Jingling down the lane

Softly at first, but growing louder, the steady rhythm of horse hooves and jingling, bell-covered reins broke the silence of Tahiti Drive, a residential street off Mesa Verde Drive.

The minimally-decorated horse-drawn trailer ambled its way between the rows of lit up homes, the horses’ bells supplied music for the 15-or-so caroling passengers sitting atop bales of hay.

It could have been something out of a Norman Rockwell painting.

“Well it certainly complements the holiday,” said Julie Sanborn, who, with her family, was visiting friends in Costa Mesa. “It’s nice. It gives you a nice sense of community.”

On Friday, the Piecemakers Country Store had its annual old-fashioned hay ride through the neighborhood, the homegrown company’s Midwestern gift to its neighbors. Residents pile on the horse-drawn flat bed and move through the maze of residential streets singing Christmas carols.

“It’s our gift to the community. It’s bringing some of the nostalgia of America back to our everyday lives,” said event organizer Joanna Nelson.

The Piecemakers have been doing it for nearly half a decade, and as the tradition grows, so does the community support.

This is the first year Piecemakers have ran the hayride two nights.

First-time passenger Ruth Porter said she’ll go again next Christmas.

“This is good, it’s bringing everybody together,” she said.

“We like this. It’s one of the things you get with suburbia here. Things like this disappear. To keep things like this around is rare and unusual,” said local resident Don Hull, standing on his sidewalk as the horses passed by.

“We got a treat,” Sanborn said. “We come here for Fourth of July, and now we’ll come here for Christmas.”

JOSEPH SERNA may be reached at (714) 966-4619 or at joseph.serna@latimes.com.