Here is where I’m spending my time

For Dad:

That’s Tigger, up there.  Stubborn pony who’s almost a horse (he’s just under 14.2 hands).  And just below here, that’s me and Tigger after my lesson on Sunday.  No joke, he is licking my t-shirt.  I don’t know why.

Down there is Tigger in his muddy blanket.  This is from last Tuesday, I think.

This is Dobby, Tigger’s frenemy.  Another pony.

And this is Willow, the first pony I rode.  She does NOT like to jump, so Wendy switched me to Tigger when I got to that point.  I should have gotten a picture of her in her winter coat.  She looked like a goat, with a beard.

Wendy has plenty of horses (not just ponies), but I don’t know them very well.

These next few pictures are from Sunday (a beautiful day, obviously).  Random pic of the farm plus some of the outdoor arena.

And here’s the indoor arena.

My last three lessons have been GREAT.  I rode with someone (Robin on Casino) on Tuesday (a week ago), and even Wendy pointed out that I had a great lesson WITH someone.  I jumped the biggest jump I’ve ever jumped, and I handled Tigger’s minor tantrums well.

Then I rode with someone else on Sunday (Kelly on Mac) and alone today, and even though I felt weird on Sunday (I kept holding my arms wrong and Tigger’s head felt further away than usual (like I was taller?) – I blame the allergy medicine), both lessons were good and I’ve gotten a lot more comfortable.  Of course, I should expect to see big improvements if I ride three times a week, but I can’t really afford that.

Anyway, this is the biggest jump I’ve jumped so far.  Wendy says I’ve jumped that high (2’3″), but this one is set up like a pyramid and is 2’6″ wide.  I haven’t jumped wide before, and it was really really cool.

This is what I normally jump.  Or the Xs you can see in the outdoor arena.  Jumping is so cool.

And, for atmosphere, this is the view past the indoor arena on a stormy day.  John says it looks like Scotland.