no more corn for me

I ate corn chips last night after several weeks of vigilantly avoiding it.  I find myself so stopped up today that it won't be hard to convince me to stay away from it in the future.

Eating Healthy

I have been making a real effort to eat better. I have been eating more fruits and veggies, staying away from corn and dairy and not consuming many grains at all. I have been eating beans and drinking more water. Today...well, today and I didn't and I'm paying for it.  I did have fruits and veggies, but I also ate some french fries and my stomach is so upset. I guess I know that eating better really is better.

I did ground work with my horses tonight and Liberty backed in a circle. I haven't tried a figure 8 yet, b/c I could tell that one whole circle was about all his attention span had at that moment.  I'm trying to spend 10-15 minutes every day doing ground work and playing games when I don't feel like riding.  Tonka tried to be a little pushy today, but not too bad. She just moved when I wanted her to stand and did that thing where she put her hooves in her ears and went Lalalala.  However, she did circle around me once each way, even behind my back (circle game) So I can see her impulsion is improving. I also found her sweet itchy, rubbing spot. Her back gets a knot and she really likes it rubbed.  She was putty in my hands.

I'm seriously thinking of selling Fiera.  She jumped out of my arena last night. The fence is made from round pen panels.  She knocked them over, but she had to have cleared it since she wasn't the least banged up. She has jumped that fence before. She has also been regularly jumping the four foot plus fence to the back pasture.  Clearly this mare has a future.  I'm thinking of teaching her to free jump in a chute and listing her for about $5000 as a pony jumping prospect.  Or a pony club horse. I don't want to give her away as she's too talented. I thinks he would make someone a fabulous eventing horse. She's not likely to get over 15 hh.  She is just so amazing.  I hate to give her up, but my economy would be much improved by selling her.

Joe and fiera are home

We picked up Joe and Fiera home today. Joe has gotten thin but his attitude is still chipper and peppy. I turned him out with the others and Liberty doesn't want to let him join the herd. He eventually separated Fiera out and they have their own corner together bit was fun to watch the dance they did in the pasture. Liberty was never mean to Joe, he just kept trying to take Fiera from Joe. I left Joe with a bucket of Thrive and Fiera was trying to steal it. That was good because the competition helped Joe to want to eat. I will have alternate separating him to eat with being with the herd so he can be social. At least there is A lot of grass this year. His age is just catching up with him though he still has that zing that is only Joe Bear.

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Long time no blog

I realized the other day that I hadn't blogged in forever. I never mean not to blog but I get busy with life an forget. I think of something I want to write about bit then I realize that I don't have time that moment and I seem never to come back to it.

I spent this weekend at a drum training and just had a blast. I learned about frame drums, hand drums and other auxiliary instruments. I found that I was especially interested interested in the tambourine (pandiero). I was told to search for lessons on you tube and have already been rewarded with some minor skills in that area. I had no idea tambourine could be so much fun.

I can hardly wait to take level two and then later level three. Bill Matney and Mike Marcionetti have done such a great job on their curriculum.

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On being home alone

The last time i was home alone for a long stretch was the week I took my massage therapy exam. It was a little over four years ago because I still boarded at trinity stables and I had friends to hang out with and celebrate. We hung out in the barn and chatted and it was pleasant.

Now I board in a field all alone. I don't play nice with others so I don't have barn mates with whom to hang out. I have 3 horses there and 2 others elsewhere so I don't really have room for other horsey friends. I like the idea of a roommate but it doesn't save me any money since I have to buy more hay to compensate for the torn up pasture. I think it would be fun to have someone to ride with though

This time home alone hasn't been much fun. I haven't liked the movies I rented. I haven't been in the mood for books no wore myself out on a boring Sim family. I got rained out on riding. It's been a disappointing few days. I did get some sewing started but found myself wishing I had someone to go sing karaoke with. Cat and I used to do stuff like that but she's out enjoying her singleness dancing with new men. I don't really fit into that scenario.

I did have a great ride with Alexa yesterday and Sherri today. I would have ridden more or longer but we got rained out. It's just the way it went.

Tomorrow is a long busy day and then Maggie and Peter get home tomorrow night. It will be good to see them.

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Home Alone

It's not like I don't have projects to keep me busy, because I do but it's weird being home this many days in a row without getting to go riding. I had plans for each day of my weekend and while staying home is more affordable and thrifty I am starting to get a bit stir crazy. I am using the time to embroidery t-shirts which I will give as gifts and prizes and sell at my TTC September 11 at SixO ranch in Cleburne, tx. (shameless plug). I also have a closet to clean, hooves to trim, a house to clean etc. I played a hefty dose of Sims 3 last night, discovered that Thoroughly Modern Millie wasn't as good as I had remembered and slept I'll 9 this am. I'm hoping that my ride with alexa won't get rained out for tomorrow but only time will tell.

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Back from Vacation

Maggie and I are home from Arkansas as of last night.  WE came home last evening and were very tired, which is normal for travel.  I made some decisions regarding future travel after this trip.  Maggie is going to Missouri with her Peter on Thursday. I was to drive up the following week and see my dad and go to Liberty...I'm just too tired to do it. I'm broke, and I need to work more than I need to be gone again. And I certainly don't have the gas money.  I will be going, but it's going to have to be in September or October.  Right now, I have become newly focused on paying off bills and working my tush off :-)

The reports on Tonka are very favorable.  I think she's a horse who was trained at some point and then let go. She knows so much.  She trailers well, she neck reins. She works off a rope halter. She has some lateral work, but is a little rusty.  She doesn't seem like she's ever been on the trail though and the terrain did make her nervous. Nervous for her was to snuffle and blink a little, but nothing really phased her.  On the trail she jumped a log she deemed too tall to jump over...surprised us both. She wasn't keen on water the first time, but once she figured out water she loved it. She drank at every stream.  She has lost the crease down her back, but is still at least 100 pounds overweight.  We rode her for not more than an hour at a time. I think she's going to need lots of long, slow distance. It will probably be at least January before she's ready to even walk 10 miles for a TTC.

Today we finally saw Eclipse. It was great fun to watch.  Then we came home and watched Leverage and the first episode of the Good Guys. Jury is still out on The Good Guys, but we love Leverage...

What I learned on vacation at bar 50 this year

What I learned on vacation at bar 50 this year

These are random and not ordered

1) bar 50 is my favorite place to spend a week with my horses.
2) don't overlook the local pedicure and massage. In our case, Hair in Motion in Bismarck was as good or better for the money as Nurture day.
3) time away with your only daughter could not be better spent than camping, riding an getting spa treatments together.
4) even though Tonka may be green to trail, she eats and drinks well while camping and is willing to do anything we ask for. She is also a very neat horse in a pen.
5) one week is not long enough.
6) people in camp are very territorial about their horse pens.
7) the maps of the trails at the Ross foundation leave much to be desired but the trails are awesome.
8) sleeping in a tent is for the birds. After renting Betty and Julian Clay's LQ for the week, I am not sure how to go back.
9) whatever model of sundowners trailer this is, it's perfect I can see that all my efforts are going to be directed toward getting enough money together to own one :-)
10) maybe less competition and more pleasure riding is what my life needs right now. While i loved competing last year, I find some of my priorities have shifted and I just want to have fun.
11) it is somehow more fun to sit in horse camp and play Sims 3 on the computer than it is to play at home
12) the drive home is always longer than the drive to the camping location.

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The long ride

Today we rode for a long time. We had a goal to find something on the map that was kind of far away but armed with a map an compass (gps batteries died :-( ) we set off to find the falls. I will upload this map when I get home. It's not much of a map. It's not to scale and the trails have been marked with paint, ribbon and assorted odd numbers, none of which are in any kind of order. Still, it is a map and I had a general idea of where I wanted to go. We never did find the falls but we got close new thought we'd try to go tomorrow but after coming back we realized that Tonka would never make it and Dixie needs a light ride tomorrow. We did find a nice creek to play in and we stopped for lunch and several times to hike a non-horse trail so we didn't wear Dixie and Liberty out too much. It was a pretty ride. Maggie is in shower and I am grazing Tonka who stayed back today. She was a good girl and ate an drank well while we were gone.

I think tomorrow am we are going to sleep in and have a good breakfast and then go see Eclipse. We had wanted to see it while Karen was here but they were sold out till midnight last night and I'm not much of a stay up till midnight person. Of course the irony is that Karen and Maggie started watching The Natural and I got sucked in. At midnight when it was over, I was the only one atoll awake lol.

Yesterday was spa day and it was great but I will post on that separately.

We have had such a great time. I'm bummed that we'll leave in two days bi tried to talk Peter into joining us for the last two nights and staying an extra day but I think he's going to decline. He's leaving for Missouri at the end if next week so I'm sure two short weeks won't work for his schedule.

Tonight we'll get some supper and just be lazy.