We celebrated by going to a friend’s amazing Halloween party extravaganza- we had a fabulous time! Enjoy some photos
Happy Halloween!
silly
Double the fun at Fairlawn Stables!
We took the opportunity to do a field trip on the weekend to try out our dressage trainer’s amazing new footing at her farm, Fairlawn. It’s also a gorgeous facility, so huge and spacious and bright so why not !?!
The ponies were…less than thrilled to see the trailer pull up again (Two WEEKS in a row?) but got onboard when we were there 🙂
And I said: Let’s do something FUN! That’s all I want to do now, lol. I only have less than a month left here, so let’s make the most of it and really enjoy ourselves, so that is the lesson we got- a pas de deux lesson with the two dudes!
And they are so cute together, I think they’re really figuring out how to rate with each other!! And Becky and I only forgot where we were going once or twice I think 😉 The horses picked it up faster than we did.
We then enjoyed a little cruise around the fields after, as they have a lovely little pond you can ride around. The boys were very well behaved, and it was just such a fun and chill atmosphere. Can you ask for any better? Plus the weather has been amazing lately…chilly today, but far, far above the seasonal temps for Oct. We’re stuck in the groundhog day of my dreams…An endless summer!
Municipal elections time:
I know who I’m voting for! 😉
Overwhelm
It’s been…a lot lately. The return to the workplace is making me realize a whole bunch of truths, namely that I need a big change and my sabbatical won’t be coming soon enough.
Things only change if you change them.
Also, I hate working in the workplace and I find it very distracting. And the time? Oh lord. My time management has gone to hell and back, namely I spend all of it sitting at work and then rushing around at home trying to get all of my life stuff done, like my animals, showering, preparing lunches, etc. Fun times.
Oats had a difficult week last week- he was spooky as hell, seeing things in every single corner of the arena, slamming on the brakes, half rearing, etc. I know him well enough now that this behaviour is seasonal (unfortunately or fortunately…) and it too will pass, but damn, I just wanted a fun pony to ride? Likely there is a big tie-in to his disease and the medication, as this only became a bigger issue the past two years he was diagnosed. 😦 blows either way.
And then he was foot-perfect at my Thursday lesson! Such a lovely little dude, we jumped cross rails one-handed and had the funnest time, which was great b/c mentally I was NOT in a good place (thanks, work). And then I free longed him on Friday and he came up lame. GREEATTT
But no swelling, heat, etc so I chalked it up to stiffness, and his leasor longed him on Sunday and he looked fine. I rode him last night, and while he was still stiff and moving quite ‘flat’ going to the right, he did improve and worked out of it, leading me to believe that it is indeed stiffness?
His leasor is going to ride tonight.
I don’t think the weather has been helping though- it’s been miserable. Freezing cold, unseasonably cold, raining, snowing, wind at 100km/hr almost every day? WTF? Just such a shit spring. No day is a respite. Our allergies also went completely bananas, and poor Gidget had the worst weekend with her ‘reverse sneezing’- honking and gasping allllllll day and the nasal spray we use didn’t work 😦 WTF life. Thanks guys…
Just the usual spring- I hate everything- blahs…
Some really fun rides
Had a great lesson last night, where we worked on an exercise that was deceptively simple but also tricky: Jump a small 2ft jump on the long side, then canter leg yields weaving through jump standards! We remixed it a few times to change direction, trot the jump, canter the jump, back to trot, and worked on straightness via leg yielding to the fence.
We had a really nice time! It was a reminder to focus on straightness as well, as that was definitely something we struggled with generally when we jumped. Also I haven’t really jump-jumped in awhile so that was nice too 🙂
We had a really fun ride and the ponies were game to try anything! Though they really herp-derped the warm up fence a few good times too hahah. Silly guys!
Trying something new: Mountain trail class!
We took the horses up island this weekend for a big adventure- our first mountain trail class! I had signed up, oh three months ago? After my farrier mentioned to me that she was working with a trainer who had an arena full of the obstacles. It was SO FUN and there were a ton of obstacles to try- the arena was crammed with them! I loved it!
We took Oats and Summer, and our other friend borrowed a gorgeous Andalusian named ‘Lance’ to try in the clinic. Lance was extremely experienced at all the obstacles so she had a pretty fun and non-complicated day, ha!
Oats on the other hand…Was actually pretty good! We had one obstacle he could not figure out (a narrow bridge. He couldn’t figure out where to put his feet, like at all. So we let that one go and focused on the others) and he DID NOT want to drop down into the water, so I just went around and got in that way.
Still really fun! Oh and at lunch Oats took off from the trailer. Jerk!! He wanted to check things out.
Morning was unmounted and playing with the obstacles in-hand, which he was ok with but I could tell he wanted me to go over the obstacles first, rather than have him go through independently. After lunch we all hopped on and rode them, and then at the end we did a little course. Really great! 😉 And then after everyone was finished their course, we goofed off on the obstacles (I had a drink, White Claw of course) and I had it on top of the big tires! Hahahah.
It was so warm out and I got sunburned as heck. ARGH. Dumb, I thought I had reached far enough with my sunscreen- newsflash- I didn’t. Shoooooooot.
My funnest/best obstacles? So many! The tires, the big platform, the sunken bridge, the roller bridge, the slosh pad, the ‘car wash’ and the teeter-totters. Loved it!
Future me hates me
Ha, why do I overschedule myself! (sort of?!). Had a fairly busy horse weekend, with rescheduled lessons on Saturday with Faith, rehabbing Oats, and then a long run! Takes me well into 5pm, apparently. The lesson was…Kind of a big dud. We started off really nicely, with some of the nicest trot I think we have achieved together! And then, the wheels kind of fell off. She tripped big time at the canter when we were heading to canter poles, and then did 1 little bolt, and then started getting balky/stopping at the gate side of the arena- AGAIN.
She hasn’t been that bad since our last daytime lesson (what IS IT with those??) so who knows wtf was going on in little horsey’s head on Saturday? A shame, because we had a genuinely lovely lesson the past Tuesday!
Oh well, something to work on. It’s interesting, riding someone else’s horse, because I never know what I’m going to get- and it’s kind of a day-by-day adventure, ha. Sometimes good, sometimes pretttty bad.
And Oats? The past week he was a moron to rehab. Afraid of the corners, almost got me off in a big spook on Thur night, wouldn’t go into the corner, running backwards, slamming on the brakes, being super dramatic. I think he’s definitely getting fitter and all that energy has nowhere to go… I had to cancel his Friday rider because I was a bit worried she might get scared off, or spooked off. Can’t have that! He was amazingly good on Fri/Sat, and then back to being a total butthead on Sunday. Go figure?? He also was in a big snit about his hay (ok, it’s honestly terrible low-sugar hay this time. SO coarse) and he was refusing to eat it, poor guy. I can’t have him eating barn hay though, so it’s a no win 😦 I get why he hates his new low sugar hay, and I am really hoping the next shipment isn’t so awful. ARGH.
I had a LOT of tension from my bad rides on Oats last week, bad lesson on Faith, bad ride on Oats, and it just felt like…Shit. What am I DOING messing around with these miserable animals????
So, I did a yoga video on Sunday night and yawned 100 times. Seriously, my eyes were watering, tears running down my face. Apparently I *was* holding tension, who knew??? Ha. It felt good though to let it allll go. Now, to remember that in my daily ride (wanted to write Battle) with Oats every night!! Be good you little jerk.
Done with those days
And as I mentioned, Oats was indeed feeling the effects of playing too hard! He didn’t feel good on Friday, but by Saturday he was working out of his stiffness and did feel much better. I didn’t push it, but instead did some light walk/trot on a loose rein. I then gave him Sunday off (so Ian and I could do another mega run out in Sooke/Metchosin on the Goose) and I rode him last night and he was back in action! yes!
Oats looking oh so innocent
So what to do about an elderly pony who thinks he is invincible? If you know, let me know, ugh. I see his age affecting him more these days when he runs and gallops and fights with his turnout buddies. He just can’t keep up like when he was 9 years old. Try telling him that, though! Ugh!!!
Oats on house arrest until he can be normal in the fields and not ruin himself!Â
So he is on limited turnout until Sunday because I WANT to have a jumping lesson!! Silly pony can’t keep it to himself, so he gets limited turnout until I know he won’t overdo it in the field. What a goof.
Speaking of goof, after I rode last night I worked raking down the new hogfuel in the arena, and guess what my rotten little pony did? ROLLED ON MY SADDLE. For the fourth goddamned time. I was leading him and boom! Down he goes and he did NOT want to get up. Just lay there like, naaaaahhh I’m gonna roll. Eff….
At least my saddle was ok, but yeesh. What a little jerk! And yeah this is not the first time he rolled on my danged saddle. Poor saddle… Taken a lot of abuse.
Live it up before you die it up
I am the best colleague ever. When our coworkers go on holidays, sometimes we decorate their cubicles for them. This time, it was my turn! Enjoy 🙂
When they fight, they fight
Ah been feeling a tad unmotivated lately- summer lazy maybe? Oats has been a spooky  moron some days and it’s driving me insane…He’s good with another horse in the ring, and was pretty decent to ride when my husband came out to watch/get a pony ride, but other times he’s running backwards, spooking sideways so violently I’m hanging off the saddle, or threatening to rear while running backwards and trembling…Greeeeat…
He is a handsome devil!
Canada Day celebrations were fabulous, I can’t say I would change a single thing! The day was pretty effortless, and on Friday we were even able to see Tegan & Sara (great!) and on Saturday The Arkells, and fireworks after attending a friend’s BBQ- she had ribs and they were soooooo good.
Rode all four days- Sat/Sun/Mon/Tues to above-mentioned mixed success. He was fine last night too, rode in the other field and really enjoyed that ride. Wish he wasn’t so stupid and spooky right now! I can’t figure out what changes in his brain when we’re alone in the outdoor arena, and the most frustrating part is that he was SO GOOD when we came out in the outdoor…Then I take a week off for my sister’s wedding and he’s a total idiot. WTF?
What gives?
Oh well, have to work through his dumbass behaviour until it goes away later in the summer.
Celebrated 8 years of marriage this weekend!
Runningwise? Hah not happening. We ran lightly this weekend, like 5k and my legs were fried. Just fried. I have no real desire to run, at all, right now. I do think I am burned out of it, to be honest! Maybe I’m burned out of everything, ha.
But, I do want to try polo and that has been on my mind for awhile….!!
The adventures of Mr. Oats 