A Day at the Races

For my birthday last weekend, we headed to Emerald Downs to see some horse races!

If you know me, then you know my love for horses!

 I would absolutely love to own a horse some day.

For now, I'll have to settle for taking pictures of other people's horses, eh?

It was a gorgeous, warm, breezy day....perfect for hanging out at the track!

We took our time familiarizing ourselves with our surroundings.

We picked a picnic table where we could enjoy some lunch, while still being right there in the action.

We'd stand at the fence during the races and watch in awe as the horses raced past.

We would head down to the stable between races to check out the next round of horses, and then head up to the grandstands to place $2 bids on our favorites.

We had good company, good food, and great scenery!

Ellie, Me, and Katie

Elliott checkin' out the stats

Elliott only embarassed me once (when she put on a serious show for an entire section of the grandstands......she danced, they clapped and cheered, etc, etc. I was mortified.....in a good way, of course), and I only dropped her once (seriously, worst moment of my life! She was sitting next to me on a bench, when she suddenly fell off....face first into the pavement! I tried grabbing her, but I wasn't able to break her fall. She was fine, just a few scrapes and bruises.)

Go, horses, go!!

Scott was too warm in his sweatshirt, and unfortunately this was all that was left at the gift shop......

Looks like he wasn't too shy about showing it off, huh?

There were a few scary/sad moments at the races, and if you live in the pacific northwest then I'm sure I read about them in the news. A couple horses got spooked while they were getting onto the track (about 10 feet away from us), and ran away. A few people got injured, and the scenes from those tense moments will never be erased from my mind. I was terrified for a few seconds, and I remember covering Ellie's face because I didn't want her to see what I was seeing. It made me think twice about this sport and how it affects the horses.......

We got to feed this kind horse a peppermint!

The first (and certainly not the last) horse that Elliott has petted!

All in all, it was a great day!

 I mean, what better way to spend a sunny day than with your friends and family, making memories?!