Farm Girl? Ranch Girl? Horse Woman?

Nope . . . a Mom raising kids.

                                         KellyCare 2012©

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At the age of  fifteen, I worked at a riding school in London. Which meant, that I would escort riders down through Hyde Park and into Kensington Gardens. That was the glamour part of my day. Then, back into the stables  and change clothes. Grab a shovel, muck the stalls out, groom the horses, polish leather. I loved it! Calloused hands, and a strong back. I have never been afraid of hard physical work.

 KellyCare 2012©

So, in yesterday's post, you caught me feeding the goats and covered with hay -- the exploding hay bale. The switch from glamour to hard work. I am used to it and I love it. And the Ranch is always full of kids, horses, and . . . hard work. What a healthy way to live.

 KellyCare 2012©

You have already seen this picture of my wonderful son, Dom' at his Prom' recently. How those days have flown since he was a tiny little fellow that I could scoop up and cuddle (see the inset). But look at me . . . from the chores on the farm in my work clothes to delivering my young Hero for his special night out. Proud Mom.

Do not get the wrong idea about my happy memories. My life has had many challenges -- days of fear, sick children, sleepless nights, not enough money, shrill discussions with teenagers of the house. However, it also had its lovely times, rewarding days and nights.

My advice to parents . . . keep a sense of humor and a positive outlook. There are more sunny days than rainy ones and, there are more happy days in a lifetime (even to come) for the unhappy ones!  Tomorrow I would like to tell you about a friend of mine, Amy Potvin -- one of the bravest mothers that I have ever met!

 KellyCare 2012©

And you can see that riding boots -- dressage or cowboy -- just part of my life.