Horse books for the young set plus a recipe for some comfort food!!

Recently I was contacted by author Alison Hart to see if I would be interested in reviewing her new book Taking The Reins. Having been an avid reader since I first learned how I was glad for the opportunity.  Taking The Reins is the story of a young gal who has lost her confidence riding in the show ring due to taking a fall when her horse refused a jump, landing her in a heap right in front of the judges!  This girl is YOU and throughout this book you can decide which way the story line is going to go by picking one out of several scenarios.  This concept is amazing and you can go back, read the book again picking different scenarios and have a completely different ending! It's like having several books in one as there are 20 different endings!!

Being a horse lover since the tender age of about 8 years old I loved this book and have started reading it to my granddaughter as she isn't able to read chapter books yet.  The graphics are gorgeous from the sweet doe eyed faces of all the little girls that ride at Innerstar University to the beautiful horses that live there.  It's a story of gaining back confidence and helping the team participate in the big show where they hope to win.  Again, there are numerous ways you can help out with this show, riding being just one of them.  Do you ride?  Do you help in some other way?  Is the horse too spirited for you?  Do you do the jump all wrong at a canter, not a trot?  Do you land in a heap again?


Again, I must say that the concept of this book is amazing and I have never read one like it.  Having these choices in the story line makes you feel like you are right there in the middle of everything.  Any young gal age 8 and up with a love for horses and riding will enjoy this book and want to read the others in the series.  I can see these in Miss T's Christmas stocking this year!!

Alison Hart is an author of many books for young readers and you can contact her at www.alisonhartbooks.com.   I also read her book Emma's River about a young gal and her beautiful pony, Twist, on a treacherous trip down the Mississippi  River.  When there is an explosion on the Sally May it seems that all aboard may be lost............You'll have to read it to find out what happens!!  It's worth it!!




I know many of you have young daughters and granddaughters and these are great, wholesome, clean books that I know they would enjoy reading.  Back in my day I read Hardy Boy Mysteries and Nancy Drew but if there had been a series about horses or ponies I would have been on Cloud Nine!  I will be picking up all of the series books before Christmas!


Disclaimer:  I did not get paid to write about these books, I did get two free copies to read which I will pass on to Miss T!!!  :o)




Fall is here in Maine with the temperature being 44* this morning when we got up!  Yikes! Going from 90* to 44* is a shock to the ole' system but I like it cool so I'm not complaining.  It also gets me in the mood for some hot comfort food, spaghetti being one of them.

Oh, the aroma of onions and green peppers simmering in olive oil!! I simmer them until they are soft and not crunchy, about 20 minutes.

I add all of the other ingredients and simmer that for about three and a half hours on low.

In the mean time I make my meatballs by soaking crushed crackers in milk, add one egg, finely chopped onions, salt and pepper and 85% hamburger.  I used to use the 90% but found it to be a bit dry, that extra little bit of fat makes for a much juicier meatball.  Make into balls and bake in a 350* oven for 30 minutes or until cooked thoroughly.

Of course you need some rolls and I like to make the clover leaf rolls out of the frozen bread dough if I don't have the time to make them from scratch.  It's Rhodes Rolls in the freezer section and I put three of them in each section of a popover pan as they don't fit in a muffin tin.  I have made them with just two in each in a muffin tin and they are fine.

Did you notice one roll is gone already.............now I wonder who ate that???????




Spaghetti Sauce


2 green peppers
2 onions---I like sweet or Vadalia onions
Olive oil to cover bottom of large pot---I usually add a little more if the onions and peppers are big


Cut up onions and peppers and cook until tender.
Add:
two large cans Italian tomatoes cutting them up.
2--12 ounce cans of tomato paste
2--12 ounce cans of water
handful of parsley flakes
handful of oregano
salt and pepper


Add cooked meatballs


Simmer up to four hours on low stirring occasionally to make sure it hasn't stuck to the bottom of the pan.  DO NOT COVER! It's even better the next day!  Now I must go weigh myself as I think I gained three pounds just typing about all of this food!  Sigh.....


This is an old family recipe passed down through the generations.


I've been in my sewing room a lot lately as it is already getting dark out but 7:30.  I love making table toppers for the different seasons so whipped up one for fall the other night.  Well actually it took me two nights as I am a bit rusty.  :o(      My DIL makes them to sell and they go like hot cakes, especially the ones for the Christmas holidays.

Guess that's it for today.  Thank you for all of your kind thoughts and notes concerning my friend Barn Goddess.  She will be missed by many of us!!!!! Please keep her family in your prayers.

Random Friday

I haven't done a Random Friday for a long time it seems but there has been a lot of things going on so this will be a good week to do one.  The Mom's in the neighborhood were rejoicing as school started last week!  :o)

I miss the sounds of the children playing tag, riding their bikes, swimming and just having a wonderful time in the neighborhood.  Summer went way too quickly.  My two kiddos were anxious to get back to school  to see all of their friends so that was nice.

Don't they all look spiffy in their new school clothes?!

Here comes the bus, cameras are flashing!!  See my shadow on the left taking a picture?  :o)

School is going well for both of the kids.  They both got the teachers that they wanted which makes it nice.  Miss T has started guitar lessons and will go back to gymnastics.  Mr. D hasn't decided what he wants to do yet for extra curricular activities but will most likely play basketball again like last year but isn't old enough to take a music instrument at school yet.


The girls wanted to go for a ride in the cart so Grampie hitched Kipper up and off they went.  Son came along and took Lil' Bud to go along with them.  He doesn't ride that often but has not lost his seat at all, just hops on and goes like he used to when he was riding every day.  He chuckled and said to me "this is the first time in my life that you've let me ride in sneakers!"  I was always adamant about wearing boots around the horses when he was young the same way I am with the grands now.  Funny the things they remember. :o)

It was a gorgeous day with high puffy clouds and the sun shining down on us.  Not hot, just right!  :o)

Grampie was teaching the girls how to unhitch Kipper from the cart and to take his harness off.  Miss T did a lot of the driving with Grampie's help of course.

We had a fun surprise over the weekend at the lake.  My sister and her friend Ruth made a complete turkey dinner for us and all I had to bring was a quart of milk!  Now that is the way to go!

Ruth even picked a bouquet of flowers for the table out of my garden.

This is my BIL, Funsize, my sister Jill, Ruth, Jeff, and The Hubs was taking the picture.  I felt like Queen for a Day!  I know some of you remember that show when it was on tv years ago....You young gals won't! :o)

I'm looking forward to seeing Dawn of Call Me Grandma Dawn again this fall.   She and DC will be here visiting their son so hopefully we will get a chance to visit at the lake house.  It's so nice to meet up with our blogging friends, you feel like you have known them forever and pick right up where you last left off on your last post!  See you soon Dawn!


Last but not least please keep Barn Goddess' family in your prayers.  To lose a mom so young with young children is so sad I cannot even imagine it.  Her husband has a huge job ahead of him trying to be both mom and dad to Wee One and Bubba.  Also pray for her extended family as they struggle with such a loss.  Thanks!

We miss you BG!

Thank you Dickiebo for the picture!




It is with a heavy heart that I write this post.  As many of you horsey people know our good friend and fellow blogger Barn Goddess passed away recently.  It is a shock to all of us who knew her and I still can't really get my mind to accept such sad news.


Barn Goddess' blog Ramblings From the Reservation was one of the first blogs that I started to read back 3 or 4 years ago.  She cracked me up with all the goings on around her place with her darling son Wee One and her older son Bubba.  Throw in Marvin the cat and Scooter her old man of a horse and there were always stories to brighten your day.


BG as we called her could be a little rough around the edges at times, making this old gal blush, but told it like it was and had a heart of gold.  She loved her family beyond measure and her four legged kids as much too.  Her style of writing was so unique, she could say more in one short sentence then I could in a whole paragraph and you knew exactly what she meant.  She could hand back the quips as fast as you could dish them out and all in good fun.


Her horse was one of the bright spots in her life and although she didn't ride as much as she would have liked to when she did she liked to go like the wind!  Scooter was in his thirties and had myriad issues that she diligently cared for.  I learned so much about different feeds and supplements from her.  Scooter was one pampered horse.


I will miss her posts and e-mails so much.  I had hoped to meet her in person one day.  I feel blessed to have known her even though it was through cyberspace.  Rest in peace Lori, we all miss you!!!!!

Quilting bug has hit again!

Well for all the hoopla that we have been hearing about all week about mighty Earl he kind of pooped out before her got to central Maine.  We are getting pretty steady rain, which we need so badly as it has been so hot all summer.  Hopefully the lawns will perk up a bit now.  Not much for wind, 25 mph, a good Nor'easter would put that to shame.  We were prepared though, we got the boat out of the lake, put away all the deck chairs and such.  Better safe then sorry.


The horses are out in the rain right now.  They love it, they don't have to wear their masks when it rains as there aren't any flies to drive them crazy.  They get a good bath too.  :o)  The masks are kind of hot, not bad, but they do sweat around their ears a bit.  I think they look cute in their masks though, I always think of the line from Zorro 'who is that masked stranger!'

Funsize, Miss T and I went on a trail ride one day when it wasn't in the searing 90's.  It's always fun to get out on the carriage roads on a beautiful day and enjoy the woods, wildlife, riding and just being together.

The new road is coming along good.  Earl slowed down progress a little with the rain but it will only be a few days and they can be back there working again.  It's about 2/3's done.

I like playing on the equipment, makes me feel powerful!  :o)

Dad and I were walking the other morning and I saw the black bear headed for the woods.  He seems to hang around each year but doesn't do much damage, maybe tear down the occasional bird feeder.  When I walk alone I like to carry a can of Raid just in case he decides that I look like a good meal........


I'm back quilting again.  My friend Needled Mom sent me a quilt book and I have been happily stitching away on a quilt for Miss T for Christmas.  Also have been repairing some of the wall hangings that I rescued from the cottage when it flooded.  I made them ten years ago.  I love doing applique' and just couldn't throw these out.

I went to a new quilt shop on Friday to pick up another jelly roll, this one is all Christmas fabric and then spotted another one that I loved plus a few more things to work on.  I guess I am out of my sewing funk! :o) Thank you NM!!! xoxo

Aren't these hand towels darling?!  I'm waiting for the patterns to come in, I think they would make for a nice Give Away nearer to Christmas, what do you think?  These would work up really quickly and I bought some spare towels too so I am ready to roll!  :o)

We're headed to the lake today.  My sister and her friend Ruth are bringing lunch! Yippee!  Never turn down a free lunch!!  

Are you scared of heights?

Sometimes my graphics have absolutely nothing to do with the content of my post.  They just tickle my fancy and that's that.  :o)


It is HOT here in Maine!  We are back up in the 90's and usually by now it's getting a little nip in the air.  I'm not complaining though, we had a great weekend at the lake.  Next weekend we take the dock and the boat out for the season.  Sad to see the season end but fall is my most favorite time of year so again, I am not complaining.




Wanted to put a few pictures in of our trip down the mountain at Attitash in New Hampshire last weekend with the grand kids.  It is such a different thing to do and lots of fun.  If you are afraid of heights this wouldn't be for you, I just pretend that I am on the ride Soaring at Epcot and am fine! :o)


We got on the ski lift which was a quad so we all could ride up together.  They put the little sleds on the lift behind you and someone is there to help you get them off when you get to the top.

These are the tracks you come done on and no the sleds aren't attached.

Everyone looks happy.....so far........

Yikes!  I didn't want to lose my sandals!  I must say that is a good looking pedi!  :o)

Look at D's face, starting to get a little nervous....... If you could see his hands you'd see the white knuckled grip!

Looking  ahead it doesn't seem too high.

Looking back it DOES!

We made it to the top and got our sleds.  D was fine once we got up there and came down the mountain without a hitch.  Miss T did fine too but I was going so slow that at one point my sled stopped and I had to push with my hands.  I sped up a bit and was fine after that.  You couldn't take pictures once you got on your sled so this was my last picture.

The kids wanted to go again but it was the end of the day and we had only signed up for one ride.  Next summer when we take our trek to NH we plan on spending a day there as there are lots of things to do.  The Alpine Slide is the most popular and I'm sure they will want to do that first!




Speaking of heights. Funsize went sky diving a few weeks ago!!!!!  She is much braver then I will ever be!  This picture is grainy but it shows her in her jumping gear.  I can't seem to find the one of her in the air so will have to have her send it to me again.  YIKES!!!!!  She loved it and will most likely do it again!  Nice to be young!!  xoxo

I had been wanting to go on a picnic this summer with the kids so called over to their house to see if they wanted to go on an adventure.  Mr. D was going to camp with his Mimi but Miss T and her friend K were home and wanted to go.  I slapped together some sandwiches and off we went in the Rhino.

We traveled around until we found a nice spot and got the blanket out to sit on.  Something about being out in the woods and fields makes a plain ole' chicken sandwich and chips taste extra good!

Of course we had some yummy raspberries that grow right near my dear friend Needled Mom in California! Speaking of Needled Mom, I just got a wonderful book of jellyroll patterns from her as I want to make T a quilt for Christmas.  I'll probably not get it back to her till we meet up in Key Largo in January IF I have the quilt done by then!! 

The sky was just beautiful and the temps were perfect in the low 80's and no humidity!  

You know, sometimes it's the smallest things that kids remember the most.  They thought this ride and picnic was just the best thing since sliced bread and want to do it again soon.  And we will!!!!!