Becoming a Reality...

It's obvious that I haven't posted in a long time. And as much as I hate to say it, I probably won't post much in the future anyway. For this past year, I could say that I've been busy and whatnot but the truth is that I'm starting a new part of my life and horses have been getting a smaller and smaller placeholder in it. I'm not happy about it, horses have always been a part of my life and if I let them go I feel as if I had lost some part of myself. But at the same time, I need to realize that this new part of my life won't include horses for a little while. Which in turn means the probability of selling Ava has become very apparent right now. I wouldn't have the time or money to keep up with her due to her excessive and spirited nature but I'm hoping with all my heart that I can find someone or some situation that can make her useful and happy.

In the fall, I'm leaving for university to attain my bachelor's in marketing. I am really excited to start this new part of my life and can't wait to see where it takes me. I chose marketing out of everything because it gives me a lot of options for work and hopefully, after graduation, I would be able to work in the horse business. And you never know, in 2-3 years maybe I'll be able to have horses again but right now it wouldn't be the smartest move on my part nor would it be best option for Ava as well.

So, at the moment I am slowly, very slowly, beginning to move in that direction. It's going to be hard and emotional, but I know in my heart that it is the right thing to do for the both of us.

How To: Vaccinate Horses

So for one of my digital media courses I had to create a how to video on whatever I wanted. So, what's better than teaching someone how to vaccinate their own horses? I couldn't think of anything better so I chose that and thought it turned out nicely.

Rusty Liberty Lunging!!

Hello my loves, I am finally back after a long but exciting school semester. I learned so much and am excited to keep on my journey of learning graphic design. Anyways, I filmed a new video and thought I'd share. I'll be more active soon!

Dropped Out

It was about two weeks before school was starting back. I had successfully passed my first semester in the vet tech program and was even elected President. But the more I kept thinking about my future and all the things that I wanted to be doing with my life didn't seem to fit what a vet tech's life would be. I was and still am in love with all the people and the program but in the end I didn't really want to become a veterinary technician. One of the big red flags was that I didn't even want to do the required externship in a clinic after school got out. Now, if I really wanted to be doing that job wouldn't I have wanted to actually be working in the field? I would think so.

So, as hard as it was I dropped out of the program and have started to pursue graphic design and social media marketing/managing. So far I am loving the classes and know this will guide me in the right path towards a successful future. I've always been intrigued by working online or running my own business so maybe this will be my destiny(I mean, if you believe in that. Which I do, haha!).

The vet tech program will always bring me joy when I think back on it. So many wonderful people, great information that I will use for a very long time, and being able to care for animals (which is always a favorite!). Not only that, I brought home one of the animals myself! His name is Indiana Ulysses G, but his nicknames are Indie, Munchie, and Bubby, which is much easier to remember! He is one great little kitty and is such a purr machine. I love him to death and so glad he is part of my family.

When we were at the clinic!

Still Alive

Don't worry I am still alive, just eaten up with tons of school and some tough family stuff.

Ava has been good. I don't see her much at the moment but get down there when I can. The arena is finally melting and we will finally be able to start working again!

I also received (after almost 3-4 weeks of waiting) my leopard gecko, Beju! He is amazing and I already love him. They are also super easy to care for, it is amazing!

Ava nipping Poco

Our first day back to work

Beju was finally starting to explore his vivarium

The Furry Horse Sheds!

Although the groundhog said we are expected to have six more weeks of winter Ava says otherwise! She is starting to shed quite a bit and it is making me all happy inside. I can't stand the winter anymore, it is too claustrophobic, dangerous, and boring. At least it is on it's way out and we can welcome in the new warmer weather that slowly approches.

I haven't ridden in a few weeks due to school but I may just wait until I have more time to focus on it. Ava doesn't seem to mind either. We still go on walks and have frequent grooming sessions but at the moment riding is difficult to fit in.

Buried with Busyness

School started last week and I had high hopes that I would be able to have tons of free time if I organized correctly. Wrong. I am packed full of school work and know I will only be getting more throughout the semester. I have enjoyed it so far though. I am taking Biology 2, Chemistry, Equine Nutrition, and Web Authoring. Biology and Equine nutrition are by far my favorite and think that I will definitely get a degree in biology. As for miss Ava, I haven't seen her for a few days and don't have enough time to ride at the moment (a very sad human here!). And we just got hit with a lot of snow so I don't know when we should have a nice day again, hopefully soon! Besides crappy weather and a buttload of school things have going well.

I hope to write a horsey post soon!

Falling into Autumn

Or we've possibly we've already fallen. The weather has been so sketchy lately that it's hard to tell what season it is!

Since the last post we have only ridden one other time but plan on many more due to clever time planning! Our last ride was amazing. We lunged in the mini arena and practiced her vertical flexion. She has retained so much training it is impecable, love that horse! After I got on she was smooth as butter and didn't try anything silly.

I also have other plans in the progress but will keep them on the down low before they are official. Don't want to jinx it!!

Bookish Fun

Since not much is happening with Ava at the moment I will post a little bit more about what is going on in the non-horsey world.

After much conversing I decided to drop my EMT class. Although it sounds like an amazing program I feel that it just isn't the right time. So instead I am taking a human anatomy class, literature class, and an awesome creative writing fiction class. Even though I am slightly bummed about EMTing I am ecstatic about these other classes. English and writing, to me, is so much fun and it makes me feel smart at the same time! Human anatomy will be amazing too, it is supposed to be a great class and finally I got a spot in it (the seats fill up really fast).

A bit of light reading

Sunsets and Soon to be School!

Work. All that has been going on lately is work. The job can be fun but it is definitely starting to wear on me. I'll be glad to start school up again. Upside though is that I'm rolling in the major G's!

As for school I am currently working on my application for an EMT (Emergency Medical Technician) program. Crossing my fingers I'll be able to get all the references out in time, otherwise it is ready to go! A few weeks ago my grandfather, my uncle, cousin, and I were out at the golf course about to play a few holes. I was driving one of the golf carts with my grandfather next to me when he suddenly started having a seizure. In that moment I knew that this was what I was supposed to be doing, helping people in need. Luckily the cart wasn't moving and I was able to quickly take ahold of him so he didn't fall out. My grandfather ended up being okay, we called an ambulance and he was released from the hospital a few hours later. Through the whole debacle I remained calm and knew what to do. So, I'm really excited to see how the program goes, I mean, if I get accepted!

In other non-horsey news I got a second piercing! I absolutely love it too! Another amazing thing was that it caused almost no pain, it mainly felt like some one was just squeezing my ear really tight. The lady said it will take around six weeks to heal and I cannot wait to start changing it up!

As for miss Ava I have mainly just been checking on her and giving them some grain in the evening. I am trying really hard to at least take her on some walks (preferably with her saddle on) so she can still stay somewhat up to date on desensitization. She does great though, rarely will she spook and when she does it is very minor. Unlike at The Ranch, she was quite sensitive to things and would spook easily. I hope to ride soon, work is slowly coming to the end of its season so I can't wait to get a lot of rides in before the darn winter comes. Having a horse is so hard sometimes! But boy... I absolutely cannot get over them!

I think I came up with a name for the new place. I'm going to refer to it as Sunset Ranch because it has the most beautiful sunsets.

How Sunset Ranch earned it's name

Cute face <3

NOSE!

Monchy on foods

Night night girls

Horsey hide and seek, do you see the horsey?

The video doesn't have great quality but it is just of Ava and I fooling around in the pasture. Enjoy!

My double ear pierce, looooooove it!

Back to Packed (Schedule that is..)

Sad, sad, sad... School started yesterday. I ended up changing classes at last minute and I am much happier with my choices, I am already liking them!

I worked a little with Ava today. Since no one was at the barn I told myself not to ride. I just lunged her for a bit. She did great, a little nervous but actually handled herself well (she is not quite used to no horses in the barn, so quiet!). Afterwards we did a wee bit of showmanship, flexing, and then I went to groom her and pick out her feet. My cooler should get here either Thursday or Friday, so excited! I then took her on a walk around the barn then let her get some dinner. I think the new horse that was put into their pasture is chasing Ava and/or Poco off their water, she has done this before but it was more severe, that is why my BO moved her in the beginning; I don't know why he moved her back with them... I am going to let him know the next time I see him, it is really agitating me. I also noticed that Ava has a bump (possibly a bruise) on the lower part of her nose, it was a little sensitive if touched but I put some Sore-No-More on it and hopefully that will help will the swelling. Other than that it was a decent day.

When I got home I discovered something. I discovered what I want to start Ava in! Dressage! I feel like it just clicked when it came to mind. Can't really go wrong with it either, it can lead you in many different directions. I think this will be perfect for us and gives us something to work on every single time we ride (we get bored sometimes). So this will be quite exciting, we can go to little shows and work our way up, just what we need.

Thorowgood T4 Dressage Saddle, around $700.

This was the saddle I was thinking of saving up for, much less expensive than a new roping saddle and it has a changeable gullet, Ava is an extra wide! Anyways, life has become busy again, well, busier than before. Can't complain though, I'd much rather be busy than bored!

Freedom and the Holidays!

Wednesday was my Spanish 101 final. It made my brain hurt. After class I was in a stupor for a while until I snapped back to reality. Then finally when I came around I felt freedom all around me! What an amazing feeling to not have to worry about studying, it is so nice. A few days later I found out what all my grades were and I was very pleased with them. I got an A in Pilates, an A in English, and a high B in Spanish, pretty happy! I also picked out the other classes I want to take for next semester. Two are going to be online and the other I will go into class for. Anyways now that I am school free for a little over a month there will be much more barn time.

I went to the barn today and worked my girl. I didn't work Poco because I needed to get back home and work on holiday stuff. After the holidays I will be full on horse girl again! Ava lunged beautifully and showed little signs of having lots of energy. After I lunged her for a while I did some groundwork, she is getting really good if I may add. Then after that I saddled her up in the little english saddle I had. I didn't ride I just wanted to lunge her in it so she can start getting used to it again. She did great, a little nervous but she handled her self really well. Especially with all the snow, ice, and wind that keeps getting worse!

All the boarders at the barn were so gracious about the little gifts I gave them. They also gave me some gifts as well, one of them being this awesome Indian painted horse tile ornament. I now officially have three ornaments for my own little Christmas tree!

I was also given a very sweet thank you card and my BO gave me a $25 dollar gift card to D&B Supply! Twenty-five dollars! I thought that was really nice of him. Overall it has been a decent day. I hope every one of you is enjoying your holiday season, Christmas is almost here!

Almost to the End!

I don't really have an excuse for not posting. Technically I hadn't gone to the barn in a while or if I did I would only say hi and run around in the pasture with her; which is not super exciting to post about. Although once I realized how long it has been since I last posted I decided no matter how boring it would be I wanted to let you all know that we are not dead, exhausted but still alive.

School is so close to break I can almost smell my final grades! Two of my classes end next week and the last one ends the week after that; I am so ready for this break, I need some "no school" time.

I saw my sassy girl yesterday. It was raining and snowing on and off but we still made it down there; we only had enough time to say hi though. Ava was still alive! It was so nice to see her, her coat was coming in nicely and her weight looked good too, especially for the little work she has been doing. For our short time there I pet on her and then ran around and played in the pasture with her. I bet I looked like an idiot but Ava seemed amused, it was really cute. I really missed her, hopefully I can get out there again this week.

Hope everyone has been well!

I missed my sassy cakes!

Pretty pasture with snow :)

Snaffle to Shank

On Saturday I rode Ava in a shank bit for the very first time. It wasn't too different from riding in the snaffle except it felt looser. She did wonderfully. I can't believe how far she has come, from bitless to a shank bit! We just worked on our normal routine; rollbacks, 360s, stopping on the hind, bending the ribcage etc. She is getting kind of bad about stopping really hard on her front end so we've been working a lot on that. It's getting better and sure doesn't hurt as bad.

Besides that, everything is going smoothly at the moment. The weather is getting cooler and bathes are almost out of the picture for miss Ava. School for me is as always keeping me busy, I don't like it. I want to be doing what I want, not stay cooped up all day studying... The up side is that I'm one step closer to a degree. Other than that I wish I could get rid of it.

This is the bit we used. I've had it for a while. It worked really well. I bought it off of horse.com and got a good deal for it too. The only thing was that it seemed a little small for Ava's mouth. I'll have to find a different one soon.

School for the Both of Us!

Well, I just got done with my first week of school! And you know what? It was great! My teacher's were better than I had expected and I even have some old classmates in there too, it was great seeing them and seeing them helped me relax a little more. I think this will be a great semester!

A couple days ago Ava had a breakthrough moment. We were riding in the arena alone, no one else was there, we had the whole place to ourselves. I just stuck to our usual routine but kept on the cautious side, I didn't want to get hurt when no one was around. Anyways, I got her loping nicely and started to practice simple lead changes. But when I was about to ask her to change leads again I decided to try and ask her for a flying lead change, I didn't expect her to do it I just wanted to try for the heck of it. Well, guess what? She did it! Ava did a flying lead change!!! I truly couldn't believe it when it happening, I almost started crying, it was an amazing moment. I am so proud of her. Also, it wasn't just out of luck, I asked her to do it a few times and she did it again and again! Pretty awesome.

Today Ava and I had a lesson and it was a blast! She worked hard and had great results in the end. All we did was work on drifting, counter flexing, and hardcore rollbacks with a few 360's. Ava started out a little agitated but she eventually got over it and learned that she needed to listen. Overall a great lesson and I can actually see improvement!

Not Tomorrow but the Next Day

School starts on Monday, you most likely already know that, I've only been talking about it for like the past few weeks! I've got everything ready except for my mind. It will be hard for me to get back on that kind of schedule, I get so used to summer! Anyways, I'm nervous, anxious, excited, and kind of depressed, I wish it was the beginning of summer again.

Not much up with Ava. Same old same old. She's doing good on her training, she had her feet done and is feeling really get up and go again but at least I know she is more comfortable. It's neat though, even when she is feeling good I don't feel too nervous to get on her anymore, hard work can pay off!

I'll update more soon, just didn't want to leave everyone in the cold.

New Boots!

Well, they are new boots to me! My aunt had some western riding boots that she has had for a while but didn't wear them much because they were too big. So, when she came over she said that I could have them! I was really excited because I was actually looking for a new pair of boots too and now I don't have to pay a ton of money for them, so that is great. They are Ariat's, they kind of look like a FatBaby but I'm not 100% sure. They fit great and are basically new, can't wait to ride in them.

School starts in 10 days... This semester I'll be taking English 2, Pilates, and Spanish 1. It'll be a lot of work especially having to work Babe five days a week and medicating Wolfie three times a day but at least I'll be that much closer to a degree. I still don't really know what I want my degree to be, possibly something in Biology or Animal Science or even be like Oprah, have my own show and help people. It can get really stressful having to decide!