"Hey, Lionel Richie, ya ain't gettin' paid to dance"

Oh Reggie and the Full Effect, I do love you so!

Some quick news on the Dee front:
She jumped twice last week (just little cross-rails). Apparently, there was much over jumping and celebratory bucking and charging after the fences the first day, but she was better the second time. Steph is thinking that she will try to pop her over something small just about every time she gets on so that jumps aren't something to get all hyped up about. Also, I was told "She feels like she has a ton of jump in there." That's my girl!

She went out for a hack on the road BY HERSELF. She was fabulous.

I was also told "She is a very cranky mare". I know... it's part of her charm, I guess!

I'll be visiting on Thursday and plan on getting MUCH video!

Mogwai or Gremlin?

Spring is definitely in the air. The boys have been a bit full of themselves lately, though Taz's "happy juice" (ECP Matrix) seems to be kicking in, because he was incredibly polite on Sunday. I got the latest news from Steph on Sunday, too. Dee has been pretty good. There have been a few tantrums, mostly over the right leg, but I was assured that they weren't big crazy tantrums, just cow kicking or backing up... all of which Steph was able to cure with a quick spanking. Sunday she was planning to do a little jump school, and I think yesterday she was going to go hacking. Steph teaches away Monday night - Tuesday morning, so I haven't called to harass her about how all that went yet, since I'm sure she's busy. I suppose if it went terribly wrong, I would have gotten a call.
I miss my girl! I'm actually thinking I'll go up there next weekend, if Steph is around. I want to take some video of her jumping and flatting.
Here she is at Windhorse... looking very grown-up!


I can't even believe how much she's grown-up this year... both in body and in personality. HOWEVER, that witchiness is still bubbling underneath the surface and probably always will. Bettina likened her to one of the Mogwai in the movie Gremlins. She looks VERY sweet. This horse has the NICEST eye... no one ever believes that she could be nasty sometimes. The Mogwai would transform into the Gremlin if it was fed after midnight. Dee seems to turn into a Gremlin when you do something like tell her she MUST do something. "Move my feet? I'll show you!"


In non-horsey news, I've just signed the lease for an apartment, moving into it in the fall! I don't think I mentioned it on here, but I will be moving to Knoxville, TN in the fall to attend the University of Tennessee College of Law. I'm excited about it, but unfortunately, it's going to be three horseless years. I just won't have time to give her the attention she deserves. I'm hoping to find a lease situation for her while I'm down there, because I want to pick back up with her when I'm finished with school.

Orange

My baby is currently living two and a half hours away from me at Stephie's. Of course, I'm happy about it, because I can't ride and she needs to learn how to be an event horse, but I miss her! We had to drive up there in a driving rain storm, which was a nightmare. By the time I got up past Springfield, it was raining so hard that I could barely see the road. I ended up just getting off the highway and taking rt. 202 all the way in. It tacked on another half hour to the trip, but it was much safer. Steph offered to get on her when we got there, so I got to see her go.
There were two or three bitchy moments, but overall she was a good girl, and I must say... She's a PRETTY mare. She's gotten much more steady in the bridle, and WOW... when she's soft and round, she's quite fancy! The canter needs a ton of work, but even that got better as she went. What would REALLY help our canter is if her withers grew a bit more so that she stops being a bit downhill.
The day before we left, Bettina had a free lunge session with us. As Dee was galloping around, Bettina just said to me "If you can't make the time on this thing, then you're a chicken shit." It's true. Her stride is MASSIVE, and her gallop looks like SO much fun. I can't wait to try it out this spring!
In other news, Dusty has moved up to Stonleigh Burnham. Jen told me that if I let her know when I'm heading up to visit Dee, she'll call into Stonleigh and tell them I'm coming for a visit so that I can see Dusty, too. I'm excited to see the old girl... she was, quite possibly, the most amazing horse I ever had. She came into my life at the exact right time, and we complimented each other perfectly. Will Dee be the next Dusty? I hope so... Dusty may be small, but she left some huge shoes to fill.

Tricks!

Dee has picked up a new "trick". Really, she's just stretching, but the ladies at the barn get a kick out of it, because it looks like she's bowing and showing off. It's very cute! One of these times I'll try to get some video or photo documentation of her new skill.
I'm currently looking into affordable summertime housing solutions for her. Ideally, I want board I can afford AND someone I can take lessons with all in one place. This is because while I would still like to ship out to nancy and stephie, realistically, I can't do that as often as I'd like, and I need someone on-site for support.

She's been just lovely lately to work with. She's 100 times more respectful, and she's really started using herself under saddle. Now I just need to get myself fixed so I can RIDE! I'm itching to get on, but I know that curling up into the fetal position in the saddle because of back pain will not be conducive to a good ride! She leaves for Steph's in about 10 days, so she'll be getting lots of work with a person on her, but for now, I'm pleased with the ground work. She very happily goes forward, backward and sideways now!