The Crew Heads to the Beach

The whole crew is spending this week in Salvo, NC!  Yep, we are all soaking up some rays and creating memories with the family!  We have left the stable in the capable hands of Dan and Tommy.  We have left our house, the dogs and the chickens in the care of Cowboy Keith.  He is such a great guy and we appreciate him giving us an opportunity to get away.  Of course, last night, he found himself in a precarious situation.  As he was heading to our house, a bear met him on the carport and proceeded to chase him into our house.  Since our last bear encounter ended, we had put up all the weapons of bear destruction as well as taken down the boobie trap that protected the chicken coop.  Therefore, Keith had no warning and found himself not only chased to the house, but trapped inside by Mr. Not-so-friendly Bear.  No worries . . . Cassie and Sasha are safe, as are the chickens. 

Thanks to Gran, we have a great house on the beach with our own pool and hot tub.  The beach is nearly deserted most of the day and it's great!  For those who don't know, Salvo is located south of Nags Head and just a bit north of Ocracoke.  It is next to Rodanthe and yes, that is the location of the movie - Nights in Rodanthe.  More on that later.  Salvo is a small hiccup on the map and you can almost throw a stone across the entire island.  It is an 8 hour drive from our beautiful home in Canaan Valley, WV, but that 8 hour drive turned into a 12 hour drive yesterday.  It took FOREVER!  The traffic between Williamsburg and VA Beach was horrific.  They really need to make that stretch of I-64 bigger!  Space Cowboy and Cowboy Mark were blazing our trail, but took a wrong turn in Norfolk, so we went in circles for a while and got a great tour of the Norfolk tunnel. We don't need to do that again.  This tour will suffice! 

As for Nights in Rodanthe - REALLY???  SERIOUSLY???  I went to see that movie with a ton of anticipation and at the end, while everyone was sniffling and crying, I said loudly, "REALLY???? SERIOUSLY????  HE DIED????"  I was so mad, and I'm still bitter about it.  I do think I'll go see the house, though.  Gran wants to see it, and I think it was a very cool house. 

Tomorrow, I think I'll blog about the effort to get here.  We have one Caddy, one truck, on Navigator, two motorcycles and various beach appropriate stuff.  yep, we are the Griswalds!!!

My love for Elvis

Following is an essay I entered into a contest at Real Simple Magazine.  I didn't win, but I enjoyed writing it and thought you guys would enjoy reading it.  See ya round the barn!

I never thought I’d spend every day with Elvis.  No, not that Elvis . . .though there are similarities – the dreamy, dark eyes, the unruly mane, the hips that move in time to the music.  But my Elvis is a Tennessee Walker Paint.  Yes, that’s right – he’s a horse.  And yes, his hips do move in time to music!

I first met Elvis eight years ago.  A very good friend called me on cold December evening to tell me she had seen a couple of horses who appeared to be starving.  She knew she had to do something and wanted my opinion.  We discussed the options and decided to visit the location the next morning and talk with the folks who lived there.  I didn’t sleep much that night but rather played out the possible scenarios in my mind. Perhaps the owner just couldn’t afford to take care of the horses and would be grateful that we offered to help.  But then again, maybe the owner would be angry at us for interfering?  Should we just call the authorities and let them handle it?  Would they get there in time to save the horses?  After all the speculation, I decided we had to act.

Not long after the sun came up, I drove to my friend’s house and we traveled together to where she had seen the horses.  The scene that actually played out was worse than anything I had imagined.  Two beautiful horses were standing in a lot that wasn’t big enough for one horse.  Even though it had snowed a couple days before, the ground in that lot was not white.  It was brown where the horses had pawed, desperately trying to find a blade of grass or some sustenance.  There was no water in the lot.  We got out of the car and I walked through the gate into the lot with the horses.  Knowing that it is never a good idea to walk right up to a horse with whom you are not acquainted, I proceeded with caution.  However,  Elvis (as he was to become known) walked right to me and put his nose and head against my chest.  I ran my hand over his nose and noticed that his halter was cutting into his face.  I then noticed how his hip bones protruded.  His neck was skinny . . . and horses just don’t have skinny necks.  He had shoes on his feet, but they obviously had not been cared for in a very long time.  His hooves had grown past his shoes, and he had about four inches of ice stuck to the bottom of each of his feet.  He allowed me to pet him and check his feet.  He stood very still.  When I got back to his face, I looked into the saddest eyes I have ever seen, and in that moment, he won my heart.  My friend and I became horse thieves that day.  We walked those horses the three miles to my friend’s farm and into their new lives. 

After months of nursing Elvis back to health, I finally got to ride him.  I bought new tack (saddle, blanket, bridle, reins) and carefully climbed on his back.  He was very nervous, as was I, but we enjoyed a leisurely walk around the meadow that day.  I then moved Elvis from my friend’s farm to a stable closer my house.  That same year, my husband and I opened a commercial horseback riding stable, and Elvis became one of our most reliable customer horses. 

For many months, I had spent each evening with Elvis - grooming him, singing to him and feeding him.  As I experienced professional success, my time with Elvis and the rest of my family became less and less.  I was promoted and given more responsibility, and was well compensated for the work I did.  When I landed a job with a large corporation, I was so very excited!  I was living the dream – company cars, expense account, travel to exotic locations.  It was wonderful.  But then reality began to hit me.  I found myself rushing home to make it to basketball games and concerts and birthday parties . . .and then rushing back to my professional life to attend meetings and conferences, supervise staff, and hold trainings.  Earlier this year, I began to feel sick.  I was tired all the time.  I seemed to be allergic to everything in every climate I visited.  It felt like I was never going to please anyone, least of all myself.  Ever the type A personality, I didn’t share any of my feelings with my husband or anyone else.  I just kept going.  When I would think about quitting, fear would get a strangle hold on me.  How would my daughter finish pharmacy school?  How could my other children have the things they wanted and needed?  What would happen if I didn’t provide the health insurance through my job?  What would I do without the salary?  Fear is a tremendous motivator, but I also believe that decisions based on fear are typically wrong.  Therefore, on July 12, I put fear aside and resigned from my corporate job.  July 13, I became Manager of Timberline Horseback Riding Stable and, more importantly, Elvis’s best friend.

I now spend my days caring for Elvis and the other 17 horses in our herd.  I have repurposed my professional skills (marketing, operations, new business development, human resources) to make the most of our horseback riding stable, doubling our business from last year.  I meet wonderful people and share Elvis’s story often.  My former life was devoted to working with troubled and special needs adolescents and their families.  That work was very important to me, and I am integrating that piece into our stable.  I now share Elvis with several autistic children who respond positively to grooming him and enjoy riding him.  Riding is very therapeutic for children and adults, and I find myself doing a lot of life coaching on horseback!

For many years, I have been telling other people how important it is to be “present”, but I have not practiced what I preached until recently.   Every ride is a blessing.  Each time I notice the amazing views and the miracle of nature around me, I say a little prayer of thanks.  Spending time with my family that is not rushed or forced is a true gift.  Not long ago, I was sharing the story of rescuing Elvis, and as I reflected on it, I realized that I may think that I saved Elvis’s life, but in reality, he has saved mine.

The Beauty of Manure

Today, my friend Jenn came to help clean the stalls after the horses were fed and released to the field.  Jenn is a relatively new friend, and I'm really grateful that she has entered my life.  She is going through some tough personal times right now, and today she finally understood the value of manure scooping!  It is amazing how quickly things come into perspective while one is scraping horse poop from a stall! It takes you to the most basic levels of life.

I've spent a great deal of time learning how to stay in the moment, rather than becoming overwhelmed by the chaos that is our daily life.  As another good friend of mine says,  "you have to chunk it down and do one thing at a time!!"  Yes, she says that with a lot of emotion, so it requires two exclamation points.  Life can be very overwhelming and more often than not, we can get lost in all that we have to do to the point that nothing gets done.  I've fallen into that trap more than I care to admit.  However, when I walk into the barn and see the piles of pooh in the stalls, I become very focused on the job at hand - cleaning one stall at a time until all are done and the barn is in order once again.

It is a great metaphor for life - we must focus on one task at a time; do it with integrity; and then move on to the next task and repeat the process.  This is really the only way to move forward and make progress, regardless of the big picture goal.  We must stay focused on each short term goal until it is reached and surpassed.  That is the only road to success.

Once scoop at a time will lead to a clean stall which will lead to a clean barn.

See ya round the "clean" barn . . . . .

Warm Breezes

I've been a bad blogger . . . It's been a couple weeks since I shared any of our life around the barn.  The horses are all doing great!  The weather has been really mild for a few days, so the horses haven't had to go into the barn for the nights.  I think they are happy.  If there was any doubt in my mind about how well behaved our horses are, it was wiped away this past week.  About an hour after dark, I went with a friend to the barn to feed for the evening.  I was startled to see the horses hanging out next to the road!  After a momentary panic, I began to call the horses.  They came to me immediately!  All of them!  They came to the barn door and waited nearly single file until I had their stalls ready.  I then began leading them into the barn . . . one at a time while the others waited patiently outside the door.  I was amazed and grateful!  What could have been a horrible ending to the day actually turned into one of the most inspirational times I've had with the horses. 

I have posted photos of our new horse, Cindy Lou, on our Facebook page - Timberline Stables.  Go take a look if you haven't already.  Also, we will have a brand new website up within the next few weeks.  We are gearing up for our busiest season, and there are changes coming . . . . more on that in another blog.

Have a great weekend and I'll see ya round the barn.

The Old West

Well, I'm leaving the Barn today . . . heading to Tucson, AZ, for four days.  I'll be presenting at the National Association of Therapeutic Schools and Programs Conference on the value of utilizing outdoor settings and horses to work with troubled and at-risk kids.  I have spent almost 20 years working with troubled kids in various settings.  I've worked with adjudicated youth in residentithal settings; I've been the director of a wilderness program; and I've developed and worked at outdoor therapeutic programs.  I'm a firm believer in exposing our youth to the natural environment and allowing the process to happen.  I guess I can sum up what I've learned by saying that my work has been focused on providing other kids and families the same opportunities that were afforded me growing up on a farm in a small community in WV.  It works!! 

Anyway, I'm excited to visit the Tucson area.  I've never been to that part of Arizona before.  I have been to Phoenix, Scottsdale, and Sedona - the northern part of Arizona - and it is absolutely gorgeous.  This trip, I'm taking time to visit the OK Corral and a few state parks as well as ghost towns from the Old West.  I'll be sharing photos when I get back.

Space Cowboy is taking care of the horses and the barn till I get back.  I hate leaving, but this is a good opportunity, so I shall take full advantage of it!

Queen has had a wound on her back shoulder for about a week.  She came into heat and while all of our males are gelded, it doesn't completely stop the natural process!  Beamer tried to have his way with Queen and the stud on his shoe punctured her skin which then got infected.  I've been taking care of it each day and it is much better.  It was one of the worst animal wounds I've had to deal with!  I nearly threw up two days in a row!!  However, it has closed over now and is well on the way to better.  The self-healing abilities of the horses just absolutely amaze me.  They truly are magnificent animals!

So, you may be asking why Beamer has studs on his shoes . . . it's so he can pull our sleigh!  People are loving that service and it is truly beautiful.  Visit our Facebook page and you can see photos of the sleigh and Space Cowboy at work.  We are Timberline Stables on Facebook.

OK - off to Tucson . . . See ya 'round the barn!

Welcome to the Barn

For some crazy reason, I've decided to start a blog.  I arrived at this decision while spending yet another day shoveling stalls and enjoying some wise and relevant insights.  That seems to happen every time I begin shoveling, and I haven't found a good way to share my thoughts.  I've always loved horses.  In fact, I've always loved farming.  As a child, I didn't carry a blanket or a doll around; I carried my "bull book."  Now I know you are asking yourself . . .what in the world is a bull book?  Well, it was a book that provided descriptions of all breeds of cattle, what characteristics made a "good" bull, and what physical attributes let you know you have a good calf when it's born.  And not only did I carry this book, but I could quote from it!  All this before the age of five.  I was destined to be a cowgirl.  It was handy that I lived on a farm! 

I consider myself very lucky.  Not only did I grow up on the farm, but I was able to raise my children on the farm as well.  My children were surrounded by grandparents, great-grandparents, aunts and uncles throughout their childhood.  It was wonderful.  It still is.  That farm propelled me into the amazing life I now live.  I'm the Head Wrangler at Timberline Stables in WV and also co-owner of the business with my husband Space Cowboy.  I spend my days cleaning stalls, repairing tack, caring for horses and riding.  We provide trail rides for guests at Timberline Four Season Resort and anyone else who visits our beautiful corner of the world or is lucky enough to call Canaan Valley, WV, home.

My journey to this job was certainly eventful and I will share tails from that journey as we go.  For now, know that your author might be the luckiest girl in the world.  Come join in on my adventures Around the Barn!