Sept. 24th, Day 2

September 24th, 2008 – day 2 – 16 miles
Good morning from the totally chilled out Holter clan. It was frosty this morning! When I woke up, it was to the squeals of my sisters as they were trying to gather courage to don on their cold clothing. We have decided it might be smart to sleep with our clothes whenever we think it's going to be a cold night. :-)
Speaking of cold, our colds are progressing along our ranks. We have several with the sniffles and some with coughs. I woke up without a cough or runny nose this morning... I was a little worried that it might be settling into my chest. But after hot cup of Celestial Seasonings tea, a breakfast of granola & cheerios and a visit to Mrs. Murphy, I am feeling much better. :-) Prayers for our health are greatly appreciated.
Everything is nearly packed up and ready to go. Mom is doing the girls' hair and some just took the horse fence down. Lydia is going to get her hair done so she tied Alpache beside me on the horse trailer. He doesn't seem to be too concerned because he keeps grazing around my feet. Ever since we got that horse, he never seems to stop eating. He's gained a good 100 lbs! I'm glad I don't gain weight like that. LOL!
Mom said every time they woke up last night (Ruth was restless), they could hear the horses munching. It's a comforting sound.
We traveled approx. 21 miles yesterday... ending 7-8 miles from Lorlie, SK. We started out using the grid roads and liked them so much, we decided to stick with them instead of using the highway, as we originally planned. There's lots less traffic and those that are here respect the riders and horses by slowing down. Highway traffic isn't all bad, but what is makes up for what isn't. This is much safer.
I must apologize to those we told we were going to be using the highway... and came looking for us. :-(
It went smoothly yesterday. No real accidents, although there was one incident involving Jesse and Red. They were playing in a field and Red kicked at Millie. Then he took off, running out of control. (All this was in fun.) The only problem was that when he kicked, the saddle slid way down on his side so Jesse was riding sidesaddle, literally. ;-) He landed safely on his feet with the reins still in his hands, so Red swung in a circle and stopped. They were all laughing about it, but the general consensus was that they needed to be a little more careful.
That was the only excitement for the day. It was enough. :-)
Yesterday, I wrote in my personal diary about Hannah's horse, Millie and the transformation in her attitude. Well, I wrote a little too soon. Yesterday, Millie was a little angel. She and Hannah had a wonderful day (as did everyone else!). This morning was a completely different story, though. She started her day by bucking right after Hannah had mounted her for the first time this morning. Hannah held on although she did land hard right below the saddle horn and hurt her legs. But she put emu oil on them and it was okay but sore.
The real fireworks started right after all the horses had crossed the road. There, Millie began bucking without a warning and Hannah went flying. She landed on her left side but her arm took most of the impact. Nothing seems to be broken, but she is very sore.
After we decided she wouldn't be riding the rest of the morning, they tried to get the rest of the horses calmed down and ready to go on. Suddenly, Alpache started bucking and Lydia landed on her back, hitting her head pretty hard on the road. No one actually saw it happen because everyone was preoccupied with other things. But we all looked up and saw her on the road. She says that her tail bone is the worst but she put liniment on it and it's feeling better.
Oh, and last but of course, not least, Uriah's little toe was stepped on by a horse and he also had to be doctored with emu oil. We're thankful that particular horse wasn't shod because it could have been worse than it was. He's now grinning again and acting like it doesn't hurt at all. The young are resilient.
So that was our exciting morning. I can't say I enjoyed it or wish it to be repeated but I am thankful it was 'only' these things and nothing else.
3:50 pm
We're right on the outside of Lemberg, SK right now, parked alongside the road, waiting for the horses. Mom and Dolores found a place for us to spend the night (thank the Lord for Dolores! We'd be lost without you :-)). I think it's about a mile and a half away from where we're parked.