All about my horses!

Susan FoxTrotter-book title in Amazon

No Greater Honor-Mention from Dr Patrick Handley

Dr. Patrick Handley’s Facebook Page about Humanality:

“Insight of the week:
I received a wonderful message from youthful, 70 year old Parelli student Marilee Donovan. She thanked me for the positive, strengths-based orientation of the Humanality report and commented about how she was just now, at this stage in her life, discovering her true self and unleashing many of the personality strengths she had suppressed over the years. Marilee is embracing the RBI strengths of her personality (as well she should) and embracing her softer, more introspective side. I really appreciate her kind note and pass it on to guide us all on the lifelong journey of self discovery. I hope that Humanality and the INSIGHT Inventory can help you follow the path Marilee is paving and be open to continued learning about ourselves!

Rediscovering and reclaiming of our true selves shows up in music videos and books in many wonderful forms. Here are a couple of recent popular ones for starters—
Book: Dying to be Me by Anita Moorjani (a must read for self-discovery, wellness and spirituality)
and my 17 year old teen daughter reminds me that is a great music video: Being Me – the Strange Familiars http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NW63lS9_MW4
And of course several Parelli students lead the way — isn’t that interesting!
Michelle Glover Burstrom’s wonderful song, “A Horse never Lies.”
Mary Ann Kennedy’s many great songs about people and horses –http://www.maryannkennedy.com/
Katie Drake’s songs of connecting with ourselves through our horses – naturally of course:www.katiedrakesongs.com
And these heartfelt self discovery books inspired by their Parelli journey:
Kristie Smith: Becoming Me
Susan Engle: Susan Fox Trotter
Rachel Jessop: Dreams with Horses

Please share your thoughts and what resources YOU would recommend, especially ones from Parelli students. Let’s generate a master list!”
Horse never Lies.”
Mary Ann Kennedy’s many great songs about people and horses –http://www.maryannkennedy.com/
Katie Drake’s songs of connecting with ourselves through our horses – naturally of course:www.katiedrakesongs.com
And these heartfelt self discovery books inspired by their Parelli journey:
Kristie Smith: Becoming Me
Susan Engle: Susan Fox Trotter
Rachel Jessop: Dreams with Horses

Please share your thoughts and what resources YOU would recommend, especially ones from Parelli students. Let’s generate a master list!

 

 

“Being Me” – The Strange Familiar (Official Music Video)

www.youtube.com

Official music video for The Strange Familiar’s “Being Me” from their new album “Chasing Shadows”. Download iTunes http://bit.ly/IMcD5N. Director: Erin Brown…

 

 

Ava-Day One a Huge Success

Day one, Showmanship started the day off right!  Jenny and Nichole won the open and youth showmanship classes!  Nova and Velvet were in show horse success mode.

Tony and Powder joined in the next events and the ribbon sunumi started.  The Vaught family flooded me with ribbons.  Blue was the main color.  In the youth events, Nichole and Velvet mostly won the blue ribbon followed by  sister Caitlyn riding Attu.  In the open events Jenny got most of the blue ribbons with Powder and Tony getting many second place ribbons and a few third place ribbons.

I have this great chair with the shade top.  Today, it became the ribbon chair.  At the end of the day, it was also the garland chair.  Jenny and Nova won the Open Versatility Garland and Nichole and Velvet won the Youth Versatility Garland.

Pictures are on Facebook . At the moment, I can’t upload pictures here.  Later…

We had friends show in the various events.  Susan Breau showed in Western Pleasure and won the class.  She was so excited and so happy to get that win.  Before the class, she was bubbling over with excitement and nerves.  She has also lost weight this winter and looked stunning in her show clothes with her shining happiness bubbling all over us!

Hope Kahout has to be the best dressed Western Pleasure rider ever.  I will post her picture and you can vote for Hope as most wondrous.  She rides a dark gold palomino and wore a turquoise outfit.  Boy Howdy.  Hope placed in the class and was a happy versatility evener!

Powder looked great in her new bridle.  Last year her whiteness faded out her face.  She needed a bling black bridle so we would see her beautiful green gold eyes with the black makeup.  Oh she is stunning, especially with her cowboy rider dressed in a dark red shirt.  It took a lot of finesse to get the cowboy rider to accept a bling bridle.  Whew  Powder is coming along looking improved over her three year old first season.  Powder is four years old and is in the beginning of her illustrious show career.

Strolling around the versatility arena, I was asked if I “bought” all those ribbons.  “Yes, I did in the entry fees!” I said!  Another person asked me if I was sorry to be winning all the blue ribbons.  I replied, “No Way!  I’m happy that my horses are winning all those blue ribbons!”

I love the people in the versatility arena.  They aren’t just people, they are my family twice a year.

Tomorrow is Ranch Horse Day.  All three of my horses are entered in every event.  There is only open Ranch Horse classes. This means that Nichole and Caitlyn are competing along with the adults.  I predict that Nichole and Caitlyn will place higher in some classes than some of the adult riders.  I’m glad not to be competing against Nichole and Caitlyn!

Report tomorrow.  Pictures on Facebook.  Rain missed us all day and hit us right before the horse show this evening. But as I look out McDonald’s window, the skies are blue.  Happy to be dry riders are riding in the performance arena right now and the versatility people are watching and thinking about hitting the mattress!

zzzzzzzz

Ava Pre-Day

Two hundred miles flew by and I entered the time zone known as Ava!  The golf cart guy met me at the entrance.  I found Nova, Powder and Velvet and the Vaught family.  Life is good.  I beat a lot of people here.  There are still parking spaces available if you want to run on down to Ava!

We had fun times at the office getting everyone signed up and ready to go tomorrow.  Everything went smooth as silk.  Everyone has numbers and even better, safety pins to attach the numbers to the saddle pads.  I chatted with everyone in the office.  They all were excited to see me and vice versa!  ha

I got Powder a duplicate set of registration papers as I misplaced her original papers.  I tell you this so that you will be as astonished as I was to receive a duplicate registration certificate for her with a solid gold seal.  I tried to buy a few more duplicate registrations, but it’s not allowed.  $20 for a gold seal is darn amazing!

We watched Caitlyn and Izzy riding in the Kid’s Day trail class with expert coaching from Steve Atkinson, a handsome young guy wonderful horse trainer, who never ages.  Ann Compton came strolling by with some serious fox trotter bling.  Ann is a young blond with bling.  She is covering the Kid’s Day.  Look for the Online Newsletter to see some of her pictures and stories about the day.  I do have a complaint about Kid’s Day.  The kids all got tie dye fox trotter T Shirts.  And my complaint is…where is my tie dye T Shirt?  Kid’s only, drat it.

We took a break and dispersed.  I went on my daily run to WalMart and my annual drive around town to see what is new.  Currently I’m sitting in the wonderful True Brew Coffee and Sandwiche Show.  It’s wonderful in here.  I’m having tea and a scone.  I have WiFi.  It’s better than McDonalds where I normally hang out to publish the news of the show!

Tomorrow is a full day of every versatility class you can think of.  We have Open and Youth events tomorrow. Everyone shows in something tomorrow!  It’s going to be a long day.  Some of the day might have some moisture coming from the clouds.  Hopefully it waits until we are done.

True Brew is open from 6:00-6:00 and to 8:00 on weekends.

Gotta run!  Gotta find everyone and watch everyone practicing to get ready for tomorrow!

Oh, and another thing….  the book, Susan FoxTrotter is on sale at the Fox Trotter Shop.  Buy a copy there, find me and get your book autographed if you are on the grounds tomorrow and Thursday.

Dr. Paul and Austin Smith

These are the two men of the three men who greatly influenced my young life with horses in Osceola, Iowa.  I just found this treasure of information of Osceola, Iowa residents!  I’ve been searching for information about Austin Smith for years and years.  This fell into my vision today!  Enjoy…

Recipies for Living by Fern Underwood

Osceola was known in the mid-century just past for at least two breeders and trainers of Palomino horses. One was dentist, Dr. E. W. Paul, whom Mickey referred to as one of Osceola’s most visible citizens. “Wearing an elaborate costume, he rode a Palomino horse with a decorated silver saddle draped with glittering trappings in many Rose Bowl parades. One of Dr. Paul’s clients was movie and television star, Roy Rogers.” The other was Austin Smith, about whom Mickey wrote (slightly altered):

Austin Smith is remembered by (his grand­ children) as “a very gentle man” and “very humble.”  These are their memories of this nationally known trainer and showman of dressage horses, which are horses that perform under inconspicuous control of the rider.

Austin  Smith’s American Saddle Bred dressage horses were trained to high-step, kneel, march, sit, stand on two legs, and dance. They could Spanish trot, and trot in place. (Many of his horses) were headline performers at the major horse shows throughout the country. His ‘”Lucky Strike” performed for Ringling Brothers Circus for two years including performances at Madison Square Garden…

Austin Smith became one of the nation’s most sought after trainers. He turned down an offer to go to California to work for movie and television star Roy Rogers.  (His) performing horses were featured on television and Fox Movie Tone. Austin Smith was named to the coveted Iowa State Fair Horseman’s Hall of Fame in 1962…An article in the Des Moines Register quoted (him) as saying, “The strongest tool in training is the kindly word and a pat. Horses, like children, have different dispositions. It does no good to beat a child for something it doesn’t understand.  The main problem is getting across to the horse what you want it to do.”

I’m So Cute

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What a time we had at Andi’s horse heaven Group Lessons with Jennifer Vaught.

Rating System Reinstated

When I first started with Sage, I developed a wine rating system based on adrenalin and or pain.
I don’t know how it happened, but as time passed, the wine rating system was dropped.
I think I started counting points instead. On a certain day, Sage might have racked up 500 or 700 points to my 5 points. Gradually, my points started to increase as I started to win “the games” with Sage.
I don’t remember the point system with Velvet and my rating system was dropped.
Besides, how exciting or tasty are points anyway?
Today, I had success playing with Lucky. He completed several circles without stopping!
We went out in the yard. There is still green grass around the lake. He got to run around and then was surprised when he was allowed to stop and eat grass! That was a big exciting reward in these days of crisp brown dead grass.
I did battle with giant horse flies too!

We had a great evening. I played with Sue in the yard too!

I’m reinstating the wine rating system mentioned in the first chapters when Sage started training me on what horses are really like.
This time, my rating will be based on pleasure and accomplishment.

Tonight was a one glass red wine night!

It was this picture taken by a longtime friend …sitting around camp after a trail ride in Colorado! Thank you Stacy!!

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Sue and Lucky

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My new goal is to do the old level 2 online and liberty with Lucky Star. Heck, thought I. I’ll just do these two variety tasks with both Lucky and Sue at the same time. Hence we all went to Pine Dell!  My it’s fun to play with two different horses in the round pen!

I’ve let Sue get horribly fat. She gains weight by looking at grass. She doesn’t have to eat it. Sue is a bay. She has chocolate black legs. Lucky looks a lot like Sue except he isn’t a bay.  He doesn’t have chocolate black legs.  He is liver chestnut in color.

Sue’s mother and Lucky’s grandfather are one and the same. Sue is a right brained introvert that has led a hard life with some of her owners. Lucky is a left brain introvert/almost extrovert that has had a perfect life with the best humans on the planet.

Life makes a big difference in how one looks at the Universe!

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