Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit Day! Blues again. But fear not! Chanukah and Christmas outfits are coming! Shiny is our model today and here's what she had on:

Bridle: Camelot RCS Gold

This bridle still looks lovely on Shiny. But I am itchy to replace it with something new. All in good time. If any of you would like it, it could be for sale (cob size)! (Would come with the matching browband, not the one pictured.)

Boots: Eskadron

I like these little boots for her. They're a great fit, which I've mentioned a million times can be tricky for Shiny. 

Saddle: Custom Saddlery

Saddle Pad: Mattes

I'm still a really big fan of these pads with the sheepskin attached. They wash up great, and have sat so nicely on all the horses, despite them all being very different shapes. I got them some new ones for this winter that have sheepskin along the edges as well. I'm hoping they'll help with the rubbing they all seem to experience once winter really sets in. Fingers crossed!

So that's what Shine had on, and here's what I wore this week:

I really need some sun... 

Yep all the blues! And the wool. Wool is the best.

Helmet: Samshield

Will I ever remember to take a new helmet photo? Hard to say. Probably not. Lol! The helmet still looks like this though, so it's an accurate representation. And I probably still look this tired too. Haha!

Sweater: Black Horse Equestrian

I've had this one for a few years now, and it was a great purchase. It still looks great despite the fact that I wash in the washer. It's not too scratchy for wool, and I love the colors. 

Belt: Sandy Duftler

Navy croc is always a fun choice for a belt.

Breeches: Tailored Sportsman

I think I like the tan patches best on TS breeches. I've had these awhile now and you've seen them plenty. I was able to snag them second hand from Second Round Equestrian after I sold my old ones that didn't fit anymore. 

Boots: Celeris UK

Yep, reusing this photo too. What can I say? I'm the worst. But again, the boots still like this. So you're not missing much. 

What's Up Wednesday

 

Well, I've had a good couple years of not getting sick, but I've finally caught some kind of crud. I think it's just a cold. Covid tests have been negative and I don't have a fever, so not likely the flu. But ugh. It started innocently enough with a sinus headache and a sore throat on Saturday. That all seemed to work itself out and I just felt a little run down. I thought I had kicked whatever it was! But alas... last night I was awoken by my sinuses being so miserable my teeth hurt. Yuck. So here I am now, all stuffy and cranky. Already looking forward to bedtime. I have three lessons tomorrow, so I'm hoping this is the "worse before it gets better" day. Anyway. Enough of my whining. 

I again have no media so enjoy these old photos from my favorite
photographer Chelsea Lothrop Photography

We finally got Shiny's bloodwork back and it wasn't terrible. Her leptin was high, which isn't great, but her non-fasting insulin was normal. So that's good and we were able to go ahead with some injections. We're still very careful about how much steroid we use in her, and opted to just do the hocks with that. We did coffins with Prostride. She had the weekend off and went back to work yesterday. I wish I could say she feels amazing since getting the work done which is what I was really hoping for... But so far, she doesn't feel much better. Sometimes it takes a few days for it to really take, and to be fair, it got really cold starting yesterday which I don't think is at all helpful. Otherwise she's fine though. Doing work, having mare feelings... You know, the normal stuff. Last week's lesson I cut short because she was tripping all over the place. Fingers crossed it goes better tomorrow.

Another photo from Chelsea Lothrop

Eros has been mostly perfect as usual. His jumping lesson last week went fantastically well. He even jumped around courses without being a torpedo. So proud! It was like having Summer Eros around. I really love Summer Eros. He was good for yesterday's flat lesson too. Today though? He was sassy. Gave the hairy eyeball to all kinds of imaginary monsters around the ring. He's scheduled for a free lunge tomorrow though, so hopefully the jump lesson won't be a mess. Time will tell!

Another Chelsea Masterpiece

And Al... Oh Al. Al's great! But you know, he's still 7. And somedays he's a very young seven. We had TWO jump lessons last week! Every time I get to jump him, I remember why I deal with his spooky shenanigans all the days I don't get to jump with him. He's just such a good dude to the fences! The crack seems to be doing okay without shoes, so hopefully we're still on the right path with that. 

I normally lesson him Fridays, but this week we're doing Thursday (hence three lessons tomorrow). He had a training ride today, in which he was not a very good boy. He's always extra spooky at the far end of the ring. It's not a new problem. He's afraid of the big doors at the end. When it's warm out, and those doors are open, he is mostly fine. But when they're closed, he's not cool with that. Trainer seemed very determined to fix it today and he got in some trouble for his persistence. By the end he was a lot better, and seemed somewhat more humble, but I don't have faith that it is cured. No fault of anyone, I just think it's a thing we'll always deal with there. No horse is perfect. As long as he keeps me on top of the saddle, I can deal with whatever. But like... it would be lovely it is cured! We'll see tomorrow. 

That's really about it from these parts. I've been keeping busy wrapping gifts and addressing holiday cards. Tonight I look forward to doing absolutely nothing and hoping I can kick this crud asap. How are you all holding up this holiday season with the trifecta of plagues going around? Staying healthy I hope!

Truthful Tuesday

 

I don't have too much to confess today. I don't recall doing anything particularly embarrassing this past week. It's really gotten cold here though, and I've been doing a LOT of whining about that. I'm trying to figure out how to wear three thousand layers, yet still be able to move. I fear it's going to be a long, cold winter. Send help.

I'm still watching way too much Below Deck. But in my defense, each time a season ends, one of the other locations starts a new one, so how do I get away? I don't. I just accept it and keep watching. Besides, it's cold here. Those sexy deckhands warm me up.

Anything you all need to confess today?

Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit day! I even remembered almost all of the photos this week! Not quite all... But close. Eros was our model this week and he's excited to show you our first Ogilvy baby pad. 

Bridle: Joseph Sterling
Browband: Boy O'Boy Bridleworks

I sold Eros' Camelot bridle right off his face the other day... And I also had a little taccident recently and found him a used Butet bridle to use if he ever shows. So I'm letting him use his former show bridle for everyday for right now. I really want to get them all the Brentwood bridle from Riviera Equisports for everyday, but I haven't pulled the trigger yet. Need to sell some more stuff first!

Saddle: Butet

Saddle Pad: Ogilvy
Half Pad: Mattes

I never really understood why everyone loved these baby pads so much. But I found these for $45 (after the conversion) at Sprucewood tack in Canada and decided to give them a try. Big fan. We may or may not have acquired a few more already. Pads often shift on Eros because he has a great big shoulder with tons of reach, but these stay put really nicely. 

Boots: Premier Equine

Gonna need to wash these soon... Lol. But they're still great. Big fan. Highly recommend.

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

More blues! It's not as fun as all green everything, but at least blues are also pretty and fun too.

Helmet: Samshield

I said I remembered almost all of the photos. But not this one. Haha! I've been wearing the Samshield a lot because it's so fun and sparkly. And according to new research it's more safe than my MIPS helmets so I feel less anxious about wearing it. To be clear, I'm not knocking the new research, nor my MIPS helmets. It's new data. I'm here for it! I still think my helmets are relatively safe and will continue to wear them until the expire. I think MIPS is definitely better than no MIPS in certain crash situations which were not focused on by VT. I am hopeful the new research will bring some new, even safer helmet tech in the future though!

Sweatshirt: Unbranded

Bought this sweatshirt a couple years ago from the barn. It has the farm logo there on the chest and the farm name down the one sleeve which you can kinda see here. It's cute. They do a great job picking out fun swag for us to buy and wear. And we all know I'm a sucker for matching swag.

Belt: Zazzle

I had this belt made awhile back for spirit week, and still wear it now and then. I kind of want to make it over again a little differently. The lighter blue didn't really come out the right shade, and I'd like the logos to be a little bigger next time. This one is fine for now though.

Breeches: Tailored Sportsman "Aqualina"

This color is so fun! I snagged awhile back used, but barely used. Such a good find!

Boots: Celeris UK (Sample Boots)

Heh... yeah the other photo I didn't remember to take. This shot is pretty close to reality though!

That's it for today! Any favorites? 

What's Up Wednesday

 

Big happenings this week! Al is back to jumping! And let me tell you, that big dingus is so much happier. He had a training ride Wednesday which I didn't actually see because I got to the barn a little late that day. But I heard he was great, and jumped right around. Then on Friday I got to have a lesson on him. I was lucky enough to grab a lesson slot with just one other person so it was perfect. Low key, and catered to our just starting back needs. Al was great. We might have used our lesson partner to help him get around the ring without spooking... If he follows behind a brave horse, he just doesn't spook at anything. It's like he figures that horse will get eaten first so he doesn't have to worry anymore. But as always, he was brave and perfect to the jumps (without a leader). Very proud of him, and very excited to get back to doing things!

I was surprised to discover that he was happy and relaxed all weekend long after having done some fun jumps during the week. I really do think most of his antics were due to boredom. Hopefully we'll stay on this track. 

Eros has been a perfect little angel as always. He's still doing the flat lesson on Tuesdays and then a jumping lesson Thursdays. Consensus is that the wider saddle is making most of his back much happier, it is bugging him at the base of the withers. He's letting me know by not wanting to pick his withers up and carry himself. I should have one of my old saddles paid for on Friday, so I've reached out to my Butet rep to see if we can get something moving for Eros. Unfortunately... she's not getting back to me. Annoying. I'm sure she's busy with the holidays and all. But you'd think she'd want to get another saddle sale on the books before year end? 

Anyway, he's been super despite his mild discomfort. Or maybe because of it? Hard to say. But he's not been a torpedo for jumping, so I'm happy about that! Time will tell if listening Eros sticks around, but I'm here for it while it lasts!

Princess here is doing pretty well. She got clipped last week which has been wonderful because she was a legit woolly mammoth. I had said to not bother doing her ears since she's pretty terrible about them. But then they tried anyway and just like last year, only got one done. 

She looked pretty ridiculous, but it made me giggle every time I looked at her, so said not to worry about it. Fortunately for Shiny, the dentist came this week and we got the other ear done while she was still sleepy from her dental. She looks more civilized now. She's still waiting for her joint maintenance as the blood work results STILL haven't come back. Hopefully they do before Friday when the vet is back out. Fingers crossed. In the meantime, we're just plugging along and taking our rides day by day. If she feels good, we work. If she doesn't, we take it easy. We did our lesson last week, but stuck to just cross rails. She was great, and I figured why push it? 

She was feeling a bit sassy this week so I let her have a free lunge Tuesday. She was pretty wild and let out a lot of great big bucks. Then she felt amazing when I rode her. But back to less amazing today. Perhaps she overdid it... Silly pony! She didn't feel lame today, just was tripping a bunch and thought bending was stupid. 

In non riding news, I finally got my act together to take holiday photos for our annual card. If you want one, send me your address! I don't have them yet, but the mock up looks cute. 

And in news that I should probably have saved for a Truthful Tuesday post... I've dropped lots of things I shouldn't have this past week. First, my dinner on Friday night:

It wasn't a good healthy meal fortunately, and there was more of it in the freezer. So all was not lost. But I was pretty annoyed. Especially about the broken plate. But the real annoying drop? My phone. It fell out of my pocket, onto my foot, and bounced into the dogs' very full water bowl. What are the odds? It still works for the most part... But I no longer have face ID. Guess new iphone needs to go on the want list soon. Talk about insult to injury. You should see the bruise on my foot. Lol! 

The best part of the week though? I actually got to ride some extra horses at the barn this week! I rarely get asked for varying reasons, so I was really excited. And had loads of fun! Hope it happens again sometime. Obviously, I have plenty to ride on the daily, but it's nice to sit on something that doesn't know me so well so I can see where my holes are. My horses are used to any stupid things I do on the regular, so they don't always tattle on me. New ones though? They share their confusion immediately. I like that kind of feedback.

That's about it from here. Hope you all had a great week/weekend! Do anything fun? Anything coming up?

Truthful Tuesday

 

I really hate making phone calls. So if I can get things done with an app or online, I'm here for that. What I don't understand is why you have the option of scheduling something through an app, only to get a call telling me that they are already booked that day. Why have the app if it's not updated? Case in point. I tried very hard to be very productive yesterday. I caught up on all the laundry (which had gotten pretty backed up), organized the holiday gift chaos, ordered holiday cards (and stamps!), scheduled the oil change for my car, and did my PT workout. I thought I had succeeded in all of those things. I got text AND email confirmation for the oil change appointment even. Alas, this morning, the dealership called (my oil changes are still covered so I prefer to go there for the free ones) saying they are booked up for the rest of the month. Guys. The app showed tons of availability. Why do they not keep that shit updated? Just turn off the option on the app if they can't actually make it work. Sheesh. So not a total failure. I did get it scheduled for next month instead. I suppose instead this month I'll get the truck in for everything it needs.... It also needs an oil change, but also has several recalls on it. And it's once again dead in the driveway. So I suppose I should get that sorted. Maybe tomorrow...

And that, my friend's, is today's confession: I like to put things off until I am completely overwhelmed by too many things, and then I get them all done at once.

Thursday's Threads

 

Outfit day again! I'm not sure where the time goes. I feel like the weeks just keep going by... And yet I never get around to cleaning the house... Lol. That's a topic for a Tuesday. Anyway, here's what I wore to ride this week:

Right. Back to blues. But you had a break last week with the fun Thanksgiving outfit!

Helmet: Samshield

Check out the crows feet!

I've been wearing this one a lot lately. I like the sparkles!

Sweater: Ralph Lauren

Vest: Columbia

It's getting cold again, so lots of layers all the time. Though it wasn't terrible yesterday when I wore this. Today I had to skip the vest and wear a jacket with sleeves. Brrr.

Belt: Sandy Duftler

This is actually navy patent with a silver buckle. It looks gold here, but it's not.

Breeches: Ariat

I don't think these breeches are especially flattering, but I still really like them. I like the contrasting colors, and even if I look lumpy in them, they are very comfortable.

Boots: Celeris UK

I've been wearing these a lot lately too. The blues ones didn't actually match any of the blues in my outfit. So I went with black boots instead.

That's what I had on. Shiny will model the horse outfit today. But since I'm no good at lying, the boots I'm sharing weren't actually what she wore today. I AGAIN forgot to take photos, so I'm sharing old ones. And apparently, I have zero photos of the not at all new boots she was wearing. Maybe you'll see them another week.

Bridle: Camelot RCS Gold

Browband: Boy O'Boy Bridleworks

This is an old photo. She doesn't go in that bit anymore. But the bridle is the same!

Boots: Punk Ponies

She actually wore an old pair of navy Eskadrons. But they don't look all that much different than these, minus the glitter.

Saddle: Custom Saddlery

Saddle Pad: Mattes

Finally! An accurate photo representation of what Shiny wore today. 

And that's it for this week. Probably we will have blues again next week, but Chanukah and Christmas are coming! So hopefully all kinds of fun coming up in the weeks ahead.