Posts tagged as:

country lifestyle

From Sunrise to Suppertime–Makeup That Stays

by Cowgirl on August 24, 2017

A cowgirl friend of mine (Allie, who blogs over at Rocking E Cowgirl) asked me if I would be interested in trying out some ShadowSense eye shadow.  I’m not one to go buy the latest greatest thing, but I like wearing makeup so I said, “Sure!”
From what I had heard about LipSense, I knew the basic edge this line of makeup has over other competing products is that it stays on all day.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

The Beauty of Fall Horseback Riding

by Cowgirl on November 15, 2016

I started giving horseback riding lessons to two little girls this past summer.  With fall approaching, daylight savings time changing things up, and the temperatures dropping, we started feeling like our horse riding time might be nearing an end.  So we decided with these warm fall days still lingering here in the Midwest, we would make the best of them!  We went on a fun trail ride on a beautiful Saturday morning, and had a wonderful ride.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Riding Lessons For Beginners

by Cowgirl on September 20, 2016

I was recently asked by a friend of mine if I would give horseback riding lessons to her two daughters. I have never taken riding lessons, and never given a formal riding lesson. But it sounded like fun to me, so I said “yes”. The girls are beginner riders, and I am a beginner teacher, but fortunately we have two older mares to learn with, and that makes it all possible. We will have our fourth lesson this week, and I have discovered that it is as fun for me as it is for the girls!

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

A Western Wedding

by Cowgirl on September 4, 2016

This is when you know you’re a true cowgirl, right? You go wedding dress shopping, and your only requirement is that the skirt be full enough for you to swing up into the saddle! My sister asked me to photograph their beautiful wedding in the mountains of Idaho. I had so much fun, and the western backdrop made the pictures effortlessly beautiful.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Meet Trixie

by Cowgirl on July 18, 2016

As I recently browsed the Nebraska/Iowa Horses For Sale pages on Facebook, I kept seeing a lot of ponies.  So I mentioned to my husband that we should get a pony while the kids are still little.  He said, “No horses.  But I might consider a pony for the kids.”  Well, you know….that was a […]

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Catching Up

by Cowgirl on June 30, 2016

This is me, at age one, riding my trusty horse. Wow…it’s been a long time since I’ve written here at CowgirlDiary! I love blogging, but sometimes it’s hard to keep with the theme here because I have not been doing much riding lately, and when there is little to no horse activity, it’s hard to find the inspiration to write. I do have several updates though, so here goes: We sent Cletus, our five year old buckskin gelding, out to South Dakota the first of May.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Allergies In Horses

by Cowgirl on April 21, 2016 · 2 comments

It’s always something. This time, it’s our twenty-three-year-old horse Red, who has developed severe allergies and has what is called “heaves” in horses, or COPD in humans. The symptoms are a deep cough, difficulty breathing so you see his sides “heave” in and out with each breath (hence, the name “heaves”), lack of appetite or interest in eating, which contributes to weight loss, and lethargy. It’s been less than six months since Red came to live with us, and he was such a lively, spooky, fat, healthy horse that it is really sad to see him in his current condition.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Progress With Penny’s Pastern Cut

by Cowgirl on March 31, 2016

Read up on Penny’s pastern injury! I kept Penny in a stall for a month, doctoring her wound daily and trying to keep it as clean as possible. Every day I would clean the wound with Vetericyn spray, then cut a section of cotton padding, slather it with Nitrofurazone ointment, place it over the cut area, and wrap it with vet wrap. I cannot believe how well the wound has healed, and how she is almost back to full movement in a little over a month.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Pictures of Rudy

by Cowgirl on March 8, 2016

I wanted to post a collection of photos of my horse Rudy through the years, just to remember him by. He was the best horse in the world. I remember in high school I entered a writing contest and the title of my essay was “The Best Horse in the World”…I don’t remember everything I […]

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

A Memento For Rudy

by Cowgirl on February 20, 2016

When Rudy had to be put down, I saved a strand of his tail hair to have something made to remember him by. The week after his death, I did an internet search for hand-braided horse hair bracelets, and sifted through a few different companies and artists who make them. I found the website for TailSpinBracelets.com and from the photos of all the beautiful horse hair items they make, I knew this was where I wanted to order my bracelet from.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Treating a Pastern Cut

by Cowgirl on February 16, 2016

I haven’t had the best luck with my horses this winter. I went out Monday morning (a week ago) to feed, and saw Penny standing out by the hay feeder alone. All the other horses were inside their run-in shed, as it was a cold morning with high winds and blowing snow. I didn’t think too much about it, until I got out of the pickup and heard her whinny. I thought to myself, “I have never heard Penny whinny before.”

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

What Giving Brings

by Cowgirl on December 20, 2015

This time of year, it’s an expected thing to receive gifts.  Around Christmas time you get a new calendar from the feed store, a pair of gloves from the company you buy your calf vaccine from, a candy cane from some random Santa you meet while shopping, a bonus from the work place…and so it […]

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Old Soldiers, Home At Last

by Cowgirl on November 2, 2015

Last week we had a special visit from my parents. They drove all the way from Idaho to Iowa pulling a gooseneck trailer with six horses in it, dropping off two at our place, staying overnight and spending the next day with us, then continuing on their way to two other siblings’ homes to deliver the rest of the horses. After 50 + years of ranching, my parents are finally retiring, selling their ranch and cattle, giving away most of their twenty-some horses and mules, and buying a house in town and a travel trailer to enjoy some southern winters and visits to grandkids.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

A Cowgirl’s Hat

by Cowgirl on September 20, 2015

I grew up riding horses. Raised on a ranch, working cattle, living to be horseback, loving the country life…I was a cowgirl if ever there was one. But I’ve often said that I never really looked like the stereotypical cowgirl–no fringed leather, no turquoise-and-silver jewelry, no wild rag around my neck, and no hat. For me, it was more about the horse than what I was wearing, and I’ve never felt that the horses minded if I looked the part or not. But I finally got a hat!

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Bye Bye Bluebird

by Cowgirl on August 12, 2015

I love that old song my grandma used to sing, “Pack up all my care and woe, here I go, singin’ low…. Bye, Bye, Blackbird.” Well, in this case, it’s Bluebird we said goodbye to. If you recall, she’s the blue roan Hancock-bred mare that my sister gave me that we had shipped here from Idaho two Aprils ago. I finally decided to list her for sale this summer, and within a week I had several inquiries and one serious buyer.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Pass Creek Drive 2015

by Cowgirl on June 23, 2015

At the end of May, as we try to do each year, our family went west to visit my parents in Idaho. We spent several days with them, enjoying ranch life, mountain-style farming, beautiful scenery and their many horses. The highlight of the trip was the all-day cattle drive up into the mountains, through the Pass Creek notch, over the Summit, and on to Big Creek where the cattle stay for a few months during the summer.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Our New Baby

by Cowgirl on May 27, 2015

Spring is always a beautiful time of year. While the dandelions are still yellow, the tulips are blooming, and every tree’s leaf is that brand-new green color–that’s the prettiest time, when things are brand new. We’ve got a brand new baby in our family, and it’s made this spring very exciting and very busy! Jonathan, our fourth child, was born April 18th, a month early and unexpectedly and not without a scare (there were complications)….but we made it to May and he’s home and healthy and we’re both doing great now.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

“The Runaway Horse” Book Giveaway

by Cowgirl on March 24, 2015 · 3 comments

We are doing another fun giveaway here on CowgirlDiary.com! Up for grabs is a paperback copy of the first book in the Plaid Family Adventures Series, titled “The Runaway Horse”. These are delightfully fun books for young readers with stories about life on a Wisconsin farm. I was given a copy of “The Runaway Horse” by the author, to review and feature as a giveaway to one of my blog readers.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

Rodeo Envy Jewelry Giveaway

by Cowgirl on February 5, 2015 · 4 comments

The other day I received an email from Darcy at RodeoEnvy.com asking if I would like to review one of her western jewelry sets and offer a second set to one of my readers in a free giveaway. I said, “YES!” Darcy’s western boutique offers many cowgirl accessories such as concho rings, rodeo jeweled leather cuff bracelets, chunky necklaces, and colorful rock earrings. All RodeoEnvy products are made in Montana, and Darcy makes custom orders at no extra charge.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }

How To Wear Cowgirl Boots

by Cowgirl on January 30, 2015 · 1 comment

I have looked through Pinterest layouts and fashion blogs, and while some of the pictures I’ve found of outfits you can wear with cowboy boots don’t appeal to me, boots are pretty versatile and can be worn with everything from dressy outfits to everyday clothes. I spent this afternoon drawing some sketches to show my take on How To Wear Cowgirl Boots.

{ Comments on this entry are closed }