We Did It!

Huzzah! It's the last day of January! I am smiling and happy about that and thought I'd share some "January moments" that might make you smile.

First, a lovely wildlife photo.

A herd of deer outside of Lisa's home the other night. She lives on the edge of town and has farm fields behind her home and woods to the east. Aren't they beautiful?

Lisa has had some mystery prints in a snowbank right up by her front door. They weren't the dogs' paw prints and they certainly weren't from the deer. 

The prints ranged from about the size of a quarter to much larger, rounded holes. What on earth was doing that?

Well, if Molly had her choice, she'd be a Water Spaniel. She drinks and drinks and drinks. We even had her checked for diabetes. Nope, she just likes water. Lots of it. Lisa keeps three water bowls filled in the house to keep Mama happy. (It's a good thing there's a doggy door and Mama knows how to use it!)

Well, snow is a fun to eat seasonal treat made from water, so you have to eat it when it's on the ground, right?

 

Finally, a photo with a story behind it. This picture of two newly minted police officers and their brother crossed my social media feed yesterday. These boys men have always made me smile. 

Good kids, lively kids, not a mean bone in their bodies. But they were very, very accident prone. Their mother was up to the challenge and took everything in stride. 

One of my most memorable teaching memories centers on all three of them.

The one on the right, C1 was the oldest and in my classroom. It was the last day of school and we were preparing for dismissal. C1 was winding his way through the desks when he tripped, fell, and smacked the side of his head on a desk. I heard the bang and then a scream, one of those that you know means the kid is really hurt.

He stood up with blood running down the side of his head. I ran to him, wrapped my hands around his head, and hollered to my aide Jackie that she was in charge. C1 and I then ran down the hallway to the nurse's office, with me keeping my hand pressed against the side of his head to staunch the blood as best I could.

There was another child already sitting on the bed in the nurse's office, C1's brother. C2 was sniffling and holding an ice pack to his head. Turns out his class had taken a last recess and he had somehow run into a tree! C2 scooted over for his brother, and the nurse began treating C1.

Mom arrived shortly after C1 and I did. With her was C3, the youngest, preschool brother. He wanted to sit on the nurse's bed with his brothers, so they scooted over for him. C3 hopped up and went right over and off the back, landing on the floor with a thud!

His mom took it in stride, rolling her eyes and quipping that their summer was getting off to a good start as she helped C3 back up and onto the bed by his brothers. 

The nurse took me aside and said quietly, "C1 is missing a chunk of his ear. You might want to check your classroom for it."

Let me tell you, that kind of news will stop you dead in your tracks!

I hurried back to my classroom and Jackie (bless her) was still there after having gotten our class out to the buses and off for summer break. I explained how C1 was doing and that there was a piece of ear somewhere in our room. Bless her again, she helped me look for it. And we did find that piece of ear.

Mom and the Cs had already left for the ER and the nurse said the piece wasn't viable, so we just wrapped it up and disposed of it.

In the end, all was well with all three boys. C1's ear was stitched and looked just fine despite the missing piece. 

Such a memory associated with these three boys men! I can smile about it now but at the time the adrenaline was really pumping. 

January 2026 has been a lot like that experience with the C brothers. Crazy and unexpected, with a sigh of relief that it's over. There have also been moments of great beauty and even awe such as the deer in the field behind Lisa's home. Times of humor when doggy nose prints showed up in the snowbank. And more.

January has passed and tomorrow is February 1.

To quote Reese Witherspoon, "We did it!"

New Ponies!

My first new ponies of 2026 are on their way!

Lucky me, I was drawn for a Lisboa.

I only have one account so I only rarely get drawn. And actually, Lisboa is not staying with me; I have traded him to a good hobby friend for this:

A glossy Beau N' Arrow from BreyerMidwest. The price point was the same so we did an even trade.

(Yeesh! The riser that model is standing on! Hope he didn't fall!)

 Liz Cory contacted me this week and asked if I might be interested in this china:

A palomino Cheval Stock Horse that Nancy Falzone wanted to sell.

I only have one Cheval Stock Horse in my collection, so I was happy to  purchase this one. Plus, Nancy is a long time friend and it is always nice to have a model from her collection in mine. 

Breyer has been keeping hobbyists hopping and happy this January. Yesterday the first offering from the 2026 Vintage Club was made available.

Sentinel and Echo in a gorgeous blue roan, reminiscent of the old red roan all three of these pieces came in back in Breyer's earlier days.

The foals are a gambler's choice, but if I had a choice, I'd choose the Running Foal. (I have a conga of 17 Running Foals already.) It's a popular mold and I counted 36 different offerings of this mold from Breyer with the most recent one being Nestling in the Robin and Nestling/Birds of a Feather series in 2022.

Contrast that to the Scratching Foal mold.

The Scratching Foal has only been used 11 times since the mold was introduced in 1970 and hasn't been used in 18 years.  It was last seen as 4 different iterations in the Fun Foals Collector's Event in 2009. No doubt the Scratching Echo will be the more sought after piece of the two.

Regardless of who arrives, I will be happy, although if I don't get the Running Echo, I may see if I can find one on the secondary market. 

I already had a name for my foal. Someone on social media said the color looked like milk after Oreos had been dipped into it. New name coined!

Goodbye, Morainewood

My childhood home is gone.

Named Morainewood on the Wabash by the couple who built it, we moved into it in January, 1970. 

One of the reasons my parents bought it was so that I could have a horse.

It sat halfway up a moraine and on the Wabash River. We owned the land on both sides of the highway.

It was beautiful in all four seasons.

And I did get my first horse, Amy, shortly after we moved in. 

And Cee,

Nick, Flame, and Pokey. (That's a hay wagon I am sitting in, not one for manure!)

It was a wonderful way to grow up.

Out in the country surrounded by woods on one side and the Wabash River on the other. Lucky, lucky, lucky.

My dad loved it so much, he said he'd die there. He didn't but he never knew that; Alzheimer's Disease had made it so that he never realized when we finally moved him into a care facility.

My mother remained in the home until 2015 when she could no longer safely live there alone. We sold the home to Wabash River Enhancement at my mother's request. (A group that works with Lafayette and West Lafayette to preserve the Wabash River corridor.)

The house sat vacant for over ten years.

In less than two years, the woods was reclaiming their domain.

It was hard to see that happen, but that was part of the plan - for the woods and riverfront to be preserved.

So it was not really a surprise when I learned this week that the house and barn had been torn down. But it was still a heavy, painful blow.  

And while I had expected that to happen, after over a decade's passing I had let that thought go. As long as the house was still there, it was still home, decrepit though it had become. 

The house and barn are now gone, and with them went some incredibly important memories. The last visual reminder of my parents, of growing up with my siblings, of my first horse and the others that followed her. Of bringing my kids there to visit Apple Jack and Granny Slash. So much happiness, so many memories.

Morainewood is now just a memory. But as e.e. cummings' poem alludes, I carry it in my heart. 

And I always will.

 

Dogs of Our Lives: A Sleepover & a Story

Lynn, it's so quiet here. Nothing is happening. You just sit at your sewing machine and Craig just works on his computer. I miss Tammo.

It's okay, Pep. He'll be back in the morning. He is just having a sleepover with Nashie and Mama.

But why? Why did he go and not me?

Sweetie, it's an Arctic tundra out in our yard right now.

When you go outside (IF you go outside), you do the ol' squirt and scurry, and then run back inside and go back to snuggling in bed.

Tammo wants to run, and he can't do that here, at least not right now. So Lisa invited him to come over to her house. He can use her dog door to go in and out at will, plus he is helping Nash who is also a little bored with all "this indoor stuff." (Nash's words, Pep, not mine.)

How about I show you some pictures from the sleepover? Would that make you feel a little less lonely? I'll fix you a peanut butter Kong and we can sit together on the couch and look at them together, all right?

A peanut butter Kong? Will you stick a few dog treats inside, too? I love it when I find those!

::Hug:: You got it, sweetie.

::Lick::

Okay, we are both settled on the couch, you have your Kong, and I have a nice mug of hot chocolate. Let me get out my phone.

::Scrolling to the text chain with Lisa::

Oh! Well!! Oh, dear!

::Mouth full of peanut butter:: Whatsa mmphh matter ?

::Reading text aloud:: "Tammo has pooped twice, run around the back yard with Nash, covered up all of Nash's usual spots, and we just completed rough and tumble time featuring Mr. Fox."

::Swallow:: Doesn't sound too bad, although isn't Mr. Fox Nashie's favorite toy?

Yes, he is. And if he looks anything like what OUR Mr. Fox looks like, he's soon not going to be long for this world.

::More licking:: That's what I was thinking. Keep going. Um, I mean, PLEASE keep scrolling. (Sorry, Lynn. Sometimes I just can't turn off the guide dog part of me.)

They had dinner, although Lisa reports she "just doesn't zhuhzh it up" like Craig does.

It is hard to compete with Craig's zhuhzhing! Man, the other night, he sliced up a little meat, added a sprinkle of grated cheese, and topped it with a spoon of cottage cheese! The man can cook! Um, by the way, can I have a peanut butter refill?

Maybe later, Pep. Let's keep scrolling.

::Scroll, scroll, scroll::

Okay, Lisa says she spent some time folding laundry while the dogs watched her.

Yeah, and I'll bet she watched one of those Great British Baking Shows she's so fond of at the same time!

::Laughing:: I am sure you are right! 

Wait, oh boy. Here they go again. Listen to this, Pepper.

::Reading aloud:: "These boys just crack me up! Nash just got off the chair to get a drink, and Tammo immediately stole his spot!"

Not a surprise. That's a very common Tammo-move around here.

Nash looks like he wants his spot back, doesn't he? ::Laughing:: Wait until you see this next picture, sweetie! But you'll have to wait until I go get some more hot chocolate and refill your Kong, though.

No, no! That's okay. I can wait. I'm kinda full of peanut butter anyway. Show me the picture. Er, I mean, PLEASE show me the picture, Lynn!

Looks like Nashie somehow ended up with the entire loveseat, doesn't it?

Those boys! I love 'em both but I have to admit, it's nice being snuggled on the couch, just you and me, and enjoying the peace and quiet of a winter's evening.

I like it, too, Pep. I'm going sit here and read for a while now.

And I'm gonna stay right here at your side. But first, will you tell me a story?

What story do you want to hear, sweet girl?

::Snuggling closer:: Tell me about the day you and Dad brought me home. It's my favorite.

::Hug/Lick:: 

That's my favorite, too, Peppy. Once upon a time, there was a a hard working Seeing Eye Dog named Pepper...

Collections Within My Collection: Resins (Part 2)

A very, very special section of my resin collection is the Kathleen Moody section. And there's an interesting story behind that collection, too.

Kathleen is my favorite Breyer sculptor. When her resins were first being introduced, oh, how I wanted a Palomar Elite!

She is also a long time friend. We have much in common - we love horses, we have big families, and we share the same religion. With those in common, we became good friends way back in the Haynet days of the hobby.  

I was just returning to work after sixteen years of being home with my children. Money was tight, tight, tight. The mama of eight children herself, Kathleen understands how tight a budget for a big family can be and that often there simply is no room in it for extras.

Like resin models.

One day, an unexpected box from Kathleen arrived at my house. Curious, I opened it. And my jaw dropped at what was inside.

Inside were some of her resins, and they were all gifts  for me. I didn't ask for them. I'd never told that her my dream was to some day own her Palomar Elite. That I thought her Magnificence was, well, magnificent. 

Well, guess what was in that box:

Palomar Elite II. It arrived unpainted and so I sent it out to Janis Whitcomb for painting.

My dream resin. It was now in my collection. (And still is.)

Kathleen also gave me Magnificence, one of her signature, most loved sculpts! If I remember right, Kathleen told me this was an extra blank she happened to have. 

Janis Whitcomb worked her magic on this piece, too. I love that bright chestnut color so much.

 I believe this Arabian came from her personal collection. It's a customized On Broadway. If I remember right, Kathleen is the one who customized it.

Quite a box to receive in the mail, right?  I will always be grateful to Kathleen for her generosity.

But she wasn't done. Earlier I mentioned Haynet, one of the old Yahoo groups back in the early days of the internet. 

I started a very small Yahoo group for friends that, like Kathleen, shared my passion for horses, kids, and religion. There were eight or ten of us and we had a lot of fun chatting.

It's a long story but in 2001, Kathleen told us she wanted to make a special sculpt for our group. We had fun discussing ideas and offering suggestions for the horse that she was going to sculpt  - not only our own special run, but our own sculpt!

That model became her Rockwell resin. And once again, Kathleen's generous side surfaced and she sent a Rockwell blank to all the members of our group.

Once again, Janis Whitcomb painted my piece for me in a gorgeous blue roan.

So many fond memories of getting the chance to collaborate with Kathleen and other friends on creating a model and having it come to fruition.

There's one more Moody resin in my collection, but it is much more recent than the other pieces. Kathleen's style is distinctive and I can recognize her work even when she is not listed as the artist.

I was looking at a catalogue for Trail of the Painted Ponies and this Fjord caught my eye. I knew immediately who had sculpted him. Looking him up showed that I was correct.

I've named him Afjordable and keep him on one of the model shelves in my horse room.

That all the resins I have (although you never know when you open a box in the back of the closet...) It's not a big section of my collection, but it's loved.

I hope you enjoyed looking at it with me  - I sure did!

Collections Within My Collection: Resins (Part 1)

Second Post of the Day

Resins! I have a few but I really don't actively collect them. But, like other things I don't collect, I do have some in my collection.

Like this Black Horse Ranch Special Run Percheron in leopard Appaloosa.

I bought him from Liz Cory at a Great Lakes Congress show. I wanted to have an example of a BHR resin in my collection.

Donna Chaney's china Circus Horse is a grail but I doubt I will ever have one. But! She does produce them in resin and I've kept my eyes open for one of those for years.

Luck was with me. A few years ago I went to a swap meet and discovered this full sized resin on a sales table. Painted in 2002 by Lisa Rivera, it is an older piece but still quite lovely and affordable. Home with me it came. Knowing that I would never own the piece in china, I was soooooooo excited to have the china-sized resin.

And then, disaster struck. I was reaching around it in the china cabinet to retrieve another piece. I must've bumped it and it tipped over and fell out the open cabinet door. Despite the carpeting on the floor, I heard it break into pieces as it tumbled onto the ground.

I couldn't look. I stood frozen, my arm still inside the cabinet and my eyes squeezed shut tight. Craig came rushing into the living room asking me if I were hurt.

Still not looking, I asked him what he saw on the floor. "It's bad," he said quietly, and I felt my heart shatter, just as the horse had. Craig helped me find all the pieces (one had actually bounced back into the china hutch and was on a shelf - it took forever to find that piece!) and I set the pieces together on my desk.

Fortunately I was able to send him off to Jennifer Danza for repair and he looks as good as new now. It is one of my favorite circus horses in my collection.

Donna also makes this piece in curio scale and I ordered one a few years ago.

Unfortunately it arrived broken (despite Donna's stellar packing job.) I had it repaired but it is a bit unstable and tipped over on the shelf and broke again. It lies on its side in my china cabinet waiting to be sent out and fixed.

Here is an unusual resin most people have never seen.

A VERY heavy United Design Classic Critters Friesian in harness.

It does well at shows where I am usually directed to put it in the china division. (Just as North Lights are.) It has many wins and NAN cards, but it is just so heavy and fragile that I no longer bring it out.

Another piece from the Sandicast line that is one of my absolute favorites in my entire collection.

Popcorn, a Sandicast Shetland Pony. Years ago he could win his class at a live show, but he's not really competitive now unless it is a collectibility class.

It is hard for family members to find a horse I don't have in my collection, let alone have never seen before. Gimme Grandma Sarah succeeded when she found this piece for me from Bear Country/Westland.

She was out west on a photography trip and visited a gift shop in one of parks where she was filming.

She brought it home for me as a gift. (And was very happy that I did not already have it!)

I've saved the box

and would like to do more research some day on this line of horses. I know nothing about them.

Good friends can be a source of new models, too. 

Liz Cory gave me a piece I'd never seen before at a past Happy Trails show.

Monte Cristo, a resin Arabian with neck band. Very reminiscent of the Family Arabian Stallion! Thanks, Liz!

When resins were just entering the hobby and Carol Williams had sculpted her iconic Ideal Stock Horse, she also released two foals. I bought two resin blanks, one of Okie Rio, the other of Parrs Dream Doll. Both were painted by Janis Whitcomb for me.

Cee Hunt on the Okie Rio resin is a portrait of my Quarter Horse Cee.

I was thrilled with Janis's work.

I asked her to paint the Parrs Dream Doll as a buckskin.

Both foals have done well in shows and have NAN cards, but I don't bring them out any more. Too much risk of breakage.

North Lights were hugely popular in the 1980s and 1990s. I had quite a few, but have sold all but my three favorites.

Fancy Freckles (named after a horse I knew at Girl Scout Camp) on the British Spotted Pony mold. See the two hearts? I've always loved them, but since Abby's death, they have even more meaning to me because she, too, had hearts in her coat. This piece Top Tenned at one of the very first NANs.

D'Artagnan on the Lippizaner mold. Lippizaners are one of my favorite breeds so he has not been sold.

And Sunflower, a paint on the highly delicate Scratching Foal mold.

She's curio scale and those legs and ears are very easily broken. So far Sunflower is in mint condition and is kept in my china cabinet for safety. She's also Top Tenned at NAN, but is retired from showing now.

So, that's the first part of my resin collection. Tomorrow I will show you some more that came from another friend who, like Liz, also gifted me with some pretty special models.

Stay 'tooned!