♣Ambitious♣

Things got a little bit too real this week. Both my IEA barn and my IHSA barn are struggling at the moment. They rely on regular lessons in order to stay operating. If you have anything to spare, it would be greatly appreciated. IEA Barn Fundraiser IHSA Barn Fundraiser And for anyone who needs it, I have a Horze coupon that I am definitely not going to use. It's MOBILE20 for $20 off a $100+ purchase. These places have so many good memories for me

So, I went for a run last night, and my phone was near dead, so I opted to use my iPod instead for music. One thing led to another, and I started looking through my gallery, digging up some old photos and videos (some of which I posted early on with this blog), including some from my first show season. Let's just say I've always been bitter about having to ride a horse before noon. Short, cold, tired, AND bitter Twix w/ her old owner Baby in her short stirrup mode Still short stirrup, but looking real good Sometimes Duke went fast I also used to take pictures during lesson weekends, too. Two full days at the barn every other week (sometimes  every  week) from 10am to 4pm on Saturdays and noon to 4pm on Sundays. I'm a barn rat at heart, and I hate being an adult and having to do adult things because I get minimal barn time. Chess/Chester/Chesapeake Fish/Fisher/Fish Face Splash (he had no nicknames :/) Todd/Toddy/Toddster/Mr Todd Th...

So after yesterday's disgustingly-sad-with-cliché-inspiring-last-paragraph post, it's time to pat myself on the back for the times that I've managed to kick ass and take names. Beckz from I Will Jump Sweet Jumps (arguably the sickest blog title) came up with this awesome blog hop. In chronological order . . . The start of my 2013 show season, when I showed Duke in long stirrup and pleasure pony. He was losing it, but guess 👏 who 👏 kept 👏 it 👏 together 👏. Course when I thought he was finally chilled out during the combination hack, he ended up booking it through the line and took a daring distance to the second fence. I stayed on, though. Props to Duke for his athleticism. There was also that time I bombed my way through the o/f classes only to win the flat because you can't have a refusal when there are no fences to jump. After a rough season, Baby & I finally qualified for the medal final and made it over everything, then switched...

As much as I love #tbt, Thursdays are for fashion, and the day that I'm flashing back to is a Friday. Just over a year ago, I joined an IEA team, and I will always consider it one of the best decisions of my riding career. I was super hesitant at first. I had only ever ridden at one barn. I knew of people on the team already who were much better and much younger than me. I wondered how I was going to balance it with my regular lessons. Plus, the cost, the location of the barn, and the location of the shows didn't make it an easy decision. Willow, my o/f draw from the first IEA show I eventually caved to Miss S's persuasion, took a break from lessons with her, and joined the team. Even after the first lesson, I was still unsure, but I kept up with it, and I'm glad I did. Within the first month, I had a major turning point in my riding (and I remember that exact moment clearly). I became stronger, both physically and mentally. And I had an awesome, energetic, su...