deep (dressage) thoughts

Well. Not *my* deep thoughts lol... but Doozy's actually! My sweet little mare has had nothing less than a straight up breakthrough in her flatwork this week -- culminating in a dressage lesson that blew my socks off AND had *Trainer C* asking *me* if she could snap video!! Omg! 

i try to always snap a mirror selfie bc usually it's the only ridden pic from these lessons

In my experience, breakthrough rides don't just happen out of nowhere, ya know? It's sorta like what they say about plane crashes -- except obvi the exact opposite: "Plane crashes are rarely caused by a single factor; they are the result of a chain of events or a series of failures."

but omg, doozy was SO GOOD, trainer C insisted on capturing some video for us!!!

In this instance, the series of factors or chain of events is probably more closely related to the management stuff I wrote about in my last post, vs any significant changes in my effectiveness as a trainer. 

If you wanted me to pin down specifics, I'd probably tag:

- The introduction of sucralfate to our management protocol

- Doozy's bodywork appointment (chiro / acupuncture) midweek last week

- Ridden stretchy exercises we've worked on since, based on counsel from said body worker

- Increased focus on utilizing verbal cues in our schooling sessions

pictured: a thinking mare having a bit of a breakthrough re: her longitudinal balance

The body worker (who you might remember from like... basically the entire history of this blog lol) hasn't seen Doozy for quite a few months, but I was eager to bring her out esp right after the saddle reflock. Predictably, she spent a long time on Doozy's spine and back muscles. 

We talked a lot about Doozy's tension, and my approach to working with her. And she shared techniques for using one-rein stretching at halt, walk, trot, etc to demonstrate, prove, and reinforce to the horse that the stretch and relaxation is where the reward lives -- first and foremost. 

not every step looks like this -- in fact, most **do not** -- but the cadence in her rhythm was incredibly consistent almost the whole ride, omg!

I spent the next two rides working on that stretching technique, which is pretty similar in fundamentals to the 'single rein on a small circle' type exercise I wrote about all the way back in 2014, omg. And honestly, I'm not sure the exact technique totally matters so long as you're consistent and don't move the goal posts for the horse. 

The idea is basically to make a promise to Doozy: stretch down to the inside and release your tension, and I'll release pressure. In as black-and-white, obvious a way as possible. Big exaggerated cues, exaggerated responses from the horse, and exaggerated releases. So that the mare learns, "Oh when Emma does that, she wants me to soften and stretch down to the inside." And then refine from there! (Over time, of course.)

she's really experimenting with the balance too --- like this moment is too deep and on the forehand, but that's kinda a strength thing too

Asking the horse to travel in this posture has a number of interesting effects. First of all, it's a vulnerable posture for a tense flight animal like Doozy. So asking her to release and relax there is... a whole new experience for her. And installing an "on-demand" cue for that release? Potentially a game changer. 

Secondly, it's difficult - maybe even impossible - for the horse to zip and rush in that posture. But not bc *I'm* telling her to slow down -- but bc she legit can't be both fast AND hold the posture I've asked for. Which is a neat way to separate my cues so that, actually, *I* don't have to ask her to slow down -- I just ask her to do something (using a cue she knows) that is difficult to do fast. 

So the decision to slow down becomes... her own choice. And thus, bebe self-carriage is born!! Lightning bolts, guys, omg. 

my habit is to kinda go floppy when she gets soft, instead of continuing to keep the conversation active and support for more inside bend. we're both learning!

So anyway. We spent like two days doing essentially remedial walking, just showing her this cue and praising the ever-loving bejesus out of her when she got it. Just a verrrry little bit of trotting to reinforce the idea without unspooling. And then simply hacked out on the third day before this weekend's lesson.

we had some decent moments in the first canter, but honestly this gait still has a ways to go. the rhythm and balance (ie, not motorcycling around like a speed demon) is happening tho!

And holy shit, Doozy arrived at this lesson like a whole new mare. A mare ready and willing to experiment with her balance. A mare more responsible for her own tempo and rhythm. A mare completely unburdened by anticipation. Amazing!

lol ok so she did kinda zip across the diagonal here -- but this shot makes the changes in her posture in other pictures that much more apparent!

It obvi wasn't all unicorns and roses haha.... Like, I swear to god I was really thinking HARD about sitting up tall the whole ride. Clearly the video (and resulting screengrabs) tell a different story there. 

It's also clear how sorta 'sympathetic' I get with my upper body, trying to literally will the horse down and out with her neck. And then I get all floppy when she actually does soften, sorta like, "Omg holy shit now what!?!"

houston, we have neck length!

The coolest thing, tho, and the main reason for watching at least some of the video, is to see the difference in Doozy's trot cadence and tempo. Even when she's kinda all over the place with her neck carriage, there were very few moments in this ride where she truly zipped off. 

An interesting byproduct was that I found myself on a few different occasions realizing that I had not adequately prepared the mare for an up transition. Like, normally I can literally just like, think about transitioning to trot or canter, and simply not *block* the forward, and she goes. But in this new balance, it's clear I need to get better about preparing her more. 

she really tried her heart out this whole ride omg <3 <3

Trainer C and I spent the bulk of the lesson kinda trying to pick our jaws up off the floor, half waiting for the spell to break and normal Doozy to reappear. 

But when that just like... never happened, we mostly worked on simple figures and bebe leg yields and the weird broken center lines from the low level eventing tests. 

yea.... so still a few moving parts in need of adjustment. one thing at a time!

Then to finish the ride (and give Trainer C something to video since omg!), we worked through the canter patterns from the Starter A test for a few minutes. All of which is contained in the video below.

finally, a flat work video that does the mare some justice!

The craziest thing to me about this video is that... it's from the end of the ride. Like we'd already been going for some time, had taken a few breaks, picked the mare up a few times to restart. And she just stayed so relaxed. Didn't get jiggy or anticipatory or any more meaningfully tight than she'd been. Didn't even really seem to get more tired either. 

so pleased with this critter <3 <3

She was just so good, guys. Like, so good. Doozy is a complicated horse for me to ride, especially on the flat. And I've harbored what feels like a... not unrealistic degree of doubt about my ability to properly develop her to her potential. 

But I believe in the horse, she's a very cool horse -- and is proving to be very game too! I think she likes the partnership, and likes being good. Rides like this really give me a big boost in believing we might eventually put together a really nice test. Probably not at our next show lol, or even this season. But eventually lol, and that's enough!

managing Mondeuse

A barn mate observed the other night that Doozy is looking.... slightly portly these days lol, and it got me thinking about how much has changed (or not, as the case may be) in her management and care over the last year. 

Now seems as good a time as any to do a roundup on her general care and feeding too -- esp going into winter. So! Here's the rundown on our current management protocol, and how it's shifted (or not) over time. 

pic from sunday. pretty pleased with the current plushness of her upholstery!

Nutrition

Both horses actually got pretty significant feed upgrades when they moved -- since the new barns each offer selections of high quality feeds included in board, omg. 

I had cut back to a fairly generic (but still good quality) locally produced senior feed + balancer for both after bringing Doozy home. But now Doozy is eating Nutrena Pro Force Fuel XF, and loving it. New barn manager recommended ditching the balancer too, as her nutritionist says it's unnecessary with this particular food. Fine by me!

some of this summer's epic grass definitely improved her condition!

At this point in her life, Doozy does not have any added supplements in her daily meals. There's been decent grass for most of the summer, drought permitting obvi, and she gets lots of hay in her stall. She's still on the summer schedule - out overnight and stalled during daytime - and that will reverse at some point in the coming weeks presumably.

Gastric Support 

All that said, however, any horse who regularly spends time trailering will be more prone to ulcers. Doozy isn't particularly symptomatic but it's something I'll always worry about. We did a lengthy Ulcergard protocol when she first came home, and then again about 6 months later. More or less as par for the course, ya know? 

Right now we're in more of a 'management' phase, so she mostly just gets a half tube of ulcergard the day before travel, and maybe a quarter tube the day of and/or day after, depending on what the schedule looks like. 

it's not the cheapest "insurance" around town... but definitely better than a few alternatives!

I also recently introduced sucralfate into the management picture -- aiming to give her a dose each day I see her, and up to 2-3 doses on travel/show days (again, scheduling dependent). My understanding is that it acts as a protective barrier and can increase comfort during trailer travel or strenuous activity like running and jumping. 

A finicky detail, however, is that these properties mean it can also prevent absorption of any other medicines given to the horse - including omeprazole, for example. So the order and timing of this stuff matters. 

Tho, as usual -- I am NOT a professional, and my knowledge / understanding is therefore limited to my own consultations and experiences. Definitely check in with your vet about what might work best for your own situation!

flashback to august 2023 -- with her massive cellulitis infection in that stovepipe leg
also a useful comparison to her current condition in the pic above!

Veterinary / Farrier / Dentistry

Doozy has not (*knocking on wood*) required significant veterinary attention beyond that cellulitis issue, a month of robaxin last winter, and a few nasty wounds she picked up at the last place. Mostly we're just on the routine wellness plan for spring / fall shots etc., and a worming protocol informed by a fecal sample last spring. Doozy was a moderate shedder, so was wormed in spring and summer, and will be again this fall. Overall, we are grateful the new barn is still within my preferred vet practice's service area!!

Not quite so lucky in the shoeing department -- Charlie got to keep his farrier but Doozy moved too far away.  We've had to make a few changes, but I'm hopeful about our current path. She's still in just the two shoes up front and will likely stay that way through winter. Barring anything unforeseen, we'll reevaluate in the spring to see if she's ready for more support. For now, she's on a roughly 5wk schedule.

we made some changes after repeated reliability issues resulted in constant end-of-cycle (ie preventable) lost shoes 

She saw the dentist almost immediately upon coming home last August, and then again right before we moved in June. I'll probably keep her on the 9-12month cycle barring any compelling reason to schedule sooner. 

Saddles, Bridles & Bits, Oh My!

Moving on from the management of the horse's physical wellbeing, let's talk about the various critical pieces of equipment she wears!

The County Solution monoflap saddle I picked up last April has worked great for us. A major relief, given it was way more than I budgeted, plus the fitting process wasn't hugely satisfactory either... Ain't that always the way??

not gonna lie, i secretly wanted another french saddle and was annoyed this fitter seemed to only want to look at County saddles... but this hunk of leather has really grown on me!!

It came due for an expected reflock after about 5 months (and probably 150lbs+ on the mare), so I was able to get back in touch with a different fitter from my past who came out and did a lovely job -- plus reaffirmed that it's likely to be a saddle that suits us both for years to come. Whew!

For bridling, I continue to love this anatomic and highly adjustable Montar bridle that I picked up from consignment for $80. It doesn't seem to be available from Montar at the moment, tho to be honest I don't think Montar actually produced it --- I've seen an exactly identical bridle with different logos from friends who have used private bridle fitters. The V-shaped crownpiece in particular is a real winner for Doozy, who kinda has an oddly shaped poll.

Bitting, tho. Ehhhhh I'm less satisfied with our current situation here and expect to do a lot more experimentation. We started in a fairly standard loose ring Sprenger KK, my most favorite vanilla snaffle. It's not much in the way of braking power, tho, so this summer I upgraded to a basic French link snaffle, still loose ring. 

i'm going to do more investigating around this bridle to see if i can scare up shorter cheek pieces to accommodate different types of bits, will let you know what i find out!

I dunno, tho. I've never had good hands anyway, plus Doozy has a deeply ingrained tendency to get completely inverted and retracted in her neck. A running martingale helps in terms of keeping the mare from knocking my frickin teeth out mid-ride... But that's more of a band-aid than an actual solution. 

One of my coaches has encouraged me to experiment with a nathe, which I'm eager to do once I can get my hands on one. I'm also curious about trying different cheek pieces. Like maybe something really mild in the mouth, like a nathe or happy mouth, but with some leverage in the cheek pieces for braking assistance as needed? 

Idk. I'll try some stuff and see what Doozy says about it lol. We all know she has no problem expressing her opinions!! lol... 

Grooming & Other Miscellany

Doozy's skin continues to confound me. Her rainrot this summer was like nothing I've ever seen, at one point it was like actual moss on her skin. Not gonna lie, had the horse not been under my care, I'd have judged the F out of whoever was responsible for her. Except. Lol, that'd be me, whoops! Lessons, guys, I continue to learn lessons with this horse.... 

remember when doozy was basically a leper when i met her last summer? surprise surprise, it happened again this summer too!

Granted, it was a difficult season and just about every horse I know had some degree of skin funk at one point or another. But Doozy is next level. Fortunately, it seems like it's just July / August that's particularly troublesome -- so hopefully we're in the clear for the next ~10months...

I haven't decided about body clipping her this winter yet. Still gotta figure out what the blanketing situation will look like at the new place. Also, she really didn't grow too much hair last winter and isn't as nasty of a sweaty beast as Charles. So we might just keep it simple. 

And in terms of body work.. Haven't done a lot in that regard yet, but that's next on the list. In an ideal world, the body wellness work would be a constant and ongoing pursuit... But guys, it's been an expensive summer. 

seems to be doing quite well with her current situation!

The timing is right, tho, as the horse has improved her condition considerably, and is in regular and consistent work with all that entails re: muscle usage. Esp with the saddle recently refit, she should be physically in more of a place of stasis (ie, less constant change / development) from which we can get a better sense of what she needs. Stay tuned for more on that soon...

****

So, yea. That's basically the full picture of Doozy's day to day life and management at this point. Unless I missed something? Anything remarkably different (or the same??) with your situation?

practicing in public @ loch moy

Doozy is such a lesson in patience, guys. It is slow going with me and this horse. For a lot of reasons, to be honest --- mostly having to do with just... who we both are, our respective strengths and weaknesses.  

arrived early for a little hand walkies + grazies (amidst Loch Moy's iconic broken bridge, natch)

Realistically, we have a lot of important work to do just schooling at home and in lessons.... Buuuuuut.... Y'all know me, lol... A big part of my horsey habit revolves around getting out for fun adventures and horse shows and what have you. Doing the things! 

the broken bridge at last year's 4*!
link to video here if interested

I rationalize to myself that, for Doozy, getting out and about is kinda a skill unto itself too. That even as we work on just the basics of our training, she still has to learn about things like crowds and warm up rings and unfamiliar sights too. 

So, as you may have noticed, for the last couple weeks we've been nibbling around the edges of that sort of exposure -- with the idea that maybe / hopefully we'll get around another horse trial or two before the year is up. And maybe even be proud of our performance lol. Maybe. 

chill about the neighbors!

For this week's edition -- we attended a very low key affair at Loch Moy, one of their 'Pick Your Test / Pick Your Time Dressage Shows & Blue Ribbon Jumper' days.

Not really a horse show, per se, but also not a meaningfully different experience for Doozy either. Except from an atmosphere perspective -- just a fraction of the entries we'd expect to see at one of Loch Moy's starter trials.

survived (the very quiet) warm up ring without too too much drama!

So basically the perfect opportunity to familiarize with the venue and go through the motions of what essentially amounted to a combined test. My dressage time was 8:24, just the third horse in the ring, so we got to enjoy a very quiet (but not entirely vacant either!) warm up ring. 

entered nicely enough! tho still got an error for forgetting the weird broken center line in this test

Doozy was more settled than she'd been at Swan Lake (which had a lot more buzz, obviously), but still very tense. No explosions tho!! We only really walked and trotted in warm up, and I tried to be disciplined in asking for more suppleness and all that... But you know how it goes. 

got all of our leads in this test!! including in our accidental canters lol

And the test was fine. Like, obviously objectively not good. Doozy remains very tense, stiff and inverted. But I can also objectively see the slowly (so slowly) ripening fruits of all our labor. 

oh-so-very-slowly growing up

The horse is much better about her line of travel. Starting to show bend that isn't just flinging the outside shoulder overboard. More balanced in her transitions (even the downward!). Better about canter leads. And overall a more consistent rhythm -- even tho we still break to canter accidentally on occasion. 

free walkin

Fortunately / unfortunately, my phone storage filled up halfway thru our test, so only the first half was recorded (by a very kind bystander, thank you!!). And it was absolutely the better half. Things unraveled a bit by the end, but overall still a good effort. Still another notch on the belt, I guess!

oh mare.... one day!!

So we did the test and it was fine. Then went back to the trailer, where Doozy was an absolute civilized super star all day. Got brushed off and untacked and even hung out unsupervised for a little bit while I ran over to walk my show jump course. Good girl! 

Like, for real, if behavior outside of the show ring was part of the final score, Doozy would absolutely be champion LOL. 

link to video

Anyway, tho. The jumping rounds were set up in blocks, such that you basically just showed up for your preferred height's time block. I opted to jump in the first block, 18", mostly bc... Honestly the height doesn't seem to matter for Doozy and I didn't really wanna wait around another hour for the 2'-2'3. 

Plus, this block had the benefit of being quite sparsely attended, so we actually got the whole warm up ring to ourselves!

no pics from sj, but here's Doozy #nailing the related distance that gave me heartburn!

Maybe that's sorta cheating in terms of trying to prepare Doozy for her next horse trial... But, eh. I was honestly happy for the quiet ring! The mare warmed up well enough, too -- again I tried to be deliberate in bending and suppling on the flat... Then we basically just hit the X and vertical each twice, then headed down to the in gate!

and also slamming on the brakes randomly throughout....
Ms Thing is tired of being made to trot, kthxbai

Doozy was great for the round. Not spooky at all about the ring (tho, you might recall she spent time in this ring last February for the arena xc schooling day), and quite good to the jumps. 

Tho she is absolutely getting sick and tired of me making her trot to everything. She wants to canter, wants me to let her go, and is starting to put her foot down (literally) about it. I haven't made a big issue of the behavior yet, bc it honestly does not feel naughty -- but rather like she's just trying to figure out the rules and her feelings and all that... 

link to helmet cam video

In her defense -- the jumps I let her carry a canter to were all honestly quite nice! Like, not all perfect -- sometimes a little flat or funny on the distance, I think she had two rails again. But definitely better than this past spring. 

And she was absolutely brilliant down the outside line from 2 to 3, which walked in exactly 4.5 strides and I expected to do in 5 trotting in. But she cantered in instead, and stayed straight as an arrow for an honestly quite pleasant 4 strides! And I was proud of myself for not panicking and getting her in face or anything too, yay me lol. 

tense... against hand... crooked.... sigh. yep!

Like actually... It's been quite a few jumping sessions now since I've had one of my classic "pearl clutching" moments at takeoff. Which, let's be real, isn't bc I've suddenly gotten any better at riding to the distance or whatever lol... But rather Doozy just... has that natural forward-thinking desire to jump that makes it that much easier to just.... go with her. 

she's a good girl tho!

So ya know. We'll take it! Another good learning experience in the books. And a great feeling to be back actually competing at Loch Moy again (first time since Charlie's final 3 phase <3 <3 in 2021) -- even the organizer and judge were excited to see me with a horse instead of just as a volunteer LOL! 

What more can ya ask for, right?? 

the work

There have been a couple false starts over the last year with Doozy re: training programs. In particular, we've had to learn that, in the land of Dooz, relaxation must be the priority. No ifs, ands, or buts. 

cutie <3

Not every training methodology / trainer we've worked with has fit that bill, but interestingly.... There have been commonalities throughout every program all the same. 

she looks pleased with herself, no?

Almost without fail, each professional we've worked with has identified two key issues:

1) I need to be able to get my leg aids onto the horse, and 

2) The mare wants to lean onto her right shoulder. 

"will chase you down for cookies tho"

So ya know. None of that is new, right? But eh. Maybe it's time to address it lol. We've worked so hard in the last few months to get on the same page re: a standard ride package wherein relaxation is the priority, and we can work through all three gaits in a relatively pleasant and productive way. 

schweet mare

These last few days, tho, I changed the rules. From the moment we step away from the mounting block, my right leg is on. Which.... honestly, for Doozy, probably feels illegal.

amazing management --- freshly dragged ring AND a grass mower!! just normal things at this farm!

But it's been a fascinating little bit of homework for me, tho. By paying attention to keeping my leg on, I'm figuring out just how often..... my leg is off lol. And in what circumstances. 

speaking of mgmt, ignore the mess and peep my new trailer fans!

Like it's fairly easy to get the right posture (for me) while walking. And it's easiest for Doozy too to have the correct response with minimal (altho decidedly non-zero) tension. But once we start trotting?? All bets are off!

trailer has a lot of airflow already, but i still feel a lot of relief with these additions

It's also interesting to try to pay attention to both my lower legs and my upper body at the same time. Bc what we're figuring out is that... I want to tip over to the right while using my right leg --- when what I really need to be doing is making the whole right side of my body longer from shoulder to heel. 

i think mare appreciates too <3

So my objective, while tracking to the right, is to feel like I can sink into my left leg, feel like I've got eyes on the left side of my horse's neck, but also keep my inside right leg down and on. Essentially trying to create some independence between my upper and lower body.

just normal lesson things

Doozy, for her part, wants to be very reactive to the leg aid, and wants to get hurried and flustered. Which, ya know. Fair. It's a big rule change for her, considering we've gotten along this far on the compromise of, "don't fucking touch me with your legs unless you want me to GO."

Which... Come to think of it, isn't much of a compromise LOL.

#NormalizedChaos

But ya know. That's why it's homework, I guess. I'm figuring out that a LOT of our "established" aids kinda lived in this one-sided application -- like our down transitions. Apparently we can only transition down when bent left, which... wow, uh, whoops!

With Charlie, I more or less enabled some of our co-dependencies and compromises, bc many were rooted in his own physical limitations. But with Doozy? I'm still hoping to get a fresh start, correct some of my own bad habits, and hopefully give her a more solid (and straight) foundation to promote her own long-term soundness. 

So we'll keep chipping away at it. 

ain't easy being breezy

It's been a fairly quiet week around here. Mostly just hacking and light flat schools, after a series of scheduling snafus meant the horse was wayy overdue for a trim... womp.

unrelated photo from a little former barn mate reunion trip to a lovely local winery last week!

But hacking with friends is always lovely, esp this time of year! It was downright crispy over the weekend too!!! Tho stubbornly back into the 80s by midweek...

wandering in the woods!

And we got a few productive things checked off the list anyway --- first up, Doozy's saddle got a ~5 month check-up. Recall I picked up a lovely County monoflap last April. Doozy has obviously changed in weight and muscling significantly since then, so it was time for a reflock. 

hills were happy after a little rain

Then it was off again to another clinic ride!! Doozy travelled well and warmed up nicely, but was jussssst a tad spicy for this lesson. She's in season and feeling a little bit tight and distracted, and just everything is a little less accessible. 

related pic: bounces!

Plus, obvi, the last time she jumped was basically when she won the olympics got around the .70m at the local jumper show. So naturally she was **quite** impressed with herself and eager to pick up where we left off! 

 

bouncing the other way!

Which made for a slightly harder lesson for me, but ya know. This is the work. In particular, Dom observed that we were struggling quite a bit with the mare wanting to push out with her right shoulder, and collapse her neck to the left. This is not a new problem for us, per se, but I still don't quite have a grip on it. 

it was a hard lesson but this was a bright spot <3

So we worked through some turning exercises --- starting with a simple x-rail across the short end, and doing a figure eight over it until we could land in a somewhat civilized fashion. 

Then we put it together with a line of bounces: come down the bounce line, take the long route around to the earlier x-rail, then turn back immediately to the bounces. And then add a long straight outside line on at the end (omg). 

oh lawd, not gonna lie it was hard for me to trust letting her roll down this line!

Doozy really struggled with straightness in this ride, and it seems like my habit is to immediately try to ride the .... wrong side of her. Dom wanted my hands lower, and to really feel like I could push the right shoulder more to the left, and have more right bend. Particularly when tracking right, he wanted me sitting more to the left, and wanted me to be a bit more committed to getting my right leg onto the horse without her zipping off. 

she did it just fine tho <3

Interestingly, it'll surprise basically nobody to know that this is almost exactly what we've been working on in our dressage lessons too. Turns out it's just hard, I guess!

finishing with better flatwork than we started with

Anyway, Doozy kinda knocked me over with a feather when, after struggling through all the exercises, she somehow put together a pleasant final trip (in the video below!!).

trying to reinforce the learnings

Like obvi not perfect, but we were able to proceed directly from one exercise element to the next mostly without circling in between. Particularly she was able to land from the end jump and turn (still cantering!) toward the bounce line, which she did handily! Good girl!!

uh-oh, spaghettio! 

The outside line was still a bit hairy, tho. Not gonna lie. I have a hard time letting her roll on the true stride, vs wanting to bring her way back for the add. But we got it done fine enough, and then finished by reestablishing the flatwork just to help both of us really understand the homework. 

ugh, that last step's a doozy tho!

Bc it really does just boil down to flatwork, right? I'm so pleased with how well this mare is figuring things out, but it's still just not easy. We'll get there tho!

link to video here

Well. Eventually lol, poor mare pulled a shoe right as we were easing into walk and stepped on the clip, UGH! Hopefully by the time you read this she'll be reset and right as rain, but ugh it's so hard to stick to a program when we keep having issues like this!

anyway. praying mantis!

Oh well. That's horses, amirite. Anybody else having trouble keeping their shoes tied???