Summer 2013: wrapping it all up

Doesn't this happen every summer - we feel like it flew past in a flash!  We had a lot of fun this summer and I'm grateful to all my riders for coming to me for riding lessons.  Some of you have been regulars for awhile now, while others were here to try something new.  It's been energizing and challenging for me, and my horses look pretty happy too!

Some of you young people will be starting high school this year, and meeting new people.  There's a good chance you could meet somebody who shares your favourite horse!  As a few of my riders discovered, I know A LOT of people around here, so don't be surprised if the kid beside you in math class has a picture of a speckled horse in his or her locker!

I'm looking to hearing about your back to school adventures when you're here for your next ride.

Soon we'll be settling into a fall schedule, but in the meantime, keep in mind that the New Hamburg Fall Fair is holding four Western classes this year!  This will take place on Saturday 14th at about 1:00pm.  I won't be competing, but I will be there helping out.  Please come watch the show and come say hi to me!  The more spectators, the more likely to have a bigger better show next year.

Mackenzie at her first lesson

Our first Farm Day, relaxing in the tree house at the end of the day

Getting ready to ride

An all girls Farm Day

Selina practicing her one handed riding

Baby turkeys!

And baby chicks!

New saddle racks this summer - the barn improvements continue!

Copper dressed up for Farm Day

A Farm Day afternoon in the old camper, making prize ribbons

Barn swallows in the nest before they moved out

"Butch"

"Rawhide" and "Roadrash"

Laura with two well dressed horses

Mackenzie and friends after a lesson

If anybody has pictures you'd like to see here, you can email me the pictures and I'll put them up.  I'm working on a wall of pictures in the tack room too, so keep me in mind if you're getting prints done.

More Farm Day Fun

Three kids and two horses???  

It can work!  It takes a lot of stirrup adjusting and keeping track, but everybody got to ride each horse a couple times.  This little group of outlaws consists of brother, sister and cousin.  Maybe all good outlaws are family, eh?  

Getting ready to ride off into the sunshine. (Check out the cowgirl with one hand on the reins!)

Hey, it was very dusty that day.  The bandannas are functional!

Aw yeah, nailed the ol' stick-in-the-barrel!

Second ride for the this young fella, first time over the poles!

Butch, Rawhide, and Roadrash, all gussied up!!

They're each wearing a few of my own clothes, which makes me realize... wow, I really do get to play cowboy dress up everyday!  

My little ranch dog is in on it too.  Don't they all look ready to hit the trail?

But since it was hot, and the horses had already put in a couple hours work (these two have no idea how hard some other horses work!) we hit the trail by taking a walk around the pasture, to check the fence, see how the ducks and turkeys and chickens are doing, and of course, stop by for a quick visit.  

Dang fun way to spend a day.

kids, horses, and a box of sidewalk chalk

It just makes riding that little bit more fun.

Fun at the Farm

We had our first "Farm Day" this week.  Four of my young riders joined me for a ride in the morning, then stuck around after lunch for some extra fun until their parents came to take them home.  

Our ride wasn't an ordinary riding lesson though.  First we painted the horses with happy faces, handprints, hearts, lightning bolts, racing stripes, and extra spots!  These horses loved the attention and stood calmly while they were transformed into equine works of art.  

These two sets of siblings made great teams.  We had a walk-and-ride scavenger hunt, in which the kids took turns being the riders and the searchers.  They really knocked me out with their excellent team work!  

You might be able to tell from the bright cloudless sky that it was extremely hot that day.  After unsaddling the horses, we gave each of them a nice cooling shower, complete with a proper shampoo to wash the decorations off.  

I'd planned on staying out all day, enjoying lunch at the picnic table under a big shade tree, but by noon, we were all ready to get out of the sun for awhile.  After cooling off in the house, we headed back outside.  First we put down some hay, then drew pictures under the shade tree, and got distracted by a few wandering hens who'd escaped the coop in the backyard.  (The chickens are being raised here by a friend of the family, and as you can see, are very friendly critters.)  

We also got to spend some time with our dog, Dobby the Pug.  (Yes he was named after Dobby the House Elf!)  It was rather hot for a Pug but he bravely panted his way though all the attention.  

The afternoon slipped by and soon it was home time.  As promised, I sent all the kids home dirty.  And happy.  

I'm looking forward to more of these days throughout the summer!

   

Summer 2012

This has been an excellent summer. I feel pretty lucky to have such dedicated and enthusiastic riders, and I adore my horses.   I love my job!

Here are pictures of a few of my students. 

Thank you to everybody who gave permission to have pictures on my site! 

I'm so proud of all my riders who are remembering one of my Most Important Rules of Riding... SMILE!

Sadie, age 12, with Phoenix

Sadie was my first student when I set up here three years ago

Laura, age 9 (almost 10!) with Copper

We girls don't melt in the rain

Selina, age 18, with Oakie

we don't melt in the heat either, even if we think we might

Rukhsana, age 9, with Oakie

Laika, age 14, with Phoenix

Daniel, age 12, with Phoenix

Lucas, age 14, with Oakie

Victoria, age 8, with Copper

Victoria & Copper, Daniel & Phoenix, Lucas & Oakie

Laura & Copper

Rukhsana & Phoenix, Laika & Copper

These sisters wore matching outfits and rode matching horses

 Hey grown-up riders -- prepare to smile for the camera, you're next here!