Ap-polo-loosa

Once or twice every summer, a big group of polo ponies spends the night at my barn.

They arrive late and leave early, which means I usually miss them entirely.

Not this year!

Most of them look the way you'd expect polo ponies to look: athletic,

lean,

bald,

solid colored.

Hold on a second!

Two of these things are not like the others!

Mixed in with all the greys, bays and chestnuts was a very interesting pinto...

so pretty!

...and tied to the trailer was my favorite type of Appaloosa.

Hello, handsome!

We were told this one was a "bad boy."

Instead of going in the field with the others, he needed his own separate run.

That run ended up being near Sage.

Excellent.

Naturally, I spent some time with him,

drinking in his details...

and taking photos.

So many details!

So many photos!

Ours was a brief acquaintanceship, but I'm really glad I got to "meet" him.

I hope he comes back next year.

Wisconsin mish mosh

I've spent a lot of time roasting James for the packing disaster that defined the first part of our Wisconsin road trip. But, as bad as it was, all this was an annoyance rather than a catastrophe.

This could have been a catastrophe.

When we took the car off the trailer, we discovered that one of the pieces that holds the car in place had broken somewhere en route.

For reference, this is how it should look.

This could have been so terrible. We really dodged a bullet.

Kind of unexpectedly, I did get to see Tiffany on this trip. Her daughter, Julia, lives in Madison, and she and her husband, Paul, happened to be visiting. 

They stopped by the apartment briefly on Friday and filled James' still-empty refrigerator with a herd of Spotted Cows.

During the process of packing and unpacking, I found a cat harness and leash. 

James told me that Guppy wasn't a fan, but of course, I needed to see for myself.

For a moment or two, there was hope.

Eventually, however, she lay down and refused to move.

Something to work on next time I visit.

And there will be a next time!

I liked Madison, and I love my son. Despite the rough start - and the equally rough ending -  I'm so glad James asked me to help him move to Wisconsin. It was a pleasure spending time with him and his animals and helping him get started in his new life. Thank you, James. I miss you!

Play time

In case anyone was wondering, Nefertiti did eventually have her baby.

It happened while I was in Wisconsin, so I didn't meet him right away.

Still, I was excited to hear the news. At last, the palomino foal everyone's been waiting for!

He and his mom spent some time in the little paddock next to the turnouts before moving into the field with Glamour and her son.

As is typical with very young foals, they ignored each other completely at first, choosing instead, to spend all their time with their respective mothers.

Today, when I got the barn, they were finally playing.

I parked the car, grabbed my camera and went right out to the field to watch them.

Oh, so cute!

Glamour's foal - Sir Valor - is older and bigger...

but little Pharaoh just might be faster.

Weeeeeee!

Look at him go!

I'm so glad they finally found each other.

Brothers.

Besties.

I look forward to watching their antics for months to come!