So, it was during a recent experience that my daughter, Cupcake, had with one of her best friends, at a horse stable, that I had an AH-HA moment of my own. It was during Spring Break and she was invited to her friend's house for a sleepover and to go to the horse stable where her friend will help muck out the stalls, groom the horses and earn riding lessons. Cupcake and ridden horses a few times and I knew that she would love the experience. I loved the aspect that she would get to see all of the fun and not-so-fun parts of owning a horse, too. The girls ended up having an amazing time playing time but due to the weather were not able to ride that day. The owners of the barn promised that Cupcake could come back anytime for her riding lesson though.
While I was looking through the pictures of Cupcake and her friend Meileigh that her mom, Jennifer and had taken, I thought, "I need to show Cupcake the pictures of me when I used to ride and show horses." So, off I went in search of the scrapbook.... I started looking through it. You know, one of those clingy paged ones from back in the day. And here is when the ah-ha moment hit me smack dab in the face.... here I am as a staring at a girl in a tutu, surrounded with dogs and always on or near a horse. Oh have mercy, I have Cupcake REALLY, TRULY is my MINI-ME in so many ways! Oh my, how I loved dogs, big and small, it did not matter, when I was a young girl and still do. I saved my birthday money one year to buy my first Jack Russell Terrier (I think I was 16) and I have had a Jack Russell ever since. I have always had a dog!
The second was dancing. I openly admit, hands down that, Cupcake is a much more talented dancer than me, but yes, I was a dancer, too. I danced for many years as and loved every minute of it. Dance recitals and all. Yep, we got that in common, too.
And the third, was horses. Cupcake has loved horses for a long time. It is not because we have horses now, or live on a farm, because we don't. In fact, we are rarely around them, except at festivals or parks. She is just an animal lover, big and small. The thing that really stood out to me is how much like me, Cupcake is. But it really smacked me in the face yesterday while I was looking at that old scrapbook. HARD. Nature vs. nurture? Nurture is screaming loudly and clearly to me here!
SO, I am going tI have been dreaming of writing this post for a few days, so it is time to stop dreamin' and start writing! Something most of you may not know about me is that I grew up on a farm in rural WV with horses. My life was all about HORSES, HORSES, HORSES! Both my brother and I used to ride and show horses and it was always a family affair.
So, it was during a recent experience that my daughter, Cupcake, had with one of her best friends, at a horse stable, that I had an AH-HA moment of my own. It was during Spring Break and she was invited to her friend's house for a sleepover and to go to the horse stable where her friend will help muck out the stalls, groom the horses and earn riding lessons. Cupcake and ridden horses a few times and I knew that she would love the experience. I loved the aspect that she would get to see all of the fun and not-so-fun parts of owning a horse, too. The girls ended up having an amazing time playing time but due to the weather were not able to ride that day. The owners of the barn promised that Cupcake could come back anytime for her riding lesson though.
While I was looking through the pictures of Cupcake and her friend Meileigh that her mom, Jennifer and had taken, I thought, "I need to show Cupcake the pictures of me when I used to ride and show horses." So, off I went in search of the scrapbook.... I started looking through it. You know, one of those clingy paged ones from back in the day. And here is when the ah-ha moment hit me smack dab in the face.... here I am as a staring at a girl in a tutu, surrounded with dogs and always on or near a horse. Oh have mercy, I have Cupcake REALLY, TRULY is my MINI-ME in so many ways! Oh my, how I loved dogs, big and small, it did not matter, when I was a young girl and still do. I saved my birthday money one year to buy my first Jack Russell Terrier (I think I was 16) and I have had a Jack Russell ever since. I have always had a dog!
The second was dancing. I openly admit, hands down that, Cupcake is a much more talented dancer than me, but yes, I was a dancer, too. I danced for many years as and loved every minute of it. Dance recitals and all. Yep, we got that in common, too.
And the third, was horses. Cupcake has loved horses for a long time. It is not because we have horses now, or live on a farm, because we don't. In fact, we are rarely around them, except at festivals or parks. She is just an animal lover, big and small. The thing that really stood out to me is how much like me, Cupcake is. But it really smacked me in the face yesterday while I was looking at that old
o go old school and post a few pictures of me in my horse days. The scrapbook page that I did was done with Sonshine Graphics Studios. I used the "Panda Love and "Life's a Beach" lines to make this page. I hope you enjoy it. When was the last time you had a blast from the past and an ah-ha moment all rolled into one?
This was me and my first horse, Lady Sunshine Mary. I grew up on this horse. She was the best horse ever. More people who were TERRIFIED of horses, faced their horses on her, than I can remember. This was taken by my Grandmother, Helen Farley June 18, 1983 - Polaroid picture:-)
I apologize for the photo quality... some of the photographs are rather old:-/ I just wanted to share a blink in time and a walk down memory lane. Mom, this post is for you! XOXO
Thanks for all the great memories and the strong work ethic that hardwork and dedication and perseverance payoff in the long run.
