edging toward uncountable

Y'all already know that Mondeuse had a pretty big week last week. Honestly, aside from the week when she arrived, last week was kinda the first time where everything clicked together and she finally ascended to the role of 'riding horse.' 

my friend looking fresh as a goddamn daisy after running a cold wet rainy Baltimore marathon

She did 5 excellent days of 'work' in a row, and then got to marinate over the weekend while I was otherwise occupied with a friend visiting for the marathon. 

obvi the next day of "active recovery" was dedicated to playing with the ponies!

Tho, obviously, horses factored pretty heavily into our post race plans --- since this friend is also horsey and actually has worked as head manager and show groom at a variety of farms up and down the East Coast. 

charlie has the best juju for accompanying young horses, it's nice to finally be able to experience it from this other perspective!

And obvi, one of the most exciting aspects of having two now --- especially one as seasoned, experienced, and reliable as Charlie --- is that I can share! 

d'awww <3 <3 <3
(pay no attention to the single polo wrapped leg, ugh #kingofthedings)

So Doozy's 18th ride was another low key stroll around the farm with Charles <3 I was pretty proud of the little red mare too. It was a cold wet weekend and she'd had three days off in a row, but proved what we all know to be true: horses truly do learn from one ride to the next, even if the rides aren't on consecutive days. 

She had her best under saddle stream crossing yet --- plus did a little loop around the open field with only a mild attempt at trying to zip back to the gate. We'll take it! Charlie was obviously perfect, if occasionally confused by Doozy's antics lol. 

just photo spam of walkies around the farm with my two sweet ponies plus a friend!

The next day was just back to the normal (gosh I love that word) 'grind,' with ride #19 so mundane that I didn't even take a single picture in the entire barn visit. Guys, that's how you know we're settling into the routine LOL. 

I had stopped by the indoor to set up some more poles and stuff --- the line of 3, spaced at 9' apart. A pole across the short end on the far side, a little x-rail. Standard stuff. Let the mare fill up on some hay while getting brushed and tacked in her stall. Then headed on up to the indoor for the first time in 4 days. 

guys she crossed the stream ahead perfectly!! zero hesitation!

There was a pony and kiddo inside the ring when we arrived, and they left shortly after. This was a little challenging for Doozy, since they left through her favorite door (from which we had arrived), and she had a little trouble settling. But only a little. And ya know... this is the stuff, right? 

Part of what makes our boarding barn so interesting is that... it's huge. I don't even know how many horses are there, but estimate about 70+. At any given time of day, there could be horses in any (or all!) of the 3 arenas, plus cruising the driveway, plus out in the xc fields or in the woods. 

some pretty views along the driveway

A big part of Doozy's early training is going to revolve around learning to #cope with unexpected horses who come and go at random. And for this ride, she basically did that. 

We repeated all the same exercises she learned last week --- walking and trotting, including 20m circles in the middle and ends of the arena. Plus a fun little walking course of all the ground poles I set up. Doozy understands now to stay straight and centered thru the lines of poles. 

and out for another circuit thru the fields too -- and Doozy was pretty good!

She also jumped the little X again, a bit casually lol and knocked the rail --- but landed in a pleasant canter that we carried on for a couple laps. Then changed directions and did some laps on the other lead. Then walked another little 'course' through all the ground poles just to establish that we don't bail immediately after cantering. 

And it was all good. Not as good as some of the highlights from the week prior, bc the mare was more tense and less settled. But, for all intents and purposes, it was a good ride where the mare answered every question more or less correctly, and practiced new skills. 

charlie obvi was the best tho, ugh love this horse! even tho he twisted off another shoe this week

I sorta half-joked to a friend that this is basically our life now. We can officially walk / trot / canter / jog little x-rails --- so, ya know, we'll basically chip away at kinda sucking at the fundamentals for the foreseeable future. 

And in the meantime, we'll hopefully get more experience with ring traffic etc. Clocks change in just a couple weeks, which means more folks will gravitate toward the indoor at peak riding times. I think we're ready, tho. 

Our schedules might be a bit unruly this week and weekend, since I'll be doing a lot of volunteering plus, natch, tailgating at the Maryland 5* (are you going??), but I'm hoping to not miss too many days with Dooz. And we *might* sneak in an actual proper lesson, maybe, hopefully, cross your fingers!!

And in the meantime, for any of y'all who found it tedious to count every single ride... I think we're just about done with that. Doozy officially crossed the threshold I set for her after her 30 Day Review ;)