Summer of 2008

Well, I think maybe it's official - summer's over. The rain started on Halloween eve and hasn't showed signs of stopping. True to form, we turn the calendar page to November and all bets are off - ready or not, fall's here and winter's just around the corner! In the northwest, many times it seems like our fall or autumn season is quite short, going from summer to winter with a very short interval of fall. This year, it's been a nicer than average fall, I think. We've had several mornings of frost on the pumpkin and then warm sunny days filled with the splendor of autumn's amazing colors. It was great while it lasted.

So, in preparation for the changing weather patterns and cooler, wetter temperatures, hubby and I moth-balled the horse trailer for the winter (how sad!), put the barbecue in dry storage, along with the patio furniture and our little portable campfire pit. Our deck is empty and looks so forelorn and big. We have 2 tons of stove pellets in storage and 1 ton of stall bedding pellets. The pantry is stocked and the barns are full of hay. All the outbuildings have been cleaned out, reorganized and repaired in preparation for winter. With the exception of 2-3 more tons of hay which we will probably need and bedding pellets purchased as we need them, I think we're just about ready. The garden is empty and looking bedraggled, with all the produce canned or stored in the freezer for later use.

With the holidays looming, and shorter days and longer nights, we will gradually adjust to winter's slower pace of life. I'll avert my attention to more indoor activities and try to accomplish long-awaited projects on our little home's interior. The list is a long one, but I'd really like to concentrate on a partial kitchen remodel. New flooring tops my list of wants, followed by new paint and a new sink. Heaven knows the cabinets should be replaced too, but a new coat of paint and maybe new hardware would be an improvement.

But life's just too darn short to work all the time!! So...I plan to buy monthly passes at a nearby indoor riding arena and maybe a couple times a week, drag the horses out, scrape off the mud and go ride!!! Nothing in this world makes me feel more alive than riding my horse. Truly, as the saying goes...the outside of a horse is good for the inside of a woman!

So true

Nope these are not pictures from this weekend. I was too busy working this past weekend to take any pics, so these are from last June in LaPine, Oregon where we spent a week of pure heaven!! The riding was endless and there were about 15 lakes within a 10 mile radius. Wonderful place!! Central oregon at it's finest in my humble opinion!!