Memories

Ah, spring. Time for a clean sweep. Toss out the old and the broken, donate the unused but still serviceable, Ebay the good stuff. It's cathartic to do this, sometimes even fun and often a relief. Clutter follows me like a shadow. Every time I do it though, I have some feelings of melancholy.

Like this morning when my husband and I put my boys' battery operated 4-wheeler ride-ons to the curb for the trash to pick up. Yes, they were sun bleached, the batteries didn't charge well anymore and one had a broken switch so it only went backwards, not to mention my kids are too tall to sit on them comfortably but I still felt sad when I saw the garbage man heave them into the back of the truck and then they were gone.

All I could see were two smiling little boys, about 3 years old, driving around the back yard, chasing each other and having a great time. Last night, when I gingerly brought up the subject that maybe it was time to get rid of the 4-wheelers since they couldn't really ride them anymore, I was kind of shocked when they said, "yeah, you can throw them out." No hesitation. Wow.

So many memories. On my dresser I found the following pictures of my black Thoroughbred mare, Alta. She's the black horse I'm riding jumping over a fence in my profile picture. These must go back to 1998 or so. She was already retired, and probably around 20 years old. But she still looks shiny and healthy. There is hardly any graying around her muzzle. I scanned them and want to share them as you get the full range of her personality from just these 4 pictures.


That's Miss Alta to you. Yes, I am the queen and you may take my picture, now move along.


See my cuteness? You bore me so I will go to sleep now. (by the way, the red arrow points to my tack trunk, the one I had custom made with my own design of 3 horse heads on the front!)

WTF are you staring at?! If you don't have treats or scratch me in the right spot I'll show you what pisst off looks like.


Yes, pets do take after their owners. After around 16 years together, my goofy sense of humor even rubbed off on the mare!

Where did I go? LOL!

Yikes, it's been almost a month since I posted anything here! Well, it's really all good. Everything is chugging along. Rugby is continuing to do well with his training. We have our challenging moments but I work through it to get to the good stuff and we have been working at the walk under saddle with no resistance. I am so ready to trot again that I've snuck in a short trot stretch here and there towards the end of each ride. I'm trying to get together with Tony for a progress report and to get some more input for what to work on at the trot.

I am a firm believer in "things happen for a reason - we may not know the reason at the time but as with everything else time reveals all". I wasn't happy to have gotten dumped off Rugby the way I did, when I did but it sent me in search of another answer than what had worked before and forced me re-evaluate my purpose. When I put myself on Rugby's schedule and let the training reflect his needs, not necessarily my wants, it has just flowed. My method now is to always begin with lunging and groundwork. As we progress through the session I evaluate Rugby's mood, willingness to comply with my cues and his attention span. I have become good at "reading" his attitude and when I know the time is right to go under saddle, then I mount up. Sometimes the lunging beforehand will only need to be 20-30 minutes, sometimes almost an hour and occasionally we never go beyond just lunging but we've been riding almost regularly now.

A few weeks ago, circumstances forced me out of my "comfort bubble" in the little riding ring behind the barn and I had to go out into the big polo arena to work with him. There were all sorts of stimuli for him to be reactive to - the tractor grading the far end of the arena, horses coming in and out of turn-out and a teenage boy practicing his roping throws while riding his little Quarter Horse. And Rugby reacted, to the point where I figured I'd just forget about riding and just try to get something positive out of him in the groundwork. He was tearing around on the lunge, tossing in a few hump back bucks, and generally not paying attention well. When he ran, I asked him for a little more, then asked him to stop, disengage and then sent him in the other direction. I kept sending, then changing direction to get him thinking and it worked! We progressed to softer, calmer work as the edge came off and ended up with flexing and moving his haunches and shoulders around and backing up as some more riders came in for their lesson. I then walked Rugby over to where the mounting block was and let him hang out and watch the other horses starting to warm up. At this point he was so focused and settled that I changed my mind, we'd give riding a try. I bridled him, mounted up and rode amidst the lesson. Rugby was happy to calmly work with the other horses and we had a great ride!

I am loving this big horse more and more. Dare I say - he's cuddlier than even Monty was. He will even come over to the feed door opening in his stall wall and give a horsey smooch if you make kissy noises while standing there. He gives me a kiss goodnight with his big wiggly snoot each time before I leave.

My children have also made great strides! One boy is now off the lunge line and rides and steers the lesson pony around at the walk and trot and his brother is in the process of leaving the lunge as well. It's thrilling and scary as hell to watch them get their independence. When they are on the lunge, at least the instructor has the last word with the pony, now it's all up to my boys what the outcome will be. It's kind of funny, because almost simultaneously they have left their training wheels behind on their bikes and are now whizzing around the yard on two wheels. They can even kick off from a standing start! To see the look of pride on a child's face when they "find their wings" continues to be one of the most joyous moments of being a parent. (Then of course, reality pokes you in the butt when same child is whining about not wanting to do their homework!)

Homework - ahh, 1st grade has brought more of that. Math every night which they whiz through and then the writing and spelling in which we deal with staying focused in order to get it done. And so far only English, I'm waiting for the Spanish homework but that's my husband's forté, LOL.

So, that's what's been goin' on these days. Below are some pictures of my boys in recent riding lessons. They are riding at the same time, each with his own instructor and in a separate round pen.
Working on the trot. I love that both boys try very hard to post with only their seat and legs, they only touch the pony's mouth when asking for a "whoa".

Working on his position. Nice straight back and good hands! A little more heels down, please!

First time riding off the lunge line. My son and his favorite lesson pony being watched by "The Master". Go kid, go!

My son's boot heels have finally grown past the flap of the saddle. Now he has to learn that when he squeezes the pony he doesn't have to press through the saddle flaps to get a response!

I feel like I'm always training someone

Last night was a different sort of training session. Rugby got a night off. My husband and I took our twins to the park and they both began learning how to ride their bicycles without training wheels. Ah, another milestone.

We took them to the park because my husband read in one of his cycling magazines that the easiest way to learn 'em was to lower the bike seats so they could get their feet on the ground instantly, take them to a small hill and let them roll down the hill with their feet up and practice keeping their balance while the bike is moving. Then if they got wobbly all they had to do was put their feet down to stop. As they kept doing it, they got better and better and we kept working towards starting the ride with their feet on the pedals and then having them keep pedaling into the grass field after they went down the hill.

At the end of an hour, they were sweaty and exhausted but had their feet on the pedals and managed to go a while without dumping the bikes. It was awesome! They earned their ice pops from the ice cream truck afterward!

The Boyz of Summer...

So the summer is progressing. My boyz have completed the half day athletic camps organized by the school and in addition, I have found lots to do with the kids after work to make it fun. Now I have them going to the little summer camp run by the preschool/child care they used to go to. I know they are the oldest kids there but the teachers are especially fond of them, they are close to home, it's safe and I can afford the 3 days a week they go for half days. I have a good relationship with their pre-school teacher and she's amazed at how far they have advanced since she last saw them.

As well as having fun and lots of free time I'm now trying to steer a little back toward keeping up the academic gains acquired in kindergarten so they don't walk into school in September and wonder how to write a short sentence. So my idea is to have them do "assignments" from the workbooks I bought them for over the summer and their pre-school teacher will check and grade them. She thought that was an excellent idea and I think it's not too much since they are only at camp 3 days a week. The rest of the week they hang out and play at home.

So I pulled out the handwriting workbooks and we played "school" last night. I chose 3 pages of writing tasks and they sat at their desks and I was "mommy teacher" while they did the assignment. When they finished and we folded up the desks and chairs, they asked when I would be lining them up for dismissal. I asked, "dismissal? why" and they told me that when school was over, they clean up and the teacher walks them out to the busses for dismissal. Okay, I played along and they marched behind me outside to the driveway.

Then I told them our SUV was the bus. And they piled in. Now they wanted to know where we were going on our field trip. And I told them to the library. They were thrilled that the "game" had taken on a reality that was becoming more and more fun.

So I grabbed my keys, their book bag for the summer reading club and my husband and we went on a family field trip to the library!

I love to see them learn and am constantly amazed at how accelerated learning is from when I was a child. I know there are all kinds of things marketed at parents to raise a "super-baby" - you know, a kid who is potty trained by a year, can read novels at 2, write a thesis at 3 and by 4 speaks 6 languages fluently. So at work today, I kept hearing advertisements on our studio radio for Your Baby Can Read. And I laughed. If you've seen the TV commercials, it shows a product guaranteed to have your child reading before nursery school. I haven't used the product, my kids are past the age level of the product so I have no way of knowing if it would have made a difference for my boyz. But I just started thinking, "What next? Your Baby can Vote? Your Baby can Drive? Your Baby can figure out your Taxes?". I love my boyz and have always worked to read to them (and they both love books) and help maintain what they learn in school. But why can't kids just be kids and grow up a little slower? Does it really matter if they can read at 5th grade level when they are just finished with kindergarten? I'm not saying hold them back but the world is spinning so fast. Is it so wrong to see childhood not as a competitive sport for parents but as the most carefree and wondrous part of life?

The English Cowboys

My boyz had their riding lessons yesterday afternoon. They just love to ride. I can't get them dressed to go anywhere else without a fight yet if I tell them to get their breeches on for their lesson they zoom upstairs and are ready to go in seconds.

There is a pony named Buddy that one of the boyz is just smitten with. This is a cute, little, fat, white pony who is generally well mannered but still has the usual cranky pony moments (such as when having the girth tightened). To see the look of love on my son's face when he's around this pony gives me such joy. The other boy doesn't care which pony he's given to ride, as long as it's fun.

They have a natural seat, their heels are almost always down without thinking about it and they have good rhythm in picking up a posting trot. I'm guessing we are almost another month or two away from totally independent hands (no "cheating" by holding the pommel of the saddle when posting or using the reins to brace against). They are still on the lunge line and that's just fine but the steering is improving, too.

When we went to the swap meet a few weeks ago they both bought cowboy hats from a friend of mine. Now it's what they wear to their lessons. They arrive in little breeches, paddock boots and half chaps with their cowboy hats on and their helmets and gloves in hand. The helmets go on for the lesson and as soon as they dismount, they ask for the cowboy hat and hand me the helmet. Then off they run to jump ground poles and ride imaginary horses. My English Cowboys.

I wonder if the ones who should have had the next equine in the family are them. Perhaps what I should have bought or leased was an aged pony with a bunch of miles on it for them to enjoy.

Well, it's a Big Deal to Me!

One of my children's homework assignments this week was an index card with 6 holes punched in a dice formation on it and a piece of yarn laced into the holes like a shoe. The project was to practice tying a "shoelace". Every night's homework was to do a lesson and practice tying the shoelace. On the second night, D suddenly became very focused and gave that task his full attention. With my slow and careful demonstration, he kept at it and by about the 6th try, he had it figured out! He then went on to keep retying the shoelace and show everyone in the house he could do it!

I was SO proud of him! And I couldn't understand why no one else was getting as excited as I was. C'mon! Tying a shoelace is really a hard skill to learn, I recall it being a pain in the @$$ when I had to learn it and he got it down after about 10 minutes! I told him to show his teacher in class the next day that he could do it. So when he came home from school, I asked if he demonstrated his new skill and what she thought. He said, "yeah, I did it but she didn't say anything." HELLO - my son can tie a shoelace, praise is in order here!

So although I may be the only one to see this as a huge milestone, it's a big deal to me that one of my kids can tie a shoelace!

My boyz riding lessons were cancelled last night (again). It's just too d@mn cold. The trainers agreed it was too icy and cold even with the indoor to teach so they cancelled all the lessons. So much for that. I think the last time they rode was before Christmas. This winter has been too cold for too long...

Call Me Catch Rider

Yesterday I went back to the stable where I kept Monty. I chose the time of day most of my friends would be there. It was great. They were my best support group (thanks guys! and thanks to all who gave me great support here on the blog as well!). Even seeing Monty's empty stall didn't affect me in a bad way. Sure it was a little melancholy but nothing overwhelming.

My goal was to take my friend D. up on her offer to ride her big Thoroughbred mare, Belle. She told me that I could ride the mare anytime and I was doing her a favor as the mare wasn't getting much work. Belle has been a sale horse for awhile now. The first time I saw her under saddle, I thought she looked like she would make a great field hunter. She's a big girl, about 17 hands and a color I like to call a "basic" bay - which means all brown, no white markings and black mane, tail and points.

I lugged my tack from my locker down to the barn at the other end of the property and saddled Belle in the stall. I was pleasently surprised that all of my tack fit her with no adjustments, even the bridle! She's a real quiet, friendly mare. I didn't know what to expect but everyone who has ridden her in the past said she's a sweet girl. The part I found amusing was as I tightened the girth, she made a cranky face and turned her head to me. I laughed and called her a rookie, I knew that move. My old mare, Alta had that move down (and in addition, would have tried to take a chunk out of my arm faster than a shark). I gently pushed her head back and told her don't try it. She tried once more as I tightened the girth another hole, I pushed her cheek away and she gave it up after that.

It was frigid cold yesterday. All I managed to do was walk Belle around in the plowed driveway as none of the other areas for riding were any better. I liked that she wasn't overly sensitive to the leg and seat as some Thoroughbreds are. We just did some bending and stretching at the walk. It was a weird feeling to be on a different horse but she was a good first "catch ride". After about 20 minutes my thighs were so frozen they were stinging. I had to quit.

I packed up my gear after tucking Belle in. As I was leaving, I had a bittersweet moment where out of habit I started for my jar of horse cookies to give Monty a few more before I left and I stopped myself. That was my routine, after packing my tack back in my locker I always topped him off with a few cookies to say goodbye. I would have walked a few horse cookies down to Belle but I don't yet know what D.'s policy is on treats with her.

"sigh" I need a horse.

Today I was supposed to go see a horse about 15-20 miles away in my county here in NY. But it was snowing this morning and I cancelled due to the roads not having been cleared well yet. Instead, the whole family piled into the SUV and went close by to the town park to go sledding! The snow was perfect, the hill was awesome and my kids had a blast with their plastic snow saucers. I think the wipe-outs made them laugh more than the zooming down the big hill! Good times.

Tonight I should have video of a Thoroughbred gelding I found on horse.com. I came across his ad last night and can't explain it but I got very excited over him. I spoke with the wife of the farm owner where he is at and liked the vibe I got from her. My husband spoke with her husband today and they are looking through their video of him to send me the best of what they have. He's stabled about 4 hours away from me. If the video keeps me interested, I want to see this horse when I return from my next business trip, which is this coming weekend in Houston, TX. I hope he's what I'm looking for.

The Hermit Crabs are Here!

Yesterday was the graduation celebration for my pre-school boys! The party was oh-so cute and my guys had a blast. Well, they held me to my throw-away promise of buying them hermit crabs as their graduation gift.

Seems we were in PetSmart weeks ago buying kibble for the dogs when they made their rounds of the fish and reptiles aisle. They found the tank with the hermit crabs and of course the ones with the brightly painted shells caught their eye. After the usual please,please,please I told them no, but maybe I would buy them each a crab for a graduation gift. Of course, I'm figuring graduation is weeks away and by then something else will catch their eye.

Nope.

I got hit with the hermit crab request the morning before. Of course I had forgotten all about it but not them. Oookay, I did promise. So right after the party, I took them to the pet store and they picked out their new crabby companions. We now have one with an American flag and eagle painted on it's shell and the other sporting a nifty Spiderman web logo. I have since gone online and researched the little critters.

Oh boy, what have we gotten into? And why do these things always start out simple and then get so complicated? Why? I know why, 'cause I'm a sucker for trying to keep a living thing properly. What should have been a simple excursion into crab ownership has become guessing proper humidity, making sure water is safe and crab-quality, figuring out what they like to eat and correct handling procedure.

Handling. LOL, H learned his lesson why they are called crabs - he just wouldn't stop messing with them. Even after I told him repeatedly to leave them alone and just watch them through the tank until they got settled into their new habitat. I went into the other room to look something up online when I hear a yelp and then a plop. The yelp was my son, the plop was the crab falling onto the couch. I asked what happened and he looked at me with such shock and said, "he pinched me!!", then showed his bloodied fingertip. And I, being the sympathetic mom that I am, gently plucked the crab from the couch and placed him back in his home, then chastised my son the whole time we washed the cut, dried it and bandaged it with neosporin. Guess the only lessons my guys learn are the hard ones, I TOLD him to leave the crab alone!

(by the way, the crab is doing just fine :)

Preschool Opinion...

My son, D was pestering me the other morning to "take him somewhere". Which means, the park, the store or anywhere because home was "boring". I told him I was busy, we would go out later and to settle down and watch some cartoon on PBS.

To which I received this reply, "Aww mom, I don't want to watch lame educational programs".

"Lame?" Great, a 5 year old who calls things, "lame". I thought stuff like "lame" didn't come up until they were older. (And when did he learn the word "educational"?) I guess those shows don't cut it after you watch the stuff on Discovery Channel, Animal Planet and the History Channel. This is a kid who enjoys watching the evening news. I don't even watch the evening news. I remember being entertained by Sesame Street at his age. When did 5 become 15?

If he thinks life is "lame" now, wait until he hits the big K, the 'Garden, you know, K-I-N-D-E-R-G-A-R-D-E-N.