I think trip hangovers just get worse with age, just like regular hangovers. Why can’t it be the opposite? Like wine and beauty?
This time, the trip hangover lasted about a good week and it felt like it took me almost a solid two weeks to get to feeling like my regular self and back in the groove, but truthfully I did/do not have time to wallow in a trip hangover even if it was obviously and absolutely worth it.
I have of course been back to riding my big boy, as per usual. He had a little two week break with my traveling which is good for him.
We ride all summer and all year, so periodic breaks are good for his mind and body. Besides the fact that I would do it anyway, riding through the summer is important around here unless you have your own covered arena…which I do not. Most people seem to take the heat of the summer (which has been about three months worth this year) off of riding in addition to winter, but you never know when in the winter or more desirable temperature months you will not be able to ride because of rain and mud. We really generally only have two seasons, summer and winter. The other two seasons kind of only pass through. Keeping a higher level of baseline fitness for them (AND you) is better and easier and SAFER to me than having to hurry up and get one legged up two different times of year in a hurry before it gets two cold/wet or too hot.
THE POINT IS (don’t worry, you did not miss anything), news flash, Lito is the best boy and acted like he did not even have a break.
Last weekend I was in Dallas for my niece/Goddaughter’s baptism.
We have been busy this year and it is not over yet! We still have a couple exciting things coming up.
Long time readers know we go on a big adventure every October and this year is no different. We will head to the hill country in about three weeks (actually, less than!) and the count down has begun in earnest. No rest for the weary, as they say, but hey, we can rest when we are in the nursing home, right?! We have good reason to hit the fitness grindstone. More riding equals a happy Avery and Lito, so it is no hardship to be sure.
Then in November, I will be headed to New Mexico for a long weekend with good friends to visit another good friend. You will hear more about this later.
The even more good news is that we have had a bit of a shift in the weather. Knock on wood, but I think we are finished with triple digit temperatures for the year. Hopefully. It was beginning to feel like it would never happen and we were going to be stuck in a perpetual August. That is really how it feels. Like it is never going to change, even though your brain knows better. We still have highs in the nineties, but we are trending in the fall direction. I can feel it.
AND, we got some rain. At least and inch and a half. I will pause here for you to do a happy dance on my behalf. Then I will do one for you, just give me a reason to! You can count on me, dear readers!
We still need quite a bit more rain for the grass, the pond, and to start to bring down the drought deficit, but we will take any we can get. Lito and I rode the pastures Monday morning after checking the cows and calves and I can see some grass growth and some greening up. There was still barely any standing water and there are still a few cracks in the ground, but again, we are trending in the right direction.
The rain and the ticking down of temperatures really put me in good spirits after Ireland. As if the trip of a lifetime was not enough! I treated myself to a pumpkin spice late while I did some grocery shopping AND I made pumpkin bread. Ya, you heard me. We are all in the ‘ber months and fall is HERE. Get with it and get ready! It is time for baking and the season!
Tell me, have you started to celebrate fall? Have you decorated yet? Pulled out your sweaters? Indulged in anything pumpkin? Baked anything???
That we are not even half way through the trip story and this is the last installment. Also, why can’t you put a week long trip into one post?! Just pick the highlights and move on!
OK, fine, maybe you are not thinking that, but I am.
That is part of my point. How does one pick their favorite part of something like this? How do you accurately describe it?!
But who cares, let us get to the good stuff. Buckle up and have a whole pot ready.
Even if I feel like my pictures do not do the countryside justice, this is where the views really kick it up a notch. For me, this is true especially on Wednesday and Thursday. Not to discount Friday though, just wait till you see. This is also my favorite part of the trip because Wednesday and Thursday night we stayed in two different villages in B&Bs and hotels. Staying in any village means one very important thing: PUBS. Pubs mean sessions. MUSIC! We may have only had two nights, but we had to make them count. Thursday night really did not disappoint! We also raced to see the Cliffs of Moher up close and personal right before sundown, so there is that too!
So…
Here we are packed and ready on Wednesday morning, ready to throw our bags in the van and drive to the horses.
The field the horses were in for the night was somewhat split level. Naturally, they were all at the top. We looked at each other and started to climb the hill. I am not sure if these pictures really show the level of incline or size, but we were all winded by the time we got to the top.
The horses did seem to enjoy watching us climb the hill. They know what they are about. Just look at them.
Like I said, they know what they are about. After I grabbed Bulmers, I turned around and saw.
Only a horse such as Bulmers could add to a view like that.
It is like he has a sense of humor or something.
It is like a post card.
So this was one of my favorite days. The views were spectacular before we even started riding and we got to ride in some of the more open country off the roads with no power lines. It was really special to see after we climbed the hill the junction of the forest, the heather, and the green fields.
I am not sure if you can really see it, but where you can see the purple flowers is a little creek/drainage/riparian area. This farmer had it electric fenced off to prevent damage by the cows.
Electric fencing us used primarily everywhere we went in conjunction with the walls and hedges. Interestingly, we also saw quite a bit of barbed wire which was a surprise to me. Four pronged and most of it looking new.
Before this trip, I did not realize the nature of the hills here. I thought gentle rolling hills. While they do look like that maybe from a far or in pictures, the hills are quite steep.
Should I mention again how much I love the heather? No? OK.
The reward at the top of the hill!
This is my favorite moment of the trip. I think Bulmers quite liked it too.
I thought this is was a cool little shot at the top of the hill. While in the wild and free heather, you can see the dark green forest there with the old and new timber and the stark contrast of the soft, light green field.
This country side here to me you really can not capture in photographs.
One more for good measure because you can not get enough!
Some cute horses we met on the road.
A farmer baling haylage or silage.
After a long and great ride, the horses were loaded up in a lorry to take them across some more populated areas to their field for the night. We would meet them there the next morning on Thursday.
A big lorry for big horses. The nice driver Declan said to me, “You only have to say goodbye until tomorrow. Not long.” Did I have hearts in my eyes or what?
Our drive into town was interrupted by the diary cows by the looks of it going to be milked.
We were dropped at our B&B’s in Corofin (I think that is where we were, don’t judge me. We were moving a lot!) and basically ran to a pub. We only had so much time and we needed to make the most of it!
We found this charming place which looked to be the best around! Also almost the only around, but it was only Wednesday and the village was quite small.
I found it interesting the Coors was on draft everywhere. No, I did not have any, I stuck to Irish. I should have asked the bar tender what it is about Coors that is so popular. Alas, I will just have to go back.
I enjoyed my first ever glass of Guinness. It was worth the wait. I liked it a lot more than I though I would. I did not have three by the way. I had two. Not that anybody should be counting when on vacation in Ireland anyway. I also moved to Irish whiskey later…so…there.
Spot the pup in the pub! We moved to another pub called the Yellow Submarine where we would actually be having dinner. They opened up just for us. It was arranged again for us to have a three course dinner there. I had a salad which was good, but I should have gotten the veggie soup, it was really good. I had a ham and tomato toastie with chips (and vinegar!) for the main. Basically a grilled ham and cheese with tomatoes. They had a choice of apple or rhubarb pie for dessert. As a group we all decided to share so we could all taste both. They were both amazing (I need to learn some new words), but I think the rhubarb was particularly wonderful. The crust was perfect and one of the best I have ever had.
After dinner we went back to the first pub for music and drinks.
We walked back to the B&B and hit the hay to do it all again tomorrow! Our group was split into two B&B’s. I can not remember the name of the place we stayed at, but it was really nice. The rest of the group stayed at Lakefield Lodge which was reportedly also lovely.
The next morning our breakfast table was set very nice and we even had the treat of French press coffee. I am a sucker for French press! After a nice visit with the owner, we drove out to the field to meet the horses.
The morning started out stunning and blue, but got rather Irish and rainy pretty quickly!
There is only one other kind of rain that is more pretty. You guessed, Texas rain, especially after you have not had any for a while, but this sure is pretty! Especially with Bulmers’ ears in it. I finally brought along an extra hair tie, so he got a braid to last the day. I stuck some fern leaves in it to dress him up for the day and set out with the goal to build a bouquet in his braid through the day. You all know by know I am just a horse girl kid at heart. The adulting of the world has not beat it out of me yet.
We were riding through the Burren landscape this day through to the coast on Friday.
After riding for a while, we stopped to explore a cool Celtic ring fort!
I am sure you’re not surprised by now to know that I was clearly the photographer of the group. I do not like to generally share pictures of other people for protection and privacy reasons, but it is hard to see details in this picture for the landscape.
It was a very dynamic weather day. It rained enough to soak through my breaches, but the sun was still there to play.
Bulmers’ bouquet growing! One of the other horses kept trying to eat it! The horses there eat mostly everything around. From grass, to flowers, to hedges. There is not much they do not touch. Apparently there are no poisonous plants in Ireland. In Texas, we have not only poisonous plants, but sticky and pokey plants that practically jump out to bite you!
The peat is everywhere! I do not think we got to enjoy a peat fire once though.
It was fascinating to watch the landscape change as we trekked west.
Before we knew it, the sun full on with blue sky and we could see the blue Atlantic!
Like I said, colors. This was only a taste of what was to come tomorrow on our final day.
On this night we stayed in the village of Lisdoonvarna. We were again split between the Bellview B&B and the Rathbaun Hotel. Dinner and Breakfast for us all would be at the Rathbaun.
We did the same thing of drop and run to a pub. This is a cute village that has a bit more going on that where we were the previous night. We were also missing, by a day, the famous match making festival that happens annually here. It is apparently quite a ‘scene.’
We walked around for a few minutes to take it all in before heading to the pub in The Ritz for a drink.
We had dinner at our usual time of 7 at the hotel, another three course meal with many options to choose from. There was no lack of food for us! I had the veggie soup for my appetizer. For my main I had the traditional lamb stew. I wish I could have this all the time or at least taken the leftovers! Ice cream for dessert with some sort of chocolate fudge sauce was the perfect ending to the food portion of the meal. We had to get a move on from the table if we wanted to catch the Cliffs of Moher before sunset! We took our Irish coffees (not as good as the ones on the farm!) to-go as we hopped in the taxi van to head to the Cliffs.
When we arrived at the Cliffs, we decided to divide and conquer. Half of us went right, and half of us went left. I went with the left group. It was nice and quiet. No other people there and light winds.
We had the taxi driver John drop us at the best pub in town. He knew what he was about.
We started with four playing and singing and ended the night with six. It felt like all the stories you hear about what Irish pubs are like. This was obviously my favorite evening of the trip.
I went for the good stuff and had a good conversation with the bar tenderess.
I could have stayed there for hours. Just tucked into the corner with the stayers of our group. Listening to music and lilted conversation. Conversing with the locals and hearing stories. One day, I will be back for more horses, pubs, and people, but not everything lasts forever and we had one last full day of riding to rest up for!
Friday morning brought us another good meal at the hotel for breakfast before we made our way to the horses for one final time.
Another day and another adorned braid for Bulmers! His flower is what they call a butterfly bush. Beautiful color and an even better fragrance. I should have saved my butterfly shirt to wear on this day!
We stopped to explore this chapel ruin and grave yard. While I enjoyed being up close to it, it felt wrong when I was inside. Like I was invading someone’s privacy.
It was very beautify though.
And the horses really were a compliment to the scenery. Which I do not think will surprise anyone.
We also saw a lot of happy cows everywhere we went.
The clouds really cleared for us to show off the blue sky, green grass, and wildflowers when we started to climb some hills on our way to the coast. Yes, hills, plural. Two very large hills that by the end felt like mountains.
This was the first reward for the first climb. We dismounted and led the horses down a steep gravel road to have lunch in the valley.
After lunch, we then led the horses up another very steep hill with smooth, slick, old rocks. It does not show, but we did some serious hike climbing. At some point during our climb, I was doing quite a bit of thinking about my paddock boots. We were all pretty winded by the time we made it to the top.
BUT IT WAS WORTH IT!
This was at the very top and look at the flowers. I mean the picture does not show anything like what it looked like in person. Nicola the owner and one of the guides we had part of the week even exclaimed at the particularly special and unique beauty.
The Cliffs of Moher are there off in the distance.
For such a small island, it sure is big!
After a spectacular final day of riding, the horses were again loaded on the lorry and taken back to their starting field for a well deserved week of rest.
We had a long quiet drive back to the farm that evening.
I know for me, I was feeling very grateful. Grateful to be blessed with this trip and to experience a beautiful culture. Grateful for time with friends and the people we met. Grateful for the horse I got to ride and who took such good care of me and for being able to spend so many hours in the saddle. We rode a solid five and a half active days with almost half of it trotting and cantering.
I was also grateful to be heading back to a home a love and to be coming home to my own animals that I love.
This whole trip was an amazing experience. Every horse you ride has something to teach you and Bulmers was no different. As a lifelong and frequent rider, I would not consider myself to have low confidence or registerable fear. It is however a nature of the game to have some level of healthy fear. They are horses after all and even professionals have some level of fear and anxiety. All of that said, I found Bulmers a lovely confidence builder that I did not know I was needing. It was surprising to me. He reminded me to ride the horse you have. I was not even feeling scared, but before I even put a foot in the stirrup he almost grabbed my hand and said, “I got you, let’s go have some fun.” You can call me crazy, but long time readers know by now I am into the woo of life. That is where the carry descriptor for Bulmers came from. He carried me I felt like. He was so naturally uphill feeling when he moved, it felt very literal.
The whole week was a truly special experience.
I was sad to say goodbye to Bulmers, but I was also happy to be coming home to mine. I will carry Bulers and his feeling with me.
Dinner that night was late, but it was still festive. Sweet potato sliders for the appetizer, coconut chicken for the main, and brownies for dessert. Really good brownies! We had an after dinner champaign toast of thanks and gratitude with the owners and staff.
We stayed up late and packed late. We would have an early and long day on Saturday beginning with an 8 AM departure to make our way back to the airport.
Thankfully our travel was safe and event free. I got home in time to have a hot bath before jumping in bed. I think I was asleep by 11 PM and I slept all the way through to about 6:15 AM Sunday morning Texas time.
I was feeling pretty good! I figured I had escaped any jet lag.
That is what I get for thinking! It hit me hard by Sunday afternoon and the hangover lasted almost week! The good news was, I was at the farm by Sunday midday and would pick up my Merley Bob on Tuesday morning (thanks the Labor Day).
I hope you enjoyed coming along for the ride on my trip to Ireland! Thank you for letting me share this all with you. Sharing this with others is almost as good as going for me. Not everybody can go and do this for any number of reasons. Just another reason I feel grateful.
Walk in love, dear readers! Where should we go next?!
At first I typed ‘Drowning.’ Just…Drowning. So dramatic!
Have no fear, I am not DROWNING. Other than in sweat.
I have been drowning in sweat.
Happy 3rd August, Texas!
Do you remember that time I made a comment about it being ‘real’ hot when you have sweat in your eyelids? No? Well I do and I am here to tell you we somehow skipped that phase and went into full on deluge. This is very reminiscent of the awful summer of 2011.
Yes, I know the heat is old news (I am so tired of getting heat advisory warnings every day!), but I needed to set the scene for what I had got to do on Monday.
This is the end result and I am thankfully not sore:
Thankfully for all of us, there are no progress photos! Ain’t nobody wants to see that! The amount of sweat was surprising to me. I have never sweated that much in my life. It felt like a spigot had been turned on. I started a little after 6 AM and finished before 10. All still morning and in shade. I was not in any hurry other than to finish before my shade ran out. I took many hydration breaks.
84 bales of hay unloaded and crammed stacked into the feed room for winter feels like winning. Anybody who cares for livestock in the winter knows how great this feels. Even if you were completely soaked through with sweat when you were only half way finished. Exhausting work, but it is the most satisfying work at the same time. It is a joyful chore for such a blessing. An even bigger blessing given the drought situation. Hopefully I will not have to use any of this hay before December.
Actual footage of me when I turned around after the last bale was loaded in:
You know it really is dry and HOT when the weeds and trees even look hot.
Anyway, I feel like a kid on the last day before summer or winter break and it is not just because I finally got this important chore off the list.
Why, you ask? Oh, I dunno, because I get to do something exciting soon. Go somewhere exciting soon.
Keep it simple, like a Merle. They call it a dog’s life for a reason!
How are you?
I had an interesting day yesterday. I had to take my truck into the shop for some regular, routine benchmark service (and fork over a lot of monies, but oh well, better than a more expensive problem because I did not do it). Here is your reminder to take care of your vehicle before you have a problem!
Anyway, I had some encounters with two strangers that had a lot to share about how their days and lives were going. I think I have one of those faces that people like to share things with, I do not know. Maybe they just needed someone to share with and because I asked how they were doing and how their day was going, and they answered truthfully. Their words and feelings really struck me.
Mean what you say and say what you mean, as they say. Whoever ‘they’ are. I try to ask those questions because I really do care about the answers. Words and how we say them really matter. I think people often forget that. I hope their days got better.
This is what Texas feels like. Never be too far from water.
I will not share their stories as they are not mine to share, but they served as good reminders for walking through life.
A reminder to always be kind. A reminder that any one person can have no idea what troubles another is facing.
A reminder that your struggles are no bigger than any other person’s. Everyone has them and they all add up to the same thing at the end of the day.
It is more than the Golden Rule. It is compassion and grace.
A reminder to keep moving and not stay in the troubles. A reminder to not judge a book by its cover. Or one page. Or one chapter. Any one thing does not define us.
A reminder that one person’s definition or vision of success is not another’s. A reminder that difference does not mean less.
A reminder again that there is more than one way to make a life and that one is not better than the other.
The best way to get through summer afternoons is to nap in the shade.
Walk in love, dear readers, and offer some kindness to your fellow stranger today. Coffee break is over, let us all get back to work! It is yours to get!
A special day for a special boy. This can be your daily dose of cute with a side of an AHA moment.
This past weekend my Merley Bird turned a big 4 years old and celebrated by doing his favorite thing, romping around the farm. There is no better way to celebrate if you ask him, or me for that matter.
True to form, he had to have some pictures taken. If you ask him, he is just glad he did not have to wear a hat. He struck is signature look first.
Then he had some treats for breakfast.
Then he had a little dip n’ shake in the pool.
The pool that apparently has a leak. Not the best time to discover this little tid bit given the lovely heat we have been having if you ask me! We have been enjoying close to triple digit deg. F temperatures with 1000000% humidity. They say the heat index is over 110 deg. Thankfully we got a little break with a good rain last night. The animals, land, and humans are very grateful!
The Merle can and does cool down just about anywhere between the water troughs and the pond and even the river. However, I sure will miss my post summer work cool down! We will see how long it is before I snag another one. It is a nice treat to sit there in the heat of the afternoon in the shade with a cool drink and a book while the horses do their summer ‘training’ standing tied in the shade. It is the best way to get any horse good at standing quietly while tied.
Then my parents and I beat the heat with a brew and lunch at the brewery to celebrate Father’s Day. Merle had to stay home as it was too hot to sit outside. I did snag him some special birthday things though. Treats and brew just for him! Even if it was a girly ‘beer’ (it is not actually beer, there is no alcohol), he really seemed to enjoy it poured over his dinner.
He also told me these are his new favorite treats.
Every Merle birthday is a special birthday. I am just ever grateful to have him. He is a blessing to me.
With every passing day with him, I am reminded of my Darcy Girl. I did not get six birthdays with her. Her heart tree still shows her heart sometimes, if you look just right. If it were not for my Darcy, I would not have my Merle.
This is part of my reminder to stay present. To enjoy the now and be grateful for what I have. I do not think it will ever not be a kick in the guts to remember (nor will I honestly ever not worry about losing Merle early, if I am honest, but I do not want to talk about worrying today), but I can also now be glad and grateful in the remembering. And see her here and there.
Grief, it is a funny thing. It is also a universal connector. We all experience it. Even though we all experience it differently, none of us are alone in it and nobody can avoid it. Remember that.
That is it for your coffee break this morning! So, happy birthday, Merle! Enjoy some more cuteness before you rush back.
We talk a lot about not wasting time. How we are not promised time. Live for today, you know.
Well, maybe you did not hear it here first, but just in case you have not heard; taking your time is not wasting your time. Your AHA moment for today. It is similar to how there are no mistakes or failures so long as you learn from them.
Like I said, it takes the time it takes. Whatever IT is. A ‘tincture of time,’ as a friend put it.
We all know that life is about balance (pronounced like a German dressage instructor, or by an American one imitating a German one). This is no different. Do not get so caught up in the drive, that you have no draw. Or push and pull, as it were. Do not get so caught up in the hustle and deliverables that you miss how you even got there. It takes exponentially more time to regain balance than it does to upset it.
Give yourself time. Give yourself grace.
You do it for others, do it for yourself. You do it for yourself, do it for others.
A little AHA moment for your Wednesday morning coffee break. Some thoughts for your pot.
The importance of time keeps coming to the forefront of my mind lately. Time can heal any number of things if you give it the chance to take the time it takes. This is something that is hard for most people to do.
No matter how hard we as humans try not to, we will almost always seek instant gratification. Often we will change something without even knowing it and then get thrown completely off balance by the shift in the pendulum and question why.
Got an email or communication or situation that you do not know how to handle or that makes your blood rise? Sleep on it. Give yourself time to gain some objectivity and perspective. You can not take back words any more than you can take back time.
Not feeling well? Give it some time. Take some rest. Slow down. Observe. You can throw all the medicines and doctors at some things, but at the end of the day we do not know even close to everything and sometimes the answer is only time. Let Mother Nature do her thing. Not everything is medical or science.
Give your dog an extra cuddle. Don’t take the ride. Be still.
Or give that to your animals. They have off days too!
Did you change their feed? Did you change their tack? Did you change their routine? Did you move their home? Most people are affected by these changes as well, give your animals the chance to settle and bounce back. Also realize if the change you made was not for the better. It takes more time than you think, for them and for you. One change in a human mind often means many to an animals. Break it down.
Smell the roses. Or the wildflowers, as it were. It is a saying for a reason.
Rest in the shade. Position yourself so the sun is just behind the tree trunk.
Allow your perception and perspective to be on the fringe of your senses. You will hear the sound of a Rosette Spoonbill flying overhead. You will see the movement of an owl at dusk trying to protect its prey.
Tomorrow is a new day! Sleep on it! Leave it with me! Smell the roses!
Walk in love, dear readers, and take your time doing it!
Also, drink your water, it is getting HOT out there!
Your AHA moment today is brought to you by Nick Jamerson.
The first video has a lovely intro to the song in addition to this version just being so good, but if you want to just skip to it, watch the second video.
Take these lyrics with you into this blessed long weekend. Remember those who fought for this life you get to live. For the journey you get to walk. Be grateful for what you know and what you do not know while you learn more and gain more perspective and direction. Be grateful you have the chance to wade in and through while enjoying the green grass. Go get that horse.
This song makes me think of my grandfather, Gee Gee, I am not sure why. “There ain’t no cinches in life except on saddles,” he would say, so go catch up your pony, saddle him up, and make sure your cinch is tight. We have some riding to do! This life is a wild ride!
“Ain’t nothin’ better than ridin’ a fine horse in new country.”
~spoken by Augustus McCrae”― Larry McMurtry, Lonesome Dove
I can not help but think of the above quote every time I ride in a new place. My critters and I seem to have the same thirst as Gus McCrae and Woodrow Call for seeing new country. Call it adventurous if you will, I do not even know what to call it. Lito especially just eats it up.
This past weekend, Merle, Lito, Petunia and I loaded up and headed to north central Texas to ride some new country. It was a great and relaxing time getting used to the place, despite the big time rain we got Friday night and the resulting winds. On Saturday morning, both Lito and Petunia felt as if they had been bathed, if that tells you anything about the kind of rain we had.
Today, I will just let the pictures speak for themselves, so please click trough the slide show, watch the videos, and enjoy! This is about as close to a wordless Wednesday as you will get from me as I have found out over the years.
I particularly want to point out MVP emotional support donkey, Petunia, who travels with us when we go places without other riders and the insane wildflowers. Honestly, saying the pictures do not do them justice is the biggest understatement. They give blanket of Indian Blankets a whole new meaning. There are even still bluebonnets there!
Your AHA moment for today is brought to you by Augustus McCrae, by way of Larry McMurtry:
“It ain’t dying I’m talking about, it’s living. I doubt it matters where you die, but it matters where you live.” ~spoken by Augustus McCrae”
If you have never read the book or watched the movie, I highly recommend it!
I want to thank each and every one of you for being here. For coming along with us on this journey. For enjoying my pictures. For reading. For commenting. For your sweet email notes. I am grateful for it all!
Go make your bed, get your second cup of coffee, and get after it today!
Walk in love, dear readers!
We are headed back to the water this weekend for some bay fishing in our favorite place! Talk soon!
This is the best kind of rain. This meaning any kind. Bring on La Nina! Do not worry, I am not going to go off on a tangent about weather. Or at least I do not think so! You never know with me.
Anyway, while it is not raining on this fine morning, it was raining the last time we spoke. The past several weeks have brought several inches. In fact, we have been blessed with so much rain that there have been times we could go mud skiing! At times just walking has actually felt just like that. I slipped the other day (I almost fell and I felt like I was a cartoon character, or on an episode of Punked) and my back is still yelling at me. I guess I have just reached that next level of ‘more wise’ age where the body is starting to be a traitor to the mind. Sigh.
However, the pond is full, the grass is growing and everything is colorful, and all the animals are fat and sassy. One of the best times of year before it gets too hot. The rain and life’s schedule has made riding lately an every other week occasion, but it is better than no riding! I have been there and it is no bueno. We have definitely been taking advantage of the riding days we do get, but we will get to that soon. We actually got back from an adventure yesterday!
After our Good Friday at the farm, The Merley Bob and I loaded up the truck on Saturday and headed to the beach for 24 hours. Long story short, it was glorious!
Ha! Long story short, y’all know me too well. It was a big 24 hours!
I enjoyed a lovely early bird dinner on a patio over the water with this lovely cocktail.
After dinner, Merle and sat on the porch and enjoyed a couple hours of wine and views and music.
Easter morning was of course celebrated sunrise style with a long walk. It was…? I do not even know a word. Y’all help me!
Spot the Merle blur as he hits the beach!
Just a bird dog doing bird dog things.
Merle has only two speeds if you were not aware. Zero and turbo. Turbo requires all four off the floor for the majority. Flying is more fun if you ask him.
I picked up only one shell to take back to leave where I was staying. Growing up, we always loved to collect shells with Pops. Buckets full in total over the years. Some were just for enjoying their beauty. Some were for crafts. Some were to put in a flower bed or a book shelf. Some were for candles. I kind of like to leave them where they are for the most part these days, but this one seemed like it should go back with me, so it did.
Merley was tired after his turbo beach walk and so was I! No naps for me though as we had to soon hit the road for an early Easter dinner. For this celebration, I made a lemon cake. It was delicious, but it was very ugly. A Leaning lemon Tower of Pisa! The oven I used was not level and I had 3 layers. I was too lazy to trim them even, so I slapped together my leaning cake and hoped for the best. However, It was very tasty! So long as it tastes good, that is all that really matters in the end.
We went on our annual ladies group spring ride which I have probably written about in previous years. I did not take many pictures, but we had some big thunder storms the first night. My Lito man seemed not bothered by it when I could finally go out to check on him when it was all over. It was an interesting weekend as he had A LOT of feelings about ducks because of peacocks and wind. Horses, man. He rode well, so there you go.
My Cheetah Girl then got some kind of upper respiratory funk that required 2 times a day antibiotics for two weeks. I will only share one pic and just say, there was an odor, OK? Thankfully, my girl has a kissable muzzle again, and that is all that matters at the end of the day.
While not ideal to be a commuter during those 2 weeks, it was glorious to be able to start and end my days with all my animals.
I have had to do this from time to time for varying reasons and it is always worth it. I may curse the traffic a little (actually no more than I always do), but it is generally bliss. Sunrises. Sunsets. Horses. Cows. Dinner on the porch. Evening rides or drives. Crossing things off the list. Quality time all around.
During these times I get a lot of spring cleaning and organizing done while also completing special projects or needed chores. It always seems easier to get the work done like this during the week even though you only have a few hours every week evening to do them. This way the weekend can just be that, a weekend, and not work.
My special project this go round was trimming up a ‘trail’ in the river bottom to make it easier and more enjoyable to ride. By enjoyable, I mean less ducking, dead ends, and spider webs. I used to always have a loop down there, but it is always changing and evolving and it requires constant maintenance to keep it ‘rideable.’ It had been a while since I had done any work down there, but a few evenings and half of a wet rainy Saturday and we were back in business. I spent my other evenings reacquainting the horses with the bottom as it had been a little while since they had been down there. Lito seems to like it the most out of all of them, but he has also been down there more than anyone else except for his mother, Cheetah.
I also took time every evening after chores and feeding to check the cows. They are all due to have their calves right about now. Two of them dropped their calves at the very beginning of my two week antibiotic administration stay, so I got to see them almost every day for those two weeks. There are more to come soon, but these mammas are holding on tight!
One of my favorite things to do in the evenings has always been to go sit amongst the cows while listening to them graze. I did this when I was younger too. I of course love to listen to the horses eat. Most horse people feel this way. There is just something about the rhythmic sound of the chewing combined with their breathing and the smells and the feeling of contentment. Listening to cows graze at down and dusk is the exact same. The sound of their breathing and their swiping tongue and grass cropping and the chewing. I do not know, it is hard to describe unless you are there to hear it and feel it.
OK, you are right, I also go check on them multiple times a day when I am there during the day too.
We might be tardy on the mowing, but I prefer to just focus on and enjoy the green product of all these rains. Especially when viewed between a pair of dun colored ears.
Check back tomorrow for our adventure with new views between these very dun colored ears! Spoiler alert, there was rain! BUT, it did not spoil the adventure!
