All the Pretty Horses

ugghhhh.... there's just so many things that need to be done, so many things that need to be bought, so many things that could be bought to improve our horse management, so many CHOICES....

Of course, right now, the barn is priority #1, but we already have all the pipe and tin we need, plus the sawmill to make our own lumber, so thankfully we don't have to spend any more money on it for now... except - should we pour concrete now or wait on the concrete and buy automatic feeders (something I'm thinking would help me and the horses' digestive systems greatly since I have such a wacky schedule and I'm the sole "feeder"). Or, should we spend that money on fencing, or arena panels??? I guess really it's down to the concrete or feeders.

But then, I think about how much I'd really like to go to a Charmayne James clinic with Padre and I think about am I really gonna have the money to send Pepsi to the trainer in the fall if we spend our money on concrete, feeders, etc.? AND, Jeff needs a shop, we need to add on to the house, we need to pay off some debts, we need to get ourselves into a situation where we can start the adoption process so we can finally start raising children.... sometimes I just get overwhelmed thinking of all that is ahead of us and I wonder if we'll ever get it all done. I often wonder if I'll ever achieve my dreams of competing in pro rodeos, as well.

On top of all of that are the "little" things that can be quite daunting at times, such as - should I really use protective boots on Padre??? I've always thought that would go without saying, but when I picked him up my friend, his previous owner, said not to use them. So, for the first run or two I didn't.. and he did great. Now, I read in Barrel Horse News all the scientific studies have been done on protective boots and prove how beneficial they are, but there's also proof against them which keeps at least one pro barrel racer, Tamara Reinhardt, from using them - and she has no problems resulting from not using them. Her horse actually does better without them.

I need to quit thinking.

We have come so incredibly far in the past 5 yrs.... shoot, even in the past 2 yrs... that it's unbelievable. I do know that I can do anything through Christ who strengthens me and that through the favor of God comes the favor of man. The Lord gives, the Lord takes away and it is ALL in His good timing. He has taken good care of us this far and I know He will continue to take good care of us. Thank You, God, for all of Your blessings!

One of those great blessings is an abundance of rain we received this past night. I had planned to work with Pepsi some today, but we'll have to see how sloppy the ground is. I know it's too sloppy to ride Padre... however, it is probably perfect for digging post holes and driving t-posts, so I just might get busy building fence since we've had quite a bit of materials lying around these past few months and since I've finally finished all that I wanted to accomplish in the house for now. I am relieved to see that finally just about everything has it's own place now, due to the new shelves, racks and hooks I've built and installed. Now, I can't wait to see some fencing up and some "ponies" worked!

"There is no benefit to being impatient. There is no benefit in "making things happen." What you birth in the "flesh", you must maintain in the "flesh". However, what is born of God is managed and maintained by God." - Paula White