6 chairs sell

Harley sounded the alarm at 6:45 am, and as soon as S let her out, another dog was barking—it was Cooper with his dad feeding. She and J headed to the garage upon returning, and we all went back to sleep. I prepared coffee to enjoy in bed, which is our usual routine, while S made a birthday call to Papa. Happy Birthday!! Then, it was time to get moving. Har was fed, and porridge for the big guy while I enjoyed a call from Joeleen. 

S went to the shop to continue moving things around, and I went there after letting out three horses to help move out the two balers.

Once the balers were out, we moved seven pallets of small square bales. The pallets were lifted by skid steer to the mezzanine, and S stacked them in a newly created area. We have bales from various years that need to be used, starting with the older ones—except B and D dislike the oldest, which might be sold to a goat farmer. My back was incredibly sore, so I swept while rearranging my stock of chairs, cat items, and cleaning the loose hay from the arena sand with a fork. It looked great when we finished at noon, just as the high winds started. We then came in for a lunch of grilled cheese and salad. Now, guess whose back is aching?

After 1 pm, S left for hockey. I went down and reorganized my "store," putting away boxes left from the market since I have a customer from Calgary coming later to purchase the black press-back chairs. Despite the terrible winds and but 20-degree temperature, I braved the winds and watered my planters and scooped poop, then worked on blog posts from the last two days, 

The customer arrived at around 2:30 and instantly agreed to purchase the four press-back dining chairs. She was also interested in having the other two finished in the same style but was uncertain about the available space. Initially, it seemed she didn't have enough room, but after I did some rearranging, all six chairs fit and were ready to go to their new home. Now, I need to mark all items as sold and update my spreadsheet. Next on my list is writing a Hometalk post for the custom bedroom suite.

S returned from hockey with a beer stock-up at 5. I prepared a pot of chili for dinner featuring bison and homegrown tomatoes. Surprisingly, Britt and Dave arrived before 6. It turns out she left work early, and Dave encountered further trailer issues. The trailer wasn't fixed yesterday as originally planned; instead, he had to retrieve it from Lacombe this morning, load the horses, and then, en route back north to the Edmonton races, suffered a tire blowout near Three Hills. He withdrew from tonight's races, managed to get the trailer and horses home, and then had four new 14-ply tires installed on the horse trailer. After feeding, they struggled to administer Cash's dewormer, which turned into a halter/lead lesson. They seemed relieved to enjoy a warm bowl of chili after such a day.

They departed around 8, while I settled into bed to watch educational YouTube videos and S headed to the TV room to watch hockey and chat on the phone. Mid-game, I brought him a bowl of yogurt, and we turned off the lights before 11. Quite the eventful Friday night at the ranch. :)

First frost

We woke to zero degrees, our first frost of the year. It seemed inevitable though and I could have cut my last pretty dahlias yesterday had I looked at forecast. After enjoying coffee in bed, it was time for my usual marketing, while S browsed the internet before we started cleaning. I enlisted S's help to pull out the oven, and together we vacuumed, scrubbed, and washed the floor before sliding it back in place. I then set the oven to self-clean. Although it made the house smell, the sunny day meant it was a good time for solar energy, and we could crack the windows slightly. S went off to finish winterizing the trailer and to run some antifreeze to Ron's trailer, which he's been enlisted to sell. Meanwhile, I continued vacuuming and put in a load of towels. I let Switch and Beibs out, as the other two had a vet appointment. Then, it was time to start removing the frozen zucchini plants. S began organizing the arena, moving a bale out of indoor storage and box grading some of the sand.

After a lunch of leftovers, S headed to town for hockey. I removed more frozen plants - the beans and cucumbers - the dahlias seemed okay, but I regretted not cutting all the flowers before the frost. Vet Ashley and her assistant arrived, so I quickly caught Roo for his dental check-up. Dave arrived just as she was nearly done, and I went to catch Bird.

I popped in to get something and Har was napping in her new bed but then had to join the animal day

Horse herder Harley helping Dave or at least attempting to

Bird feeling tipsy after her dental appointment

After releasing Roo, I caught Suzi and Dave caught Basil for his hock x-ray. While they were busy, I continued tidying the garden and the asparagus patch. Dave left Cooper here while he went to fetch his trailer in Lacombe, and Ashley and Meagan left as well. I brought in the random vegetables and started working on yesterday's blog post. Suddenly, I heard a commotion; Tony and J were in a standoff. The neighbors wanted us to try and send him home with perhaps a spray of water, so I set off, attempting to shoo him back with J following close behind. In the barn, Tony went up to the mez, where I grabbed a broom and smacked it on the floor, breaking it in half. Distracted, I lost track of Tony.

Sheldon was back home from hockey as I was coming in from outside. As the garden winds down we are still lucky to have veggies, beets and the leaves, zucchini, onion and fresh tomatoes were cooked up to go with salmon for yet another tasty supper. Seeing it was low wind and still sunny out we went for an early hot tub in the golden hour. We were just coming in when Britt arrived early tonight after 7. 

She fed and did her horse things then headed home. I worked on blogs, marketing and tutorials while S watched his sports before we retreated to bed to relax and watch the movie Role Play.

Kaylin's birthday - and she says yes to the dress

Today marks Kaylin's birthday, making it doubly special as it's also the day for wedding dress shopping. We began the day as usual, after which I prepared to join the girls for brunch before dress shopping. Britt was out to manage the horses before we headed for the city. S started the day with skid steer work, loading the shelter poop piles in the dump truck. I set out in Shaina's Jeep but noticed an alert for low tire pressure on the left side. Sheldon helped me inflate them, and then I was on my way. B had left earlier after completing her chores.

babies inspecting the truck and trailer

Finding parking was a challenge when I arrived at the lunch venue, a common scenario in the city, but I eventually parked underground. I met the three girls at Brown's for a celebratory birthday brunch. The Bridal Boutique was conveniently next door, ready for our 12:30 appointment. Shanice met us there, and we admired the array of stunning dresses Kaylin tried on. She narrowed it down to two distinct styles and ultimately made her choice. She said yes to the dress. Quite a birthday to remember.

The three girls dashed off to Starbucks while Britt and I went south. We made a stop at her naturopath's for supplements, and I grabbed us iced coffees at Tim's drive-thru before we checked out the new Buffalo Run Costco. Harley received an early birthday present—a fancy big bed and a new toy. We returned to the ranch by 4:30; B picked up Cooper and headed home.

Sheldon was wrapping up his day when we got home. He had partially winterized the trailer following the hauling poop to the pit. Additionally, he watered the three newly planted trees and bathed Harley, as I had asked, in preparation for her new bed. While enjoying a cold beer, he viewed some instructional videos to learn further steps for complete winterization and updated himself on the girls' activities for the day.

Shaina shared these photos of the birthday party after Renn got home

I picked one of the few remaining onions and made a spaghetti sauce with them, along with the fresh tomatoes and bison burger. Delicious. We were dining when Dave and Britt returned to feed after 6 PM. Britt rode Roo while Dave joined us for a plate of spaghetti and a beer. After her ride, they headed home, but she mentioned Tony was outside. We decided to see what would happen if we left him out, and lo and behold, a few hours later, they reported he returned home. 

her new Kong racoon is 3 days old and so far still together

I took out the vacuum and mop to clean Harley's area. I unboxed and set up her new bed, which will take 24-48 hours to fully expand. My back is still sore, especially when rising from sitting or driving gosh darnnit. S and I enjoyed another soak in the hot tub beneath the starry sky, I should have noted the clear increasing coolness of the nights to foresee the frost, before we settled into bed. After a short nap in our room, Harley retreated to her new comfy bed.

they say 8X bigger than the box

inspection

first slime :)

October 1 already

I engaged in some brain games before browsing Instagram. Shaina had sent photos of them preparing to load the plane for their trip today. Not long and they will be in Cowtown. S slept in until 9:30 when I made coffee. We enjoyed our coffee in bed while he chatted with Corey before we started our day.

Today is little Miss's first day of daycare, this is breakfast with 7 other little buddies.

He took care of feeding the pets while I worked on marketing, hoping to gain some sales traction. I finished and published the custom bedroom suite tutorial, then proceeded to share it online and send info to paint company.

S loaded H and was bagging the awful smelling fly traps in the barn trash to take to the dump when Dave and Cooper arrived to feed at noon. We headed to town, disposing of the trash and cardboard I had loaded, then made a quick stop to deliver touch up paint to a customer at her store. We savored lunch at our favorite Opa, taking advantage of a free meal I had won.

The next hour was spent at Rona, where S looked for his power trenching installation parts. Not everything was in stock, so we had to place orders. Our subsequent stop was to enjoy a $2 small Blizzard, another perk from having the app. If you have the app, make sure to get one as it offers about $4 in savings. Our final errands were to pick up some gift cards and a bottle of creamer before we returned home.

The daycare has an app that they share photos and details including what she ate and diaper changes through the day, here are some pics of play times

S dropped me off, and he, along with a still-sleeping Harley in the back, went to Matt's to decide on a reroute. I let the three horses out again, keeping Roo in the Jenny Craig pen. S returned just as I was sorting through a stack of items posted online. Many were price-dropped, others pulled, and some added to the thrift store bag, with a couple of new finds posted. S took a nap in Big Brown while I organized and tidied the office area. Sharon and Darren stopped by to drop off a gift card for Nathan and Kaylin. They wanted to see the ponies, so we enjoyed that before moving to the deck for a beer.

Tony was spotted spying on us from the south fence line. After they left, I fed Harley, and S attempted to catch Tony but had no luck today. I was pulling an onion for supper when Brittany R arrived to pick up Tony. Sheldon was returning empty-handed. Two of her kids tried to call him after petting the babies, and after a 20-minute visit with no Tony, they headed home. I went back to making supper while S sliced the roast. We enjoyed another harvest meal, finishing the last of the corn harvest. Although it was only 7 cobs HAHAHA

I started working on the blog while S and his laptop took over the big brown chair, engrossed in a ball game on TV. B and D went out to feed in the pitch darkness just before 8 pm. Dave dropped by for his usual visit, picked up some more apples to make a crisp for Sunday, and then they left. We are creatures of habit wrapping the day up with a hot tub soak under a very starry sky followed by a shower, yogurt bowl and relaxing in bed. I watched YouTube videos while S perused the internet.

Truth and Reconcilliation

A Brisk Morning and a Cozy Start: The day began with a brisk chill, prompting the furnace to be turned on and coffee enjoyed in bed. The morning routine included the usual tasks, with some marketing efforts for me and troubleshooting line locations at Matt’s for S. S made a quick trip to check on the trenching project, but the company declined to proceed without all lines marked.

don't judge the wrinkles :) I unrolled it quick to share on Insta

Midday Hustle: At noon, the three horses were let out, leaving Miss Roo in. S headed to town after 1 PM to golf with Dave S, taking in the Fireball. My afternoon was spent sorting, purging, and cleaning the laundry room, washing horse tack and hanging it out to dry, tidying the house, and working on marketing and blog posts.

These 2 are always eager to say hello, and hope you are bringing snacks :)

Go back a day and see hte funny videos of these 2 I just added.

Afternoon Adventures: Dave arrived at 2:30 PM to feed the horses, sharing his weekend ordeal of losing a tire off his horse trailer on the QE2. Cooper stayed behind to hang out with Har and me as we walked to the far gate to let the horses in for water, now that Roo was in the middle paddock. Just before Dave arrived, a kerfuffle was heard, signaling Tony’s arrival. Harley chased Tony to the /C unit where J was, causing a commotion. Tony jumped over J, sending him into a panic, and Harley chased him back past me. Tony was eventually put in the kennel, and a skunk-like smell lingered on my hands.

finally cracked one of my market purchases, very refreshing

Continued Efforts and Unexpected Surprises: The purging, tidying, and marketing continued with Tony moaning on the deck. Brittany R didn’t come to retrieve Tony until two hours later, I was on a phone call with Bell. She texted as driving out, “OMG he smells like skunk,” confirming another Tony adventure. Cooper was eager to get outside so I took the dogs and Stella for a walk. Back at the house, the shop vac was cleaned out at the barn and brought back, and Har was fed (poor Coop was starving he claimed).

Little miss and her snuggle buddy relaxing with Dad on the couch

Evening Wind-Down: The evening continued with cleaning before a supper of roast beef sandwiches after 6 PM, realizing S was golfing 18 holes. Luxe Listings was watched on the iPad while eating, followed by some “me time” for nails. A new remover was tried, and the process was still ongoing when S arrived after 7:30 PM. S prepped a sandwich as B and D arrived to feed. Once I got the old layers off I applied a new color, pretty right?

The evening wrapped up with Dave sharing his trailer story with S after 8 PM, and B came in for a bit before they headed home around 8:30 PM. We enjoyed our hot tub with me wishing on a shooting star even. After a shower, we had our yogurt bowls while finishing the season 3 of Luxe Listings, searched for a new series to watch but S was off to sleep so I watched some YouTube furniture videos.

This day was a perfect blend of productivity, unexpected adventures, and cozy moments, capturing the essence of a busy yet fulfilling day. 🍂✨

Dreary weather Sunday

It's another typical Sunday, starting with coffee and brain games, followed by S enjoying porridge before church. Britt and I had planned trail riding, but the dark western skies and rain forecast shifted our focus to marketing and blog posts. I encountered issues with Friday's blog post; it was so slow, and it seems I inadvertently uploaded photos in full size, consuming excessive space. Given my blog's space limitations, I had to replace them with resized, watermarked images. Numerous videos required resizing as well. Additionally, I completed my monthly payroll submissions, crafted a tutorial for the white magazine rack, and began promoting and communicating with the paint company. Lastly, I brought in the dresser S acquired yesterday from back of the truck.

city videos from yesterday

S returned from church with tea and a muffin at 11:30, then settled in to watch hockey while I dealt with blog issues. He cleared furniture from beneath the garage lift and took out the fireball. Britt and Cooper came over at 12:30 with a new plan for the day cleaning the tack room. After finishing my BST sandwich and publishing Friday's blog, I joined her to help around 1, as S left for town to assist the Stouts with a solar company presentation.

I fetched a bucket of warm water and the shop vac, and we began emptying, vacuuming, and reorganizing the tack room. At 2:30, as the rain began, I dashed to the house for tacks to hang new posters. We sorted items to send to the tack collector, to clean, and to discard or wipe down. After 3, I returned home to bring Harley in from the rain, as she wouldn't come to the barn, and resumed working on the blog posts, completing yesterday's entry.

B completed her tack cleaning, but not mine, as she claims she has too much on her plate. She and Cooper left for home after 3:30, and by 4, the rain had ceased giving us just under a 1/10th. S arrived home past 4:30 and settled down with big brown to browse the internet while I was busy preparing a roast in the instant pot. The sun burst out in full glory at 5, albeit briefly. Afterwards, I prepared potatoes and onions with coconut oil before returning to write today's blog post.

my picked tomato harvest

This is the first time I have seen Cash stand her ground, too funny how she blocks the shelter from Baz

B was out to feed the horses once the rain stopped, just as we were settling down to eat after 6 PM. I returned to working on the blog and marketing. I had to get details off a piece from down at the "store" during the golden hour, I noticed the windows were terribly dirty from the inside, so I paused to clean the west basement living room windows. B headed home again before 7. Back at my computer work, I heard a commotion; it was Tony racing by. I let Harley out, hoping her barking would deter him, but it was futile since they have two large dogs. S emerged from the big brown vehicle and caught Tony just as Mark arrived to retrieve him. They chatted on the deck for a while. I composed a Hometalk post for the condo mirror fix. As the winds intensified and the rain resumed, I rushed out in the dark to harvest the last of the green tomatoes left on the vines.

The winds howled and carried on as I moved to bed to watch more Luxe Listings on the TV with S joining after sports were done.

Fall day

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A Day in the Life: Embracing the Beauty of Fall

Morning Serenity: The day began with the tranquility of early morning reading, setting a peaceful tone before S woke and made coffee. The garden beckoned next, with planters and raised beds watered by hand. Beets, zucchini, and potatoes were harvested for us, as well as creating a fresh garden pack for Paetz’s. Despite the temperature being 14°C, it felt much warmer, making the gardening tasks quite enjoyable.

I pulled a tall marigold plant that was blocking sun to carrots so cut them to bring inside

These labyrinth dahlias are just so pretty

Afternoon Activities: As S headed off to hockey just after 1 PM, my focus shifted to accounting and tutorials, making significant progress on various projects. Seasonal decor was swapped out, with summer giving way to fall, accompanied by a quick dusting to keep everything looking fresh. I put a dark coat of wax on the custom antique table. Now it is complete. By 3 PM, it was time for a delightful hour ride with B and the dogs, enjoying the beautiful fall scenery. After the ride while Britt fed all the horses, I did some productive yard work, adding more gravel to the base of the bottle tree and raking chips into place. The brace was removed, and despite the wind picking up and it only 17 out, it remained a pleasant fall day, perfect for outdoor activities. Guess we should have went camping.

Auntie Mindy's asters are my sign fall is here, they only bloom when temperatures drop.

Evening Endeavors:  Dinner prep followed, featuring a meal made entirely from garden-fresh vegetables: corn, zucchini, beets, sautéed beet leaves, tomatoes, and cucumbers. Some healthier chicken with feta and spinach sausages were cooked not the BBQ. B and Coop left for home before 6 PM with all horse chores completed and we were enjoying dinner. 

My corn harvest was entertaining.. some good and some pretty sparse LOL

This is my plate before sausage, S plate had sautéed beet leaves and fresh tomatoes and cucumbers too

A quick shower provided a refreshing break before Kent arrived to pick up his last three bales of hay. Once loaded, the evening continued with a trip to Stouts. The night was spent catching up, enjoying new drinks like negroni and gold crushes, indulging in tasty snacks, and playing a game of 5 crowns. The drive home was safe and sound, and the day concluded with a few episodes of Luxe Listings before drifting off to sleep.

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This day was a perfect blend of productivity, relaxation, and enjoyment, capturing the essence of a beautiful fall day. 🍂✨