Last day of 2020!

 Today is the last day of this very weird bizarre year. And while there was some really bad stuff... there was also a lot of really good stuff!! I am so blessed and so grateful. I could go on and on, but... Danny seems to be doing great and we're back in work... Funny.... my awesome new farm...  I mean... those are the big things I will remember about this year. So.. yeah. I'm grateful for what 2020 has brought me. I'm sad for my friends... for those who had a bad year... but I'm grateful for all the good things. And today, I even got to sneak in a ride... in MY arena!! (okay, not entirely yet... we've only paid for 15% of it or so, but.. still!). It was supposed to rain all day but wasn't raining when I got up, so... I fed ponies and tossed hay and then came inside and changed clothes. I had promised Dan no dressage today so I went and set up some fences and then grabbed him and off we went. Of course as soon as we got IN the arena... it started to drizzle. If you could even call it that. It was more like it just... condensated. ;) It wasn't even drizzling, but after a bit, we were wet. Like the rubber mats on the barn aisle on wet days. ha! But whatever, I was already on and it wasn't super cold so... we warmed up a bit... just hunter frame, although we did do a few turn on the forehand and turn on the haunches and he did have to stay straight. Then I tried to trot through the grid twice. I have no idea how that is set up... whether it's supposed to be a trot or a canter grid... or which direction you're supposed to take it.. or if it matters??? Or maybe Dan and I just don't have the right striding to go through grids like a normal horse?? Who knows. We half trotted half cantered it both ways. ha ha. Oh well. So then we started jumping... just working on the things that Kelly had taught us. It wasn't too bad. We had some fliers...  but some good jumps. Our straightness wasn't as good as in our lesson, but it wasn't bad the entire time either. We had some straight jumps. We popped around a bit and did a few jumps in a row. I even set up the two little gate fillers as a line of skinnies and we did that. 

So then we went for a short hack because while I was wet.. it wasn't still technically raining. We hacked the neighborhood and he was a bit on edge. He even pooped right at the opening to the lake/beach. Ugh.... Dan!! And of course I forgot to go scoop it, but I'm betting the rain will wash it away before anyone goes out there. But he managed to not be sassy and we even trotted a bit at the 1080 house track. He got a little nervous again and pooped right in front of the patio swing on the edge of the lake! Seriously Dan!?!? Poor guy. It was just a spooky kind of day I guess. But he never did actually spook, so.. yay. We trotted a bit more at the end of the little track and then he politely (albeit on the muscle) powerwalked home the whole way. :) yay! Maybe we can start neighborhood riding again! Right as we got home it started to rain legitimately. Good deal. :) We made it!

So.... riding tomorrow is not looking good. It's like 90% chance of rain all day with thunderstorms, so... at least I got to ring the new year out with a ride. :) Maybe Sunday we can ring the new year in and have a nice hack. :) 

More Dressage.... and a hack

Okay... I've got to start planning my rides a little better. Dan said 3 days of dressage riding in 4 days of living is too much Mom... too much! He was a super good boy, but I think he was a little bit sore. We met Kelli at Ashland and started off with some lunging. And he was just a bit slow and sticky. And when we cantered to the left, he was swapping behind once or twice and bunny hopped once, so... we ended on a good note and stopped lunging. I figured I would do a lot of walk work and then hopefully spend more time hacking. BUT.... we ended up doing a fair amount of riding. I did start with a lot of walk and then we did some trotting and he seemed fine and happy, so... we did some trotting. Then we cantered and he felt pretty darn good, so... we rolled with it. I was focusing really hard on being kind and positive and rewarding progress, not perfection. So yeah... it was a good ride. It wasn't as intense or as long as usual, but still a decent ride. And he felt good and didn't feel weird at all, so... yay. Then we went for a short hack as I was running out of time before my hair appointment. We walked to the lake and let them get a drink and have a splash. Then we walked around to the other side of the lake and spooked the heron. Luckily neither boy got upset and then we headed back. 

So.... Thursday, if we don't get rained out... we'll try to do trails..or jump if we get stuck riding at home in an effort to beat the rain. 

Last day of Vacation

 And it was such a pretty day! I slept in... fed the ponies and the sun was so warm and sunshiney, I was even able to pull clothes. Of course it was still a hair chilly and I was planning on putting a sheet on Dan until later but he rolled before I could get back out with his sheet, so... he stayed nekkid. ;) Then I took stuff to goodwill and Mike and I reorganized the storage shed. (In hopes that we can empty the storage shed we are paying for!). Then we had lunch. Then I dragged (drug???) the arena with Mikes' help. He watched me try to manuever between a jump and the arena fence at too much of an angle and snag the bucket on the fence. WHOOPS!! Good thing it's ours now. :) ha ha. Then I rinsed Fleck's boo boo off and clipped it so I could get a better look. It actually looks really good! Then I fed him some soup and then grabbed Dan for a ride. By now it was super lovely out!

 

We lunged first and he did pretty well! He was a little more up and slightly braced tracking left today but we did get some decent work. When we got to the arena we had some decent work too. He was much more in front and open in the throatlatch today and not as behind the vertical, but he was also a little bit more braced at times. But more in front of my leg. So really, lots of good. We had a little tantrum when we started to canter. As soon as I started to think about cantering he got behind the bit and started doing his tongue fussyness. I knew it was coming. I tried to give him something to do that he knew and understood and I could reward him for... to get his mind off worrying/stressing and get his tongue back in his mouth. It didn't really work. So then we tried to go forward and just went to the canter and then he settled. Weird.... I honestly don't know why he's doing this. I'm sort of assuming frustration but resolving it isn't exactly going how I would expect it to. But it got better and went away and we carried on. We had some really nice downwards! Not without trot steps, but at least they were soft and easing down instead of slamming down. Our upwards are still a struggle to stay soft, but... And I felt like my seat was better. Watching my video I feel like I look pretty upright and straight! His canter is a little longer today but .... you know... baby steps. So yeah... then as a reward, I was going to let him go down the grid. Ha ha... Wow... I don't know if the setting was set up as a trot grid... although it was four jumps with placing poles between each jump so I was assuming canter... But Dan deer jumped through it. He got us through it but I swear he didn't put a stride in between every pole like I was expecting. I think one of them he leapt entirely over.... (well, not true, because there was ONE hoofprint in there!) and then he got way too deep to the final fence. Ha ha. Ooops. So then we tried the liver pool... and he took both poles down over that. Good grief! So then we did the upright stone wall thing and he jumped it twice fairly nice. So then we did a bit more dressage work and quit. He was a super good boy. We had some positive stuff!

Maybe it does love me!

Boxing Day... NOT Bucking Day.... Daniel!

 ha ha... He was kind of hilarious today. Although, I suppose that's hilarious in a naughty bad pony kind of way (I forgot about this morning!). He's such a weirdo. He's not the horse that you ride 4 times a week so he isn't naughty under saddle.. he's the kind of horse you ride 4 days a week so he doesn't go psycho in the pasture! He is high maintenance to keep him not feral. This morning he was all mad that Fleck got hay soup and he didn't. So he was being cranky at the gate. I, like a dummy, stuck my finger out to boop him on the nose, and he bit it! Turd!! Then he ran off. So..I walked out there with the rope halter and got the carrot stick and he was like "fine.... I know... I know" and was perfect. ha ha. Weirdo! I let him hang out a bit while Mike and I put the handles on the island in the kitchen. Then it was time to leave for my lesson. 

We got there and I got on for a few minutes and did our turn on the haunches and forehands. He still wants to brave and invert when I try to turn on the forehand on the right rein because he just really doesn't want to go into that right rein. But... it is slowly getting better. So... I told Rana what we had been doing and where we seemed to be stuck and she got on. She spent some time at the walk and then did some trotting. She said that he was better! Overall he was better. And he was definitely sounder! She said that he still hasn't quite grasped the forward into the bridle at all times yet. Forward and straightness! She also said that the left hind is weak and slow and that's creating the right shoulder issue. Which.... ugh.. is a little scary as that is the ankle with the windpoofs that get hard randomly. And the foot which was lame at Tennessee. But she did some work and got him using that left hind and making it quicker and he looked great! He actually started bending his hocks more too. And his tail slightly lifted and he looked all fancy! So, tracking to the left, I need to fishtail his hind end out a little, to get that left hind up underneath himself. Tracking right, I need to ride him haunches in, to get the left hind back up underneath himself. So yep! 

So then she went to the canter! He was naughty and had some little bucking and hopping moments. And then he was super naughty and let out a big enough buck that he unseated her a little bit. Oops!! But then he settled and she got the canter. And it got nice. She worked on the downwards and had the same issue I had. I feel like I created this problem. I was so focused on getting the walk from the canter that he just dramatically slams down into it. Like... reining stops into it almost. And then when you ask him to keep moving forward now, he gets all mad because he did what you asked! So she had some struggles with him. She was smiling though and made the comment that he was trying... and he was just getting confused. And then when he gets confused he gets frustrated. Yep!! I feel your pain baby boy... I feel your pain. And you could see his little hamsters running amuck trying to figure it out. But at least he was trying. And it got better. She reminded me to just stay calm and not over-react and just keep asking him and trying to explain to him what I wanted and reward him when he got it and he would. And sure enough, she got some nice transitions. They aren't perfect yet, but they are getting better and he's starting to get the hang of it. 

So then it was my turn. Sigh. As soon as I got on, he got mad. His ears were pinned so flat against his head!! And his tongue came out. Seriously dude... am I that bad?!?! I told Rana that not only was he like me in the sense that he got frustrated when he got confused, but apparently he also gets mad when he gets frustrated. Sigh. We sorted through it and managed to get some decent work and his tongue settled and his ears settled too. I never quite got the perfect downward or upward but it did get better. 

Tracking Left: It's easier... he stays rounder and I just need to half halt to prepare him a few times, tap him with the whip a few times to keep him going, and keep my butt in the saddle and sit up! No tipping forward! 

Tracking Right: It's harder. It's so easy for me to almost let him counterbend, but... if I remember to ride him haunches in, and really open my inside rein to keep the bend, and use my inside leg... he does it. It's just having to remember all the things at the same time. 

After that we walked back to the trailer to untack and Rana said something about how fit he was. She said she kept waiting for him to say he was done, but he just kept trying! Hee hee. Yeah... that's Dan. :) I also showed her the roundness he was developing behind the saddle and asked if it's a good thing and she said yes! YAY! She also said I should probably get my saddle fit checked again as it looked like he was starting to build muscle from lifting his back. :) YAY!!! Then while we were talking, Dan got bored or tired and kept shooting us looks from half closed eyes to shut up and let him sleep. Hee hee. He is seriously so extra!!! All or nothing. :) But I do love this weirdo!

No photos as it was cold and I was watching her ride. So... a photo from another day of a dirty grumpy beast and then a hunky boy with cool clouds. ;) 

And... shenanigans from the other morning! See... FERAL!

Merry Christmas!!!!

 Christmas 2020! You know, for as odd of a year that 2020 has been... it's had some really great moments too. Christmas Eve dawned miserably wet and dreary. It was chilly but not that cold. However, it was going to get SUPER cold!! It was nice waking up in my cozy bed with the heat blasting down on me and the rain on my barn roof. I ended up getting the stalls all ready for the ponies but left them out, because... well... Dan. ;) Fleck got to stay in because I figured he'd be happier. Then we went to Mike's mom's for dinner and had a good time. The ponies got apples and carrots and were super happy. And Funny got a Confetti sign to hang by her stall!

 

We got home and it was still raining and getting COLD! Super cold. So I had to clean Flecks stall because now suddenly he pee's inside again. And that meant I had to take the wheelbarrow out and dump it and get new shavings. I did manage to get Dan and Funny in just before I did that. Good thing too because when I dumped the wheelbarrow it was sleeting!!! And the wind was blowing so hard it was pelting it across my face. BRRRRRR. And then.. by the time they were done eating, it had stopped and the clouds were parting. Yay! I got clothes changed out into dry ones... everyone got hay and some hay soup and extra salt too. And out they went. 

This morning was super cold. Like... really super cold!! Like too cold to take Christmas photos/selfies. So... they got fed and got more warm mash and then we went inside to do Christmas. I finally ventured out again when it warmed up a little, but BRRRRRR. It was still REALLY cold! But, I wanted to ride and Dan needed to be ridden since it's been ... well... 2 days, but still! So... off we went. The arena was probably soupy and it was too cold to do dressage. And I didn't want to ride in the neighborhood because it's kind of boring and I didn't want him to slip on the pavement if he was being naughty, which he probably would be as cold as it is and since he's not been good in the neighborhood lately. So off we went. It was 34 degrees. And no telling what the feels like temp was. I was bundled up in all my winter gear and it wasn't too bad when we were in the woods. When the wind hit though.... BRRRR even all bundled up. But we had fun.

It was a good ride. We just walked, trotted, and cantered and explored. No one else was out there, so we had the place to ourselves. Well, us and the deer. :) And despite how cold it was... it was a beautiful day! I'm glad we went! Although we did keep it fairly short. 

 

Merry Christmas to All!!!

JUMP LESSON!!!!!

Today we hauled to take a jump lesson with Kelly E. She said there would only be one jump, but that’s okay because…. We need work! It was sooooo good to see her again. We’ve both missed her. I got there a little early and did some of our walk work and then a little bit of trotting.  I was trying to make sure he was in front of my leg, but he’s sneaky. He’s like “Yep, I’m in front of your leg, but just barely… just enough that you can’t really fault me, but within seconds I’ll be behind it and then you’ll be annoyed… muhauahauaaaa”. So I said “fine, then we’ll do rapid fire transitions you lazy goon”. So that’s what we were doing when she got there. So then she told me to canter and after a lap each way she told me to pick up my “BN stadium course canter” and show me what I had. I picked up the canter and when it felt decent I told her. She said that it wasn’t her ideal. She said to get in two point, let him open up his throatlatch and stick his nose out and let him go a little bigger. So we did and ahhhhh…. Suddenly he was in front of my leg and forward! Yay!!! So then she told me to move my elbows… she had me grab mane and notice how much hinging and unhinging my elbows did. Got it…. 😊 She said that the original canter was very round, but not what we wanted for BN. Especially for a horse that tends to get behind the leg. Aha… makes sense. We’ve been spending too much time in the sandbox! So then we trotted a cross rail a few times and then she had me canter. The first canter to it, I saw the slightly long spot, pressed, and… jumped up his neck. He didn’t go when I went.. he added. Ha ha. Oooops! Sigh. So then, she had me grab mane. She told me that it would give my body an idea when he was taking off. It was a direct line to his brain. Hee hee.. But sure as heck, it worked! Every time I grabbed mane, I saw the distance and we stayed together. Crazyness! We jumped about 12-16 jumps total with some breaks and she raised it a few times. It never got huge… maybe a hair over BN if I had to guess, but I don’t even think it was novice sized. But guess what?!?! He was jumping mostly straight!!! A few times I had to close my right rein, open my left rein, and close my right leg (always on the left lead) but he was jumping super straight. Kelly noted that in an effort to close the right door, I was actually falling right, which was pulling him right. Ooops. So once I made the effort to stay upright, he also stayed straighter. And the other cool thing…. He was jumping the nicest I’ve felt him jump in a while. Like.. he jumped out of stride! There was no rushing and flinging himself over. He felt like he actually saw the right distance, rocked back, and pushed off evenly, and landed straight and calmly. There was no heaving, no flinging, no fliers to prevent the sit and push. It was sooooooo cool! And sure.. there were a few times that he landed right… a few times he landed and swapped or landed wrong lead. But there were a few times he didn’t! I felt like my position wasn’t terrible either, although I am standing on my toes a bit. So yay!!!! We quit after that because the second to last jump we did, he was behind my leg and I had to encourage him to take it. Nothing major, but I had to close my leg and squeeze and he went, happily. And then the last jump we did, was super! BUT… when he landed he swapped behind and felt a little fishtaily or fatigued. So yay! I’m trying really hard to not focus on what could have been… or what was… and instead focus on the now. NOW I have a pony who was very happy to jump and was jumping well and straight. Now I have a pony who felt more confident and forward and in front of my leg. And so… we’ll just stick to what we’re doing. Strengthening and straightening… and working on forward and in front of my leg. The plan is to not jump more than once a week…. Always give him breaks between every few fences… and to not push him for a few months. Then in Feb/March ish…. If he still feels game and happy… then yay, we up the ante a bit. If he feels weaker or gets fatigued quicker, then I know it’s because jumping is not good for him and not because I’ve upped it too quick. And if he feels stronger and bolder and more game, then… game on! 😊 Let’s hope! Because I’ve missed this so.