Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit Day! Al wanted to model today, but he worked on the lunge line sans tack today instead of riding, so he didn't qualify for the task this week. Eros was more than happy to fill in though! We kept it pretty boring today because some days just call for boring outfits. But I actually really likes this one, even if it's unexciting. Here's what Eros wore today:

He's too much. He posed like this for the camera for several different angles. He absolutely understands the assignment. He's clearly proud to show off his dad bod. He's so brave!

Bridle: Pinnacle

Brow Band: Boy O'Boy Bridleworks

Still loving this bridle. If you are looking for an inexpensive schooling bridle, definitely recommend. If you want something to show with, they have the same bridle available in the better leather as well. 

Saddle: Butet
Saddle Pad: Ogilvy
Half Pad: Mattes

Does this look a little different to you? It probably won't unless you're ridiculously observant, but this isn't Eros' saddle. It's Al's. Why you ask? Well, I've been unhappy with how Eros feels in his own saddle, and mentioned it to our bodyworker today. So she was looking at his back and asked if my saddle for him was extra wide, and I said no, but Al's is. So she said grab it and throw it on him. So I did. And well... the Dad bod is closer to an extra wide saddle than a wide these days. I'm trying him out in Al's for a little bit and I'm working on getting the fitter out. I really can't afford to buy a new saddle right now... But my Butet rep is really wonderful so hopefully we can figure out something that doesn't bankrupt me. And yes, they certainly could share one saddle, but this one isn't quite perfect for Eros. If we can make it perfect with pads, that would be lovely! Time will tell. 

Polos: Eskadron

Ha! I didn't realize how much these look casts until just now. I swear they are polos and not hard casts! Lol! I wanted tan wraps for him, but wanted the climatex ones. I had to get these from Europe and they weren't quite the color I was expecting. I thought they would be closer to the cognac color that my boots from them are. But this is a nice shade too and actually matches the pad pretty well. 

That's what Eros was wearing today, and here's what I had on:

I livened up our boring outfit with really fun boots. See? Boring can be fun too!

Helmet: One K

I'm so glad I bought this helmet when I did. I've been using it so much this summer!

Top: The Gym People

I snagged this one during Prime day and really like it. It's pretty similar to the FitEq tops. Highly recommend, but they don't have many colors which is a bummer.

Belt: Tory Burch

You've all seen this one plenty of times. It's a favorite.

Breeches: RJ Classics Harper

TS will probably always be my preferred fit for breeches, but I really like the RJ Harpers too. And yeah... there's a chance I bought another pair of weird colored tan pants. I couldn't help it. They were insanely on sale. It would have been a sin to NOT buy them. Also, I think I had a pair this color when I was a kid. 

Boots: Celeris UK

I love these boots so much. Are they ridiculous? Absolutely. Are they amazing? SO AMAZING. And so comfy. 

That's it for this week! Did you enjoy the boring outfit? Any favorite pieces? 

What's Up Wednesday

 

I gotta tell you, when I get into the braiding vortex, I don't really store any memories from that timespan... So I have very little recollection of what went on last week. My camera roll is of minimal help either... But we'll see what I can come up with.

Shiny and her kid are KILLING it together! They even jumped a few 2'3" fences which is huge because her kiddo hasn't been feeling that brave prior to coming up here this summer. I'm very proud of them. Shine's been good for me too but I haven't jumped her in awhile. I like to keep jumpies to twice a week, and her kiddo's been doing both days. Which I'm totally happy with, because it's so fun to see them together. 

Eros is doing well. I keep thinking he maybe doesn't feel his best some days, but the more we do, the better he feels, so I think it's partly just strength building. I let him trot some teeny jumps today, and he was great, though if we had cantered them there would have been some torpedoing. But look how cute:

He's too much. I just love this horse. I've been silently thinking about trying some dressage with him, but honestly, I don't think I have the attention span for dressage. And seeing him jump this little fence... I think he still wants to be a hunter horse. At least for now. Plus, we can't use earplugs for dressage. And we are ear plug dependent. 

And then there's the problem child. Al blew that abscess last week, and I had been soaking and wrapping it, but my farrier still hadn't come by the end of the week to clean it up. At that point, the other heel was starting to crack, and there was black stinky abscess material kind of coming out all over the frog area. (Though he still seemed perfectly comfortable on the foot. I'm not sure this horse feels pain appropriately.) My vet actually checked in with me on Friday though. I said I wasn't thrilled with how it looked and sent him a photo. He was nearby so said he could stop by. Yes please! He pulled the shoe and trimmed away all the dead stuff:

It was an interesting enough case that he made a video for his socials. That's our second on there if anyone's keeping track. His one of Shiny's splinter went viral. I may never be famous, but my horses kind of are in veterinary circles. (In fact, they use Rio as a case study at Cornell now.) I'm really not sure I should be proud of this. Ha! Anyway... Doc said to give Al the weekend off, then get the shoe back on and he should be good to go. I also had him palpate on that front leg that had been swollen since he was there, and he wasn't concerned. Phew. 

So the shoe went back on today, and I was excited to get back to work! But of course he was all sorts of angsty due to the lack of work the past week. And it was windy. But still, I just used our safe spaces and stayed calm for him. It was hard to really tell how he felt because when he's spooky like that he doesn't want to come forward. He didn't feel sound enough to me, but honestly, I couldn't really get a good read on what was happening under me. My plan is to lunge him tomorrow so I can actually see what he looks like. And if it's not good, I'll schedule ANOTHER vet appointment. Our chiro comes tomorrow too though, so maybe it's something she can fix. Fingers crossed. I'm a little frustrated because we've just been so inconsistent this past month or so between this foot stuff and the colicky days a few weeks ago. Plus, my trainer is finally here and I STILL can't have a lesson. Thanks Al. She leaves in like three weeks, so maybe we can get a few in later. I hate to be whiny but summer will be over and once again, we've accomplished nada. I'm not going to dwell on that though. If I can get him sound and going, there are still a couple months at home where we can do whatever we want. And there's lots of little one day shows around here in the fall. If I really want to do this stuff, I need to just go do it! We'll see if Al can get his poo together. 

In other news, I braided a total of 13 manes and 14 tails this weekend.

I also slept from Thursday to Sunday a total of 9 hours. Which... isn't very much. I'm no dummy though! I asked our former weekend worker if she had any interest in doing my chores and turnout Saturday. She did which was a huge help! I got home from braiding at 6:30 Saturday morning, just as she was pulling in to start work. I don't know how braiders do this stuff full time. The hours are nuts. 

I did ride Al and Shiny on Saturday. Al just had a nice grooming. But Sunday? Sunday, I got home from braiding at 3 am, and then slept until 7. So chores started a little bit late. My town has an autmn fair every year this weekend, and I really wanted to get over there, so I decided to let the horses have extra turnout time and skip riding that day. So I made it over to the fair in the afternoon and ate myself silly. I started with a baked potato, then took a stroll through some of the buildings to see the arts and crafts submissions. Then I got ice cream and went to watch the horse pulls while I ate it.

These guys were the winners

Took another stroll and saw the baking submissions. Which by the last day of the fair were not looking so good... (It was HOT in that building!) Then I went to see the bunnies. I LOVE bunnies. Like, not enough to have one of my own, but I love seeing them. Especially the loppy eared ones. I have wild bunnies here at the farm, so it's kind of like having my own but better since they feed themselves and I don't have to take them to the vet. 

After the bunnies I strolled over to the moo cows, which were all super cute and content. 

Jersey's are my favorite moos I think. They're just so cute with their huge noses.

I wrapped up my day at the fair with some pulled pork nachos (highly recommend). I wanted to get some thai egg rolls to go for dinner later, but they were all out. So instead I settled for a bag of kettle corn. And that was it for my day at the fair! I'm glad I fit it in, and I think the extra day off was actually great for the horses. Shiny and Eros both felt really great on Tuesday which usually isn't the case after a day off. So it was a great decision all around.

And I think that's really about it from the past week. It's all I can remember anyway. Haha!

Truthful Tuesday

 

Today's confession is that tack walking Al today was as much work as a regular ride. His foot is doing much better after a vet visit on Friday (more on the foot tomorrow), but we're now waiting to get his shoe back on before we get back to work. I figured though, he can handle a tack walk without the shoe. He's been a little ridiculous lately, and I think his brain needs something to do. So I hopped on, planning to walk for 20 minutes, and do some actual walk work, rather than just meandering. Which was a good plan, because I think if I let him meander there would have been much spooking. So we worked on going forward, which was absolutely exhausting. I didn't think I'd need weapons for walk day, but next time I'm definitely bringing Mr. Tappy. We did a little bit of lateral work, but not too much. Just enough to move his body around a little. But yeah, I was as tired from trying to get him moving at the walk as I would have been if we'd done all three gaits. Guess I know what we need to work on!

Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit Day!!! I fell victim to a really good sale at Dreamers and Schemers, but I did semi behave myself by only buying ONE saddle pad, and not one for each horse. See? I'm trying! Shiny wanted to model today, so here's what we were wearing:

Don't worry, you'll see better below. But we were semi twinning! I just can't resist a good hunt scene print.

Okay, here's what Shiny had on:

Look at her standing so nicely! And that waistline! Shiny's having herself a hot girl summer. 

Bridle: Joseph Sterling
Brow Band: Dark Jewel Designs

I know, I use this bridle a lot, but it's probably my favorite of the schooling bridles. Plus, who doesn't look badass in spikes?

Saddle: Custom Saddlery
Saddle Pad: Dreamers and Schemers

I wasn't sure if I needed this pad when it first came out. But I knew I had an Ariat shirt that was likely to be a pretty close match. And then I realized that the trim was hunter green, and I was like well, guess I can't NOT own it. So here we are. It looks really cute on Shiny, and I bet it will on Al too. 

Boots: Anky

I just used my favorite green tendon boots with this outfit. They worked very nicely!

Here's what I wore:

See?? We're twinning! Hunt scene top with green breeches to match the pad trim.

Helmet: One K

I dunno... I just think brown looks great with hunt scenes. So I chose this brown One K for today's rides.

Shirt: Ariat

Isn't this so cute?? I had originally bought it to match my lilac breeches, but it also looks great with green. The print on this is really similar to the pad's. The biggest difference is that the pad has light pink on it, and this top has lilac. But I think the complement each other well enough. 

Here they are together so you can see how they differ:

Certainly not the same, but I think it's close enough for a riding outfit. 

Belt: The Sugar Lady

I picked Rio's belt for this outfit. I've been missing him a little extra lately, and it's nice to have a little bit of him with me. I LOVE how this belt came out. It's very special.

Breeches: Horze Grand Prix

These are pretty old, and you've seen them plenty. But they're holding up great, and I love this shade of green.

Socks: Dreamers and Schemers

I mean, if you're gonna buy the pad, you should also get the socks. It just makes sense.

Boots: Horka

I've been wearing these a ton this summer. I think because there's been so much rain, and I don't mind getting these muddy since they kind of look muddy on their own... But also, they're super comfy. 

And that's it for today! Any favorites? What do you think of hunt scene prints? Take it or leave it?

What's Up Wednesday

 

It's funny how weird time gets when you're working late nights. I feel like so much has happened this week, and at the same time like not much happened... So let's see if I can remember what the week was like...

Thursday night was my busiest braid night. I just had four horses, but they were in two different towns so it was a pretty long night. I got home at 4:30 AM. 

I didn't really plan for a second jump school this week just because I knew I'd be a little brain foggy after my long night Thursday. (We usually jump Friday or Saturday.) I did end up hopping Shiny over the cavalletti height stuff, but mostly she just flatted with me this past week/weekend. I honestly can't remember what Al did Friday. I think we may have done the same thing as Shiny. Just popped over the teeny stuff. And Eros just flatted. 

Friday I had an unexpectedly easy night. One of the horses I was supposed to braid that night had been a very naughty boy at the show that morning. His rider was offered another horse to ride that was already getting braided at the show. Kind of a bummer for me to make less money, but I also didn't mind getting home at a reasonable hour. Plus, the rider is a friend of mine, and I was glad she was getting something a little more reliable to ride at finals. I still had one mane and two tails to do at the other barn, so it wasn't a total wash for the evening.

I gave all the horses Saturday off and they got an extra long turnout in exchange.  Even though I was home around 12:30 I was moving pretty slowly in the morning. (I have an autoimmune disease that gets a little pissy when I pull all nighters like I did Thursday, and it takes a few days to get back to "normal".) I also had limited time because I was attending an end of summer Taco Party at a friend's house around 5. So, I just decided they could have the day off. Horses don't HAVE to work six days a week every week. I'm not sure why I feel so much like I'm not fulfilling my duties when they get an extra day off. But I do. I'm working on it. They were no worse for the wear. 

Saturday night I just had one horse on my list so another easy night! Though this horse has something weird going on with his mane in the middle so it was a big of a challenge to try and get it looking nice... Not my best work, but came out well enough for what I had to work with.

Sunday morning wasn't as rough as Saturday since I got a pretty full night's sleep. I banged out stalls in no time at all (probably because they were out longer than usual the day before, but I'm gonna pretend I was super efficient) and then they all had a nice flat ride. Al was a little extra pokey and felt a hair stiff behind, but nothing that out of the ordinary. He has that one foot that sometimes he can be a little funny on so it doesn't concern me too much if he's having a stiff day on it. I know why, and it's nothing terribly serious. Eros and Shiny were both good though. It was a nice day!

And then there was the whole dinner debacle, but I'm still so happy about the Taco Bell. (And this is just one of the many reasons I'm a weirdo.) I seriously am already excited to get it again this Sunday. Can't wait!

Monday is their usual day off and I kept that despite them having Saturday off too. I spent the day running a few errands (needed more yarn and braiding snacks), did my PT exercises so the knee doesn't fail me, and Rita enjoyed a nice walk by the lake. 

And then Tuesday. I rode Shiny first and she was a little annoyed that she hadn't been retired over the weekend, but was otherwise a good girl. Then I went to get Al out. I pick feet in the stall before we come out to minimize aisle mess. And when I got to his back left foot, I noticed a big ol' hole in his heel. 

This is his foot with the stubby coffin bone. So his foot is weird and he can be prone to getting some thrush in there. At first I thought that's what I was looking at. Like that cleft in the frog had maybe gotten icky. But when I really got in there I realized it was a separate hole. And was stinky. Not thrush stinky, abscess stinky. Yuck. And also weird. He was never abscess lame on it. Even Monday when I checked in on them and fed meals, he was always standing comfortably on all his legs. So this was a real surprise, but I guess explains why he felt slightly not great on Sunday. Anyway, I sent a photo to my vet who suggested having my farrier take a look at it. Unfortunately, my farrier is out of town for a few days, so in the meantime we're soaking in epsom salts and wrapping with animalintex. He's perfectly sound on it, but I don't want to work him until it gets checked by a professional, Plus, it is still draining some. BUT THEN, I took him out today, planning a tack walk. And when I picked his feet, I found this leg:

It's VERY swollen. There are two small nicks that you can see in the photo, but I swear he just took the hair off. No blood anywhere. Just like that other week when his back leg did the same thing. I'm guessing either Shiny kicked him again or he really whacked it on something. I do know that he swells up excessively over the tiniest things, so I'm not panicking about it. I decided to go ahead with our tack walk plan since he wasn't limping and that went just fine. Then while I soaked his abscess foot, I put an ice boot in this front one. (I also scrubbed it with betadine first.) 

It did come down some with our walk, so I'm feeling like it will be fine in a day or two. Not a big issue since he's having down time anyway for the abscess. But seriously? We've been waiting ALL summer for trainer to get here, and now he's trying to off himself one leg at a time? Could we just not? 

I mean really. This is ridiculous. Horses are the worst!

I rode Eros today while trainer was here and her kiddo had a lesson on Shiny. Both were great, and Eros got to jump his first cavalletti since last November! And uh... hahaha.... he stopped the first time. There was some crazy noise coming from over by the lake and he was so busy listening to that he didn't notice I was aiming him at a little jump. He came back the second time and jumped it like it was three feet high though. I just did it once, we'll see how he is tomorrow. And if he's still sound, we'll do a couple more on Friday. 

And that's the rundown for the past week/weekend. Anyone else ever seen an abscess blow without the horse having been very lame before hand? It's a first for me! But this is Al. So things are always a little different. Ha! 

Truthful Tuesday

 

Today's confession? It's about food. So Sunday, I was sleepy by the end of the day. I had a long weekend of the usual stuff (barn chores, riding) but also braiding. I didn't have a ton of horses to braid, but enough that my sleep was pretty disrupted. And so I was very much looking forward to ordering some food for delivery on Sunday night. It's important to note, that I live in the country, and delivery isn't as readily available as it is in most places. We have a local service similar to Doordash that started during the Pandemic, but it's really expensive and takes at least an hour to come when you order. But whatever. I was tired, and really looking forward to a good meal. I ordered a couple of specials from a local restaurant: Lobster Risotto and a mud cake for dessert. I was hanging around, STARVING, and just thinking about my delicious meal that was on the way. I was really looking forward to it. 

I had been daydreaming for a good thirty minutes waiting for me food when the restaurant called and told me they were out of both items I ordered. So I very sadly just asked for a refund because in my state of delirium from hunger and disappointment I couldn't remember what else they had on their menu. And I didn't really want to spend that much money on something that wasn't lobster if we're being honest. 

So then what? It's 7:40. I'm in no state to go out to pick something up because I had been in the barn all day and smelled like it. Also looked like it. I had nothing to eat in the house really. I mean snacks, I had those. But nothing I could really make a meal with other than canned soup. Which was an option, but really not what I was looking for. 

But then! I had an epiphany. Recently Amazon Prime announced a partnership with Grub Hub, which I wasn't all that interested in because Grub Hub didn't deliver to my area. But I thought, let me just see what they have to offer because if nothing else it might help me figure out what I wanted to eat. And you guys. My sad, sad little evening turned around so hard! With this new Amazon partnership, Grub Hub has expanded their delivery area. TO MY HOUSE! So you know what I got? TACO BELL! 

Listen. I know Taco Bell is disgusting. But I LOVE it. And I never ever get it because the closest one is 35 minutes away and that's silly to drive for fast food. The last time I got it (I'm pretty sure)was the weekend I put Jampy down because that depression warranted the drive. (It really did help me in my difficult time. At least for the moment.) So this development is pretty exciting. I now have easy access to Taco Bell anytime I want! I'm not sure I can properly express how this makes me feel. I'm already planning to order it again next Sunday. 

So those are my confessions: First that my mood can be altered very quickly in either direction by food, second, that I LOVE Taco Bell, and lastly, that I am already planning my next Taco Bell order. 

Do you have any deep dark secrets like my love for Taco Bell? Is there a disgusting fast food that makes you really happy? Do spill in the comments, I'm dying to know!

Thursday's Threads: Summertime Edition

 

Outfit Day!!! We are making sure to fully embrace all things summer before fall gets here (and I can tell, it's coming...). So Eros and I chose a watermelon theme for this week. Here's what we wore:

I love that he'll humor me with a snuggle even when wearing a ridiculous outfit. That's the mark of a solid amateur horse! Let's look closer at his outfit today.

I was feeling like he had lost some weight since the spring... but I dunno looking at this photo. That's quite the belly on him! My saddle looks awfully small up there.

Bridle: Joseph Sterling
Brow band: Home made by me
Bonnet: Woof Wear embellished with a patch from Amazon

I felt like this brow band deserved a closeup. I know, it's ridiculous. But I love it! 

Saddle: Butet
Half Pad: Ippico
Saddle Pad: Smartpak embellished by me

It's a little hard to see, but the ribbon on the pad is watermelon printed. Rind on the bottom, then the fruit part complete with seeds!

Boots: Premier Equine embellished by me

I wanted to find ribbon that was the same as the pad's, but I couldn't find it in the right width for the boots. So I went with this fabric instead. It's cute, even if the colors are a little different. That's why I chose pink for the brow band base, figured it would pull it all together. 

Here's what I wore today:

Nothing says summer like watermelon! And bright green pants. Evidently.

Helmet: Samshield

I chose this helmet today because the crystals felt kind of seed like to me. I think it works.

Top: Promesa

I was actually planning to just wear a pink shirt, but then I found that I had this one, and it's obviously the only real choice. It's tie dye, it's watermelon, it has a little cutout. What more could you want?

Belt: C4

This belt is almost the exact same as the ribbon on my saddle pad. Love a good matchy matchy moment.

Breeches: Equiline

I always whine a little when I share my Equilines with you because they frustrate me. I think these are maybe a little too small based on the stress on that pocket zipper... But the pairs I have that are the size up are a little too loose. So I guess I'm in between. Regardless of sizing, I love the color of these pants. They're so fun!

Boots and Half Chaps: HKM

Admittedly, I should have given these a cleaning before taking this photo... But I didn't. Keepin' it real over here. I got these toward the end of winter when my black boots died, and I really like them. I'm not sure they'll live that long, they're pretty thin, but they're going strong so far!

I forgot to take a photo of my socks, and I've already changed, but I wore some Dreamers and Schemers socks that I got in a special pack they did a few years back. I was able to find a photo of them on the internet, so here's what they look like:

Super cute, and the green was a pretty close match to my breeches. So fun!

And that's it for today! What do you think of the home made brow band? Ridiculous? Would you let your horse wear one for something silly?