DITL

Who wants to do a Day in the Life post with me? I used to do these when I blogged about my life over on Open Diary (anyone else used this years ago? Remember Teen Open Diary and Free Open Diary?) and It was heaps of fun.

The rules are you take a camera with you and photograph your day, from waking to bedtime. Then, pick the photos that best describe your day and then blog about it! It is a great way to learn more about each other, especially horsey bloggers. We know SO MUCH about each other's horses, but not the non-equine side of things.

So, who is up for it? We will pick a day and all blog about our different experiences.

Award, yay!

Kate over at The Adventures of Lucy has given us an award!!

For this award, I am supposed to share 10 things you may not know about me, my pet(s), and my horse(s):

1.Evan, my cat, has a little moustache and goatee in his mouth. Look:

Why yes, I AM a crazy cat lady...

Poor cat. He cops a lot of shit from me.

2. I am a well paid Personal Assistant, sitting inside in an office all day. It is NOT where I ever thought I would be when I was younger but I am far too reliant on the money coming in each month to change. I sort of enjoy my job when the office politics aren't running too rampant and there is not so much work to do that I need to stay back every day and then come in on Saturdays too to get it done.

3. Allie doesn't care where she sticks her head. She has no idea how big it actually is and will stick it into tight spaces, in between fences, in tree forks. She ALWAYS has healing scabs or scrapes on her head, especially around the eyes and poll. I worry about her.

4. Gracie's coat is lighter where the sun doesn't touch it - under her mane, her tail, her belly etc. We have no idea why.

5. I have always driven manual cars. I HATE automatic transmissions. I think it is creepy how they creep forward as soon as you take your foot off the break, I hate how it just decides when to shift up (or down) a gear. I secretly judge you if you can't drive a manual. It's really not that hard.

6. I do.not.eat.fish. Or seafood of any shape or form. The smell makes me gag and I am sick to death of people telling me "You don't even know if you would like it, you haven't tasted it". Go away. I have tasted it and I still fricking HATE seafood. Stop trying to make me eat shit I know I hate the taste, texture and smell of.

7. I had Osgood-Schlatter disease as a child. IT is where over-active children get an irritation of the patellar tendon. From Wikipedia:

"The condition is usually self-limiting and is caused by stress on the patellar tendon that attaches the quadriceps muscle at the front of the thigh to the tibial tuberosity. Following an adolescent growth spurt, repeated stress from contraction of the quadriceps is transmitted through the patellar tendon to the immature tibial tuberosity. This can cause multiple subacute avulsion fractures along with inflammation of the tendon, leading to excess bone growth in the tuberosity and producing a visible lump which can be very painful when hit."

So, basically this:

I have the ugliest knees:

Oh, so pretty.

It is very painful when it happens but if the child is rested (i.e. no physical activity for a period of months) then the pain goes away, but not the lump. Authorities say that there is no residual pain once the child grown into an adult but that is bull. My knees get sore right on the spot with excessive use. I can never kneel in church as it is way too painful. All the old people around me still kneel and give me looks. I feel disrespectful but I'm pretty sure God doesn't care if I don't kneel when I pray.

8. I met Andrew when I was 19 by passing my phone number out the window of my car to him on the highway. Yes, really. I thought he was cute, he was rocking out to the same song that was playing in my car on the radio at the same time, and the rest is history. :)

9. My favourite movie is Spirit, Stallion of the Cimmaron.

10. I have always wanted to try side saddle riding. It looks like so much fun, it is a definite on my bucket list.

I then have to pick six blogs that I like:

1. From Racehorse to Showhorse - Super cute grey OTTB that I just can't get enough of. Also, GREAT horse photos - the writer is a proffessional photographer.

2.  Just Another Dog Blog - Cute dogs, great photos, easy to read and interesting posts.

3.  Whitebrook Farm - Hilarious reviews of horse themed books, movies, TV shows, etc, especially the 'Thoroughbred' series. Brings back memories.

4. Chloe, the Pony Who Wouldn't - I have just started following this blog - she is a trimmer too and I am liking her writing style.

5. Buckskin and Bay - A blog about a mother who has a young horse - gives me hope that I won;t have to give up this whole riding thing when kids finally come along!

6. Memoirs of a Horse Girl - Lovely, well written, carefully thought out posts that are informative and provoke reflection on the topic. Plus, her horse is barefoot and she is an owner trimmer! My kind of blog. :)

Bucket Saga cont...

So it turns out that having a blogging friend send me the bucket I want will cost a ridiculous amount in shipping (like, hundreds of dollars). So scratch that idea (for now)!

(Also, thanks for doing the research Funder!)

Another option is something called a Steady Neddy feed bucket (shown below).

Email enquiry sent. Standby for possible feed bucket solution celebrations...

Bucket buckets - please help!

Are there any US bloggers willing to get me some bloody fortiflex 6 gallon flat back buckets and ship them to me here in Australia? YOU CANNOT GET THEM ANYWHERE over here! My local feed store bought a whole bunch in bulk a while back and we bought a couple - I need at least 3 more, plus another bracket but I don't think he can place another order for them. I am waiting for him to get back to me.

I am willing to paypal money for them plus shipping. I spent about $40 per bucket/bracket set for them here - after looking at them online for what you guys pay for them I am feeling pretty ripped off!

As you may or may not know, Allie throws her feed around like a crazy monkey. It is a massive waste and drives me Very Very Insane. These buckets are the only buckets she settles to eat out of - but she has already almost destroyed one of them trying to throw it around. She doesn't do that anymore (she figured out she can't get the bucket off) and I am desperate to get more of these buckets.

Any takers?

Oh, The Injustice!

So, how come my horses crash through tall tight plain wire fencing and high vis hot electrical tape yet this guy manages to keep his three horses on his property with this monstrosity of a fence?!

Why, yes. That IS twine holding the pickets up...

Dot Points

Because none of this really deserves its own post:

- I had a bareback school today. Allie was an angel, she tried very hard. We even had a couple of canters, on both leads!

- The rain is returning. Just when I am getting my horse in proper 5 days a week work. Just when we are making big leaps in progress. Just when I'm super motivated to ride. Thanks, mother nature!

- I'm changing Allie's feed again. She is a really picky eater and I am struggling to put weight on her, especially with her being in work now. Linda recommended Hygain Showtorque and I bought a bag today to try it out. She certainly loves it! I don't like feeding feeds coated in molasses but if she actually eats it, I will be happy.

- Gracie has been a superstar the last week. It was her first week back after her shoulder injury (which has healed well!) and we were expecting a grumpy naughty mare. She was a little grumpy at not being on holidays anymore, but she is behaving when schooled, being calm when truck and bikes rush past, and is generally being a grown up horse rather than her 'just backed, never been mouthed' alter-ego. I hope she keeps it up!

- I'm well on my way to loosing those extra 20 kilos that I have had hanging around the last few years. I'm now using the app 'My Fitness Pal' to calorie count and it is great! So far since cutting down on the junk food I have lost 2 kilos. Only 18 more to go!!

Another Trail

Linda and I took Allie and her new cutting horse Connie up to Mulgoa yesterday. We mostly walked, just up to the look out and back.

Allie picked up a stone and sooked about it the whole way home after I flicked it out of her foot. I'm going to order her some boots next payday I think. She didn't have any bruising from it thankfully, but she lost confidence in the rocky footing, thinking she would pick up another stone. I was a bit bummed about that but she was a perfect angel otherwise.

Connie is Linda's new cutting horse, and we don't think she has been off property in the last 7 years except for competition. Linda thought she would be hot, but she took to it like she did it every day. I also got to have a quick ride, and it was cool and bizarre at the same time! To stop, I had to pick up the reins directly up, push my left hand on the pommel, and put my legs on! It was tricky, let me tell you!! We quickly swapped back but I am glad I got to have a little walk and trot on Connie. :)

So now you get a few crappy iphone pics of Allie and I at the lookout.

She has a lovely tail.

I was a bit worried about that ledge - I didn't dare go any closer!

Word of the Year

Fenway over at Brays of Our Lives is asking what one word we would apply to 2011 and what word shall be our mantra for 2012.

2011 was a tough year for me, but not by any tangible means. I have had office politics drama at work for the later half of the year that really got to me deeply. I have had 'adjustment' issues at home and the long cold wet winter that turned into a wet spring and then a wet summer really limited my riding. I lost my dog Chakra to cancer after about 2 or 3 months of knowing she would need to be put to sleep soon and that haunted my every thought. We had a vet bill from one of my animals every single month, and I am not talking little ones either. $500 minimum most months, more like $1000. The credit card is maxed out and I'm stressing a little about money because while we are comfortable, we certainly are NOT moving into a home we own ourselves any time in the foreseeable future.

2011 was just a crappy year by Lisa's standards, but I guess it was just life putting a bunch of things in one little space for me to deal with.

My 2011 word is Tough.



I am hopeful for 2012 - starting to claw my way back up again. The rain is clearing up and I am able to work my horse every day. The office politics have calmed down and I have made myself a harder shell so it just bounces off (easy to say when I am on two weeks holiday but anyway!). Home life is getting even better as we are making a bigger effort to understand one another. I no longer even have a dog so there will be no worrying there. My riding is getting better and better each ride and so is Allie. Our budget will actually start to work if the animals just keep themselves out of trouble for a few months, which they will if they know what is good for them!

I have some half formed riding goals in my mind right now. I hope to compete in an intro dressage test and I'm going to join an adult riding club in the first quarter of the year. I'm finally going to register my horse and join the EFA.

My 2012 word is Hope.

Allie Trim

I trimmed Allie today - if you are interested, pop on over to my hoof blog to check out the pictures and the write up.

Sneak peek of pretty feet!

Trail!

Linda and I took Allie and Hoodie up to Mulgoa for a trail ride. It is AWESOME there!! Lots and lots of hills, with plenty of varied footing including sand, little rocks, big rocks and boulders! Allie did fantastically and I rode her totally barefoot (no boots even) and she was careful with her feet but still trotted out sound crunching the smaller rocks and only had difficulty with the big rocks understandably. She got straight on the float no worried, travelled the 15 minute float ride like a champ, got off the float quietly, tied up out of sight of Hoodie and was calm. During the ride she was rock solid, no spook in her at all!! The whole ride was on a loose rein except when she was trotting along in front, then I just had a contact.

We even swapped for a little bit and Hoodie was so cool! Super keen and loved cantering up the hills. Allie was a bit pooped and just stopped on Linda at the bottom of a hill with a "no thanks" kinda attitude but she was a trooper and kept on keeping on.

Totally awesome day! Will definitely be going back again as it is so close to home!

(Edited to add a photo of me on Hoodie. Isn't he spunky?!)

Phew.

So it is 2.40am here in Sydney and I am in bed about to go to sleep. All is quiet and well - the local fireworks weren't too bad (i.e. they didn't go on very long, maybe 30 seconds?) and the horses were fairly quiet in their stables. They basically stood stock still trembling and jumping a little bit at the bigger bangs. They are now chilling out in their stables like normal.

So happy new year everyone!!


What a relief.