Just a "horse of a different color"

  Back in the spring, my brother was doing a bit of housecleaning and loaded up stuff to bring back to the Little Bayou House.  Canning jars, dishes and one pot were items that had found their way from here to his home down the lane.  One item that did not travel from here to there was a horse.  He brought a spring type rocking horse down the lane so it could be used by another generation of children.  The grandlittles will be happy to see "Clyde", the horse, when they visit.  So I gladly adopted the horse and welcomed it to the fold.

  Clyde was a bit ragged about the edges, so to speak, so he got a good cleaning.  Just so you will know, never use bleach and a scrub brush on a painted rocking horse.  The results were not good.  Most of the paint wiped right off that silly horse!  Now I definitely had a bit of work to do. The horse would have to be repainted before the grandlittles could ride it.  Well, one thing then another got in the way of the task.  Spring planting, summer canning, the fall clue hunt all took up more time than I had so the horse remained colorless.  Then, we got word that the grandlittles would be heading to the Bayou for Christmas.  Whoa, Clyde!  We had to work fast!  I did the only thing I knew that would save the day....

  I called Darling Daughter, Elizabeth!  She always manages to make everything right!  First, we discussed what the horsey should look like then we dove right in to painting.  She was on one side while I did the other.  After a bit, we swapped sides and continued work. She and I can work on the same project and never get in each other's way.  (I must say that Elizabeth does an incredible job painting eyes but, then again, she is an artist...I am a wannabe artist.)  After several days of painting and then clear-coating, Clyde looks so much better! He is now a "horse of a different color"!  Success!  Elizabeth and I had so much fun repainting the horse that we now wish we could find more worn-out rocking horses that need refreshing.  

  Clyde is ready for the grandlittles' visit.  He is beautiful and will be able to gallop in all his glory!  How fun for the kiddies and how fun for Elizabeth and me!  I imagine Clyde is having fun as well.  He has sat idle for some twenty years and will now hear the giggles of little children once again.  That must feel good even to a plastic horse.