Great horse show!

Yesterday was our March horse show on the farm. It ended up being a gorgeous day with a big turnout, and honestly one of the smoothest running horse shows we have ever had! All of my girls did great, which is what really makes my day!

I didn't take any pictures, I was too busy working. Gracie sold horse treats and donated every dime she made to a horse rescue, her idea by the way, and led poor Turbo around showing him off when not selling horse treats! Turbo is a star around here for sure!

I'm working in the yard around the house today. The weather is perfect, so what better day to work on the landscaping around my house! It's that time of year for craziness though. Next weekend I'm taking Paige, Peri and Kelsey to the Rolling Hills Saddle Club show in Atlanta, then the following weekend is another show here at Rivermont. I'm thinking the following week I may take a beach trip with my favorite little girl...just to get away! We've earned it after the last few months. :)

Horse show delayed, and what a week it has been!

Our horse show last weekend had to be postponed to the 21st due to gobs of rain. It has been an eventful, stressful week to say the least. A lot of barn drama, and I HATE drama of any sorts, then I was pulled over Sunday morning by the GA State Patrol for speeding. Officer Diggs was kind enough to let me go with a warning, even though he claimed I was doing 17 mph over the speed limit in the rain, but hey I've been stressed lately! I wasn't exactly paying attention! Then my latest breaking news is I have decided to quit my second job as book keeper for a grading company because I feel I'm just stretched too thin. I don't like doing a job for anyone if I can't give it my all, and I don't feel I can give that job my all right now. It's almost spring, which I love! Horse shows galore, riding lessons, planting flowers, and simply enjoying the sunshine!

I've added a couple of pictures. One is of course Gracie, Turbo and I last week. The other is of me riding a horse named Duncan who boards here that is for sale.

I'll post another update after the horse show and let you know how that turns out! :) Til then, have a great day!

Lessons, lessons, lessons...

What a gorgeous day today was! I've been super busy this week getting ready for the horse show on Saturday that we host at my farm once a month. It was around 80 degrees and sunny. Perfect! I have customers staying for the week from Atlanta, so I'm doing 2 lessons a day with them alone. They bought an adorable horse from me last year, "Pick Me A Daisy", and it has been so much fun working with Daisy and her 10 year old owner for the past few days. (pictured)

Luckily, the antibiotics have kicked in and I'm feeling a little better today. Gracie had to go to yet another skating party tonight, however my dad was kind enough to handle that duty for me while I had to deal with other "issues" at the farm.

The forecast isn't looking too great for Saturday, so I'm a little concerned about the turnout at my show, but it always seems to work out. I'll post updates though and let you know how the weekend wound up! Til then...off to grab a bite to eat then off to a good nights sleep!

The downside to self employment, or one of them.

I am sick. I woke up this morning with the nastiest chest congestion, and in all honesty I wanted to pull the covers over my head and hide until further notice. The horses are hungry though, Gracie had to go to a skating party, and customers from Atlanta were trailering in for the week so they could take two lessons a day for a week. Ah, the joys of self employment. The freedom to work at your own schedule. I love that part of it! However, days like today, I want to call in sick! It's okay though, I'm pushing through it. Gracie went to her skating party and had a great time, I gave a lesson today, and my customers made it here safe and sound! My voice is hanging in there, but barely. I'm terrified it will go out, because then how will I make a living this week? I shall keep everyone posted on how the week unfolds. Rivermont is hosting a horse show Saturday, so there is plenty of work to be done. Plus, I have a part time job as a bookkeeper for a grading company, just to bring a little extra income in. The good news this week though is I got another judging job in May, which is an area I'd love to expand in! It's so much fun and a wonderful challenge for me.

I'm off to eat chicken noodle soup, then I'm off to bed. I'll post a picture of Miss Gracie at her skating party today!

Picture of the day!

Gracie and Turbo enjoying a gorgeous day at the farm!

Playday for dogs, Gracie and I...

Top photo was taken a week or so ago from my back door as the sun came up. Gorgeous isn't it? The other pics were taken today of Gracie and I playing with the dogs.

We could all learn from Buddy

For those of you who don't know Buddy, I obtained him a year and a half or so ago. He was a Weimeraner Lab cross puppy, too adorable to turn away! Buddy has driven me crazy since day one, he seems to destroy anything he can get a hold of, especially if he knows it cost lots of money. He barks constantly as soon as the sun goes down, as if just to annoy us all. However, we love him because he has such a special spirit to him.

Around lunch time in January, someone (thankfully for their sake I don't know who did it because I'd be serving time right now if I did!) decided to take a shot at Buddy. Literally. I found him limping up my driveway in such a condition I don't want to describe, but I honestly thought he was on his way to the vet clinic to be put to sleep. He had been shot with a hollow point bullet, which took out his back leg and blew a hole in the other side of him about a foot long. By the Grace of God Buddy survived surgery, however he lost his rear leg in the deal. Keep in mind, in October we lost our other dog Oscar whom I found hit by a car. That just about killed me, because my animals are more than family to me. That being said we were just happy that Buddy lived, 3 legged, stitched up and all.

I have given up wondering why someone would do this to him. I have just focused on the attitude of Buddy. He never once saw it as "Oh me, I lost a leg, what am I going to do now..."(as I would have done had it been me!), Buddy within one day of surgery took the attitude of "It's all good, I'm just blessed to have 3 other legs that work just fine!". He was wagging his tail the day after this mess, I mean...how and why would you be happy about anything after what he went through? Buddy plays harder than ever, and what an inspiration it is to watch the 3 legged wonder dash around the back yard with Gracie.

Today was a difficult day for me again, I'm really struggling right now, but I'm trying so hard to take Buddy's attitude of not focusing on the obvious bad in my life that seems to suffocate me at times, I'm trying so hard to take Buddy's attitude it's not what you don't have, it's what you do have and you need to try and make the most of it.

When it seems to snow everywhere but in my own backyard

All weekend the weatherman promised snow was coming my way! How exciting I thought! I've lived in northwest Georgia for almost 7 years and haven't seen anything more than flurries. Unfortunately though, the snow ended up missing us and covering the parts of the state I grew up in, 2 hours south of here. I must admit, I pouted a bit, wondering why it seemed everyone else got snow but ME!

That brought me to another thought. The past 12 months or so have been the most difficult in my life for numerous reasons. I'm learning lately especially that the people you put the most hope in...the ones you love the most, are sadly sometimes the first ones to walk away. They do so in such a way that you wonder how they sleep at night knowing the pain they must have left behind when they so heartlessly just turned away from you. This has actually hit me in not only in my personal life, but business as well. So much pain, and where do I go from here I wonder? Then to look around and see what seems to be so much happiness around me. Friends are happily married, babies being born, babies on the way, etc. I can't help but to sit and think "why does it seem to snow everywhere but here".

However, that being said, I have two friends that come to mind that are sharing the same boat I'm in. In fact, the boat is so similar it's spooky that our paths have intertwined the way they have. I'm so thankful for one of these friends especially because I think we've been each others rock.

I guess the way to look at it is this. Okay so it didn't snow here and hasn't for a long time. (by the way, it didn't snow at my friends house either who shares the same boat as I do ironically enough). Granted snow is beautiful while it falls, but the fact is it begins to melt and go away. It turns to a nasty cold slush and we wonder why we wanted it so badly to begin with. Maybe God is just sparing me this by not letting it snow at all for now. Maybe God has a better snowfall in mind for me later on. Whatever the case, I anxiously await spring and push forward. Yes people will disappoint you, whether they mean to or not. That's why we aren't supposed to put our trust in man. Period.

There are many changes taking place in my life and on the farm, so many of them make no sense to me and leave me wondering what on earth I ever did to deserve the never ending bad luck streak I seem to be on lately. I have to trust that God is doing housecleaning in my life for a reason. I have to believe He is getting rid of the trash so He can do a better work in me. Believing that this is the case, I'm truly excited to press through the struggles and find the rainbow at the other side.