Motorcycle license

I did it! I got my motorcycle license!! I was worried about being the only girl in the class and having all the guys have to hold up until I figured things out. When we first got started, I couldn't get it into neutral if my life depended on it, but after that things ran smoothly. I was happy to be the first one done with the written test and to score 100%. The next day, we did the riding test and I only missed two! There is one part where you have to do a figure 8 inside a box and I went out of the box on one of the turns and then the final turn of test, I entered the turn too slow.

I had more fun than I expected, but I still don't see me riding on the interstates. I may be able to build up my own confidence, but all it takes is one person not paying attention. Maybe a trip down the Natchez Trace?

Sushi

Here's proof that I tried sushi. Even though I wasn't looking forward to it, I was hoping to like it. I mean, hey, isn't Sushi that "in" thing and if you like it, you're so much more sophisticated! Well, I guess I'm not meant to be sophisticated, I'll still take a taco truck over sushi any day of the week! Brett....now I can knock it since I've tried it!!

French Broad Outpost Dude Ranch

What a terrific week! We arrived last Sunday at the French Broad Outpost for a week of fun!!

Sunday: Checked in and met the other guests. Meals were served family style with the guests and staff so we got to meet everyone. After dinner, we had orientation where the owner gave us the basics. It was very informative and he explained several things that I had never been previously told. I liked the way he explained things- he didn't just tell you what to do, but why to do it. They only used Arabians and neither Brett or I had ever ridden an Arabian.

Monday: After breakfast, we met our horses and did some hands on training, then took a trail ride. We were assigned a horse for the week and for each ride, you were responsible for getting your own horse from the pasture and saddling up. They did not do any of that for you and it definitely helped you to learn. After lunch, we took another trail ride. Came back for dinner and then played some pioneer games. My first injury wasn't even from a horse - it was a 3 legged race gone bad and we took a nose dive!

Tuesday: Breakfast, cattle drive, lunch, whitewater rafting, dinner, team penning. My booty was a bit sore today:-(

Wednesday: Yeah! I woke up and nothing hurt today! A few of the guests left and a few more arrived. There was one other family that stayed for the entire week. Breakfast, trail ride, then after lunch we skipped out on the float trip because the weather was gloomy, so instead we spent the afternoon reading and playing games with our new friends.

Thursday: Breakfast, cattle drive, lunch. After lunch, I chose to take progressive riding lessons. There were 5 of us taking the lessons and 3 of us moved on from trotting to cantering. Afterward the other 2 were bruised and in pain. I was feeling pretty good that I wasn't hurting. Ended the day with dinner and games.

Friday: That feeling of excited about not being in pain after the riding lesson yesterday was definitely missing the moment I woke up:-( Good thing I brought some ThermaCare heat pads, there were muscles in my back and neck that I didn't know existed! Breakfast, Cattle drive, Lunch. After lunch, Brett went on a ride and I went with Kim to check out the small town of Hot Springs, NC, then back for dinner and a night of square dancing.

Saturday: After breakfast, we skipped the advanced whitewater trip so that we could go into town and meet up with Jen Brown, a friend of mine from High School. It was the first time we had seen each other in 21 years and she brought her son who just graduated High School. Time sure flies! We cut our visit short so that we could get back to the ranch for our last ride of the week, but on our way back, the weather got crazy and any riding for the day was cancelled. With that done, we spent the rest of the night enjoying the company of our new friends and listening to some live Bluegrass music.

Sunday: Breakfast, said good-bye to all our new friends and headed home!

The guests, wranglers, owners and staff were all superb and this week ranked as one of our best vacations. I also need to add that they went way out of their way to accommodate our gluten free needs. We ate just like everyone else, but they fixed several things separately and made them gluten free. They said they learned a lot and as much as they learned...we ate! We had spaghetti, chocolate chip cookies, peach cobbler, grilled cheese, spinach tortellini soup, brownies, buttermilk pie, waffles, etc. You name it, they rocked it!!!!

Beautiful view of the ranch from just outside our room.

Brett's horse for the week...Munchkin!!

My horse for the week, Tonamae.

Changing my oil & tire

This was one of the items on my list that definitely wasn't glamorous, but I wanted to know how to do it. My dad was an auto mechanic who had his own shop and between him and Brett I never needed to know how to take care of my own car, but I figured that just because I didn't need to do it, didn't mean that I shouldn't know how to do it.

The first thing I learned was that it was super easy which made me wonder why people pay others to do it. The second thing I learned was that it was HOT outside and I would gladly pay someone to do it for me....thank you God for Brett:-)

After changing the oil, I took off the front tire and put it back on. Again, not a big deal, but didn't know if I would know what to do if on my own. Brett taught me a few tricks, but I hope that I never have to use them!

Easter

Yes, I'm a little late with posting this, but better late than never.

We spent Easter at the Love Farm. Our friends, Heidi and Roddy Love do a fantastic job of hosting an annual Easter get together. Just like themselves, most of their guests are talented singers and songwriters, and everyone takes turns performing on the wrap around porch of their beautiful old farmhouse.

Great old fashioned fun! Thank you Heidi and Roddy for a great time!