A late throwback Thursday post - First Dressage Show with Gadget

With all of the throw back Thursday posts on facebook, I started looking through some of my old pictures and videos. I found videos from my first recognized dressage show, which was also Gadget's very first show at Grand Haven. I planned to ride all training level tests, but when my good friend had trouble on Friday with first level, I gave her two of training level spots and took two first level spots. The improvement from day one and day two shows that my nerves were probably playing a huge part in Gadget's performance, but it's so neat to look back and think how far we've come since 2010. (The narration from my coach at the time is pretty funny too.)

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When old becomes new - update to my old Pikeur Diana!

Here is the finished product! It was a plain black jacket so I added white and light blue trim with RHINESTONES! It's very sparkly! Here's a closeup of the collar, which looks better than the pocket. Now I am going to try to add coordinating trim (minus the rhinestones) to the saddle pad.

Catch-up Post -- Putting Together the Puzzle

It's been a long time since I have actually written any updates about Iggy. Partly, that is because it is difficult to write about things when you are still very much in the experimental stage. I think I have loved dressage since I was a teenager because of the constant experimenting, strategizing, and problem solving of every ride. I love the intellectual side of it. However, puzzles are more fun when you are making progress toward solving them. They are less fun when you spend a lot of time wondering if you have made progress, stayed the same, or actually screwed things up. From Iggy's first show - trying to keep the big canter in one piece! Iggy is my puzzle. He is a puzzle that makes my eyes light up and my heart sing when I see him. He has this sweet baby face and the personality of a labradoodle. When I look at him, he is everything I ever wanted. Yet, our journey has not been quite as straight forward as I thought it might be. When I sat on Iggy for the first tim...

New Near, New Goals - 2019!

NEW YEAR, NEW GOALS! I usually love reviewing my goals, progress and dreaming up new goals for the coming year, but this year was a tough one with the loss of my dear Gadget. I read a great set of articles on the Chronicle of the Horse by Matt Brown about how to shift your thinking about goal-setting. He makes the argument against fixed, outcome goals and to instead set more of "growth mindset," process-oriented goals. And here's a link to the first article: http://www.chronofhorse.com/article/a-case-for-not-focusing-on-your-goals-part-1 They are totally worth reading. I think dressage requires a strong focus on the "process" and I've always enjoyed thinking about the little things that build to success. However, I will totally admit to being outcome goal driven. I love setting specific score goals and even the goal of mastering a movement. Just as Gadget taught me lots of humility and patience, Iggy is going to drive those lessons home in a who...

Dressage Day by Day

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