November Hill farm journal, 151

 Clementine made it through her mast cell tumor surgery just fine and all news is as good as it could be thus far. We’re now waiting for the cytology report and we’re also waiting for the end to the two weeks of recuperation as her incision site heals. We removed the cone, are using two Suitical sleeves that we alternate each day so one gets washed while the clean one goes on. Thankfully we’re able to supervise her closely and have not needed to use the donut collar yet. It’s a chore keeping the Corgis and Clem separate, but we have a good system and it’s working. The only time Clem has gotten super excited was last night when we hoped we could have all the dogs in the living room with Clem and Baloo on leash. She was so happy to be in the same room with no gate or crate between them we ended up having to regroup and separate again. Her staple removal is on May 5 and that will hopefully mark the end of her restrictions. 

In other news, the cedars were planted!

They have stretched out more since this photo and are settling into their new home nicely. Despite being dug up and having their root balls wrapped in burlap for over a month they have hundreds and hundreds of berries for the birds. I watered them religiously while they were here waiting to be put in the ground, and it worked. I didn’t take the photo I wanted to take, which is the view from the arena, riding down the long side toward this end of the property, but it’s that view that prompted me to want this screening all these years. Instead of seeing the neighbors’ sheds and the stuff they have piled behind the sheds, we’ll soon see this evergreen screen. I’m really happy. 

I’m happy to report that the honeybees are super busy harvesting the tulip poplar nectar flow. We’ve put medium supers on the three hives that came happily through winter, and we’re watching Mnemosyne closely. The swarm that moved into that empty hive box is bringing in pollen and seem to be enjoying their new home. 

Everything I planted last fall is coming up and doing well. All the beds are quickly moving from bare winter foliage to green. It’s very exciting. We ordered a load of mulch on Saturday and that will be the next big task. Over the weekend I did some weeding, gave away another large bag of goldenrod and rattlesnake master babies, and we got some veggies to plant in the potager. The only other outstanding plants are the five crossvine I purchased for a special project. 

The herd is enjoying spring. Right now we’re having mid-high 80 degree days and nicely cool nights, and they’re all happy to be in their barn with their fans during the heat of the days. 

In the midst of the chaos of the past two weeks I spotted a post on our semi-local equestrian network. It was an Equispirit 2-horse gooseneck with dressing room, ramp, and XL for warmbloods at a terrific price. We haven’t hauled horses in a good long while but if we needed to, this is the trailer I’d want to do it in. It will also be useful for picking up our monthly load of hay on rainy days. My husband took the ball I tossed to him and ran with it, and the trailer was delivered on Saturday. To make room for it we cleaned out the little horse trailer (I’d call it a pony trailer) and gave it to our farm helper. I am swearing this one will not end up being a storage shed!

Yesterday afternoon our son, daughter-in-law, and grandson came to visit. While my son got their dog settled into the camper, our daughter-in-law and grandson walked into the barn aisle to visit the herd. I happened to glance out the back window just as they did so, and it was such a joy to see a whole new generation discovering a love of equines. He’s a fun, spirited, curious little explorer and the fact that he is so interested in our beloved herd is like icing on the cake. 

It’s been a crazy spring but these moments of pure joy make me happy.