Tales from the Pasture: Hats, Horses, & Hen Houses

Good morning or whatever time of day this post finds you in!  I hope you guys all had a great weekend and had the chance to do a couple things you enjoy.  The ninety degree temperatures were back in full action around NC this weekend so I was a happy little lark.

Speaking of this weekend it is time to introduce you to a new lady in our pasture and also give one of those updates on my daughter that I try to seamlessly tie into my own experiences on being a parent who is not seasoned in raising a girl.

The last day of school was fun - awards, a party, and a new horse.

Meet I.D.

This is the fourth horse my dad has purchased for C in four months.  Yes, I believe we are kissing frogs when it comes to getting the perfect fit for my girl.  Molly wasn't fully broke, Prissy Buns is still a sweet baby doll who is thrilled to be with her old pasture mate I.D. again, Levi is a story I need to share with you in a moment, and now we have I.D.

So what makes this horse a good fit?

Simply put - she is old.  She is twenty years old and in very good shape but she's not into "horsing around" and is very reminsicent of the horse C trained on.

I could sit here and tell you the immense surge of happiness I felt when I helped my daughter get in the saddle on Thursday night and then watched her take control with no one beside her and ride the horse.  But I'll digress.  I think you may know that swell of pride if you're a mama.

C riding with her Pappaw on Sunday.

The horse is a sweetheart and we're thrilled to have she and Prissy Buns together.  They came from the same farm just east of Raleigh.

On Friday night my daughter attended her first rodeo.  I guess it is safe to say that English riding may not be her choice after this experience.  Growing up we went to rodeos quite a bit and even after the little kid years I spent many Friday nights at team roping events.  No, I never participated but you know...high school girls and high school boys in rural little map dots do strange things for fun.

My dad and his girlfriend took C to her first rodeo and well...I think my Facebook status from Friday night sums it up:

C left in a pony tail, tank top, and her boots. She came home in a cowboy hat, tshirt, and mess of dirt in her boots and ready to ride bucking ponies. I believe we are going to have to keep a keen eye on her when she rides now! What did Garth Brooks say? Damned old rodeo??? lol

When she arrived home just before midnight she was pumped!  Barrel racing didn't quite tickler fancy but roping, bucking, and bulls sure did.  All I could do was giggle.

The hat is being worn everywhere.  I had to tell her not in church, honey.

Our Littlest Buckaroo is not riding horses or mutton busting but he did learn to swim this weekend!  The boy has no fear so he did a lot like his sister did many years ago and went under and started swimming!  That is something that excites me so much - when C started swimming on her own I was elated and excited.  Now my little dude is starting to swim and I could just pop with happiness.

***

I hate to report our chickens fell prey to one of our lovely woodland creatures last week.  It was a clean sweep of the coop by a smart critter.  We've narrowed down the suspects to a raccoon, oppossum, or a fox but it doesn't look like fox work - well not to me!  

I'm sticking to raccoon because I know how meticulous they can be about the way they do things.  Possums are messy in their work and this wasn't a messy job.  Fox - well I just feel like we would have had more extensive damage to the coop but then again they do have that stealth cat like side to them so...

What do you say Mr. Fox?

***

This week on the blog the background idea is Father's Day!  I hope you'll tune in for a Father's Day meal idea, Pinterest 5, Driving Around My Town, and Friday 5.

Have a terrific Monday!

Tales from the pasture

A couple weeks ago my sweet girl had her last riding lesson.  As you may remember the trainer she was working with announced at the end of April she would be relocating but not sure where to.

I want to be obnoxious for a moment and just brag on my kid and on her teacher.

We started this endeavor in fear.  My sweet C had rode her new horse and then experienced the fall.  Falling off Molly was detrimental to her confidence and trust.  With tears she begged me to find her a teacher who could get her riding.

And I did.

Her first lesson was memorable.  She was scared but putting on a brave face.  She lost it when it came time to mount.

After a good twenty minutes of crying, fear, and worry her amazing teacher had her smiling and riding in the saddle.

Who does that?

For two months I watched my child learn to groom, saddle, mount, dismount, walk, trot, and speed her trot up.  I saw her go from a scared little girl wanting her teacher right by her side to a girl begging to trot and telling me she was going to canter by her last lesson.

I was gifted the amazing blessing of watching my own child from the sidelines.  I gave up my worry and fear and put her in the hands of someone else so she could do what she longed to do.  In turn I guess I really gave her a sense of self.  I watched her learn that she can conquer whatever she may be afraid of or unsure of.

My heart is full of gratitude to her fabulous instructor.  Linnea really has a gift of working with these kids and these horses.  I only know her in the teaching ring but she is graced with a level of patience that I admire.

For the summer we'll be away from the training ring.  Our focus is on the water and swimming.  There will still be some posts here and there from the pasture since we do have Prissy Buns and this theme fits into a lot of our rural lifestyle.

Thanks for reading and sending the love our way during this season.  I have enjoyed sharing the moments of pride and worry with you all.

Happy Summer endeavors!

Tales From The Pasture: Bad Timing

Looking back at this spring, thus far, I'm in awe over the growth of my daughter (C).  Sure, she's grown in inches but I'm watching just exactly who she is begin to bud as well.

A big part of her growth has been due to horses. In February she was surprise horse as a gift. A fall after a rough ride. Then building her confidence by lessons and rebuilding trust. Her goals now are lofty for a girl who started in April! It is as if that whole "little girl" title she has worn for 8 years is graduating to "my daughter."

There is such a difference between your little girl and your daughter. I am envisioning her as her three and four year old self in little dresses and sandals.  The captured memory in my head is of her icy blue eyes staring at the camera with smile on her face on our old porch.  She's holding a baby doll that looks like her.

When she transitions to becoming my daughter - I don't see those baby features anymore.  I see a more mature and changing young lady.  She needs me less because she wants to test her own boundaries more.

I have been excited (and stressed) for her to begin this metamorphosis into her own person - finding her own likes and dislikes.  Watching her learn to ride horses has been huge in her growth.  this school year I have watched my confident little girl turn into someone who allowed her confidence to be cracked.  When she fell from the horse in March; her who self took a blow.  She thought she could do this with ease but a bump in the road (punny, right?) tore her confidence to pieces.  Getting her horse riding lessons has been a huge gift not just for her but also for me. The ability to actually visually see her shed fear has been beyond miraculous.  Sure, it is a small step and many do it - but to see your own child lose a fear and put her head up in confidence and smile - you realize that is a total miracle that could easily be taken for granted.

With all this being said, you can imagine our immense disappointment when we received letter that said the riding lessons would no longer be after May 31st.

I read it first since I had collected the mail.  Yes, there was a lump in my throat.  Yes, I had cold chills.  Yes, my heart sank.

This was really bad timing.

Just hours before this my daughter had told me she wanted to be up to cantering by the end of May.  Now the end of May seemed all too close and we would be without a trainer.  Giving her the news of lessons ending just hurt.

She cried.

That hurt.

We have a great teacher and now she would be looking to relocate her services.  This isn't a quick process.  There would need to be new horses for training beginners.  My C would be as heartbroken over her trainer as she would be over her training horse, Pax.

Bad, bad timing.

Having watched my C go from being deathly afraid of the animal to giggling on his back while he gently walked her about the ring I kept thinking - now is the time to continue!  We cannot stop now!  We cannot have a break!

But this is a life lesson.

A very unfair life lesson.

When things are going well there is always the chance for something not so grand to occur.  It is true for every person on the earth.  We don't always have good days.  We do not always get our way.  Sometimes things happen out of our control that cause us to change direction.

I cannot protect my child from life's curve balls and disappointments.  I can only love her through them and be supportive.

In this case...I'll be on the hunt for a new person and horse - to build trust and confidence with.

This is really bad timing - but we'll get through it.

Tales From the Pasture

Another Monday - that is a good thing if you think about it.  I mean hello if we did not have this Monday then that would mean something a bit unhappy.  Go ahead celebrate it by drinking coffee all day!

Yes, I will be doing that.  However, my reasoning is due to the fact that I have one tonsil swollen to the size of a ping pong ball.  This is all thanks to working in straw all day yesterday.  One thing I have noticed since getting into my thirties is that my allergies have became a bit more sensitive than ever before.

I was the kid who could roll in poison ivy or oak and never be affected.

Cut grass, hay, ragweed, pollen, and straw did not bother me in the least.

Now...

Forget it.

I saw a large vine of poison oak wrapped around an oak tree in our yard and I literally shuddered.  It crossed my mind that this could be the year I look at it and it jumps on me.

Ain't nobody got time for that.

**
Last week at riding lessons my daughter rode the horse.  She did it - no crying, no real fear, she just mounted up and let him walk her about the ring.  It was a proud mama moment if there has ever been one!

It started with eight steps on their own, no trainer holding a lead rope, then went to fourteen steps.  Eventually, the went up to 40 steps and then it didn't matter how many steps.  She was in the saddle smiling.

For thirty minutes, Pax gently took my C around the ring to spell words (letters sporadically placed on the fencing).

Confidence built!

This week we're skipping the lesson so she can start fresh in May.  If I said that horseback riding lessons were affordable I would be lying.  Mama has to reformulate the budget to accommodate $150 for lessons.

I could just say we have to stop but I won't do that.

There is so much more going on when my child is in the saddle than just learning to ride a horse.  She's building confidence in herself that no person can ever instill in her.  She's learning that she can do anything she, herself, puts her mind to.

We are looking forward to seeing her growth next month.

Tales from the pasture...

Monday - already?  Last week I had an extra day and a half off and boy did I enjoy that!  We won't talk about how it makes Monday that much more devastating to face (slam the alarm clock!)

I have a lot to fill you in on.

Last Monday was my daughter's first riding lesson.  Guys, she did awesome.  The trainer she is working with is simply amazing - a whisperer if you will.

My daughter had been extremely afraid after being thrown off Molly.  She wouldn't even touch a horse after that happened.  When Prissy Buns came to live in the pasture my little girl was still a nervous wreck. Though she did attempt to get back in the saddle she was overcome with fear. I'm not kidding when I say she was out just as quick as she was up.

Being her mom I'm somewhat (I think and hope) in tune with her and I could tell she wanted to ride.  There was the fear from having trusted an animal and it not-so-gently letting her down but there was also something in her actions around the same animal that said she wanted to do it.

She was just overcome by fear.

Last Monday I was nervous for my girl C. Lately I have noticed she is becoming less self confident and my mama heart was breaking.  Her excitement for the lesson was off the charts but in the back of my mind I worried she would panic and be in tears once she was faced with getting on the back of a horse again.

I didn't want my baby to be embarrassed.  I didn't want her to feel like she couldn't do this.

As moms we want to take sickness and pain from our babies.

We want to remove self doubt and raise them up as high as we can.

Too many times we think the cure is to surround them, coddle them, and give them no room of their own to try.  It isn't that we don't want them to try it is just that as moms we have a fear of their failure too.

Arriving at the ring we were surrounded by girls of all ages and all levels of riding.  I imagine for an eight year old girl who wants to ride so badly it was magical in a way; being surrounded by various horse breeds and girls who cold maneuver about with ease on these huge animals.

It was also overwhelming.

I could see the uneasiness building up in my girl.

Why couldn't I take it from her and give her all the self confidence she needs?

If you're not a mom then I'll let you in on a secret that will make you ever so successful anytime you deal with children for long periods of time.  Sometimes mamas need to ease away so that their kids can do their best.

I eased away.

While my girl was in the stable I was sitting out staring at an empty horse ring - saying little prayers that this would be a good experience.

To cut down on this post I want to share this with you -

There were tears.

There was fear.

There was shouting and crying.

Then there was a girl who told me a couple days before - "Mama I just want to be able to ride a horse and not be afraid," in the saddle - smiling, finally - and then out of the saddle and rubbing and talking to a horse that just a hour before she was shying away from.

On the way home the talking from the backseat was incessant.

That was so fun.  That horse is amazing!  Did you see me?  I cannot wait to go back.  I want to ride tomorrow.  Can you please ask if I can come back tomorrow?

We spend a lot of time worrying about our kids.  We want the school work to be perfect and their manners impeccable.  As moms we want their worlds to be without a crease, nick, or worry.  Our lives revolve around their lives.

But sometimes if we ease away a little bit - they do something amazing.

Tales from the pasture...

You met Molly a few weeks ago and if you didn't well...click here.

Molly has vacated the pasture.  She wasn't quite the fit for an eight year old girl and she also didn't care much for a twenty year old boy either.  Unfortunately, she has some problems that make her a bit dangerous for riders.  She'll be going back to her original home to hang out with the cows.

My daughter isn't too upset.  And why would she be?

She's traveling across North Carolina on the hunt for the perfect horse.

More to come...