I was about three years old when the traveling horse man came around the neighborhood to take pictures. (Do you remember the traveling pony pictures?) They dressed me up in a cowboy outfit and I was never the same after that.  Something must have flown off that pony and bit me then and there. My next experience with a pony came around the age of 12. I used to go north to Nappanee every summer with my dad to stay on my uncle's farm. They had a pony named Thunder.  I was just crazy about that pony. I spent all my time with him learning (self taught) to ride. One particular summer (before I realized how stubborn horses could be) I learned a lasting horse lesson.  For some reason Thunder just didn't want to be ridden. I went flying off his back into a creek bed. I was shocked to think that this creature that I loved so much could do such a thing to me. I ran crying to my dad.  Instead of sympathy he made me get back up on that horrible creature and ride.

When I became a teenager I discovered the numerous riding stables in the Indianapolis area. My girlfriend and I would take our allowances and walk, beg rides, whatever it took to get to the stable to ride those horses.

Fast forward to my adult married life with children. The kids and husband have become accustomed to my fixation on horses. The first thing I do on every vacation we take is to pull out the yellow pages and look for any riding stables in the area. I am on the phone immediately reserving a time that I can ride.  By the way, out of five children only one rides with me on a regular basis when he is home from the service. I have a daughter that is now becoming interested in horses because my two-year-old grandson just loves horses.

Although my husband has never become interested in horses, he understands my love for them. He told me once that if I had ever found a horse that caught my eye that I could buy it. I never really took him seriously until the spring of 2002. I went horseback riding with a friend and fell head over heels in love with an Arabian named Mariah. The owner must have noticed me staring at Mariah because he asked me if I wanted to ride her. I have never been on a horse that could move like her. Several weeks later he called to tell me that he was putting her up for sale. I have never been so excited.  I couldn't wait to call my husband and call in that offer that he had made to me several years before. He kept his word.  I became the owner of my first horse at the age of 46. I knew absolutely nothing about taking care of a horse.  For a while she took advantage of that. I learned quickly, usually the hard way. But from that time forward, we formed a bond that was unbelievable.

My deal with my husband was that I could have a horse but it was up to me to find a place to keep it. We have no farm of our own to keep a horse and we were not planning to move anytime soon --although I continue to work on that. So far I haven't won that one.

I met my friend Tina, Red Hat Purple Chaps lady, at a place off of State Road 44 and 135 that I met. We seemed to take to each other immediately and I think she felt sorry for me. She took me under her wing and has taught me a great deal about horses. If you read Tina's bio, you know the story about our mares becoming pregnant by the Appy stud colt. We left that place in a hurry and moved to a place in Columbus. There, Mariah gave birth to a filly in June of 2004. I was furious when I found out that my horse had gotten pregnant without my knowledge, but I can't tell you how excited and full of love that I was when I first saw her and her colt together. Then in December 2004 a freak accident took the life of my beloved Mariah. I was devastated. Not only did I lose the love of my life, Spirit lost her mother at the age of six months. In February 2005, I bought a four-year-old Tennessee Walker, gelding that I named Cody. We are still in the process of discovering each other’s bad habits. After a series of problems where I was boarding the horses, I decided to see if Tina would have pity on me and let me keep my horses at her house with her horses. I moved them there in May of 2005 and what a change I have seen!

It was at the Hoosier Horse Fair that I picked up a brochure for the Red Hats and Purple Chaps. The rest is history. I was thrilled to find such a group and look forward to joining in the many activities that are offered.