Iam back :)

Well it's about time you popped in here. We all are waiting to hear your updates!! I know that you have been busy with the boys and goats...
But WE MISS You!!!!

I don't even know where to start. Last fall I up and quite my job, one of my ladies started yelling at me in my car about how ungratefull I am and how I don't think of anybody other than myself and I knew she was planning on going to Sams Club and I should have asked my husband for gas $ so she could go!!!! When she finally stopped yelling I quite my job, it was through the state and somehow my check got lost and so I wasn't even getting paid yet I continued ot work for her. Looking back I think it was a setup, she wanted me to quite but the only way she could do it was to make me out ot be the bad guy. anyway so things got tight, really tight, I stopped taking my meds, after all they are only OTC suppliments right? WRONG!!!! well right but it turned out to be a big deal, I almost threw all my art supplies out, I got depressed nothing was helping. Got back on the meds and am finally feelng ok again but it took over a month.

Winter hits and we plan for January kids like always because it's not that cold and people want January kids for the fairs. Well the does most are old, the rest are young and even with feed 24/7 they could not stay warm. It came down to them choosing to retain their pregnancy and maybe survive or aborting the kids and the does would survive. I had I think only 7 does freshen out of 20! one of the 7 had her kid outside he never had a chance and I was down there shortly after birth but at -20 below and colder it was just to much. then we get a thaw which did us no good at all, the goats had a path out to the round bale but it got slushy, one fo the old girls fell off the path after we had left for work. Another went down in the cold, we lost both of them before they kidded. But there should be babies anytime, we were forced to put our bucks back in with the does for May/June kids, they have a lean to but with the cold would not have survived....so we get to kid twice this year....YEAH!!!! NOT

Now on to the boys, Caleb who has struggled all through school has finally found his niche and we are so very proud of him!!! He's in Elec.Eng. at ITT and commuting from home. He is working part time at McDonalds and part time doing HomeCare for on my of my clients then going to school full time. He traded in his Jeep...because it kept braking down...(was driving our truck but gas was eating his check up) so he is now the proud owner of a 2002 Mustang!!!! He makes his first pmnt on Tuesday

Levi the younger one, missed most of last year running due to injury but is back on track now Turns out he was to conditioned he was building up some muscules not others and the strong ones were pulling on his pelvis. They also caused his tailbone to not flex but lock into place which also caused a great deal of pain. He finally was released by his PT and the second race back in HS Cross Country he broke his foot! Xray tech said it wasn't broke but a bad sprain so after a week he was back and running! He missed State but made Regoinals in Cross he really overcame a lot! On to Wrestling he tweek his foot in practice, I took him to the Chiropracter who took Xrays...the break was very clear, slightly displaced but healed so nothing we could do other than ice/heat. In December right after Christmas...when we all caught the flu...he got an upper respitory infection but only complained of "pressure". We gave him sinus stuff, niquil all of it helped but none of it dryed him up. Turns out his sinus infection settled in his ears, before it was cleared up both ear drums ruptured. They have no holes in them but both are hard like wood , neither move at all. Soooooo he seen an ENT who sent him to have a hearing test. He has 80%loss in one ear 85% loss in the other ear, we knew he had trouble hearing but did not know it was so bad. Acutally the last ear infection just made things worse, he has a tube in the bad ear and just had a hearing test again. He has improved but not enough and is getting hearing aids at just 17! he is excited about them though and was allowed to try on a pair, he scratched his head and asked if we heard that??? we said what? he said scratching!! he has never heard that sound before!!!!

My husband is doing well, his business is taking off again (Farrier). He's book has been full for so long that people have stopped calling. Now that he's placed a few ads and printed up business cards he is filling in the spots from people who have sold their horses or lost them. He is also looking at putting in another 30 acres of hay on our farm in Lawrence hopefully that will get done in the next few weeks

So that is the long and short of things, I have started to dabble in my art work again. I have 2 clients now and both are wondefull!!!! close to home and Iam done by 3pm every day!!!! I'll pop in here more we lost our computer this one is our older boys. Iam off for tonite though we went to a 5k this am, the Kalamazoo Color Run and walking on the pavement really did a number on my back. First time I've taken vicodine in forever!!! on the upside Levi led the pack and won the race although it's technically a non-competitive race. Caleb who hasn't trained at all was in the top 20 and the weather was WONDERFULL!!!!!!!!!!!!! But now the dark clouds are moving in off Lake Michigan so Iam off to do chores and milk. Hope you guys didn't get to bored by all of this hope everybody has a blessed and safe weekend and I'll promise to pop in more!

Wow Karen, you have really had a rough time. I am glad things are starting to turn around for you, and hope things only get better from here. Good to hear from you again. Take care.

Today has been a milestone for me. I asked ....not really asked ....but took a friend up on her offer to help. My barn is a MESS!!! we have cement floors and have to have manure packs to keep everybody warm in the winter. Come spring they really need to be cleaned up because of the smell, well I can't do it! Andy is cutting wood, Caleb is working/going to school and it's not right to ask Levi to do it on his own. So my friend is coming over with her children to at least get the two worst stalls done. Told her I had no money, she said she wouldn't take it anyway. I got the goats and dogs moved and she is on her way.

One of the babies we lost got stepped on, one was a twin and doing well we brought them into the center of the barn and left for 3 hours. The mom must have left to eat whatever happened her twins were flat out when we got home just 3 hours later. We pulled one out of it , lost the other, the 3rd kid we lost was born outside in -20 to -30 temps there was no saving him unless I had been there to catch him. The goat kids that lived are very nice , others have had worse years so I guess I can't complain to much.

So the barn was worse than I thought but Jac, Jer, John, Levi and Andy once he got done with wood, got my run in goat stall cleaned I helped some couldn't help myself. My legs are tingling but not numb and my back hurts but not so bad that I have to take something for it. Iam just so thankfull for the help!!!

Goodness you have been busy! Glad to see you back around.

It's great to hear from you! I remember the client you had that was yelling at you and being a witch from your posts on the other site. Good for you for giving it up. It sounded like it could be a very rewarding job but there was also so much heartbreak and frustration. It sounds like things are much better now.