air

Some horses just reeeally want to be with you....

....they are in your pocket....

literally....and love to play....

....in the air!!

Sunday Stills ~ the color blue

The color blue, an easy challenge until you realize no SKY pics and no archives, various shades of blue were o.k.

My favorite wine, Relax, comes in a blue bottle.

Relax, chill & unwind.

Blue Glass pendant

Blue glass pendant, hanging outside

I had fun with this challenge, absolutely love shooting glass and light!! The pendant was a gift from a coworker, it's hand blown. It changed colors with every location, made it tough picking which photos to share. View other blue Sunday Stills photos.

is that for us

We picked up some nice hay from a new supplier today, and met a great horse owner who raises/races endurance horses. It is so interesting to hear how others enjoy similar passions.

It was windy & cold, so we didn't stay too long after getting the hay loaded. We made the long trip back home, pulled into the farm and got the "is that for us" look...

Harmony

yes it is, and here's a mid-day loose hay snack...

The Muddy Girls(L-R) Resident Pony Barbie, Cierra, and Harmony

...they really love the new hay, it's good stuff!

flying lead changes

Last time we rode Koda & Nemo we could see, or in Brad's case feel, a significant change in Nemo. He was clearly using more of his rear muscles, and looked great. Brad had the smoothest ride he's ever had on Nemo.

Koda was already there the previous ride , and rode about the same. We had a bit more success on our spin work. I am still learning (and will be for a while) to feel it and put it together,. I'm trying not to be too hard on myself. I really need repetition for new things to sink into my thick skull, or at least more then 10 minutes of practice every not so often. Okay it's been twice, perhaps I should give it a few more times.

I got to thinking, how does Trainer Patty teach them to use their hind end anyways? She told me they do a lot of work with the wall, turning into it and actively backing up to strengthen those muscles. I would love to watch her train sometime, not a demo, but following the daily progression of a young horse - ideally one of ours. If only I didn't have to work...

Onto other news, our boys have started learning flying lead changes. I haven't done them in sooo long, I almost forget what it feels like to fly...almost. I love the feel of changing leads, and can't wait. I remember the progression. It's a longer learning process, and Koda is - well, proving to be Koda. I've watched him do lead changes at liberty, but if you've followed his training at all you know he doesn't just hand it over. Patty said "that darn Koda will change his front, and then draggg his back" it made us laugh. Not funny, but it's so Koda to provide a challenge. She said Nemo on the other hand seems to really enjoy them. No surprise there, he has always been more willing.

Patty also started to move our boys into a shank snaffle (with curb strap) by alternating them. I will be the first to admit, I don't know much about bits/hackmores.  Yes, I know there is gobs of controversy out there. My hubby gets frustrated, and tired of answering my repeated questions. He's a lot of great things, but teacher isn't one of them. A local book store is closing, and I've been eying up The Ultimate Book of Horse Bits by Emily Esterson. I bought it, it's always a good time to understand things better.