and ANOTHER ride

What a week this has been for riding for me! First Thursday schooling at Barn #1, then the tough lesson yesterday at Barn #2. And finally back at Barn #1 this morning. I swear last night and this morning that I could barely walk, I didn't know how I was going to ride again. But I showed up at the barn bright and early this morning (if you're wondering, 7:41 AM -- or better known as "suck o'clock") and tacked up my horse. It ended up being a good hodge podge of stuff today. We warmed up in the indoor barn, went out to the outside dressage ring for some more involved flat work and then back into the indoor barn for a bit of jumping. Ro set up a little bigger jump today (yeah, it was HUGE! All of about 2' -- LOL) and we jumped so nicely over it and I was able to ask Scottie for a nice big jump that I started to feel a little bit like my old self over the little fence, not so much just a passenger. I'm hoping this is a sign that I'm coming back.

Anyway, after all that, Ro sent me down this trail that runs through the property on my own to just hack. That was so nice, being out on a trail alone on a horse again on a beautiful Fall morning. I'm happy that she thinks I'm a good enough rider that she can trust me like that. Oh also, while I was riding at the beginning of the hour, she introduced me to a woman who boards a couple of horses there. Apparently she has a horse that is available for half lease, an "Appendix Quarter Horse". This is one of the newer terms in the riding world that I didn't know, but I think it means that the horse is half thoroughbred & half quarter horse. Anyway, she and Ro seemed to have an easy and comfortable friendship and I felt like I fit in pretty well. I like that I could maybe have some horsey friends at this place (there were a couple of adults at the other barn too who I felt that I could be friendly with. 1 or 2 in my lesson too). There are so many kids around all the time, that it's nice to know that there are also adults that I can relate to as well.