Cherish is my favorite word, and I cherish the ability of turning the routine into a beautiful moment.
Nature creates in me, a spiritual and meditative time to bring peace, harmony and balance, into an otherwise ordinary day~
Mary Howell Cromer







Sunday, April 29, 2012

Kentucky Oaks & Kentucky Derby Week in Kentucky~





It is going to be a very fun week for me and one that I have looked forward to for a long, long time!
Living in Kentucky horse country USA, we have many Saddlebred, Arabian, Thoroughbred horse farms near by.
Just about any direction you go, you will find them. In the northeastern part of the state you will view mostly black creosoted fences and go to the south western part of the state and you will see more white fences.
Bluegrass country they call it.
When the morning dew rests upon the grasses, it almost looks blue in colour and oh so very beautiful.
There is nothing quite as exciting as being able to visit one of these farms and watch the horses grazing in a pasture, or running along the fence line, feeling their oats.
I grew up riding English and loved it into my young adult years.
It was a dream to own a horse, but that never happened.
That was fine, for I always knew someone who did and I could go to visit whenever I needed a good dose of their beauty.
I love their grace and power.
When I was 18, I went to the Kentucky Derby, standing in the infield with thousands of people, I vowed to myself that one day...I would either go to the  Kentucky Oaks, which is the running of the fillies on the first Friday in May,
or
I would go to the Kentucky Derby which always falls on the first Saturday in May. 
My plan was to go with a really good view, and a seat.
This year, I have been blessed abundantly, for not only am I be going, but I am going in style.
I will be seated in the Clubhouse  for the running of the Oaks on Friday,
in a box 3 rows back from the track and only 4 sections from the finish line.  
I am so excited and am so looking for this to be a day to remember!
In honor of this special week, I decided to share some special horse images, as well as some lovely flowers which can always be seen at the famous Churchill Downs racetrack, in Louisville.
Next week, I shall share some of my photographs from this very special day.
Have a lovely Monday, a lovely Mosaic Monday and a wonderful, fun and safe week...
I know that I plan to do just that;')~
Meet Lilly, who belongs to my sister's good friend Charlie and his wife~
 







Lilly is being boarded at the Hermitage Farms in Prospect, KY. 
This  also happens to be where the Queen of England and her husband have visited several times. 
I was fortunate enough to be one of a handful of people who got to see Queen Elizabeth when she made a visit back in the mid 1980's. 
It was quite on accident...and it was a grand memory~
















The above Mosaic was done by Mary at the Little Red House.
To view more like these...

Please visit other Mosaic Monday entries with Mary
at
Little Red House

19 comments:

  1. lily is a gorgeous girl, and the other horse as well. really nice mix of horse and blooms! i know you are going to have a grand time on friday!

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  2. Beautiful flowers and beautiful horses.

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  3. Beautiful saturated colors in the blooms! And the horse is pretty great, too!

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  4. Wonderful pictures...the horse is exquisite. There was some concern whether the tulips would be blooming for the Derby as we had such warm weather early in the season. It is good to see that the tulips are stunning!

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  5. Wow you have an exciting event to look forward to! Beautiful photos ... horses are such stately animals! Enjoy the time.

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  6. Beautiful horses and such pretty flowers. I enjoyed your mosaics.

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  7. Lovely mosaics. Nice idea to mix the horse shots with flower shots.

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  8. Lily is gorgeous and so are the flowers. I rode western ... quarter horses and Arabs ... when I was much, much younger! :D :D Still have the horsey love!

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  9. Stunning Lily! Beautiful mosiacs. May you have a glorious time so near the finish line!

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  10. You are so fortunate! I'd love to see the Kentucky Derby one day! The horses are beautiful, as well as all the tulips in your mosaics.

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  11. Not far from me is the farm, now closed, that was home to Northern Dancer. It used to be nice to drive by and see the young colts playing in the fields. Your photos of Lily and the flowers are just gorgeous.

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  12. I'm a fellow KY girl. Never got to the derby so will enjoy your visit. The photos are beautiful.

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  13. I am so envious. Going to the Derby and the Oaks is on the bucket list. Has been for a very long time. I love your pictures, nothing like a good horse picture to make your heart sing. Have a wonderful time and I'll be watching for your pictures.

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  14. You always make such creative mosaics! I LOVE the one with the tulips and the horse in the center. That is one of the darkest horses I've ever seen! Beautiful photos, my friend!

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  15. Lovely mosaics of beautiful images. Have a great derby week (even if the Queen isn't there).

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  16. Well, you're a Kentucky Derby lover, well, it's that time. I hope that they race each on flat instead of hurdle racing, that's horrid. The lady that has stolen my heart is a horse, beauty.

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  17. What a beautiful horse. I hope you have a simply wonderful time at the Kentucky Derby and tell us all about it!

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  18. Lovely that you'll have such a special experience this year. Lily is beautiful! I look forward to reading about your Derby day.

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