Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit Day! I'm still working on something ridiculous for you guys, just waiting on some hardware so I can finish making some things for it. In the meantime, I have another green outfit to share. I'm trying to keep mixing things up but this is admittedly a bit of a repeat. Sorry. It happens! It's not fully identical... but pretty close. It happens. Listen, I have to wear my clothes more than once! Shiny was our model this week, and here's what she had on:

She looks so cute in green! I just love her.

Bridle: Pinnacle

Browband: Boy O'Boy Bridleworks

These bridles are quite nice for what they cost, especially when you can find them on sale. But I haven't done the best job of breaking them in. This one could use another coat of oil to soften it up a bit more. It looks nice though! I like this color on her.

Boots: Horze

These are the pony size boots that no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't get Equinavia (US) nor Horze (EU) to sell them to me! I dunno why they think the US doesn't need pony size boots... Thankfully I found these on eBay from a seller in the UK. The straps are a bit long for her, but they do fit otherwise. 

Saddle: Custom Saddlery

Saddle Pad: The Hangry Mare

I love this pad from the Hangry Mare. They quality is top notch. I hope to get some others from her eventually. 

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

Right. I'm sure it looks familiar. But the boots and belt are different!

Helmet: One K CCS MIPS

This one has the rose gold rails installed with it. I hope they'll make some more color options for the changeable pieces. I've love yellow gold rails as an option. Also, I need to dust this helmet.

Shirt: It's a Haggerty's

I have three of these shirts in different color arrangements, so I'm pretty disappointed in myself for wearing the exact same one as a few weeks ago. Sorry friends. It's hard to keep track sometimes! It's a nice shirt at least. It's not all stained in real life, I think that's a weird shadow from my phone. 

Belt: Ponylocks

I haven't worn Jampy's belt in awhile, so today felt like a good day to bust it out! Ponylocks really does a beautiful job with these. 

Breeches: RJ Classics

I think I really like the RJ breeches these days. They're pretty comfortable and I like the fabric. Maybe a little heavy for those really hot summer days, but since it's been cool here they were perfect. 

Boots: Mountain Horse

Heh, it seems I wore croc boots two weeks in a row! Last week were the black Caldene pair and VERY SADLY the soles have come halfway detached on both feet. Just when I was saying how much I love them. Sigh. Hopefully I can get them fixed. Anyway, this week I wore these Mountain Horse boots. I like them about equally with the pair from last week. LOVE this chocolate brown color. 

And that's it for today! Any favorites? Anything you're waiting to see? 

What's Up Wednesday

 

It's been a busy week around here again, but not so much horsey busy. Mostly everything else busy. As mentioned yesterday, the pups both had vet appointments last week. All went well for them (other than my forgetting to do everything... lol). But we did one fun horsey thing last week! Al got his glamour shots taken on Friday morning! I cannot wait to get the photos back and share them with you guys. And get Al on my wall! 

We only had one jump school last week due to weather mostly. Eros didn't jump at all since he had his hocks and SI done on Tuesday. But the one jump school Al did have was pretty fun! I'm sticking to 3' jumps alone for now, and they are really easy for him which is such a nice feeling. Especially when I make a mistake!

Why does 3' look so much bigger than I remember it being?

We hopefully are having a lesson tomorrow, weather permitting, so I'm excited/nervous for that! Can't wait for my trainer to meet Al! Hope she loves him as much as I do, though that's probably impossible. 

I called to get an appointment for Shiny's injections on Monday, and was left frustrated once more by my vets office. Unless I want to ship her someplace they don't think he can come out until August. Obviously this isn't going to work anymore. What if one of my horses gets hurt? I'll have to wait 2 months for treatment? Unacceptable. So the hunt is on for a new vet. As much as I don't want that. After 19 years and so many things we've been through, it's tough to move on. But I have to do what's best for my horses not my emotions. Wish me luck finding a good one!

Otherwise, the horses are all doing just fine! Pammon is drug free so I'm hoping to pop him over some raised cavalletti in the next day or two. Very exciting! Shiny too! Due to the insane wind this past weekend, only Shiny got to enjoy Sunday Funday, but everyone enjoyed the good grass after their rides so it wasn't a total buzzkill of a day. 

And they all had pedicures on Monday. So now we're somewhat caught up on vet work, all been body worked, and have attended to feet. We should be good to go for a bit (other than Shiny)! 

Al and Eros are shod, the other two just get trims

In non horse news, my little brother came down from VT to celebrate Father's Day with our dad. It was great to see him! We haven't seen each other since the fall. Normally he comes home for the holidays, but since Dad and stepmom didn't come back from FL for them this year, little bro didn't come down either. We all enjoyed some delicious chef cooked meals together, and I'm still full from eating too much at Father's Day brunch.

And that brings us up to date! How was your week? Were you in the midst of a heat wave where you are? Or were you getting blown off your horses like I was? Man this weather is crazy all the time!

Truthful Tuesday

 

I swear, it's a miracle I successfully get anything done ever... Last week both my pups had vet appointments, a day apart. Sometime after I had made the appointments I got a reminder notice that P is due for some shots. Rita's appointment was the first one, so while I was there I asked if P could get get her shots during her recheck appointment the next day. They said as long as everything was looking good in her ear, that shouldn't be a problem. Always nice to get two things accomplished in one visit ya know? 

So P's appointment was bright and early Thursday morning. There was a bit of a commotion with another dog who was VERY EXCITED to be at the vet, so they ushered that one into a room right away. My vet apologized (unnecessary, clearly, P was perfectly under control in the waiting room unlike the other larger dog!) and asked if it was okay if they just brought P back to check her ears. I said sure, not a problem. You know what I didn't say? I didn't remember to ask about the shots! Can you believe it? Doc didn't remember either. I didn't realize it until the weekend when I was cleaning up my email inbox. So I had to call for another appointment. Sheesh. Is this early onset senility? Or was it just that my coffee hadn't kicked in yet? I'm hoping the second one...

Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit Day! In my quest to bring you new boots each week, I am bringing back a pair you all haven't seen in AGES! That's because they didn't fit for awhile there. But they do now! And I'm excited to have them back in rotation. Al is our model today, and here's what we wore:

It was a black croc and pink kinda day. We'll start with Al's outfit.

Bridle: Joseph Sterling

Browband: Dark Jewel Designs

I do still have the black and Rose gold bridles, but I don't love them, so I decided to just use this one today. I think it looks so pretty on him!

Saddle: Butet

Saddle Pad: Benz Equestrian

Half Pad: Ippico

I got these pads years ago in black and brown. But I think despite my ordering the grand prix version, they sent me dressage? It's an oddly shaped pad. I'm probably going to sell these soon. I really haven't used them and the shape probably won't work when my saddle arrives with the more forward flap. This is still the loaner saddle. What's cute though, is that trim is croc embossed. Very cute!

Boots: Benz Equestrian

I'll keep these boots though! They fit nicely, and are really cute. Hard to see in the photo, but they are also croc embossed. 

That's what Al was wearing! And here's what I had on:

We'll start from the bottom since I know you want to see the boots better. Or at least, I want to show them better...

Boots: Caldene

These were VERY inexpensive boots I found on Ebay from the UK several years ago. For awhile there I couldn't get into them, but I can now, and I'm so excited to have them back in rotation! I just think they're really pretty and bonus they are also really comfy. I love a croc accent on my boots too. 

Breeches: Tailored Sportsman

I try not to support people who aren't kind and good... so I've been determined to only buy my TS breeches second hand. It took awhile to find these in my size, and honestly I never truly did. These are kids. But they fit pretty well anyway! Admittedly, light pink is a stupid color to wear in the barn, but I love them and think they're adorable. 

Belt: Mane Jane

I went with a black strap and rose gold buckle for today's outfit. I think it's perfect!

Shirt: SanSoleil

I think the SanSoleil shirts are more appropriate for early spring and fall, as the fabric is a little heavier than what you'd want in a sunshirt. But it was on the cooler side here for this ride, so it worked nicely anyway. I love that the little wine glasses are metallic on this one!

Helmet: One K CCS Mips

This helmet matched the top PERFECTLY! Love me some rose gold. 

And that's it for this week! Do you like rose gold? Any favorites from today? Which boots are you hoping to see next?

What's Up Wednesday

 

What a week! Phew. Last week the horses had their body worker out Wednesday, which I've probably already mentioned. Everyone was in pretty good shape. They had their usual areas that needed adjusting, but everyone adjusted really easily and all got good reports. She was especially complimentary of Pammon's condition so that was exciting!

Friday my vet was once again scheduled to come out for Eros' hocks and to check out Shiny's leg. I rode the other two horses first, and then was waiting for the vet. Around five I sent a text to get an eta. I wasn't sure if I should feed or not. No response. So I fed. I sent another at 5:30. At 6 I asked if I should assume he's not coming. Still no answer. At 7 he told me it went too long at the other barn and he wasn't going to make it. I was not happy. Not at all. I mean, we've been waiting since March essentially. Tuesday morning I called his office to get rescheduled and was told he couldn't come until July. JULY! I was like, nope, that won't work for me. So I fumed about it all day, mulling over which other vet I should switch to. I really REALLY didn't want to switch. My vet knows every inch of these horses. And Eros is a special case with his issues. But if I can't get them the care they need more or less when they need it, maybe it's time for a change. BUT! I got a text around 2:30 that same day that doc was getting done early and could swing by if I was able. I was all YES PLEASE COME!!!! So thankfully, I finally got Eros taken care of (we did hocks and SI this time, and some shockwave on his back). 

He watched Shiny go and palpated on the leg, and said he thinks she's in pretty good shape. He thinks the kicking out for the right lead canter is probably SI related. I still have alpha-2 in my freezer for her, so we're going to schedule an appointment in early July to do that for her and maybe her hocks again. The great thing about the Alpha-2 is that it's not like putting steroid in there and you can do it however often they need it. It's not limited like steroid injections, and it poses much less risk of infection. The down side is that it doesn't always last as long as the steroids. Anyway, I digress... Doc was really happy with how she's moving and said she looks the best he's seen her ever. So that was nice to hear! As for the leg, he thinks it's good to go. So she can start popping some little jumps. Yay! I'm not sure if I'll start now or wait until after her next appointment. Maybe just some teeny ones now. We'll see. 

We also chatted about Pammon. Doc said if he's feeling fit, we can start some cavalletti, but he also thinks doing some small cross rail bounces would be especially good for him. Exercises that require him to fire that hind end are what's going to get his back strong. So I'm excited to start that! I'm not starting just yet though. I've still been using a small amount of sedation, so I need to ween him off that. I don't want to jump with him impaired. Seems dangerous. He's settled in much better at this point, so I think he's about ready. Probably by next week he'll be clean and sober. 

I didn't have any Al questions this time, but I showed doc our video from our last lesson at the boarding barn, and he was just as excited as I was about it. THIS is why I want to keep my vet. He's been there since the Rio days (before even!) and he celebrates the victories with me. And he's been through all of the losses too. So much history. Hopefully moving forward we won't have such trouble scheduling. 

It was a pretty long day... I got on Al in the morning, but the neighbor started weed eating along the tree line and Al was having a hard time with that. After 20 minutes, I decided to hop off and wait until the neighbor finished and try again. Al was great the second time. Then I rode Eros, and when he was done I got the text that the vet could come. So I got on Pammon. Vet wasn't there yet, and it was 4:30 so I was like, you know, I better just ride Shiny just in case he cancels again. Which means, I also rode Eros and Shiny twice that day. I rode SEVEN times on Tuesday! I mean, three of them were short (Al's first ride, and the two for the vet) but still. That's a lot of saddle time in one day. I didn't get in from the barn until 9:30 last night. So nice having the barn right here at home on nights like that!

As for how working the horses went this past week... Al jumped a couple of times. I try to pop over some fences twice a week. He was his perfect self both days! The first day we got a lot of rain earlier so the one end was a little squishy. I kept the fences and just worked over the few at the dry end. The second day the footing was perfect and were able to do some courses. I even put some fences up around 2'9"-3". I don't plan to jump much bigger than 3' on my own. Going to work on scheduling some lesson soon and we can jump bigger when trainer is around. 

Anyway, Al is still great! He's been a little tricky to motivate on the flat. Similar to how he was over the winter. I do think he prefers a larger ring to get him moving forward. But we only have what we have, so we'll just have to figure it out!

Eros only wound up jumping once this past week. Friday I didn't end up riding since we were waiting for the vet and then it was so late. Since I don't like to jump after a day off, he missed out on a second school. But honestly, that's fine since he was still awaiting his care. He was great the day we did jump though!

Shiny and Pammon both just kind of plugged along with the same old, same old. I'm excited to start doing more with both of them! 

In other news, my dad and stepmom are back from Florida! They stopped over this weekend with my birthday present. While it wasn't the Bemer blanket I was hoping for. (hahaha, I know, that would be an insane b-day gift. But a girl can hope!) it was almost just as awesome:

A vacuum! I'm so excited! Especially for days when Eros comes in looking like this:

He managed that with his fly sheet... So gross.

I spent Monday giving my saddles some much needed attention. They all needed oil pretty desperately, and I really have been terrible about cleaning them too. So bad. Here's how thirsty Pammon's saddle was:

Left is before, right is after oiling

And here are most of them looking happy:

And that's about it from here! Everyone is doing well! The doggos both have check ups this week, so that's a lot of veterinary stuff for one week... but hopefully we'll be done for awhile after this!

Did you all have a good week? Do anything fun and exciting?

Truthful Tuesday

 

I knew I couldn't go TOO long without doing something ridiculous... So one morning last week I was making a pair of spur straps. I was using a rivet to make a loop to tuck the tail into. Now as you can imagine, the loop for such a thing is very small. Smaller than the head of the hammer in fact. (Do you see where this is going?) I apparently thought I could hold the loop and hammer the rivet at the same time. This was not an accurate hypothesis. Guys. I did not successfully hammer the rivet in that moment. Oh no. I did successfully hammer my thumb however. I now have a purple thumb nail. No one ever mentioned how dangerous crafting can be!

I always surprise myself when I do things this stupid. But I really shouldn't be shocked. Because I also did one other really not brilliant thing last week. (Making up for lost time apparently.) So Friday, my barn helper had dragged the ring, but then left the Gator with the drag still attached parked in the middle of the back driveway. I think probably with the workers here for the fence he didn't have room to turn around and put the drag away. Anyway, I went to put both away, and the Gator wouldn't start. Again. UGH. So I called the mechanic and they said they would send someone up. Then I went over to whine about it to the construction guy. He goes, oh let me take a look, I used to have one of these. And here's the really stupid part. Whenever we park the Gator it goes in neutral and the e brake gets set. But this time, my helper left it in gear. It needs to be in neutral to start. So the only reason it wouldn't start was because it was in drive. And I didn't think to check. So that was embarrassing... But at least it was an easy fix. Then I had to call the mechanic back to cancel and admit my stupidity again. Sheesh! 

So yeah. I've been making great life choices lately... Any of you do anything ridiculous this week? Tell me all about it!

Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit Day! I'm determined to wear different boots every week for awhile for you guys. We'll see how I do. Here's what I wore this week:

I just really love my Celeris boots. All of them. You guys haven't seen this pair in awhile I don't think!

Helmet: Samshield

I love how this helmet matches pretty much any outfit. 

Shirt: Equine and Design (on Etsy)

This is the "Hunter" shirt. It actually says hunger in the same rose gold as the bit along the left arm. Really cute shirt! I have the jumper version in navy too, which I think I had on here not too long ago. 

Belt: Handy Hunter Boutique

These belts are really cute. So cute in fact that I accidentally bought the purple one twice... So if anyone wants one I have an extra for sale for $20 plus shipping. It's a size large and would fit a size 28 to probably 32. Handy Hunter Boutique is out of business now unfortunately. They had really cute stuff!

Breeches: Ovation

Oops, another accident! Before I brought the horses home, I did a blanket inventory and realized I needed a few things for Al. (Al, Pammon, and Eros all wear the same size, but I only had two of most things in that size.) Some of my blankets have been discontinued, so I decided to try some Waldhausen blankets. There's a tack store about 40 minutes from me that will special order anything you want from Waldhausen. So a few weeks ago, I headed up there to retrieve part of my order (some things are backordered, such is life in 2022.) Whilst there I had a walk through the store. Guys. I haven't been to a tack store since pre pandemic times! That's like... 100 years ago I think. I didn't get too crazy, but I did pick up these breeches. They were the only pair of these in the store and happened to be my size so clearly, I had to buy them. I had also just sold 25 pairs of breeches so it was earned. Anyway, they're more of a teal color than they are photographing. The true color is sort of apparent in the photo of my shirt. They're nice enough breeches for the price. The gel knee patches are pretty grippy, maybe a little too grippy even, but I think that will relax as they get worn and washed more. The calves are weirdly loose on them, but otherwise the fit is decent. I'd say the waist runs a little small. I generally wear a size 28 (which these are) to fit my hips and butt, but usually the waist is too big. On these, the waist fits me great. They have a paisley print piping on the pockets and matching paisley on the sock bottoms. Very cute!

Boots: Celeris UK

These are my second oldest pair, but I don't think I've worn them quite as much as the black and rose gold pair. I think these are really pretty, especially the metallic teal details. The color is really vibrant and fun. The leather on these is a little more stiff than the black ones, which I like because they don't feel quite as loose now that they're a little too big. 

So that's what I wore today, let's see what our model Eros had on!

I struggle with this horse's physique. How can he be looking ribby and still have that hay belly? Will have to confer with Doc when he hopefully comes tomorrow. Otherwise I think Eros is looking pretty good this year. The top line needs some work, but with his hocks so overdue we haven't been able to work super hard at top line building activities. All in good time. For now he's rocking the dad bod. And dad bod is so in right now!

Bridle: Joseph Sterling

Browband: Dark Jewel Designs

That face though! He's so handsome. I think the spikey browband looks so great on him. He doesn't really give off baddass vibes on his own, but the spikes help.

Boots: Jeffers

I don't have metallic teal boots for the horses but I do have these GLITTER teal boots, which I think is close enough. I wish I had gotten a pair in Shiny's size, but I didn't have her when I bought them. 

Saddle: Butet

Saddle Pad: Hopeful Equestrian

Half Pad: Ippico

This also didn't photograph that well, but the trim on the pad is teal glitter too! It's not an exact match to the boots, but still, close enough! 

And that's it for today! Any favorite items? Do you guys still enjoy Thursday's Threads? What are you waiting for us to wear next?