May 1st

Today was interesting. I never did end up getting outside, not even to feed her the Happy Horse supplement. I was so sick this morning! I woke up at like 3am and was sweating buckets. I thought I was going to be sick, and my head was spinning. It was really weird. 

Anyways, I ended up falling asleep on the couch and when I woke up at like 7am I knew I wasn't going to be able to go to school. Even getting up and getting a drink of water was hard. I felt so weak and I don't really know why. I prettty much laid on the couch and watched movies all day. It was pretty pathetic, but I felt really ill, so...Yeah. Needless to say, I never got outside because I knew I would not be able to walk all the way out to the back field and get her.

I'm pretty disappointed, but I guess my health is just as important as training for the show. We can't have me being sick! I need to get out tomorrow though! That is a promise!

April 30th

I knew are awesome streak couldn't last forever, and today it ended. She was still pretty good, but she seemed extremely agitated and hyper. Pushy was also in the mix! I went out and got her (wearing not so good riding attire) and my original plan was to simply feed her her supplements and turn her out again, but it is soooo sunny and warm and I decided to ride as well.

I tacked up in my English gear and hopped on. We mostly worked on circles and bending, as well as downward transitions. I feel the time ticking by really fast as we get closer to our first show. I know we have quite a bit to refine, but I am going to try and stay calm because panicking and stressing never helps.

Our main item on the agenda would be simply clean, crisp transitions, and backing up. She has her showmanship down pretty good, and has the basics, but she gets sloppy and often pulls on my hands when we attempt to slow down. When I try to back her up, she goes crooked and even braces on the reins with her nose in the air.

These are all big things to work on, and I know they will be long-term goals, but right now I am really focusing on those. Knight's Copy is a pretty well-rounded and well-trained horse, so I don't see any huge, major problems arising ether than the kinks we should frill out.

I'm not quite sure why she was a little hot-headed today, but I have a suspicion it is because I didn't ride yesterday. I think maybe she does better when I am constantly riding her. She is normally fine when I go and hop on, but she acts slightly irregular. I think I'm going to try and ride tomorrow and see how she reacts. It may have also just been something in the air that made her a little hot.  Although, I am interested to find out.

Anyways, I got my Criminal Minds (completely ADDICTED to that show!) to watch and need to have a shower soon, so I'm going to wrap this up. Today was an alright day, but I know we can do better - and we are going to do better.

April 28th

I had limited time today and so I only did a brief session with Aero. I went out and got her when the sun was radiating it's cheerful rays, but the wind still blew constantly. It was pretty nice weather considering there was a thin layer of snow that fell yesterday. Other than the muddy arena, there is really no evidence of the strange occurrence.

She seemed pretty fatigued and both of us just wanted an easy end to the day. I threw a bareback pad on her back, and stuck her in the simple snaffle, before hoping on. All we did was walk around the corral and I got her doing quite a few nice circles and bends. We also went for a short walk around the yard before returning to the tying post.

She got a nice, thorough grooming while eating her dinner - including Happy Horse! I think Knight's Copy is finally coming to the end of her awful winter coat. It amazing to see the transformation! She is so sleek and even has cute little bay dapples, while in the colder months she looks like a huge teddy bear! I am really happy with how she is shedding so nicely and is going to look so good for show season.

I turned her out with Knight, Cheyenne, and Cinnamon and put my stuff away. It was a pretty enjoyable hour and a half spent with my amazing girl!

April 27th

I have to keep this short, so I will just give a brief post tonight. This morning I woke up pretty late and had to get ready quickly for a birthday brunch. It was all good and dandy! The sun was out and it was actually quite warm. Perfect weather for riding!

As soon as we got home I headed out to the barn and using my newly acquired skills from yesterday, brought Knight in. I guess you haven't met him yet, but he is Aero's son and is currently almost two years old. I have neglected working with him for quite some time because he can be hard ot handle and doesn't respect personal space. Anyways, I was feeling brave so went and worked with him for a while. It wasn't the best, so my ride really helped boost my mood.

I worked on loping and doing some hill work tonight. It was a short session, but a good one. After, I brought her back up to the barn, gave her a really good grooming, and started her on the new "Happy Horse" supplement. Obviously it isn't going to start immediately, but I didn't have much trouble getting her to eat it so that was a good sign.

The weather is supposed to be rainy and gloomy tomorrow, so I will probably just go down and hang out with her instead of riding. I have done a lot of work with her the past few days anyways, and she deserves a nice rest.

April 26th

Oh gosh! Today was absolutely, incredible! I got to see so many gifted clinicians and do a bit of shopping around hundreds of booths at the Mane Event in Red Deer, Alberta. I only got to stay today, because I have a brunch tomorrow and I wasn't allowed to miss school yesterday, but it was fun while it lasted!

My mom, little brother, and I got into the car at like eight in the morning and took the hour and a half long drive down to the equine expo. It was pretty crowded when we got there, but we managed to find a parking spot. I was actually kind of nervous to be surrounded by so many amazing horsemen and horsewomen, but my excitement overruled. 

I ended up getting a bag full of brochures, coupons, and samples and can't wait to go and read through them all. As well, I bought a new purple (of course it has to match pretty much everything else I own!) haynet from Greenhawk's booth for the trailer when we go to shows and such. I also thought I would try out a new supplement with Aero after seeing the business owner do a lecture on natural remedies and healthy alternatives.

It is called "Happy Horse" from Riva's Remedies based out of BC. It sounds very intriguing and a small bag lasts you like six weeks, but the prices are pretty high at $89.99 a bag. There goes some of my birthday money! Oh well. My mare's well-being is definitely worth the extra cash. 

Anyways, it is supposed to be a good well-rounded feed to add onto your horses normal ration and helps them with digestion, etc. I figured since we are going to be busy running around this summer it might be nice to spice up her dinner with an extra touch. I am actually really excited to see how this works out, and I will definitely give a review on the product later (so keep a look out for that!).

Today was a very satisfying day although I missed riding, I still had a bunch of fun! I am hoping I can get my mom to agree to the full weekend next year, but we'll just have to see.

April 25th

Today the sun was shining and the birds were singing a soft melody. It was picturesque! I decided against riding today, because those Buck Brannaman videos really got me in the mood for some groundwork and showmanship. 

I ended up out in the grassy round pen with a lunge whip for two hours. I spent some time grooming her fluffy winter coat, and then did some join-up to no avail. I don't know what the problem is! She trotted around, sloshing through the mud at times, for what seemed like forever. My head was spinning! She was giving me some of the signs such as licking her lips and twitching her ears to me. I tried several times by turning my back to her, but she would just stand there and doze off, paying more attention to her companions than to me.

I got irritated, but tried to hold my patience. I eventually got a little bit of a step, and immediately praised her for the baby step. I worked on our 90º pivots that we will need to perfect to get that red ribbon this summer, and took her back up to the barn to hose off her dirty legs and feed her some dinner.

I put her back on the Step-8 supplement because I think she has been losing weight. It is so hard to keep weight on her during the winter! She was nice before and even though we have been feeding her hay all-throughout the snowy season she has still managed to shed a few pounds. I really want her to look her best and be at optimum health, so I have also planned to incorporate more cardio and muscle-building exercises - especially hills. 

I doubt I will get out to ride tomorrow, since I am going down to Red Deer for the Mane Event Expo. I am super excited and can't wait to see all these amazing clinicians as well as go shopping! I'll tell you all about it later!

April 24th

Aero was a doll today! I feel so lucky because are past few rides have been leaps and bounds ahead of anything we have done before. It may seem kind of cheesy, but I feel like things might be coming together for us, which is good considering our schedule. 

I didn't expect to have so many equine-related events to attend this year. I thought I would participate in 4-H and maybe do a few clinics here and a fun show there, but my whole June is going to be swamped. Not only do I have my English and Social finals to study for and write, but I have shows pretty much every weekend along with musical ride practices on Tuesdays. Not get me wrong! I can't wait! I am so excited to take her to our first show together and to trot into that ring with a huge dorky grin on my face, but I am also starting to doubt my abilities to balance my education with horsey stuff.

I desperately hope tomorrows ride goes as well as today, maybe even better! *crosses fingers and toes* Today I rode in my Western saddle because I found an old pad that I wanted to try out. Red actually looks really good on her! Anyways, I decided to keep going in my blue one for now, and reserve the other one for shows and special events just to try and preserve it and protect it from all the fuzz flying rampant. 

Shedding season is in full-swing and I HATE it! Her glossy bay coat is covered in chunks of thick fluff, and it comes out in endless pools! I feel like I could just keep brushing, and brushing, and brushing... The worst part is when you go on with lip balm (my new favourite is the EOS Lip Balm!) and it sticks. Ew! So, as much as I am embarrassed by it, I wear a painting mask to keep it out of my mouth. Haha! Thank goodness no one is around to see! We probably look very weird!

I ended my night eating my favourite food - watermelon - and watching one of Buck Brannaman's DVD's. I'm also homework free and loving it! Anyways, I'm off to bed to dream about hopefully trail riding with Aero tomorrow if the weather is nice.

 - Mackenzie