It Seemed Like A Good Idea At The Time

 Wow!  Now that's a phrase that might be applicable as a title for a weekly blog post.

These debacles seem to happen in times when I have a brainstorm as to how to streamline work around the farm, or perhaps make life just a little better for our animal friends.

Yesterday was one such day.  

Each morning, Moonie meets me at the stall door ready to get dressed in his Foster Grants (his fly mask that keeps his one remaining eye out of the direct sunlight).  Dressed and ready for the day, he marches through the stall door and ambles up to the upper pasture for his morning grazing time.  This guy is so reliable... I don't even have to watch him.  I just know where he is going and I know that is where he will end up.  Reliably.

Unreliable would be these two fellows.

As soon as Moonie is on his way, 

these two are dancing around the same stall waiting to be haltered.  I've never been able to trust that these two hooligans would end up in the correct location, so, each morning, we walk them up to the pasture.

Yesterday was a little bit different.  After Moonie was out of the stall, I stepped inside with the Littles' halters and pulled the stall door closed behind me.  I first haltered Red - easy peasy.  Then I bent down and put Ollie's nose in his halter.  Ollie, on the other hand, likes to toss his head around whenever I am trying to halter him.  It's not that he doesn't want to be haltered, it's just that he doesn't ever want to make anything easy for me.  That's his personality in a nutshell... always has been and always will be.  Perhaps it's the personality of an orphan who had no Momma to teach him "the way."

So, as I am working with Ollie, Red decides that he's waited long enough and he slides the stall door open with his nose.  Highly unusual "mischieviosity" for my solid little man... but, oh well...

Luckily, he ended up with Moonie in the upper pasture.

"Hmmmm",... this gave me an idea, "Wouldn't life be lovely if we could just open the stall door each morning and let three big and little horses just prance their own way to the pasture at liberty?"

It seemed like a good idea at the time! 

 So, I opened the stall door and just let Ollie leave on his own volition.  Not only did he not follow his brother into the upper pasture, but he ended up galloping, on his tiny little legs, around the far side of the garden - then towards the gate into the pasture... but missing that altogether and continuing onward around the outside of the pasture fence.

He finally arrived at the perfect location for grazing... smack between the two upper pastures.  You might notice how green the grass is at this place - Ollie is no dummy! But he was stuck on the outside between two groups of grazing horses and ponies.  After a finely choreographed (and impossible to photograph) keep-away session, Jack grabbed Ollie's halter and ushered him into the pasture with Moonie and Ollie.

Well... it seemed like a good idea at the time!

Thankfully, coming back to the barn was much less dramatic.  Moonie took himself. 

 Jack took the hooligans... 

who minded their manners and then, untethered, walked themselves back into their stall for their morning chow.

 Baby steps.

Baby steps.

Lastly, I had to share this adorable felted wool birdhouse that I received as a Christmas gift from our N.C. kids.  

It is the perfect addition to the front porch of Maven Haven!

And, by the way, I have so many ideas percolating for my little shed this year.  As soon as warm weather arrives, she will be getting a big makeover!