Lots of Awesomeness!!!!

Spyke is AWESOME!!!!! AWESOME I tell you!!!

We are having such a nice time (Touch wood that it continues). On my birthday I deceided to treat myself to a show hunter lesson with Tracey Page. The lesson was AMAZING. It was like everything I had been told about my position suddenly clicked in my head. Helped a lot by the fact that every time I got my position right Spyke really, really responded. It was totally awesome. There was also a fair amount of tanking and bucking but Tracey worked me through it.

I had the lesson on the Thursday and I was entered for my first show hunter on the Sunday, what a perfect move it was to have the lesson just before the competition. Spyke was superb on the day. His practice round was pretty rough, threw in a stop at one and then 'discussed' every jump after that but once he had that out of his system he was great.

We did 3 rounds (over teeny heights but they still looked big to me) and got a third in the first class and second in the second!!!!! I was stoked. (And more than a little stunned as they were quite big classes). Spyke's rounds though were SO kind and my 'new' position helped everything. I am still buzzing more than a week later.

Then on Saturday just been, we did a SH clinic with Tracey again through the Waitemata Riding Club. It was such fun and Tracey was stoked at the improvement in Spyke and I even in just a week. :-) At the end of our lesson she made Spyke and I jump last so that she could put the jumps up. We flew over them at 90. I am so excited by how our jumping is going that I am boring everyone around me to tears but I don't care LOL 'cos I am buzz buzz buzzing!!!!!!

The Lesson

The Competition

The Clinic

I'm back!!!

It has been a while!!! Things have been very quiet recently which is a really good thing in so many ways!!!! Brina has been quite well. She had a few siezures over Christmas, sometimes two in one day so she is now on Phenobarbitone and it seems to have made a HUGE difference to her. She has had NO siezures, NO reaction to the drugs and her vomitting has almost stopped. I am SO pleased!!!

Sammie is great, she gets a bit creaky some days and little bit absent minded but she is looking great.

Tai is FANTASTIC. I must find a pic of him (or take a pic) as he is just a happy wee soul. :-)

Spyke is also fantastic. We had a wee change in circumstances with the horses. The grazing at Kristina's became a little tenuous as the owners sold off a block and then started talking about putting the rest on the market so Kristina and Ben have moved to a FABULOUS place in Waimauku. While all the uncertainty was happening my friend Candice found a block to lease and asked if I would like to move the boys on. It was perfect timing and is just fabulous grazing!!!! There is a concrete tie up, with a hose (the small things count!!!), there is a huge tack room and a big flat paddock that is perfect for riding!!!! The land doesn't seem to get muddy which will be fantastic for Tai this winter. The boys are in a little herd consisting of Tai (The Boss), Spyke (The Boss' flunky), Ed (Candice's lovely boy) and Biscuit (Bottom of the pecking order). They are soooo good together!!!!

The major upside of the move is that I am able to school and jump again. I hadn't realised how much I missed that but both Spyke and I are LOVING getting back into it and we have our first show hunter comp for well over a year next Sunday. Yay!!!! I have also booked Thursday off as I am going to have a lesson with Tracey Page to get us back into the swing of it before the comp. I am SO excited about getting back into everything.

I have also been riding Biscuit which is just a BLAST. Today we did our first little jumps and she was sooooooo sweet.

I have also been able to do a bit of baking. New recipes include ginger kisses (YUM) and marshmallow easter eggs (even YUMMER!!!!)

That is all my news (off the top of my head anyway) for today. Hopefully I will be a bit more regular with my reports now that I have more fun things to report on. :-)

Oh yeah, and I have lost 13kg since I last posted. :-)

Tai January 2012

Easter goodies

Tai and Spyke checking out the new digs!!!