Gray Days

 Good morning.  You may have noticed that we were AWOL yesterday.  This was the result of a day spent largely off of the farm - a couple doctor appointments and some errands.

Yesterday, on the other hand, was a typical mid-winter farm day... filled with chores, a visit from the farrier, and a little rain.  Just a typical winter day - mostly muddy.  With temperatures quite a bit warmer than they were last week, I find myself looking more and more eagerly towards Spring!  It's always at this time of year, after a couple lovely snows, that I begin to long for just a little more warmth and sunshine.

After slogging through mud, then snow, then mud, then snow, then mud once again - I start to daydream about the days when we can head outside unencumbered by heavy boots and water-proof layers of warmth.  There is such a luxury in being able to simply step outside in one's clothes and tend to chores on dry ground.  Yes, it's the simple things - the things we sometimes take for granted - that we long for the most during the never-ending grayness of winter.

But, as always, I tell myself to be patient and just enjoy whatever today holds.  After all, the present moment  is really the only one that we are assured of having... so why waste it on any negativity!

Yesterday's big event was a visit from the farrier.

The horses, though well-behaved, were embarrassingly filthy - thanks to the rain and resulting mud. 

I am still trying to figure out what compels them to roll in the mud! 

 They truly look like unloved urchins.  All the brushing in the worlds will, sadly, not rectify this situation.  What is needed is sunlight and a warm breeze.  Then, maybe, a brush will be of some value!

Forrest stayed at the barn with me while the farrier was there.  His behavior was not as stellar as the horses, however.  He tends to be a little overzealous in the helping department... slinking his way in between the farrier and horse in order to steal a fresh hoof trimming - sometimes he gets it before it even hits the floor.

When he wasn't stealing hoof trimmings, he was getting cozy with Pete.

And no, Pete doesn't mind having his entire neck in Forrest's mouth.  Forrest is actually quite gentle and uses his teeth in a tiny biting manner to actually scratch Pete - something that Pete loves.  They have a very special relationship, those two!

Oh, and before the farrier drove off, I had to remove Moll cat from his truck.   We always have to check the back of his truck for hitchhikers.

Yesterday gave us the opportunity to get back out into the woods for a walk with the dogs.

Naturally, Forrest found the last pile of snow in the woods... the perfect place to cool down.

And, of course, found every puddle along the way.

My latest project has been to embroider a denim shirt.  All of my embroidery is free-hand, without a pattern.  I love to do this... it's like drawing on fabric.  I started with a tiny mushroom on the collar,

and then added a patch of wildflowers and my favorite amanita muscaria mushroom to the upper back.

I guess it's time for a knitting project... something small and quick, I think.