Look MOM! I'm riding!

I'm well on my way to riding now. Though I had to learn reining and how to sit a saddle. And I didn't do any of it right.  I thought you just crawled in the saddle and let the horse take you where to told them to go, but apparently that isn't the way it works.  You have to "RIDE" your horse.  I'm still pretty novice at it but I'm starting to get the hang of it.  My main problem was that I couldn't get the girls away from each other to really get any practice in as they are so buddy sour.  I did a lot of reading to see if I could figure out how to over come this and seems I was making a little progress. Gracie was a little more willing to accept a ride away from the lot than Dixie was.  From the beginning, I have been just a little more connected with Gracie than Dixie anyway, so I didn't let it bother me too much.  I just worked with Gracie more than I did Dixie.  But all in all things seems to be coming together, and I was getting out and having a ride now and then and enjoying every minute of it, and standing up to them when I needed too.

Around the end of March I took a visit to my niece, and nephews, down by Cawker City, Kansas. While out at my nephews, we walk out to look at the paint that he bought about six months ago.  Soan told me that he was a good horse but he was a little on the ornery side, and way spooky about things,  and that he just didn't have the time to ride him.  He was a little dirty and needed to be cleaned up, looked like his feet needed to be trimmed, but he was absolutely beautiful. Soan was worried that he was going to hurt one of the kids, and that he needed to look for a gentler horse.  I told him I'd take him.  I've always wanted a black and white paint, and this guy was beautiful.  He has blue eyes, with an eclipse in one, and more black than white, a beautiful mane and tail, though it appeared to be one big dread lock.  He could be a show horse, and I was sure I could work with him enough to get him ridable. From the information they gave me, he was about 5 years old, was raised from a bottle as his momma had died after birth, and that he had been ridden in parades, until sold to a girl who rode him in rodeo's. Soan said that he had gotten his halter caught on something in the barn, and he hadn't been able to get a halter on him since.

I was having the vet come out to give the girls their shots the first of May so wanted to get him home before then so that he could look at this guy too.  I name him Shoulda, as in Shoulda been a Gypsy.  (my dream horse) I figured he was the closest thing to a gypsy as I would ever get. I had a little trouble getting him home, as I don't have a trailer, and everyone I know that has one has a gooseneck. We don't have a truck that can pull a gooseneck. I called everyone in the country until I happened upon Jim. I told him of my dilemma and asked if he had a trailer.  He says he does.  I asked if it was a gooseneck, and he says it is.  So I'm like, dang it, that's my problem, every one I find is a gooseneck and our truck can't pull it.  He says, "Well, I don't let anybody drive my truck."  Now I wasn't born yesterday, I sorta know that! So I explained to him that I didn't want to borrow his truck, but if he could spare the time to run me to Cawker City to get this horse I'd be more than happy to pay for his time and gas.  So he agrees.

I called Soan and let them know I was coming, and they told me that we would probably have to trick him into the trailer, that we wouldn't be able to get a halter on him.  I brewed over it all night.  I was sure if the guys didn't hurry me I could get a halter on him if I was just patient and persistent, so I gave my husband strict instructions not to get pushy with me and to let me do things my way.  I was actually quite surprised when they did just that. I went through a bag of treats, and we did a lot of circling. Thank God the pen wasn't too big.  It took me right at two and a half hours, but he finally gave to me, and the halter went on.  He suddenly looked like a much bigger horse that I thought he was, and he wasn't just a little nervous he was a LOT nervous. I walked him around in circles a few times, and Vern came in the pen and took him to the trailer.  This was our biggest worry that once we got a halter on him we'd never get him in the trailer.  He walked right in like a pro, no problem. That is until Jim went to shut the door, and then he jumped right into Vern's lap!  He calmed right down though and we headed for home.  I was a smiling the whole way!  My Indian Horse!  Just what I'd always dreamed of !  I'm in heaven.

When we got home and took him out of the trailer, he came out a kicking, a dancin, and a jumpin.  I was pretty sure he'd be alright once he had a chance to settle down, so we put him in the lot by himself and took the halter off of him.  I stepped back and watched him.  He was a beauty for sure.  He was going to make me a good horse.