Riding Day

I woke up to the sound of raindrops on the roof. A perfect day to ride, since I use an inside arena. I decided to spice up my instructor and horses' lives, by stopping at the Tractor Store and buying oat and carrot treats, oat and apple treats and peppermints. Both the horses and my instructor enjoy the peppermints. When she opened the bag, it split and there were peppermints everywhere, but no worries. She said it would have been a good idea to use scissors. I rode a beautiful quarterhorse named Hope. She is always ready to go, so when I dropped the reins too early, my instructor told me to hang onto them, so she wouldn't lope into a trot. Live and learn. I groomed Hope and then kitted her up--half pad, saddle blanket, foam pad, saddle, tightened the girth. I put the ear net on too early, had to remove it to put the bridle on. Oh, and I adjusted the stirrups to the proper short length (thank you grandmas for the short legs!), Hope and I used the east side of the arena as Kate lunged Talia in the other half. We walked and trotted in half circles and diagonals. Dave was working with a young rider and Cramer so I had to be careful, but it makes me happy to see so much activity in the arena. I walked the horse around the orange cones, in and out. Tried to keep the right stirrup on the ball of my foot, go deep in the corners, hands still and hips forward. When I came home, I put on a rain slicker and the dogs romped around the field. I had to change and towel off the dogs, but just maybe, the next time it rains, the dog won't stand on the threshhold and whine, "Turn off the rain, Mom!" Enjoyed strawberry shortcake with whipped cream for lunch.