I had many great horsey experiences in 2019! I am really pleased with how the year went overall; nothing is ever perfect, but both horses are sound, happy, and healthy, which is really what matters to me. Some of my 2019 goals were met easily or with lots of hard work, and a few of them were utter fails haha. C'est la vie! Let's recap! Happy, health, sound Both mares are doing well in this regard! Dreamy will be 29 this year, and while she definitely shows signs of her age at times, she overall looks and acts much younger than she really is! Ellie has really matured this year, filling out as well as mentally becoming more comfortable in her own skin. As she will be eight this year, I feel like we have moved through the baby phase. having this photo shoot was definitely a highlight of 2019! Continue lessons with Beth and Babette This goal was met and then some! I took almost weekly dressage lessons with Beth and monthly jump lessons with Babette. Thanks to the
Ellie is a blast to ride, despite the fact she is pretty green. She's a forward little compact sports car, completely different from the Standardbreds I have been riding for the past fourteen years. She is the horse I grew up riding and my skill set for riding a horse like her has started to come back to me. However, this time around I also have all the skills gained from teaching my Standardbreds to move like dressage horses, so I'm excited. I personally brought Dreamy along to showing First Level/schooling Second from a broodmare who had never been backed (which isn't some huge accomplishment, but it wasn't easy!), so I feel hopeful that Ellie and I will eventually have a strong competitive career. And of course, we will do other fun things like trail riding, driving, chasing cows, going sidesaddle...you know, all the cool stuff I did with Sparky and Dreamy that made them both so enjoyable and versatile! I totally begged my 13 year old to take a few pics on Sa