The days keep ticking on by, one after another, and I feel like everything has just fallen into place perfectly. My life has taken on a steady rhythm of daily routines. Weekday mornings I have feeding duty since it is on the way to work for me, then I head to work, back to the barn to work the horses and do evening chores, and then back at it the next day. I keep waiting to get tired of it, but I truly enjoy every waking moment of doing something I truly love. It has added so much peace and contentment to my life.
The weekend started out with a lesson with Kelsey on Friday night. I have to give her major credit, because she has had a pretty devastating week of injuries and illnesses on her farm, but being the consummate professional that she is, she taught outstanding lessons regardless of any distractions going on. I had a dressage lesson on April, which she happened to be quite fussy for, so it ended up being partly a schooling session for her and Kelsey. She wasn't wanting to accept the leg, which was a big hint that I have not been using it as much as I should. Robyn had a jumping lesson on Linkin, which you can check out on her blog - it was really incredible, and Linkin looked better over fences than he EVER has.
Saturday was sort of a lazy day, after busting our tails for Kelsey Friday night. We were both sore, but the itch to ride was of COURSE still there, so we decided to go on an adventure, complete with a little adventure song and all....yes, I was being a little silly, but it was WELL worth it! I gave April the day off, and decided to take Samson for a little workout, so we hacked over to Kelsey's farm for a visit. It was a gorgeous fall day, the kind that requires a long t-shirt, and that is about it. There was a light breeze, but the warmth of the sun was all you needed to keep things toasty enough to be comfortable. The horses were amazing - calm, and relaxed, as if they have hacked down the side of the road their entire lives. They didn't mind traffic passing by one bit. We visited with Mama Briggs at the farm for awhile, and then Kelsey showed up and jumped on her retired event pony, Laddy, to accompany us back. The girl is fearless. She hacked back to our farm bareback, and then proceeded to take Laddy over our little cross country fences and the showjumping course. What a little wonder-pony!
I had to jet off quickly to go meet my Dad - an AMAZING treat, since he hasn't flown into Charlotte once since I moved here in 2002. He flew down in the Challenger to pick up the Rockwell CEO and his wife, who were on their way back from England with the CEO and wife of Goodrich Corporation, who live here in Charlotte. We got to hang out for about an hour, which was so wonderful. I have always been a bit of a daddy's girl, so time spent with him is always a pleasure, though it made me miss my entire family tremendously. Of course, seeing as I had just left the farm from our hack, I was still in breeches and half-chaps, and leave it to me - I ended up meeting the CEOs of two MAJOR aerospace and technology corporations...while covered in horse hair. Ahh, there is something to be said for remaining true to yourself!!! Needless to say, they were the most gracious and genuine people, and their wives' gave me the warmest hugs when we all departed. If only we could all have a taste of the jet-setting life my daddy gets to live!
Sunday rolled around, and I treated myself to a lazy day. I slept in, hung around and watched tv, finished a Jodi Picoult novel, and then eventually rolled out to the barn. I organized the hay and storage shed, cleaned up the feed room, unloaded the latest grain purchase. Robyn and I ran to buy lime and starter fertilizer to put down before the four days of rain that is supposed to start today, and when Randon was spreading it, we went to ride our two. I had an awesome ride on April We have been working REALLY hard to master the walk, and we almost nailed it within about two minutes of getting started. I was determined to get the walk perfected before moving on, and while there is still room for improvement, there was a huge progression during that ride. It came from really focusing hard on inside leg to outside rein, and not reverting back to the inside rein. Kelsey had preached that throughout my entire ride on Friday, so I made sure I focused on it during my entire ride. We worked on a little counterbend at the w
alk and trot, and she was lovely, and I even got a little haunches in as well! I can't resist playing with some of these things, although I know I am skipping a little ahead. It is too cool to have a horse with so much knowledge! We did a bunch of work without stirrups as well, and my legs are still aching as a result.
After finishing up, we had a little extra grooming time to work on manes - both April's and Samson's. I absolutely adore my horses. I gave my second shot yesterday too, the last of April's fall shots (they have to be spread out) and she was a gem! Then it was back to the evening routine - cleaning stalls, rinsing and filling water buckets, throwing hay, raking the aisle, and setting up morning grain. There is so much solace in the little routines of life. And who wouldn't love being greeted by these sweet faces in the morning???
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