This is not the buffet line! - and "he looks like he ate Pesto"

Rain and heat = overgrown trails. The rain finally abated, and now we have summer heat. It means  that the trails are quite overgrown and the grass in the open meadows is high. What's a hungry horse to do? Remy asks. Snacking, of course!

While it was lovely on the trails I had my hands full reminding Remy that we are not cruising down the buffet line. I understand, buddy, it's tempting, probably like me standing at the dessert table. So despite my best efforts Remy happily cruised along with his snacks. At one point JP glanced over and quipped "he looks like he ate Pesto" (What does that tell you? JP is a foodie*!).

We did have a good week training, and so a bit of goofing off on the trails is easy to accept. I was very happy that Remy kept it together when a runner surprised us by coming up behind and not saying a word, thus startling Remy. She was lucky that he doesn't kick, and that I have a decent seat. Otherwise at least one of us would have gotten her!

*Foodie: A person with a particular interest in food; a gourmet.

Land Under Water - and "the work helps him to settle"

OK, Michigan weather is unpredictable, we all know this. But lately we just seem to have rain, rain, and then some more of that. It's been "Land Under Water" for way too long. I felt bad for the competitors at the show, slushing around in the water. Even though the footing at Waterloo is good, with the deluge lots of people were scratching their classes.

Remy settled in nicely, walked around and behaved like a champ. No sign of nervousness at all. So when the time was right (in our case it means the warm up arena was almost devoid of other riders) I took a deep breath and in we went. Remy looked around but then settled into the work. As Roz puts it "the work helps him to settle". We do have a warm up routine that seems to work well. After walk, trot, some shoulder-ins, half-passes, and canters we called it a success and a day! Yay!

It was also very rewarding for me that my clients' horses responded well to their bodywork sessions. Especially one horse improved considerably and that made me very happy. It's also remarkable (for me) how working on the horses calms me down. Win-Win all around.

Now... how about that sunshine??

"Zwergenaufstand", long lining - and tips for the trailer

Our recent lessons were a mixed bag, mostly good, but one day Remy decided he had to voice his opinion about the changes. As Roz puts it "he is allowed to his opinions, but he is not allowed to voice them too strongly". And sure enough, I had to deal with a "Zwergenaufstand" (unnecessary fuss) during our changes on the long side, all of a sudden, I found myself in the midst of some serious bucks. Really, Remy?? Thank you, one rein stop.

Next day we went to long lining, and Roz showed me where the problem was: Remy did not like the idea of being straight on the left rein. Interestingly, when Roz gets on he's perfectly fine, if it's me the little stinker still tries to see if I'm serious about the whole thing. "You mean, I really should listen?? and even do what you say??". Ah, yes, buddy, that's the idea!

Roz and I went to audit a long lining clinic, it was interesting but not anything new to our program. I was surprised to see the clinician working with all the horses himself, instead of the participants being schooled. It's good to see how it's done, but then once you get home how will you recreate it if you've never practiced it?

This week Thursday through Saturday it will be "take your horse to work days". I have clients at the Waterloo show and Remy gets to hang out there. Glenda is coming with Boomer, so we both have great company. The idea is for Remy and me to stay chill, enjoy, and tackle our -MY- Waterloo (Nomen est Omen??) phobia.

With travel comes trailering, and the question how best to feed hay during a  trip. Our straight load trailer came with hay feeders, but the boys used to root through them and a lot of hay ended up on the floor. Hanging vertical hay bags puts the hay too close to their faces and can cause allergies and breathing issues.

Voila - Enter JP's brilliant and easy solution: Hay bags clipped in horizontally!

A small, sturdy hay bag (this one is from SmartPak) clipped in horizontally. The horses have to lower their heads (which is healthier), it keeps them busy, and there is less waste: Win-Win!

Another great idea, this one from US Rider, is to have emergency information in your trailer. If you have an accident and are incapacitated, who should the Emergency Responders contact? Who is authorized to make decisions? We have this completed form taped to the tack room door.

Should have known better - and the resident chouchoteur has the anwer

Sunday's trailride didn't exactly turn out as expected, Remy was uncharacteristically nervous and jumpy. His back felt so tight that I hopped off and led him for part of way. It was nice enough when we left home, but then the weather changed and it became quite stormy. I thought the guys could handle it, as I just had observed them on Saturday standing out in the pasture quietly grazing in thunder and lightning! 

My resident horse chouchoteur (whisperer) pointed out that of course the horses are quieter in a familiar setting with the option to seek shelter at the barn. Quite different on the trails when all off a sudden it looks like someone turned the lights off and put the fan setting on 'high'. Duh!

I didn't want to leave it on a shaky note, so today, instead of heading to our dressage lesson we hit the trails again. The sun was shining, all was nice and quiet - and sure enough, so were the four of us. Didn't need a chouchoteur to figure that one out...

And here is a special note for Michael: MY Remy drinks well water straight out of a hose - while YOUR Remy sips Veuve Cliquot out of Baccarat flutes ...LOL!

Remy says "A manly man drinks straight out of a hose... but I wouldn't mind trying some bubbly!"

A week in pictures - with quite a few "Whews"!

Out in our 'extended backyard' Kensington - where we found out that the boys are "Turkey Proof". Whew!

JP and Chambord are doing a good job over ground poles

Until Chambord decides he needs to spice things up. JP stayed on and with him. Whew!
 (picture: Norman Thelwell)

Still not enough 'spice' for JP: This is what I saw when I came home! "Whew" was replaced by "WT*???"

My friend Stephanie affectionately calls him "das franzoesische Kletteraeffchen*"

A good week training for us: Remy and I have enough spice, thank you very much! Back to "Whew"!

*"A little French tree-climbing monkey"

"Bring the saddle up" - and easing into the swing of things

Even though I still feel like I'm in a fog the good news is I am functioning again. Mainly, I am just VERY tired, all the emotional stress is taking its toll. I do feel guilty because Michael has to carry the brunt of the work (due to the fact he lives close by and I'm an ocean away). Hard to fathom how elderly people deal with the myriad of complicated issues after the death of a spouse without help.

On the home front Remy has benefitted a lot from me being gone... actually, I am reaping the benefits of Roz' work. I can use very light aids and Remy just floats over correctly in the half-passes. His flying changes are more 'up' and expressive. Last week we had a nice, sunny day (still not a common occurrence in our neck of the woods) and both Remy and I enjoyed being able to work in the spacious outdoor arena. It was the first time outdoors (in Michigan) this year. Yay!

We are working on clearer transitions within the gaits, i.e. from very collected trot (almost half-steps) to extended. A cool exercise is starting the half-passes very collected then increasing the pace, then bringing him back.

Remy's canter is a lot of fun, and we are getting the right lead (his weaker side) to be more balanced and supple. A few steps of leg yield in really do help with the straightness. My tight back is often an issue -not enough swing-, and I also revert sometimes to how I was taught in the beginning: Using my back as a 'weapon'.

Roz had the perfect solution to that, she told me to "bring the saddle up", instead of pushing my seat down in the canter. And voila: We had a bounce in our step … and I felt like I could go on cantering into the sunset. But alas, we are in Michigan, and today the sun seemed to be on strike. Actually, it is so cold I pulled the down vest out again. The cold spell is probably due to the fact that I had wrapped the horses' winter blankets up to take to the cleaners.

Contrasts - Dark Times and Bright Spots

Back from a quite difficult and emotional time in Germany. I concentrated so hard on keeping my emotions in check and working with Michael, my brother, on all the open items that the implications of Emil's death haven't even caught up with me yet. I spoke at the service and to the surprise of many I did not sugar-coat his "I did it my way" attitude (the pastor said my words were "strong and honest") and carried the urn with his remains to its final resting place under a beautiful tree.

My way of coping with stress is to walk or run in the woods, and so after all was said and done I went to the "Baerensee" ('Bear Lake'). Thinking of Emil I saw the light shine through the tree and how fitting it was to the quote I chose for the obituary:

Death is the light at the end of a journey that has become too difficult

 - Franz von Assisi

In all the grief there were so many bright spots: Family and friends. That is what life is all about. Ours is a small family, and I have few truly close friends, but that is all it takes to feel love and support. 

The news from home were bright spots as well, with Remy being in Roz' care. Not only that, he also made it on the cover of the Morgan Dressage Association's newsletter:

While I will always mourn my dad I am thankful for the new-found closeness it brought to our family. And here is to bright days ahead!