A Perfect Vacation

I just returned from one of the best vacations in my life.  I took my horse, Indira, and rode in Big Bend State Park with two friends.  We had a guide, Armando, and he led us on one of the most challenging rides of my life.  We rode along narrow trails with sheer drop offs. We had lunch in a creek bed with high walls providing shade.  We rode through a movie set.  It was like stepping back in time 100 years.

The next day we went to the Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Alpine, Texas.  I was amazed at the talent.  They recited the poems from memory and some of them were 10-15 minutes long.  The music was original and from people who really experience life on a ranch.  That night we met friends from Utopia and had dinner at the Reata.  It was good food, good wine, good company.

We rode in Big Bend National Park the next day.  It was a bit windy but Indira did well. I love riding with friends that enjoy their horses and being outdoors.  We sang How Great Thou Art as we rode along and my heart was happy.  We rode for several miles until we found a cut off to a primitive campsite near the Rio Grande.  We found shade under a mesquite tree and had our lunch there.  We walked the horses down to the river to water them.  It is so quiet and isolated.  It is the desert and you don't even see or hear a bird.

Our final full day was very windy so we made the decision not to ride.  Wise choice, as Indira ran circles in her pen like a crazy horse.  June and I drove to the Chisos Basin in Big Bend and hiked up to the Window.  It is almost a 1000 ft. climb from the beginning of the trail but it was worth it.  You can see for 100 miles when you make it to the window.

That evening God gave us the best view of the full moon from the deck of the house we stayed in.  It rose over the mountains and it was the perfect way to end a perfect vacation.

From a quiet to a busy week

I have spent this Sunday at home and quiet.  Spoken to two people on the phone but otherwise it has been silent with just the tick of the clock.  Can't say I have too many days like this but felt like I needed it.  Time to recharge, to just settle, to think.  I have to admit I feel a tinge of guilt because I'm not "doing something".  Tomorrow will be here and I have a week full of "doing" so I'm resting.  That is what Sundays are suppose to be about anyways.

I don't really care about football so there won't be any super bowl party here.  I am going to water the garden, take a walk and tend to the animals.  I will be driving 9 hours tomorrow to North Texas to recruit at West Texas A&M.  Last year when I made that trip I went with Stephen and we hiked the Palo Duro Canyon.  It was beautiful.

I made tamales with some friends on Friday.  It was for the Laurel Tree Restaurant and they were gourmet tamales.  We made two kinds, shrimp and chili chicken.  I can't wait to try them.  Laurel was going to steam them and she will bring me some when we do stained glass at my place.  I'm so thankful for new opportunities to do things and spend time with friends.  It makes life fun.

Yesterday, I went to a horse auction in Round Mountain with my friend, Erika.  We found a horse we liked and decided on a price we would pay.  We have a good eye because the horse we liked sold for more money than any other horse.  Like thousands more!  Needless to say we came home with no horse.  I had to leave my horse trailer with my Uncle because the axial was out of alignment and it had ruined one of my tires.  I'm hoping he can fix it and I'll pick it up next weekend when I am over there for the North American Trail Riders Conference.

My cousin, Judy, has a daughter named Brooke that is horse crazy.  She is 10 years old and I am taking her to a clinic for youth riders next Saturday.  I have to share this horse bug with everyone I can.  I remember when Ryan and Blake were 10 years old and they did a ride or two with me.  Good times, camping and riding.  Looking at the stars, sitting around a fire, just letting the peace of it all soak in.

I leave for Terlingua the end of this month.  It will be a week long vacation for me with two other ladies and our horses.  I haven't done anything quiet like this before but it fits right in with what I enjoy doing so I think I'll like it.  I'll have a new saddle and hopefully a fixed trailer by then.  Lots to look forward to.  I was reading a book called Everything this morning and I really liked what it said, "God beckons us always forward, onward and upward."  I pray that each of us opens the eyes of our heart to see and then we have the courage to step forward.  HAPPY TRAILS!

Wow, it is already November 2nd.  It has been a month since I posted last.  Life keeps on moving and so much has happened.  Let me recap for memory's sake, I am doing stained glass on Monday nights with two friends, Laurel and Rebecca.  They come to my place and we work on projects from 5 - 10 pm.  It feels good to get back into being productive and creative.  I love the company and hopefully I'll get some Christmas presents made.  Laurel owns a French restaurant in town and is a Chef from The Cordon Bleu School in France.    Rebecca runs a store in town called Utopia on Main that has lots of beautiful things for the home.  They are fun and creative.  I have met so many people this month.  Crystal Davis at church, invited me to join her and 8 friends for lunch.  Carol LaRue attends my church and is good friends with Laurel.  I can tell we are going to be good friends.

I went to Atlanta last week for a visit with my dear friend, Rhonda.  I hadn't seen her in 1 1/2 years and it was so good to catch up.  I slept better than I have slept in years.  I felt so safe and comfortable.  Rhonda has the gift of mercy and hospitality.  It flows out of her and is a blessing to everyone around her.  She has such style and grace.  I always come away blessed after being in her presence.  We talk about so many things - relationships, starting new businesses, candles, dreams, hurts, etc. but it all comes back to God and his plans for us.  I have no doubt he put her in my life as a gift.

Hunters are here!  This is opening weekend and I saw a Huge buck they shot this morning.  This changes life at camp.  I have to limit my coming and going to certain hours.  No horseback riding on trails unless I get approval first.  I love the improvements they have done for the hunters.  New electric deer proof gate will be finished this week and a cell phone tower will be installed soon so I have cell service.  Yeah, I'll be connected to the world.  There is always good and bad with change.  The thing I have learned is to stay flexible and adapt.  It makes life so much smoother.

I got a new horse trailer with living quarters.  I can't wait to take it on the next trail ride.  I will be competing with Indira in early December.  I sold my horse trailer.  I am delivering it today to a ranch near Bandera. /I'll drive on over to Kerrville and vote early since Tuesday is a big hunting group and I'll need to stay here.  I think I'll go see the movie Argo while I'm in town.  I've heard it is good.  Tomorrow is the Art Fair in Utopia so I plan on checking that out.  Maybe next year I will have something to sell.  I'd like to start some kind of side business to make a little extra.

It is a beautiful day outside today.  I love this Texas weather.  Sunny and just right.  It is hard to stay inside and clean or do paperwork.  I love that my job duties are watering the flowers, taking care of the  garden and riding horses.  All outside stuff!

Have a great weekend everyone. This is November - Be thankful!  Everyday I am going to be thankful for something and post it on Facebook.

The Garden

These are before and after pictures of the garden.  I can't take all the credit for all that work.  I had lots of help from Antonio and his workers.  It has been many years since I have dug in the dirt.  It is hard work. I pulled up morning glory vines that were as thick as ropes.  I was dripping in sweat and the stack of vines was taller than I was. Sometimes we have to do some painful pulling before the seeds can be planted for new life.  Sounds like an analogy to life doesn't it?

I planted spinach, lettuce, carrots, broccoli and more to come.  Mom has bought some plants too so I'll plant those next week. There is something wonderful about planting in the garden.  We look forward with expectation to the signs of life and then the produce.  My friend Lori says we all need three things, someone to love, something to do, and something to look forward to.

This month I will be flying to Atlanta to see my dear friend Rhonda.  I haven't seen her in over a year and I am looking forward to spending time with her.  She is a friend that I have no doubt God sent into my life at the appointed time. We walked together and talked of being grateful and thankful for the many blessings in our lives. We kept each other encouraged to trust His never-ending love for us. I am so blessed to have so many Godly friends in my life that are loving and wise.  God has loved me as they have poured out of their hearts into mine.

Now that I am settling into this little community called Utopia I am seeing opportunities to pour into others.  I want to plant and pour the hope that God gave me back into others.  I heard Beth Moore say that we should see that bad circumstance in our life as a way to show the devil that it was one of the greatest changes for God in our lives.   He is certainly making the opportunities for that to happen by placing people in my path.

I will continue to work in the garden and I'll post more pictures.  It is rewarding to see the little plants coming up.  We have no control over that growth but we get to enjoy the bounty.  How good is that?    

Happy Sunday

It has been a wonderful weekend.  It started with a steady rain that filled the Sabinal River that flows at our entrance.  I love the sound of rain on the tin roof.  It is like the world is at peace.  I really can't imagine a prettier place to be than sitting on the porch of the barn at Lonehollow.

Blake drove over Friday night and we cooked one of his favorite foods - fried okra.  We watched a funny movie on my laptop with his Netflix account. It was so good to curl up on the couch and just have some "Blake time".

Saturday it stopped raining and stayed nice and cool so we took a hike at Lost Maples State Park.  We hiked 5 miles up some steep trails.  It was good to enjoy the beauty of the creeks, ponds, ferns, and shady trails.  We walked and talked and worked up an appetite.  Of course that meant some pie from the Lost Maples Cafe and then a nap.  We had a wonderful 5 course meal at The Laurel Tree that evening.

The rain started falling again and has kept at it all day today.  We had dinner on the grounds at church today.  It is held in the large fellowship hall so we stayed dry.  I sat at a table with some people I had never met.  I met a lady that loves to garden and talked to her about what I need to do with the garden here at Lonehollow. It is overtaken with weeds so I need to get busy pulling weeds when it stops raining.  It will be nice to have fresh greens this winter.

I worked on a stained glass project this evening.  I am using a piece of agate and I really like the way it is flowing.  It is good to do something creative, it makes me feel like I am going back to who I really am.  I don't know if that makes sense but I feel like I am being true to myself.  I put on Pandora radio and listen to good music (just discovered Needtobreathe and love them) and after a few minutes of getting settled I am in the flow.  The hardest part is going into the room and getting started.

Ryan and Tyler had birthdays this week.  Remembering the day they were born is a gift that only a mother can understand.  Holding that child for the first time and all the years of memories.  It is so special to see their lives unfold before your eyes. I am so blessed to have these boys in my life.

I have a busy week ahead.  I like that.  Dr. appt., women's bible study, staff mtg., women's group, competitive ride this weekend.  I want to live a full life and this week is going to be good.  So much to be thankful for...rain, son's visit, horses to ride, two sons' birthdays, spirit filled church, God's beauty outside my door, good health to ride 40 miles, room to create, inspiration, new things to do, new people to meet, God's protection, people to love and people that love me, good music, the best friends in the world. Have a good week everyone.

Friendship

I just got home from a trip to Kentucky.  It has been 14 months since I packed up my truck and horse trailer and headed south to Texas.  I was able to stay with my dear friend Lori.  This is a photo of the room I stayed in and yes, all those gifts were for me.  She spoiled me beyond my dreams. I opened a couple everyday and stretched it out over the three days I was there.  A 90 minute massage was pure bliss.  I am so grateful that she came into my life when she did.  She loves me. She makes me laugh.  She is wise and makes me think. She encourages me to be the best I can be.  I want to be that kind of friend. I KNOW that she is a gift from God.  

  

So now that camp is over I have 9 months of "normal" to work on life goals.  I want to work on getting to know people in the community and making friends, healthy exercise and eating habits, working on my art everyday, becoming a better rider, knowing God's character and hearing Him better. So that means structure, discipline, routine.  I have written out a schedule and will have to adjust it as I go.  Most of my goals are measurable but as long I spend the time working toward them I will be moving in the right direction.  I have a half marathon in March that I am registered for.  I have horse hair bracelets that need to be made and marketed.  I will join a bible study group.  I will find a trainer and take some dressage lessons.  I really hope to look back on this year and see that I have made efforts to improve and become closer to the person that God intends me to be.

As I listened to the iBloom calls tonight I thought about the qualities I admire in a friend.  

A good listener that is wise

challenges me to grow

uplifting and encouraging because they believe in me

thoughtful in word and actions

someone that has Godly values and walks them

they want to work toward their goals

like to laugh and have fun. 

I have so many friends that are all of these things.  I hope that I will always be striving and learning to be that kind of friend to them.  I have lived with 10 college girls this summer and that was a fun experience.  I look forward to the coming years and the opportunities I will have to be a friend to the people that cross my path. I hope they will see some of those qualities and feel loved and encouraged to be all they can be.

An idea is born

These are a few of the horsehair bracelets we made this summer.  I got the idea that it would be a meaningful gift for the Wranglers to make from the tails of their favorite horses.  I researched how to make them and bought the hardware.  We made thick ones, thin ones, one color, three colors.  They encouraged me to make it into a business so I am going to give it a try.   I would like to market them at horse events and have competitors bring me the hair from their horse and I would make the bracelet in about an hour. Hopefully, it would pay my expenses and I'd make a little extra too.  I would enjoy being around horsey people.
This is the final week of camp.  We are pulling shoes on some of the horses and moving them to the front pasture.  We wormed 30 of them yesterday.  It is hard to believe that this time next week this place will be still and quiet.  It has been non-stop activity since the middle of May when the Wranglers arrived. These young campers are so easy to entertain.  They say the cutest things.  Yesterday one of the boys noticed the brand on one of the horses and another camper said "that shows where the horse is manufactured".  They all got to ride in the pony cart today and loved it.  They got to meet their horses today and groom them.  They love just touching and loving on them.  Tomorrow will be their first day to trail ride.  I can't wait to hear what they have to say about that.
I am looking forward to going to Kentucky next week.   It will be so good to see the boys and friends.  I feel like I live in a bubble in my own little world.  I am so disconnected during the summer.  I don't mind missing the politics and news but I do miss being with the people I love.  It has been a good summer meeting all the campers and living with these wonderful Wranglers.  We have spent the last three months working long days in the heat, living together, eating together, we are like family, we know each other well and I love everyone of them. What a blessing and help they have been.