Busy? Moi?

Okay. Once again the time has gotten away from me. Oy. See why I called the blog Mild Chaos? Haha. Anyway, in short, all my students are doing spectacular :) Almost all of the beginners have started trotting over ground poles. I'm so excited :D From here, things usually move quite quickly, get infinitely more interesting and definitely more fun!
My older (ie: experienced) students are starting to nail there respective dressage tests. That always makes my inner DQ beam with pride :D I've slowly been getting everyone where they need to be jumping-wise as well. We have an event coming up soon, so no time to waste!
I have a few new students as well. Two have ridden before and getting back into it. Hopefully, I'll finally have someone to ride India. She is such a sweet, willing mare but needs a specific kind of rider. Hence, she's been hanging out in the mares field for the last few months being bored I'm sure.
Darryl has been feelin' his oats recently too. Really? Bucking after every jump? I can't seem to convince him he's been around for 3 decades, haha. He's going to the upcoming event too :) Bubby was on my $#%t list Thursday. I've not had alot of time in the last couple weeks to ride him (more in a sec) and well, he's not real happy about that thank you. Ugh. Who's horse jumps out of round pens? Mine! Idiot. Seriously, in a bout of pissy-ness. i love Standardbreds but my GOD do they have tempers to go along with those opinions! However, he did redeem himself today (IN the round pen). I have him in two lessons a week too. I *heart* my boy :)
Oh, side note, switched farriers this week too. I've been using one of the two farriers that come regularly to the barn. He's mainly a track farrier; good for trims, cold shoes, and inexpensive. But as the saying goes, you get what you pay for. He gets the job done but honestly, is not always consistent. Sometimes too long, other times too short. So, I asked the other farrier if he would since he was coming out anyway and my guys were due. After all, with Finn's abcess, the man ahas been calling me more than any other guy has EVER called me LOL. He does trims, hot shoes, corrective work, etc... Pricier BUT always on time (if not early), schedules ahead of time and is pretty much available whenever. Works for me :D I'm willing to pay for better service like most of the rest of the human population ;)
The dentistry has picked up too. Finally! I love seeing an appointment everyday of the week, AND I'm building muscle and stamina again. This past week I noticed I had more control of my float and strokes than what I've had. Bit seats are getting easier too. OH, and I pulled 2 blind wolf teeth all by my onesome :D No nerves at all, go me, haha. Pulling teeth shouldn't be this much fun ;) Of course, squatting for half an hour to pull a tooth and then float does take a toll on the legs after a while. Minor detail :P Caps to pull Monday morning. Wolf teeth to pull at some point next week. The following week, we have an appointment in Chincoteague for quite a few. Busy busy.
Okay, I'm going to bed. Just thinking about how much is going on right now is tiring!
'Til next time!

I Heart My Horses :D

I cannot gush anymore profusely! My boys did FANTASTIC last night. Just fantastic :D Kylie finally got to ride Bubby in her lesson. She has a brass set, lemme tell ya. I think the height unnerved her for a second.....literally, haha. He did get a little quick in the trot at first but the second time around he was very good and she exclaimed (as I'm running along side him) "I got it! I got the rhythm!". Music to my ears :D I think at first he didn't know what to do with a whole 40 lbs (maybe) on his back, haha.

Then Christina rode Darryl. He is VERY out of shape. Yet, very willing to work. My only hesitation was because back in the fall/winter, he was getting a little.....full of himself, let's just say. I was hoping to chalk it up to the cool air and he was still getting back into shape. Ever notice how a thoroughbred's response to work after time off is "happy butt's"??? lol. He was also fantastic for her. They rode in a 5 person lesson which is unusual for this barn but what he is used to and it seemed to have worked for them. My trainer and I both think with a few weeks of trot pole work, he'll be ready to add some canter and small X's to their lessons :D 'Ol man's still got it!

And, yes, I snuck a picture of Ali and Bubby JUMPING! I know it doesn't look like my much to the untrained eye, oh but it is priceless. Standardbreds CAN jump! :D

'Til next time! :D

Little Kids Crack Me Up!

Okay, how do people not like kids, in general??? I know some people should never breed yet they do and then we as a society must deal with the backlash of their spawn. But some kids are really cool! lol. For example, this one little girl (7) rides at the barn with her mom very Tuesday. They missed their regular lesson so they came Wednesday to ride. I've been helping with Kylie's lesson for about a year on and off. She's one of those students that will do anything, I mean ANYTHING related to horses. And bound and determined to event her lesson pony Dude....preferrably NOW, thank you. So I showed up Wednesday evening to feed and muck stalls and here comes Kylie running up to say hi.
She is too cute. Really. She is so animated and so little, haha. Being so small and only 7, there is only so much she can "help" with. She was sooooo excited to lead the "big" horses. As she led Bubby out someone commented just how freaking cute she is.....which got me thinking.... So Kylie may be riding Bubby in her lesson Tuesday hehehe :D I think it will good for the both of them. She can ride something that she may actually be able to post with (She posts too slow on Dude) and I've always had a feeling Bubby would make an excellent lesson horse.....so we shall see. I completely trust him. He tends to listen to the wee ones more so than me anyway! I think I mentioned in a previous post he LOVES little kids. He doesn't go blank when they work around him or ride him like a lot of lesson horses tend to. He is very attentive :) If I could just find a therapeutic program to try him in next.....
In sucky news, the barn helper quit. Here's the kicker: he wanted to do less work and be paid more.......Does that make sense to ANYONE??? Not to mention, I don't think this guy had any room to negotiate like that....this kinda job helps you to fly under the radar if ya know what I mean. Good news, my boss may have already found a replacement. Here's hoping! And this guy sounds like the real deal. Hoping, praying... I really don't think I can go back to the work schedule I was on pre-Juan. I like having a LIFE thank you. And it would be a step back instead of forward. Maybe others may think that in my position I should work myself to death to get anywhere but I'm simply not doing that. Health wise, no way. I would like to be doing this when I die an old, cantankarous, cat lady in her 90s, thanks. Seriously, the horse world can be so archaic.

I'll have to be sure to get pics of my boy and Kylie. Crossing fingers all goes well!!!
Til next time :-)