This was one of several 'nests' that we made around the barnyard for the foals that year.  It's fun to go back and see them all grown up.  The black pinto in the rear looking at you is Step-N-Stone's Hot-N-Tot, he's on the sale page.  The sorrel pinto filly in front is, Paprika, a daughter of Cinnamon's, and you can see her on the show page, along with the bay pinto filly in front, Magic.  The solid black, between Paprika and Magic, is Midnight Star, now on the stallion page.  The bay pinto directly behind Magic is Brandy and the other solid black, way in back, is Blackjack.  It was a nice foal crop that year.

Because we have limited pasture, during the day, the mares and foals are kept in the main barnyard.  Since it is gravel, we spread out hay for the foals to have a comfy place to nap.  Howard snapped this picture one day when most of the foals were asleep and the mares were keeping watch over their foals.

Beauty is a Percheron Cross Mare and the first Equine we ever owned. The rooster, Henry, was the first of several 'Henrys' but the only one who decided that Beauty's back was a fine place to rest and catch flies.  He often napped on her back and she seemed to like his fly catching abilities.

If Beauty was our first equine, Hunter's Blaze, was our second.  She's a registered Standardbred and due to an injury at a young age, never raced.  We got her when she was eight years old and she was Howard's favorite and best driving horse.  This picture was taken several years ago when Blaze was in her prime.  She'll be twenty-six this April.  She and Beauty hang out together -- our two grand old ladies.

What farm would be complete without dogs?
Irresistible Ike and Crazy 'Bout Mamzelle

We ended up with the mini schnauzers by accident.  We've always had the Standards and they are our first dog loves, but those minis....  Ike was bred by mother and I just couldn't resist him and before we knew what happened, our dog family had grown to include Ike.  After our beloved black Standard female, Oreo, died, we started looking for another dog, knew it would be a schnauzer, and because we felt sorry for Ike, the smallest one in a big dog household, we considered minis.  Mamzelle just fell into our laps, and when we heard that she was black and white like a pinto pony, our fate was sealed.  They rule the roost.

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Here are a few "before" and "after" pictures of some of our young stars. It's amazing how well proper conditioning and grooming can polish a diamond in the rough. These photos are a true testament to Jim Curry and the Jim Curry Training Center.

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