Honorable Mentions

So I know I said I was done talking about the hacker, and I am ,except to say the the "honorable Mention posts were also  part of what was lost . Those posts were stories about horses in my life of the last XX years , who in their  way helped to shape me , formed lasting bonds of friendship, taught me some valuable and heart breaking lessons .A friend asked me about them the other day , as  have a few others so I am going to post them again (if I can recover them all ) and then post the links on a separate page  for reference.I am title the page Unforgettable spots. So for those who have read them before , please forgive the repetition .And those who are new to the blog here we go!

Honorable Mention #1

This is where it all began.
In order to tell the story of this next horse I have to tell you a bit of my story. I grew up on a Dairy/Beef/Grain operation just outside of Edmonton Alberta. A great place to grow up I lived with my parents and sister on the family farm that also included my grandparents and 2 uncles and their families. Always had horse around to ride and I was at it quite early ,but I always wanted one of my very own.I saved and dreamed and wished and saved some more ,allowance babysitting money and my earnings from working for Grandpa washing bottles in the dairy. There is NOTHING like a focused teenage girl trying to buy her first horse ,dang I was cheap all those savings but never had any money to spend when I went out (lol)
Anyway long story short ,when I was 12 just before my 13 birthday I felt I had enough and Dad took me out to see this Appaloosa Mare named Gloalta Toyoga(Togy) she was a chestnut roan and maybe not the most beautiful in anyone's eyes but mine, But Dad saw her run that day ,and something caught his eye so he agreed and I bought her.
Lots to learn ahead ,Togy was recovering from an abscess, so I learned how to treat her and spent lots of hands on time getting to know her . When I could ride her I was in heaven! Wow could she run!! I truly believed with her I could fly!A graceful and kind mare , A little surprise came along the next year as Togy had been accidentally bred before I bought her . Yup you guessed it the subject of my next honorable mention will be Sunshine, but I will save that for next time.
Togy was a great old girl (just an old soul from the beginning) she took wonderful care of me and taught me so much. Not to say that she never pulled a fast one on me but she was a horse after all. Sadly I lost her at the age of 16 to a bad fall on ice , a freak accident but heartbreaking none the less. She deserved honorable mention not only for being my first horse, but for assuring my lasting love and dedication to horses.

Honorable Mention #2

Sherry's April Sunshine ( I know it was a cutesty name but remember I was about 14)

I believe I may have misled you guys with the pictures of the last honorable mention , There are 2 foals shown, the chestnut with the blanket is actually another HM his name was Chile Poivre and he will be next .

The one in the photo with me is Sunshine ,my special gift. Things I learned from Sunshine include, Appys CHANGE COLOR, patience is truly the #1 rule with horses and unconditional love is COOL,among many others. Sunshine was a bit of a surprise as mentioned it the previous post ,but loved from the minute she arrived. She was born chestnut with a few spots on her rump and ended up...well look at the photos.She was one of those horses that just simply loved people, from day one she was friendly no spook or shyness ever. She was a horse for firsts for me , first foal I ever raised. first black eye I ever had ,first horse I ever drove,first horse I ever owned to go blind and sadly at 23, while not the first horse I ever lost or had to put down the first one I had owned her entire life (I am proud however to have been there for her at the end)

Sunshine was a sweetie and early on became the favorite of many riders as she was so quiet and sensible , she became the "beginners" horse and took excellent care of each of her charges including her young foolish owner!

I rode her as a 2 yr old with about 15 min training(lol) in the St Albert Rodeo parade! She never batted an eyelash at all the chaos and was a perfect lady chewing a hunk of straw throughout.

Over the years I rode and drove her many many miles, chased cows,climbed mountains the works .

She was Alpha mare in the herd until the bitter end (a ranch hand once said about her "she is the perfect horse for me ,I don't like people and she don't like horses")

Sunshine left me a legacy of two foals Stryker , And Badger(my hotter than a pistol Peppy San Badger Grandson) And their stories are not yet finished so I will hopefully have many more years and stories before it is time to post about them .As a momma she was fiercely protective and pity the coyote that ever strayed near her or her baby.

Please forgive the pictures as she also left me BD(before digital )

Thanks for reading . I will be re posting the remainder as I find them . On Saturdays I think .Either as individual posts or 2 at a time as I did this one .

Lots going on this weekend , hope everyone is enjoying theirs ! Stay safe!