We rode in the indoor arena again today. Steen wasn’t quite as energetic as he was last ride, and he was thinking a little more than I would have liked about going to the middle of the arena and standing still. This is habit that surfaces now when we ride indoors. Basically what it amounts… Read more »
Not-Highly-Exciting Video
Home to Winter
After our weeks in sunny Arizona, getting back to Iowa (where there is snow on the ground and temps have been in the teens) has been a bit of an… adjustment. Between the backlog of work-related tasks and some work we’re having done on the house, we had an unusually busy week and didn’t manage… Read more »
Little Ones
It’s apparently been our week to do new things with the horses. Today our friend Adele brought her two sons out to meet Steen and Bear. Ben had been out before, several years ago, back when he was tiny and Steen was rather a less steady creature. Now he’s quite a big bigger and more… Read more »
Wednesday’s Ride
For one solid week Bear got a lot of rest with only a couple of super light rides. I continued to give him lots of back massages and hind end stretches during this time. I was hopeful he would be feeling at least somewhat better when we went out on Wednesday, but I was also… Read more »
The New Guy
It’s been a busy week. Between catching up with my sister, riding, and horse-shopping, the time has been flying. On May 1st we drove south of town to check out a breeder with several young Quarter Horses for sale. We walked out into the pasture and soon we had seven or eight friendly horses a… Read more »
Hackamore Heaven
I love it when the horses are out in the big pasture. I love that they get to live in such a great space. I love the view we get as we’re walking out to get them. I love tromping through the grass and seeing what the herd is up to. What I don’t love quite as… Read more »
An Attempt at a Quiet Ride
Today we were going to have a quiet ride. Steen and Bear are both a little worn out because we’ve been riding sooo much. They were down in the bottom of the pasture when we arrived at the barn. Lately we’ve been making them hop over the drainage ditch when they’re down there. It’s not… Read more »
He’s Big Bear
He’s iron tough. Sort of. At other times he’s a big softy. And he hates walking on gravel. Still, the minute I learned his name was Bear, this song popped into my head. We couldn’t have written a better song for him. Big Bear 2010-2011 from Robin D on Vimeo. Today’s ride didn’t really look… Read more »
Good Boys
Today I rode both our horses, one after the other. I rode Bear first. After our few days of slowly coming to understand each other, I wanted to try him in the saddle again. And I have to say he was completely awesome from the start. He felt relaxed and his mobility was definitely no… Read more »
A Romp and a Lesson
We had a warm day today with temps in the 30’s. Brian and I figured the barn would be quiet this afternoon so we headed out with a plan. I’m going to attempt to give Brian a ‘real’ lesson once a week. Of course I’m always around to offer advice and lend a hand, but… Read more »