Thursday's Threads

Outfit Day! It's GORGEOUS out there today, albeit a little chilly. But after the lifetime of rain we just had, I'm just happy to see the sun. Today's outfit is flowery just like the weather:

Fact: Giant florals do nothing to hide giant thighs. Also fact: I don't mind cause the florals are pretty awesome.

Sweater: Cabi

A friend of mine from high school sells Cabi clothes through home parties. It's kind of like wearable pampered chef. The clothes are pretty pricey, but they have a guarantee on them, and everything really fits great. I got this sweater when my sister-in-law hosted a Cabi party a few months ago. I've been waiting for the appropriate weather/season to finally wear it!

Jacket: BNCI

It's still pretty chilly out (hopefully warmer this afternoon) so I threw my awesome patent leather jacket on over top of the sweater. I wasn't sure if I'd regret buying this jacket, but honestly NO REGRETS HERE! None. I love it!

Pants: Seven

I had rotated this photo and cropped it, but blogger laughs at my photo edits these days. Thanks blogger. Anyway, these pants are amazeballs. Yeah, I said it. AMAZEBALLS! I actually got them and the jacket together at Nordstrom Rack during one of my Florida trips. The pants were a little more than I generally like to spend, but I really love them. And they fit perfectly, so that's definitely worth something.

Belt: Swanky Saddle

I had to be at least a little horsey today, right? Plus the love theme works nicely with roses.

Shoes: Sperry

Yep, flipped this photo around too... So much for that. I recently found a hole in my Sperry's wardrobe, and that missing item was a nice blush colored boat shoe. Thankfully ebay took care of my needs very quickly. I love the ribbon laces on these rather than the traditional leather ones.

Arm Party!
Lefty:

Lefty is wearing a pretty iridescent pale pink/gold cuff along with the apple watch. I "made" that cuff awhile back. And by made, I mean I bought the cuff with the channel already in it and glued in this piece of fabric. Nice work self.

Righty:

Righty is sporting a pretty chain bracelet with pastel tassels from Ettika along with two bead bracelets that I strung myself. How cute is that little turtle on the middle one?

And now that you've seen what I wore to work today, let's get to what you really want to see... Last night's riding outfit!

Yeah, less warm yesterday obviously. But we got to see the sun, so that was nice!

Top: Jansport

I picked this athletic shirt up at the book store during my reunion. It was part of the shopping spree mentioned yesterday. Our mascot is the thoroughbred (because of course it is!) and I love how they printed that across the back.

Belt: Sandy Duftler

I always seem to pair this belt with these breeches, but they don't actually match each other. #amateurproblems

Breeches: Horze Crescendo

I was standing in some terrible lighting when I snapped this.., the photo above for the belt is a more accurate depiction of their color. I really like these breeches and probably should have grabbed them in navy too. Maybe I will, I think they're on closeout everywhere.

Boots: TuffRider Regals

I'm STILL waiting for my La Mundials to get back from being stretched. I hope sometime this decade they arrive! It was still fairly muddy from all the rain though, so I opted for my old beat up boots anyway.

Helmet: Charles Owen AYR8

I think the green one will always be my favorite.

That's what I'm wearing today! What do you have on? How's the weather where you are? Any favorites from today?

What's Up Wednesday

Well. This was the longest Wednesday on record. I had one of THOSE DAYS at work but at least I got to end it by riding all three of the free loaders. ALL OF THEM! Yay! But let's not get ahead of ourselves. It was a crazy fun week/weekend and I'm excited to bore you with all the details.
I took Thursday and Friday off last week to head up to my Alma Mater for alumni weekend. I'm super old, so this was my 15th reunion. It's not a big one, as evidenced by my class's poor attendance:

We were heckled for our lack of classmates!

I realized that since I took the whole day off, but there really weren't any activities up at school until the evening, I had time to go ride Badger! Finally! He's off to HITS this week and I'm away potentially the two weekends after that, so I was excited to get a ride in and see this face!

Trainer had a little incident involving a table and her toe so she asked if I wanted to ride a second one. Um, no? Lol. Of COURSE! Oh gee, if I must ride your perfectly trained unicorn, I SUPPOSE I can fit it in. So I also got to ride Cara and hop over a few crossrails. She's still perfect in case you were wondering.
I hadn't planned to ride the boys at home, but they got some snuggles before I left for the weekend. Is it just me, or is leaving the tall kids behind for a few days one of the hardest things in the world? Especially Rio. Ugh. But fear not, they were in good hands and had a great vacation weekend too.
After dropping the short kids with their grandma, I was en route to Saratoga! Finally! At around 3. So much for getting up there early!

But it was early enough to get checked in and impress the student volunteers by knowing the word swag. Once checked in, I texted some friends to figure out the evening and headed to my other friend's house to get settled and have some delicious home cooked (not by me) dinner. And THEN (are you sitting down) at 9PM I went OUT! Out at 9! Not home at nine. Nope, I left to go out for the evening at 9 pm. I'm so young and hip.
We never did find any classmates that night, but we did visit a couple of divey bars we loved in college: Desperate Annie's (known simply as DA's) and the Tin and Lint (which may or may not be where John McClean wrote American Pie).  Happy to report they haven't changed a bit. And then it was like midnight and I had to go to bed before I turned into a pumpkin.
Friday morning I had planned to go to free yoga, but it was cold in my room at 7 when I would have had to get up, so I opted out. Instead I headed over to campus for breakfast around 8:30 and spent all my money at the book store on new Skidmore clothes. Mostly because I'm living firmly in the past. But also because I heart Skidmore. And buying stuff. There wasn't a ton going on that I was interested in Friday, so friends and I headed out for Skidmore themed mani/pedis.

Gold glitter on the tips is hard to capture...

And you know what I got to do after that?! I got to ride my friend's most perfect horse. And you know what I didn't do? Get any media from pony day. None. Not even a picture of his pretty face. I guess you'll just have to take my word for it. I got to flat him and hop over some raised cavalletti. He was perfect and I wish I could have hidden him in my suitcase.
My next stop is probably the most exciting. I got to visit the future show grounds of the Saratoga Classic Horse Show! It was supposed to move this year, but with winter lasting a bit too long, they weren't able to get the site work done in time.

I'm really excited to see how it all comes together. There will be 8 rings eventually (seven to get started) 90 something permanent stalls, and pads for I think 4 tents. Lots of paddocks in two sizes, lunging area, camper area, a field to ride in, etc. I think it's going to be really nice. They're doing GGT footing in all the rings. Seriously, I can't wait. I really hope I have a horse to take next year for the grand opening.
I know it sounds like a really full day, but after having a quick dinner at the house, I went out (two nights in a row!) for a cocktail event for my class. There were actually people there too! But it was on a rooftop and about 50 degrees so we disbanded fairly quickly in favor of an indoor venue. And some snacks. I stayed out until 12:30, yet managed to not turn into a pumpkin.

obligatory dough boy

Saturday was chock full of reunion events. I got out of bed on time for yoga. Unfortunately, pretty much no one else did. One lady showed up a few minutes late, and it was just the two of us. But hey, free private yoga class! No complaints here. Following yoga, I skipped out on the alumni parade, got a giant coffee (they serve Starbucks on campus now, these kids are spoiled), and headed back to the house to get cleaned up for the all class picnic and photos. The food was great, and it was nice to see more people. I have some friends from the class of '97 and also the class of '92 so it was a great time to find them.
Skidmore does mini classes during Alumni weekend and most of them sounded pretty uninteresting to me. Except for the one that Sheldon Solomon was giving. Professor Solomon is pretty much a celebrity within the Skidmore Community. He's pretty eccentric wearing shorts year round (in upstate NY!) and sporting long hair. But he's crazy smart, and a really dynamic speaker.

There he is drinking water. I would not do well as a papparzzi

He was on sabbatical for much of my time at Skidmore unfortunately, so I only was able to get one class with him. When I saw he was giving a lecture this weekend, I was excited to attend. Most of my friends came along too. And pretty much everyone else. We had to relocate to a lecture hall from a class room so we could all fit. He spoke about how impending death affects your life and decisions. It was not at all morbid like it may sound and really was interesting, especially when he spoke about how people vote after being subliminally reminded of their impending death. There's an article here on his thoughts on the topic.
The lecture was only an hour, but we all wanted more! We'll have to come back in five years and hope he's still there. There was some free time between then and our class dinner, so I met up with my '92 friend for some coffee before heading home to do a little work and get cleaned up. The rest of the night was dinner, dancing, fireworks, and ANOTHER trip downtown for drinks and more dough boys.

I stayed out until 1 am. THREE nights in a row of bar hopping! I miss college. But also my liver and circadian rhythm do not. You guys. I had the best night in a long while, despite there being no ponies involved.
I had zero plans for Sunday morning. I got up around 7:30 and leisurely got packed. I was trying to remember if there was anything else I wanted to see or do (or eat) while I was in Saratoga, but I came up empty and decided to head home. If I timed it right, I could ride before the rain started. I did not time it right. But I rode anyway. In the rain. Romey was not pleased, but Rio didn't mind too much. I was just going to lunge Jampy since doc hadn't given me the green light to ride. Unfortunately, by the time I got to him it was pouring buckets, so we opted out.
I sent a nose pic to Doc on Tuesday and got the go ahead to get back on Jampy. But alas, more downpours and too many puddles. They all had Tuesday off. I did finally ride him tonight. He's actually feeling SO MUCH better than he has been. I hadn't really gotten to ride him since his hock injections due to the epm popping up. I really think they made a difference, or maybe it was the epm treatment. Who knows? Who cares as long as he's feeling better!
And that my friends, is what's up this Wednesday. I'm sorry there weren't many ponies today, but I had to recount my weekend for posterity. If you're still reading this, you get a gold star!
What's up with you?

Truthful Tuesday: Pet Peeves Edition

I have so many stupid little things that drive me crazy, mostly relating to the barn. I frequently have to remind myself to rein in the crazy or I would for sure lose my barn helpers. FOR SURE.
First up: Hoses

 My wash stall hose has a nozzle on it. Thus, it's easy to forget to actually turn off the water. I guess anyway. I don't forget such things. Problem is, if you leave the water on with the nozzle closed, eventually the pressure builds and something is gonna leak. My helpers are generally 9 out of 10 for turning off the water. That's pretty decent! Good helpers. However, the other thing that drives me batty is when they turn off the water, but don't drain the hose. So you've got the nozzle closed but all this water in the hose, so it drips. And drips. And drips. Helpers are not so good on this front.

 I have hoses at the stalls too. Short ones with no nozzles. So I would think draining those might be common sense. But alas. I'm the only one who let's the hose run dry when I water the horses. And then, more dripping. UGH! I try not to harp on people about it because in the grand scheme of things, these are not big issues. At least they're using the water right?

Next up: Floor

I'm certifiable when it comes to the cleanliness of my barn floor. Not so much my house. I'd eat off the barn floor before my kitchen floor probably... I am however, understanding of the difficulties in cleaning said barn floor. My barn flooring is rubber interlocking pavers. Rubber is tough to keep clean since by nature it's very grippy. The best way to clean my floor, is to use the blower first, then follow up with a good sweep. The good sweep must be done with the appropriate broom. My weekday helper is good about using the blower, but often forgets the follow up sweep. You can kind of get away with that when it's dry out, but when it's been raining for the last 10 million days you really can't. The hoof prints just stick to the floor. Weekend helper is kind of the opposite. She gives a final sweep but often forgoes the blower. Problem here is all the shavings that wind up stuck in the cracks. But alas, I try not to be crazy about it. Instead I silently whine about it while I do the mega floor cleaning at the end of the night. AND DON'T GET ME STARTED ON THE BIRD CRAP THIS TIME OF YEAR! Ugh.

Do you have any ridiculous pet peeves about farm care? I'm not talking about the obvious ones like latching gates and stall doors. I mean the ones that really don't matter that much but for whatever reason drive you bananas.

Thursday's Threads

Outfit Day! Today was a busy day! I took the whole day off to head up to my 15th reunion at Skidmore, but really I wasn't in a hurry to get there since not much was going on today. So instead of rushing out the door, I went to my trainer's to ride Badger and as a bonus I got to ride Cara too! Woohoo! So we'll start today with my riding outfit since that happened first.

It was finally warm enough to ride in something other than a sweatshirt! Woohoo!

Top: US Polo Association

I thought it was safe to wear this light colored top since I'm spoiled and have a groom at Trainer's barn. I thought wrong because when I was helping to bring horses in from the paddocks, Artie wiped his face on me. Bummer.

Belt: unbranded

I found this wide, patent leather belt on ebay awhile back. I love the bit buckle!

Breeches: Ariat

Tack of the Day featured these breeches a few weeks ago at a crazy good price, so I jumped on them asap. I'm glad I did! They're REALLY comfy and I think pretty flattering too. I look much smaller in these than I do in real life!

Socks: Dreamers and Schemers

You've seen these before, but purple unicorns are always worthy of a repeat performance. Always.

I rode in my old comfy tuff rider boots and my green Charles Owen helmet today.

After riding, I brought the Pugs to their grandma's house and ran roughly 10,000 errands before getting clean and putting on outfit number 2.

Kind of monochromatic today, huh? I tried this top with blue jeans but wasn't feeling it, so I went with gray. I think a darker gray might be better, but this worked for today.

Top: Thread and Supply

I actually think you've seen this one before, but maybe not? I think it's a hair smaller than I'd like, but I'm pretending it fits great because I really do like the shirt. Hopefully it will fit better soon.

Belt: C4

I got this belt with a black buckle, but decided to use a silver one today to match my shoes. I like the silver on this one!

Jeans: Lucky Brand

I found these on clearance awhile back, and I can't figure out why. They fit amazingly well, are soooo comfy, and the color is pretty unique. Weird. Whatever though, I'm super happy I found them for so cheap!

Shoes: Sperry

Sorry about this awkward photo. Blogger is playing this fun game of not accepting the edited version of photos. And since it's after 1 am, I'm not going all app crazy for find a work around. Sorry guys. I'm a lazy late night blogger! But back to the shoes.... I love all my Sperry's, but lately this silver pair had been getting a ton of wear time.

Arm party... well today is more like an arm small gathering than a full fledged party...
Lefty:

Left is looking super odd in this non cropped version of this photo. Lefty kept it simple with just the trusty apple watch. Also  featured here is my dresser drawer that doesn't seem to close all the way.

Righty:

Righty is donning a bracelet I made for reunion! Skidmore's colors are green, gold and white. This fun bracelet says Skidmore 02 which is my graduation year. (I know! I'm old!) Here it is not on a wrist:

And that's what I wore today! What about you? Is it still cold where you live? Or blistering hot? Any favorites from today?

What's Up Wednesday!

We left off last week with Jampy having a twisty nose that required monitoring. Well. It was unchanged by Friday, so I texted my vet who I knew was in the area that day. I'm glad he was nearby because I also noticed this:

No that's not a pirate! That's Jamp with a squinty eye. Because of course he has a squinty eye. Doc also agreed with my potential epm concerns. He left us eye ointment and epm meds at a local farm, and I went and got them later that evening. Unfortunately, he also said I shouldn't ride him until we see if he responds to the meds. I'm really running out of horses you guys! Doc said to lunge him though. So obviously you can guess what happened...

Sprung a shoe. It's cool, I really needed to test my shoe pulling skills anyway. (I'm a boss at pulling shoes by the way.) Fortunately, he didn't rip off any foot nor step on any nails, so it was an easy fix when my farrier came Monday.

As of today (Wednesday-ish...) the eye is just about back to normal, but the nose is still twisty. Cross some crossables that we're catching whatever this is in time to stop it.

Romey is hanging in. We're back to some light walk/trot and I think the SI injection did bring him some relief. He's been slightly less angry and though he definitely still has a hitch in his get-a-long, he's more forward and not dragging his feet so much.What does this mean? I have no idea. I really think I need to find him a home where he can be out more and work less. We have a follow up with doc in a couple weeks though, so I will refrain from any decision making until then.

Poor Rio is a little perturbed that everyone else is on the DL because I've been riding him almost every day. He's not sure he signed up for that.... But he feels pretty good! And as a compromise, we ride bitless and spend the majority of our time grazing.

Thankfully, I did some non horsey things this weekend to prevent me from wallowing in my first world horse problems. (No I did not buy pink boots yet!) Saturday night I finally got to meet up with my best friend! I haven't seen her since Thanksgiving so we were long over due. We stuffed our faces with Mexican food and enormous margaritas prior to an intense round of putt putt. So fun!

Probably the highlight of the weekend though, was the opening of the Snack Shack for the season! Got my first lobster roll of the year:

It was even better than I remembered. Now if only the weather would realize what season it is, life would be grand! Speaking of weather, it's been dark and gray and sometimes raining (currently thunder storming) for as long as I can remember. If anyone sees the sun, can you send me a photo? I'm not sure I'd recognize it at this point. The pugs have been rained out of walkies for way too long!

I took the rest of the week off because I'm heading up to Saratoga for my 15th college reunion. Can you believe that? I'm so old. Anyway, before I drive up there, I'm going to ride Badger in the morning. They were originally planning to go to HITS this week, but decided to wait one more week since they had just gotten up north and the weather was so crummy. I'm excited to have a real ride! I'm also really excited to celebrate at Skidmore for the weekend. I see much eating in my future! Hope you're all prepared for photos of my alma mater, food, and old people reliving their college days.

How was your week/weekend? Do anything fun with the extra day off? Anything exciting coming up? Want Romey? Let's chat in the comments!