Sometimes you learn, and then re-learn.

So, Dusty is unofficially mine. :) I've done a little with him, but nothing major. I hurt my back on Saturday, so I just went up and hung out with Jackie and walked Cocoa around the arena. I tried hopping on Kimi but quickly regretted it, as my back was very sore. I also slid off the saddle in such a way that bruised the inside of my right thigh. Youch! Anyway, I know Cocoa enjoyed the attention and the break from his normal routine. He even got a little spunky and nipped a little! Sassy boy!

So I took Dusty's blanket off of him, because it's been fairly warm out and last time I checked him he was sweaty underneath. It's supposed to get cold in the next few days, so either I need to get him a new blanket or get the one he is wearing washed. I'm not a big fan of the one he's wearing now because it has to go over his head which is a pain. So maybe I'll get him a new one. :) Just need to figure out the size.

I also got him a new rope halter and lead rope. I went to lunge him, and he lunged fine (except when he tried to call out and swing his head, then stepped on the lunge line and pulled his halter off) to the left, but I couldn't get him to go to the right. He kept walking right to me. I always wondered, when Ute would lunge us during our lessons it was only ever one way. So, I got him to a point where I made him take a few steps with me on that side, so I decided to be happy with that and end on a good note. There was no one else in the arena, so I didn't want to take any chances. I fear that I do that too much. I am working on figuring that out.

I saw Chrissy Fohr as I was heading from the H barn to the A barn, and she asked how things were going with Dusty. She told me a story about a woman she used to train, who started riding her mostly-blind horse who always rode western, as dressage, at age 24 because he needed to feel her more with having limited sight. She said he is now 32 and still going strong! :) It was nice to hear that story. She said she misses giving lessons, and I told her I might just be seeking her out for some! But, probably not gonna happen tho, since it would be a really weird situation with Ute. Oh well.

So I'll head up to the barn tomorrow morning to brush out my insanely dirty boys, and try on a few new saddles on Dusty McTrusty-Pants. :) Cheryl brought me a barrel saddle and a Cashel soft saddle, which are both wider. Hopefully one of them will work for us. I feel like I'm collecting saddles. :( Oh well, just looking forward to bond time with 'm boys!! ;)

Very ... anti-climactic.

Got a text from Ute today, asking if we are on for our lesson at 5:45 on Wednesday. Then another text came from her that said I'm glad he said yes. So, I guess I've officially taken the plunge!

My two boys!

And the very next day, I had a lesson on Dusty with Ute, and she tells me she has an idea. She told me that she is in need of a horse that already knows jumping - so that she can teach her students to jump on a horse that already knows how. She said that Dusty is a great horse but she doesn't normally teach students at that level, and she doesn't really need Dusty. She offered to give him to me. Yes, GIVE HIM TO ME!!!! I was speechless! I wanted to say yes but I couldn't just jump in to it. I needed to talk it over with Al first. So, I've been going back and forth in my head trying to decide. Seriously, I wanted him so bad, and then when I'm seriously faced with having him, I can't decide?? Well, after talking to Al, I decided yes and told Ute. But I haven't heard back from her since I told her (via text). She just wants Savannah to be able to still ride him, for her own pleasure. I'm totally OK with that. I trust her, and I know she is a good rider and will keep him tuned up for me. :) What a great deal!

It will be tight to have both boys, but I think this is what I'm supposed to do. I worry about my Cokes - he's in some pain. I had the chiropractor out last week and he seemed to feel better after his treatment. The problem with that, is... so if he only feels better after a treatment for a day (he seemed in pain again yesterday) how do I manage his pain for him? Nancy made me feel guilty because she said she knows horses that have worse arthritis that are "still being used". I don't know how I feel about that. Does that make it right? For me and/or Cocoa? If I can get him comfortable, to where he's not in pain, I doubt that I'd even ride him then. I can see the kids riding him, but I just really think I'm too heavy for him. I am going to take it one day at a time and see how it all goes.

So, I will report back once it's all finalized!!

Ask, and you shall receive the answer.

Hmmmm, ok. Since my last post, I rode Dusty once by myself with Jackie and Sue in the arena. We did good, but I did something dumb and thought I would pony Cocoa around the arena while riding Dusty. Bite off more than you can chew much, Charlotte? Um yeah. I ended up putting Cocoa in Dusty's stall, where he was harassed by the horse next to him and was frantically calling out for Kimi. That in itself made me stressed. So, I cut my ride on Dusty short to go get Cokes and walk him around the arena. That was fine, but I felt such a sense of disappointment in myself, and almost guilt for thinking I could not feel bad about spending time on Dusty while Cokes didn't get the attention. I left with a very confused heart. And I prayed and tried to be still and listen.

So it's Thanksgiving weekend and we always have off Thursday and Friday. So, I ask Ute if I can ride Dusty Friday morning with Jackie, and she says yes. I get there, say hello to Cocoa, Kimi, and Jackie, and head up to the A barn to get Dusty and tack him up. I see Michelle and ask her where Dusty is outside and she tells me, but then she says "Be careful walking him in and out... You know about his blindness issues, right?" Um, no. I didn't. I suspected he might have issues in the one eye because it's got cloudiness in it. But I guess he's totally blind in the left and about 75% in the right. I saw Annette and mentioned that I didn't know he was going blind, and she said it's a sensitive subject with Ute. Of course I know that blind horses can be ridden just fine, so I tacked up and we rode. It went pretty good - I know that I was hesitant. So, I just decided to untack and hang out with Jackie. Putting him back in pasture was hard because it was very bright, I was nervous with those stupid wire gates, and I he really couldn't see well, so he was nervous and sniffing. Well, I safely got him back and all was well. I went back and hung out with Jackie for a bit, and ended up riding Kimi! Not a huge fan of the English saddle, but we did it. :) I was able to stay soft with my hands and legs and keep her where I wanted her to be. I can totally tell what I've learned in my lessons!! That's a great feeling.

Jackie said she'd love for me to ride Kimi more. I would like that too. I asked her what she thought about me putting Cocoa's saddle on her and she said let's give it a try. So we took her saddle off and put mine up there, and it looks like it'll work! She said she'd love to make some play dates. :) I know she likes me to ride Kimi. She said it's fun to watch someone else ride her.

I'm not sure where this journey is taking me, but I think it's pretty clear that I'm supposed to be on it. I am getting better everyday at just being still and trying to listen to what God is telling me. He brings such great blessings in to my life, I just need to trust and believe.

Dream it out... why not!?

Let me preface by saying, Cocoa is not going anywhere. He may be lame, but I am doing whatever I can to keep him feeling good. But, I also know the chance of me being able to ride him again are slim. And, I'm going to be honest with myself now... I don't really want to ride him again. I have found the riding partner I have always been looking for in Dusty, the Haflinger at the barn. I've been riding him for about a month and a half now, and I am really getting along with him so well! Riding him is easy, and it's fun. I don't know why, but I do not get afraid when I'm riding him. Last Wednesday, we had a horse freak out and ram right in to us, and he reacted fantastically - meaning minimally. He did a little scoot and stopped when I asked him to. It was great - as great as being ran in to in an arena could be. I was tense afterward when I'd get around other horses, but more tense in worrying about what THEY might do than Dusty! He is fantastic, I think he likes me, and I know I like him. His ground manners with me are very good - much better than my initial impression of him. I know I can handle him. And, I'll say it. I want him. Not sure how to afford to buy him and afford to board and vet both him and Cocoa. Pray, and pray lots. It may not be what I'm supposed to do - I guess I'll just keep praying about it to find the answer. Oh, one more admission... there was a girl that boards at the barn tonight with a friend, who was going to ride Dusty. I. Was. Jealous. I wanted to snatch him from them and say NO! He's MY horse!!! God, help me please.

This is a post from early SEPTEMBER.

Well, the last few weeks have been interesting! I've had some good experiences, and some that made me question myself and my abilities... again. The common thing is that even though I've gone back and forth in my head with the whole "what am I doing? I'm not good enough to do this. I'll never get it, I'll never be not afraid."... I have NOT stopped and not given up. I've somehow been able to accept where I am, talk to Ute about it, and start from where I'm at. And THAT makes me glad. I love that she assures me that we should not go forward until we have a good, solid foundation. If I can't do well in a walk, how can I do well in a trot? So she has been really great in encouraging me and keeping me from trash-talking myself. Just tonight she commented on how huge of a step I've taken since we started together. That makes me feel so good.

Tonight my lesson was on Dusty, and that was for a few reasons. I had asked Ute about learning to canter on Dusty, and continue lessons on Cocoa. So I think tonight, riding Dusty, was a good confidence reinforcement for me. Cocoa and I left on not-such-a-good-note Sunday. He was being very Kimi-sour, and acting naughty because of it. I think we may need to separate them for a bit. Anyway, back to Dusty and my lesson. Ute put us on the lungeline and worked us in to a sitting trot, then progressed to a posting trot. Turns out, I've been posting wrong! I had the main idea, but I was most certainly doing it "the lazy way". Ute showed me the correct place to hold my legs, place my feet, and how to hang on. She kept urging me to post up higher, higher, higher. I finally did get it and it was pretty alright!

My poor little Cocoa-Bean.

Well, thank God we had the summer together, because in late September, Cocoa started to show lameness again in a trot. He seemed fine in a walk, so I continued lessons on him just at the walk. We did some basic laps, and then some walking between poles, with backing up exercises. We did really well together in those exercises, and I was really proud of us. :) He gave it his all. :) But I could tell each time I'd tack him up, he'd be a little more sour. He didn't want to stand still for grooming and saddling, and he started jerking his legs away from me when I'd pick his feet. Dr. Mary came out to do a dental and fall shots, so I had her do another lameness exam. It revealed that yes, in fact, more calcium was building up on his knee. It was very hard for him to hold that leg up while she examined it - I could just tell that he was hurting. He'd been trying to tell me that for awhile. He could hardly put his foot down when she was done examining that leg. So, we upped his dose of Previcox to one per day, and I am going to try a new supplement that the horse chiropractor recommended. While I absolutely hope and pray that it helps him feel better, I am feeling pretty sure that I'm not going to be able to ride him again. I think I'm just too much weight for him to handle. So, what I do is go and hang out with him, letting him be his silly self with me, groom him and walk him. He likes it when I come and spend time with him. :) He's such a good, silly boy. I stand at his stall door, talking to him and petting his pretty head, and he sniffs me and rubs his cheek against me. He'll also twitch his lip back and forth on my shoulder or my nose, which makes me giggle. Tonight he kissed my hand for awhile - it was really sweet. :)

Even though Cocoa is not sound for riding, I have continued taking lessons with Ute, riding Dusty 2, the Haflinger that she brought to the barn this summer. He is a very well mannered, well trained horse, and we are getting along swimmingly. :) He's not Cocoa, but he sure is easy for me to ride. He responds to me, and I'm not afraid of him. At all. At first I thought he was pushy on the ground, but the last couple times I've dealt with him, he's behaved pretty well. Tonight after I went to hang with Cokes, I went to say hello to D2. Ute is in Cali for several days, so I thought he might appreciate a visitor giving him a little bit of attention. I haltered him and took him in to the arena just for a short walk. He behaved really well, and seemed happy to have someone giving him attention. Since it's pretty much just me who ever reads this, I guess I can just say it - I really like him and I've liked him since the first time I saw him. SIGH. That's for another post.

Summer in the saddle :)

I think, other than the summer when Al and I rode Leah and CeCe together, that this is the most I've ridden! Maybe I rode Brandi as much, but definitely not as confidently, and not as much outside or out on the trails. Yesterday on a whim I met up with Sue and Jackie, and we rode some trails around the farm after a brief warm-up in the outdoor arena. Cocoa and I trotted a lap in the arena, and boy, are we ever getting GOOD at it!!! I actually am ENJOYING it! I hope to go up and do some today, too. Anyway, we rode around the pastures and everyone did really well. The most exciting part was when we went up the hill and came back down. Jackie had already left by then, so it was just Sue and I with Pepsi and Cocoa. They did great, and it was great fun. I had a couple of moments where I could have been fearful, but reminded myself that I need to be confident for Cokes. He's feeling it, for sure. He's such a brave and willing little guy. :) After we left Sue, we walked down to the barn where we tack up, and he did so well that I just didn't even want to get off!! So I walked him a little ways up the driveway. When I'm on the ground I'll walk him that way, and he gets a little unsure because of all the plants, etc. lining the drive, and I think because the ducks and chickens tend to hang out in that area a lot. Anyway, we walked up to the concrete pad, where he wanted to stop. I nudged him on just a tiny bit so we could go forward one step then turn around and head back. He did that really well and we ended on such a good note!

I untacked, gave him his treats, and took him back out by Kimi. Then I spent about 15 minutes just petting/rubbing Kimi. She was loving it! She is such a sweetheart, I just love her. I told Al that if Jackie ever decides to part with Kimi, that I want to buy her. To have those two as my own would be a dream come true. :) But, it's also a dream come true to have Jackie and Kimi as a part of our lives!!

I'm so happy my confidence is growing. Lessons every week with Ute has been a Godsend, no doubt. The consistency, and the learning that I do with her is amazing! This past week we did our lesson on the trail. She walked on the ground with us, which was good because she could keep him going when my confidence wavered. We walked out to Alpine Road, then down Alpine to Beaver Dam and back in to the farm. He was very alert and a little nervous on Alpine. He kept looking from left to right like something was going to jump out of the woods. Ute told me that's when I have to get him walking forward with a purpose so that his focus is on me, and he doesn't have time to think about other things. That reminds me very much of what Clinton Anderson says, too. And she also reminded me that it's important that I stay in the leadership role there because otherwise how can he feel confident about what we're doing? I get it, I just have to do it and remind myself that if I'M not afraid of anything, then Cocoa doesn't need to be, either. So, just as I was afraid to trot and now I am not, I need to practice being the leader and not being afraid. I know I can do it - all it takes is practice. And there is no substitute for EXPERIENCE, so I just have to DO IT. What's great about Cokes is that he's solid, and he's not going to do anything stupid. I'm over the "Oh my God, what is he going to do" thing that I was feeling, and that is fantastic. Even when he has spooked, he just flinches and stands. I can handle that!! :) And, I know I'm not going to fall off and that helps my confidence a ton. I don't know why I got it in my head that I would - it's not like I've had it happen. I try to hard to not live by the "what ifs" in life, and this is one area where a person can have a lot of what ifs. Well, then you might as well not even ride. Yes, there is some risk involved, but there is also risk involved in walking down the street, driving a car, being in a public place. And that's not going to stop me. :) I love being at Countryview, and with the people I've met there. They're all so encouraging!

Well, I've been thinking about getting my butt moving and going out to do a short ride, so I guess I better get crackin'. Until next time...

A weekend spent in the saddle - a well-spent weekend, indeed.

Last week, I felt a sore throat coming on Tuesday. By Wednesday morning, it was a cold. I decided to take Day-Quil to be able to keep going, and it helped a lot. I didn't want to miss my lesson at 5:30!! Well, I had to take my car in to be fixed Tuesday, we borrowed Alexandra's car, she took the keys home accidentally so Al had no way to get home, blah blah blah. Anyway, I had to cancel my lesson. :( Thursday I did ok with Day-Quil, but Friday SUCKED. So, after work I went straight to sShopKo and bought the liquid Ny-Quil and Day-Quil, and started pumping myself full. Saturday morning, I felt pretty OK. :) I was to meet Jackie at the barn at 10:30 to ride, and all was well. We had a great ride! We started in the arena, like we usually do, then took them out toward Beaver Dam Road by the field. We got pretty far, then turned around and went the other way, crossed the driveway and kept going! Kimi got a little spunky so we decided to head back, but all in all they did good! I have to say, Cocoa behaved really well. We were able to get to a place where we were both very relaxed. He was alert, but relaxed. Side note here: Seeing this from the ground is a LOT less exaggerated than in the saddle. Like, he'd put his head and ears up, and it would seem like he was maybe a little nervous. BUT, after TODAY'S ride, I get it when he's "concerned". OK, back to yesterday. :) I, for the first time, felt my low back relaxed and supple. I get the "rhythm" without working at it!!! I ride with soft legs, heels down, sitting straight but relaxed. Hands clasped around the reins, but soft when he's confident. I have learned to ride with my seat, which is ultra-cool. Oh yes, I am learning to ride the RIGHT way. Who knew that I would  be riding wrong all this time?! Where was my head when I was doing lessons with Tracy!? I guess I didn't pay attention as well as I should have. Either way, we are on the right track now. :) He really responds to me, and wants to please me. He has his moments when he thinks about doing what HE wants to do, but he is NOT naughty. Perfect example was today... riding with Sue near Kimi's pasture... Kimi is racing around kicking up her adorable little heels, making a ruckus, and he stood there and looked at her... but he STAYED with ME! I get it that he's a good boy!! CeCe might have pulled right through the bit on that one and took me for a ride. Brandi may have, too. Leah? Nah. But Cocoa - he is perfect for me. OK, am I rambling? Totally rambling!!

OK, so to today. Had a lesson with Ute at 11:00am. She was very happy with our progress!! We did several laps at a forward walk, then did some diagonals and circling, and she stopped me and told me that we were now at the point where we had things down-pat, so we were ready to start doing a little trotting. (Suck in big breath here) I trust Ute. I'm going to do it. So, we do the drill like we did during one of our first lessons - Ute stands near the mounting steps, I come around the corner and trot to her. She reminds me if he gets going to quickly, to pull back and hold. Well, he felt like he was trotting REALLY fast!!!!! I tried slowing him, but I think I had my legs clasped on tight, so he was thinking I was asking for speed. I felt a little frustrated when I reached Ute that I couldn't slow him down. BUT, she complimented me on what a great job I did!! I must have looked puzzled, because she said "Charlotte... you didn't freak out!!!!!" And then it hit me - I didn't freak out!!!!!! Wow. HUGE. Can we do this? Yeah. We can do this (said with a half-grin and slowly nodding head). OK, so we do it again, and he feels like he's going super-fast again. We try it going the other direction - same thing. So Ute asks if she can get on and do a few laps with him. Well of course!! :) I saw him go from being inconsistent... going fast to slow... tight rein to loose rein, and I GOT it. He was trying to find what she wanted, and when he did, they fell in to it. THAT's what's going to happen with us. OK, so I get back on and try getting in to a trot. He's like, mmmmmm-naaaahhh. So I grab the little leather poppers on my saddle and give him a little shmack on the hinder. :) We get in to a trot, and we round a corner. I remember to turn my shoulders. We're still trotting. We round another corner. I'm posting, I know where my hands are, and I am turning my shoulders/seat! We come up to the next corner, same thing. We keep going - another corner, another, another and another!!! He drops out of his trot, but at this point it's OK!!!!!!!!! We did it!! And on that note, we ended our lesson on a big high. :) Our next lesson is Wednesday and I can hardly wait! I sooo look forward to them! So after the lesson, Sue, Kristin and I went around the property on a little trail ride. We had been everywhere we went, but there were a few places where he hesitated. I did pretty good in supporting him, and asked for the ladies to stop and wait a few times when they got far ahead of me. We did do some trotting on the trails to catch up a few times, but I think Cokes was a little tired. :) All in all, we ended on a great note all around. Treats and grass were for sure in order! But, we had one more order of business. A bath.

Our first bath in the wash stall in the A Barn. There were four horses ahead of us, but we were in no hurry. We waited 'er out, and when it was our turn, we carefully walked in to the stall - Cocoa being very cautious about stepping on the mats. I let him smell and check it out, and take his time with encouragement. He TRUSTED me completely and came in! We learned how to operate everything and he had a fantastic little bath. Of course he went and rolled in the sand when I put him back in paddock, but it was great and I could tell he enjoyed the feeling of the warm water. :) I love that little boy SO darn much!!!

While I missed Al, I was glad to have all of the time to spend with Cocoa Bean and bond even more.
How blessed I truly am. <3

WOW. Is it REALLY August? 2014?

I can't believe I haven't posted since freaking November of last year. SOOOO much has happened. Here is an excerpt from an email I sent to Michelle, Cocoa's previous owner:

So much has happened since we last spoke I don't even know where to start! :) First and foremost, I moved Cocoa to a new barn in West Bend back in November. He found the love of his life - a mare, who is also his pasturemate, named Kimi. She is a sorrel and white paint, and is the same size as Cocoa, and they just ADORE each other!! It is the cutest thing you've ever seen! Kimi's owner is a retired lady named Jackie, who I immediately liked (she's so spunky!). It's been a God-send, literally. Back to that in a bit. :) So, in March, Al and I moved back to West Bend. We are 15 minutes from the kids, and SO much closer to our workplaces, and honestly almost all of our friends are here. It's been just great. We have another grandbaby on the way, due in February, which is exciting! Our little Marielle is going to be 2 in December, and she has taken a liking to horses so far, and that makes me very happy!! Of course grandma is still going to get her a pony someday!! ;)

Cocoa is thriving at the new place. I've had the opportunity to meet some wonderful people, and to ride with some of them. That's the great part - at the old farm I never had anyone to ride with, and my confidence really got low. In November, I took a few lessons with the barn trainer and things were going good! They have this incredible indoor, so I was super-excited to have that all winter to ride and keep connecting with Cocoa. Unfortunately, it didn't quite work out that way. In January, I moved him up to the "Big Barn" which is the new barn they built with the arena… so they are connected. At first it seemed like I did a great thing because we wouldn't have to even go outside to get to the arena, and winter was turning out to be brutal! Shortly after I moved him, I noticed a change in him. He seemed really unhappy when I'd go up, and less happy to be working. Now, when I say working, I mean it in about the lightest possible way a horse will ever have to work! :D Minor lunging, ground work, etc. Then, I noticed he had a limp. Of course I wondered if maybe he'd slipped out in pasture or something. So, I had the farrier do a check on his feet to make sure it wasn't that. Nope- feet were nice and solid as always. Next, I waited a week to see if he maybe just stretched funky or pulled something like I said, maybe from slipping in the pasture. When that week passed and still no improvement, I called the vet out. She instantly told me he did not seem like the same horse (she is the only vet I have ever used, so she knows him fairly well by now!) and that he was clearly limping. She did the exam and diagnosed arthritis in his front knees. I, of course, felt awful. How could I not know this!? But my concern wasn't just with his knees. It was with his state of mind and his happiness. See, when I moved him to the new barn, he also had to change pastures and leave his beloved Kimi. I should say that, at the time, I didn't think he was THAT attached to her since it'd only been a few months. Clearly, I was wrong. So, I called the owner of the farm immediately and asked if she could somehow make it happen that Cocoa could be back with Kimi. The problem was, there was a fairly long list of boarders waiting to get in to that barn (we call it the H-Barn, meaning Historical Barn). I was distraught, and she knew it, and she was determined to find a way to make it happen. Within days, he was back! So, back to the knees. My vet came out and did x-rays to confirm her diagnosis. After reading the X-rays she'd know more, and be able to determine if cortisone shots would be a good course of treatment for him. It was, and so we did. In that brutal cold, we shaved little Cocoa's little knees, and got him cortisone and joint-fluid injections, and he stayed in on stall rest for a few days. Two weeks later I started him on a joint supplement. I knew it wouldn't be an overnight fix, but I was anxious to see improvement. A few times a week, up we'd trek to the arena to see if he was showing any signs. Sadly, he was not. He was still unhappy to work, and showed a deep limp/head bob at a trot. We tried this for a few months, and it was staying the same. I prayed every day for Cocoa to heal, and just asked God to make him comfortable and not be in pain. I was mentally preparing myself for the idea that we'd likely never ride again, and was thinking about the things I could do to stimulate his mind that didn't require riding. I thought about maybe looking in to doing some showmanship with him (NO idea what that even entails, but it sounded good!)… just something to keep us active TOGETHER. I knew before he even had those shots that, if he were going to be lame, that it didn't matter and he would be with me for the rest of his time. Michelle, he is truly my horsey soul-mate and I can't imagine not having him! So, even though the prospect of riding was looking grim, I was trying to prep us for a new future. :)

Now as the weather was improving, I was spending more time at the barn. We still did our routine of a little lunging and groundwork a few times a week, but I was happy that we could do it in the OUTDOOR arena now!! One night, I took him up and two of the ladies that I've come to be friends with were there. They, by the way, adore Cocoa. Always asking how he's doing, always giving him love and attention - I am really blessed to have them in our lives! So I started to do our slow, easy walk lunge, and Cocoa broke out in to a trot - a GOOD trot! And THEN in to a canter, with some spunkiness that even came with a kick-up of his heels! One of the ladies said, "You should take him off of the line and let him go". That's just what I did, and what happened next was nothing short of a miracle before my eyes!! He starting running and snorting, tail up and trotting like a big show off! And, NO LIMP!!!! I was so beside myself I had tears in my eyes!!! I thought I might hyperventilate! I by chance had my phone with me and grabbed it to do a video! I'm so glad I did, because I get to look at it again and again, and hear my excited voice over and over!!

Of course I knew I needed to proceed with caution… not that he just had Spring Fever or something and came up even more lame the next day. BUT HE DIDN'T!!! But I repeated that pattern the next day, and the next, and the next, just to make sure. We would go out to work and he was in good spirits, and happy to do what I asked him to - no protest whatsoever. So, the time came that I thought I should try saddling him and working, since he hadn't had a saddle on since January! He did great - never bawked. I didn't get on that first day, but a few days later I did, and everything was fantastic. I was elated to be back in the saddle, and he was quite happy to be doing something again. :)

Since then, we have been having rides together on the trails at the farm, with our friends Jackie and Kimi. Everyone is doing so well, and we are so pleased - and we are just having a ball! I feel a connection like never before with him, and it's just amazing. He is such a little love anyway, but I actually get to RIDE and EXPLORE with him now and that is something I was so desperately missing and needing at the other farm. OK, so about the new farm. :) It's family-owned, but they have about 60 horses on the property. Some are big fancy show horses, and others are like us. :) It's a nice mix, and everyone is so friendly and helpful!! It's on like 235 acres, and I've just begun getting brave and going out and exploring. By summer's end, I hope to know the trails like the back of my hand!

OK, back to August 2014. We've been doing some lessons with Ute for about a month now. I've learned so much about both of us, and learned that I haven't been giving him proper cues. Well, we are working on that and it is going SPLENDIDLY! I finally feel what I'm supposed to be feeling while riding. I so badly wanted someone to tell me how, and it's happened that Ute has helped me get there. She's a great teacher, and I'm glad I am able to work with her. We do lessons every Wednesday, indefinitely. I've decided not to put a time frame on it, to just go with it. Hoping August, September and October will be filled with rides and successful lessons and more and more confidence, and of course special time bonding with my little guy. He's the best. Simply... the best. :)