I knew this would happen! I have been too busy to update my blog. I even forgot my password to get in here. I have been thinking about updating it, but when I think of everything that has happened, I get overwhelmed and put it off...

Well, we had a girl from Washington state come for awhile. Katie, she groomed for me and Erin. It was great to have her help and I really liked working with her. Unfortunately, Erin did not get to help her with her riding much, and I ended up teaching her quite a bit. I think her riding did improve during her time here, but I am certain that she did not travel all the way from Washington to take lessons from me! I have been teaching quite a bit lately, actually. Sometimes I feel like I teach as much as I ride. It is like anything else, I just need more confidence and practice at it. I feel pretty good when it's just me and the rider, but when others are around listening to me, I can sometimes get a little nervous, but I am working on that. When I can really help someone though, it feels really good.

Erin has been out of the barn quite a bit lately, and is going to be at the ATA inspection next week as well. This means that I have had a lot of time to work on my own. Working on my own is both good and bad. I don't have the instruction to help me improve my riding, but I can also focus on things that I am trying to work on, both with me and the horse. Adeline has been one horse in particular that has been tricky for me. She wants to run around upside down and not get over her wither at all. Erin had me riding her with the running martingale, to keep her head down. When I ride on my own, I try not to use training aids, so when I had a lesson with her on Adeline the other day, and I told her that I was not using it, she was skeptical. However, she said that she looked good! She also told me that I was doing a good job with Arella, even though I thought it could have been better. I am trying to hold on to those things, because I really need to boost my confidence in order to get to the next level.

John tells me my riding has improved more than I know, which I know has to be true because Erin has me riding her top horses while she is gone. John says that she never lets anyone ride those horses without her around. On them I am practicing haunches-in, half pass, and flying changes. I can also ride a pretty good canter pirouette, but I do not mess around with piaffe and passage unless someone is there to help me.

It is only me and John running the farm right now. We had a girl that was going to take Katie's spot, but she only worked half a day and had to go home because her child was sick. That was yesterday, and she still hasn't come back. I have not had a real day off in over two weeks now. I had half a day off on Tuesday, so I could run Katie to the airport, and took today off, but had to go in to help with turnout. I am not really complaining, I know it's only temporary, and I still love it here, so I just work on being thankful.

Iris's sister is here this week from Germany teaching a clinic. I was lucky and got to ride in it twice. I rode Mocha II and Luc. I got a lot of good advice on exercises for them, as well as some new tools for my riding. Camille rode Glory and got some good tips as well. I guess Glory was acting up, which is actually good in a clinic situation, because you learn how to work through it. She is taking Glory home tomorrow, and has dropped of the new training horse, Renero. He is a black Hanoverian that I don't know much about yet. We are going to start with some ground work and see where he's at.

Halloween is in a couple of days, and I don't even have a costume yet! I hope we end up going out or doing something!

Well, Tiffany and Andrew are officially gone =( I miss them already. They are supposedly coming back this weekend. Tiffany and I are going to really try to keep in touch, and I do plan on visiting since they are only 3 hours away.

Erin and I went to a show last weekend. It was really the first horse show I have gone to. We took Immy and Luc. Immy showed training level and got a 74%, and first level and got a 72%. Luc was there to keep Immy company and also to school him. He was a real stinker the first day, acting spooky and rearing while I was leading him in the indoor, but we worked through it and he was really good the second day. I really think that horse is going to be a good horse some day.

The night I got back from the show we all went to Gainesville to go dancing again for Tiffany's last day. We ended up going to one of the clubs we went to before, but it was a really good time.

Erin and I got a groom. Her name is Katie. She is from Bellevue, Washington and lives with me and John. She is taking a year off after high school before going to college. She is a super good kid and I already feel like a big sister to her. She has helped me out by grooming for Erin and helping me get my horses ready, and I have been giving her lessons. I sat in on a lesson Erin was giving her, and it was a relief to me that I had been telling her the same thing!

I have also had a few really good lessons lately. Erin is having more and more faith in my abilities and lets me work on my own, which means I get to ride more. In lessons, she pushes me hard - to the point where witnesses would say that she is mean - but I really feel that my riding is improving, and she tells me so as well. I am also starting to ride some of the upper level movements, like half pass, canter pirouettes, piaffe, and passage, which is really cool!

I am not only learning to ride, I am learning to train, and I am learning the difference between the two. I am at the point now where riding feels easy, it's the training part that is difficult. Learning the timing of corrections, the intensity, and when to back off is really what's going to make me as a trainer. I also just need a little bit more confidence. I am finding that I tend to wait and see what is going to happen rather than get in there and make something happen. Hmm, it's funny that I was just reminded of a quote today - "how you do anything is how you do everything." At least I realize it now and can change it.

I even got on a baby horse for the first time today! Hertzenfurst - which literally means "Heart Prince." He is such a doll. I have been working with him on the ground since I got here, and liked him so much that I told Erin I wanted to be the first one to get on him, and today I got my wish! He was perfect! Erin walked me through the whole process. It was neat to see how every little step was broken down, and that I could clearly see well before I even got on that it wasn't going to be a problem. Starting young horses used to be such a magical mystery to me, but now I am confident that with a little more experience I will be able to do it myself some day.

I also found out today that some clients (with $30,000 to spend) are coming this weekend to look at 3 of the horses I have been working with - Arella, Adeline, and Mocha II. I overheard Erin talking about it today, and she is confident that I will be able to show them for the clients. That is a real compliment! It's also a little pressure, but I know I will be able to handle it.