Ringer's First Ride

Thanks to my daughter Jenny.... Ringer has his first and second ride under his belt. Jenny saddle him up with her saddle which has a back girth and after he hippity hopped a couple of times getting used to that, he was fine. Jenny warmed him up in the round pen saddled up for about 15 minutes,then I went in the pen with her, clipped a lead rope to Ringer's halter while she mounted and led him around for about five minutes while he got used to her weight on his back. When I took the lead rope off , he took a few minutes to understand what he was supposed to do, but quickly caught on. Jen worked him at a walk and then a trot in both directions, stopped and backed..... I was very proud of Ringer and Jenny ! Here's a few more pictures of the first ride. PICTURES

Savannah Getaway

Bobby and I decided to see historic Savannah for our 3rd anniversary. The town was everything that everyone had said it was, but we learned a couple of things the hard way. Make hotel reservations ahead of time and don't take US 17 all the way into the city. :) We enjoyed our scenic drive up the coast on US17, but learned the easiest way into the historic district is Abercorn (SR 204) which is where we wound up staying for the night also. We learned that the line waiting to get into Paula Deen's restaurant is over a block long. Our tour guide said that the line was a combination of folks with reservations and those who wanted to make reservations. I think the wait was going to be 2 to 3 hours ! We wound up having a wonderful time riding the trolley and hearing the history of the city...we got off and on several times and enjoyed walking the area also. On River St you have to be careful not to turn your ankle - the cobblestones are large and rounded - not a place for a wheelchair either. You can see the pictures of our weekend HERE (then click on slideshow). I definitely would like to go again, but will be more prepared next time !

Weekend

I had a wonderful, busy weekend. Friday I went to the imaging center and had my thyroid sonogramed (loads of fun, huh?) then stopped by the nursing home to visit Ms. Thelma. After that Robbin, Julian and I met at Waffle House for a leisurely breakfast. We decided to go to Westside Regional Park and had a nice 2 mile hike through the nature trails. Later in the afternoon Bobby and I purchased a new laptop - (it's still in the box ! )

Saturday morning I met a couple of my great riding buddies, Cathy & Traci, and we explored Jennings Forest for about 4 hours - except for getting attacked by ticks it was an enjoyable ride. Stylin was a little ouchy on the hard pack because she had just been trimmed on Thursday, but held up well without her boots. Julian spent the night with us and we watched "Flushed Away". What a cute movie !

Sunday was an all day affair. We got up early, picked up Mom and went to early services and dropped Julian off with his mom then headed out to Newberry to visit the in-laws. Had a great lunch and visit then headed back through the Melrose/Keystone area to visit Jenny and her man Joel. He has a very cute little place on the lake with a nice big piece of lakefront property. It was great to see Jenny so happy. Joel made us feel welcome and Mom even took a short nap on his couch ! We made it back home after an 11 hour day !!!

What Kind of Horse are You ?

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Fabulous February

February has been a good month. I've been able to ride quite a bit with my friends, spend quality time with my family and get some chores done around the place. I signed up for an evening class at the church and just today started visiting an additional patient at the nursing home.

We just had 18 pine trees removed from the back part of the yard near the horse paddocks. They had been dying because of pine bark beetles and I was afraid that either the horses or one of us would be hurt. It sure looks empty back there now, but it's much safer. Hay is very scarce around here right now, but I was able to pick up 16 bales today to add to what we have to give us a 30 day supply. I guess the lack of rain last fall and the late freeze we just had caused it - the hay I got today was trucked in from Georgia.

Good Times

Life is good and we are blessed ! Got to go camping with friends last weekend at the River Rise trails of O'Leno State Park and the weather was perfect. Stylin held up for her first big weekend since her bout with laminitis. We rode 3-1/2 hours on Friday afternoon and then over 5 hours on Saturday. She got a little tired, but recovered quickly. I didn't take my camera, but hopefully my pals will provide some pics of the weekend.

On the homefront - the family and critters are all well except something's killing our chickens. We're down to 2 from 5. Found a pile of feathers but no carcass............

Property of Zambito Oaks Farm

Ringer's and Stylin's brand finished out nicely as you can see. I finally got to ride Stylin out on the trail again.....boy did it feel great to be back in the saddle with her ! We kept it at a short 2 hour ride to see how she did and because we had company coming in the early afternoon. Other than bush whacking and breaking the cable on her boot - it was a great ride with some good friends.