Calvin!!

This is Hilarious!

Cleaning house

Greetings everyone!

Nathan and I did a lot of house cleaning today, it was really fun! He's really funny and said so many hilarious things. I basically went from wall to wall with my bucket scrubbing, and laughing at him. He just walked around with a bucket saying that girls have this really gross habit of rubbing their hands on things.

Just a few minuets ago, we were sitting here on the kitchen floor eating. He said, "I'm only eating these Doritos because it's the only food we have in this house. And they're not even Doritos!! They're NACO CHEESE MARKET PANTRY TORTILLA CHIPS!!!" How funny is that!? You really had to be there, it was really funny. :D :D

Vanya Sulie!

Priscilla

8/09

Greetings!

Do you remember this picture? I took it last year, it's of me and Leah galloping bareback and with a halter. How did I do it? Funny how girls can multi-task like that! :) This picture holds a lot of memory, the horses got me through a summer without a majority of my family. The same sort of thing happened this year, Abby went to VA to be with Emily. Harrison was at the Academy, Ian left at the end of the summer. The twins, mom, and I were the only ones really at home (Daddy was at work of course).
I wonder sometimes how horses can get you through so much loneliness and be such excellent partners at the same time. They listen to you even if you're not speaking. It's as though they're hearing something that cannot be heard, your thoughts perhaps? :D

Vanya Sulie!

Elrohwen

An epic return

Greetings friends and blog readers!


My plane leaves tonight to go back to Colorado after a too short trip to Alaska. I've had an amazing time, I've been away from my Alaska home to long. Home is where the heart is, my heart is with my family and in Alaska. I mean that by my situation and moving, it still hasn't changed the fact that I love Alaska. I'm going to move back there one day, maybe for good. Yep, I'd bring my horse with me.


Here's the plan, nothing much has changed: 


Graduate high school by 17
Go through the Parelli University Program 
Become a 1-2 star Parelli Instructor
Move to Alaska at around 21 
Buy about 5 good quality, cheap, unwanted horses
Give horsemanship lessons 
Become a journalist in a local paper
Have a flexible schedule to visit friends and family 






We spent a lot of time with the Mckinnises, Grabers, and a small visit with the Laforests. It was an amazing, blessed, and wonderful time. :D I can't even begin to convey how great this trip was. :) 

I am reading through the Psalms right now and I wanted to share something from chapter 16. 

The LORD is the portion of mine inheritance and of my cup: thou maintainest my lot.
The lines are fallen unto me in pleasant places; yea, I have a goodly heritage.
I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons.
I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.
Therefore my heart is glad, and my glory rejoiceth: my flesh also shall rest in hope.
For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption.
Thou wilt shew me the path of life: in thy presence is fulness of joy; at thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore.

I wish ya'll a lovely day! :D

Vanya Sulie!

Priscilla Anne

Suilad, westu hal!

How are ya'll? We're moving to Tuscon AZ, it's going to be quite hot. :D The movers came today, it was chaotic but fun. They're going to come tomorrow. I'm also going for a visit to AK for a week. The twins are going to start diving independently, that was the main purpose for their coming. Mine was to hangout and see people that I haven't seen in *years*. The house that Mom and Dad are trying to buy has a pool! How cool is that? Nice huh?

So, I hope ya'll are doing well. I certainly am!

Vanya Sulie!

Elrohwen

Ride on!

Westu hal, dear ones!
I'm doing very well. I just got the latest Savvy Club DVD, Abby and I are going to watch it tonight, lord willing. It's going to be so cool, I just know it!
It's about Saddle Savvy, Partial Disengagement, and Swinging your Shoulders! It's mostly stuff I already know but you always learn something new every time you view it and it's GREAT to be reminded about it. I love being a Savvy Club Member!

Level 4 is more amazing than it looks! It's so cool to have a horse so light, responsive and connected!!! I love Cricket!

I really want Abby to Video Tape us and play with Cricket. She hasn't played with her in a long time! A very long time! I'd love to film an audition for her.

Vanya Sulie!

Elrohwen

Mountain Ride

 The Man




  Brego




  Cricket

Suilad, westu hal! 

This past weekend, Harrison, Abigail, and I went to the Mountains behind Colorado Springs for a trail ride with the horses. It was awesome and we had lots of fun! 

We got up at around 6:00 am, Abby and I hooked up the horse trailer and fed the horses. As Harrison woke up Abby and I loaded the horses. Due to Jehu's lameness issues we brought Leah, Brego, and Cricket. The horses loaded nice and easy, "prior and proper preparation"! We went inside shortly after loading to briefly grab something to eat and get water bottles before leaving, we had French toast for breakfast. 

After breakfast and leaving, Harrison had a plan (and a good one at that!) of going up this park road with lots of dirt bikers- forgive me, I've forgotten the name- it was about an hour and a half drive and quite fun. All the radio stations kept on playing the same songs which was driving me up the wall. Oh wait, there wasn't a wall around, so I guess I was getting driven up the mountain. 

Anyways! After drive quite a bit on the dirt road we finally found a place we thought was isolated enough to actually enjoy the ride. We spent sometime parking the trailer, it was a bit tricky because our parking space was quite cramped, bumpy, and had trees and rocks in it. Oh! I almost forgot, there was also a small drop off on the other side of the road which was a challenge to negotiate around when trying to park.

When we safely got parked we unloaded the horses and I played a little with Cricket to get her sure on her feet again and allow her to look around at her new surrounding. The others were putting the saddles on their horses by this time, I didn't want one. Here's an inventory of tack we each used:

Abby and Brego:

Green Halter

Black Lead

Slip-less Western pad

English Saddle with all other Fittings

Harrison and Leah:

Black Western Saddle

Thick Fleece Pad

Purple Halter 

Black Lead

Cricket and I: 

Bareback Pad

Red Halter

Savvy String

Blue Lead

I decided to walk the first quarter mile or so of the trail to allow Cricket more looking around time. The RBI side of her kicked in quite a bit when we unloaded and I didn't want her to go to internal. She really connected after a bit and I mounted up. The other horses were really curious and wanted to look around, cool. We rode for a bit and things were really reminding me of Alaska (except the randomly placed boulders), that doesn't happen often. The view was breath-taking, Cricket started to really warm up and trot a bit for me. Cricket and was trying her heart out for me. Leah looked pretty relaxed and acting her sweet RBE calm side, she didn't seem bothered by anything yet wasn't really adventurous. After about half a mile we came to some water, Leah and Cricket have both crossed a good amount of water in their life time. Cricket and Leah have crossed braids of the Susitna River (a major river in Alaska, forgive me if it was spelled wrong). As you know, that would have been a good amount of time ago, three years is a lot of time for a horse to forget things. So, you guessed it, the horses forgot their feet when we got to a small trickling brook. After much coaxing from Abby and Harrison, their horses crossed quite willingly (at least it looked so). Cricket still wouldn't budge, we didn't exactly have all day so Abby took Cricket a different route for me, I didn't ask her to, she insisted it was to dangerous. :) Ha ha.. Anyway, I held Brego who was huffing and puffing because he threw her right before Abby took Cricket, I didn't see it very well but I know shes OK. Abby got Cricket safely around the trickle and we got back to our horses. After getting settled down again, we all saw this large rocky area above us and thought it would make a good place to take pictures. Did I mention it was a little steep? Well it was, not to much though. We got to the top and we looked around and decided to take the other side to get down, it also was steep. At home I taught Cricket to Mirror me so in a dangerous situation she will just do as I do rather than freak out. So as we climbed down (I was last in line for this one part) I planned the way I was going to guide Cricket down, little did I know what she was planning. As I skidded/walked down the hill, I planned to climb up this boulder ahead of me and allow her to pass me while I just jumped off the rock. As I climbed up the rock I realized Cricket wasn't to the side behind me anymore but I thought nothing of it. I jumped off the rock and looked behind me to see Cricket on the Rock and looking down at me preparing to jump in the same manner I had done. I was shocked and giggling, I quickly backed her off the rock with the yo-yo game before she could jump, hurt herself and possibly/consequently me. Moral of the story: watch your back if you've taught your horse to do what you do! It was SO cute seeing her on that ledge now that I look back on it without the scariness of the moment!! :D  

After we got down the hill we went into a small pasture-like area and then back onto the trail. The trail was just a beautiful as before and we decided to cross this marshy bit to our left. Remember what happened with the water crossing before? Yeppers, people!! No, they didn't really feel like crossing this time either but Leah and Brego eventually did. I stood there with Cricket determined we were going to cross like the others did, this was becoming a relationship issue. Anyways, Abby and Harrison both offered their services and I refused. So finally after quite a bit of approaching and retreating, Cricket saw that this wasn't going to kill her and she crossed without crow-hopping or bucking. Cool! Obstacle overcome! We soon crossed a longer stretch of marshiness and Cricket didn't even pause. We road onto the road again and didn't take anymore detours. We got to a large turn around and wen back the same way we came. All puddles were crossed without trouble from then on. Oooo, there were also some dirt bikers that Cricket didn't really think safe, it was rather funny but some right brain kick-back came my way. It was nothing really.

Things we were unable to go with: 0  

Serious injures: 0 

Scrapes: 3-- but not horse related, only from rock climbing. 

Number of times going over the handle bars: 0 

It went REALLY WELL! ! ! ! ! ! 

Vanya Sulie! Toodles!

Elrohwen 

PS. Abby was the one taking the pictures so there weren't really any pictures of her.. :(