What's Up Wednesday

 

GUYS! It happened! I had my jumping lesson on Pammon this weekend! He was PERFECT! 

Okay... well maybe not perfectly perfect, we did somehow have a rail over an 18" vertical, and I definitely didn't have a very good canter... (perhaps those two things are related?) But he didn't get wild, he jumped everything calmly, and didn't spook at all. So I think that's pretty perfect. Also, I mean, how much canter do you really want to jump speed bumps? There's not much to say about the lesson. We kept it very simple, all straight lines, and like I mentioned above, the jumps were very small. I think it was the perfect start! AND I have video!

It was a nice weekend weather-wise for riding (indoors anyway, it rained all weekend, but was in the forties so was nice and warm feeling) so I think that helped set us up for success. This week has been cold again, with feels like temps in the single digits yesterday. I forgot to put Pammon down for a free lunge yesterday before I rode so he was pretty wild (35 degree temperature drops will do that). The wind was absolutely howling which is pretty scary for a horse in the indoor by himself. We did a walk trot ride on just half of the ring. 

Yesterday's weather after I finished riding Pammon... Brrr.

He had his play time this morning before our ride, but it was still pretty chilly. I'm confident the cold weather makes his back hurt because he was really funny when I got on today and he hadn't been that way while it was warm out. It's something I started feeling with him when we had that cold snap a few weeks ago. I have him on the list to see the vet about it, but I kind of think it could be more of a chiro issue. Our body worker/chiro vet is still in Florida though, so I'll take whoever I can get to see him. He gets better as he moves around so I'm not freaking about it. He IS 14, so there's bound to be some stuff we need to maintain on him.

You try to take a nice photo...

Things are same old-same old with Eros these days. He's been a very good boy with minimal spookies. He takes awhile to warm up, but one he gets moving he is giving me some AMAZING trot work. Like huge extensions that come all the way up through his withers. It feels incredible. And I can get it both directions. The canter is still full of issues going right, but I think that's one of those things we'll be working on forever. Had an interesting revelation in our lesson last night while cantering some raised cavalletti. We were doing a circle with one raised cavalletti at the 12 and one at 6, so pretty easy. To the left, it was simple. We flowed around that circle with a lovely metronome canter just popping over the rails as the came. I kept my butt in the saddle easily. To the right? Total disaster. We chipped, we landed the wrong lead, I felt like I was thudding on his back. That is, until I got into a lighter seat. Once I took my butt out of the saddle going right, everything flowed smoothly, and it was almost as nice as the left lead had been.  Weird, right? The head trainer here is very insistent that everyone stay sitting all the time, but honestly, I don't think that works on Eros tracking right. His right lead canter is kind of a hot mess, and it's very hard to sit. I think in my trying to keep my butt in the saddle I'm actually just getting in his way and making things worse. Once I gave up that fight, he was able to get his parts working better. I'll have to play around with it some more now that I'm cognizant of it and see what we get. Stay tuned I guess?

She was reaching around for an itch, but I just love this photo of her with her eyes closed.

Shinypants I **THINK** is starting to come back around to being a good pony. While the canter transitions are still a real disaster, she is starting to move off my leg, and we are achieving forward into the contact again. Not consistently. And certainly not for the full ride. But I'll take what I can get. She still will randomly kind of shut down, but like Pammon, that seems to happen more on the cold days than the warmer ones. So I think she also feels some soreness or discomfort on the very cold days. I do think she's tripping a lot less since the next injections, and I also think the thyroid meds have started to work. I have her on the list for the vet as well to see what he thinks about our little bit of progress and if there's anything else we should do to help her along. It might just be time. Or she may still need an adjustment with the meds. But I'm not a vet, so I need some guidance! I do know from my own thyroid problems that it can take along while to get the dosage just right. For me it took over a year. So I'm hopeful we'll get her back to comfortable and happy to work again.

That's about it from here this week. How are things your way? Horses good? Have any riding breakthroughs recently?

Pammon loves the goat at the boarding barn.

Truthful Tuesday

 

Um... I had a few tackcidents recently. I was supposed to be not shopping so I can pay my taxes this month. But I'm on track for that, and so I had a few little slips... Okay, not that little. Worst part? They were the things I'm not supposed to buy any more of! Namely, boots and breeches. Also bad? I bought two of each. Oops.

So first up is breeches. Karen had a pair of RJ Classic breeches in the best teal color on her insta for a great price, so of course I needed those. To be fair, it's a color I don't have. I don't have a photo though, they are currently in the mail. Sorry about that. And the other pair of breeches? Well they are amazing, and also second hand, so I feel like that makes my purchase more acceptable. Plus... how do you NOT buy these:

Why yes, those ARE tie dye Pikeurs! I've seen a purple pair floating around the sales pages on FB, and I REALLY want them, but I've only seen them in a teeny size. So when these popped up, I got really excited. And then less excited because they're a size smaller than I normally wear. The seller said they had plenty of stretch so I took a chance and they actually fit great.

So then the boots... First was a pair of boots from Epplejeck. Problem with them is they arrived and the calf is too small. BUT they don't have an elastic panel in them, so I'm going to see if I can find a boot repair place to add one. They should fit if that gets put in. Anyway, these were on sale for just over $100 so I couldn't resist. Even with the alteration, they will still be pretty inexpensive. So whatever. Here they are:

Fun right?! These were XLW so I thought they'd be wide enough, but I have enormous legs. They didn't have a size chart for the calves so it was a risk. Hopefully I can get them to work. If you have a recommendation on where to send them to get the elastic put in, let me know in the comments please!

The others I feel a little ashamed about... It was a total impulse. Celeris posted on IG that they had some sample boots available. I ALWAYS look when they have samples because they sell them for less than half price and that's just a really good bargain. They never have any that would fit me though because I'm such a weird size. Fairly long calf (for my height), small feet, large WOMANLY calves. Most people don't have those dimensions. But this time? This time there was a pair of boots basically in exactly my measurements. Plus they're the Bia boots (full laces) so I can adjust them if needed.  And they are CRAZY. Like legit, would never, ever have these made. And probably if I wasn't so excited to see my size available in a sample pair I wouldn't have bought them. They're a lot, even for me. But I did it. I ordered them right there at first sight. They're already in the mail to me. Wanna see them? Of course you do. Here you go:

I told you. They are A LOT. But I'm here for it. I might even pair them with the tie dye breeches... I mean, 2021 is really just 2020 the sequel so I think we all could use a little too much in our lives. 

So there it is. I fell off the wagon. Whatever. If you feel the need to judge me, just move along. But if you're here for it too, let me know!

Thursday's Threads: The one where Eros and I do not actually match

 

Happy Outfit day friends! I was feeling the need for spring, so I decided to wear some spring color, but I wasn't so motivated as to dress Eros for spring too. So we don't match today. Here's what Eros is wearing:

Saddle: Butet
Saddle Pad: SmartPak
Half Pad: Kavalkade

Smartpak had these saddle pads on sale around the holidays for super cheap and were offering free monogramming. So I bought them for my stepmom for each of her horses for Chanukah, and well... I treated myself too. They came in only two colorways, these two tone blue ones which are the boarding barn's colors, and hunter with tan binding... MY farm colors! What are the odds? Shiny wears her special pads, so I just got them for the boys. 

Boots: HKM

I love the metallic color on these boots, but they really haven't held up very well. I think they'll be retiring soon.

Bridle: Camelot RCS Gold

Browband: Boy O'Boy Bridleworks

Bit: Sweet Billy's Bits

For a cheaper bridle that I generally don't take care of, it still looks pretty good! Pammon's has lost a keeper, but Eros' and Shiny's are still going strong.

So Eros stuck with the farm colors this week, but I did not. Here's what I wore:

Trying to push the spring time with a little mint green... It's kind of working. But apparently going to be back in the 20's tomorrow. Boo.

Helmet: One K MIPS

I remembered a new helmet pic this week! Eros wanted to be in it too. I decided to the blue since the green clashed pretty terribly with the rest of my outfit. The blue mostly matches my coat anyway.

Sweater: Black Horse Clothing
Base Layer: Black Horse Clothing

Black Horse Clothing had a great sale on winter clothes, so I grabbed these two items. I had been drooling at this sweater for awhile. The base layer has thumb holes too which I find exciting.

Belt: Noble Outfitters

I have this belt in a few colorways. The green and tan one I bought immediately when it came out for obvious reasons. I have a purple one that was a gift with purchase at Dover awhile back. And then I found this one secondhand. They're not the highest quality but I like the colors and I think they're cute.

Breeches: Dover

Yeah. Still the cords. Hopefully something more fun soon!

Socks: Noble Outfitters

They don't really match my outfit at all. But they have Unicorns on them. So that makes them match everything.

Boots: Tredstep

Yeah. Same. Come one better weather so I can wear fun boots again!!!

And that's it for today! Any favorites? What are you wearing to ride in these days?

What's Up Wednesday

 

I was so excited to get to write all about my first jumping lesson with Pammon since his injury! But alas... it didn't exactly happen. The last several rides he's been feeling a bit back sore, and I think it's due to the cold weather. Things are starting to warm up around here though (above freezing yesterday and mid forties expected today!) so hopefully that will resolve with the better weather. That wasn't the only issue though. Oh no...

See all that snow hanging off the side of the roof? SEE IT?! Yeah. That was falling off all weekend long. If you've never experienced snow coming off an indoor, you suck I will tell you, it's terrifying. It clunks and bangs all the way down. On most indoors you just have the sound which is scary enough for a horse. (Especially since it's happening overhead.) But we have all these great windows around the ring. Generally I love having them as it allows for lots of light. BUT when the snow is falling, the horses not only hear it, they also can see it. To add to that chaos, you don't really know when it will decide to move, nor where it will be moving. Someone said it's like Russian Roulette for horses. Accurate.
I'm the type of rider that likes to set herself AND her horse up for success. And snow falling off the roof combined with his stiffness did not feel like a successful set up to me. So I DID have a lesson, but we stuck to flatwork and some raised cavalletti. He really was a good boy, but I am disappointed we didn't get to the fun stuff just yet. Hopefully this week!

You know who got a big gold star with the roof chaos? EROS! I know. I didn't expect it either. I was legit dreading getting on him. He can be so spooky and he spins so fast... I really wasn't wanting to get lawn darted again. I decided to stuff his ears for a little added measure, and you guys! He was perfect. He barely even jumped when the snow clunked. I apologized to him for assuming the worst. He's just such a good guy. 

That time he wore a tiny hat...

Eros is going well. Nothing too crazy to report with him. We've been hopping over lots of poles on the ground and even did some raised cavalletti in our lesson last night. It was tricky, there was a line set up of a raised pole, one on the ground, and then another raised one. They were set about 4 strides apart. We had to canter the first, trot the middle, and canter the last. It was SUPER easy off the left lead which is his easy way. But going right it was a big struggle for us. It's amazing to me how extremely different he is from one side to the other. My goal is to someday even that out... Might take a lifetime.

You know who else has been a better pony? Shinypants! Our canter transitions are still a problem, but we're actually making transitions so I'll take it. She's cantering both directions every day, and I'm even starting to get her back into some contact at the trot. None of it is consistent, but I'm happy with whatever baby steps I can get. I've been keeping the rides short. If she tries (TRIES) everything I ask for, she can be done. I don't have any expectations for holding anything very long, but she has to make an effort. Slowly. as things go better and better (ideally) we will add time to our rides. 

Friday evening had a super weird vibe in the ring. Both Eros and Shiny were really snorty by one side of the ring and I found out later that several other horses were too. Shiny is not a spooky pony, so when she acts like that I know something is up. My only guess is that there was an animal outside or something like that. Everyone was over it by the next day, so whatever it was, it's gone now. Anyway, back to Friday. Shiny was being quite snorty and acting like she needed a free lunge. So I let her have one instead of riding. Between the scary long side and the snow on the roof coming down, it just seemed like a battle I wasn't interested in getting into on a Friday night. So I hopped off, stripped her tack and let her have a gallop. Pony can buck you guys! I'm so glad she saves that nonsense for free time and doesn't show me under saddle. (She's the most sensible animal I think I've ever owned. Even if she is super belligerent.) The little kids were hanging around and they had so much fun watching Shiny run around. Then they fawned all over her and lead her over a raised cavalletti at the walk. It was adorable. With the littlest kiddo Shiny very carefully walked over. But with the bigger girls, she actually jumped (also carefully) over it. So cute. I love this pony. Despite her challenges.

That's about all from here for the most part. I've started the yearly closet purge, so hopefully I'll get that completed over the next few weekends. I know that seems like a long time to clean out the closet, but you guys can guess how much clothing I have I'm sure... 

I've also been making some fun prints for saddle pads. I've been using free clip art from the interwebs, and a few apps to create them. I found a company in Pakistan that will print pretty much anything on to matchy sets. It's not overly cheap, so I'm spreading out the ordering. And I'm not getting bonnets done for most of them to save some money. But I'm excited to share them with you guys! I did my logo already, but now I want to have them redone with the revamped artwork. So I'll share the first edition with you:

Cute right?! They seem pretty flexible as far as sizing and changing things around. I asked for baby pads with more shape at the withers instead of regular pads (these have a pretty straight spine too) for the next order, so we'll see how those come out. 

How was your week/weekend? Horses good? I know a lot of you were in the path of that awful weather clusterf(*& in TX, so I hope you're all okay and on the road to recovery from that!

Truthful Tuesday

 

 So... this one might surprise you. But I actually like tofu. Not so much as it's own entity, but it is an amazing vessel for delicious sauces. I feel the same way about broccoli. They both just absorb whatever tastiness they're cooked in. 

Confession number two is that I've been playing the stupidest game on my phone and I can't stop. It's called Project Makeover. The point is to make over a character and their room, but in order to do that you have to play levels of a game that's similar to candy crush. Talk about a waste of my life and time... But it's very addictive. 

That's all I have for you guys today. Kind of a boring week for confessions. Do you have anything you need to get off your back? Thoughts on tofu? Any life wasting games you like to play?

Thursday's Threads

 

So... I have logos again. But this time they're boarding barn logos cause I would hate to be redundant. 

I know. I'm ridiculous. But I think we can all agree it's entertaining?

Helmet: One K MIPS

I remembered to take a new helmet photo! Also, I got some of these gaiters from Tommie Copper after seeing them on tv... They have a facemask built into them complete with a nose wire. And have an adjustable bungee so it stays put. I did find it a little harder to breath through than the mask I normally wear, but that probably means it's doing a better job of protecting me? Maybe?

Sweatshirt: Artscow

Someone needs to take away my internet so I stop getting things printed with logos. Seriously. I'm out of hand.

Belt: Rebecca Ray

I'm a fan of these Rebecca Ray belts. They're really high quality and the fancy stitching is just so classic to me.

Breeches: Dover

Yep, still wearing corduroy. It's still in the 20's here, what can I say? I am excited for spring and fun breeches again though.

Socks: Dreamers and Schemers

Okay, in my defense, I did not have these made. The barn did and I just purchased through them.

Boots: Tredstep

Yep. Still these. Honestly, I'm tired of wearing them too. But I'm not willing to have frozen toes, so they're staying!

Shiny has an outfit to share too!

She's wearing her Camelot RCS Gold bridle with her Boy O'Boy browband. She's also sporting a new martingale, which I can't remember what brand it is. It's not new to me... just to her! Her saddle pad is from Premier Equine, saddle is Buete, girth is Ovation, and quarter sheet is by Horze. And lastly, she's donning her navy glitter boots from Punk Ponies! Isn't she the cutest naughty nugget in all the land?!

That's it for today! Any favorites?

What's Up Wednesday

 

Not too much to report this week. Horses are all good for the most part. Shiny is still being a bit difficult, but I did have a decent ride on her last night. I am starting to think the cold weather bothers her, but I guess I'll have to wait a bit to really pursue that theory. We had a beautifully warm day yesterday, but we're back in the 20's today. Brrr. 

 

Barn owner is in Florida for the month so our previous assistant trainer is back filling in for her. It's been great because she's a lot more flexible. I did Eros in our flat lesson last night, and have a jumping(!!!) lesson scheduled for this weekend with Pammon. I have been dragging my feet doing that with him, because we really didn't fit in with any of the regular lessons. I just want to start very slow with him, popping over a few low jumps on straight lines. Since AT is more easy going and adjustable, this should be exactly what we're looking for. I'm pretty excited! I may even see if I can schedule something with Shinypants. Clearly, we could use any help we might find...

That's really about it on the horse front. In other news, P had a good checkup this weekend. She turns 15 this year in April, so good checkups are definitely something to be excited about!

I made myself some heart shaped waffles for Valentine's day. Being an old spinster, I still like hearts and food. So TREAT YO'SELF!

Speaking of treating myself... My jacket and new socks arrived!

The jacket is amazing you guys. It's everything I've wanted, but somehow even better. I'm so excited about it! I like how the revamped logo looks on the socks too. 

And that's really all I have to share today. How was your week? Horses good?