Gypsy Gold Horse Tour

Some time ago, Nathan and I were watching a movie with a horse in it.  He was quite taken with the horse and wanted to know the breed.  Yes, I said HE was quite taken with it.  I thought it was sweet looking but wasn't as enamored as he was.  He looked it up online and then shared about the Gypsy Vanner with me.  I still wasn't that taken with the breed.  Then I went to the Parelli show in VA and one of the ladies who was demonstrating had a Gypsy Vanner.  Once I spent about two mintues with her horse, I fell head over heels in love.  Since then, we have decided that we'd both love to own a Gypsy Vanner someday.

I didn't really know much about the horses beyond that though.  I bought a Groupon to take a tour at a Gypsy Vanner horse farm when we first came to The Villages.  We kept saying we were going to go and ended up doing other things instead.  So we didn't actually end up doing the tour until the day before we headed out.  It was well worth making sure we did do it while up this way!

We learned so many interesting things about the people who owned this beautiful horse farm, and the story on how the Gypsy Vanner horse made its way to our country.  You can read about it at their website here: Gypsy Gold.  If you get a chance to go and visit, we highly recommend it.

Short Trip Back to Peace River

I am having so much fun in The Villages, that I think the only thing that could get me to leave would be the horses at the horse sanctuary that I volunteer at.  The owner took a much needed vacation, so I agreed to come down and help our group of core volunteers cover while she was gone.  I was happy to be greeted by some of my favorite horses as soon as I stepped out of my car.

I was also happy to see all of the horses looking healthy and happy.  Even Joe, who is still recovering and underweight was much better than a month ago.  Dixie, the newest mini, was walking around well.

Chevy, who makes my heart pitter patter like no other male beyond Nathan, was an handsome as ever.  His gorgeous side kick was as feisty as ever.

There is a beautiful storage barn for the hay.

In fact, the only thing that wasn't wonderful while I was there was this:

We had an abundance of rain last summer, but we have much more flooding from it this year.  I think the horses are as sick of it as we are.

I did get lots of exercise the four days I was there.  I normally walk a lot while there.  In fact, I wore my pedometer one day and this is how many steps I logged during that day:

Now factor in many of those steps being in the mud, and you can imagine how tired my legs are right now! I have blisters all over my feet and legs.  My shoulders and arms ache.  Luckily the horses make every minute of the hard work worth it all and then some!  I love spending time out there, and I love each and every horse.

Living the life in wet and muggy Florida!

Swimming With The Manatees

Before Aric even came to stay for the week with us, we planned a trip to swim with the manatees with him.  Nathan and I went last year and enjoyed the experience so much, we highly recommended it to Aric.  This trip was with a much bigger group.  We had less encounters with manatees and the water was cloudy, making it impossible to see the manatees.  I decided to stay on the boat and take pictures and let the guys hang out with the manatees.  It was still a great day even with those factors.

According to the information they gave us, this is the only place you can swim alongside the West Indian Manatee.  In the winter, they estimate up to 700 manatees are in this area.  During this time of the year that drops to 70.  They are not sure why some migrate north and some stay put here in Florida.  We encountered a mama and her baby.  You are not allowed to touch babies until they reach a certain age/size but it is still neat to see them like we did last year.  It is amazing how gentle the manatees are for their size.  They are not intimidating at all to hang out with, beyond I would not want to be trapped underneath one!

I hope we can make this trip with all of our kids at some point.  It is one of the neatest animal encounters that we've ever experienced!

The horses at Grand Oaks

While we loved seeing the museum, I think the highlight of our visit to Grand Oaks Resort and Carriage Museum was our time with the horses after we saw the museum.  First we visited one of the many barns, to see if there were any horses in their stalls.  

We did not find any horses there so we headed to the pastures.  There are 400 gorgeous acres at Grand Oaks and everywhere we looked, we were surrounded by beauty and horses.

Here are were some of the sweethearts we got to spend time loving on.

And I just have to share two shots of this beauty.  Can you believe those eyes?!?

She was a sweetie too!

Living the life in The Villages, FL.

Abbie and Kaylah's Baby Lambs

Nathan's brother, Chris, and his wife, Katee lived in Arizona when we were out west.  We had fun visiting different places there and even went to the Grand Canyon together.  They have moved back to Virginia since then and now live in the house that the three brothers lived in while growing up.  We knew they had added animals to their space, but I have not been up there to see all that is going on until this visit.

I hit the jackpot when I did go up, because two babies were born that day.  One of them was born minutes before Mom and I arrived and was still all sticky and wet.  What a beautiful thing to be a part of! 

They are all active in 4-H, and shared some of what they are doing there.  Abbie showed us her skills with bracing.

Katee showed off some of the beauties that live here.  It was clear to me that she spends a lot of time bonding with the animals and really loves it.

We can't forget about the chickens.  Well, you really can't forget about chickens because they won't let you if you are anywhere near them.

Every farm needs a great dog and this was one great dog.  I wanted to bring Zoe home with me.

It was so heartwarming to see life and love filling the place that had sat empty for far too long.  Do you think I could fit one of these in the RV?  It could sleep right next to the horse I am wanting to bring along when we start to travel again!  That will be one downside to our lifestyle, no space for the cool animals that the other family members get to own.  I guess I will just have to be content to soak up the goodness of their animals when I visit and be the aunt to both the children and the pets.

 Living the life in VA!

Snow in March!

 We woke up this morning and saw that it snowed more while we were asleep.  I went outside to snap some shots of the snow before anyone else was outside.

 I'd forgot how quiet the world is when there is fresh snow on the ground.  It seems like it's nature's way of saying, "hush".

The only other creature I saw stirring was Russ.  Russ was moving around in the snow, but even he was quiet beyond that.

It is such a strange thing to have weather like this in March!  Luckily Mom has a fireplace where we could stay snuggled up next to and see the beauty of the snow while staying cozy and warm.  I think Russ is a bit jealous of that.

 

Sorry Russ!  Living the life in snowy VA!

Lions, Tigers and Bears Tour

Today we went on a tour to a rescue named Lions, Tigers and Bears.  It is located in Arcadia, so about 17 miles from here.  We had a good sized group and everyone seemed to enjoy their time there.

From their website, the mission of this refuge is: Lions, Tigers, and Bears is a 501(c)3 Tax Exempt Refuge for animals. We have 40 acres of prime Florida upland oak habitat and pastured land just north of Arcadia, Florida. Our mission is to provide a permanent loving home to unwanted exotic pets, non-releaseable wildlife, and endangered species. We are also a rehab facility for injured and orphaned native wildlife. Lions, Tigers and Bears Inc. believes that education about animals and their connection to the environment are the keys to conservation and the future of the world.

Gearing Up for the Holidays

Every year when it hits November, I kind of hold my breath a bit, bracing myself for the coming holidays.  I love the holidays.  I am really geeky about holidays in fact.  But they are also tiring because of all of the "extra" they add to life.

Adding to the holiday busy-ness is the reality that work is going to get much busier.  It will get downright crazy in fact.  We will also have more people around us that we want to spend time with.  Pickleball will be in full force.  And I will love it all.  And I will be ready to crash when it ends because it really is exhausting to juggle so much in such a short time.  So on days like today, where I spent most of the day at Sixteen Hands...I soak up the peace and quiet while I can.

I enjoy the pace of the horses.  I pay attention to the small details, like Dancer's jingle bells.

I laugh at the silly faces Patriot makes while he camera hogs my view.

I marvel at Gracie, who is one of the wild mustangs here.  I appreciate her patient and gentle spirit with us as we try to attend to so many horses needs.

And I spend as much time as necessary to see that Cherokee gets as much food into him as he can handle today.

I get down to the basics when I am here.  All the things that nourish living souls.  Nothing more.  And it is exactly what I need to keep me grounded.

Living the life in FL!

My Favorite Kind of Day

Since we spent all summer in Florida, and Florida in the summer is a dreadful experience temperature and humidity-wise, we are really enjoying the cooler days.  We went out to Sixteen Hands and spent the day there alone because everyone else went to an event.  It was just a lazy kind of a day.

  The horses are starting to really know Nathan now.  They greet him and then go and do their thing.  Well, except Patriot who believes "we" are his thing.

Gypsy girl shows us how she multi-tasks by drinking and bathing at the same time.

And Chevy bravely walks over to me, rather than running away from me.

It was a good day!  Hoping for more of them over the next few months!

Living the life in FL!