"Dance, then, wherever you may be
For I am the Lord of the dance, said He
And I'll lead you all wherever you may be
And I'll lead you all in the dance, said He"
"Lord of the Dance" is a hymn with words written by English songwriter Sydney Carter in 1967. It follows the idea of the traditional English carol, "Tomorrow Shall Be My Dancing Day" which tells the gospel story in the first person voice of Jesus of Nazareth with the device of portraying Jesus' life and mission as a dance. (Wikipedia)
As most of you know, I love to dance. It is such a joyful
experience, I wonder why more people don't dance. This montage, done to
"I've Got Soul But I'm Not a Soldier" is great. What fun! I say we should all dance more. Saturday the electrician got here by 9am, so I was off the computer and outside early for a change. He started in the barn, moving a light that we had turned sideways because the garage door would hit it. It is now near the step that goes into the middle part of the barn, and when the garage door is open, it no longer blocks out the light.
I cleaned
stalls while the electrician worked and even had time to kill so cleaned
up manure out in the paddock around the barn. I did notice that Babe no longer has
diarrhea. Happy dance. Then the electrician came in and put in a dimmer switch in
our dinning room. I have wanted this since we moved in. More dancing. 
I
spent most of the day working outside because it was so nice out. Even the horses and cows enjoyed the weather, taking time to relax in the sun. 
I put a second coat of paint on everything that needed it, moved some gravel, cleaned (scrubbed) all the heated water bowls we will soon need and took some semi-moldy hay to the burn pile. Then I took Roni for a nice, almost two hour ride while Joe was off golfing.
Stew rests more than Babe.
I guess he still needs more naps.
He got up because I made him nervous and Brother came over to see what I was doing.
In the evening, Joe
and I finished up the mini series "World Without End" that he had
taped. Sunday morning we were without internet. The router was completely dead. So I had to find other things to do until early service. After Church we shopped, me for our groceries and Joe for a new router and food to donate to Church. Once home, Joe got our internet back up and running and I danced for joy. I did weekend chores and more painting while Joe cleaned out the corn crib. I thought I was done painting, but Joe had repaired the end of this board so I decided to paint it.
I took Roni to Marj's for a 3:00 lesson. I was glad to see Marj, who was out working one of her horses. It was
such a nice day, I had my lesson in the outdoor arena. Riding a horse can be like a dance. Roni continues
to improve... as for me, the progress is slower. So our dance is not fluid yet.Daniel dropped by late, after his drill weekend in Decatur, which included getting a flu shot.
The Water Lilies were a lively group for a Monday morning. We sang a few sunshine songs together while exercising because the day was so gloomy. I had over-dressed earlier, for morning chores, because it looked so cold out. Even though there was no sunshine, the air was quite warm.
I
had a very productive (actually rather exhausting) day. I moved this board into Roni's stall because it looked like rain, and gave it two more coats of paint. I also
scooped a ton of dog poo and put it out along the tracks, cleaned up
hay/hay dust from the floor of all the barn and spread it out back,
mowed (5 bags) of grass and leaves I put on the garden, once the mower
ran out of gas I stored it for the winter, fertilized and dead head all
my house plants, and did
regular chores.
The cows and then horses came in for a drink of water.
Once done outside, I made Oriental Cole Slaw and a corn casserole and then got cleaned up for Growth Group. We had our Thanksgiving Feast. Linda cooked a huge ham, and everybody brought delicious dishes... even mine came out tasty.
Courtney needed a lift home from the car fix-it shop, so I went into town
about 8:30 Tuesday morning. I shopped at four different stores,
spending plenty of money and time. I got some much needed items, lots
of food for the holiday weekend of eating, and also indulged myself with
some unnecessary purchases. I finally found a napkin holder I liked at
Goodwill. 
By the time I got home, groceries
unloaded and stowed away, ate lunch and checked Facebook and E-mail,
there was not quite three hours of daylight left. Joe and I spent all
of that time out in the paddock putting up a semi- permanent fence to
make a smaller dry-lot for the horses and to separate the cows and horses
when needed. Brother is usually under foot, curiously checking out what us humans are doing. 
Inquisitive Zorro also came in from the pasture to get a closer look, as always, and see if he could "help out." We didn't quite finish... ran out of fence poles and daylight, so quit for the time being.
Joe headed to the Replex to work out and I cleaned stalls
and put away fencing supplies. By the time I came inside, the day was
long past shot and so was I. Abbey was missing, but I found her resting under Daniel's pillow.
Wednesday was a very foggy morning.
Tiny coming out of the chicken coop into the fog.
Roni eating his hay. Our new fencing in the background needs to be stretched better.
Babe eating her hay while Stew goes for grass.
Horses playing musical chairs moving from one hay pile to the next. Zorro is usually the ring leader, chases off Roni, so Amiga moves to Zorro's empty spot and Roni goes to the pile Zorro had been at.As cool as the fog was, Lisa and I were not too happy about it. We had planned to leave first thing in the morning to go to Danville to ride. Our plans didn't go up in smoke... they went down in fog. Ha ha ha.
The fog finally clearer by 11am, so we altered our plans and went to Comlara Park, which is much closer than Middle Fork. We had never ridden these trails before, so Lisa was looking at the map in this photo. Her son Dayne came with us. 
We took turns riding in the front, middle and back of the line, and sometimes side-by-side. 
Mark and Roni were revved up most of the ride... but young Scout and Dayne remained cool, calm, and collected.
It was a gorgeous day to ride and the lake, woods and fields were very pretty.
We kept at a walk most of the ride because the old boys were charged, and might do just that if we gave them the "go."
Roni did a kind of Paso Corto much of the time, even though I tried to slow him to a relaxed walk. He was basically dancing down the trail. We would stop to calm Mark and Roni down, and Roni would still sometimes "trot" in place, similar to this video. Needless to say, he was very sweaty when we got back to the trailer. Roni enjoyed a good roll in the dirt upon getting home, but he was still damp after I cleaned stalls and fed everybody. I kept him in his stall because it was really cooling off after the sun went down and I didn't want him to get chilled. I went back out after dinner and brushed his dry parts.
For Thanksgiving, I gave my turkey extra corn. Ha ha ha. Little does Hercules know what he truly has to be thankful for. Here he is doing his Thanksgiving Dance back in 2010.
It was another warm day, but was clouding up and cooling off. The chickens hung out in the barn to get out of the wind. I decided to ride Roni fairly early because it was predicted to rain in the afternoon. I thought he
might be sore, and would benefit from
some light exercise. He required a good brushing to get the dirt and dried
sweat off his coat. Then I did round pen work with plenty of lunging to warm up
his muscles and establish a working frame of mind. I rode in the
round pen and side pasture, practicing a relaxed walk, stops and goes, and
slow gaiting. He did fairly well, especially compared to the day before. 
Joe and I finished work on the fencing. We drained the stock tank and
moved it. I added two bucket (tractor) loads of lime to the ground,
first to level the tank and also to prevent a mud hole there. See Stew in the corn crib?
Since the horses no longer have access
to the stock tank, we also got the water tub, including floating heater, set up for them.
I cleaned, chopped, and tossed a bunch of lettuce and veggies for a salad, we picked up Dan and Valencia at his place in Downs, and then headed to her parents house. It was a quick and easy two hour drive to Auora. We were welcomed like old familiar family and immediately hit it off with stories of our pasts as we got acquainted. Ricardo,
Yanith and Valencia Cruz with Daniel. Yanith had prepared a huge and delicious banquet of food, (turkey, ham, lasagna, two rice dishes, salads and deserts) which we savored while continuing our fellowship.
I found it interesting that this week's blog title corresponds with a commonality I share with Yanith and their three daughters... we love to dance!!!
Not home and in bed until midnight, this morning's 5:30 dog alarm (bark) seemed too early. I had to clear the cobwebs from my brain with a second cup of caffeinated tea. I took this photo of a cool spider web in the garden a
few days ago. While on the subject
of webs, I spent the morning cleaning them, along with dust and pet hair from many surfaces inside. With the 33 degree temperature and 30 mph winds, I avoided being outside anyway. Carol arrived around 1:30 and I was still cleaning. Saving the bathroom for last, I finally finished my labors at 3:30 and did a celebratory dance. Dan dropped Valencia and Charlie off on his way to work and I was ready to sit and talk and have a beer with Carol. Courtney and Mike and then Cathy, Ralph and Ben arrived within minutes of each other and everyone enjoyed each others' company.
Charlie has gotten much bigger since he was last out here. Abbey felt a little more threatened by him. 
The timing of my meal was a little off because the potatoes were slow to cook. I got good advice and help in the kitchen though.
Mike, Ben and Joe watching TV.Charlie was the entertainment for us ladies.
He loved playing (dancing)
with his mini tennis ball.
Charlie wore himself out and took a cat nap.
After dinner, we ladies rested and sat and gabbed.
Charlie was so pooped out, he fell asleep in Courtney's arms.
I gave in to sleep before 11pm as the young adults started a board game together.
"They cut me down and I lept up high
I am the life that will never never die
I'll live in you if you'll live in me
I am the Lord of the dance, said He"
Remember to dance with and for the Lord, filled with the joy of life, like a free spirited and blessed child.
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