Spring is so full of possibilities and life! The trees grow fuller, the flowers blossom and our world turns green! Living on five acres, surrounded by trees, I often feel disconnected…as if I’m in a cocoon. I like the quiet…the sounds of nature–chirping birds, rain pattering, things growing.
1. Hiking through the woods followed by a break
near Durango, Colorado
2. A beautiful sunset
Santa Fe, New Mexico
3. Talking to a friend
4. Pretty colors…the blue sky…green trees…colorful flowers
5. Watching the snow fall while sitting in front of a fire
6. The sound of church bells
7. Having a great dream
8. Cappuccino
9. Planning a trip…almost as good as taking the trip
10. Crying when you feel like it
11. The sound of crickets and tree frogs on a summer night
12. Having a clean house
13. Hot shower with yummy smelling soap
14. The feel of the wind and sun on you while riding in a boat
15. Finishing a project
16. Getting the job you wanted
17. A body massage
18. Lotions and Potions
19. The lazy warm feeling in the morning before getting out of bed
20. Lying on the beach soaking up the sunny sun
21. Reading a great book
22. Wearing a soft sweater
23. Stretching
24. Petting a dog or cat and watching their eyes droop
25. Listening to a great song while driving a convertible
26. Taking a nap
27. Feeling sexy
28. Laying down at night when you’re really tired
29. Sitting in a hot tub staring at the stars
30. Drinking a glass of good wine
31. Surprising someone with a gift or good deed
32. Visiting a beautiful European city or anywhere in the world…
Lisbon, Portugal
33. Laughing really hard and long
34. Wildly dancing for an hour or two
35. Feeling tipsy
36. Kissing passionately…
37. Watching a good movie
38. Cooking and savoring a delicious meal
39. People watching
40. Cuddling
41. The sound of the waves at the beach and…the smell
42. Taking a long sweaty jog
43. Playing with a child
44. Taking cool photographs
45. Winning
46. The smell of freshly baked bread
47. Flirting
48. Looking younger than you are
49. Being able to scratch where you itch
50. Believing in miracles and magic
As I was making the list…I realized everything on my list is simple, basic and doesn’t cost much money. Except for the traveling part! It made me feel good just thinking of these things!
On the second day of our girls’ weekend, we went for a two mile…self-guided walking tour of downtown Lexington, Kentucky. As you can see it was a glorious “fall” day!
Some of the sites we passed were the First Baptist Church, Mary Todd Lincoln‘s house, St. Paul Roman Catholic Church, and many more…
This is “Gratz Park”…with lots of beautiful historic homes lining the streets surrounding this Park!
This is the old Courthouse…
Transylvania University is the oldest college west of the Allegheny Mountains and the campus is beautiful!
Tomorrow, I’ll finish our walking tour…see you then!!
After researching “things to do in Lexington” for our yearly “girls’ weekend”, I decided having a tour of a private horse farm would fit in nicely with our schedule and would be a unique experience with a personal touch! I chose Taylor Made and our guide was “Emily”, the young lady in the next photo. She was knowledgeable, professional and sweet!
The 1500 acre farm specialized in breeding and has received up to $8 million dollars for one conceived “baby”! Usually, it’s more like $100,000…but still, that’s a lot!
While we were there for the hour tour, two gentlemen had arrived for their appointment to check out a couple of stallions for possible breeding, so we were allowed to watch them being brought out for show!
The farm was beautiful…even though it was an overcast day!
It was breathtaking to watch these horses race up the fence line!
They even had a small horse “cemetery”…
Here are the girls…from left to right….Gina, Cindy, Me, Sherry, and Michele. Dee came the following day for the second night.
We learned quite a bit…this is the breeding room. It usually takes about 45 minutes and they have someone restraining the stallion, so he doesn’t get too rough with the mare…such as biting her. They videotape it for proof!
Here is the Mare‘s compound…
The tour is free…but you tip the guide. We really enjoyed it!
My Tour Director class stayed at the Montecito Sequoia Lodge for one night in October. It’s located in the Sequoia National Park, California. That evening we had a bonfire and it was magical! First, one of our classmates’ topics was Sasquatch aka Big Foot, so having her present at night by the campfire was a perfect setting. She did a great job and then another classmate who is also a singer, sang O Danny Boy. She’s Irish and has a lovely voice! I cried (trying not to let others see me)! To top off the evening, a man named Frank gave a talk about John Muir, playing the character of John Muir. He spoke for at least 30 minutes and I was amazed at how he could recite and remember so much!
The next morning, I woke as usual before dawn and watched the sun rise. It was gorgeous!
The lake on the property was perfect for taking reflection shots of the trees and as the sun came out, I was able to capture some breathtaking colors…
We had a hearty breakfast before embarking on our tour of Sequoia and Kings Canyon Nat’l Parks!
