Truth.

I'm a jerk...

So yeah, I am a jerk. I often think this when I see snooty girls stomping around the mall wearing riding boots. They all look like the type that have never seen the inside of a barn or been on the back of the horse. I know I shouldn't typecast but I do. A lot. For me I feel that my riding boots are a right of passage. I earned my boots. It is really really dumb to feel that way I'm sure. I didn't get my dress boots until I'd cleaned hundreds of stalls, spent hours in the saddle, been stomped on, dragged, bitten, had snot blown all over, and truely loved and been loved by a horse. They were something I wanted my WHOLE life! I would see riders wearing beautiful black boots in my old horse books and thought one day when I have a horse I will have fancy boots like this. And I finally got them for my birthday a few years ago from my boyfriend/now husband.  They are beautiful but they are for function and not fashion and I did my time and earned the right to wear them .Yep I'm a jerk....lol!

Mukluk Giveaway!

Stop on by Honestly...WTF for the chance to win a pair of these beauties from Manitobah Mukluks! My awesome dad JUST got me a pair of them and they are amazing. Like seriously, best boot ever! I almost cried last night when it was time to take them off and go to bed. But I was excited to wake up because it was time to put on another pair of Mukluks!



I know, I know...they are not riding boots but they are the best, most amazing, boots ever! I have 4 pairs of Manitobah Mukluks in different styles and they are like heaven to wear. Seriously! I wear them without socks and my feet stay so toasty warm in the coldest conditions that its insane! And although my feet are toasty warm they NEVER get sweaty. The foot bed is lined with sheepskin so it helps regulate the temperature of your feet. 

Manitobah Mukluks is the same company I got mukluks from for my bridesmaids as a Thank-you-for-being-here-for-me-on-my-big-day gift. I am always getting calls and texts from all over the country from my bridesmaids telling me how many complements they are getting on their awesome boots with the fur. They love them.

I entered that picture in a contest on Manitobah Mukluks Facebook page which won me a pair of THESE beauties...which are currently on my feet and the warmest most enjoyable boot I've ever worn, next to my yellow ones, and black ones...and white ones... Anyways! Stop on by Honestly...WTF and try you chance at winning a new pair of boots to enjoy when you aren't wearing you riding boots! Your feet will thank you!

Weekend update.

The weather this weekend was absolutely beautiful. Friday was super foggy which ended up leaving everything beautiful and frost covered. I was too busy during daylight hours to take pictures, dang it! I had the perfect, most beautiful shot planned out in my head of my two red horses standing out against the monochromatic background of the snow covered fields and frost covered trees. I have a mental picture of it in my head though. It was so beautiful to see.


With temps in the low 40’s and upper 30’s I did get some time to ride on Sunday. Hubby has found out that if he takes Tucker for a run with the 4-wheeler it burns off most of the Terrier energy and therefore we have an easier to handle dog. Fun fact I learned this weekend. A Boston terrier can run up to 25 miles per hour! They can run that fast for an extended period of time too! After Tuckers run hubby ran into the house to just check the basement, and sure enough there was a burst pipe and water all over the floor. Thankfully we don’t have a finished basement it’s just a creepy farmhouse basement like they are supposed to be. So I had to make an impromptu trip into town to grab some repair supplies. Sure enough when I got into town hubby told me that he fixed it and that I didn’t really need to go to town. His cell phone doesn’t work very well out at our place so the 3 times he tried to call me didn’t get through. There is something you can buy to boost mobile phone service so I’m looking into that. I really don’t want to be without cell phone service around the farm.

After my quick trip to town I rushed out to the barn and saddled up. It always seems that I’m burning daylight when I go to ride and that I am super rushed. I hate that. Piney hates that. He was being super pokey on our way to the barn so I went to smack him in the butt with my lead rope and ended up popping myself in the face instead. When I started tacking up he was picking up on my hurried energy and was kind of full of himself and prancy. I thought I’d be in for a bit of a treat when we headed down the road. No such luck. He is lazier than ever! He is usually two or three lengths behind Duke when we ride. I mean really Piney? You were a race horse! You won races! Lol. I love that horse but at times I wish he had a bit more fire in him. Not the kind of fire where I’m constantly holding him back and can’t enjoy a nice relaxing trail ride for fear of him bolting down the road. But just a bit more pep in his step! It really doesn’t help that he’s got a giant hay belly. I gotta get him in shape! I can’t wait to get time to ride all the time! But even if Piney is super lazy we had a great ride and enjoyed riding in February, outside, with only a light fleece, in North Dakota! I rode on the buckle the entire time and that is a pretty good feeling.

The farm layout. (white lines are where current fences are)

But, as enjoyable as riding down the road on a calm and reliable horse is, I can’t help but think that I enjoy riding in an arena more. It sounds crazy and most people would think I am crazy for feeling that way but it’s true. I love doing patterns, and jumping! Hubby and I were discussing arenas the other day. We both agreed that we need an enclosed area where we can work the horses, especially when we start to work on desensitizing his horse and I start to work on Piney’s canter. I understand that things can go horrifically wrong in an enclosed area just the same as if we were anywhere else, But I just feel safer knowing that if my horse kills me, both my body and my horse are in the same area. We have an area in mind where we are going to put it. We just need to decide what kind of fencing to use. I want it to be built as cheaply as possible but still be safe and aesthetically pleasing. Hopefully we can accomplish that.

I also noticed when riding yesterday, that I felt like I was doing everything wrong. It’s like I need my riding instructor there correcting me, praising me, or telling me what to do next. I know that I was riding correctly and I was doing everything that I normally do it just feels so weird to me. I don’t know how to make it stop either. My hubby on the other hand. Well he doesn’t appreciate my helpful riding tips or suggestions lol. Especially when his horse is being naughty. It’s best to

I also feel like I’m not doing everything right in regards to horse keeping either. Even when it comes down to my tack room, I feel like I’m putting things in the wrong place or that I should be doing things a different way. I am really a person who needs to be told what to do and that is really pathetic. That is one of those things I NEED to work on!

But that’s about it for now. Oh I suppose I better post a picture of Tucker Pants on his warm up lap before he went on his run…I really need to stop "neglecting" my other two dogs and horses and feature pictures of them! But Tucker is just so funny looking that it's fun to take pictures of him!

invisable horses

I saw these videos this morning and I about died laughing

Boots

I had to take formal senior pictures for my husband's cousin today but first I needed a model to test the lighting...So I grabbed my tall dress boots and my vintage Tony Lama boots and did a photo shoot. Here are some of my favorite shots.

                          

Update on the Christmas Pony!

I guess i never did a follow up on the pony that we boarded until Christmas! He is doing great and being loved upon by his little girl all the time! She rides him every single day! How is that for dedication?
It was the cutest thing ever seeing her expression as she came out of the house to see pony standing on the sidewalk covered in bows and all tacked up. She was grinning ear to ear as she rode around the yard in her Christmas dress. We talked about names for him and I told her that the name he came with from "Santa's pony farm" was Inky but she could name him anything she wanted. She had been on a kick where she was naming everything Lena after her grandmother's dog that had just been put down. So we were betting that she was going to name him Lena too. But I suggested "Ole" since Ole was Lena's husband in those Norwegian jokes. She lit up and nodded when I suggested the name! His "official" name is Pony Ole. I love it.
She is in love and that is one lucky pony.