Proudly Introducing...Thalia Farm!

It has been an incredibly exciting weekend!  Last week I received a call from the Office Manager for a local businessman who has several barn rentals in the area, letting me know that a new barn would be coming available soon.  We met the owner Friday night to walk the property and get all the necessary information.  It is a five stall barn with 15 acres.  A good part of the property is wooded, so there isn't a ton of grazing, but enough to definitely support five horses.  It was a bit of mess, as he had forewarned us, because the previous tenant had really neglected the place.  We were enticed, and headed to Lowes to price out equipment that would be necessary, then went home to sleep on it for the night.  The next morning, Robyn and I headed back to see the property again, and the owner had already been out that morning and bushhogged the place!  It was a remarkable difference, and we were able to see that there was a good deal more grass than we had thought.  We were thrilled, and continued our research - pricing grain, hay, shavings, working up budgets for equipment, etc.  We talked out all the pros and cons, then called the owner Saturday night and made an offer that he readily accepted!  The barn is now OURS!!!! 

So yesterday we spent the day loading up on supplies.  We hit Tractor Supply first, and got a 100 gallon trough, pitchforks, cleaning supplies, trash cans and feed storage, and insect killer.  Then came Lowes, and a full size wheelbarrow, stall fans, hoses, hose diverter, a shelving system, a rake....Then we got a phone call from Amanda that she had 8 stall mats she would sell us for an amazing deal, so we went and picked those up.  In the process, we discovered that her boyfriend is selling his manure spreader, so we are figuring out how to do that as well.  Really, the only thing we are missing still is a mower, and I have been working on that all morning.  The startup is a little hairy in terms of expenses, but I think it will be completely worth it.  We are going to take on two stall boarders, and ideally it will help us both to significantly reduce our expenses in terms of keeping our own horses.  We aren't deluded, we know it isn't going to be all rainbows and sunshine, it is a LOT of work...but we are up for the challenge.

I have so much respect for my new trainer out of the whole situation.  She has told me multiple times that I was welcome to keep Delilah with her permanantly, even if she wasn't in training anymore.  She is losing a boarder out of us moving to our own place, but she was so amazingly supportive and genuinely excited for us.  That's the way this world should be.  Friends are friends, no matter what, and business is business - and should be left completely separate from friendship.  I wish that everyone in this industry could figure that out.  As a result of her being so supportive, we have invited Kelsey to be our "resident trainer" at the barn, and when we get our cross country course together, we are going to give her access to come and school at the farm with her students. 

I am looking forward to our bright new future!

By the way - our new place is named Thalia Farm.  "Thalia" is from the Greek, and means "to flourish", or "blossom". 

The barn as we first saw it, prior to bushhogging