Sisters Trip - Day Three

Saturday stretched out in front of us just like a vacation day should - we had plans but they were flexible, and the time was our own. Jenny and I packed up the car (after eating our Chop House leftovers from breakfast, yum!) and were on the road by 9:30.

Our first stop was to visit Transylvania University in Lexington - we got a giggle from the name of the school, and Jenny really wanted to get a tee shirt from there.

Founded in 1790, it is one of the oldest universities in the country. It has about 1,000 students and is about twice the size of Hershey.

Our drive was uneventful until we were getting close to Louisville. I-64 was a three lane at this point, and we were in the middle lane. Suddenly, the mini van to the left and a little ahead of us had black smoke begin belching from its right front tire. It swerved into our lane, back into its own, and then the tire flew off! It soared over our lane, bounced in the right lane, and then ricocheted right at us!

Luckily, it hit the ground in its side instead of on the driven part. I think it would've bounced again and definitely hit our hood, windshield, or roof. As it was, we had no time to react and drove right over it.

How we kept from wrecking is a mystery. (Or, more likely, the Lord watching over us.) We plowed right over it, hearing the undercarriage scrape on the rubber of the tire. We discussed pulling over to check the undercarriage, but Jenny was leery of stopping on the side of the road due to traffic, and the exits were far down the road. I said a prayer and felt we would be okay, told Jenny so, and we pushed on. (We had no more trouble.)

It took a few miles before we both were able to calm down. But we had no further incidents as we drove through Louisville and over the Ohio River and into Indiana.

Outlet shopping at Edinburgh, Indiana? Yes, please!!

We wandered around for about an hour, looking at merchandise and having fun. Jenny bought a nice black purse, but I continued my "shopping drought" and came away empty handed.

That drought ended in Lebanon. Having dropped Jenny off at her home in Indianapolis, I decided to stop by Countryside Antiques. There is a booth there where someone is slowly selling off a nice collection - I have found a woodgrain Brahma bull, a gold Modernistic Doe, and several other goodies in that booth.

Score!!

 A dark smoke Running Mare (I have a lighter colored one already, but I collect variations.)

 A semi-gloss bay Running Mare (I did not have one as it's very common and I just haven't looked for one to add to my collection, but this piece was too nice to leave behind)...

 ... and an Insurance Jolly Cholly! (The third one I have found at Countryside Antiques.)

Only THIS one has the ID label from the manufacturer of the tags! Score again!

How ironic to drive four hours each way to BreyerFest and buy virtually nothing only to find some good things within an hour from home! That's collecting for you!

I arrived home around 6:00 and it was wonderful to be reunited with Craig. Jenny and I definitely want to do another sisters trip - she's talking about doing the planning for the next one and heading up to Chicago next summer. 

I'm game, and I hope Leslie can come then, too.

Sisters Trip - Day Two

Today was the day - BreyerFest officially began! (Even though the horse trading' began as early as Monday back at the CHIN... hah!) Warning: this blog entry is pretty picture intensive.

The lane leading to the ticket gate for parking had signs with each of the dinner/celebration models from past BreyerFests.

The parking lot was huge and packed! In fact, there were several. We'd gone a little late, hoping to miss the heavy crowd waiting to enter the park. We were mostly successful at that.

A mounted police officer directed traffic.

As we hiked up, we could see the Big Barn in the distance - the arena there would have horse demonstrations all day long while the concourse would be full of vendors and shoppers.

 I was ready to enter the park!

 Other attendees walking ahead of us.

 Breyer has several inflatables for photo opportunities. I think this one is called Fluffy.

The official entrance to the fun.

Breyer has made some large scale models for decorations. This Huckleberry Bey was by the Collectors Club Tent, a place where members of the Collectors Club can come and cool off.

While shopping on the concourse, I was intrigued by a display of barns made by a man in Iowa.

Also walking through the very crowded concourse were two people on stilts who were also juggling pins. Jenny and I both thought that that was a bit much considering how crowded the place was.

I made my one purchase from BreyerFest - the 2006 Stablemate Circus Pony! (Circus ponies are something I am very fond of and am always looking for.) I paid $25 for it - not bad!

Little Ricky Rocker, a horse that was made into a Breyer several years ago, made an appearance with his owner.

After braving the concourse, we decided to go visit the barns that house the horses invited to perform at BreyerFest.

 And I got to stand right next to Guy McClean, an Australian horse whisper.

 We watched his amazing demonstration in the arena and he controlled six horses with only his voice, hands, and a long whip.

It was very hot and humid and he was spraying his horses down after they had finished performing.

He was an amazing trainer, and I really liked how well he treated his horses.

 This is another former Breyer model horse, Paint Me a Pepto, and her foal.

Jenny and I were very hot and tired, it was beginning to rain, and my hip was bothering me very much, so we decided to walk over to the Bit and Bridle and have lunch. Then we walked over to The Museum of the Horse.

 There was so much to look at! 

 Like this stagecoach.

 And Big Lex, the mascot of the 2010 World Equestrian Games who had been signed by every medal winner from those games.

The museum has an exhibit on The Black Stallion, a classic book that my students read every year.

 A display of sleighs (the one on the right was brought to America from France by soldiers after World War I. Supposedly it was a carousel sleigh from Louis XIV.

 More horse drawn vehicles.

 I loved this whicker one!

 Jenny climbed into the beautiful wood and leather carriage that was set up for people to sit in.

We were exhausted at this point, and so Jenny and I decided to head back to the motel and take a snooze and cool off. We puttered after that, watching a little TV and just relaxing.

One of the things Jenny had wanted to do during the trip was to dress up a bit and go to dinner at a nice restaurant. We chose The Chop House, and it was a good choice!

The meal was delicious, the service was outstanding, and of course, the company was great.  We ended our meal with some key lime pie in honor of our dad.

After that, we came back to the motel for the rest of the evening, reading, watching TV, and blogging.  We're really having fun together, and I am loving having all this time together with my sister!

Sisters Trip - Day One

When I decided to go to BreyerFest last spring, I invited my sisters to join me. I thought a sisters trip might be fun, and even though they aren't collectors, Leslie is horsey. Jenny (who isn't) would still enjoy the horse park, or shopping in Lexington, etc.

Sadly, Leslie was unable to join us at the last minute. So Jenny and I set off without her.

We had more of our unusual July rain as I left my home Thursday morning. The roads were okay despite being wet, although just south of Lafayette a semi in front of me suddenly fishtailed, jumped into the next lane (which fortunately was empty), went sideways (I thought he might roll) and then straightened out and continued on as though nothing had happened! I offered up some prayers there and then on the spot!

Jenny and I arrived in Lexington around 2:00, checked into our motel (the Red Roof Inn on Haggard Lane), and then headed to Horseshoes, a restaurant I ate in last time I was here, down the road by the Days Inn for lunch.

 I am in my element in Kentucky - everything is horse-themed!

Jenny ordered something called "the Kentucky Hot Brown" - a slice of Texas toast with turkey, bacon, tomato, and mornay sauce. She said it was delicious. I had my favorite, country fried steak, and it was outstanding.

After that, we grabbed our map to the CHIN (Clarion/Holiday Inn North, BreyerFest's host hotel) and went to see what was happening. I had a list of which rooms my friends were in, and so we targeted those. 

 Beth Dickinson and I have been friends since 1971 - I've known her longer than my husband! She was rooming with Jenn Danza, an artist who does repairs, and they were advertising in a fun way:

Jenny got such a kick out of it that she took a photo of their sign.

I was hoping to finally meet Jennifer Buxton, and knew she would be at BreyerFest somewhere. 

I ran into her down near where the swap meet would be held.

We chatted for quite a while  and then took some photos. (Jennifer writes my favorite horsey blog - check it out here.) We'd talked via social media for three or four years, so getting a chance to talk in person was a treat! (She's just as nice in person as she is online!)

Jenny and I took the opportunity to sit and rest for a few minutes, and suddenly hotel employees began putting out a long table of cake.

 What a nice thing to do - it was open to anyone who wanted a slice? But why?

I peeked into a box that held an uncut cake - to celebrate the anniversary of Marguerite Henry's book,  Misty of Chincoteague.

Jenny and I traipsed around the motel, poking our heads into rooms, meeting up with friends of mine, and looking at all the beautiful things on offer.

Then, a surprise. Neither of us had spent any money, and we were just about done. We walked into one of the last rooms in the 600 hallway, and Jenny spied a stack of costumes on a bed.

 Score!! A witch's costume! Jenny is a member of Irvington's Black Hat Society, a theatrical group of women who like to dress as witches and dance in parades and festivals. For $10, she got a new outfit, and at a model horse convention, no less! (We are still giggling over that!)

I found a dear friend in the last room we visited, Susan Bensema Young. As I walked in, she looked up, her eyes widened, and she smiled and said, "Lynn!!"

Sue gave me a tour of her personal tack collection and showed me her binders (oh, those parade costumes!) and an ingenious display of her bridles from the early days until more recent in a spoon case! She is so talented.

Jenny and I were about ready to drop, and so we headed back to the Red Roof Inn to rest and discuss dinner. We got to gabbing, and soon so much time had passed, we decided to just call out for pizza. (We were already change into our jammies and didn't want to get dressed again.

We ordered online, and then we got a kick out of watching "Marcus" online as "he" prepared our pizza.

The pizza was delicious - "Marcus" did a good job!

After that, we fell into bed. It was a super fun day - can't wait for Friday's events!