Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit Day!!! On my birthday! I'm ashamed to admit that I didn't plan a birthday themed outfit, but I will try to remember for next year. Instead, we went with our old standby farm colors today. Al is our model, and here's what he's wearing this week:

I swear, in real life his weight looks pretty good, but in photos he's looking quite thick... No judegement though. I look thick in both scenarios. Haha!

Bridle: Pinnacle
Browband: Boy O'Boy Bridleworks
Hat: Back on Track

He's awfully cute. Especially with his thinking cap on!

Saddle: Butet
Saddle Pad: Ogilvy

Half Pad: Mattes

I must confess that I am very overdue for a good saddle cleaning. Sorry saddle.

He didn't wear boots for this ride, so nothing to share there!

Here's what I had on:

Keeping it casual over here this week! This oufit feels a little 90's era to me, what do you think?

Helmet: One K Avance CCS MIPS

You know I keep it real over here based on the extreme dust level on that brim...

Sweater: Sonoma

I picked this up sometime last year from Kohl's on a clearance rack. It's the perfect weight for this time of year when the temps go up and down every 20 minutes.

Belt: The Sugar Lady

Rio's been on my mind since his birthday just passed last week. So I wore his belt today. It's absolutely one of my most favorite things. 

Breeches: RJ Classics

Snagged these over the winter at a (very chilly) tent sale. My brown TS have given up so it was perfect timing!

Boots: TuffRider Regal, embellished by me

I don't wear these a ton because I'm so worried about messing up the glitter paint. But then I had the realization that I can always re do them. So I'm using more frequently. They're so fun!

And that's it for today! Not a wild outfit, but a nice one all the same. With just enough bling to keep it fun!

What should I wear next week? Or more importantly, what should the horses wear??

What's Up Wednesday

 

The only trouble with my new take the days as they come attitude is that it doesn't make for very exciting blog discussion. For the most part, things are the same around here. It's getting colder, but we're still plugging away, having our rides, doing our thing! It was actually pretty warm over the weekend which was so nice! I definitely made sure to appreciate it. 

Something spooked Al while he was eating his hay in 
turnout on Sunday. So then he just stood here staring at 
whatever it was for the remainder of his outside time. 

Al has had an interesting week. We talked last week about the hole I thought I'd found in his training. But turns out, it's not a hole. It was just one of Al's bad days. Man this horse is frustrating to try and figure out. I opted to lunge him a second day last week because we've been having the craziest winds, and I do not have a death wish. And this time, he had no issue staying out on the circle. Which is great! But like, why was that so impossible the other day? I'm starting to wonder if horses can have split personalities, because honestly, you never which Al is coming to the ring on a given day. 

Riding hasn't been magical with him at all. He's very concerned about the neighbor's side of the ring, to the point that I cannot keep his attention when we're on that side of the ring. I've tried adding a circle each time he wants to be distracted. I've tried counter bend. I've tried haunches in. Haunches out. Shoulder in. But turns out, we can't actually do shoulder in when he's not paying attention. Doesn't happen. None of it helps to keep him with me. But despite this challenge, I do think we have made some progress in one area, and that's coming a little more forward. I won't say we've achieved actual forward. I'm not a liar! Lol! But it's improved. And I think I've discovered a voice command that he knows. I was trying to get him to walk forward on the lunge line. He kind of knows that BIG means more, like I'll ask him for BIG trot when I want an extension, and I do think he gets that. But I was throwing all kinds of words at him to see if anything got him really marching along. So I said what I wanted "March! Guys, I shit you not, that horse strutted off with the most delightful working walk I've ever seen from him. I figured it was a one off, but he did it every time I said March!  Who knew. I'll just tuck that right in my tool box thank you! 

I bought this jogging sheet ages ago and never used it.
But I busted it out for Al's lunge yesterday and I think 
he was very glad to have it! It was only 38 degrees
with wind gusts up to 30 mph. Glad I had that! (And it's
exactly these types of circumstances that perpetuates my 
borderline hoarding.)

Today was warmer, mid 40's and significantly less wind, so I womaned up and rode my horse. He was medium. Still a disaster about the one side of the ring. But I made him walk up the quarter line over there several times. He hated it. Tried to stop and turn away repeatedly. Then he started with his nervous tick. When he's very angsty and trying to get out of doing hard things, he gets itchy. He'll bite at his shoulder sometimes, or if he's feeling very dramatic he'll stop dead to rub his face on his leg. I've nearly toppled right off before when it's happened at the canter... Horse has no manners some days. But he did do the hard thing I wanted several times. Not without complaint, but he did it. And so I told him he was wonderful. Then we went and worked for real on the easy part of the ring. We did a bunch of spiraling in and out on the circle. A few canter transitions. I really liked that he was jumping right in to the canter. He'd kind of peter off some after the first few strides, so forward is still very much a work in progress. But even if it's just a couple strides of forward right now, that's more than I was getting before. So I'm taking the small win. Hopefully some day all these little wins will actually accumulate to something more. Hopefully.

Winter attire

Shiny is feeling herself finally with this temperature drop! I'm so relieved because she's just been so quiet for so long, I really was a little concerned. But sassy Shiny has made an appearance! She's been having a good old time in turnout, doing some zoomies and some bucks. She even kind of spooked both yesterday and today in our rides! I mean, tiny ones. We are talking about Shiny after all. Yesterday in the crazy wind she kept doing the wild horse head shake. You know the one I mean. It would be terrifying on another horse, but on her I just giggled. Which probably annoyed her. She's been great though. Still warms up at the western jog, but once we get past that she's been perfecr. Her step is opening back up and she's putting forth some actual effort lately, which is so fun! I jumped her around a little bit today and it was just so easy. I have everything really tiny in the ring. I think the biggest fence is 2'. But she's just going around so nicely. I put my leg on and she moved forward off it. Miracle! Love this pony.

I feel like quarter sheets tend to accentuate Eros' belly

E's still the same. Some days are better than others, but nothing is bad. I thought I might have solved the nqr-ness, but alas, it still comes and goes. I think I'm going to talk to my vet about doing a second round of doxy for him. His chronic number was lower than before we treated, but it's still in the unequivocal range. I feel like maybe now that it's cold, he's still dealing with it? I dunno. Just a hypothesis. But that's not what I thought the problem was briefly. He has this... thing on his elbow on the right side. Like on the very top of his leg in front of the girth. Sort of where you'd see a shoe boil, but it's not that. He's had it forever. 

The thing.

It resembles a callous, and I think it's probably from when he lays down. I've shown it to the vet a few times because it will grow once in awhile, and then I'll put some Animax steroid ointment on it, and it will go back to its usual size. Well I noticed it had spread again, and thought it was possible he was hitting it on the girth when he's working. So Saturday I smeared it with bag balm. I figured that might soften it up, so if that's what was bugging him, maybe getting it softer would feel better. Plus, bag balm is so sticky it would stick to the girth so I could confirm my hypothesis. And he did feel much better that ride, so I thought I was on to something. But alas, when I dismounted there was no bag balm on the girth. Which was a little disappointing, but also good because I didn't want to have to go buy another girth. I though maybe though the bag balm helped, so I continued with that this week, but he's been back to a little nqr this week. (I've also been putting the Animax on the callous thing, and it's shrinking back up again. Either way, it wasn't the culprit.) Saturday, the day he felt better was really warm I think it may have hit 70 even. So my current hypothesis as I mentioned earlier is Lyme. I dunno. Might be time for a vet visit and just really figure out what we're dealing with. 

Anyway, that's where we're at with the horses! I did end up taking Sunday off from riding, and headed up to Equine Affair right after I finished chores. There's definitely still a lot less vendors than they used to have, but I think it's building back up. The Covid years really hurt Equine Affair. I've heard chatter too that none of the European vendors came because they're avoiding our country... So yeah, I don't blame them! I had hoped to chat with the company I got my trailer from because I want to have a few things done on mine, but they weren't there. Guess I'll have to call them. Blech. I hate the phone. 

I struck out completely on the hoof picks I wanted. There weren't very many full tack store type vendors, so only handful even had grooming items. I was hoping to find some winter breeches that aren't stupid expensive. Specifically I wanted to see and touch the ROMFH Willow. But alas. Most winter pants I came across were tights. I'm not a tights girl. And the rest were stupid expensive. I'm just not spending $250 or more on breeches. Nope. I'm also not that girl. 

So what DID I get? The Back on Track Haze coolers I wanted! I've been low key stalking them online for awhile, but like I mentioned last week I really wanted to touch them before committing. They're never on sale, and at $199 a piece... I wanted to make sure I liked how they felt. Well, they felt very nice. The outside is polyester, but more like the type of fabric you'd feel on a stable sheet, definitely not fleece. So that bodes well for minimal static. And it's pretty soft, not stiff like I was concerned it might be. The best part? They were 20% off! I had to have them shipped as they didn't have them in stock at the booth, but shipping was free. They should be here tomorrow, so I'll try and remember to grab some photos next week to share. I'm excited for them. I also snagged an Essex Classics sweater that was on sale for $40 (and is a wool blend, yay warmth!) and an unexpected find:

A rhinestone front shield for my One K. Now, I have seen the black rhinestone shield for years. It's all over. But I have never seen a green one! So I had to buy it. How could I not? No brainer. Thankfully it's the same green as the pieces I already have, so everything matches. 

And then I also got a butterfinger caramel apple for the drive home (they cut it up for you for easy snacking). All in all, yes I spent a bunch of money on the coolers, but otherwise I was pretty well behaved! 

Otherwise, I've been hanging out at the farm, doing farm stuff. And staring at the sky because mother nature gave us this last night:

She might be back for more tonight. I'm going to check it out when I do night check. Never thought I'd see the northern lights in person, and now I have THREE times. And from my own house! The world might be imploding around us, but at least we get to see some beauty. 

Thursday's Threads: Shark Week edition

Made it to Thursday! Phew. What. A. Week. It's my fake Friday, and I'm really grateful for that! Got some interesting info at work this week, and, well. I don't like it. So that's a little stressful. But I am heading to WI this weekend with family for a memorial service (but like, the celebratory kind not so much the depressing kind) and I'm looking forward to getting away for a few days. But that's not why you're here today! You're here for outfits! And outfits I have.
I'm starting with today's work outfit since it's Shark Week themed (riding outfit was not, maybe something to work on for next year).

Yep, that's right, I didn't wear my usual dress. And maybe I got new shark shoes.... Though truthfully the old ones would have matched better. Whatever.

Top: Back On Track

I picked up a couple of these plain black tees from Back On Track during one of the sales. You all know I drank the BOT kool aid so obviously I love these shirts!

Skirt: Modcloth

I loved this shark skirt so much I broke my rule of only having the one shark outfit for shark week. But I mean it's Shark WEEK not shark day, so it's ok. Plus the skirt has pockets!

Shoes: Katy Perry

They have googly eyes and tails. What could be better?

Accessories!
Bag: Sleepyville Critters

It's epic. Just look at it!

Necklace: Kate Spade

I wasn't going to do it. But then it was on sale for $20 and I was like well... Totally worth it.

Arm Party!
Lefty:

Lefty is donning this shark fin bracelet from Kate Spade. It's awesome. I assure you.

Righty:

Righty is wearing the rubber band with my Fitbit and these cute rope bracelets with shark clasps. They came from ebay for like 1.99 each. That's a bargain!

And that's it for Shark Week! I do have a riding outfit to share too, but kind of a boring one. It was from Tuesday.

I'm having a little trouble getting blogger and google photos to talk to each other, so sorry this is a crap photo.... I wish they would stop making changes that suck.

Helmet: One K

I went with the navy snakeskin for Tuesday's ride.

Top: Zulily

Friends is one of my most favorite shows, and so I had to have this Central Perk tee when I saw it on Zulily. Try to ignore that it's all wet. I took photos after washing Pammon.

Belt: Mane Jane

I was mixing my exotic skins again... Navy crocodile strap today!

Breeches: Ariat

These are one of my favorite pairs. I wish they were cheaper, I'd get more color ways.

Boots: DeNiro

It's hard to tell from this shot, the sun was in a weird place, but these are my navy De Niro's. I really love these boots. They're just so comfortable!

And that's it for today! Any favorites?

What's Up Wednesday

It was another relatively quiet week here on the home front. The boys are shedding like crazy (Eros too) so I'm pretty much covered in hair all the time. That's ok by me though because it means spring is coming! Come on spring!
We left off last week in the bitter cold, but fortunately, that only lasted a few days.

The barn was actually warmer than 37, but this sits next to the window.

Thursday was the worst day, Friday wasn't much better, but by Saturday it was warming up to at least above freezing. Sunday was in the low forties and it felt like a beautiful spring day. Funny how that happens after it was negative degrees out. And then yesterday was 60 degrees! It's pretty nuts really. I enjoyed it as best I could considering I have a desk job. Seriously, when it's that nice in February it should be a mandatory vacation day. Today it's getting more seasonable with temps in the lower 40's. Apparently it might snow next week. Boo.
But you're not really here to talk about the weather. Which is actually too bad because that was the most exciting thing that happened this week.
Eros is coming along. He still starts off pretty unsound, but he feels like he works out of it some now. The new plan is to try and figure out what the mystery ailment that he's had along is and see if we can try to fix it. The vet wants me to keep working him lightly (walk and trot) for now, and next time he's scheduled to come out, we'll get Eros on that list too. It would be super if we could get him better than ever. But I'll settle for back where we started if need be.
When it was super cold, we took the opportunity to try out our Back on Track quarter sheet options. Friday it was 11 degrees out, so I opted for the one with more coverage:

It looked ridiculous with his low hanging belly though... Eros and I both need to get back to some real work. Anyway, I liked it well enough, though to be perfectly honest, I don't really love the quarter sheets that velcro over top of the withers. When I use that type on Jamp, he spooks if I accidentally make noise with velcro while I'm riding. Eros was a little aware of that too. Which also suggests I need to carry my hands more... but that's an issue for a different day! I like the old fashioned ones that you'd use under your saddle like a saddle pad. They are tough to come by these days. I have a custom one that I keep packed away for shows (like flatting at indoors in the middle of the night...) but I'm thinking I should just use it. It's not like I show in the winter anymore, and the likelihood of my ever going to indoors again is basically zero. Anyway, I digress...
I also have the Back On Track loin cover. I used it for the first time on Saturday, and I think I might just love it.

It sits behind the saddle, and attaches to the billets.There's no extra bulk, and it doesn't block my leg at all. Also, there's nothing pulling on the withers, nor do my hands have anything to spook my horses with. I'm not sure if I like it better than the old school under the saddle type, but I do like it better than the first one I tried. Maybe not when it's 10 degrees though. More coverage is better for that, even if it's a little spooky. It does however accentuate Eros' pregnant looking belly. Poor dude. Quarter sheets are not flattering. They're kind of like the crop tops of equine fashion.
The barn owner and a few horses headed south to Florida on Monday for I think three weeks. I frequently hear whining about how many horses the staff has to ride, so with two of the staff gone to Florida, I thought I'd offer up my availability. Especially since I haven't had a REAL ride in quite awhile. But my offer was kind of glossed over, so I don't think that's happening. I'm not sure if I'm actually a really shitty rider, or if they're just SUPER weird about letting people ride horses that aren't theirs at this place. Oh well. Hopefully spring comes early, and maybe one of the elderly dudes at home can go back under saddle. We'll see how that plays out.
I was thisclose to taking Rio out for a lunge on Sunday, but the footing in the ring was really wet, and  I did promise him I wouldn't actually try and make him work until springtime. So I didn't do it. Instead we did some mega groomies and called it a day. He and Jampy are looking slightly less feral now with less winter coat. Can't wait till bath time! They need it.
On the pug front, I took Pia to the vet Saturday morning because she has something growing in her eyelid. It's not bothering her in the least, but it was worrying me, and it looks like it SHOULD be uncomfortable. The vet said those types of growths are normally nothing to worry about. P's due for a dental anyway, so I think we'll have it taken off when she goes in for her teeth.
I got the pugs a new Eeyore bed recently, and P sleeping on it is the cutest thing ever.

though that monkey is a little creepy, isn't it?

The pugs were awfully cute this weekend, between sleeping and staring at me hoping for food:

In other news, I just finished binge watching Dawson's Creek. I never really got into it back when it was actually on tv, but decided to give it a shot now. Did any of you watch it? How about the last two episodes? SO SAD! I didn't see that coming!
Anyway, that's it from here! How was your week/weekend? Do anything fun and exciting?

Truthful Tuesday: Black Friday Edition

I'm almost embarrassed to write this post. Almost. But like... you guys get me, so I think it will be ok. Let me preface this by saying I had zero plans to get more boots. I haven't even broken in the ones I have. And let's be real, I have almost all the colors covered at this point. But...
There's always a but.
I'M A SUCKER FOR A DEAL OK?! And if that deal is limited? It's too hard to pass up. I mean, if it's meant to be, you can't ignore fate, right? Right.
So I'll get to the point. I've been drooling at the Celeris boots for awhile. I tried to get some leftover boots from them once but the only pair in my size was a dressage boot with a side zipper, so no luck. Well. They were offering 20% off a custom pair to the first twenty people to respond at a certain time on Black Friday. So I figured I'd give it a shot. I was already late when I saw the post (it was an hour and half after it was posted) so I figured I wouldn't get there in time. Well. I did. I haven't placed my official order yet, just the deposit to hold my spot for the discount.
I bet you want to know what I'm planning though, huh? I've  been wanting a black boot with rose gold accents to match my fancy new One K helmet (and maybe the horses have some rose gold stuff also... Too bad Eros will look terrible in that shade.) So that's going to be my color scheme. Fairly simple in the color department, but I think they'll be really pretty.
I'm going to mix and match a few things. I want a field boot (laces), so this model:

Picture it black though...

I don't want that top on it, I want this one:

Everything here that's gray, will be black, and that black part will be metallic rose gold.
And then for fun, I want to change the toe to this one:

No leopard obviously. The leopard will all be black, and the brown barn would be the rose gold.
And then I'm hoping to add rose gold piping around the laces and heel details. I'm also going to ask for an elastic panel in the back. I know the whole point of custom boots is to not need the elastic, but with the way my legs swell, I much prefer having a little give.

So yeah. Boots. I wish that was it... but I also have another pair in the works with Fama. Because I had a brain storm, and they were having THIRTY PERCENT off! So... you know. And they will literally do anything you can think of if they're able. So here's what's happening there (tentatively, awaiting approval from the boot maker if it's possible.
It's going to be a field boot, much like these:

But, the boots will be green, like these:

I'm not doing that fancy top like this one has... Instead, the boot will be all one color up top. And I'm having my logo cut out of it.

It has to be simplified some for it to work, the horse shoe and ribbon will need to be solid instead.
Behind the cut out will be (hopefully, this is what we're waiting on approval for) this shiny gold leather:

So it will look like this boot top, but instead of the horse, my logo:

And then I'm hoping to do the toe cap and heel in the same gold leather. Or maybe just do something similar to the Celeris foot with the gold. That might be better, not sure how well that gold will hold up on large surface areas.
Of course, it would be really selfish to only get myself presents on Black Friday. The bay boys really have everything they could ever need, so they didn't really benefit too much. Rio got some new wraps and flavored sugar. Jamp got a pair of Back on Track hock boots. I also got a set of quick wraps they can share (in GREEN!).
Eros made out the best since he has less stuff. He went on a Back on Track shopping spree... Tack of the Day was giving away a pair of quick wraps if you got a mesh sheet, so I got him one of those in navy (to match his barn's colors). Also grabbed another pair of quick wraps for him, so we can do all four legs. Not even sure I'll like quick wraps... But I love how the BOT stuff makes me feel when I use it, so I figure they're worth trying. Grabbed him a navy neck cover also.
Then I was perusing the interwebs for some things for my blogger secret santa gift and found this browband for $35 that would look fab on Eros:

He also got a wool color from PS of Sweden in navy and a saddle pad. Seriously, that horse is spoiled. Other random stuff was a pair of George Morris breeches in navy from Riding Warehouse ($59!), some bell boots for Eros (his went missing already), and I got an Ariat sweater from RW also.
Needless to say, I went a little nuts, and selfishly, most of the expensive stuff was for ME. Oops. Well, me and Eros really. He did quite well this year.
So what about you? Snag anything exciting in all the sales? Have anything fun on your gift list that you're  hoping for? On a scale of 1 to 10 (1 being totally amazing & fun, not ridiculous at all, 10 being out of control, there should be a rehab program for people like me), how ridiculous do you think I am with the boots?
And lastly, (but most fun) if you could design a pair of boots all on your own, what would they look like? Let me know here, or get creative and write your own blog post about your dream boots!