The farm is full. You would think that all the stress and worry of the last month would melt away into nothing, as financial burdens start to ease a bit, etc, etc, etc... But instead, I hit my pillow and worry yet again - this time, about the people who lost those boarders that I just took in.
WHAT IS WRONG WITH ME??? I try SO hard to stick to the professional side of the business. People are going to come and go. They will get tired of this, that, or the other thing, and eventually they will move. But it is still hard. Boarding horses is some peoples' main livelihood, and if there is one thing I've learned, it is NOT an easy living to make. Not by a long stretch.
But, with that aside, yesterday was total madness at the farm, but an incredibly successful day. Both new boarders ended up moving in within an hour of each other. We acclimated the mares first, which was fairly uneventful. Then the geldings, which was also extremely low-key. Out of the whole day, my mare was the worst behaved, and it was mainly because she was dying to get closer to the new geldings.
I fed bright and early this morning. It has been several weeks since I arrived to a full barn, and it was such a good feeling. I got up an hour early so I could walk the geldings around some new fencelines and make sure they knew where the general boundaries were.
Robyn is recovering well from surgery. In case I haven't mentioned it, she had her tonsils taken out Friday morning, so she has missed the last few days of madness! Poor girl - it has been a heck of a recovery. I hung with her for a little while on Saturday, getting her pain meds and liquids, and trying to keep the humidifier full, which seemed to ease the pain on her throat. She was not looking good when I saw her, but as of this morning seems to be feeling much better!
The upcoming week will probably be a blur. I just finished invoices - yay for me getting organized! I got all the new boarders' contracts copied to take out to the farm for their records. The weekend was a lot of fun, even though it was a lot of work. We made over the tack room first. Josh built a shelf to get our mini-fridge off the ground, so it opened up more space for grain storage and the new boarders' tack. We finally got the door latch installed to hold the door back, and hung the feed chart and a new chart for turnout/field arrangements. We lopped and chainsawed trees, re-mounted corner feeders, installed a new line of fencing to block off the lane between paddocks....I love a well-organized operation. If there is one thing I know I do well, it is run things in a fairly organized and efficient manner.
Next tasks at hand - more fencing, to subdivide the back field; more tree clearing, and a little gravel driveway makeover to extend the parking area. And we can never forget - there is ALWAYS the need to fight the mud this time of year! That has become a full time job in and of itself.....
It sounds like you are living your dream, but the realities are the pieces of the dream that don't show themselves until it's being lived. That's okay; your humanity is what's keeping you tossing and turning. Being concerned about others, worrying if your charges will adjust - it's all part of being a complete human. So glad you have the opportunity to do this while you are young and have the physical strength to turn your dreams into reality. Would love to come visit sometime -- once you feel the timing is right.
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