Welcome to 2020

I bought the scale down to the barn. How much poop do I shovel a day? Inquiring minds wanted to know!

I scooped 31.4 lbs. The bucket weighs 3.5 lbs.

UPDATE: The next day, I scooped 41 lbs and then I scooped 54.8 lbs the day Carrie did night chores and left scooping for the morning! That's 2 out of 5 horses and the smaller ones at that. We manufacture over a 100 lbs of poop a day if you know anyone who wants some.

I decided to get scientific. I started to weigh other things. 

Like how much sweet feed the horses get. Annie's scoop weighs about 1.6 lbs which is the same as Sam's, Eddie's, and Annie's scoops combined! She's a growing pony while they're all older (and possibly on diets). Nibs' scoop was the largest at 2 lbs, though. She eats over a third of the daily intake.

The scale counts to the nearest fifth of a pound, so it's not the most accurate. It kept me entertained for a morning.

The balancer comes with it's own weight measuring cup. If I had more exacting equipment I might have checked it for accuracy.

Loki and I have been going on morning jaunts to get his energy out. We go out front, he chases cars, and then he poops around back.

I spotted what looked to be the remains of a bush in the field, so I went to investigate. It felt firm under my shoe and I couldn't pull it up so I returned with a spade. I'm a big believer in being faithful to the little things consistently pays off hugely in the long run.

I found another bone while I was at it (not pictured). It was about a foot long and probably a shinbone/tibia.

I asked Shane if he wanted to help drag the arena and get a driving lesson. He really wanted to play a video game instead, so I left him inside and went to work.

It'd be more efficient to move the jump aside, but then I wouldn't get to be creative with my zen horse arena gardening.

Gay came over for a ride with Carrie.

Carrie was on Sam and taking it easy. She's still working him back up from when he had his stifle pain.

Gay put Maddy through her paces! It took a little work, but she pushed her into a canter.

I observed from the kitchen. It was a beautiful day for a ride.

Shane and I drove up the mountain to see Patrick and Shelby once the rides were done. They gave us presents! Shane got a chocolate orange that I ended up eating most of (Shelby and Patrick helped too!).

Their lives are moving along. Patrick has a newer car with a recognizable license plate. He's working as a cook and taking classes. Shelby's graduated and working as an ABA therapist.

The biggest change is probably that Shelby commandeered/adopted their neighbor's cat. They'd basically thrown him out and were trying to get rid of him. He was very friendly (and very food motivated). Gigi (their other cat) was not happy with the situation and spent most of her time hiding.

Shane spent the start of our visit playing on Patrick's computer. He remembered a very specific tower defense Patrick let him play...it had to be over a year ago. Maybe here.

That left Patrick, Shelby, and I to chat. I'd like it if Shane was more engaged, but his idea of social is "Look at me!" and talking at you rather than conversation. 

I forced him off the computer after a while to conversate regardless. Shelby received an education on Slime Rancher.

He wanted to show her pictures and everything....which he did by unlocking Patrick's phone. "I saw his pattern!" Shane said.

Might need to work on your security, bro.

Shelby had a camera reserved for goofy  pictures. They'd already gotten each other, Kathleen, Stu, and their crew so we were next! Shane kept making faces and got caught somewhere in between.

He looked funny in the picture and looking at the picture! Instant classic!

Once off the computer, it was nearly impossible to contain the Shane. He enjoyed pretending he was old and needed to use a cane.

We left before it got too late. Carrie was asleep when we got home and I scrambled out to do barn chores. I told Shane to hang out in his room with Loki so that the dog wouldn't bark while I worked.

Today was the last day for me to put off school work. We got to see most of the people on my list for at least a little bit. Matt and Renee's baby is due any day, so we may make another trip to Northern Virginia, but I don't know if there's time! This whole break has felt like a cold, mini-summer.