On Monday, after a long drive down from Maine, Tonka arrived at the barn as calm as he was when he stepped into the horse trailer four hours before. (Tonka is a sane gelding, but it really helped that my friend Cindy drove in her steady and safe way.) When we unloaded Tonka, it was foggy and cold, and darkness was closing in. He looked around, head high. I walked Tonka to his paddock and turnout shed, gave him a pat, and said good-night. Right away he started in on the hay that had been set out for him.

Karin, the barn manager, is an old hand at introducing new horses to Little Brook Farm. She’d already decided that Merlin, a sweet Standardbred gelding, would be Tonka’s pasture buddy. She put Merlin into the paddock next to Tonka. They spent the day getting familiar with each other over the fence. Typical of these two guys, there were no hysterics or squealing. They surreptitiously glanced at each other over the course of the day. All was going so well that the next day we set out several piles of hay in the field, and put the two horses together.

They said hello in the polite horsey way of sniffing noses. Merlin turned his tail to Tonka and gave a half-hearted hind-leg kick that missed by a couple of feet.

They each chose a pile of hay to eat.

Tonka did glance over a few times to make sure that his breakfast wasn’t being challenged. It wasn’t.

And that was that.

Although Tonka is settled right in and ready to be ridden, I have to find a saddle to fit him first. It’s been a challenge. One reason I wanted a horse only slightly bigger than a pony is because it’s easier on my shoulder and back to lift a saddle onto him. Today I tacked him up four times, and I did appreciate his compact size! Tonka is getting a tad tired of me putting saddles on and taking them off. I also have been looking for a bit that suits him, so right now I don’t even have a usable bridle. I’ve been using a halter and lead rope while trying out saddles. He’s been a total gentleman about it.

Tonka isn’t the biggest mover. He’ll never make it as a fancy dressage horse, (which is the sort of riding that I’ve trained to do) but that’s okay. At this point in my life, I wanted a horse with a kind eye. And that’s exactly what I got.

33 crusts (4 graham cracker, 4 lard, 8 butter, and the rest shortening-butter.)

26 pies baked.

40 guests.

20 pies set out.

A bit of this and that leftover (but no chocolate.) A total of 18 pies consumed

2 pies made from a recipe clipped from a magazine was so sweet that it wasn’t served. However, the chickens thought it fine.

2 days of clean-up. All worth it.

Here in the United States, the day following Thanksgiving has become known as Black Friday, the busiest shopping day of the year.

This turkey’s attitude pretty much sums up how I feel about going shopping at the mall with the crowds this long weekend.

Photograph from VINTAGE FARM ANIMAL PHOTOGRAPHS: 30 POSTCARDS

Although I can’t bear the thought of stepping foot into a big box store anytime this long weekend, I do like a bargain. You probably do, too. And so, I am having my own After Thanksgiving Holiday Sale here at HenCam. Purchase two or more vintage animal photographs books in my series through the HenCam Store and I will send you an additional book at no charge.

There are three titles to choose from.

All you have to do to get your free book is to leave a “note from the buyer” at checkout, letting me know which title you would like.

THE FINE PRINT This offer is only available for addresses in the US because international postal rates have made it prohibitive to ship overseas. Sorry! Offer available through 10 pm EST on Dec. 2, 2013.

Turkeys are crazy looking birds, what with their bare, iridescent heads, the long feathers hanging off of the middle of their breast, and dinosaur legs that would have fit into a scene from Jurassic Park. In my town, there are large flocks of wild turkeys. They used to be shy and reclusive animals. No longer! Even brave dog Lily leaves them alone.

Safe travels over the Thanksgiving break, everyone! And, if you come across a flock of these turkeys, do brake while they saunter out of the way!

This magazine cover is from my collection of vintage poultry ephemera.

Have you ever seen those huge cookies at the mall? That greetings are written on? Take that idea, but make it fatter and softer, and yummier (because of the better ingredients you’ll use at home) and put it into a piecrust. There are plenty of recipes for this dessert (sometime called Toll House Pie) floating around on the web. Over the years I’ve looked at, and tried, many of them. I have growing boys, and despite the varied and creative array of pies that I bake, this is their favorite. I’ve tweaked the amount of sugar and chocolate chips, and left out the nuts (which they don’t like) and have come up with this version. The recipe can be doubled, and it freezes well. If you don’t have teenage boys about, you might have enough to put aside for another day.

Chocolate Chip Cookie Pie

1                        piecrust for a 9-inch pie (see master recipe here)
1 1/2 sticks      unsalted butter (6 ounces), at room temperature
1/2 cup             white sugar
1/2 cup             brown sugar
2                        eggs
1/2 teaspoon  vanilla extract
1/2 cup             all-purpose flour
1 cup                chocolate chips

1. Put the piecrust into a 9-inch shallow pie plate (this is the regularly-sized plate, not a deep dish.) Set it into the freezer while preparing the pie filling (freezing helps to keep the pie crust from becoming soggy when baked.) Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F.

2. Beat the butter and sugars until fluffy. I use a stand mixer, but this can be done with a hand-held mixer, or even energetically by hand. Beat in the eggs and vanilla until smooth.

3. Beat in the flour until well-combined.

4. Stir in the chips. Do this by hand, or, if you have a stand mixer, on the lowest setting.

5. Spread the filling into the piecrust and place the pie on the center rack of the oven. After 45 minutes, check the pie. When done, it will feel springy in the center and the crust will be lightly browned. It might take up to one hour to bake, depending on the pie plate and your oven.

This is very good with vanilla ice cream.