Wow, where does the time go? We have had so much going on I don't even know where to begin.

We had 5 calves this year, had to bottle feed one. All are doing well. We got to go on vacation with my family thanks to John & Tiffany for taking such great care of the farm!  We have had to say goodbye to boarders who moved out of state, and we've had some great boarders and horses come into our barn family. We are so lucky to have such an awesome laid back group of people! We have been slowly getting more work done in the Takota barn. The lounge has come a long way and if I do say so myself looking very good. We have taken in "Oliver" a 7 yr old Moloccan Cockatoo who had a 2 yr history of plucking his feathers. He has won everyone over. He's a loud bird who thinks he is a beaver and wants to chew everything. He has no clue he's a bird, he really believes he is a human.  Everyone at the barn has fallen in love with him.  On Sept. 3rd the Fairfield Township fire hall cought on fire while a caterer was preparing for a wedding reception. Jimmy & his dad and brother are and have been very active with this fire departmet. They have been members since the age of 14. They have devoted countless hours of time training, time on calls, time doing fund raisers etc. It was very hard for them to have to actually respond to their own firehall. The building was a loss but they somehow got the trucks out. Long story short, the Takota barn indoor arena has turned into a temporary firehall. It is the only building large enough to house the trucks. My lounge has become a temporary bunker room/meeting hall. It's funny the trucks look like little tonka toys, the arena is so big. The boarders have been awesome in supporting us and the fire dept. We expect them to be moved soon but everyones patience with the whole situation is so appreciated.

Well, this week started out with a bang so to speak. Was working on the helicopter, we got paged to do an interfacility transfer. We lifted enroute. I sat in the back for this flight while my partner was up front with the pilot. We had just switched out to a loner helicopter while ours was in the shop getting prepared for the crews to use night vision goggles. Upon lifting we discovered that the"ICS" in the aircraft was not working, therefore  my partner and pilot can't hear me and I can't hear them. The only thing I could here was the pilot giving radio calls to a local airport tower. We were at about 3500 feet when all of a sudden we hear and feel an extremely loud "bang"it literally felt like something hit us on the bottom of the aircraft right under where I was sitting. I hear my pilot say "what the $%^& was that? As he immediatly does a high and right to get some altitude. I hear him tell tower, we've been hit by something, I am going to do an emergency landing in a field. I have no radio communications with our dispatch center. He then does a hard bank left to land in a field my partner showed him. As we turn towards it the sun was so bright it blinded them and they aborted that landing. He then does another hard bank right to attempt another field. Now keep in mind I can't hear them all I know was we were hit and now are flying all erratically all over the place.  I thought the aircraft was unable to be controlled. I get on my cell and call the hospital on a known recorded line. I thought if we go down I want someone to know something. So I talk to the Dr. that  answered the phone, tell her what is going  on. The nurse reaches back & grabs my arm, asks if  I dropped something I say no. Then I hear  the pilot say we are close enough to the airport that we are going to try to make it there, that way we are closer to emergency support should we need it. The pilot tells the tower  the aircraft seems to be reponding appropriatly. We make it and land, in the meantime, my boss and Jimmy are both enroute to the airport, they had been notified once our dispatch center heard what was  happening.  Long story short, our mechanic is called, the aircraft checked out, it is found that our boot (big plastic piece pice that is held on by several clamps, & is  wrapped around the mast to prevent rain, bird droppings etc from entering the engine area. ) From the marks on the helicopter it had flung off in flight, hit our tail boom on opposite side of the tail rotor. Thank God it didn't knock out our  tail rotor! From what I've been told this only happened  one other time & the ending was not as good  as ours. God must have a reason for me to still be on this earth & i'm glad I am.

Well we seem to be in a constant phase of construction. Items are being delivered from Lowes and construction on the enclosed lounge should be starting before the end of next week. I'm really excited to get this under way and completed, it's going to be so nice!!! It will be so nice to have 2 bathrooms

     We would like to say good luck to Tammy and congratulations on the purchase of their new farm. We will miss you and your horses! But I'm so glad you are now able to live your dream and have your horses at home.

   Our trail rides are starting to get a little more frequent with the nice weather. Studley and I have had a couple really nice rides. Looking forward to many more this year.

  Happy trails!

Hi all, well here we are at the end of February and when you look outside there appears to be no end in sight of the Winter weather. But soon we will be planting flowers and mowing grass. Due to the ice and or mud we were unable to get a tractor to the manure pile to load and spread it. Well Jimmy finally was able to and and ended up loading and spreading 35 loads WOW!! I put a new video on the home page. The two songs are by Nickleback I'm putting the words here in case you wanted to read them:

Gotta be somebody

This time I wonder what it feels like, to find the one in this life, the one we all dream of, but dreams just aren't enough. So I'll be waiting for the real thing, I'll know it by the feeling. The moment when we're meeting, will play out like a scene, straight off the silver screen. So I'll be holding my breath, right up till the end, until that moment when, I find the one that I'll spend forever with.

Cause nobody wants to be the last one there, everyone wants to feel like someone cares. Someone to love with my life in their hands, there's gotta be someone for me like that. Cause nobody wants to go it on their own, everyone wants to know their not alone. There's somebody else that feels the same somewhere, there's gotta be somebody for me out there.

Tonight out on the street, out in the moonlight, and dammit this feels so right. It's just like deja-vu, me standing here with you. So I'll be holding my breath, could this be the end? Is it that moment when that I'll find the one that I'll spend forever with?

You can't give up, when you're looking for a diamond in the rough. Because you never know when it shows up, make sure you're holding on , cause it could be the one, the one you're waiting on.

If today was your last day

My best friend gave me the best advise, he said each day's a gift and not a given right. Leave no stone unturned, leave your fears behind. And try to take the path less traveled by. That first step you take is the longest stride.

If today was your last day and tomorrow was to late could you say goodbye to yesterday? Would you live each moment like your last, leave old pictures in the past, donate every dime you had? If today was your last day.

Against the grain should be a way of life, what's worth the prize is always worth the fight. Every second counts cause there's no second try. So live it like you'll never live it twice. Don't take the free ride in your own life.

Chorus

Would you call old friends you never see, reminisce old memories, would you forgive your enemies. Would you find that one you're dreaming of swear up and down to God above that you'd finally fall in love, if today was your last day. If today was your last day.

Would you make your mark by mending a broken heart. You know it's never to late to shoot for the stars regardless of who you are. So do whatever it takes cause you can't rewind a moment in this life. Let nothing stand in your way cause the hands of time are never on your side. If today was your last day.

Well, gotta run for now,

Happy trails, Tracy

Hi all,

 Well after sleeping in the barn several nights, I left Heather's stall around 1 am. I had to get up early for work the next day. I woke early to head to the barn to check Heather and there she stood, a healthy filly. She was clean and dry. She must have had her the minute I left the stall the night before. She is absolutly adorable, and was trying to run before she is 1/2 day old. She is now about 1 1/2 months old. She is extremely playful and energetic and LOVES to run. She is very curious and has no fear of people. She has literally fallen asleep with her head in my lap. I made a little video of her showing her from day 1 to day 28. Not sure of her Jockey Club name yet but everyone around the barn has been calling her Destiny. Enjoy the video.<object width="425" height="350"> <param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/bagIkMoX3m4"> </param> <embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/bagIkMoX3m4" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" width="425" height="350"> </embed> </object>

Last week the owner of the pregnant mare Heather's Apparel was to make his first visit to the farm. He has boarded here in the past but has actually never been to the farm. Arrangements were made to pick him up in Ligonier and drive him up to see his horse and our facilities. I was just finishing up a 24 hour shift on the helicopter and on my way home. I expected to see Todd and Jimmy at the farm upon my arrival but did not. Shortly after I arrived at home Jimmy called me to ask if I could go to the firehall and pick up Todd, you see, while they were on the way to the farm a fire call went out for a logging accident.  I drive out to the firehall and see Jimmy absolutly covered in mudd from head to toe. Todd has several mudd streaks on his pants. Poor guy, all he wanted to do was visit the farm and see his horse, and there he was inadvertantly on an accident scene helping an injured logger with a severe abdominal wound. They had tried to fly the patient out but due to poor visibility and fog no helicopters could make it in. The patient went by ambulance to the trauma center and the OR. We finally get Todd out to the farm to see everything. He is unable to stay very long due to his job, but all in all I think his first visit to the farm was good... I'm sure it was memorable!!
  We have recently had 3 new horses added to the Takota Barn. 2 of the horses had been here before but moved to S. Carolina. The owner is now back in Pa. so the horses are back with us.  The 3rd horse is a Rocky mountain horse, he is just beautiful!!
  We have had "the fence guy" out to give a bid on fencing off another large paddock so hopefully that will be started and completed soon.
  We are still making hay and loading the barns. Plans are to get the oats off this Thursday. So much to be done and not enough hours in the day!
 Well, just got back from a flight ( chainsaw accident) got paperwork to do.

Happy trails,

Tracy

Hi all,

   Well we are back from vacation, back to flying and farming. Our vacation was great! Been a couple years since we went and we did NOTHING. We were with my family, we always laugh so hard and have a good time, probably because I don't think we are completely sane. Everything went good on the farm while we were gone thanks to wonderful, capable, trustworthy friends & family. Only one calf was born and that was with no difficulty. The last calf was born the other day, all are healthy and happy and act like they are trying out for the PBR every night in the pasture. Went for a couple trail rides, it was nice to get back in the saddle. Couranna's owner (mare put down after breeding) has purchased a new mare called Heathers Apparel. She is in foal to Andromada's Hero and is due about 9-7-08. She is a little too underweight for my liking, so we are trying to help her gain weight in a healthy manner. She is an absolute sweetheart and seems to have a "been there done that" attitude. I'm looking forward to spending some time with her, getting her to trust us and feel at home here. She has integrated well with the herd.  One of our current boarders has just purchased a Belgian gelding. He should arrive next week. I can't wait to see him and big John just hanging out in the pasture together. I usually ride my QH but may just have to take Big John out on a trail ride just to see the reactions of people when two hugh Belgians come clomping down the road. They are such gentle giants. We are really trying everything possible to get more weight on Big John ( thanks Heather) he has just been behind the 8 ball for so long, has no molars, a hugh gap in the middle of his bottom teeth and the uppers are about ground down to the gums, but I think we are making progress. One newer boarder has an 11 year old girl who has bonded with him so much, I swear his eyes just light up when she gets on him. He comes right to her from the middle of the pasture and his coat is just shining from all the good grooming she has given him. I think God brought them together for a reason!
 Well, just got back from a flight. Young guy was hit by a tree while on the job clearing trees and brush for the power lines. I can tell you, he has a badly fractured leg but had he not been wearing his helmet I don't think he'd be here right now. Now this is the same job my son does so of course I had to do the motherly thing and call him and make sure he keeps wearing his helmet. You never stop being a mother no matter what their age, if anyone out there knows how to put their kids in a plastic bubble and protect them all their lives let me know.
 If you get totally bored and want to waste some time go to www.youtube.com and search Virginia beach vacation 2008. I made it for my mom the last day of our vacation. It is 3 songs long, the last song by Mark Harris " find your wings" has such great lyrics.

Happy trails,

Tracy

Well, it's been a while since I've written, we have really been busy. We have some new boarders in The Takota Barn, a mare in for training and have been squeezing a group trail ride in at least once a week. Not to mention we still have many projects to work on in the Takota Barn, and fields that need plowed, planted etc. We have had two calves born, both about 3 weeks early. The first one needed minimal help and is out running in the pasture with the herd. The second one...well she is our little miracle. Her mother started into labor early in the am. We kept a close eye on her since this would be her first. We noticed that she could not progress past just being able to push the tips of the front feet out. We were questioning if the calf was not presenting in a normal position. After a cow is in labor over an hour you are to try to assist her, well after many hours of her pushing and getting nowhere but also not letting us get close enough to help we were able to get her into a stall and assist. I was on the phone with the vet many times throughout the day for advice. She advised me that after such an extended time in labor that the calf is definatly going to need assistance in getting out and that we probably would not be dealing with a live calf. So with each contraction we tried to assist. Jimmy was able to break the sack and grab ahold of the feet but could not pull it out. We got twine to wrap around the feet and again pulled with each contraction, still not able to get it out. Called for help, so now my brother in law and father in law are also pulling with Jimmy. They finally pulled the front feet, head and chest out. The calf was absolutly hugh and ALIVE. She was covered in muconium ( a sign the calf was in distress) We cleared her airway, applied lubrication to help get her the rest of the way out. Again all three guys pulled with each contraction but could not get the calves pelvis to pass. We finally had to hook her to the wench on the Polaris and pull. That finally got her out. The mom had some tearing and was exhausted, the calf was breathing on her own. We cleaned and dried her, took care of the mom and waited. She had been in active labor well over 8 hours. We weren't sure how this was going to end. I ran and got some colostrum in case we needed it. When I got back you could tell the calf never moved and definatly did not nurse. Mom was up and had been cleaning her trying to get her up. We gave her a bottle with the colostrum, ( I'm surprised mom let us in to handle the calf) we started noticing that the calf would not use it's back leggs at all. She would draw them in towards her but could not extend or bear any weight. It was as if the was paralyzed. This went on for two more days. We bottle fed her, tried to work her legs as much as possible and turned her from side to side with still no sign of any use of the back legs. The third day I opened the door, the mom left, came back and called the calf over and over, the calf made no attempts to try to follow. We seperated them and resigned ourselves to the fact that she would not survive. I snuck down much later that night, gave her another bottle, cried ( I had become so attached to her) did my routine of working her back legs and prayed. After many calls to the vet we all pretty much decided she must have a spinal cord injury. I went to bed with a very heavy heart. The next morning I went through my routine of feeding the horses but left the cows for Jimmy, I just couldn't look at the calf knowing this was her last day. While in The Takota Barn feeding, Jimmy came in and told me to go make a bottle. I asked if she was moving her back leggs, he said she was trying to stand. Anything in my way got run over as I ran to the house to make a bottle. I went in the stall, we tried to get her up, she was still extremely weak in the hind end, we held her up with us doing 90% of the holding, but it was more than she had done so far and she chugged her whole bottle. We worked her back leggs and left her rest. Came back a couple hours later and repeated the whole process. By the end of the day we had to get her up but she would stand all on her own. We couldn't believe it. I sent a picture to the vet via my cell phone, she called me back, none of use could believe it. I asked that since mom had not been nursed on since birth ( over 3 days) and had been seperated from the calf was it possible to try and get her to nurse still. She said it will be painfull for the mom but that maternal instinct is really strong and to give it a try. We brought mom in, had to stand the calf lead her over and put her on but it worked. It was a sight none of us thought we'd see. After two days of not having to assist in any way I went down and opened the door. Mom wanted out bad, she went to the run in and called. The calf went out and was trying to run and jump. I was all by myself crying and laughing at the same time. I knew she needed sunshine and exercise to keep going. I opened the gate to the run in, mom went out right away, called the calf but she just didn't understand how to step down out of the barn. I helped her out, she wasn't sure what to do. Mom kept walking out and calling the calf. Well the calf would only go forward when I did so here we were, mom, me and the calf headed out to pasture. We got down to the herd, they all greeted her, and mom was very watchful and ready to protect. I was so happy, I started back up to the barn well here comes the calf, totally following me and not listening to her mom bawling for her. I stopped, she came right up and acted like she did when I bottle fed her. I kept having to turn her around and try to run up without her. I almost just let her follow me, I felt so bad. But I knew her place and the absolute best thing for her was to be with her mom. Jimmy checked on her the rest of the day I didn't want to complicate things. The next day he couldn't find her, I panicked went for the Polaris and into the pasture. I wasn't 20 feet in when I saw her, she stood, I went over and just loved her. Her mom came running up the hill, she let me touch her and the calf a while then they both wondered back to the herd. It's times like this that leave me totally speechless and confirm that God is all around us. We just have to open our eyes and see the miracles that happen every day.

Happy Trails,
Tracy

Well, got the news yesterday on Couranna. ( the thoroughbred mare sent to be bred) They did live cover on her twice that we know of. They had called and said they thought she was constipated. After another vet exam it was found that she had a distal colon tear grade three. She lasted 7 days then had to be put down. I feel really bad for her and her owner. She was really a sweet mare.
 I put another video on the you tube site. It's of some of the horses when they are being turned out.
 We have a temporary boarder in the Takota Barn. Cupcake ( QH mare) is here while her owner is in the area working. She's really a nice mare.
 All the stalls are done except for the painting of the clear coat on the walls.
Well, just got back from a flight to Childrens Hospital in Pittsburgh, gonna try to catch some sleep.

Happy trails,

Tracy

Well, we've been busy, haven't had a chance to write.
1 week after getting my truck fixed I was on the way home from work and again the rear end started sliding. I was on a sheet of ice/snow. I again hit the guard rail except this time I hit three corners of the truck instead of two. I couldn't believe it! I think I am just meant not to drive a Dodge. ( I really want my Ford back!) So again I am waiting to get it to the shop for repairs.
We have 4 new horses in the Takota Barn. They are beautiful QH's. I am really lucky, all the boarders on the farm at both barns are so nice to be around and helpful to each other. That puts us up to 9 in there ( counting my 2) We are really close to having the rest of the stalls completed. All the automatic waterers, lights and bottom part of the stall mats are in. Just have to put the top of the stall mats and clear coat all the walls.
Alena and I took Couranna, a thoroughbred mare to be bred to "Service Stripe" at Pin Oak Lane Farm last weekend. I hope all goes well with her. The farm was beautiful, they took us to see the stallion, what a horse! Hopefully we can go pick her up in about 6 weeks.
Roger was out again last night using the arena. It's nice to see it being used ( I need to use it more myself)
Well, I'm at work on the down side of a 24 hour shift. Had one flight today for a trauma patient. Better try to get some sleep in case we are called out again.
Happy trails,
Tracy