Another Foggy Morning

This morning I woke to a gloriously cool morning, though still a bit muggy. There was no surprise when I encountered dense fog when I headed to the car. The fog was beautiful and gave the earth an eerie feel, making me want to turn the car around and go back home.

The lack of sun didn't affect my morning glories, they were out in full force. Each day I have more blooms on the arch. It is a great way to greet the day!

I need to rearrange the morning glories, because soon I will not be able to make it down the steps to my car. Would that be such a bad thing? I could work from home? It has possibilities.

Unlike the morning glories this sunflower wasn't too thrilled at the lack of sun.

Orange Cucumber

Yesterday, after work, I took a peek at my garden to see how the vegetables were faring. And behold, I had tomatoes that were finally ripening up and cucumbers hanging on the vine and what looked like squash! Wait...I didn't plant any squash, so what was it doing there? I reached down and plucked from the vine an...ORANGE CUCUMBER! The color closely resembles goldenrod from the Crayola crayons box.

What could this be? Did I have a different variety of cucumber that I had forgotten about? Nope, looks like the bees cross-pollinated my cucumbers with my tomatoes. :) I had heard that I I would need to keep a 100 yards between cucumbers and watermelon, but I didn't think that I might have needed to use this guideline for my tomatoes. For now I will happily pluck goldenrod cucumbers off the vine.

I also retrieved one ear of corn that was ready and that the raccoon hadn't already enjoyed. He does tell me that the corn is sweet and delicious, just how I like it. It is nice to have a taste tester to make sure the food is ready.

I was trying to get fancy in my vegetable display. With this bounty I felt like a real farmer, too bad I didn't have any wheat to stick chew on and my overalls were in the laundry. But I was barefoot, I have the mosquito bites on my feet to prove it.

Kelly Ripa visits Lexington

It is all over the news here in Kentucky...Kelly Ripa was here in Lexington attending the USEF Pony Finals!


Yesterday morning on Regis and Kelly, she spoke with Ashton Kutcher on how wonderful and beautiful Kentucky was when she visited and what great people live here. What a great promotion for the state of Kentucky! And for Pony Finals!


Pony Finals has been a National Championship show for Hunter/Jumper ponys since 1967. The past several years it has been held at the Kentucky Horse Park. For a week the park is packed with ponys of varying colors and sizes, though all under 14.2, kids, parents, trainers and the occasional dog or two or three... It is just adorable to watch the little girls in pigtails flying around their hunter or jumper courses on their ponies!


Clubequestrian.com has some video footage from this year's Pony Finals. All I can say is "CUTE!"

Noo Shoos

Have you ever experienced love at first site? I have and it was with a wonderful pair of suede ballerina slippers that I found this weekend! They fit my foot like a kid glove. When I wear them I feel happy and buoyant, and feel I could conquer the world.


What is it about the perfect pair of shoes that can make a person fell alive? Whether they are 4 inch heels, flats, flip flops or sneakers, a new pair of shoes brings joy...at least to me. It all started at a very young age...


My mother has told this story about me and a pair of new shoes for as long as I can remember and to whom ever will listen. It seems that when I was just learning to talk and walk, my parents took me to get a good pair of shoes at the local Buster Brown's in South Point, Ohio. When I walked out of the store with my wonderful new shoes, I was fascinated by them. We walked along the sidewalk and everyone I met along the way I would stop, look at them, point at my shoes and in my sweetest voice say "Noo shoos!".

Mom says it was just adorable, I will have to take her word on it. To this day when I mention that I bought a pair of new shoes, whether it is a swanky pair of hears or everyday flip flops Mom will recite, "Noo Shoos". And me being the ham that I am, will repeat this time honored phrase. We have also used the phrase when my horse got two new pairs of aluminum shoes.

All this talk of new shoes has been yearning for another pair...hmmm, looks like shopping could be in my future.

Learning a new skill...

I am learning a new skill: Photoshop Elements. i just received my software in the mail after purchasing it on ebay. So far this is what I have done. Not too outstanding...yet. I hope to keep playing with my photos and see what I can do to enhance them.

For now here is my first attempt:

My new header was done with GIMP with the embossing effect.

Cozy, Foggy Morning

With all the rain we have been getting, throw in cool weather mornings and we get dense fog. For the past two mornings the world has looked like this when I had to work. There is something cozy about it. It says to me crawl back in bed, pull the comforter up and sleep awhile. If only...

I love my views out the back door, especially when the horses are at the fence.

The sunflowers add a bright spot to the early morning without sun!

Have they come and gone yet?

Boy, those storms yesterday sure were doozeys! The office shook and rattled with the pelting of rain. We got reports that Louisville was flooded and we were supposed to get similar amounts of rain. Luckily, we the weathermen missed their mark. I was concerned about a few low spots near the river along my road home. This was where getting off late from work pays off, the water had receded and there was no oncoming traffic when I needed to get in the opposite lane to pass high water.




The pasture in front of my house was now a "pond". Too bad it didn't come stocked with fish, I could of had a really good fish dinner. Willow enjoyed our temporary "pond", she is half-lab and that water-lovin side comes out even if there is only a drop of water on the ground.




The poor darlin' didn't understand when I wouldn't let her come in the house after her swim. If it had only been water, she could have stayed in the mud room/breakfast room. But since the "pond" was really a pasture it was marshy and muddy, so in turn, Willow was muddy. She went from being a yellow pup to a brown pup. At least she was happy.

Surprisingly Kody didn't take a dip. He normally heads for the water just as fast as Willow. I think the impending storm had him heading for the house instead of the "pond".



At least towards the west the sky was looking better. But it looks like we will be getting some more rain as the days go on. I think I will get my floaties ready!

A Stormy Tuesday

We just got a huge storm here at the Kentucky Horse Park!! The sky was dark and ominous, making work that much more exciting. A few of us stood at the window watching the storm blow in, because the best place to be in a storm in next to a second story window...or not.

The rain starting coming down in sheets, making it a great day to have stayed home in bed enjoying ice cream and t.v. Unfortunately I was still at work and there wasn't much chance of me heading home to enjoy the storm. That's okay, I got to enjoy it at the office. And it got real interesting quick.

The wind and rain were strong enough that water came in from the windows and links developed throughout the building. We were grabbing up trashcans to collect as much water as we could. Luckily, the leaks were small and everything was under control.

Now we are hearing reports of flooding in the area, so drives home tonight are going to be a little haphazard. I am just hoping my normal 10 minute commute doesn't end up being 45 minutes if I have to take the long way around. Keep your fingers crossed...

My Best Friend the Chestnut Gelding

Horses have always been a huge part of my life, and they still are but in a different fashion. I grew up horse crazy and my parents were wonderful enough to indulge in my obsession. It helped that they already had horses and could understand my plight.

I had horse everything, I doodled horse heads on my homework and wrote essays (paragraphs) about horses. Friends wanted to hang out with me and go ride our family horses. I was happy to indulge, because I would use any excuse hang out with the horses.

My friends rarely saw the squashed toes and smashed hands. (A story for another time, it has been 25 years and I can still feel the hoof on my hand.) I love my horses!

When I was around four I saw people jumping their horses over brightly colored sticks, immediately I turned to my mom and dad and said, "I want to do that." If horses weren't expensive enough I had to go and fall in love with one of the most expensive riding disciplines (disputed) of them all; Hunter/Jumpers. My parents got me into riding lessons where I was soon jumping over those brightly colored sticks, but at a much less lower height to my parents relief and my impatience. Soon I was showing and enjoying every minute of my new found love.

There comes a time when you outgrow the lovely pony you have been riding, my black mustang Midge, and need to a taller horse. After extensive looking we found Pi, a chestnut Arabian gelding with attitude. Oh how I loved him. He was a fairy tale. My very own Black Stallion, except he was a Chestnut Gelding...minor details. I rode him and I was in heaven and then he...dumped me.


The snot, was a trickster. Too smart for his own good. He thought it was funny to see me flip through the air! I am not kidding,. I saw him shaking his head and whinnying one time after I ungracefully, involuntarily dismounted! Though there were many times I decided he was not the horse for me, I hung in there. Mostly because my parents told me that Pi and I needed to figure each other out and that I was not getting a new horse.

After hours and hours of riding and ground work and playing we finally became best friends. He moved to California with the family, where we changed riding careers from Hunter/Jumpers to the more exciting and daredevil eventing. Pi and I loved to run fast and jump high, which the cross country phase of eventing satisfied.



Our move to California gave us more opportunities not only for showing but to also try fox hunting, which we both found we totally enjoyed. Pi was a frequent traveller and took everything in stride, but when we pulled up the the farm that we went fox hunting from he became my Chestnut Gelding (i.e. Black Stallion). He would hear the wild peacocks in the hills and his characteristic Arabian head would go up and the tail would wave in the wind. He would go from 14.2 hands to 17 hands in an instant. I never felt so proud as to watch my beautiful boy. (Hands are how horses' height is measured, 1 hand = 4 inches.)



We played, trail rode, showed, attempted barrel racing, rode in parades and kept taking lessons mostly learning more about dressage and how it wasn't as bad as we thought. Pi was good with other kids, letting them dress him up in funny outfits. He never turns down a treat. He even took a bite of my ham and cheese sandwich on summer afternoon during Pony Club camp. He actually liked it and came back for more. Together we understand each other.



Each of us has grown up and Pi is now retired in a wonderful pasture with friends. I run out to see him and hope to bring him home one day. For now he is happy and I am happy for him. Though I miss him terribly. He is my best friend and confidant.

I love you my Chestnut Gelding!