Vacayyyytion

Yeah, I'm currently in the Outer Banks...no riding for me until the 11th haha!

Sasha update: Well, I had just been doing the normal, just hacking her and having lessons, and they were going fairly well until last Tuesday. She decided to be a witch, and not listen. When I half-halted in a line, she would fling her head up and rock back, then launch forward again obnoxiously. This escalated into her backing up randomly and shying away violently a few strides away from the jumps. When I would turn to circle her, she would resist then suddenly wheel around in a mini-rear and charge off. She was so obnoxious haha. I know I started it, but if she gets a little tense and does something wrong and you correct her too harshly, she will suddenly go downhill and be awful.

Of course, after this one awful day she decided to be PERFECT. She's always like that. If she/we have an awful day, she will be perfect for the next week. So after that day, it was really hot. I had to ride in the indoor. The horses got their hooves done Thursday morning, and I hacked her bareback after for 15 minutes. Our canter didn't go so well. >.< It wasn't awful, but she was a little fast and it took a circle to get it under control lol. There were a few "oh sh-" strides where I thought she was GONE and then she would settle haha!

Friday in my lesson, things were back to normal. I started riding like I normally do (I went through a week/phase where everything just felt...off. She wasn't as soft as normal, and I felt like a complete beginner again.) Well, I did lots of flatwork in my Friday lesson, and just did an in and out in the indoor. It was like 95oF out and humid. I only jumped up to 2'3", 2'6", but it felt PERFECT! My instructor and I were talking about it and we agreed that if she's quiet and it's hot, what's the point in proving we can go any higher? He said she can jump 3'6" any day, but why bother if I'm about to faint off her from heat exhaustion? =P

I rode around Saturday morning and did a lot of transitions and flexibility and bending exercises, and popped her through the in and out. I then left for vacation! I already missed her by 12 o' clock on Saturday. I left the barn at 11:30....I have my trainer riding her every few days, friends giving her treats, sending me pics of her, and free lunging her for me. Oh, and my trainer says his goal is to have Sasha ready to do the 2'6" when I get back. She can easily step over the height, but whether she can get around a course at a show CALMLY is the real question. Honestly, I feel that when it's not a baby baby jump she listens better. The next show is a week after I get back, a charity/benefit show. I'm pumped! I am going to work my butt off the week before. After that, the next show is a four day thing, then a handful of local shows, and then the Skidmore Finals! I am so excited for next year, I think she will be so responsive and good.

Oh, and Colby updates: Apparently, he's an awesome trail horse, just needs arena work. He got a few days off after doing a lot of trails last Saturday, and I didn't really have a lot of time/energy to ride him after that, but I'll keep working with him when I get back a little.

I must be crazy.

....but life would be considerably less fun if I wasn't!

Yesterday's lesson went well. It was pouring rain, and the outdoor was FLOODED, literally, I think it had an inch of water throughout it, so I was inside with a snaffle bit. I had a lesson with Noodle and with a horse named Ripley. We're all around the same age and experience, so it was a blast. We were mostly alone in the arena, and we did a ton of flatwork. Extend the walk, collect the walk, two point, trot, post, sit, collect, extend, reverse, turn on the haunches, canter, extend, collect, etc. We [very surprisingly] didn't drop our stirrups. We started off jumping a little crossrail on a circle and stopping after it. We were supposed to get in our two point and just basically not touch our reins and let our horses find the distance. It was a little unsettling to not hold Sasha to the fence, but she was very good. She cantered a stride in front of it once or twice, but she made the distance work every time. <3

After doing that a few times, we did the crossrail to a diagonal in and out. They were the only two....obstacles? in the arena, but we had to do it as smoothly as possible otherwise we had to turn around and keep doing it. Sasha was very good. She gets a little strong to diagonals - I'm not sure why, most likely something I'm doing, or maybe it's the long ride to them - but she only did it once. I was trying to collect her to the jump because she has a giant stride and this was a little bit tight for her, but she was fighting me a little. She took a long spot and leapt over the first jump, got no release, and then settled down. I did the usual canter a circle on a long rein after the jump to get her to relax, and that worked very well. It's amazing with her; she can be racing around like a mad woman, but if you simply loosen the reins and get out of her face, she will drop her head, blow out a big breath, and lope around.

The second jump became an oxer, and she started listening better after that. We only jumped up to 2'6", 2'9", but it was done well, so I'm satisfied. I remember when I first started jumping about four years ago how 2'3" was HUGE. Now, it's a baby warm up jump. Or when I lost my heel over 3'? Now, I'm very comfortable at that height and my leg stays solid. 

I walked Sasha around outside once the rain died down to cool her out, and I put her away and did my stalls [I do Sasha and my mom's pony's stalls on the weekend to help with board.] I was hanging around the barn for the afternoon, and after doing some things, I got bored. Sasha stayed in because it was on and off heavy raining, so I got an idea. Here's where the crazy part comes in.

She had her Baker on, and I threw her halter on with a lead rope clipped to either side. See where this is going? I led her out to the aisle, got one of those jumping block things, got a friend to hold her, and got on. I was ONLY going to walk her up and down the aisle with someone leading her, and then I decided she was being good after a few steps, so then I walked down the aisle alone. Then I thought, hey, why don't I go into the arena? I went in and walked around in the middle, out of the way of the lessons. She was being very very good and stopped on a dime and was very soft. My friends [gotta love barn friends <3] then go "Hey, you should trot Sasha!" I went, "no, I'm too young to die! =P"

After a few more circles, I start to think "Hmm....maybe I won't!" And I trot her around a bit. Yup, definitely a screw loose. Bareback with a halter. My friends got some cell phone pictures, I should put them up if I can.

Nothing to do today except ride and do stalls. It should be fun!

FYE.

Isn't that a store? Whatever.

Here you go. For your entertainment. Ignore the video quality/my voice.

I wasn't able to see Sasha today, but my mom [a vet] said that her cut is healing and it looks like a piece of dried meat. Um...good? I suppose? 

Piccy of the baby girl.

You can see where she ripped off the skin, on the inside of her leg, just above her left knee. =[

TTYL stalkers that don't exist. <3