Wednesday, September 17, 2008

Alive!

If a person started reading my blog right now, and looked back three weeks into my archives, they would probably think that something has happened to me. Well...I guess it has in the form of school...lol!!! As I mentioned before, the past few weeks have been a huge change for us all, but thank goodness for adaptability!
All of our brains are getting back into focus mode, and we are all getting used to not being able to do what we want, when we want...well some of us are (just joking!)! I had promised the kids that we would go riding on Wednesday after school, so I rushed home from my school, loaded up a bag with "outside" clothes, boots, and helmets, made the kids some sandwiches (they are so hungry after school that they "could eat a horse," and we don't want that to happen now, do we???), picked them up, and off to Amber's house we went. Brad was home early from hunting and had even fed the horses a snack for us, so we were able to just get them out and have fun...finally!

Duke, one of Amber's dogs, was so happy to see us, and he followed poor Bo and Eric all over the place. Eric and Bo were rather annoyed, but it was kind of cute.
Did you know that Bo Bo is gaited? Neither did I until I saw this picture!!! This is what happens when your horse has solid colored legs; you cannot always differentiate between them, and they appear to be moving like a gaited horse...or a girraffe...lol!!!
I thought that this one showed how good Bo Bo looks right now. Even though his poor old belly just kind of hangs there, the rest of him toned up quite a bit over the summer.
Bo seemed pretty happy to see the kidlets, and he actually behaved exceptionally well for them today. They were both trotting/jogging fools, and they asked me to set up some barrels (actually buckets), so they could barrel race around them. Barrel race??? I thought we were going to be Dressage riders?!
In this picture, Katie was heading towards one of the buckets...I mean barrels, and she had kicked Bo pretty hard in the side. He shot off at an almost canter, and she laughed, grabbed the saddle horn, and kicked him some more. I know he doesn't look like he was motating at a fast pace, but he was...trust me!Next up, we have Eric and Sienna. See Cdn? Eric is choking up on the lead rope...teeheehee!!!
Eric likes to run next to Sienna while she is cantering, and please note that she has a halter and lead rope on...he is not running next to her while she is loose.
"Come on Sienna!"There we go! Who knew that a cantering pony could entertain an eight year old???Oh...and don't think that Sienna wasn't well rewarded for her run. I asked Katie to run in and get carrots for the horses, and she came out with a bag of chips too, and we all know how Sienna loves chips!!! "You better give me some of those chips, Katie, or I won't let you brush me next time!"
All in all, we had a good evening, except for the fact that I should be doing homework right now......Until next time.....

11 comments:

cdncowgirl said...

Looks like you guys had an awesome time :)

I think you're right about the 'choking on the lead' being a man thing! lol

Andrea said...

School smool, who needs school when you can go riding! What a fun evening! Bo is such a good boy!!

Your son is so cute running next to the pony!!

Oh, and I went to college at the Univeristy of Findlay in Findlay, Ohio. It's the best. I loved it.

Fun pictures and looks like a really fun evening.

Unknown said...

Bo sure is a good boy! I wish Janow was like that. He is 19, but I can't have my son riding him when I am not holding the rein.
Janow thinks it's funny to put the fear into his rider.

Laughing Orca Ranch said...

Oh wow! Awesome! So good to 'read' you again.
What fun that you were able to squeeze in sme family ride time. Did you ride, too? You gotta ask the kids to take photos of you next time. :)

The photos you took look like you had a great time. BoBo looks so handsome. YOu see a belly hanging, but I just don't. He looks great! :)

I love that the kids just ride with full out utter joy and abandon, even running with Sienna.

We've been busy, too, during the day. Our homeschool schedule has been in full swing and is set in stone during the mornings.
But I keep looking out the window and seeing my horse, standing there, doing nothing, just waiting for me to come out and visit and ride.
And my llamas humming and kushing in the paddock, waiting to go on a pack hike. (sigh)

The days are getting so much shorter.
Is summer REALLY over? wah.

~Lisa
Laughing Orca Ranch
New Mexico

Momma / Cowgirl said...

Funny, I have been reading a lot of your archives. Are you talking about being away for a measly 4 days. Gosh, I wish I could post that often…. LOL
I enjoyed my day of reading your posts. Now I am going outside to be with my horses before they scream at me more.

Denise- LessIsMore17 said...

Bo and Sienna and the kids are so cute!

and I'm almost 31 and I'm very amused when I can get Lester to canter when I'm jogging him on the lead line:-)

Unknown said...

Great pictures! You are right Bo does look good right now - so does your pony! I love to see someone who knows how to properly care for and train a pony. I had one when I was little - its not so hard. I don't see why they end up at rescues all the time?

Anyway your kids are beautiful and happy!

Heidi said...

Thanks for the school support! I know two years will go by fast, but it seems like a long time at the beginning of the program.

Regarding pour-in pads, I think this is what my farrier uses on Jack:

http://valleyfarrier.com/cart/shop/item.asp?itemid=364

He gets his feet done every 6 weeks both with and without pour-ins. So it does hold up. I ride 5-6 days a week and have similar rocky ground to you, obviously, though I don't trail ride as much as you probably do. One time this summer one of the pads started breaking down a bit at the end of his cycle. I have heard it is possible for them to wear out if you wait too long, but I haven't had any reason to stop using them. I think it's better support for his soles since it fills in the entire area under his foot. Unlike a regular pad that just protects his sole from rocks. Let me know if you have any other questions and I'll get an answer since I'm not the expert. My farrier is always happy to answer questions too. She is a Certified Journeyman Farrier and is amazing!

Dressage Nomad said...

OMG, Sienna is adorable! She looks like my grandparents pony. I love ponies. I will have a pony again, someday.

Anonymous said...

Hey, Cousin! I love these photos! How fun that you planned this with the kids. The boy running with Sienna is like something out of the Black Stallion movie - i like the one especially that looks like he is running at liberty with the pony.

Pony Girl said...

Riding is always better than homework! ;) I am glad you were able to get out and enjoy some fall weather and ride. This school year is very hectic and stressful for me, I haven't been able to get up and see my horse during the week at all...and now I'm losing daylight! :( I'm really bummed but such is life, I always make up for it in the summer!
Oh, I really thought that pic of Katie on Bo was so cute!