Fall Gratitude

 

In light of the horrific US election results, I feel the need to perk myself up and do a gratitude post.  First up Fall.  Glorious Fall.  Beautiful colors, dry and warm weather, this Fall has been one for the ages.  And I’ve gotten a lot of riding in.

Second is family.  My husband is a rock and our adult children are doing well, daughter with a great job and currently doing her Master’s in Electrical Engineering and son three semesters from graduating with a Civil Engineering degree.  But more importantly, they are thoughtful people capable of compassion for others and themselves.  Sp proud of them.  Photo is of the Green Day concert my daughter took me to for my Mother’s Day present.  We had so much fun-screamed, danced, sang, and people watched to (good) excess.

Third is gratitude to be surrounded by pets inside and out.  I love having a farm and the horses at home but I also really enjoy the inside cats and dog, and the outside cats.  Above is a picture of Fifty Shades of Grey who was an outside feral cat of many years before I semi-tamed her and convinced her to be an inside princess.  She is living her best retirement life.

Fourth is satisfaction that I finally lost the fifteen pounds that has been hanging on for a few years.  Nothing revolutionary, just following the recommendations on Nutrivore.com of whole foods, lots of vegetables-eating the rainbow-limited sugar, and less than 20% of calories coming from ultra processed foods.  So far it’s been working for me and I don’t feel super deprived.  Also, I do yoga for my bad back, which helps a lot, but recently found a stretch for my psoas that has made my back completely pain free.  Three cheers for YouTube.

Last is my current foray back into Dressage Naturally.  It’s been a while and I am loving the Video Classroom (so much better than watching the news!).  The basic alignment exercise is working wonders for Cruise and I love the positivity and concepts of DN.  It’s really interesting coming back after a lot more natural horsemanship and dressage education.  Things that didn’t work for me or I didn’t understand last go through are now much clearer.

What are your positives for Fall?

Updates

 

We finally got our scores from Dressage Show Online’s Championship Show and we did well.  In Open Training Tests 1, 2, & 3, we were 1st, 2nd, & 3rd respectively with scores in the 60’s.  All of the tests were ok, but I still feel like our Test 3 in the late summer was the best of the year and was also the highest score at 70+%.  

I’m really grateful to have a way to keep getting feedback, move up the levels, and set some goals while working on Cruise’s other horses/other locations issues.  DSO has been great for us and the plan is to get in a First Level Test 1 before winter sets in.  The harder canter work is on his more difficult side, so we shall see.

Speaking of other locations and other horses, our field trips to the boarding barn have been going well.  Honestly, it’s all been groundwork in the ring, walking the aisles, and hanging out in his stall.  It’s been really hard for him.  He’s just now at the point of being rideable and showing some focus and relaxation.  I think this is going to be a really long road TBH, and being able to continue on with showing online has really helped me to persevere with patience to his reactivity.

Wired 4 Connection

 

I’ve been reading this fascinating little book and applying its principles the past few days and WOW.  An easy read, it explains polyvagal theory, and how it applies to humans and horses.  I found the whole book excellent but especially appreciated the self regulation techniques for humans.  The idea is that if the human can self regulate then the horse can co-regulate with human and go into a parasympathetic state much more easily.  

I’ve been playing with the self regulation/co-regulation exercises with both boys and I can get them licking and chewing just standing by them using my breathing.  Under saddle, field riding, Cruise is as relaxed as he’s ever been.  This isn’t a lengthy book but it is packed with interesting and useful information and techniques.  At only $4.99 currently in the Kindle version, I highly, highly recommend.

So I did a Thing

 

So I did a thing.  I’ve been wondering for a while if Cruise’s Bates Artiste is a touch too long for his short back and is bumping his shoulders, especially at the canter.  The saddle ticks all the boxes for me and seems to fit him fine with no back pain.  But.  He continues to struggle with forward sometimes.  His canter is getting sixes and sevens on tests but it doesn’t feel fully free in his back.  I looked around to see what the Internet had to say about dressage saddles on short backed honies and kept getting directed back to Pegasus Butterfly Saddles.  I also remembered that Meaghan at A Enter Spooking had borrowed one for her hard to fit horse and he loved it.

By chance I found an older model of the above, previously called the Uta Gräf, on a FB saddle page for under $900 shipped with a 7 day trial.  Done.  I’m 6 or so rides in and Cruise obviously loves it.  The saddle fits his back so well I can leave the girth a touch loose.  He is much easier to get forward, his canter has a new lift of the shoulders, and his up canter transitions are getting smoother every ride.  Oddly enough, I find the saddle as comfortable as the Artiste and feel really secure in it.  It’s a little beat up but serviceable and I feel lucky to try one of these saddles out without committing to the new price tag.

Time will tell, but so far Cruise and I are totally pleased with this purchase!