And so we are in 2022 ... and all he needs are trailrides and cookies

 What can I say? I 'survived' my birthday, Christmas, and Silvester (New Year's) and didn't fall into a deep depression, for which I am very grateful. It's the 'village' around me that keeps me going, between my animals, friends, neighbors, and family I am carried in this storm (I deliberately say "in" as I'm not "through" and I may never will). 

Chambord had me worried, for a few days he didn't want to eat his food and he seemed lethargic and depressed. My wonderful vet did a thorough check up, and it turns out that clinically he is in perfect shape. I have several pages of results to prove it. Jen to the rescue! Turns out all he needed was TLC, trailrides, and Jen's home baked horse cookies😊

The boys are on high alert for Jen's cookies

Remy thinks he needs to 'liven up' the trailrides, and puts in some of his shenanigans. Nothing serious though, I guess it's more for entertainment. He has been working really well in our lesson with Vanessa. The frequency has been a bit hit and miss, as I am not trailering when it's snowing, or if the roads are icy. And yes, I'm a bit of a wuss, when the temps are low teens Fahrenheit or below I opt out. It will be Spring eventually. Also, my perspective has definitely changed. I don't sweat the small stuff so much anymore. I used to fret a lot along the lines of:  "OMG, we won't be able to exercise, we'll never be moving up.." And you know what? It really doesn't matter!

Happy New Year everyone!

Trying to find the 'new normal' - and sticking to trail riding for now

 In a few days it will be two months 💔. There times when I'm doing ok and times it's like a wave of pain and grief swallows me. But there is no choice - I have to keep on going. And I know that I am incredible fortunate to have a few very good -and rather 'new'- friends, and neighbors, that help tremendously. JP always worried should something happen to him how I would make it alone without good friends and family nearby. People are surprising (ok, that's nothing new), the ones you think you could count on text once and that's it, and others you barely know jump in and are becoming your rock.  Of course, there are always exceptions to the rule - old friends in Germany that stick with you no matter what - and distance be damned!

The tractor was JPs pride and joy, but I just couldn't get myself to use (or even look at it). My neighbors Howie and Kourtney took it to their place, advertised it, and sold it for me. I was looking for a John Deere Gator (or Kubota, Polaris, etc). but literally there is nothing available. The local dealer said "perhaps August 2022" - well, that doesn't help me through the winter. Luckily Laurel volunteered to call all over Michigan, and low and behold she found a dealer in Comstock Park that had ONE fully loaded Gator. I knew that the USEF (United States Equestrian Federation) offered a discount but doubted that with the shortage it would be applied. Surprise: The nice lady at the USEF arranged it directly with the dealership.

My new Gator
delivered by the owner of the Four Seasons Yard and Sport Dealership

The boys haven't had a lot of serious work but that's OK. I feel somewhat 'normal' on the trails in the park, and luckily Chambord has his fans, so I have company. Remy needs to go back on a program, though, he is looking for all kinds of excuses to let off steam on the trails. Once Vanessa is back from Nationals I am so looking forward to get back into the swing of things. I do dread winter, but may have found a home for at least one of the boys for the harshest months of January and February. If not, we all just hibernate! One step at a time...

'Flecti Non Frangi' - Warrior and Broken Mess

 A dear friend gave me a talisman with a raven that reads 'Flecti Non Frangi''. It's Latin and means 'To be Bent not Broken'. According to the description: "It refers to one who can endure hardship yet still remain true to themselves. The raven signifies hope and is believed to have keen vision that pierces through all darkness. " Let's hope it's true!

Right now, what makes me get up in the morning are my eight dependents. You can't stay under the covers when you have horses, dog, and cats to be fed and watered, stalls and litter boxes to be cleaned, dog walked, horses ridden....

The boys enjoying a nice fall day

Ziggy and Jerry like to snuggle together

This sums it up:

"L'amour - toujours l'amour" (what Georges used to say every time he saw us)

 

"Es ist ein Augenblick und alles wird verwehn"
- Eduard Moerike

He now has a spring in his step - and how's that for German quality?

 Remy has been going really well lately (knock on wood!), and he is developing a very nice spring in his step (suspension) in the trot. He sometimes feels like a completely different horse -in a good way! So much so that I jokingly asked Vanessa yesterday "who is this and what happened to my horse??". Remy is happy and very proud of himself. While I still sometimes feel like the kid that has to repeat a class or two (common in the German school system, no 'socially passed' happening there) I am happy that we finally seem to find our groove. Jenn, who's always supportive and a great sounding board, reminded me that Morgans were bred for groundcover, they had to be smooth and efficient in order to make good cavalry mounts. 'Springy steps' do not lead to accuracy in battle, I guess.  

So it's neat to feel the bounce in the trot, all the while he is going freely forward. This weekend, though, we are not going forward. We are under a heat advisory and it's so miserably hot and humid that riding has been suspended. Remy lounges with his friends under the fan in the run in shed, snacking on hay, or sauntering a bit around the pastures before coming back into the shade. Not a bad gig, he says. 

Yesterday, I carried a change of "clothes on ice" in a cooler to my appointments to help me stay cool. 

"Shirt on ice"

Luckily most barns have fans in front of the stalls, but some only have them in the aisles, and they don't help much when working with a horse in a stall. Tomorrow I'll start bright and early to beat the heat. 

While cleaning my every day Koenigs riding boots I happened to glance at the stamp "Made in West-Germany". A quick calculation revealed that these boots pre-date 1990 (Germany's reunification was in 1990). The are from the pre-zipper era, no muss no fuss. Talk about German quality! They are also a reminder of my dad - the boots were a gift from my parents during their first visit to the US. These boots can fall apart and they will still be with me. 

I wear them several times a week, on and off the horse. Remy and I are so efficient: He travels to our lessons wearing his saddle on the trailer, and I drive in my riding boots. 

The "West" tells that they were made in or before 1990

Still looking great - after all these years of almost daily wear

A confidence restoring weekend - and "Bummer - no need for Guinness!"

 Roz and Jenn were right on: Remy and I enjoyed the clinic with Bill McMullin. We learned a lot, and had our challenges, but it was always in a very positive manner. First assessment was the warm up. I had opted for the double bridle, as it keeps Remy's attention a bit better and he has less of a tendency to blow me off. Bill commented on how straight Remy was in all three gaits and how well he is taking the big (nice, even contact, closed lips). From there we went to lots of suppling exercises, such as three steps travers, three steps shoulder in, etc. in preparation for the half pass. Loved the tips of thinking shoulder fore in the halt, and also rein back, in order to keep Remy straight. 

Second day I was a bit worried as we had to warm up in the arena with a stallion. Remy can get quite worked up if there is a "manly man" around. This one was the cutest guy ever, a Welsh breeding stallion expertly ridden by a dressage professional. This time Remy looked but didn't loose his cool. We focused on canter half-pass to counter canter. That definitely is our week spot, as I let Remy "die" in the counter canter (remembering some bucks he can throw in when he thinks that's not how it should be done). It didn't help that there was a window at the short side with lots of interesting things going on outside - thought Remy. "Hey, what's going on? Who's that horse? Just let me have a look!" And boom, we lost it. Guess we know our homework! 

I did hold my breath a bit when I saw Bill reaching for a longe whip to tap Remy's hind leg for better crossing in the half-pass. No worries, he was very kind a patient, and Remy had no issues with that approach. 

It definitely was a bonus to have the view of the judge interwoven with the exercises. For example, Bill asked not only to the rider but also the audience about the training scale, he explained the difference between turns on the haunches in Third Level versus pirouettes in Forth Level. 

This weekend restored my faith in clinics. After each ride both of us were happy and relaxed, not completely exhausted and dejected (me more than Remy). However, Remy had a serious gripe afterwards "Bummer - no need for Guinness!" Sorry, buddy, I didn't make it to the liquor store, and you really didn't need it...here, have a banana instead 😋

It was super nice to have Jenn as 'groom' (more precisely Moral Support Person) on Saturday. JP and Ziggy did the Sunday 'duty'. Ziggy would have preferred to chase the birds, but having the auditors lavish attention on him came a close second - both he and JP lapped it up 😀

Jenn is the Para-Dressage coach at TRI, and she and I are on the same page when it comes to riding and training (and it doesn't hurt our relationship that she loves Morgans!). Best compliment I got in a long time: "Really nice to see kind, correct riding. Well done!"

"It's like boiling water" - and yay, I got the shirt!

My apologies to the friend that checks my blogs to see how I'm doing... I haven't written in a while. Busy times, all good, and often too tired to type. Catching up now, and I promise to get back into the swing of things, Ingrid!

Remy and I have had our ups and downs in our lessons, nothing dramatic, just some days are better than others. Do I wish we were further along? You bet! But then I'm honest with myself and admit that I'm not a 'five or six-days-a week dressage' person - and neither is Remy's horsey mind. And sometimes I'm just plain tired from 'wrestling' horses that can be up to 18 hands, weighing close to 1,800 pounds. 

When I struggled with getting Remy in front of my leg quickly enough. Vanessa came up with the analogy that "it's like boiling water - you can set the flame low and wait a long time, or put it on high right away". We are still catching up with her pace. 

Our next challenge will be a dressage clinic this weekend with Bill McMullin, a USDF judge and certified instructor. Crossing my fingers and hoping for a good experience (Remy probably crosses his hooves also), as we both are still reeling for our last experience. Usually I don't sign up with someone I haven't audited first, but in this case I do trust Roz, and Jenn, who both gave Bill the thumbs up. 

Today I was sporting a very cool IBKUL shirt that I almost ripped away from the company's owner when he presented the collection at the local tack store. I WANTED the shirt - however, it was not for sale! Luckily, the owner's wife is a happy client - and voila: Trading bodywork for sample shirt :-) 

"Anything in that pocket for me??"

Whatever happens - we are dressed to rock and roll!