Back in the saddle

Having horses is not a hobby, it’s a lifestyle; and for me, having horses is not about riding every day, it’s about taking care of them and having them in my life. I get as much pleasure out of spending a few hours walking around the pasture with them as they graze – listening to them chew, watching them decide what and what not to eat, observing the movements and behavior of my little herd – as I do riding. But when a week comes along when I can spend hours in the pasture every evening AND put together two days of riding in a row, well hell’s bells it just doesn’t get any better than that. So it’s been a very good week.

I tried something new in the arena on Friday - I rode Hank while listening to music on my iPod. I wanted to be more disciplined with what I was schooling him to do, instead of losing focus as I usually do and jumping from one thing to another too quickly. So we worked on gait transitions for two songs, then we’d switch to rollbacks for one song, then a George Strait tune would start and we’d...ok I’d...hum along and we’d enjoy a nice leasurely two-step...I mean trot. Bottom line, we both had fun.

Yesterday, I combined a ride with an errand and rode Hank down to the neighbor’s to pick up a bag of cashews. Huh? Silly me forgot to pick up a main ingredient for one of the dishes I was making today, and neighbor Sue kindly offered to get them while she was in town. Riding Hank away from the herd is always a challenge but he/we did good. It was a gorgeous day made even better by being back in the saddle.

But there will be no riding today. My Easter guests will arrive in six hours and I’d best get my butt out of this chair and start cooking. Stop by if you’re hungry - we’re having ham with pineapple avocado salsa, carrot cashew quiche, Pioneer Woman dinner rolls, roasted asparagus, and my signature dish - Mom’s potato salad.