Waiter, there are no flies in my soup..........they're all on my horse!

It's that time of year again, when those annoying little buzzing pests start dive bombing our equine buddies with incessant glee. I hate flies. I was pleasantly surprised when I first moved up to the Pacific Northwest from California. The flies here in Oregon were nothing compared to down there. I laughed and scoffed and thought hah, is that the best you little buggers can do? I think they might have heard my taunting because this year they seem to be out in record numbers!

I put a fly mask on Lily for the first time this year, which she took to readily and I broke out the fly spray, something that for the last two years I really didn't need (I guess they're making up for lost time sheesh) I've tried a lot of different fly sprays over the years, Tri-tec, Ultra Shield etc and this time around I really wanted to try somthing that was less harsh chemical and more natural so I tried Eqyss Marigold Fly Spray, it's botanical and smells nice but..........I think the flies are snickering because it doesn't seem to keep them at bay for long. I've heard that Avon's Skin So Soft is a great fly deterant and I've used it before on myself so I know it smells great, have any of you used this and if so how did it work? I've also seen a product by Absorbine called SuperShield Green that has Citronella, tea tree oil and witch hazel which I may try before going back to harsher products. What is your fly battle strategy? I'd love to hear about the products that work for you and your horse natural or not.

Things I Love Right Now!

This is going to be a new regular post of mine and may, sometimes *GASP*, have nothing to do with horses! It will be about something (as you may have gathered from the title) that I am loving at the moment (and sometimes forever) and it could be ANYTHING.............The thing I am loving right now is.............. The Coconut Hut! http://www.coconuthutbeauty.com/, Sometimes I'm referred to by my friends as the Coconut Cowgirl because I love all things coconut scented and I'm always on the lookout for great coconut smelling lotions, perfumes, sprays etc. I would occasionally run into a few things at a drugstore or Bath & Body Works and then I found the Coconut Hut online. They have their Beach Baby Perfume in the most luscious scents, from Coconut (of course) to Pumpkin Toffee Butter Cake, Banana cream pie, 7Up Bubbles and over a hundred more. There is literally something for everyone. They have a Sea Spray Body and Hair mist that is so light and refreshing for a quick scented pick me up and also a decadent whipped body souffle for silky smooth skin. Both the souffle and Sea Spray is infused with the scent of your choice! The service is great and the prices are reasonable. In fact if you hurry Beach Baby Perfume is on sale thru July for $7.50 for a 1 oz bottle! If you want to smell edible check them out!

This is going to hurt me more than it will hurt you............yeah right!

Horses are expensive, ask any loving horse owner and they will tell you it's true. Hay, supplements, farrier, board (if your not lucky enough to keep your horses at home), vet (the occasional online shopping spree at Dover Saddlery or Stateline Tack)...........all cost a considerable amount of the green stuff. The last time I had the vet out, just for shots , it cost me $115.00. I decided to check into the cost to buy and give routine vaccinations myself. Maybe a lot of you cost conscious horse owners are way ahead of me, but I was a little nervous about sticking that needle in! But what I found is that the same combo shot for Fall (S.Sickness,Tetanus,Flu and Rhino) from Valley Vet costs $21.49 and the Spring (Rhino and influenza) is $15.69. Yes, they have to ship overnight and that costs an additional $14.00, but even with those shipping fees ($28 if I order separately) I still save over $150.00 to give the shots myself! Was I nervous? Yes, but because the last two times the vet had given Lily a shot she had reacted in no way whatsoever I figured I wouldn't have a problem and I was right. Before I gave her a shot the first time I also checked out this video on Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XSxegxets1k, it really helped! So do you give your own shots? Are you considering it to help cut costs in harder times? I'd love to hear about it.

The Mysterious Case Of The Missing Blogger.......

It was a dark and stormy night..........(I think all posts with Mysterious in the title should start like that!!)

.......and I love blogging, I think it's a great medium for all kinds of people to express themselves and share a little (or a lot) about what makes them tick, things that they love and their opinions in general. I have my favorites that I check in with everyday for a new post and when there isn't one I have to admit to my disappointment! I have fallen off the blogging wagon due to a few things (one being frustrations with photoghraphy) and while I don't have a huge following (hmmm due to the lack of posts perhaps??) I apologize to anyone who has checked in only to be disappointed! Thanks for checking and I am back (with Lily in tow)