What's Up Wednesday

 

It was a fairly quiet week/weekend around here. Eros has been a perfect boy (obviously) and we ever put the jumps back up to 2'6" for him on Saturday.

He was so good and soft, I basically just jumped one course and called it a day. Which meant our ride was barely 20 minutes long warm up included. I have this feeling like all rides need to be at least 30 minutes (I generally ride 30-40 minutes), but honestly, sometimes I think it's perfectly fine for it to be short and sweet. This week for example. It's been in the 90's with 70% humidity which leads to "feels like" temps in the triple digits. Our horses here in New England are not super acclimated to that, and so our rides yesterday and today were/will be on the shorter side. Probably 20-25 minutes including our cool down walk. Which was stressing me out at first, but then I realized, it's perfectly okay. A few light days now and then aren't going to hurt anyone. 

Speaking of short rides. It's funny how Shiny really does require a no pressure ride each week. I've never had a horse that makes this so apparent. Last week, instead of a no pressure bareback day, they had Friday completely off when I went to visit my friend. So I skipped Sunday funday to make up for  our missed jumping day. Well... Shiny was kind of terrible this whole past week having not had her no pressure day. It took me until this weekend to realize that was the difference. How was she terrible you ask? Well there was this dramatic spook:

Which, Shiny rarely ever spooks unless she's super wild. Which she was not. She also was very much not interested in contact or moving off my leg... or really anything I asked her to do. She was good when we jumped Friday, but she was so behind my leg I couldn't even begin to try and hold contact at all. 

We even (and by we I mean me...) got brave enough to jump the end jump. But without an honest contact, I only found the chip to it every time.

Sorry Shiny... 

Anyway, after last week's frustrations, I made sure that the horses had a Sunday Funday.

Eros had a bareback walk in the ring followed by a half hour of yard snacks

Shiny "trail rode" bareback down to her paddock and back and also enjoyed yard snacks after

I didn't have any braiding jobs this week, but I did get to ride Bellino! 

He was kind of a jerk on Saturday, spooking and spinning at the chairs by the ring when we started. Then trying to leave the ring when I really closed the inside aids to prevent the spook... He wanted to root at the canter which was pretty rude. But by the end he had softened and was a good boy. Sunday he had regrets about how long he made his ride the day before and was a perfect gentleman. So that was fun and rewarding. 

In Pammon news, it looks like his buddy finally stood up for himself as Pammon has a little ding on his front leg that looks like it's probably from a kick. I'm glad that happened because Pammon needed to be stood up to. Whatever the tiff was about, they are getting along so much better. 

They moved to a little bit bigger field yesterday which I'm excited about for them. Not so much because it's bigger, but because it's next to the road. It's a very quiet rode, used mainly by the barn's traffic and the handful of residents off of it, but it has a decent amount of pedestrian traffic. Pammon LOVES people, and I think he'll love seeing everyone who walks by. Especially if they give him some attention. 

He got some new fly boots from Equi-prism this weekend. I'm going to make sure they aren't giving any rubs today when I go out to see him, but he seems to be unbothered by them. They're designed like the shoo-fly boots, but you can pick your own colors. I went with the boarding barn colors since that would match his fly sheet better than my colors.

And that's really all I have to report this week. How about you guys? Did you have a good week? Get lots of riding in? Do your horses have any easy day requirements like Shiny?

Truthful Tuesday

 

I've been a little lazy lately you guys. I mean, not with the horses, I'm doing all the things with them of course. But I've been slacking on the house projects. Now that we're in the midst of a heat wave though, I'm trying to get back on track. Partly because then I get to be inside in the a/c and partly because I never did bring my summer clothes downstairs this year... 

I have plenty of tee shirts that weren't packed up with the rest of the summer clothes, and I leave sunshirts around all year since they layer well. So I haven't had a real need. But now that life is starting to happen again, I realized I had no summertime non barn clothes in an easily accessible area. So that's what I started doing yesterday. Packing up the sweaters, and going through (purging!!!) the summer clothes. My attention span isn't that long and I had to work around a few other things yesterday, but I made a good dent at least. I filled two bags for donation already, so that feels good. I LOVE getting rid of excess stuff in my house. It's so cathartic. My goal is chip away at it this week, and hopefully be finished by next week. We'll see how it goes. I really want to get back on track with getting this house cleaned out and organized again. I mean, some day I may want to allow people inside again... 

Do you guys lose motivation for boring adulting things? Or are you pretty good at seeing chores through on the regular?

Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit day is late! So sorry! But it's still Thursday, so we're good! I'll jump right to it though, so as not to waste any more time...

Here's what the ponies wore this week:

They mostly wore green, and we busted out the hats!

Bridles: Eros- Camelot RCS gold, Shiny QHP
Browbands: Eros- Boy O'Boy Bridleworks, Shiny- Dark Jewel Designs
Bonnets: If the bonnet fits

They wore different bridles today because Shiny's one like Eros' doesn't have a bit she likes on it, and I'm too lazy to switch it at the moment. They both work with the theme though! Just a note, Eros' bit is a hybrid. I originally got this gold two ring made by Punk Ponies, but I wanted it in leather instead. Sweet Billy's is able to convert them though! So if you have a cheek you really like, they can turn it into a leather bit for you. Like if you have one of those unicorn rainbow bits for example. 

Saddles: Eros- Butet, Shiny- Custom Saddlery
Saddle pads: Eros- retired show baby pad with cricut logo and Mattes half pad, Shiny-Mattes

Boots: Eros- Equestrian Stockholm, Shiny- Punk Ponies

The Punk Pony boots really do fit Shiny the best. I'm still kind of meh on the ES boots though. 

Okay, my turn! Here's what I wore:

It's not just green! Nor is it Winthrop Corner logos! Yay me! Hahaha!

Helmet: One K CCS MIPS wide brim

I'm not sure why this helmet looks absolutely enormous in this photo... I swear it looks mostly normal in real life.

Shirt: It's a Haggerty's

My Presto Warrior shirt was um... well... it was a little small for awhile, so it's been sitting in a drawer waiting for me to fit back into it. And I'm back in! Happy to have it back in rotation.

Belt: Lilo

Guys... it matches the cuffs and collar on my shirt! Not  quite exactly, but close enough for me. 

Breeches: Tailored Sportsman

This should probably a Truthful Tuesday confessions. But I wanted these pinky breeches SO MUCH, but you know, I'm relatively frugal and was hoping to grab a used pair. The problem with light pink breeches is that no one sells them. Likely because they stain pretty much before you even put them on. So finally, I decided to treat myself after a few extra braiding jobs I hadn't expected. Unfortunately, there wasn't a 28 to be had anywhere on the interwebs and TS had released this as a limited edition color. So I got them in 30 figuring the few pairs of 30 I have fit okay, just a bit loose. Well... Those ones are low rise. These are mid. The mid rise seem to run bigger as these are enormous. Fortunately, I think one of the kids at the barn is going to buy them from me. Even more fortunate is that TS has decided to re-release pinky so I should be able to find a pair in the correct size once these sell.  That will teach me to pay retail! I KNOW BETTER! Sheesh. 

Boots: Celeris UK

Rose gold and pinky look fab together if you ask me. Also, I really should clean and polish these poor boots. They've been so good to me, I need to return the favor!

So that's it for today. Sorry for the delayed post, hope you liked pink and green! Have any favorite items?

What's Up Wednesday

 

Phew, busy day! My dad and stepmom are back from Florida FINALLY so I got to pick them up this afternoon at the airport. So glad to have them back nearby. That meant I couldn't putz around all day and instead got the horses ridden early. Of course, the one day I ride early is the same day that someone on the other side of the woods from me was doing some kind of construction. So noisy. Much spooking. BUT ALSO, this little turtle mama laid some eggs in my ring while I was riding Eros:

He was so busy spooking at the woods he didn't notice her until he'd already passed her by no less than 10 times. And then he stopped dead in his tracks to snort at her. So silly. 

The horses were good this past week though, and we got both of our jumps schools in. I already mentioned yesterday Eros' feelings on the figure 8, so I'll be avoiding that from now on. So for our first jump day he was a bit of a torpedo (with the figure 8), but on day 2 he was pretty wonderful. Here's some video evidence:

Shiny was great jumping both days this week. Sunday was interesting though. She was ridiculously quiet, which isn't always the best thing when trying to jump her. She has some room for improvement when it comes to listening to my leg (and spur... and whip...) so when she's quiet like that it can be a little.... angsty. But Sunday, despite her being sluggish, she really jumped well. She was slow off the ground (as a hunter should be) and did a nice job picking her shoulder and knees up. I had to sacrifice her shape before the fences some as any sort of extra mouth contact would certainly cause problems with that pony on that day, but I wasn't too bothered by it since she wasn't turning herself inside out. And today she nearly got a flying lead change while flatting! That's a big deal. We've been working more on lateral work, and I think she's really starting to understand it. I can get some decent half pass at the trot now. Just a few steps, but it's in there. Really proud of her. She makes me feel like I'm not a complete idiot. Some video of her too. We don't always get to the best spot, but whatever. 

I went on a little adventure on Friday. As you all know, between my stepmom and I, we have too many horses. I am not looking for more horses even though I don't actually have a show horse in the herd. (Unless you count Pammon, which I do not). But. You know. Sometimes things happen, and you have to see them through. A good friend of mine is a professional with a very small horse business. She has a couple of horses that are hers. One that she's bringing up to the Grand Prix level and one that is a sales horse. And she has a couple of clients. Anyway. That sales horse happens to be out of a mare by Indoctro. Rio was by Indoctro, so I always look twice when I see something closely related to him for sale. EVEN THOUGH I'M NOT SHOPPING FOR HORSES. I can't help it. This particular horse goes very much like Rio did. And his jump is nearly identical, though this guy jumps a bit tidier than my boy did. I was telling my friend how much he reminds me of Rio and she thought so too. I asked his price and upon hearing it, I said it was very much not anything I could ever afford. But she said to come sit on him anyway. She likes her horses to get ridden by different people, especially the sales horses since it's good prep for them. No pressure, and no hard feelings that he's above my pay grade, but maybe we could try and work something out if I really liked him. So I called my investor dad and told him about the horse. He said it's too much money (obviously I agreed) but then he said, go sit on it and see. If it's really special maybe we could work something out. (The whole family has a soft spot for anything Rio.) So I took a two hour drive to visit my friend on Friday.

He jumps 1.3 meters, but I do not.

I loved him. His jump is exactly like Rio's. And he's ridiculously easy, especially being that he's only 6. He is still pretty green between the jumps though. He lands and wants to cut in, which then makes the changes not happen. They are in there though, we got them fine on the flat, so it's a little bit me needing to think ahead better and a little bit him needing more miles. We made an offer on him, but unfortunately, my friend didn't have as much room in his price as she initially thought, so he won't be joining the herd. While disappointing, it was really fun to get to sit on him. It was nice to ride something that didn't drag me around like a small child nor ignore my leg. Made me feel a little better about my riding skillz! It was also wonderful to see my old friend again who I haven't seen in a few years. So not a wasted day by any means.

I spent the rest of the past week braiding a pony and a giant horse:

And prepping the apartment here for its next tenant. Normally I rent it unfurnished and don't need to do anything to it other than make sure it's clean. But this time my dad is renting it for his boat captain, so I have to fill it with furniture, kitchen stuff, etc. Monday I washed all the pots and pans and dishes:

How about those 80's style cabinets, huh??

The rest of this week I'll schlep the rest of the stuff up there. Thankfully, I should be able to furnish it with stuff already here and we won't have to buy anything other than a bed. (I don't keep extra beds lying around, do you?)

I can't remember if I mentioned the difficulty in trying to get my pool opened this year? You've probably heard about the chlorine shortage happening nationwide due to a fire at the factory that produces the majority of it for the US. Well, that shortage means no pool places are taking on new customers. Thankfully, I FINALLY found someone who happens to live just down the road (how about that after like 900000 phone calls to every pool place around). He came today to get the cover off, and will see about getting the pump running and dumping some chemicals in there tomorrow. Fingers crossed there aren't any major issues... In the meantime, how gross does this look after being covered for two years:

ewwww....

I'm stupid excited to get it opened though. I hope to actually use it this year. 

And that's about it from here this week. It's been kind of busy! How was your week? Do anything fun? Shows? Lessons? 

Truthful Tuesday

 

So apparently, it takes two to pull? My trainer growing up always told me this, and it seemed true enough, but I grew up riding thoroughbreds and tb crosses, and they aren't all that interested in pulling. So I never really thought much about it. But now that I have Eros The Torpedo, I realize how true that statement is. 

I jumped him last week and was having a bit of a struggle with him dragging me around again. He rides well to the jumps it's after that's tricky. Trying to contain that enormous stride is a real challenge and it makes me want to pull. 

Exhibit A: Me pulling.

Because that's where the brakes are right? So I figured maybe it was time for a school in the Pletcher bit which happened to be on his figure 8 bridle. In the past, one or two schooling sessions in this bit tends to lighten him back up.  But it wasn't working this time. And then I thought back to how he was so strong at every lesson before we moved home and I had a small epiphany. I think he hates the figure 8. So this week, I switched that bit over to a regular noseband bridle and I had a different horse. He still wanted to be a little strong and get excited after the jumps, but he was much lighter. But that's not the only thing I noticed.

Exhibit B: Me not pulling

If I would use my actual half halt, that is take and give back, he actually was listening to me. He doesn't mind if I pull back as long as I release. And the softer I an in front of the jump, the softer he is when he lands. I am not such a good rider that I can achieve this if the distance is one I need to shorten for. That's still a work in progress. But the first step is acknowledging a problem right? So now I know what we need to work on. And pulling isn't it! Because as it turns out... the pulling problem is me.

Thursday's Threads

 

    You Northern New Englanders may not like today's outfit... BUT I DO! Go Yankees! (Though they do kind of suck this year...) For the horses' outfit, I'm not revealing who made the pads and boots for me because, well... we aren't officially licensed ya know? So mums the word on that. You can probably figure it out based on other things I've had done in the past.  Normally I try to play by the rules with stuff like that, but the Yankees don't make horse stuff for me to buy so I had to do what I had to do... Alright, let's see what we all wore!

Now that I know Shiny has a good fitting saddle, I could probably try using some regular pads on her. But I have all these built in half pad ones for her, so I probably won't. 

Bridles: Joseph Sterling
Browbands: ME! I made those!

Okay, so the browbands are definitely "schooling quality", but I was pretty happy with them for occasional use. Here they are not on a bridle:

I just got leather strap the same width of this ribbon I found. Glued on the ribbon with flexible fabric glue, trimmed the ends, and used Chicago screw rivets with balls on the end for easy removal.  I did have snaps which I could have used, but these look nicer and are just as easy to use. I used the same bridles that my spike browbands are usually on. And well... now that I know how easy these are to do, maybe I'll make some others in the future. I think they came out cute!

Saddles: Shiny-Custom Saddlery, Eros-Butet
Saddle Pads: Shiny-Mattes, Eros I'm not telling and the half pad is Ippico

Cute right? I found baseball images/logos online and made a little pattern that I had printed on Eros' pad and the boots you'll see shortly. I have a few other designs on my list to get made. I have to spread them out as the budget allows. But I have a few I'm really excited to get done!

Boots:

I really wish I could make this stuff myself. But how fun are these boots?! 

And here's what I wore:

I didn't really how washed out this photo was when I took it, sorry! But you can get the idea.

Helmet: One K CCS MIPS Wide Brim

So this is actually the navy with rose gold helmet, but I replaced the rose gold rail and navy front shield with this lighter blue color. I really bought it for the other barn, but for now it's home with me. 

Tee: MLB Shop

This tee was from Derek Jeter's final season before retiring. The last of the Core Four. I got to meet him briefly when we were vacationing in the same place many years ago!

Belt: Vineyard Vines

Prior to Vineyard Vines making this perfect Yankees belt, I was wearing one with an enormous western style buckle when I went to games. I like this one much better.

Breeches: Halter Ego

Admittedly, I bought these in the wrong size and they're a little big, though a trip through the dryer has helped a little. If you get a pair, size down! These are my normal size, but they run big. I love the marble look to them, and the bright blue accents are super fun. 

Boots: De Niro Salentino

These are the pair I found on sale at Equiport in stock and in my size! Fate boots. I'm a big fan of them. The only reason I don't wear them more is that they have a thinner sole than my Celeris boots, and I have to shorten my stirrups when I wear them. And I'm painfully lazy. So yeah. The fit is perfect on these though, just as good as my customs! Actually, they're better since my customs are all a little too loose these days. 

That's it for today! Any favorites? 

What's Up Wednesday

 

Nothing terribly exciting to report over here. The horses are all doing horse stuff. Eros is jumping 2'6" now, though not a full course because I'm too lazy to get off and on. 

So I set a few at 2'6" and a few that are smaller to warm up over. 

We've also added a four stride line into the course which I think I mentioned last week. For both horses we did it first trotting in, and then moved on to cantering through. I have it set for a horse stride, so Shiny is doing the add. This past week I kept it low (2') but I think I'll make it 2'3" for this week's jump schools. Shiny is consistently jumping 2'3" now, so that's exciting! I don't think we're ready for higher yet, but I do think she's capable of more. 

Back to Eros though... As I suspected, adding in a related distance has brought out a mild torpedo reaction. I can get him back pretty quickly with a very big half halt, but I want that behavior to go away. This week I plan to jump in the Pletcher bit and see if that will soften him. 

I'll report back next week if it works. In the past, he is much lighter with this bit, so hopefully it will work again. 

I tried Shiny in a figure 8 this week since I've decided maybe we'll do baby jumpers instead of the hunters (given our lack of a lead change). 

It doesn't fit her great, I have another one
coming that will hopefully work better.

It was an interesting experiment. She's much more rideable to the jumps, but she doesn't jump very well in it. I think likely it's just a learning curve issue. She needs to figure out how to use her parts while not fighting with me. I dunno... But here's how she jumped:

Head up, knees down, and sometimes a little twisty... Although to be fair I found the long weak one at that oxer, so that one's not really her fault. Always stuff to work on! I'm confident she'll level back out. 

It's been beautiful around here with the only rainy day happening on Monday which is the horses' day off anyway. It's allowed for our fun Sunday bareback day:

And daily visits with Pammony:

The pups are enjoying the weather too!

I had a small braiding job this weekend:

And lastly, I made my Unsupervised Amateur shirts available in both a jumping 

and a flat version. 

For now they are on Teespring, and you can find them here if you're interested:

Jumping
Flat

They'll be on Zazzle soon too at this link: Unsupervised Amateur

And that's about it from here! How was your week? Do anything fun? Are you guys showing?