OTTB Charm

Well, I am still basically doing nothing with my horses as of right now. Mostly because I am consistently working 5/6 days a week, and still finding time for school & sleep. Somehow. I barely have time to think, let alone ride. Hopefully that will change in the very  near future. Otherwise, if you don't hear from me for a few weeks, it will probably be because I died. #stressoverload Casually running away from my problems Anyways, because I am doing basically nothing with my lovely creatures, I have like 0 blog content, so I'm jumping on the Blog Hop train, and I'm going to do the two blog hops that are floating around right now. Both of them seem really fun, so I'm excited to do them! Today, I am going to do the three words blog hop, started by  Nadia . I was pretty fascinated by this topic. I use a lot of words to describe my ponies, but boiling it down to just three was really difficult. Charmer Maybe handsome should be one of my words. Intuiti...

Yesterday, I had the day off (finally!), and it was the perfect time to get some routine maintenance done on Charmer. His hind shoes were coming up on 9 weeks and needing reset, so Farrier came out at 9:00, and we kicked off the day right, with a new set of hind shoes (his fronts & hinds are on different schedules right now). Once he was done, he got to go back out in the pasture and goof off with his friends for a few hours. Around noon, I went out and hooked up the trailer - which was pretty comical, because I could not get the ball flipped up in the bed of the truck. It took me like 10 minutes. When I actually got it flipped right side up, it took me less than 5 minutes to get the trailer hooked up, but man it was pretty ridiculous getting that stupid ball flipped around. Anyways, so once everything was finally all hooked up, I went to grab Charmer, and he looked at me all "again? really lady?". At least he plays along with adventures (also why does his BoT shee...

So, as most of you know (the 3 of you that probably even read this blog haha), I keep my horses at home. Which is amazing ! But it has also opened up a world of changes. For the first time, I am 100% in charge of my horse's care. Only about 6 weeks after Charmer moved home, I rethought his entire diet and we took practically a 180* turn. His hay got switched. Grain got switched. I changed a few supplements for short term use that I have now cut out. I think the result is him looking and feeling better than ever.  Old picture. Cutest expression ever. But along with being 100% in charge of my horse's care, means I am also 100% in charge of giving everything a place, making sure everything stays organized, and being always vigilant about making sure my horse has enough of everything he needs. Which honestly, I quite enjoy! But it is a lot of organizing. I make kind of DIY Smartpaks in baggies for both of my horses (although I'm really intrigued to try  this i...

Well, basically since Thanksgiving, Charmer has had very minimal work. School, work, and life got busy, and pony got a break. There were some lazy rides, and a handful of semi-work rides, but basically I snuggled him twice a day with his grain, and maybe a blanket change, and usually a nice long grooming session once a week. That was basically all I could manage for a while. But now, I am starting to get my schedule a little more manageable (a little ), and constant. And the days are rapidly getting longer, and with the beautiful weather we are currently having, I cannot pass that up. I squeezed in a ride on Wednesday after work, and for the fact it had been over a week since Charmer's last ride, and over 2 months since he had any real "make him work" rides, he was good. Sometimes I forget how challenging of a ride he can be. He requires a lot of precision from me, and that can be difficult, especially when we are both out of shape (okay, more me than him). And ...

It is interesting to me, how often times it takes some sort of major change in your life to really appreciate and value the things in your life. There has definitely been at least one very particular and dramatic change lately, and it's name is Wonder. And I love him oh so much. But I will also say that his entrance into my life has made me even more grateful for the partner that I have had for the last 2.5 years and counting. Charmer. Charmer is my rock through everything that comes and goes in my life. His bright, soft eyes, and beautiful bay face are always constants. He is my partner, and I am his. And I couldn't have asked for a better one. Every single day, I am grateful for his old soul, calming presence and his always listening ears. He is always up for a new adventure with me, and he tries his heart out in everything I ask of him. I love this horse so very much, and I cannot wait to see where the future takes us.

So first off, I would like to throw out there, that Saturday was freaking 62*. Sixty-two, y'all. It's February. Apparently Idaho missed the memo that we are supposed to have 6 more weeks of winter (not that I'm complaining)! It was so warm that even my clipped pony got to hang out without a blanket all afternoon. And everyone basked in the warm sunlight for a while (including me!). Enjoying his new life! Charmer is looking SO GOOD - look at that shine I spent most of the afternoon just hanging out in the pasture, snapping some photos and just enjoying life with my ponies.  So back to other news, I have put the first 3 rides on Wonder! Each ride has quickly gotten better and I ask just a little bit more from him each time. Nothing out of his ability for sure, but just one little bit more. He fits in all of Charmer's tack, except his bridle/bit. Charmer has a huge face, and Wonder has a petite face, so Wonder has kind of a Frankenbridle put together of ...