Dinner time!

Well, that last snow storm was a joke. All we got was a light dusting that was gone as soon as the sun came up.

We desperately need the moisture, but a tiny part of me was glad we didn't get any the second time around. My horses' pen is already turning into a mud pit. I wish I had a place of my own with big pastures to roam & stalls to use to keep them off the mud, but I don't. I just have to make do with what I have available right now, so I'm tromping through ankle-deep mud to feed them twice a day. My poor Carhartts & boots. :( But (knock on wood), the horses haven't had any problems from the mud. Hopefully it stays that way.

On a different subject, I perfected my crockpot lasagna recipe last night. :) I'm super excited about it. Chad said he wasn't hungry last night, so we split a bowl of it. Then he went back for seconds, then thirds. If anyone is interested in trying it, here's the recipe:

• 1lb ground beef, browned & drained
• 2 cans (30oz) tomato sauce
• 4 cups shredded mozzarella
• 1 tub cottage cheese (the original recipe called for like a cup & some, but I like it really cheesy. It made a huge difference)
• 8oz uncooked lasagna noodles

Add the tomato sauce to the browned & drained burger. In a seperate bowl, combine the cheeses. I had some leftover fresh spinach that needed used, so I tore up a few handfuls & added that to the cheese. Spoon 1/3 of meat sauce into crockpot, then lasagna noodles (break to fit), add 1/3 of the cheese. Repeat layers twice. Cook on Low for 4 hours. Yummy!

Snowmaggedon/Snowpocalypse Part II

Well, we're in for it again. Last week we got probably 6-10" of snow at my house (If someone could teach me how they measure snowfall, I'd love to know. I have areas of 2ft deep drifts, & other areas where the grass is still poking through. I just guessed on a happy medium.) We're expected to get another 4-10" today & tomorrow.

Here's a neat video I found that shows a time lapse of the last snow storm in Spring Hill, KS.

I really don't mind the snow. We definitely need the moisture. My Chevy Blazer's 4x4, so I'm not too worried about getting stuck...

But in my defense, my 4x4 only works when it wants to. In this instance, it didn't work in time for me to keep myself from sliding into that drift. Chad's used to non-4x4 vehicles, so he doesn't have any problem getting around in this thing. To me, SUV's are utterly useless without it. I just let Chad do the driving when the roads are bad.

As for the animals, they have varying views about the weather.
Rox is so little, he can usually walk on top of the snow, but when he falls through, the poor guy just about gets buried in it. He tries to stick to walking in someone else's footprints, but sometimes he has to blaze his own trail.

Cooper adores the snow. This dog prefers being outside, even when it's frigid cold & blowing snow. He runs through it, tries to get the other dogs to play with him, & when we try to bring him back inside, he usually just flops down in the snow & refuses to move. Today, even a treat wouldn't tempt him back inside when I left for work, so I unwillingly left him in his snow-drifted pen, where he was quite content to lay in the snow instead of his doghouse.

The horses usually don't mind the snow, unless it's blowing or coming down really fast.

And I do apologize for posting so many pictures. I'm a very visual person, & I love having pictures to go along with whatever I'm talking about.

If we get as much snow as they're saying we will, I'm very well prepared to sit at home with a cup of hot chocolate & marshmallows, snuggle up on the couch with Chad, & watch Roseanne re-runs all day. We've got a generator in the shed, a well-stocked freezer, & a Crockpot ready to whip up some delicious hot dinners for cold evenings. Bring it on, Mother Nature!

Happy Trails, all. Stay safe & warm!

The Cast & Crew

I might as well introduce myself & tell you a bit more about my family.

This is me & my fiance, Chad.

Me? I'm a student at K-State, studying Animal Science. I work part-time at an art gallery in a small town. I love our animals, the outdoors, spending time with family, weekend horseback riding with the hubby (soon-to-be!), attempting to become a better cook, & of course, spending time with my Prince Charming. :)

Him? He's a supervisor for a metal fabrication company. He is in charge of programming multiple machines & managing the guys who run those machines. He's a fix-it guy, fixing anything & everything that needs it. He's got a '79 Chevy Silverado he's working on now. He loves his video games (what guy doesn't?), & may or may not enjoy being the guinea pig for my cooking.

 This is Cooper & DK. Cooper is a 7 year old Australian Shepherd. I got him from the pound in May of 2011. I had an Aussie growing up & fell in love with the breed, so when I moved out of the dorm & wanted a dog of my own, I wanted an Aussie. I found him at the pound on a rainy day, sitting in the last kennel with a pathetic look on his face and a tick crawling across his nose. That was that. He is now a big fluffy ball of happiness. He thrives on attention, & guards us from coyotes and any bumps in the night.
DK is a 6 year old Lab/Border Collie mix. Chad got her from the pound as a puppy. Her favorite pasttime is holding down her favorite couch, but if you break out her favorite rope, game's on. She is the boss of the house. I love watching she & Cooper play, they are so rough on one another. Her favorite thing is car rides.

This is Rox, a 4 year old Papillon/Rat Terrier mix. We call him Fruit Bat, Radar, whatever nickname comes to mind with his gigantic ears. This little guy is just a happy little ball of love. His favorite place to be is as close to one of us as he can get. He goes to work at the gallery with me now and then, & is content to nap on my lap all day. He isn't afraid to try to play with the big dogs, & doesn't hesitate to give them a piece of his mind if they disturb his napping spots.

 Sage is my old cat. He's something like 11, or 12, he may even be 13 now. I found him at the barn many years ago. Someone was stupid enough to dump a declawed housecat and think he could survive outside, competing for food with a group of feral barn cats. So he came home. He loves to pester DK. He will block the hallway or a doorway & not let her pass. It's his favorite game. He does enjoy napping with Cooper on occasion. He also enjoys trying to sleep on my face at night. Not cool.

This is Chevy (gray) & Silverado (blue). I swear Silverado's blue, but he appears like a seafoam green color in every picture i take of him. These guys hang out in their cage, chirping at each other all day. When we let them out to exercise, they like to madly fly around the living room before they perch somewhere to hang out. Silverado loves to land on the dogs' or the cat's face. He thinks it's comical.

 This is Bubba. He's my 22 year old Quarter Horse gelding. I got Bubs when we were both 12. (He's 6 months older than me). He is stubborn, lazy, & hard-headed. He's also the best teacher I've ever had. He's teaching Chad the ropes now, & they're starting to get along really well.

Perry is my 15 year old Percheron/Quarter Horse cross gelding. He's my jumper. Perry is a big love bug, & has the biggest personality I've come across in a horse. He dearly loves to go to horse shows, go on trailer rides, or just generally be pampered.
Well, that's our family. It may be a full house & a bit hectic at times, but I love our life and wouldn't change it for anything. :)

Happy Trails!