~ by Lin Sutherland, Hostess, Onion Creek Ranch
After working for WEEKS on our benefit for Minis and Friends, Santa played a joke and brought an arctic blast with 20 mph winds the day of the event. Our Christmas lights were bobbing and flying, our signs blowing around, and I couldn't recognize anyone cause everyone looked like Iditarod mushers in their hooded Michelin tireman coats.
Ginger walked around shivering in her blue sweater looking pathetic so about 45 people picked her up and held her in their coats 'till her legs atrophied. The minute she was put down, another would pick her up and stuff her inside. By 6 pm she she was warm but she couldn't walk. Phil and Debi Jones tried not to be blown off my deck as they entertained us with song. Sally, Ellen and Candy worked tirelessly to keep things going and not freeze to death. Aquila and Bonnie kept things hopping in the casita room where the food delights were - teamwork at its best! (Our volunteer guys & friends - Gil, Dean, Tim, James, Charles, Nate helped with all the heavy duty stuff - which was a big help to us!)
We gripped cups of hot chocolate and coffee, and scarfed up barbeque brisket thanks to Robert Wilhite, the Mayor of Creedmore, who went away very happy with two of Artice Arnold's donated saddles. After filling side dishes, we then continued to eat delicious cookies and brownies donated by Renee's Catering. The Silent Auction was a bargain bin of goodies. Our raffle winners were Carolyn Devaney's cousin who won a $500 sunset sail for pennies on the dollar. He better take us all. And Aquila, our marketing whiz, won the 2 night stay at the Omni Austin at Southpark Hotel weekend valued at over $300. I won a handmade cowgirl pillow donated by Marianne Swim and a massage from Jackie Gaston for half their worth.But my most prized purchase was an original hand-colored print by Austin artist Sam Coronado. There were so many goodies at good deals which we pawed at with numb, gloved hands - such as a charming Equine and Wine gift basket, a sundae basket complete with 6 1/2 gallons of Bluebell ice cream, a Texas gift basket from Lubbock (hmm- we think she brought the cold weather to us), a Geek Speak Basket for the computer lover, a warm bucking bronc horse throw, childrens books, dining dough to restaurants, blings, lucky charms and so much more -- we all quickly forgot about the cold!
The children were bundled into the barn for windbreak and the crafts table where Carolyn, Bonnie and Carolina showed them how to make clothespin ponies. Only the minis, standing decorated in their cute lil mini area, looked comfy and warm in their thick fluffed out pony coats, decorated with Christmas garlands around their necks that Bonnie Barrington had found. She'd also found cute little robins to clip on their forelocks which Buckshot and his buddies immediately threw off. Our friend Karen Coombes came to take Minis and Me photos and we, the minis, even had a lady elf who was called Jess and her fellow Lain helping in the photo area to keep the boys on best behavior after a couple of cranky kicking fights between the boys just because they were in close quarters and decorated and feeling slightly emasculated in front of Lady Storybook. "Do I look like a Fancyboy?" Buckshot asked, shooting daggars at me.... "Is it too much to ask to get these dag-nabbit birds off my head...?" he then looked over at buds MasterCard and SeanMonet looking so fetching too and thinking "if I gotta wear these birds then so do you two - snicker, snicker..."
All in all, it was overwhelming success despite 37 degree weather and Minis and Friends made some money for their good efforts to come in 2009. Buckshot and the gang don't care 'cause they know they'll get loved and fed no matter what, and a nice lady named Melanie from Lubbock left a huge sack of horse cookies for them. Buckshot said that made up for those silly birds on his head...
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