Spring In The South
With warmer temperatures in the 80’s this week, we can safely say that it is Spring in the South now!
Hallelujah!
Praise God!
I can hear the choir of angels singing now!
Can you tell that we are extremely overjoyed now that the harsh winds of Winter have blown out of here?
Oh, I know! All of you up North are laughing hysterically over the Southerners down here complaining about “harsh winds of Winter.” We aren’t used to it, and frankly, I don’t see how you guys LIVE where you have to shovel all of that snow! And let’s not even talk about when temperatures are way below freezing there. We cringe when the weatherman talks of just snow flurries here and the possibility of ice on bridges!
Ah, but Spring has sprung!
Every outdoor surface is covered in a blanket of … green pollen. Not as romantic as sitting by the fire up North with a blanket of freshly fallen white snow on the ground.
But, let’s not talk about Winter.
Spring is HERE!!!
I know … there is still a chance of a “cold snap” before Easter, as always. Just when the trees start flowering – like my Bradford Pear Trees I’ve been waiting FOREVER to see bloom … and now they ARE … with the dogwoods beginning to come to life as well. Imagine my excitement yesterday when I realized they are getting ready to burst forth in a few weeks, too!
This weekend we rode our horses through God’s beautiful country in the Charleston area! Does it get any better than that?! With trees lined with gray moss hanging overhead, we felt as if we were truly in the enchanted forest. Ah, but this was no fairy tale. This was real life on the grounds of Middleton Place!
Middleton Place is a National Historic Landmark, and we had the pleasure of riding our horses here! No, we couldn’t actually ride up close or around the house or the gardens, but we were still on their land with beauty surrounding us nonetheless!
While we could only see a small portion of the house, which was built in 1755, from the trails, we were excited when we were able to capture this picture from across the road at Bailey’s Field.
We rode our horses around ponds where we saw Canadian Geese, ducks, and about three alligators right there in a row. I contemplated on what to do because I knew that we were bound to see an alligator with all of the ponds around. We were riding close to the water’s edge, too, so I was trying to decide whether to tell my daughter when I spotted one sunning on the bank or to just go on by as if I didn’t notice. I finally decided to tell her as I was afraid the alligator’s swift movement off the bank and into the water would cause a splash which would startle or spook our horses. I tried to break it to her as gently as possible, but she was consumed with fear as soon as the first alligator scurried off the bank and into the water faster than anything we’ve ever seen before! She began to cry, and no amount of reassurance from either my husband nor I would help at that point. We came upon another one within minutes from the first, and it entered the water with lightening speed. The third alligator, however, was soaking up the sun and did not even notice (or care) that we were any where around. My daughter’s tears quickly dried as we lead our horses away from the pond and on to higher ground. I tried to tell her that the alligators are probably just as afraid of us (with the exception of the one that didn’t acknowledge our existence) as we are of them! As long as we don’t provoke them, we should be fine. That helped, as the very next day we rode around some of the ponds on the right hand side of the trails. She was fine then as we only spotted one or two in the middle of the ponds and not on the banks as we passed by.
I lost track of the number of times I threw my head back and said, “Oh my gosh … I LOVE this place! It is soooo beautiful!”
From vast ponds to wildlife and on to fields full of Yellow Carolina Jasmine, we were in awe of ALL of God’s creations!
As we got further into the woods, we stumbled upon a little bridge, completely safe for horse travels, across a little creek. As soon as you crossed over the bridge, you immediately had to climb uphill. We had the best time at this spot with our horses trotting up the hill, so much that we went back to this spot a second time just for the thrill of going back up again. It is hard for me to contain my excitement, and I cannot hold my laughter in at this point. I laugh because I’m happy, and I feel FREE on the back of my horse! It is truly one of the best feelings in this world!
If you’ve experienced your share of Winter Blues, we encourage you to get out in nature at the first opportunity you have with warmer weather in your area. Let yourself stand in awe of God and the beauty He has provided for us all. I am constantly amazed at Our Creator. He thought of every single detail, didn’t He? Of course, He did!
And we bow our head and thank Him for ALL of His many blessings in our lives.
A Little Taste of Heaven… In a Bag of Popcorn
Great American Popcorn Company Main Street Galena, IL
Nestled in a scenic valley in the far Northwest corner of Illinois, sits the quaint little town of Galena Illinois. There is a very special place among the shops and eateries that is a popcorn lover’s dream; The Great American Popcorn Company.
The city of Galena got its start as a boomtown for lead mining in the early 1800’s. The city became known as the home of General and later President Ulysses Grant when Grant moved there to work in his father’s store on Main Street. Today, Galena has all the charm of a 19th Century town with its vintage buildings on Main Street and grand houses standing upon the hills of the city. Today, Galena is a wonderful destination for a weekend getaway from the stresses of the work week. The downtown area is adorned with shops and eateries with such a variety as to please most everyone.
Great American Popcorn Company
For years, I heard friends talk about Galena and how they loved to go there. It is only about an hour and a half from where I live. Yet, I had set aside the time to go there until about ten years ago. Once I stepped on to Main Street my nose caught the wonderful smell of one of my favorite things; popcorn. I have only two vices; diet Wild Cherry Pepsi and popcorn. I felt like Toucan Sam as I “followed my nose” down the street and into the Great American Popcorn Company. It was if I had stepped into a dream as there was popcorn in flavors that I never imagined such as Zesty Ranch and Parmesan and Garlic. Galena instantly became one of my favorite places in the world.
Dave & Zach Lewis
The Great American Popcorn Company was started over 20 years ago by Dave Lewis and his wife Cathie. They run the business with their children Zach and Victoria. It is easy to tell that they all have a passion for their products and their customers. You can sample of any of the popcorn flavors in the store. Over the years they have come up with hundreds of flavors of popcorn; many of which are long time favorites and always in stock such as the Galena Mix; a tasty combination of cheddar cheese and caramel corn.
Extensive selection of popcorn
On my first visit, I wasn’t too sure about some of the flavor combinations and if they would taste good. You may feel that way too when looking through their selection. Don’t! You will miss out on an amazing taste treat. Some of my current favorites are: Thin Mint (yes, just like the Girl Scout Cookie), Zesty Ranch, Peanut Butter Cup, Cookies and Cream, Molasses (just like ginger snap cookies), and a long-time favorite of mine White Cheddar. They even have a flavor that was created at the request of the hostess of this blog, Shirley. Shirley has a passion for brownies so Dave came up with Brownie Explosion. To say it is amazing in taste is an understatement; especially if you like brownies.
Mouth watering fudge
Popcorn is not the only wonderful treat you can get at the Great American Popcorn Company. They have homemade fudge in a wide variety of flavors. Today I got to taste a new flavor; Dark Chocolate with Raspberry Wine. Fortunately, I only had a small sample otherwise I could easily see myself eating a whole block in one sitting. Some of the other fudge flavors they have include Birthday Cake, Mint, Peanut Butter, Honey Graham, Praline, Carrot Cake and many. In addition to fudge, they have variety of other candies, Jelly Bellies, ice cream and an extensive selection of sodas.
Wide variety of boutique sodas
I could go on but I hear a bag of Thin Mint calling my name.
I highly recommend making a trip to Galena to see the sites and get some popcorn. If you can’t get to their store, check out their website at www.greatpopcorn.com or look them up on Facebook.
“Friends don’t let friends eat microwave popcorn”
As a last thought, thank you Dave and family for bring a little taste of heaven into my world. See you soon.
“Friends don’t let friends eat microwave popcorn.”
Horse Community Uniting
Recently, you may have encountered more horse pictures on your Facebook timeline than you normally see. That is due to the horse community uniting after several tragic losses.
Seventeen year old Olivia Inglis from Australia was killed when her horse fell on her at a jumping event. Shortly thereafter, her horse had to be put down due to the injuries sustained in the accident. The loss of this great team has the horse community in mourning. (Read more here on why you’re seeing #RideForOlivia.)
Right before that, Lara Deweese, a well known professional barrel racer, was killed while participating in the sport she loved with all of her heart. (Read more here on Lara’s success in barrel racing and her tragic death.) This really frightened me as I have friends that compete in barrel racing events. The horses are, of course, traveling at an extremely high rate of speed to make the best time for the event.
My youngest daughter has expressed an interest in both jumping, like Olivia, and barrel racing, like Lara, but I have not been able to push my fears aside to get her involved in these events. Instead, our time on the back of our horses is spent strictly for pleasure as we enjoy each other’s company under the vast sky riding through God’s beautiful countryside.
I do realize that horses are spooky by nature and typically have a flight response when startled so there is a risk even in trail riding. That is why I’m posting this today. The English riders typically are the only ones that wear helmets, yet I encourage everyone to wear protective helmets no matter if they are taking a leisurely stroll through a familiar forest or if they’re participating in events.
Western riders typically do not wear helmets, and we have gotten teased by some of our friends when they’ve seen us out riding with our helmets on. I’ll admit that I do not always wear my helmet, and I often times slip my helmet off for pictures because it is hard to tell who is under the helmet and sunglasses if I don’t.
Plus, I like having pictures to look back on, and who doesn’t want to look good on the back of a horse?! But, safety is paramount! For us, even if the adults in our party elect not to wear their helmet on an outing, any one under the age of 18 is required to wear one when they’re with us. We will not make any exceptions to this rule.
I realize that the issue with Olivia’s accident wasn’t whether she was wearing a helmet or not. I imagine in the event she was participating in, it was a requirement. She lost her life when the horse landed on her, from what I’ve read. It is so very tragic!
In the case of Lara, though, from what I have seen and have been told about the sport, barrel racers do not wear helmets. Lara’s horse slipped around a barrel, recovered, and then bolted with her on the back unable to regain control of the horse after the reins went over the horse’s head.
I can only imagine the horror both of these young ladies, their families, friends, and spectators felt witnessing or learning of these accidents.
With horses, we go into the sport understanding that there is always a chance there of something happening. We pray that it won’t, but … we aren’t always as fortunate when we climb up on the back of these beautiful creatures. I know firsthand, as I had a horse bolt on me. In my case, I was lucky that my head did not strike the ground, although I still sustained a concussion from the impact of being shaken around when the horse bolted as well as when my left hip struck the ground. As much as everyone says that you can stop a horse with the one rein stop (pulling the horse’s head around to the side with one hand), nothing was stopping the pony I was on that day from bolting and bucking. I, too, lost the reins at one point, and I was holding on for dear life until I got thrown off. I was lucky to literally be able to walk away from this accident as later it was discovered at the emergency room that I had a fractured hip and fractured hand. Even still, I knew that if I didn’t get back on a horse when I did, I never would. So, two months after my accident, filled with anxiety, complete with sweaty palms and racing heart, I got up the confidence to climb back on one of our well trained and calm horses. That’s all I wanted to do was sit there in the saddle to prove that I could overcome my fear … and I did! The feeling, love, and passion for the horses and the sport, the desire to still be an equestrian after the accident was there so strong.
And here I am.
We are approaching the two year anniversary of when I was thrown off the back of a pony that we had no idea was not suitable for anyone to ride at that point. The pony was what they considered “green” (as in: inexperienced, had not been worked with extensively or trained. The horse was not broke to ride, yet the person that sold this horse to me for my daughters was not honest. I am reminded of the result of my trusting this person’s word as I still have aches in the hip that was fractured, but I’m thankful that the accident wasn’t any worse. I thank God today that I was the one on that pony when it bolted and not my precious daughters!)
I am proud to be a part of the horse community, and I am uniting with equestrians around the world to share my pictures and story in honor of Olivia, Lara, and all other equestrians who have lost their lives or have been injured pursuing their dreams on the back of a horse.
Please pray for the families and friends left behind, for all that are looking to get into the sport, and for all who enjoy the thrill of the ride and getting back in the saddle as often as possible.
May God be with us all.
