Past Few Months in a Nutshell

Hi friends! This is going to be a quick updating frenzy of a blog post. 

Daisy and I did another LD! (Limited distance ride). The same 15 mile ride we did last fall.

We rode most of the course alone, which was very liberating. Unfortunately Daisy vetted out all A's metabolically (which is awesome!) except with lameness in her left hind leg at the trot. I felt awful. I think she pulled a muscle as the course was very muddy. She was okay after a couple days and then the lameness moved to her diagonal front leg. That put us out of riding for a couple weeks. 

I am currently reconsidering what our goals are (if any) for the rest of the riding season (beyond just enjoying rides for pleasure).

My nephew who was born in July is walking! He is my favorite little man :)

Speaking of men... another favorite! This is Jacob, with me on my graduation from college with an associates degree in business administration. He has been my real favorite for a few months now ;)

 As for equine men... do you remember this big guy?!

I got in contact with the equestrian team that took Ladd back in 2011... and tonight I had the pleasure of reuniting with him for a lesson!

He is still a joy. I'm guessing he must be around 12 or 13 now, and you can tell. He has really mellowed out.

He is out 24/7 with a herd of geldings in a HUGE pasture. I'm happy for him :)

He was a good boy for me! And boy am I sore.

I'm so thankful for all the blessings in my life. Equines and people :)

P.S... I'm still trimmin'! Healthy feet make happy horses. 

Hope you're all well!

Just a Quick Shout-Out :)

Hey my friends!

I guess I finally became a truly neglectful blogger.
Social networking is so much easier than blogging is. It's easier to log in (for my situation), easier to upload photos, easier to arrange them... Blogger went on the backburner.

I've been trimming more and more. At this time I'm still attending a community college, so I don't do any advertising really. I have 27 personal horse clients that I trim at this time :)

I became an aunt in July! I love to spend time with my nephew, Benaiah. He is such a cutie! :)

Daisy and I have been enjoying the use of the horse trailer that we got last year. We didn't do any events really this year. She abscessed in June which caused us to miss a barrel race we planned on. We finally got to a couple hunterpaces.

Daisy today, as we did a final tack-check before this weekend.

This coming weekend we will compete in our first 15 mile (24km) competitive trail ride! It's actually a competititive conditioning ride, not a true CTR (It's a CDR), but it's the farthest we'll have ever ridden on a day. I am so excited! We're borrowing some endurance tack from a friend ;) (I should have seen some endurance coming when that endurance saddle came under my ownership a few years ago! ;) )

 We shove off for the showgrounds Saturday morning. Vet checks are Saturday afternoon. We camp out in the horse trailer overnight and head out for the ride Sunday morning! Upon completion the horses are re-evaluated by a vet and then placed based on timing and physical condition. 

I can hardly wait! Depending on how Daisy does on Sunday and whether she likes it, I'm hoping to continue to do CTR's with her next year. Maybe we'll get a 25 mile and 30 mile under our belt ;)

I hope you're all doing well! 

Merry Christmas, Friends,...

....from my barn to yours. 

I'm Driving Miss Daisy....

Today, Daisy's trailer came home. Looking forward to our maiden voyage in the near future. . . 

So Much to Catch-Up On. . .

Hey readers!
I am still alive.
Unfortunately, I haven't posted since before my Costa Rica mission trip. Which seems ages ago.
Here are the quick facts:
-Costa Rica was great! I completely loved the trip.

-Daisy's back was sore before I left, and she had a slight sneeze/cough. After so much time off, her back issue resolved itself completely the week I got back. I tried anti-histamines to illiminate the sneeze/cough issue as being allergies, and they actually worked!
-I got my own car and started my classes at the college in town, working toward an associate's in Business Administration (that's actually where I am right now... in class. I'm always early...)

-I made a new friend through trimming :) and went on a couple long rides on one of her mares to help her condition it for endurace riding. She trailered her personal endurance mare and the one I rode (which she leases out) to a state park and we had a blast. The mare's name is Dot, and she is part draft... so it was pretty incredible to ride her nine miles and have her want to continue! She competed endurance and clearly enjoys it despite her breeding. Pretty cool!

-This same person trailered Daisy an hour and a half away with her mare to a different state park. The park is massive (over 9,000 acres) and the day was a blast. Daisy absolutely loves going somewhere new, and she enjoyed her time there immeansly. Daisy had to load up on a step up, slant load trailer for the first time since I've owned her, and she was a really good girl.

-I've still been trimming Daisy myself, and am super pleased with how her hooves are doing. I get off while we ride regularly to check them, because they're super clean during a ride (all the wet grass and movement rubbing and cleaning them out) and I'm very happy with their condition, and she's been very sound on gravel (whoot!).
Yesterday my horse trailer finally got to town! We'd been waiting so long for the title and now it's here. It's at the trailer shop getting everything checked out. Soon enough I'll have it home and I'll put up a video tour :)

Ontario County Fair: Gymkhana, July 27th

Gymkhana day. . . barrel racing and pole bending. 

Daisy's favorite :) 

The end of the 4H shows for horses always end with a little banquet pizza party where awards are handed out. 

Drumroll. . . . 

Daisy and I got Overall Senior High Point again this year! :) 

The extra exciting thing was that for the first time, they had ribbons for the high point horses to wear. How fun! 

And so fair week came to a close. 

I had a riding lesson through pony club on Thursday morning. . . unfortunately, it turns out Daisy has quite a sore back, I assume from county fair and all that riding. She's been standing parked out, trying to alleviate pressure, for the first time since 2009 when she got on her natural trim. Her right buttock is especially sore. I haven't ridden her since the lesson. I'm heading out in a few minutes to ride her over to Jenny's, where she'll stay while I'm in Costa Rica, and I can assess the situation. Hopefully the many days off while I'm gone will do her some good. 

My trip to Costa Rica is a mission trip that our church youth group is doing. I am so excited! This will be my first mission trip. We're going to take part in campus evangelism, and some kids programs in poor communities. 

Talk to you all when I'm back!

Ontario County Fair: Western Day, July 26th

When I was in Alberta at course, we went shopping at a western store one day and I got sucked into spending a hefty price for a show shirt. 

After seeing the pictures of Western day with it, I have no regrets ;). 

 Daisy was happy to be going western, her comfort zone, again. 

Trail class was the same pattern as Tuesday's. We placed first again. 

It started with a bridge obstacle. 

Then curved trot poles, to a mailbox. 

Then to a slicker transfer. . . 

Followed by a 360 box. 

A U-shaped back-up station was followed by the corner sidepass station. 

That evening, I entered the Versatility class again. Versatility tests the versatile nature of the individual horse (pretty self-explanatory). On western day, the versatility class starts out in english tack and clothing. We do an english flat class, then do a quick tack and clothing swap. Then we ride a western pleasure flat class, and a barrel pattern. In years past, the class has been very popular, with as many as 12 riders. The past two years Daisy and I have placed first. This year it was raining lightly, and only three people rode. Daisy an I won first again.