Happy Spooking

Dear Readers,

It is a cold, damp, dark night, perfect for Halloween. Jenna came out to see me, but she didn't play any games with me because of the weather. I heard her say it is supposed to be nice tomorrow. I forgot to mention - it's quite windy out tonight! Kezi is definitely feeling the Halloween spirit. She even spooked at the calendar that has been on the wall since before she came to this barn. Silly mare. I wasn't scared at all. I just pretended to be scared so that Kezi would feel better. When Jenna and her mom let us out of the barn we took off cantering through the field. I could swear there were ghosts out there! I mean, I didn't think there were, but Kezi did and I couldn't let her run around alone.

Have a spooktastic night!

- Houdini (aka Gambler)

Winter is Coming!

The cold weather is here. A few days ago, it snowed for the first time this season. Freezing winds, fluffy flakes of snow, and a sugar-like white power were everywhere you turned your eyes. It was beautiful, but frigid and inconvenient to horse-related activities. I love winter in some ways. After all, without winter there would be no autumn, which is my favorite season.

Since then the snow melted away, but it left the low temperatures behind. Now it is cold and gloomy and wet. Burrrr! Believe it or not, there is a point to this wintry rant. Winter is coming. This means I have less time with Gambler. Although I am an idealist who hopes this winter will be as mild as rumors suggest, the conditions will probably get worse from here. Most people set horse activities aside for the winter, because it is nearly impossible to get anything done in the conditions. Ice, snow, wind, cold, none of these are conducive to riding horses. There are exceptions. The moderately deep, fluffy snow (that only appears in the coldest temps) is a similar texture to the sand that fills arenas, making it ideal for riding. Of course you still have to cope with the cold. 

I have no idea what this winter has in store for Gambler and me. Maybe it will be mild and I'll find a lot of time to ride and play with him. Maybe it will be cold and icy and we'll spend four to five months in the cross-ties. Either way, I am determined not to let the frozen weather get between my horse and me. It's time to bring out the hats, hand-warmers, thick winter socks, and invest in some flannel-lined jeans. I'm tempted to buy some winter riding gloves too. 

But what is a horse person to do when conditions drive him away from the barn and into the warm security of his home? Read books, lots of books. Ironically, I'm writing this from the library . . . ;) But I'm completely serious. Find a warm blanket (fleece and flannel are my favorites); a cup of warm apple cider, coffee, tea, or hot chocolate; and a book. Better yet, read a blog. Either way, reading is an enjoyable way to continue building your horsey knowledge while locked away at home. Even if you live in a warmer place where the storms of winter don't barricade you away, reading is never a waste of time. Here are a few suggestions. 

**Again, I will have you know none of these people are paying me to suggest their books/blogs**

Books: 

*Hope Rising by Kim Meeder and A Bridge Called Hope by Kim Meeder - Both of these books are full of true stories from Crystal Peaks Youth Ranch; a ranch that rescues horses and teaches them to trust, while using their stories to prove to humans that there is hope. It is a beautiful witness to God's love for His people and His creatures. 

*The Phantom Stallion Series by Terri Farely - This series is aimed at teens and pre-teens (I read them as a ten-year-old) but they are beautifully written must-reads for every horse-crazy girl. 

Blogs:
*Simply Horse Crazy (Mare) - This blogger has temporarily (I hope!) set her blog aside to pursue a career, but she left her blog up as a testimony to her first horse and their story. It is full of wonderful thoughts and insights. I suggest reading the entire blog start to finish as I did. She reminds me a lot of myself.

* Beautiful Mustang (Linda) - I haven't read very much of this blog yet due to my OCD-like need to read blogs from the very beginning. I'm still back in 2008, but from what I have read I admire her story and writing style. Someday I hope to gentle a mustang, so I appreciate everything her blog stands for.

How do you fulfill your horsey passion in the winter?

Ramblings

I've always wanted - a phrase I find myself repeating often as of late - to write in a blog. Naturally, when I got Gambler, one of my first thoughts was to write about him. I put it off for months, because I wasn't sure what I thought of making our story public. It's one thing to buy a green horse and train him yourself; it's another thing entirely to train him in front of the world. Not that I'm saying the world is watching, but anyone with an internet can watch if he wishes to.

When I finally started this blog, I started it for me. I wasn't thinking about the page views or the people who would read it. I just wanted a journal dedicated to Gambler, so that I could look back and see how far we've come. Then people started reading and commenting and asking me questions and I realized that I could help people out in some small way. Maybe, someone in a similar situation will see this blog, and be able to avoid the mistakes I made along the way. 

Now I'm enjoying this blog so much. It is still here to fulfill the original purpose, but I can't lie: I smile extra big when I see that there are 117 views in one day. I love writing, I love horses, and I love that this little blog is bringing joy to some people out there. 

So I guess that's all I have to say. Thank you for taking the time to read my ramblings. God bless you and your horses!

Our Journey in Pictures (50th post)

Since I did something special for my 25th post, I am going to do something different for my 50th post as well. While looking back over old photos, I was again overwhelmed by how much Gambler has changed over the last few months. I could go on and on forever about how proud I am of him and how far we've come, but I'll let the pictures speak for themselves.

April 2015

Our first pictures together, at his old barn. 

Gambler and I after he got his eye sewed up, but before the drugs wore off. 

First pictures at his new barn!

Sleepy snuggles. 

Just look at how little and cute he is!

May 2015

Lateral flexion

Trying to teach Gamby the circling game.

The day Gambler met Sweetheart.

The day we introduced Gambler to his little purple ball. 

June 2015

Our circling game breakthrough: circling around the barrel.

One of the first days that Gambler really "got" the circling game.

First bit of liberty work?

Playing the friendly game. He's not tense at all.

More liberty first steps.

The first tarp.

The first jump attempt, aka the day I realized ropes and jump standards don't mix.

The first time I put the bareback pad on him.

First time I asked Gambler to jump something. 

More fun with tarps.

Forequarter yields.

Hindquarter yields.

July 2015

Introducing the close-contact saddle. 

Fun with the big blue ball. 

The exercises the chiropractor told me to do for Gambley's one-sidedness. 

August 2015

Gambler decided he was afraid of his shadow

Putting the western saddle on for the first time.

August was when Gambler and I had our liberty breakthrough (video here). 

September 2015

We spent a lot of time getting used to the western getup.

We also had a lot of fun with liberty. 

Gambler learned to canter on line. 

I took Gambler for a walk after he recuperated from a bout with colic.

The saddle wasn't always okay  . . .

October 2015

Ground poles to improve topline.

Mounting prep begins!

Jumping at liberty.

More mounting prep.

This month - two days ago to be exact - I properly sat on my horse for the first time! It's been a long six months, but I can't wait to see what God has in store for us.

I Rode My Horse! (First Ride)

The title says it all. After six months of hard work I got to ride my horse for the very first time.

I started the session by longeing Gambler in a figure-eight shape around two barrels. He caught on to the new exercise quite quickly. Next I sent him over a jump once or twice, because I know he loves that. It is really difficult to send him over the jump from the ground though, because the rope gets caught on the jump standards. It will be easier to play with jumps once I can ride him comfortably walk/trot.

Then I longed him for a while, and realized that while I've been focused on other things his transitions have gotten pretty gross. When I asked him to canter he just jump-bucked into one or two strides before falling back into the trot. When I increased my pressure he fell back into his old habit of stopping and backing up. I was going to pressure him to go forward, but then he started backing up toward the horse-eating trees. Aha! Instead I asking him to keep backing up and then we played the circling game right underneath the scary trees. Granted, it wasn't a windy day, but I say that's a huge step in the right direction.

After that, I asked Mom to hold Gambler while I did mounting prep. I set up the camera at this point, but afterwards I found out that it ran out of memory and stopped recording only a few seconds in. I started out like I have before, standing on the mounting block rubbing Gambler all over his neck and back. After leaning over his back and then jumping up and laying over him sideways; I finally jumped right up onto his back. The first time was so smooth and perfect - I don't think I touched his flank with my foot at all. I caught Gambler (and myself) by surprise. I didn't even know I was going up; it just happened. So weird. Anyway, I sat up there for a little while rubbing him on the neck and rear and then I got off. I got on two more times (at least once on both sides). The last time I asked Mom to lead him just a couple steps forward because the light was fading and I didn't have time to put a legitimate first ride on him. He was a little grumpy, meaning that he turned his head around and tried to bite my foot, but he didn't spook at all.

Since I didn't get any good pictures or video, here are the gorgeous fall pictures I took at the barn on Thursday. I will try to get good videos/pictures of Gambler's official second first ride.

Autumn Evening in Motion

I didn't have much time with Gambler today before the sun went down, but we managed to have some fun. I worked on his canter transitions and did a little jumping. My brother got a few really good motion shots. Sadly most of the pictures were blurry due to the fading light.