling out. Ugh! It's always something.
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Maggie and I got home after 6:00. I shut most of the
windows, cause it was getting cold outside. The fans got turned off and
I picked up all the flea bombs and newspapers they had been set on. Any residue left on hard surfaces was washed off and kitchen counters and table were cleaned just in case they had residue on them. After flea combing each cat, I let them in off the porch (except Stevie). They were happy once they got fed.
I started a third load of laundry (had done sheets, throw blankets, and pet bedding/fuzzy pads). I re-made our bed and put blankets and pet bedding back where they belonged. And I went to bed with the third load running in the dryer. Finally I felt like I had the flea problem under control. I hope to never go through this again, for the rest of my life.
Thursday 8/22 - Mama Styx resting on my arm while I was computerizing. My euphoria over flea eradication was short lived. Babe and Monita were scratching up a storm, and when I used the flea comb on them, I got a few live fleas off both. WTH? Mama Styx didn't have any.
Again, I spent a lot of time here at my computer. I'm not sure what all I did, but know horse shopping has been quite time consuming. I even made a phone call about one, but they don't hold them long at the kill pens nor will they let you test ride them.
Mama Styx and Babe were having a good time playing with this toy, while Monita (in upper right of photo) was watching. By the time I got my phone, she was jumping down off the back of the couch. And then when I started to (video) the other two quit playing.
I'd had a big, late lunch after reading out on the deck in the sun (well it was mostly cloudy). And then knew I needed to get moving. So I took Maggie to the ranch and we took Amiga for a short walk through the woods.
I checked on and fed Blackie, who's leg is getting better.
Back home to feed the masses and then have dinner myself.
Mama Styx was back at it playing, while Maggie rested near by, keeping an eye on me while I ate, always hoping for some table scraps (which I rarely give her, and never while at the table).
I had eaten enough that I decided another walk was necessary (aids digestion and burns some calories). This time Maggie and I went farther and faster than what our short little walk with Amiga had been. Notice, we are experiencing an early fall, partly because of the drought.
Coming home, these four deer were on the women's 17th tee box of Druid. They were ready to bolt but I said hello when walking by and then they followed us, at a safe distance. I think they recognize Maggie and I. 
I put out corn for them and then fed Rose. She also got a little flea spraying which really pissed her off.
I was distraught about the flea problem, perplexed and disappointed that there were still live ones on the cats. More research said:
Provided the animal has been treated correctly, these new fleas (on your pet) will be killed within 24hrs preventing them from laying eggs. The adult fleas we see on pets represent only 5% of the total population. The other 95% are immature stages in the environment. Each female can lay 27 eggs each day, and these babies will hatch anywhere from two days to two weeks. But they can remain in the pupa stage for months. With a bad infestation, vacuum your floors, carpeting, furniture, and curtains daily. Ughhh!!!
I went to bed feeling fairly discouraged, but reading took my mind off the flea problem, and praying for those on my long list put me to sleep.
Friday 8/23 - I went out the front door to take a photo of this deer in Brian's yard, and discovered these two in our yard, snacking on flowers.
Catching up on this blog and horse shopping occupied much of my morning. I also flea combed the three cats currently in the house and only got a few very slow moving fleas off of two of them. This gave me renewed hope. However, later when I combed Stevie, she had a few, which surprised me because she hadn't had any after the initial flea treatment two weeks ago.
Joe vacuumed before heading off towards Iowa, for Sunday's Villhauer reunion, although with some poker stops in KY and IL first. And I headed out with Maggie for a hike on the Seven Bridges/St. George Trails. The creek the bridges go over was completely dried up.
It was a beautiful, cool, fall-like day. Stevie on the back porch was enjoying the sunshine. She had stopped eating (and pooping) for a few days over the weekend, and I feared it was time to euthanize her. But Monday I tried giving her Greek yogurt to get her to eat something, and she ate it. And now, she is eating a lot more than usual, including the yogurt, and her poops have gotten a little more solid. So maybe she is getting better. I wondered if the flea treatment had taken care of intestinal parasites.
A bunch of us 'Saddle Sisters' went to the county fair to watch the horse show. This very cute Screech owl (unable to be released into the wild) was there. I didn't realize they were so little. Precious!
We ladies (Shirley, Judy, Jan, Joanne, Betty, Jo, Karen and Deanna) had a great time. We really delighted in seeing each other and catching up. The horse show and fair food were also quite enjoyable.
This horse threw a little buck during the rescue race, but the back rider was able to stay on.
And in spite of difficulties, these two kids did a fantastic job as did their little pony (video).
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I didn't get home until after 10:30 and it was 11:15 by the time I was turning out the lights.
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At the start of this blog, I quoted a part of this snippet which is from Crosswalk.com and decided to include more of it.
I went to sleep counting my blessings and thanking God.
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