No end to the heat

Early this week, I was just thinking we got through a heat wave this past weekend only to check the forecast and see 100 degree temperatures for all of next week.  It just doesn’t stop.

This past Saturday, I got to the barn at 7 am and was done with both horses by 10 am - and it felt like I had sweat buckets by then.  It’s going to be a challenge figuring out when to ride for the next three months.  I go to work too early in the morning to make morning rides a reality and early evening is still too hot.

What are we to do in a heat wave, which feels like it’s the beginning of summer and not a one-time occurrence?

I know turning on the oven seems like a massive mistake when it’s over 100 degrees outside.  However, we needed a way to use up all the jalapenos that our garden is producing, so I’ve been baking loaves of jalapeno cheese bread.  Y’all may remember that I did this years ago but now we’re making sourdough jalapeno cheese bread - a variation on a theme, if you will.  Ugh, it’s so good guys.  I know the last thing I need to eat is more bread and cheese but this is really worth it.  My sourdough starter has been dormant in my fridge for awhile so it’s time to wake it up and put it to work!

Alongside my normal summer reading, I’ve added a list of children's books.  Usually when gifting books, I’ll have read the material first so it felt strange to gift children's books (even board books) to my nephew before having read them.  It’s immaterial that he’s only 8 months old - I still want to make sure it’s good stuff!  It feels simultaneously silly and delightful to pick up picture books from the library.  Here are a few of the books that I’ve pre-read for my nephew and enjoyed:

Jon Klassen’s Hat Trilogy starting off with I Want My Hat Back

Sam and Dave Dig a Hole by Mac Barnett

Interrupting Chicken by David Ezra Stein

As for another horse-related, non-riding activity that you can do in the shade, I finally decided to clean my brushes.  I’m not sure when the last time was that I did this but they were grossssss.  I bought this effervescent brush cleaner (which WORKS) and followed the instructions exactly.  10 minutes later, I had a bucket full of mucky water and clean brushes that I laid out in the sun to dry.  Quick and easy and now I have no excuse not to clean my brushes more often.