Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit Day! We've had some fun ones the last couple of weeks so today we went with a classic barn colors look. Eros is our model this week but apparently I forgot to snap a full body photo of him... Oops. So we'll just look at the close ups.

Bridle: Pinnacle
Browband: Boy O'Boy Bridleworks

I love the color of this bridle ob him. It's almost exactly his color!

Saddle: Butet
Half Pad: Mattes
Baby Pad: Ogilvy

I'm still holding out hope that Ogilvy will make a darker brown colored pad. But for now, I do really like this shade too. 

No boots today since we haven't jumped yet this week. So that means it's my turn! Here's what I had on:

Greens and browns... but also cow print!

Helmet: One K Avance CCS MIPS

Still loving my sparkly front shield.

Top: Mathcat

This is a little bit brighter green than I normally wear for my barn colors outfits, but it's working!

Belt: Dapple Bay

Dapple Bay had bogo belts a few weeks ago, so I picked up a couple. I actually want to sew one onto a pair of pants I have that doesn't have belt loops. Because they aren't working as is, but I think with a built-in stretchy belt they will be okay. So this was the free one. 

Breeches: RJ Classics

This is the pair I picked up last year at a tent sale. Glad I found them!

Boots: Celeris UK

These are still my favorite pair of boots. They're just so fun! But also they're ridiculously comfortable. Win-win!

And that's it for today! Any favorite items?

What's Up Wednesday

 

Guys. We got to ride all six days last week! A few of them were abbreviated rides because that's just the theme this year. But still counts! ALL THE HORSES, ALL SIX DAYS! 

Of course it wasn't without challenges. Sunday when I was on Al in the backyard for Sunday Funday (in the sidepull) a tree branch fell right in front of us. He hasn't moved that fast under saddle in years! I nearly fell of about 8 times during the kerfluffle, but he did keep my on top, so I give him much credit for rescuing me from the danger.

Our path from Al saving my life

That happened on Sunday, and then Monday evening, a couple of houses over they were doing some tree work. But it was a bunch of teen boys doing it... So Al is a little out of sorts so far this week. He really hates sounds involving trees. But we have started what I call Tiny Ring Tuesday in which Al works on a smaller section of the ring on Tuesday in hopes that his brain will be reinstalled for the rest of the week. It worked last week, so we'll see what we get today. Fingers crossed his angst doesn't last this time. Though I think it's fair that he's having some feelings after his "trauma". 

I don't really have much to report about riding these horses this week. For the most part, everyone was really good. Shiny's kid jumped her around Thursday. It was pretty steamy out so nothing too long or exciting happened. Al did a few jumps too but we were battling neighbor interference so we didn't do a lot. 

Wonder what my right hand was after here...

We didn't jump a second time last week because it would have been Saturday. But it was around 90 and the humidity was high, so we did very light flat rides instead. 

In other news, my replacement posts have been delivered to finish getting all of the fencing fixed up. I have a lot of rotten posts so they will be swapped out for fresh ones this weekend. Thank goodness. I have a few sections that aren't going to hold on much longer. 

I start braiding tomorrow night for what I like to call the Connecticut Olympics. I have 5 Thursday night, 3 Friday, and 2 Sunday. My helper in the barn is off this coming week too, so I'll be on my own in the barn for nine days. And I'll also be braiding the ending weekend of those nine days. Thursday, Friday, and Saturday again. I'm not sure how much riding will get done that weekend if any. I have two barns I'm braiding for those days (I call that weekend the beginner olympics) but don't have counts yet. I may have to braid all night, come home and feed breakfast, then sleep for a bit. THEN do stalls and turnout. If that's what happens the horses will just have a little vacation. I can only get so much done in a day! I don't think they'll mind either way. 

All that to say, I think I'm going to take another blog vacation next week, unless something truly exciting happens that I need to share. We'll see how the week goes. 

That's it from here! How are things where you are?

Truthful Tuesday

 

So as I was obsessively sweeping my barn aisle one day this weekend, I had a realization. I don't think my desire to keep the barn looking dust, dirt, and cobweb free comes from a need for perfection. I truly think it's due to my actually being such a lazy person inside. 

I realize this is counterintuitive. But, see, I know that if I don't keep up with it, it will be SO MUCH more work when I do get around to it. And that feeling leaves me overwhelmed and not l knowing where to start. (Which is everything you need to know about the state of my own home...) 

And THAT is today's confession: I'm actually really lazy and my house is a mess.

Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit Day!!! I was thinking I would do something summery like a bee theme this week, but then I realized I only had enough bee outfit for one horse. And I generally dress them all on theme. So I had to pivot. We went with green equestrian toile instead. Shiny is our model, and here's what she was wearing this week:

I think we're slowly starting to get a little topline back on her! 

Bridle: Joseph Sterling

Browband: Homemade

I was able to buy Dapplebay's fabric to make my own equestrian toile set rather than spending a gazillion dollars on three sets of expensive items. And I had enough to make browbands!

Saddle: Butet
Saddle Pad: Ogilvy, embellished by me
Half Pad: Ovation

I think I like just the accents anyway, more so than a full pad of pattern. What do you guys think?

Boots: Premier Equine, embellished by me

The other nice thing about fabric versus ribbon, is that I can cut the fabric to fit any size I need. When I use ribbon for our accents, I have to hope it's made in all the widths I need. 

That's what Shiny wore this week, and here's what I had on:

I do have the Dapplebay sunshirt in the toile print, but I got a long sleeve and it is not long sleeve weather here this week. (Up near 90 with super high humidity.) So I will save that for another week.

Helmet: One K Avance CCS with MIPS

The green on my helmet is a little different than the rest of the outfit, but it's close enough. Plus, any excuse to enjoy sparkles!

Shirt: Mathcat

The shirt, however, is EXACTLY the right shade! And I already had it in my closet. 

Belt: Homemade

I need to sit down and work on my next version of this interchangeable belt. It's working very well as is, but I'd like to step it up a little. Line it with leather maybe. Not sure exactly. But I think the initial testing of this version is complete, so it's time to improve it!

Breeches: Tailored Sportsman

I think a nice neutral light tan color breech is perfect for this outfit. This color is called Fawn.

Boots: Celeris UK

Alright, I think you all know by now, I can't keep a secret. I wore these for the photos, but I didn't ride in them. I still haven't done anything to seal them, so they still bleed on to my tack. They're also a little snug at the moment... So I rode in a different, more comfortable pair. These match perfectly with the outfit though!

That's it for today! Any favorite parts? What should we do next week? Help me pick a theme or color scheme!

What's Up Wednesday

 

All that's up here really is all the rain! We haven't accomplished much of anything in the riding department. But you know what? It's okay. The horses are fine, albeit a little less fit that I'd prefer. Same for me. I've definitely put on some weight this summer which is hard. But it's life right? Hopefully the weather will calm down and we'll have a few good months of riding before winter returns. 

Unrelated photo of last night's little visitor

Things will be a little chaotic starting next Thursday as I have my two busy braiding weekends for our two local finals. And my helper is off that whole week in between because of a prior commitment. My plan is to just not ride much on the braiding days. I'll make it work! I don't think it will be as crazy as years past anyway, as the closer of the two finals moved to a much further away location. So I just have my two long time clients. The first week is just one of them, and the second weekend I should have both. I think it will be okay. And since I don't have to pay for help AND I'll be making some braiding money, I should be able to get the rest of the blankets I wanted for the horses this winter. Hopefully. 

As for the horses, everyone is good! Al is feeling a lot better since his vet work. Yesterday, Shiny's kid rode Eros while I was on Al. We were going to start introducing her to lateral work which Eros is the perfect teacher for that stuff since it's so easy for him. Al loved riding with Eros, it seemed to really make him feel comfortable. So comfortable that he actually very easily walked, trotted, and cantered around the entire ring without any bracing by the scary side. Miracle. Of course, that all got ruined as we were finishing up our rides. 

See that little dead stick of a tree from the middle to the right side of this photo? 
That's the tree I'm referencing in the next paragraph

With all the wet weather, there have been a lot of downed trees in my area. And I hadn't realized it, but one of the little dead trees between my neighbor and me uprooted itself. It mostly fell sideways, so it's not in anyone's way, and with all the leaves still out, you can't even really see it. But some of it must have caught up on something on the neighbor's side. So he decided the only time he could possibly mess with that was while I was riding. Not only that, but while someone else was riding here too. A minor no less. I swear. This guy is the most inconsiderate jerk I've encountered. So we were in the middle talking about what kiddo would try in a moment on Eros, when the trees started moving. Scared both horses. I said alright, I guess we better get off. Honestly. This dude was tinkering away in his garage all day. Came out just at that moment to mess with the tree. Then once we were back inside he retreated back to his garage. Tell me that's not intentional. He's the type that "punishes" people for their "mistakes". So since that tree grows on my side of the property line, I needed to be punished for it falling. (Mind you, he's the one that killed it. He over pruned all the trees so they would fall away from his yard if they fell. And then they all died.) Putting other people in danger seems a bit much to me though. Ugh. I wish that guy would move away. Hopefully Al isn't too scarred. That horse has the longest memory. Also please cross your fingers that he isn't planning to do it again today. That would be the last of me ever riding Al down that long side. 

Al ears here, seen at the "safe" side of the ring

That's really about all the excitement from here. I've scheduled my fence repair for also one of the braiding weekends. But I figure that's good because I won't be riding much then anyway. I can't wait to get that done because seeing these rotten posts is really stressing me out. I have a long list of things we're tackling over here. First being the fence. Then I need to get the truck AND the gator in for some maintenance (though not at the same time). Oh and also my trailer is beyone overdue for service. So that will be my focus once braid-a-palooza is over. Once all of that is taken care of... maybe then I'll have the bandwidth to do something fun and exciting with the horses.

I may need to wait until spring for these things, but I am feeling like it's time to do something other than plop around my backyard with these horses. I'm toying with the idea of some dressage lessons and maybe schooling shows with Eros. And I'd like to see if I can get that trainer that came out last year back for some lessons with Al. And maybe Shiny should do some unrated little jumper shows. I can't seem to get my ducks in a row at the moment to get any of this rolling. I think because I'm still trying to find my routine with the new helper. And all of these maintenance things that are needing my attention. I guess I've just been feeling a little overwhelmed with all of the things that required my focus. But I like that I'm feeling ready for more horsey fun. Step in the right direction! 

Anyway, that's just me trying to organize my life... Lol. Hope you're all having fun with your horses and not getting to waterlogged or overheated this summer! Do you also have a long list of maintenance derailing your horsey fun? Adulting! Am I right?!

Truthful Tuesday

 

Oof, guys. This rain! I really hope this is mother nature getting excessive precipitation out of her system before winter. Because if winter follows this pattern I might just lose my mind. I barely got to ride last week. Tuesday and Friday were the only weekdays I got everyone ridden. The weekend was better thank goodness! A friend of mine with a rain gauge posted that our town received 10" of rain over the last four storms (which were all within the last week or so). That's a LOT of rain. The positives are that the grass is green (in August!) and the pool is staying full all on its own. So there are pluses. 

I know this doesn't sound like a confession. But here it is: I was feeling very discouraged by the lack of riding. This summer has been challenging in the mental department for me, and after the winter... It's been a little hard. But I'm trying me best to turn my mindset around. I know I'm incredibly lucky. I know that I have really special horses. And I also know that they don't care if they are super fit and going to shows or not. They only care that I feed them regularly and keep them healthy. So I'm going to keep remembering this and just enjoying our time together. 

Thursday's Threads: Caffeine required edition

 

Outfit Day!!! I knew we'd have a few questionable days for riding, so we prepared earlier in the week and took photos on Tuesday for Thursday's Threads. As you know, it's been busy around here, so there's been a lot of coffee imbibed. Hence today's fun theme which Al is modeling. Excuse the grumpy face, his ears weren't functioning for the full body photo. 

I know you can't tell what it is just yet... But you will in the next photo.

Bridle: Joseph Sterling
Browband: Home made

Do you see it?? On the browband? It's Dunkin'! I know the bit keepers are too low. For some reason on this bridle I can't put them in the right place, they don't reach. So they have to go lower, and then they slide down. It's annoying. I think I have longer keepers somewhere that I need to try. 

Saddle: Butet
Half Pad: Ippico

Saddle Pad: Dreamers and Schemers

Obviously they can't use the actual Dunkin' logo for trademark reasons, but this is really cute. This one is a derp pad meaning it's a second and I got it super duper on sale. I haven't found the imperfection on it though, so I'm happy with it!

Boots: Premier Equine, embellished by me

I love that you can find fabric with pretty much anything on it. This matches the pad pretty closely!

So that's what Al is wearing, and here's what I wore on Tuesday:

I got these breeches earlier this year and they work with so many different outfit choices! Big fan. The color is pretty close to the pink shade in the Dunkin' logo. 

Helmet: One K

Obviously the coffee colored helmet was the choice for this week.

Tee: Horseplay Apparel

I hadn't wanted to buy this shirt because I don't want to encourage such behavior in my horses... But this was a must have once I started building this outfit. It's pretty cute anyway, even if it does encourage a rumpus.

Belt: Homemade by me

This is the same fabric I used for the boot tabs. I gotta tell you, I'm pretty happy with my interchangeable belt prototype. I think there are ways to make it nicer, like line it with leather, but for the time being, it's doing its job very nicely. 

Breeches: Tailored Sportsman 

This shade is called Pinkberry (like the yogurt shop) and it works with so many of my outfits! They match the stitching on my crazy green boots perfectly, so expect to see them again in the future.

Boots: Horka

Coffee looking boots were obviously required too. These were perfect! Celeris has a nubuck leather that's similar, so if and when these meet their demise I do have a back up plan. I'm sure you were all very worried about that. 

That's it for today! Are you more of a Dunkin' drinker or a Starbuck's drinker? I honestly prefer Starbuck's coffee because it has a bolder flavor. But I like Dunkin' well enough too.