My sister in law Donna is featured at the CHA(Craft Hobby Associate)in California

This shelf features items that she has made.  Go to her blog: http://www.memesartplace.blogspot.com/
and follow all the exciting news.  Congratulations Donna, we can saw we knew you when!

Test your ovens calibration without using tools!

If you suspect that your oven is cooking hotter than the temperature you set it at.  (Your Thanksgiving rolls burned)  Try this easy way out:

             Pour a spoon full of sugar in a oven-safe bowl or use some foil into a 350 degree
             oven,  After an hour the sugar should still be granulated(might turn a little brown).
            If it started to melt your oven is running too hot! 

Life on the Ranch 5, first Dressage Lesson on Aimee!

This is Aimee!  She is a 12 year old Oldenburg/Pinto mare.  She is wonderful.  She is shown here with her foal born 7-10-11, Justice.  He was a beauty and is living in Divide, CO with his new owner.  When Aimee got bred in 2010 there was a little uprising here at the Ranch.  I did not want her bred for two reasons: one I love to ride her and two  her foal  died when it was 14 days old in 2008.  It was very hard on Aimee and also on us.  Well Boss Man put her in with Tysen(Friesian Stallion) and I saw her in there and went to take her out along with some other people who were here at the time.  They got Aimee out and were walking her away from the stallion when Boss Man comes driving up in his Bobcat with the hay spikes on it bouncing all over the place and comes to a screeching halt in front of all of us.  After a few *!*!! we were told to put her back in with Tysen.  Which of course we promptly did, because it was hysterical him chasing us on the bobcat.  He looked like a transformer!

The next day Boss Man saw my reason and took Aimee out.  Well it only took ONE Night with Tysen

and WA la Justice was born 11 months later..  During the time she was bred, Aimee did nothing but have the royal spa treatment.  It was worth it Justice was a magnificent foal. 

Well Aimee is back to work and that means I am to.  She is a Third Level Dressage Horse.  Which means she is smart and knows her stuff.  So Saturday we had a trainer come and work with us on the basics of Dressage.  I had so much fun and was so sore when done.  The great part was I was thrown from a horse in July who is about 6 feet tall.  Needless to say we had a disagreement on running and she won.  I could have thrown a parachute and landed softer.  But good news is I started wearing a helmet 2 years ago as my one daughter who is a nurse worked at a Rehab Hospital where there were a lot of head injuries.  I was amazed at the sound when I hit the ground on the top of my head, but the helmet took the hit and I was sore but fine. Nothing a little Pro Extreme, acupuncture and

chiropractic didn't help.

So I am getting not only my seat back but my confidence.  Oh and Boss Man went out Saturday night and bought me new riding pants, chaps and a helmet.  What a nice guy when he's not chasing me with the bobcat!

Oh Aimee will be bred in May of this year to Tysen again.  Yes a mare can be ridden when bred.  Just not hard rides.



Life on the Ranch 4 "Taking care of the fireplace ashes"

Friday is trash day on the Ranch.  So on Thursday all the trash is hauled to the dumpster at the top of the driveway.  Yesterday I was putting the trash from the house in the dumpster and saw the container with the ashes from the wood stove.  I had cleaned the wood stove  two days ago and the ashes weren't smoking or anything so I took them up and dumped them in the dumpster.  I than grabbed the 4 wheeler and went and got the trash from down by the tack shed.  I also picked up the hose that we replaced as it had way to many holes in it.  I'm driving up to the dumpster and before I come around the trees I see smoke!  I was like OMG what's on fire and than saw it was the dumpster.  I sped up to it and saw the ashes were burning a bag and smoke was coming out all over.  Now you have to understand in the past our neighbors wouldn't have called the Fire Department, but that was 25 years ago.  So I grabbed the hose I had carried up with the holes in it and ran to the house and hooked it up.  I ran out to the dumpster and the hose stopped 20 feet from the fire.  I'm thinking I have to get this out as I didn't want the Fire Department put on notice.  So I ran down to the shop and got more hose and hooked it up.  Finally I was dumping water on the dumpster.  It took about twenty minutes to finally put it out!  Thank heavens no one was home in the neighborhood as the Fire Department didn't come.

Winner of Aviva Lavender Soap

We have two winners.  There orders came in at the same time.  One is Nilda B. and the other is
Barbara S.  Your orders with your prize will ship on Tuesday.  Remember the coupon is
good until January 21, 2012.

Thank you!

COUPON CODE FOR JANUARY

I guess it is the 15th of the month in Europe so here is the code:  COLD
This code will give you FREE SHIPPING on your order from 1-15-2012 to 1-21-2012.

First order in receives a free Aviva Lavender Soap. 

Something to think about.....

I heard this quote today:

To live in the hearts we leave behind, is to not die.

 By Thomas Campbell.

Pass this on to someone who has lost a loved one.

Rosemary Oil and attacking those germs in your home!

Want to kill germs that are in the air of your home?  Everyday your family brings home germs and bacteria that they pickup all day.  An easy way to help eliminate them is as easy as boiling water.
Put a pan of water on the stove, add a few drops of Rosemary Oil, and let the oil permeate the air.

You can find Rosemary Oil at your local health food store and sometimes the grocery store.

If you don't like the smell of the Rosemary Oil add a little vanilla to it.

Using a PITCH FORK wrong on the Ranch!

Here is a "Told You So" story.  Thursday night I went down after my husband had fed all the horses
to feed the kittens.  Well the babies (Thor and Dove) looked like they wanted a little more hay.
So I picked up the pitch fork and got them a load of hay.  Problem was I turned when I threw it in their stall.  Yup, I hurt my back!  I have been using ice, heat and a lot of PRO Extreme on it.

My husband has told me for years, don't do that you will hurt yourself.  Guess I should listen, he was right!  But on the flip side he brings me food and drink and I have the remote!!!!  HMMM maybe a little rest isn't so bad.

SUNSET ON THE RANCH!

The sun setting over the Rocky Mountains last night was magnificent!  The reds were beautiful.
The weather has been beautiful, it was in the 60's yesterday and will be today.

We need to enjoy it as the cold and snow will return.

BMI FORMULA

1.  Multiply your weight in pounds times 703.
2.  Multiply your height (in inches) times your height (in inches)
3.  Divide the number in step 1 by the number in step 2 to get your BM!

Underweight:      less than 18.5
Normal weight:  18.5 to 24.9
Overweight:       25 to 29.9
Obese:              30 or higher
Morbid obesity:  40 or higher

Source:  National Institutes of Health and American Society for Metabolic & Bariatric Surgery.

For example if you weigh 148 pounds and five feet six inches tall, the calculation would look like this:

1.  148 pounds x 703=104,044
2.  66 x 66 =4,356
3.  104,044/4,356 = 23.9 BMI (normal)  or your SKINNY JEANS WILL FIT!

What is BMI ( BARELY MADE it IN your jeans) or a bad stomache?

The question is:  What is BMI?  To people my age it sounds like something you ate that didn't sit well or its that age old question from your grandmother "When was your last Bowel movement".  Ohh bad subject! Anyways it is a common question among people today "What is your BMI?"  Those with a good BMI answer quickly, however those of us who aren't sure just smile.

BMI is Body Mass Index.  It is a formula that you use to calculates your body fat.  Now I find that pretty funny that millions of dollars have been spent on scales, books and diets to get this horrible little number.  In my day if you couldn't fit in your skinny jeans and needed the fat ones, than your fat index
(your belly) was up!  We didn't need a formula for that.  Other ways to see if your Fat Index was up, was to try and get an honest opinion on the question "Do these pants make my butt look big?"

Anyways there is a very easy formula I found that will give you that answer for your BMI.  Than when you are at gatherings for business or with friends and the question comes up, you can proudly
answer what your BMI is.