June Review, July Goals

How have I done?

June Review
I still haven't freaking schooled XC and at this point I'm not sure I'll have time before I go Starter at Stone Place in July. We'll wing it. We'll be fine..... I think. Between racing and operated puppies and the like, it just hasn't happened yet. I was supposed to have a dressage lesson too which I have yet to schedule but would love to sneak in right before the show!

Increase both my fitness level and Twister's. This is actually on-going. But I can feel my core and legs getting stronger. And Twister can do more before he starts dragging himself around on his forehand and starts plowing through jumps. He's still a fatty. But he can't help that with all the yummy clover he eats all night! (However, gazing muzzle has been purchased and will be here on Friday. Let the diet commence!) He can gallop all day again and would love to just be a racehorse. Sorry, kid. You're too old!

Increase jump height Also on-going. But we're jumping up to 2'6" right now without looking like we're a hot mess and plain ol' 2' jumps are getting boring. BORING! Can you believe that??? And what a chicken shit I was this spring about 2'! Winning. And we completed our 2'3" jumper round at the last show with style. And not only did we complete it and I didn't chicken out and scratch like in April, but I had plenty of horse and had a ton of fun in that round!

Break bad dressage habits Alsooooooo on-going. As always. Most of my goals are thing I have to work on constantly but wanted to make a special effort to work on specifically this last month. I am giving in less and less to his crap which is helping us a lot. Part of this was to score lower than 40 at the last show. We did that. 34pointsomething. Not sure we earned that though what with all the counter bending and hollowness. I guess your score and standings is based a lot of whether or not someone was way worse than you. Which in this case, that had to be the case. I want to get a 30-something score and look back and feel like HELL YEA we earned it and that the test felt like a 30-something test. Also, I a probably a little too hard on myself when it comes to dressage. In highschool I did Training and some First level with a little QH that brought home tons of blues. I sometimes forget that to have gotten this far at all with Twister is HUGE as we used to be a hot mess that couldn't even jog without giant scary leverage bits and we looked like a camel hurtling through the desert. Twister is a much harder horse to train for dressage than Stewart was and we have come a long way in 4 years.

Take more time when I ride. I've tried to spend 45 minutes at least when riding. Sometimes this is so hard. I could do a whole school in 25 minutes when it's hot out. But that doesn't give me enough time to really do some skill work. And with the lawn having to be mowed every other freaking day, this is especially tough. I've been taking more time, and I'm going to continue to take more time. Even if the extra time is a hack to stretch and cool out after.

this past fall, hacking out with E

Break Rascal or start Rascal or whatever you want to call it. He is going great under saddle. I have yet to be on him though. My person does all the riding. Rascal still has some buck, buck that would leave me on the ground. So I'm just as happy to pony instead of ride! :P

he's doing great!

The Confo Shots:

July,
Rudest confo shot to date (please view fullsized :P ).
and Twister obviously doesn't give a shit

June

May

Also.... I'm still not sure what color my horse is............

Feet update! Photobombed by the owner of the feet!

July Goals!!!
School XC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! In all honestly, this probably won't even happen now. But I can always make some more ghettoass xc jumps for my paddocks at home and work on those and find a ditch somewhere to leap over a few times. Life is not letting me drive to Prospect just to school. Stupid life. Stupid adulting. :P I have some friends that event in Indiana and invited M and I out for a weekend sometime to school and take some dressage and jumping lessons with them and to trail ride. A 3 day weekend of our choice packed with riding fun. I'm hoping maybe in September it can be arranged!

Complete our first HT in almost 2 years! Seriously, has it been that long?? It has. September 2013 was the last time we went to a HT and we did Baby Starter which meant x-rails and ridiculously tiny xc jumps that we could pretty much just step over for the most part. I am waiting for entries to open for Stone Place so I can print mine out and mail it in. I'm so freaking excited!

xc, sept 2013. will never ever go xc in a plain snaffle again
pretty sure my arms fell off and are still laying out there
in the field at Land's End somewhere...

Learn to Halt Square!!!!!!!!!!!
Self explanitory. All 4 feet. Square. Not sprawled like a newborn foal!

old photo. one of our better halts. 

Canter work! Our canter needs work. Oh, we're fine(-ish) for jumping and galloping around. But I mean for dressage. It needs to be a canter that won't have us jumping out of the ring because we're falling apart and can't keep on a 20 meter circle..... I'd like to find maybe a schooling dressage show to try a test with cantering in it. This will require a lesson. And it will require me to SITUPANDSTRETCHDOWNDAMNIT and for Twister to stop cheating all the time (so I guess I'll have to crack down on letting him.......) He gets so long and low sometimes and I think maybe he should have been a racehorse. He's not as bad jumping, but still he could use some lift in that department as well.

last summer, our raging bull canter.

Have more fun! I have very limited riding time during the week what with having to take care of all my kiddos and Mr 4 More Weeks of Stall Rest and the constant mowing. So I get where I just want to work on skills and fitness and I forget to do fun things with Twister. I need to take more time for this. Horses needs to goof off too! Not to mention that we'd bond over the dumb shit we'd do. Also some group trail rides with the girls need to be arranged. They both ride mares and Twister lovessss his lady friends ;)

random fun stuff, yes i know, i should have
been helmeted...

LUVZ playing in the water!