I set the goal to achieve 100 rides this year. Sounds fairly simple, right? But with 2 months of heavy smoke during prime riding time, the summer, and the usual winter weather and spring and fall rains it took a bit of perseverance to git'r'done.
But I did!
Ride 100 was, as promised, a trail ride with my husband, who doesn't ride much any more. In fact, this was his second ride this year. And I'm pretty sure he volunteered for it because he loves Gussie, he is the one that picked her out of a pen of colts at the auction we bought her at.
I rode Beamer, of course. He was pretty tickled to have a GIRL riding along with him but he was pretty well behaved, talked a couple of times but a growl from me straightened him out.
Yes, I growl at my horses.....
It was a lovely afternoon! We had rain on top of the little bit of snow, so there were icy patches here and there but riding in the bush it was really good footing. And the snow made for nice soft footing for Beamer.
We went to the river and back, just my usual ride so I could show Ted where I go.
On the way back Ted and Gussie led for a while. She had gotten a bit ramped up but he handled her well.
I gotta say I was pretty happy to reach my goal on a ride where I was on my best horse and my husband was riding with me. Great way to get there!
So- getting back to looking back... my key word for the year was "change". What changes? Well, I now have a hay shed, so no more tarping bales and losing hundreds of dollars worth of hay to mold!
A big change was selling a horse I didn't get along with (Rosalee) and buying Gussie, who is totally my kind of horse! Also, I stepped up and invested in an eventual replacement for Beamer, which was not in the plans but just worked out that way.... pending 5 panel results and what Drifter turns out like. Because, I really wasn't planning on replacing Beamer at all.... but dreams die hard, and helping someone else out made it a worthwhile project.
So- what's up for next year? For me, my key word is "action". How that plays out we shall see, and I will record on this blog as it unfolds. One thing I want to change for sure is my diet- I need to cut out most of the sugar I routinely indulge in! Another area I want to change is my propensity for procrastination , especially as pertains to housework! I am one of those people who would rather clean a horse pen than dust and vacuum my house. And one big change is that I will actually be travelling a bit; my daughter in Ontario is getting married in July so I"ll be heading there. Perhaps flying ( I hate flying, I'm claustrophobic) or renting a car and driving- which I would prefer as I could then stop to visit friends along the way.
What's up for 2019 for you?
Riding day 100
4 comments:
I'm curious about your action year - wondering if you're planning on competing.
Housework - I hate dusting so much I only do it when we have company. But I have to vacuum every couple days cuz we live on a farm and there's always bits of hay and mud chunks everywhere. For Christmas I got a robot vacuum and I'm in love. He does all the work! I just have to empty the dust and clean the hair out of the brushes. The more you use it the less often you have to empty it, so I use him almost every day. Only 200 bucks - I may never use a real vacuum again!
Things my husband did not have when we met: a car, a dishwasher, a clothes dryer (that one is recent - I went 10 years without a dryer!). I think he sees me as lazy for all these luxuries but I've got lawns to mow and poop to scoop....cuz he bought me a farm: )
Lytha, that made me laugh, yes I also prioritize my farm chores over my housework. And I'm the one who mows too- so happy that he bought me a riding lawn mower!
As far as competing goes- maybe not this year as it would involve a lot of expense but I do want to take some lessons in Cowboy Dressage; that might be doable for me.
I dislike flying too, but at the moment I have to do it quite regularly. One thing I have learned is to book a seat in aisle 13, if possible. Lots of people are superstitious and don’t want to sit in the aisle with an unlucky number which makes it more likely you will have an empty seat next you.
Sounds like you have a plan! Happy New Year to you and Ted and all your critters.
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