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Fall is here!

23 October 2011, 2:54 pm

I am so happy in the fall. I think part of it is the cool air, the fuzzy ponies, and the changing leaves. I think another part of it is that there is no more pressure of shows, and we can all just hunker down and do what I love to do most, train. I love what we can do when we don’t have to spend time learning a course, or a test, or get ready for this or that happening. I have brought in a few great horses to train for the fall, one to break for the winter, and a couple to sell to students or neighbors to enjoy and prepare for the next season. This week I will start breaking Timber, a three year old Chavel Canadian, keep checking on how he is doing, I think he is going to be quite a little star! He just makes you have to love him. Also Riley, and Syllabus are in the school program to find homes eventually. They are both from the Hong Kong Jockey club, as is Falkor, Elisabeth’s fabulous boy, and Syllabus is a English born gelding, while Riley and Falkor are New Zealand born boys. These horses have been so fun to get to know, and just constantly please us with their eagerness to learn.

In the school we have started this season’s AEL year, we have a bigger club than last year and we have been doing well so far! The beginners are cleaning up which is just so cool! We have our last fall show at Seery Hill on Nov. 6th. Anyone in grades 4-12 can join us and boy would we love to have you. If you want more info go to the web site athleticequestrianleague.com and find out everything there. Let Elisabeth or Heidi know you are interested and we will get you hooked up for sure!

Bob and I took 13 horses and riders to the High Horses ride a thon! We made a lot of money for the program which was fun, and came out as the top earning team. Great job everyone!!! I don’t know exact totals but I do know that Meredith who rode Ollie, was a high earner, and Kati, who rode Bally brought in about $250 by simply going door to door in her neighborhood!!! Great job you two. I do know that there were other big earners but I don’t know the totals. I have to say that I probably bombed as I only brought in about $125. Oh well. Now let me tell you about the ride…Remember that rainy first weekend of October? Remember the down poors on Saturday at oh, about 9:30? Yep, that was when we went out!!! Honestly it took tack up to a week to dry!!! The horses were perfect, I sent out a team of 5 teens to do ahead of us, and I took up the lead with the rest. About 10 minutes in I got a call from the first crew letting me know not to worry, even though the water was running hard in the brook????(what brook?) they got through it just fine, thanks to Anna and Hank leading the way! OMG, what is ahead of me??? So I said great and we went on our way. Wow, the water really was running when we got there. I was on Arrow, what a star, and he was great, he helped a couple of the schoolies through as they decided that they had better ideas and it had to do with NOT going through the water. Of course they all got through in the end. A little while longer (did I mention this was a ten mile ride?) I got a call again, it was the girls ahead of us! They mentioned something about fast water and deep this time, fast enough that it took off Hank’s bell boots! Ugh, ok, we went on. When we got there we saw the water, and there was a bridge beside it. I won’t describe the bridge at this point, but it was a snowmobile bridge, not a horse bridge. OMG the wood bowed under the horses hooves, but I felt it was the safest way to go! Great, everyone got across safely AGAIN!! Finally the rain let up and we got to go on some lovely parts of the trail that trotting and cantering were suitable and what fun, the diverse group I had was a sheer pleasure to ride with. Then I got another call. The next water was fast, and SUPER deep and the bridge that is next to it is very narrow and very slippery. At this point I remembered that first of all, to turn back would mean the other two water crossings and all of the muddy washed out trail behind us, secondly I remembered my words to Jordan’s Grandmother, I will get her back to this point (where we parked) on TOP of Blondie the 13 hand pony she is on. Just how deep is that water? Is it 13 hands? So when we got there I saw that it was really fast, torential actually, and yes, over 13 hands. I had pictures of Blondie and her perfect star trying to swim and Jordan in her endearing smile just saying “Heidi??? What do I do now?” I couldn’t picture myself saying “um, I don’t know” and waving goodbye, and then having to explain to Jordan’s grandmother that I really did try to bring her home! So we decided to do the bridge, narrow, and no side rails and all! Thank goodness for GREAT horses!!!! Regardless when we came in sight of the van everyone (well, except me) said “Oh no!!! Is it over???” They all went down to do the trail class soaked as can be. Sarah and Scout won the trail horse class and I don’t think they have ever done such a thing before! Over all even though all of our boots were simply filled with water we all had a great time and hope to do it again next year!!! Maybe sans rain??

We will be going on our fall beach rides, hugely fun time, on November 5 and November 19, barring bad weather. We will be taking some schoolies and some owned horses. If you want to get involved in that awesome time shoot me an email and I will let you know details. Remember, in order to do this you want to be able to handle a canter and small issues to feel really safe. We do have horses who will take care of younger students and more timid riders but we don’t suggest this being your first time off property on a horse.

I hope to get in a couple of hill rides over the next couple of weeks as well. This is a great way to learn to ride the horse away from the farm. We go to the Shaker Museum area and ride those trails. Really fun and super views as well! Let us know that you want to do this and we will try to make that happen for you.

A topic I have not mentioned recently is 4-H!  We will be getting started in the next couple of weeks so keep your eyes on the board!  I have made some changes that will be wonderful and incorporate everyone much better, making this a much more exciting endeavor for all of us!

Lastly, I have had my first meetings with Joyce about next year’s summer camp! We have some great thoughts going on for new theme’s and activities! It also leads me into the workings of hopefully TWO event camps next year. We will start taking applications in March so prepare your schedule to fit in a little summer camp!!  EVEN IF YOU ARE AN ADULT!!!  I am hoping to have something fabulous for you adults as well!!!

Although there is so much more to chat about I am going to close with the hopes that everyone has a super fall, super rides, and some really fun barn time!!!  Until then I will see you in the AISLES!!!
Heidi

Filed under 4-H, Camp, Horses, Lessons, Sale Horses.
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How did it get to be July?

21 July 2011, 7:00 am

Hot Hot Hot, those are three different types of hot! First the obvious, we are having a WONDERFUL summer with all of the signs of it! Hearing in the back ground as I type this “it’s going to be a hot one, we are feeling for anyone who has to work out in these conditions” I think that means me and the others at the farm! It is so nice to see the horses enjoy their sheds, and the cool barn. I feel lucky that we are up the hill from Mascoma Lake as we get a constant breeze, which really minimizes the discomfort of the predicted heat. Although we are all hot I don’t think I have heard anyone, horse or human, complain! I have to say that I think of this heat wave as a really good reason not to be sad when Labor Day comes and the weather changes, my batteries will be charged, my toes warmed all of the way to the bone and I will enjoy seeing the temps cool down a bit. Another kind of hot refers to the training going on at the farm! WOW, when I look around and see the improvement going on in the riders and horses I just can’t believe my eyes. I had the pleasure of telling two students yesterday that they were moving up in the next show, kids who have been at camp are showing the signs of riding everyday in their position and attitude, and horses like Ploof and Otto who are new to the farm and came a little tense are calming down as they get “first-choice-erized” (a term I coined for getting out there and finding out that the environment is not scary and their bodies feel better when they use them differently). Finally hot as I can’t get to the phone fast enough to get the calls coming in with inquiries about all of the cool things going on at the farm. Camp, lessons, training, board, all are hot topics on the phone these days. I just LOVE getting to meet the new people and horses that I get to meet. All in all I am happy about the “hots” going on at the farm.

One of the main reasons you have not heard from me recently is the horse shows! As a matter of fact, I am off to GMHA for their 40th Dressage Days in a matter of hours today. I am so impressed with the kids and adults showing this summer. Of course the coming and going of the Youth Festival is always a very busy time. The kids were awesome and had their strongest team finish ever! They really support each other and band together to work as a team. I just love the things I hear in the aisle, things like “do you need some help with that braid?” “of course you can borrow that” “don’t worry, you did really well!” I just think it is so nice to have this team avenue to an individual sport. Thanks girls for all of your efforts under saddle this year, and thanks Mom’s and Dad’s for your support for these kids, we could not do it with out you!!!

Local news in our area is bittersweet. Morton Farm’s changes are such a reflection of the “times” around here. While it is sad to see their boarding program and community lesson program come to a close, it will be so fun to meet new people and welcome them into our home and see them make it theirs too! I have spent a fair amount of time with Sally and I really feel like in the long run this will be great for her allowing her to focus on the Dartmouth team and the AEL. I do know that Sally is a wonderful person and when given the time and ability she can really make some awesome things happen. I am hoping that we can encourage her to be seen around my farm a little more often now!

As the summer camp is in the midst of it’s season I am thinking ahead to the times in the future when we will be changing horses around. We have some fabulous horses and ponies for sale, as well as we will be placing a couple of older horses to give them the retirement that they will love and so deserve! As people around the farm can see Bob has been driving around starting to pick up horses and ponies as I find them and want to try them in the program. Keep an eye on the paddocks to meet some new faces!

Lastly I have to say how cool, or hot? it is to see the riders taking such full advantage of the clinic opportunities in the area. CVDA is making a huge effort to bring in clinicians who are affordable, and really good teachers, and we have had some great people here at the farm with Joy Congdon and Jane Savoie! Not everyone gets to ride with such great trainers! Really enjoy seeing horses and riders take advantage of situations like this that can really enhance their ability and understanding of the essentials of riding and training.

I look forward to seeing all of you around the farm! I would love to answer questions as they arise on this forum if anyone has any, although we have had a small issue with hackers, so if you think of a subject that I have not covered that you would like to have covered this way, please email me! Remember to let me know to chat about it this way, I have a big respect for privacy and don’t always know what you would all like to know about!

See you in the aisles!
Heidi

Filed under Camp, Clinics, Dressage, Horses, Lessons, Sale Horses, Shows, Uncategorized, YDF.
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May must be Latin for SUCCESS!!

30 May 2011, 8:45 am

Wow, here it is Memorial Day, fairly warm out, humid, with promise of the town’s parade, and I can’t figure out where the time went!! Before I sat down to write this I thought, I feel like it has been a whirlwind month, so I looked at my calendar to see what all I could write about and I realized why I feel like this!

The month started with one of the most wonderful CVDA Spring show weekends ever. We went with 9 horses, 5 junior riders and 4 adult riders. We spanned the tests from Intro A all of the way through First Level 3, and to make things even better, Cora debuted her FREESTYLE!!! Not only that, but by the way she nailed it and won the class by more than 5% points!!! One more plug for Cora was this was over two seasoned freestyle riders, one of which is a professional rider!! Great job Cora! Each time I looked up from the warm up another FCRA horse was just strutting down the road toward me, or a rider was coming to show me scores that blew me away! Something like 91% of the scores were above 63%!!! Another really emotional moment for me was when Sophie rode Bally Boy in her critique ride on Sat. She had him looking beautiful. All I could think of was how much I had wanted his previous owner to SEE him do this, Bally dealt with some more than major health issues over his life, he overcame them, AND the vets prediction that he had a 30% chance of being a PASTURE ORNAMENT, and yet her hard work and love, and then trust of us to bring him along was culminating in a ride that earned a 67%. It was just a wipe the tear away moment. Something else that just took my breath away that weekend was seeing that not only did we have some first time show riders, but EVERY SINGLE horse and rider combo was showing at a higher level than they did last year!!! Pretty cool show.

Mid week after that show I had the pleasure of going to ride with Kathy Connelly. I went to ride with her with Joy Congdon. It was such a great couple of days. I loved that I could focus on Willi for two days straight, watch some really great rides, and enjoy the evening with Kathy and Joy. I feel like continuing my education is so important in order to stay fresh as a trainer, and to progress my riding, but to have the chance to do it like that was mind blowing!

That next weekend I took the AEL team to the first AEL National Finals! Sounds a bit more glorious than it is but still so cool. Sally Batton did such a great job of hosting this show, it was really fun. The team came in Reserve Champion, and had a lot of fun. If you want to know more about this much more affordable, team method of showing, ask the team members about it!!! They have a lot of fun with it. Amanda Arnold, Nathalie and Meredith Ferneau, Samantha Northrup, Kylie Tuttle, Elizabeth Jones, and Sierra MacDonald all enjoyed the team this year, and we would LOVE some more members!!!

Somewhere along the way of this month I found out that there was a possibility that we could bring International Judge and Trainer, Janet Foy, to the farm. Now that would be super cool, right?? Of course, however…it does bring along a need to bring the farm to a place in winter recovery that we don’t always get too before mid June. I can tell you that the barn has seen a huge make over, it has been reorganized, and repainted. We have brought in new footing, and prepared the gardens for the summer. The good news? It is done and we can move on to July’s projects (which are going to be really cool!!!!), the even better news? We had a SUPER successful clinic weekend with guests from all over VT, NH, MA, and NY!!! We had rides on Sat that ranged from training level to Grand Prix!! Right here in little ole Enfield, wow. Then on Sunday while 5 yearolds through adults were enjoying the nice warm day having lessons, we had not only Janet, in the viewing room, but Olympic Rider and Coach, Jane Savoie!! We had a fabulous lecture on the new tests, and yet again had people from all levels and all area’s right there in our viewing room to learn and discuss the new factors of the tests. Again a fabulous moment for me as I listened to Janet looked over a room full of accomplished women riders and judges, and saw the new riders of tomorrow taking lessons with Elisabeth.

I just LOVE what is going on at this place that we have nurtured and sweat over. Sometimes I think about this place that was just an idea (that my dad was completely against) in 1992 while I sat in my Market Square Apartment wondering what I was going to do to support my horse habit. Go figure.

So, forward on to June. As school comes to an end, please know and feel free to discuss with me, that we have a number of programs starting June 27. Our Summer Camp is going to be a huge success, there are a few spots left, so be sure to get involved! There are leasing opportunities for the summer, as well as some full leases that can give you the excitement of owning a horse with out having to purchase one. We have some horses for sale, and will be bringing in a few more in July. We have a HUGE calendar full of opportunities for everyone. Let me know what you want to do and I can try to help you get started on your path to getting there!

I can’t wait to tell you how June goes!  But until then…I will see you in the aisles!
Heidi

Filed under 4-H, Camp, Clinics, Dressage, Horses, Lessons, Sale Horses, Shows, Uncategorized.
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Horses, Horses, and more Horses!!!

19 April 2011, 5:24 pm

As the month is gearing into a real spring? OK, so as we are still cold and soggy, the farm is experiencing some really cool changes! As we said good bye to Cordy and she went to her new home, we said hello to “Otto” a new school horse who is 16 years old, dark bay, and just as sweet as can be. Then we said hello to “Annie” with all of her chrome and kindness. Then on Sunday I brought home Ploof, heck, I was at UNH judging, why not get a new horse!! Ploof was a boarder a number of years ago, and now a beloved school horse here at the farm. Then today we said good bye to Ronnie as he left for his retirement home. He has a long trip, but he is traveling in the lap of luxury as Bob made the trailer “cherished old man accessible!”  He will have about a 16 hour trip, and then he will be loved and spoiled by my friend Marleen.  I am still looking for horses for our programs as I expect to be very busy this year!  We are also still offering a few horses for sale!  Razz, Arrow and some others are still available so spread the word!! 

AEL is in full swing and we only have one more qualifying show before the Nationals!  So far First Choice is in great standings for year end awards, we are excited to see what the DRC pulls out off for the first National AEL competition!!  We are excited for sure!  The girls are consistently scoring well. If you want to learn more about that so that you or your rider can be involved next Sept please go to the http://www.athleticequestrian.com site to get information! 

4-H is starting up at First Choice and it looks like we are going to have quite a group.  We are already on to our second meeting and getting paper work in for showing, and clinics, and all sorts of fun activities.  We meet every other Tuesday and it is an open meeting, come and see if you have any interest and want to be a part of our group!  If you want info about 4-H to help decide if you should join go to http://extension.unh.edu/4H/4H.htm

Dressage shows are coming up, and we are ready.  Not only are we showing at CVDA’s spring show at GMHA, but we are hosting CVDA’s Janet Foy clinic on Memorial Day weekend.  Come and join us to ride, and learn with Janet!  More information on the CVDA web site. 

Summer camp applications are coming in daily!  Be sure to check out our camp site to get as much info as you can, and don’t hesitate to email me to get even more!  We have some spots in all of our weeks at this point. There are a couple which are getting close though.  This years daily schedule will be slightly different with even more opportunities for learning! 

Don’t forget about summer leases, trail rides, and oh my, so much more.  If you see me walking around the barn looking a little tired, don’t worry, I am just coming up with ideas, I just have to remember that I will have to put them in to effect, that is the tiring part!  I love it so just set me on my way and all will be fine! 

See you in the aisle!
Heidi

Filed under 4-H, Camp, Clinics, Dressage, Horses, Lessons, Sale Horses, Shows, Uncategorized.
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April is here! Shows are here, and plans are rolling!

3 April 2011, 4:11 pm

Well here it is! April is here, yesterday was our first AEL show, and it was at our farm, and I have to say I think it was a success! We had a big snow storm on Friday before so I do have to say I was less than thrilled about horse prep, so they basically showed as they look when the lesson, but they were all so good and due to some trimming and mane pulling in the few weeks before they certainly did not look terrible. Better was behavior, as the snow and ice decided that it was time to drop, and they just kept on doing their thing, thank goodness for good, honest, and kind horses, and having enough of them so that maybe the one or two that would have reacted could have the day off!!!

Spring brings so much to the farm. The preparation for the up coming summer camp, the schedule actually going into swing and me thinking “what the heck WAS I thinking!” as well as getting the horses ready for everything to come. Dr. LeClair was at the farm a couple of days ago starting spring vaccinations, and she will be back in a week or two to finish that, Gary and Gary will be at the farm to do teeth on April 18, and the hair. The hair just keeps coming out and off of these horses! Plan to spend a little extra time grooming these days as the horses will not only look better when it is gone, but they will feel SO much better! If everyone could also just sweep up their spot before they bridle that would make a big difference in the chaos of the barn. Along with that there are more horses to get trimmed and manes pulled. Remember, you don’t want to have to pull your horse all at once because then in about 2 or 3 months you will have all of this stubble growing up, and that is hard to braid.

Blankets are going to need to get sent out for cleaning. I am thinking that we will do that in two sets, first heavy and coolers, and then medium and lights. I will try to post expected times of pick up around the farm.

I am starting to look for new horses! It has been since Ollie came 1 1/2 years ago since I have bought a new horse. We have one in for trying, who knows how that will go but I sure hope it goes well! I am also looking at a lot more, so keep your eyes out for unfamiliar faces in the barn. I know we will need to have a lot of horses to accomplish all that we are planning to do this summer between 4-H and dressage as well as eventing! Plus keep an eye out for our trail riding experience. We will be going to the Shaker Hill site every Tuesday morning, and then going on field trip trail rides hopefully bi weekly. Many people are qualified to do this, it is so fun and we are going to use it to develop our horses so that we can do the High Horses ride a thon! That will be a great day.

We have a few new boarders, be sure to welcome them to the farm when you see them! As well we will have couple of returning boarders this summer. What a great thing to have so many fun people at the farm.

Let me know if you have any questions about any of the programs we have going this year!
See you in the Aisles!
Heidi

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It’s February and the days are getting longer!

17 February 2011, 7:49 am

Wow! It sure is great to see that the daylight is holding out now until after the evening feeder gets the horses fed!  Things are starting to make even me, a winter lover, think of the spring.  Of course that does make me cringe for mud season, but I can handle that part.  It also reminds me that it is time to get applications for camp out there, and start advertising it in all sorts of ways.  I am excited that we are offering not only our usual weekly camp program for 6 weeks this year, starting July 4th, but that we also have two really cool event camps scheduled.  I am having meetings almost weekly with our director Joyce, our instructors, people who I would like to have speak at the camps, and all sorts of people.  Speaking of camps it is only about a month before our first camp of the year, the Hanover High School March Intensive program.  That will be fun for sure!  This year we are focusing on emergency care of the horse, as well as riding skills and general horse health.  The kids will be learning massage and general well horse care as well.

I got an email the other day from NEDA saying that my Omnibus is on the way!!  That brings so many great things to life, with the start of the recognized show circuit.  This year I will be going to a few different shows, with all sorts of different horses.  My recognized circuit will include the addition of Dressage at the Stockade, and perhaps a Mystic Valley Hunt Club show.  I won’t be able to go to the GMHA June show because my wonderful cousin is getting married in AZ, and I simply must, and can’t wait, to go!  Depending on who is still with us I feel like I will be selecting between a few horses like Smoothie, Galaxy, Arrow, and of course Willi.  How lucky can I be!  For anyone who wants to join me just let me know!  I will always have my four horse going and can always ad the six!

First Choice is getting a 4-H group!!!  I am so excited about this because I really want to be an active local farm in the 4-H program.  We have a long time club here in our area, and we have yet to enjoy the benefits of such a thing.  I will be starting our monthly/weekly meetings in the month of March, with a clinic on showing in hand by the end of the month.  I am excited to share this with ALL of you!!! Please bring your friends and love of horses and keep an eye on when the meetings will start!

If you are ready to start to look for the next step in horse land let me know, we have some amazing opportunities for leasing, buying and continuing on with your dreams in horses.  I have a lot of horses to draw on in my immediate range and can also look around to find something special to suit your specific needs or wants. 

Well, I had better get off to the farm, it looks like a wonderful day ahead!  See you in the aisle!
Heidi

Filed under 4-H, Camp, Dressage, Horses, Sale Horses, Uncategorized.
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Calendar is up and we are getting ready!

28 January 2011, 3:15 pm

Here it is not even the end of January and I am glad to say we have gone to our first horse shows and done well.  The first show was a jumper show that Priscilla and Firefly went to.  They did a super job at this show and got three blue ribbons and star status!  Then I took four horse and rider combo’s to the first Dressage show of the season.  It was great fun to ride and see the new tests in action.  The riders and horses did a great job coming home with firsts through fifths!  Everyone had a better second ride, and even more exciting is that the scores were not bad and here it is ONLY January!  Now I am getting ready to take another four students with me to CT tonight to attend Lendon’s Weekend Education Program.  We will be learning all sorts of things about the new tests, the new collectives, and the kids will be going to seminars during the day regarding everything dressage.  I will attend the instructors seminar on Sat and the Judge’s Forum on Sunday. I am especailly excited because these are closed seminars for professionals of each category and so the discussion will be of the highest quality.  I am excited to bring back all sorts of things to share with not only my farm and students, but with those at the clinics I am teaching this spring and summer. 

You will see the dates for things to come on the calendar, shows, events, classes, and also Summer camp!  We have some things that we have yet to add but they will come as soon as I receive them. 

On another topic, oh my, has it ever been chilly out there!  Just a reminder that if you need advice on how to dress for the weather please feel free to email me.  I think I have mastered the cold weather riding category here and I would love to help keep every one comfortable.  The horses are doing really well, they have had a super winter and seem happy every morning!  One thing that is giving me and the horses a little trouble is the girth procedures at the farm.  It seems people are tightening the girth before they enter the arena. Please remember that  a tight girth first thing is never a happy thing.  I am asking and stressing the importance of just putting the girth on to a level that keeps the saddle from sliding, that may mean if your horse (or schoolie) usually rides with the girth on the fourth hole on each side of the saddle, putting it on the first hole to walk in the arena is just fine.  Let them have the time on the cross ties to relax and enjoy the grooming.  We will notice much less fussing when they stop having to worry about the girth. 

One REALLY exciting thing that we are going to do this year is First Choice is starting its own 4-H club!!!  Keep your eyes peeled so that you can see what we are doing and how to get involved!  This is going to be super for those who are just getting into horses to those who want to show Nationally.  Exciting. 

Time for me to go, please know that the calendar is in my mind, if you want to do something that you don’t see here already just let me know and we will see if we can get to it!!!

See you in the aisles!
Heidi

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Welcome 2011!!

31 December 2010, 7:50 am

I am sitting in my chair looking out to a beautiful sunrise thinking about the year to come.  I am excited about what I see ahead of me, my family and the farm.  As this year is coming to a close things have started to gel at the farm in such positive ways.  I sold three horses for one thing!!!  All three have the very best homes, congratulations to Honey for getting Emma, congratulations to Bella for getting Suzie, and congratulations to Jet for getting Stephanie, Karen and Don AND a new name, Josie!!  All three of you horses will live the very happy life of privately owned horses, I am so happy for you!!  With this exciting news it makes me feel hopeful for Bliss, Smoothie, Arrow and Galaxy that their new people are on the horizon for this new year.  As much as I love each of you, I know that if you have your very own person you will get the attention you deserve, and that makes me happy for you. 

Another way that I see great things on the horizon is in the new faces at the farm.  Livvy the fjord has a whole new adventure ahead of her as she has lived her first three years in complete happiness with her family of humans and all sorts of other animals, but she has not been able to give back to her people the way that horses love to give back.  She will enter the world of training on Monday the 3rd.  She will start her career as a pleasure horse for her family, and logging partner for dad Brian.  I just love working with such green horses, it is so fun to see them grow and learn.

I am excited about the prospect of Ellen and Slim growing together and getting so comfortable with each other that they come with us on all sorts of rides, ever dreamed of the beach Ellen??  We go every fall!!  I look forward to Wren and Cordy joining us at horse shows!  And Sam and Fortuna!  And any other future leasers.  We will have so much fun and the school horses will so enjoy being part of your world, and the show world.  We have a few other schoolies who are looking for half leasers and a couple who would like full leasers! 

I am oh so excited about little Willi and his future, so much in store for himself.  He just loves every training session and gives and tries so hard.  I feel like most horses enjoy their work, and look forward to it.  I think that as we start a path less traveled by myself he will help me stay vigilant and confident in this process.  I see so much of the same strength in Chica, Pekoe, Scout, Razz, Koda, oh I could list everyone!!  Horses really enjoy the training that they get.  It breaks up their day and gives them the endorphins that we all thrive on!  I am excited about the process of training and strengthening each and every horse on the farm, and I am excited for the show season where we can travel to new places and new shows for this group!  Both the recognized group and the schooling group. 

I am excited for camp this summer as well, my first meeting with Joyce in the first half of this month, stay tuned for new themes, and dates to come!  Every year I think to myself, that was a great camp, how did I ever do it with out Joyce, and then she comes to me and says, well I think we can do better!  The nice thing is that even though my first thought is HEY how can you say that about this great camp, and then my next one is boo hoo she didn’t like it, my third is OH YEAH she said that last year and it was great then the next one was even better, so yes!  Go ahead, I challenge you not to like it!!!  Because we all loved it!!!  We will be ready for applications by the last week of January so take your calendars out now!!

Bob and I have always wanted to incorperate more trail riding into our schedule.  Last year we did the High Horses Ride a Thon and WOW what fun that was!!!  Not only did we get to have a tremendous blast on a super well marked trail, but we got to enjoy good company after at a lovely lunch put on by High Horses.  Then, here is the really silly part, they gave us GIFTS!!!  Go firgure, apparently when you raise a certain amount of money for them they make awards for you.  Heck, we were just having a blast!  I think we need to take many more horses next time, so plan that on your schedule.  Bob and I donate the transport so that we can help get as many as possible out there.  As you have heard me talk about in the past there are places that are set up for riders to enjoy trails and the trails are marked.  I keep trying to get together with my friend Val to go learn some of the great places she goes to, perhaps this year?  Then we can take people there, maybe for a wonderful adult trail that includes a lunch afterwards?  That would be a great time for sure! 

Oh there are so many things to dream about for the upcoming year, improvements to the farm, events to go to, dressage shows to rock, the prospects of this years AEL, and the equitation shows at Morton farm.  All things I hope to touch on more regularly in the future.  I could only dream of these things because of the strength that Bob gives me, and the encouragement that we can do these things, let alone the absolute drive he has when we go forward with plans.  I also have to be sure to impress upon everyone how important having Elisabeth and Alex at the farm teaching their lessons, and working the horses as they do, bringing forth their talents and abilities in such wonderful ways.  And what would I do with out Amy?  Her ability and work ethic and horse sense and kindness, well I think that shows you where I am going with that thought, she is a gem!!!  And lastly but not least by any sense of the word, Brandy.  I could never ever ride as many horses a day as she puts me on if it weren’t for her.  Thanks Brandy, it would simply not happen.  In that I do have to say no one should forget about Karen, my web mistress, I call her that because master makes it sound so World of Warcraft.  If it were not for Karen I would not have this wonderful venue to share my thoughts, and every aspect of my farm.  Congratulations to Karen and Janet for your new business creating web sites!!!  You guys are awesome.

That is enough for now as the sun is up, the heater is on and I have lessons coming to the barn in about 40 min.  I can’t tell you ALL just how important you are to me and my family and my world.  We love going to the farm and starting our day seeing each and every one of you.  Thank you so much for 2010, and I hope that we can have some more fun, progress, and great things in 2011!!!  Happy New Year!

Filed under Camp, Dressage, Horses, Lessons, Sale Horses, Shows, Uncategorized.
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Catching up

15 May 2010, 11:50 pm

I am finding it hard to stay on top of the journal if you can’t already tell.  Last entry March, and then before then, well, too long between entries.  The great part is that it is completely due to a busy farm, which means a healthy, successful farm which is more than I even had ever hoped for.  Come to think of it, when I started this farm in October of 1990, and then moved it up here opening in October of 1998 I had no idea of what I was getting myself into.  I guess I have been thinking about starting the farm a lot recently as it seems that we have had a wave of some very precious people returning to the farm.  I think this is the highest form of compliment, having the kids that left for college, jobs, or a different atmosphere still in horses, just come back and want to stay a part of us.  I want to shout huge welcome HOME’S to you girls AND a huge welcome to the farm to Elisabeth Parent.  She comes back as a trainer, which is probably the neatest thing.  As a super part of the kids during her time here, then a hard worker to help support her horse and now, some 7 years after she left, she has come back as a trainer!  She has so many things to share with us, lots of great experiences that bring her home more skilled and yet with still the same smiling face and terrific work ethic to us again.  Just yesterday Bob was working in the aisle and heard a familiar voice in the aisle, and had to get up from fixing the hydrant, and go see if it was true, his face said so clearly is this really who I think it is. Jenny said “Yep it is me!”  We are so happy to know that when “our” girls leave us, we will see them again!  That says so much about the farm itself too.

Show season is in full swing now, and the farm is in true form performing well wherever we go.  The girls and horses have been competing since January at Stoneleigh Burnham School pretty much monthly, a few are up for end of season awards, and all have had good experiences there.  Then we spent Mother’s Day weekend at GMHA in the pouring rain on Sat and the gale force winds and snow!!  By 9 am on Sunday morning of Mother’s Day I had 8 rides completed, and 4 girls with blue ribbons!  Pretty fabulous Mother’s Day if you ask me!!  The day continued like that from there.  Usually CVDA is our first show and so we have much more show nerves, but this year most of the kids were ready to get right down to work and show what they have been working so hard on all winter.  When I had a moment to walk through the barn my heart sang with all of the hustle and bustle of the show as well as the awards the riders won, the pure team atmosphere, and seeing all of the smiling faces as I went over their tests with them.  I think we are all approaching this show season with good readiness, and attitudes.

On the home front people will notice the steady flow of youngsters coming in for training.  What a fun yet busy thing.  I am enjoying the training horses immensely, I just love the feeling of riding a horse who doesn’t understand clearly what I want one day, put it through a few exercises and then with in days have a completely new, and more educated animal.  On top of that the sheer joy in seeing a young horse start to develop new muscles is so fun.  It really proves that this sport enhances what the horse is born with.  It is such a satisfying feeling when an owner comes to see their horse and looks with surprised eyes on their animal and its muscles and gleam!

Summer camp is in full preparation swing.  Joyce and I have meetings and things in the works regularly by now, and the applications are rolling in!  We have some great additions to the program that should continue to make it better and better.  It is time to start to arrange CIT placements and make the final plans as we get so close to the beginning of the season!  In the mean time we are as always interested in your scrap yarns, pillow cases, old brooms, etc, so bring them in if you like!

Remember that a big part of summer is leasing, if your rider wants to have more time to practice and show, see me about getting involved in summer leasing.  Another part of getting ready for summer is arranging the summer schedule.  Please talk to your trainer about the schedules for the summer and when is the best time for you or your rider to have lessons.  There will be some changes made to the schedule, for example, we are trying to make Sunday a day of rest at the farm, giving the horses the full day off, and keeping things quiet with low activity so that they can have a day to just be horses.

I think that catches most of you up, as usual, please email me with questions and I will see you in the aisle!

Heidi

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Plans for summer

4 March 2010, 12:16 am

So when one is THIS far behind in journal writing does one try to catch up?  Or do we just go from here? There are a lot of things that I really should catch you up on, and then again there are so many things coming up does anyone really want to read a novel to get to the close at hand stuff.  My gut says let the winter be history and bring on the spring.

Can you imagine I could say here, just wait and see what cool and exciting things we have to come this year?  I can say that, we are deep in the planning of the summer and all of the good things that come with it.  I have met with Joyce, we have our details for summer camp with super week themes planned, and great instructors, as well as such fun horses and ponies.  We have already been to our first show of the season, shall I mention the riders came home with scores in the high 60′s, and we are preparing for our next show in three weeks at the same location, The Stonleigh Burnham School in Greenfield, MA.  I believe we are taking 9 horses to this one, ranging from intro B through First level.  What a fun array.  Hopefully, they have enough stalls for us to be comfortable and enjoy the whole day there. Then two weeks later we head back for the first Combined test of the year with the Eventing crew, that will be an adventure for us!!  We don’t have any colorful jumps in the indoor, I guess I had better change that one today!  We are already working on the Youth Festival, as this year it is a month early in July.  This year we are trying to raise some funds to make this more available for the kids.  You may have already seen posters around about bake sales and Pampered Chef sales, just wait we have even more up our sleeve.  It certainly builds a sense of community for the girls to be responsible for such a thing.

Camp registration is open and we are taking deposits for spots.  Shortly we will have the themes posted, so if that makes a difference just keep your eyes peeled.   If you send in a registration with a $200 per week deposit before May 1st, you will receive a $25 discount per week.  The discount will be taken off of the final payment due on the first day of camp.

We have a very new crew of ponies this year for lessons, showing, leasing, and camp.  If you are interested in leasing for the summer just let us know, monthly half leases this year are $275 and most of the horses are available at this time.

We are hoping to get the adult groups involved in some fun this year, as we always hope, we will be sending horses out to trail rides off site.  If you want to be involved, let us know and we will schedule things for you.  If you are a member of GMHA, you can use their trails, and we are happy to bring horses to GMHA to use.  If you are a member, it is no fee to use the site and you can rent a horse and have it shipped to the show grounds for a reasonable fee.  This and more will be posted in the viewing room as time goes by.  The farm schedule will also be on the web site shortly and with that you can see ideal times as well as less than ideal.

I think this touches on many of the things to come, I will try to be more punctual about writing, but what a task it is to simply get through the winter with over 30 horses, and a full lesson schedule, so please bear with me!

I will see you in the Aisles!!!

Heidi

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