Sunday 30 April 2017

And...breathe.

When I was a kid, most weekends were spent at the barn. I would catch the school bus to the barn on Friday afternoon and my parents would come pick me up Sunday night. There were other kids of assorted ages who did the same thing. Rarely were there any adults present or any kind of structure imposed on our days. We rode a lot, we worked a lot, but we also spent hours just hanging around doing dumb stuff.

Now that I am adult, my definition of "dumb stuff" is far more comprehensive, and there is a subcategory titled "dangerous stuff" that age has taught me to avoid if at all possible. The part that hasn't changed all these years later is the enjoyment I get from just going to the barn with no agenda, with no plans except to hang out with the horses and see where the day takes us.

Today, since we weren't showing, the sun came out and the weather turned warm. Bridget was very itchy in the remnants of her winter coat, so I spent a good hour with assorted grooming tools, getting as much of the dead hair and winter gunk off her. I conditioned her tail, amd trimmed it too. Spa day!

Next up, I attempted to take some glamour shots of the shiny clean pony. She didn't look as fancy as I'd hoped, but then fancy isn't really her gig. We both more go for the "cute, round" look :)

Then, I puttered around building a "spooky" jump course. B lent moral support by following behind me and keeping her nose in my neck and breathing like a creeper. Must be my shampoo? It's sort of her thing, she loves sticking her nose in the small of my back or my neck and just hanging out like that. Weird, but (look away now NH people!) I let her invade my personal space because she's cute and supremely unmotivated to take advantage of my lack of boundaries. My hair just smells good, I can't help it,  alright?



Finally, I actually rode the pony. We popped around our tiny course, just for fun. We galloped around a bit, we went for a short trail ride and meandered around. No fitness work was accomplished, no agendas, no training at all






And, that's the story of the best days we've had in a very long time. I know having a horse suited to your riding level,  competitive goals, budget, time, etc etc is important.  But,  I'd argue having a horse you just like to be around is the most important thing of all - all the rest is secondary.




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21 comments

  1. I agree so much with this! The reason I have my boys around is because I genuinely enjoy their company. If I didn't it wouldn't matter how fancy or talented they were, none of that is as important as the fact that they're my little mates

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    1. Exactly! There are a couple of very fancy 'dream' horses at the barn I ride, but I still have zero regrets for choosing to struggle away with my not-so-talented pony.

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  2. YES! Gotta love spending time with the horse above all else!

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  3. We spend far more time at home with our horses day in and day out, versus competing. Having a horse you just simply ENJOY is so, so important.

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    1. I feel like a lot of people somehow miss that. All that money and time, and they're not having fun or enjoying most of it. So sad.

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  4. I love days like that. Unfortunately I get them very rarely. Why does anyone ever want to be an adult? Love that you got that time with her!

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    1. I get them so rarely too that I treasure them. Adulting is hard!

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  5. Also agree, having a horse that is pleasant to be around is very important.

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    1. With Bridget, I didn't even really like her much for the first year or so...but she was just so easy to deal with it was hard not to start to like her and consider keeping her around. Eventually she snuck into my cold little heart!

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  6. She is actually the cutest

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  7. Sounds like an amazing day and I agree completely about having a horse that you want to spend time with being important :)

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    1. Truth for horses AND other humans ;)

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  8. Aww I love the video!!! Sounds like a blast - those quiet days dedicated to pure fun and enjoyment are just so reaffirming :D

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    1. I forgot how cute she is when she jumps - she's not overly fun to jump so I don't get to watch her go much lol

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  9. <3 Days like that are the best.

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  10. This is awesome. I think relaxed horse/pony visits are good for the soul. I've just been catching up on my blog reading... I'm sorry you've had a run of bad luck with the clinic, show and rainy weather, but it's great that you are still riding and still enjoying barn time.

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    1. The not so fun days make the good ones all the better!

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  11. I love hanging around the horses and having no agenda

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