I spent a lot of time last week on the phone trying to get reimbursed for the rental car I wasn't supposed to pay for while my car was in for a warranty repair. I did finally manage to get ALL of my money back -- including the overdraft fees that being charged for the rental had caused. But it really screwed up my finances for the week....and possibly for the month. It's always something.
The first weekend in June, I spent Saturday morning with Promise. Quite a bit of time was spent currying her furry butt, trying to get as much of her winter coat off her as possible. Then I tried to long line her - because I didn't feel like riding - but thought we could both use some exercise. Unfortunately, it was the day before her next dose of bug stuff, and the bugs were driving her crazy. I guess it doesn't last 100% from dose to dose. Boo. She was too distracted and bothered to be safe with me behind her, attached by two lunge lines, lol. So, we didn't work very long. On Sunday, I rode for probably close to an hour. I worked on fixing my position - because I know I'm leaning too far forward, and bouncing, etc. I tried to steady my legs so I wouldn't double bounce when posting, and I tried to steady her to help me accomplish this (I was taught to let her momentum and movement do most of the posting for me). I kept reminding myself to keep my shoulders back and to SIT back - even though it felt like I was leaning too far back, I knew I wasn't -- I was actually right where I needed to be. We also spent a long time cantering because I got tired of her trying to pull the reins out of my hands so she wouldn't have to stay collected (welcome to one of her few vices, lol). So, I worked again on keeping myself up, and back, including my hands - and then pushed her into them, making her rock back, use her hind end, come up off her front end - and, as a result, stop trying to pull the reins from my hands. At the end, we hopped over a little vertical a couple times in each direction.
This past weekend, between the heat and humidity and feeling like I got hit by a mack truck, I didn't ride. I spent a couple of hours with her on Sunday grooming -- YAY for summer dapples!!! She's almost done shedding!! I pulled her mane, trimmed her bridle path and then took her to the round pen to play a bit.
She's lost quite a bit of weight from being more active. I can see her ribs - but just the outline, can't feel them. I'm keeping an eye on her, to make sure she doesn't lose too much - and I actually increased her feed a couple of weeks ago because I felt she was getting too ribby. She's got some more muscle tone, and is starting to develop her abs again with that nice line at the bottom of the belly starting to reappear. From what I hear, she spends a lot of time in turnout walking, which is nice. Normally, when she was by herself, she would just stand there and look silly.
That's about it for the last couple of weeks. I am hoping to stay motivated to spend some more time in the saddle this weekend.
