Planted

I'm back for a post or two! I have truly loved moving to Instagram and find it has been so much easier with my general lack of motivation recently to still journal and interact with my internet friends without having to write long posts. Some things though just need a little more space.

Handgrazing is one of our new, favorite, pastimes 

This year, other those truly awful things we're all aware of, has honestly been awesome for me. Those couple of years where I wasn't riding much have paid off in that I have an amazing and strong relationship with an amazing partner, own a home, and have a job that I adore. Without taking a step back from riding and horse things I don't know that I would have been able to accomplish all of that. Now, I'm able to enjoy the effort that I put into those things but also have time and energy to go to the barn and the motivation to go. 

So far, since I've moved to the new barn, I've made it out there 6 days a week and have been riding 5 days a week pretty regularly. When that doesn't happen, like last week, I get right back on track the following week. It feels so amazing to be going regularly and making progress again. I wasn't riding that regularly even when I was working with Jane. What doesn't always feel great is the slow, steady work of getting both of our strength back but I also have confidence that we'll get there and that doing it the right way will take time.

We've also done a lot of hand walking down the sand track to build confidence.
The cross country course is in the center.

What also feels great is that all the slow work I've done over the past two years has led to better work that I was getting when I was working regularly with Jane. Even though I haven't had regular lessons in the meantime I have been slowly chipping away at things like increasing relaxation and improving me and Katai's partnership as well as managing my anxiety. These things have been working and are now paying off in a big way.

After just about two months at the new barn I'm doing things that I could only dream of before. That includes having productive rides in the outdoor arena(s) where I'm doing about 90% of my rides at this point. No only is she just as engaged and ridable (and relaxed) outdoors now as she was indoors during good rides last year but we can switch which outdoor arena we're in and still get really good work. We're also hacking out by ourselves and even if it's just a short ride down the sand gallop track (at a walk of course) it's HUGE for us.

Hopefully a new phone will mean less blurry screen grabs!

I credit this to me having a better handle on my anxiety and also on all of the relaxation work and team building. That work has helped me but has also helped Katai to have a better sense of humor about things. This barn is BUSY. There are people, trailers, farm equipment, screaming kids, dogs, bikes, you name it all over the place all the time. Katai has done so well that she's one of the favorites of the girls that work at the barn and resident barn rats and they've even told me that "she's pretty near bomb proof" which were not words I EVER expected to hear about Katai.

I'd say I couldn't believe the change but I've truly put blood, sweat, and tears into this especially over the past year so this is really just a lot of hard work paying off. 

Gotta make sure the Pivo is tracking

One of the main shifts for me in how my mindset has shifted is that I feel really planted. In the past I always knew I was moving to a different state and/or moving onto my own farm. It was something I had wanted so badly for so long that I always felt like I had one foot out the door. It didn't feel like it made sense to build a solid team of body workers, vets, saddle fitters, farrier, etc. because I felt like I was "just moving away anyway". It also meant that I was especially picky about board because it felt like I was just managing it until I could move to my own place. In addition, it kept me from really figuring out ways to deal with inconveniences like our weather, boarding things, or bugs. 

With meeting my boyfriend I needed to change that mindset because he loves this place and has never wanted to move. Within the first few months of meeting each other we had a lot of conversations about city vs. farm life and if I could be happy here. It was a decision I took very seriously and put a lot of thought into because I never wanted to feel negatively about him or the relationship because of a decision that was mine to make. In the end, I decided I could be truly happy living in Minneapolis for the rest of my life and honestly it's one of the best decisions I've ever made. 

That planted feeling has led me to finding solutions for things instead of just whining about them. It's led me to working on my anxiety vs. feeling like I could just run away from it. It's also led me to just bucking up and dealing with things like heat or humidity since I can't just move away from it and I don't want the middle of summer and the middle of winter to be excuses to stop riding or making progress.

I've also really dialed in Katai's diet and the Vitamin E is part of
what I credit to her current ability to relax.

Those solutions have led to new tools like cooling towels for the summer and a great water bottle as well as warmer layers and the realization that personally I need to board at a heated barn for winter. They've also led to a strong team of horse professionals around us to help make sure Katai is feeling her best and that I've got the support I need to keep making progress. Finally, one good thing that came out of COVID is the ability to do remote video lessons. For the first time, while I have the money this fall for a truck and was planning to move forward with that and get a trailer next spring/summer I'm actually taking that off my list. Instead I'm going to upgrade my phone for a better camera and processor and figure out how to get the Pivo working for remote lessons or upgrade to something like a Pixio. 

Next year the plan is to find opportunities to ride with people to just a couple of dressage shows. It's not going to be quite as easy to figure out trailer loading stuff without my own but I figure that if I can make it work for a few years and pay off some more debt I'll be in a more comfortable place to get my own in the near future. I'm also just feeling confident enough that Katai will be better at shows with the very show like atmosphere at our barn every day. That helps me feel like I'm not going to need to trailer her out every weekend to get used to it and can instead maybe have a handful of productive shows next year. 

The new dressage arena with fiber footing is <3

Fingers crossed we're in a better place pandemic wise next year and shows are easier and more available than this year!

Pretty Things!!!

While I haven't been able to ride in way too long I do have some pretty new things that I'll be able to enjoy someday when the weather cooperates.

First, my PS of Sweden winter sale haul.

The pile, yes I went overboard...

Not a great picture but I got the grey broadband with the mirror like gems and I really like it!!

I got the really dark navy blue polos

and the pony sized dark navy saddle pad to match.
This is the same as the one I have from them in pink

and this brown one.  

I'm in love with everything and can't wait to get to use these pretty things!!!

My Eskadron bandage bag finally came in as well and I LOVE it. I was using a reusable bag and all of my bandages were tossed in it and often unrolled themselves. This has a bunch of pockets and clear little windows so I can tell if what I want is in there.

Also today my last two bandage liners came in from the Black Friday sale at RW. They had been awesome and called me to let met now how long it would take for them to come in and had said it may be as late as February so I'm pleased they arrived as quickly as they did. 

Now no more spending money for awhile :)

2018 Year in Review

I'm going with a full, wordy, review of 2018 and I'm going to fit it all in one post. Never fear, I analyzed the year as a whole vs. recapping posts so there is some new information here and at least one picture I took for each month I'm recapping. Hopefully the media will get you through this long post!

Pretty weather but a really tough month for us

January:

In general this year was tough riding wise and it really all started last winter. January was a continuation on that and I only ended up with one lesson despite typically taking them weekly with Jane. I was dealing with SADD and anxiety and Katai was dealing with saddle fit, ulcers, and too much energy from not being able to work because of the other two. The happy things going on were that I was dating someone amazing, had an adorable baby puppy, and was looking forward to moving out of my grandma’s house and into my own apartment.

Pony was doubtful and I was enthusiastic. This was during the period of time where we were
 pretty much always at odds with each other

February:

I posted a grand total of 2 times and didn’t even get my saddle shipped out to be resized until early February. By the end of February I had my saddle back and had managed to fit in a couple of lessons but Katai was still full of energy and probably ulcery. I had also moved and was dealing with awful weather. Personal things remained awesome, other than some awful depression and anxiety that came from the move and living in chaos for a while, but pony things still weren’t going well.

Pretty tail, also one of my last photos at Jane's barn *sadface*

March:

March continued to be a struggle. The weather was awful, Katai was naughty and overly full of energy still. I also had my car break down and ended up replacing it which ate up my trailer savings. That was the final straw for me and I decided that I needed to move somewhere that could consistently trailer me to shows, having onsite clinics etc, so that I could have more opportunities. Plus I found out that Jane was selling her farm. I was also still dealing with the transition of moving into a major city that I wasn’t familiar with and was feeling a bit trapped (although I didn’t realize that until later) and needing to figure out how to manage my rescue dog who was having major anxiety and leash aggression issues that I didn’t post much about.

I did actually ride occasionally. You can also see in Katai's expression how much she hated this place.
This was her constant look whenever I had her in the barn.

April:

April was my highest posting month this year with a grand total of 8 posts. Less than half of the amount I was posting in 2017. I moved to the barn in WI and was, at the time, thinking I’d have a show in May which was exciting. The weather continued to do it’s best to defeat me and I was already struggling with figuring out how to get to the barn with all the snow and ice. I posted about my show plans for the year *sadface*, dealt with two fairly significant snow storms, and went to OH for work. Then I was very sick when I got back which just continued making it difficult to be consistent with rides.

 

Getting ready to interview for a new job. Thankfully my boss at the time found out and then changed up my work to make it more sustainable so I ended up staying.

May:

I almost entirely ended up missing May but posted three times right toward the end of the month. The weather had suddenly gotten unseasonably hot and because of pony behavior things we decided we needed to skip the May show. I then realized that I wasn’t going to be able to go to the June show because of previous plans to go to NC with my bf for a wedding. Unbeknownst to me at the time that caused a chain effect of the serious dressage crew at the barn, including my trainer at the time, to lose all faith in me and push me out of their clique. I was learning some great things from S2 especially around how to handle Katai on the ground when she checked out. Partially I was needing to learn this because Katai was ALWAYS checked out at this barn. I’m still not sure of the cause but she hasn’t had such consistently negative (anxious) behavior anywhere else which is suspicious in retrospect. I was also sick for a week or so again.

Pretty sure we make a weird perfect team

June:

The highlight of my riding year (accomplishment wise) was riding for Kristi Wysocki in a clinic and having her give me very little advice (based on riding and showing at 1^st level) when I knew going in that she’s really tough. It definitely gave me confidence that 2^nd level is in our grasp. I also got to bring Moshy to spectate at a dressage show and she was amazing! It was so much fun and I can’t wait to do more of this in 2019.

Riding blind, only a well trained dressage horse could
be so on the aids that they don't need to see right? *snorts*

July:

After only posting early in June I didn’t post again until late July and only got a few posts in. I had diagnosed many of the things that I had been struggling with so far this year and had a plan including moving to a new barn since I had realized that I had overextended myself commute time wise. Something I wasn’t posting about at the time is how much worse the people at the WI barn were making things for me since I was being actively pushed out. I wasn’t sharing because I hate adding in any way to barn drama. Plus my mental health was pretty fragile this year so I was having a tough time not feeling that it was deserved it despite literally doing nothing that should have caused ANY negative feelings from anyone at the barn.

Very few pony pictures were taken in August so enjoy a puppy instead

August:

August was a big transition month and when things actually started to slightly start to look up to me for the first time in over 9 months. I moved Katai in the middle of the month and cut my commute to the barn more than in half. Bf and I also decided moving in together was officially a thing and found an apartment at the end of August. Katai spent most of July and then August entirely off work which set us way back especially since I hadn’t been at all consistent prior to that since back in November/December.

Saying goodby to my cute little apartment
(and the amazing view lol)

Finally in the arena after all that time off even if we weren't riding much yet 

September: 

I didn’t post a single thing in September. Instead I spent the month moving myself and the bf into the new apartment, being really sick (again!), and starting to slowly work toward more time at the barn with Katai.

I can tell I was starting to feel better in October because I took way more pictures

She's perfected the mare glare

 October:

Things really started looking up this month which is funny since typically it’s October/November when I really start to suffer with seasonal depression. Kinda tells you how rough the rest of the year was for me. At any rate, I actually started to be consistent with barn time and was meeting my goals for October. I also posted a bit more about the apartment move and my new tack storage and shared new goals for the rest of the year, did some shopping, and got more media posted.

November:

Despite only posting two times I was doing so much better and averaged 5 times per week at the barn which was a combination mainly of lunging and riding. I was starting to get my position back a bit and Katai was starting to be more consistently cooperative for the first time in over a year. I shared a general update of stuff I hadn’t posted over the past year and reviewed my updated goals which were going well.

Starting to get better at our selfie game

December:

Things have officially been feeling way better and like the worst of whatever the universe was trying to throw at me is over. In December I pretty much posted about shopping (lol) but despite a real lack of any riding content I’ve continued to be really consistent up until this past week or so but I blame that on the holidays. Mainly I’m so looking forward to 2019 and having a way better year in every way.

I’m aware how quiet things have been this year and I apologize for the negative tone in the blog. It truly just has been a year where I kept getting kicked when I was down even with small things. To top that off I was really struggling with anxiety and depression in a way I never have. I’ve tried to keep some of that out of the blog since it’s just not helpful but to still be decently transparent. Saying this isn’t to diminish the amazing things that happened at the end of last year including my relationship with one of the most amazing people I’ve met, moving in with him, my amazing puppy, and my incredible pony. Thank goodness for my amazing bf and his ability to support me through this really tough year because I don’t quite know what would have happened this year without his support. Mostly though I’m looking forward to a fresh start this next year where we can have more fun together, I can accomplish more of my goals (which are mainly riding goals lets be honest) and where I just don’t have so much stress in my life.

Adjusting

Blurry but beastie pony :)

There has been so much to adjust to over this past year and I have to say that for the first time in quite a while I feel like I have a really sustainable routine. The main thing was moving Katai so much closer and changing from going home after work and then going to the barn after dinner to going directly to the barn after work. That’s possible thanks to having a partner able to help with puppy duty

My current routine Sunday-Saturday goes like this.

Sunday: No barn time. We’ve had two different DnD groups that meet on alternate weekends from about 1-7 so that pretty much takes up the majority of the day. We’ve now started leaving the morning open for my bf and I to do things together often involving house work and prepping for playing DnD the rest of the day

Monday: I wear clothes to work that are useable at the barn such as a sports bra and tops that are layered and will be ok to ride in. I bring breeches and socks and have my winter boots in the car. I carry my new grooming kit with me into work (everyone already thinks I’m weird so I’m over it) so that none of my stuff freezes. After work I change into breeches and tall socks in the public work restroom and then when I get to my car I put on my winter boots. I also bring with both lunch and dinner so that I can eat both at work and not starve. Most days I’m leaving work around 4:15-4:30 all ready for the barn. I typically get to the barn between 4:30-5:00 depending on when I left and how bad traffic was. On quiet days it’s less than 20 minutes and on bad traffic days it’s closer to 30 so not bad at all! Normally by then Katai is in her stall eating so I groom and tack up with her loose in her stall so that she can eat some of her dinner before I ride. I spend around 40-50 minutes in the arena between warmup, riding, and cool down, and then put her back in her stall to keep eating while I untack and groom. I typically give her more alfalfa pellets when I get back (since I purchase them for the barn to feed) and I like to help keep her calories up during the winter. I typically leave the barn between 6:00 and 6:30 and am home by 7 but often closer to 6:30-6:45.

Tuesday: Same as Monday only e/o week I have my lesson from 5:00-5:30 so I leave work slightly early and rush to get there and get ready on time to be in the arena just before 5 to warm up.

Wednesday: Typically this is the only week day that I don’t go to the barn. That means that I have an awful, rush hour drive home and spend about 45 minutes in the car in stop and go traffic.

Thursday: Same as Monday

Friday: Same as Monday

Saturday: I typically ride in the morning and head to the barn from home. I was always going to the barn both weekend days but since my drive is actually longer from home than work and it’s now easier to go after work Saturday is typically the only weekend day I go out. My drive is typically about 30 minutes depending on how silly all the weekend drivers are being. This is now pretty much the only day where I’m not tacking Katai up in her stall while she eats. I was a little worried that she’d forget how to come into the barn on her own and stand nicely in the cross ties but, knock on wood, she’s been a really good lady and remember all of her manners. I groom, tack up, and normally ride in the arena by myself which is nice. I typically take a little more time on Saturday unless we have plans so I’m able to do more grooming, trim her mane, work on her feet etc.

The only other thing that varies during the week is that my trainer typically teaches lessons M-W so Mondays and Tuesday (especially when I don’t have a lesson on Tuesday) are typically pretty busy. I’ve started to plan ahead for that and not plan to do anything too intense or that is too disruptive such as ground poles on those days. Thursday- Saturday I typically have the arena to myself so I do those things on one of those days.

Recently the weather has been really nice so that hasn’t altered this at all and I’ve got my fingers crossed that maybe we’ll continue to have the mild winter that we’re supposed to have!

Loosey Goosey

This is what she felt like today

One thing that's been amazing to see at the new barn is how much the turnout is helping Katai stay fit and loose.

At the last couple of barns we were fighting a losing battle with her fitness. Two barns ago at least I had an outdoor and a bit of, albeit flat, outdoor space to ride in. At Janes, unless I could con someone into riding down the road with me or if I could work out with the neighbor to ride in the outdoor I had I could only ride in the indoor and both of those were tough to arrange.

On top of that at both of the last barns Katai's turnout was only in a small paddock. She could canter around a bit but it was flat and small and unless she was really motivated to run around there wasn't much real movement.

We win at selfies

Now I have all sorts of outdoor space to ride in even if I never went on the trails since just the space around the arena, near the barns, and down the driveway is safe and roomy for riding. We also have a nice large outdoor that Katai doesn't have meltdowns in (mostly thanks to S2) which helps as well.

Even better, Katai is in a huge pasture with other horses! She has two palomino friends, that look like twins, and another paint and they all get along really well. The pasture is huge and hilly just like how we kept our horses as I was growing up. Walking to the end to graze on it's own is a good workout and is really helping to keep her muscles loose and definitely adding some fitness. In addition she's been more careful about where she's putting her feet since she can't just drag them along like she could at the last barn.

Plus, S2 is really helping me to work with Katai on getting her to relax the blocked tension she has had. She's always gotten really tight through her shoulders if anything is going on that she's unsure about and also, I'm finding out now, has carried a lot of tension through her hips. Like me with my shoulders I think that she's just been that way for so long that she didn't even know there was a different way to do it until S2 came along and showed her.

I didn't get many pony pictures so her's another puppy picture

It's part of my homework to keep working with her on it but it's also clear how much she's already let go, or will let go if you ask correctly. Her stride, which was already much improved at Jane's, has gotten even more buoyant and loose and it's easier to keep her from getting locked up. I also have tools on the ground so that if she does lock up and threaten to rear I can dismount, address on the ground, and then remount and have a nice soft, loose pony which certainly wasn't the case before.

All of these things led to a really nice ride today where she was right with me, loose, relaxed, pushing from behind and really trying for the whole ride. She, of course, had the wrong answer to things sometimes but now when I ask again differently, or do a minor correction she just melts into it and keeps trying. It was an amazing ride and made watching the rest of the team leave for the show even more bitter sweet. Oh well, soon Katai will be on that trailer too!

2017 Year in Review: Part the Second

Meeting the famous Connor at NDPC

July

July started with a quite week where I did some prep for Pony Cup. I complained about the heat and recapped NDPC here and here which included meeting Jen and Emilie. I posted about starting "boot camp" with a short amount of time to prep for our next show. The I rounded out the month by posting some confirmation progress photos and sharing some of the photos from my LONG, unexpected 2 week work trip and also did some more complaining about work travel.

August

I started August still on the West Coast but jumped right back into lessons and shared my first lesson recap in a few weeks. Then I posted a thoughtful post about the things I was spending more or less time on. Then we started talking about prep for 2nd level, posted my 500th Post, I rounded out the month by posting our first 1st level recap! 

September

September started my downward trend in motivation to blog and ride. It also marked my 1 year anniversary of riding with Jane. This was followed by a post about my trip out to see Carly and Bobby. I was so glad that I got to meet him this year but it did make it that much sadder when Carly lost him. Then I shared about my farrier drama which really started my downturn in riding. Just as Katai's feet finally got trimmed I sent out my saddle to be adjusted which I whined about. I ended the month with a trip to watch a friend's lesson and then sharing some exciting news!

5 year anniversary/birthday treats

October

In a lot of ways it seems like October was just yesterday. I can't believe it's already 2018! I started the month posting about my 5 year anniversary with Katai :) Then I posted another tough lesson recap,  and an exciting post about having my friends join me. Finally I ended the month with another tough lesson.

November

I really fell off the wagon with blogging in November with only 5 posts for the whole month. I started off by trying to diagnose what had caused her to be so difficult over the previous week or two. Then I hurt my back and shared puppy pictures, and finally shared a lesson recap.

Moshy joined the family and thought
working from home was exhausting

December

Was just as bad as November posting wise. I didn't even post anything until the middle of December where I started with a catchup post about where I'd been, puppy, and a second update post about black Friday shopping. Finally I shared a post recapping my lessons over the past couple of months and then posted these yearly recap posts.

Hopefully I'm back on track and will be able to make my blogging goals for 2018!

Catching Up: Lesson Recaps November-December

Progress in photo form. First real show experience, 2016

2017 goal recap and 2018 goal setting blogs will be up soon but first I have one more blog catch up post.

This isn't going to be very specific because, I don't know about you guys, but I struggle to remember what happened in my last lesson much less the one that occurred over a month ago. However, I really want to at least sort of recap our progress, or lack of progress, over the past couple of months.

Also 2016

Main Themes

Canter: Getting a good three Beat Canter has been a struggle for us. When we first started working with Jane Katai was lateral going both directions most of the time. Eventually we got to a place where she was taking the right lead well but the left has remained more lateral. Even then, if she was tired at all or stiff she would be lateral in both directions and sometimes not even be able to maintain a canter to one side or the other. Honestly, if I could go back in time I would have put much more work in on the canter much earlier on but as it is, it's time to really focus on it now.

As of my last lesson on 12/26 we had a three beat canter for both leads. The left lead we only get a couple of 20 meter circles and a short straight if we're lucky but she's able to maintain the right a lot longer.

One more 2016

More sit: Katai has really developed a HUGE trot but she likes to run and go on the forehand rather than use that strength to push and come back a little. From what I've read this isn't unusual but that doesn't mean it's easy to get her to change her way of going. Ultimately Katai is a very pressure adverse horse especially with something that she feels she's an expert on and so it's been tough to try to convince her to travel in a different way. We're currently working on lots of lateral work and 10 meter circles with transitions to help her understand what we're asking but it's a slog. As of my last lesson, 12/26, she still hasn't really seemed to understand what we're asking so we'll just keep right on practicing!

First show of 2017

Half Halts: Really I'm sure this could fit into the topic above but I thought I'd separate it out since in practice they're sort of two separate things. At this point Katai is highly offended by half halts and doesn't think they're fair. She either wants to flatten onto her forehand and quite or not make any difference in the gait. When she sort of gets them she get's upset because of the amount of pressure I end up needing to use. We'll keep right on toiling away on these and I'm confident that she'll understand the concept soon.

Also first show of 2017

Lateral Work: I never thought I'd say it but leg yields are starting to get there! Katai still has days where she doesn't feel like it but I'm actually starting to understand them to the point where I can really "train" when she isn't getting it and know what I can and/or shouldn't do to get the result I'm looking for.

Last show of 2017

SI is also something we're practicing ALOT and including in a lot of exercises. We're using it to help improve the canter, to help her understand how to sit, to help her understand transitions within the gait, and to help slow down that frenetic forward energy and turn it into more sit. She's very annoyed with us about it but we'll keep right on practicing :)

I feel like I have more homework than ever and really know what we're working on so now it's just convincing Katai that these things are ok and are actually sort of fun!

Also last show of 2017

Intention - Blog Update #1

She looks somewhere between adorable and
possessed in this picture so of course I had to share

Well guys I certainly had no intention of taking that sort of break from blogging! I feel like this year was even a longer break than last year and last year I was dealing with some pretty serious seasonal depression. This year, very happily, the reason(s) I haven't been blogging are very happy for the most part.

Because there is just so much going on and a fair amount happening with Katai I figured I would do a couple of update posts rather than trying to fit it all in one and then be in a good place to recap 2017 and start 2018 strong!

So, to start the update, awhile ago I had mentioned three exciting things I had in the works that I couldn't share yet. One of those didn't really go anywhere yet but will soon and that's that I'll be moving early next year and was hoping to move much closer to the barn. I had started to look for apartments but realized that it was still so early that it didn't make sense to look.

First bath today <3

The second thing was my friends moving to the barn. As of end of October they're all moved in and things are setting back down there. I'm really enjoying having them there and luckily it's a great combination of having people around but still having the arena to myself on a fairly consistent basis. In fact, if I had my druthers I'd probably want them around a bit more than they are which is a good problem to have.Not only am I enjoying having them there but they're LOVING the barn and Jane's instruction. All three of them have said that they're enjoying riding again and loving the program and the setup of the barn. I'm really happy for them and glad that I could help them find a great place to move to.

The third thing is, of course, my new puppy Mashiara or Moshy for short. She is absolutely the best puppy in the entire world and I'm totally head over heels in love with her. Anyone who follows me on Instagram (and if you don't you should since I'm more able to quickly post there) has seen her in all of her adorable cuteness already.

I've LOVED every minute of having rescue dogs but they do come with baggage and I've always wanted a puppy at some point. I have no doubt that I'll mess some things up but it is nice to not need to deal with set in behavioral stuff right from the beginning. It's also AMAZING how quickly she picks things up! She already sits on cue, knows her name, and has a MUCH more reliable fetch than Veggie does. She's also good with stuff like nail clipping and bathes which I'm working hard to not mess up. I guess I sort of didn't think she'd be this trainable since Chihuahua's are typically fairly stubborn little dogs that weren't exactly bred for obedience but so far (knock on wood) she's been really easy to train. I've got her signed up for a puppy class already and now I'm also sort of thinking about continuing with a few basic obedience classes after that puppy class is done.

She's very helpful with Christmas preparations

Of course all of these things have distracted me from blogging and, as mentioned previously, Katai and I had gone through a rough patch and are just in an in-between sort of time with riding where she needs more strength and to change her way of going and those aren't quick things. Because of that I just didn't have as much to blog about which wasn't inspiring me to find the time to sit down and blog.

Contemplating what to do with a toy that large

I have one more thing that's been distracting me from blogging and that's a relationship. I'm not someone who's particularly private and I know I've shared relationship things, both good and bad, on here in the past but this time I'm keeping it more private. What's important is that I'm really happy right now and spending a lot of time with this person. I've been more focused on that and continuing to ride and manage a new puppy and still (STILL!) stressful work days that blogging just needed to take a back seat.

A little blurry but proof of how good the Vegetable has been.
I think this was her second day home.

I can't promise that it's going to get much better over the next few months but I do want to close out the year as strong as I can. I'll have another update soon about more of what Katai and I have been up to!