I'm Alive!

Whew! It's been a whirlwind week and a half. I drove up to Knoxville to see my little sister, Emily, graduate from nursing school last Tuesday and made it home in time to work a half day on Thursday. I desperately needed the weekend to get my life (and house) back together so I didn't get any pony time then either. I did manage to get Kwik's teeth done last Wednesday. I called Dr. P on my drive home on Thursday to see how everything went, and he had some pretty crazy hooks on his 2nd premolars (apparently as long as a thumbnail-eeek!) and a small ulcer on his left side. She said it looked like he hadn't been done in about two years. Poor Kwik- what a stoic boy!

Happy Graduation Em!

Celebratory dinner!

Emily is in town for her week of interviews, and the Tuesday event went so well she got called back for another interview next week! More fun sister time! I love entertaining, but I was DYING to see my pony so we headed out for a visit on Tuesday. It was a beautiful evening, and the horses were happily munching grass in the pastures since the farm switched to night turnout. Kwik genuinely looked happy to see me, and to my surprise, was CLEAN and shiny! Maybe he knew I was coming? I'm definitely starting to trust him more because I tacked up and hopped on without longeing first- I was just too eager to go for a spin. Kwik was super attentive and game for whatever I asked. We trotted around some and then cantered- both directions, getting the correct lead each time! I wasn't too concerned about where his head was since this ride was more about just getting moving again after a week off, and he did a wonderful job maintaining a steady, relaxed rhythm. I guess we did learn something in April! Em even took some video which, although slightly embarrassing to share, was extremely helpful.

I really need to focus on keeping my leg at the girth and not allowing it to creep back and my ARMS. Goodness, my arms. Maybe I should super glue them to my sides. I'll work on it, and it will get better, but I love how Kwik just lets me flop around up there and continues on like the gentleman he is. Best green bean OTTB a girl could ever ask for!

Weekend Recap

AH was in town again this past week, and she offered to work with Kwik and I on Friday after work. Boy was I a HOT MESS! Since my riding history is pretty much all over the place (hunter land for a few years, dressage/combined training for a few years, no riding for 2 years, hunter land for a bit, no riding for 2 years, back to hunter land) I knew I had probably picked up some bad habits.

As it stands:
- I ride with my leg way too far backward with minimal constant contact
- I have a tendency to shove the horse forward with my seat
- My wrists tend to be broken and twist in awkard, extremely incorrect positions
- I'm STIFF
-My arms tend to be more on the straight side rather than having a nice bend in my elbows
- I don't ride with nearly enough rein contact

So... we spent the entire lesson working to correct some of these things. As usual, Kwik was a great sport as I flopped around on top trying to figure this out. <3 that horse!

Saturday was spent with my honey, Adam, at the Decatur Beer Festival, so Kwikster got the day off.

Sunday AH, H, K, and I loaded up the ponies and went trail riding at Kennesaw Mountain again. It was another beautiful day, and we came across lots of other riders, walkers, and joggers enjoying the nice weather. I really tried to focus on sitting down in my saddle and keeping a constant contact in my lower leg. The last time we rode at Kennesaw Mountain my knees were killing me halfway through our ride, and it was extremely difficult to dismount when we got back to the trailer. Opening my knee and redirecting the contact to my lower leg completely eliminated that pain, and I felt much more secure when cantering/galloping. What do you know?!?

I had another lesson with AH last night, and everything finally started to click. I'm a visual learner, so AH hopped on Kwik to show me how I should be sitting. Having that mental picture made it possible for me to recreate her position, and Kwik immeditely responded. As soon as I began to sit correctly, I had a horse that was reaching for the contact and moving forward with energy and rhythm. She gave me some excercises to work on in the next couple of weeks, and I'm so excited we (mostly me- Kwik's got this all down pat) made some progress. AH will be back in a cuple of weeks so I'm hoping we can show her some good stuff in our next lesson.

I'd say it was a pretty great weekend!