Today's lesson

Before I rode, I convinced my friend Lisa (known around the barn as Lisa1) to hop on Daniel. She has a Friesian filly who hasn't been saddle started, and takes lessons on Daniel. Well, she's been so into training with horse that she hasn't ridden in ages, despite me telling her she can ride Daniel whenever she wants...

After Lisa1 warmed him up, I got on for my lesson... In shoulders-in. That should be re-titled "Lisa2 can't walk and chew gum at the same time again!". Between the inside rein up, inside leg on and the half-halt on the outside, I was a flipping mess!!!!

Leeandra was helping me along with verbal cues, but I felt like I was learning to walk, and doing a shit job at it! I'll get it eventually. I don't have lessons the next two weeks, so I'll be going down on Saturday instead... And I plan to practice! Maybe if I'm going through the script in my head, and not being reactive to outside cues, I'll do better. My horse knows all of this; I just have to learn it! (and I didn't realize that Leeandra's husband Joe was taking pictures - he's an awesome photographer! He took the one of me on Daniel.)

After my lesson, I groomed Daniel, put his sheet back on him, and put him back out with the boys. He's learning that he's back with those guys, and he's so much happier!

I helped out with a young horse Leeandra was training. I got to do some holding while Leeandra worked on desensitizing her to things like jackets flapping and being put on her back and neck, and beginning to mount her. It was interesting working with a horse that has lots of buttons! I'm so used to my bombproof boy. I'm told time and time again that, "There is the Daniel way, and the every other horse way"... It was really good for me to be exposed to some of those other horse ways!!!

Next weekend, due to SuperBowl, my Sunday horse will be my Saturday horse.
:-)