It’s been wickedly cold.
And on the days it hasn’t been wickedly cold, I have had other
obligations (like going to the grocery store because there is no food in the
house!!) that prevented me from playing with ponies.Finally, I drug my friend’s Christmas tree to the barn to
add to my tree as jump filler! YAY!It was still bitterly cold, so I just fed the ponies and
decided I just wanted to sit on the Fancy Pony while she ate.
I had donned my helmet and grabbed a halter before heading
out with the grain. I lined them all up,
fed the grain, and then haltered the princess for what may be an exercise in
futility.
I haven’t been able to swing up bareback since I bulged my
L5-S1 disc 2 years ago… I had thought
this through, somewhat. You see, if the
Princess hangs around rather than running off when I attempt to swing up, she
is rewarded with more dinner, which is right in front of her face!
Smart, huh?
I attempted to swing up, and her head came up as she
drifted sideways away from me. When
things settled, she stuffed her face back in her bowl.
Take 2: No drift, but that head came up again. Back to the bowl.
Take 3: I almost made it!
My leg was hanging on just in front of her flank, but she never
moved. The head didn’t come up,
either. She just waited patiently for me
to wiggle on or slide off! I decided it
was going to happen today…
Take 4: I finally made it far enough on that I could
wiggle the rest of the way! The Princess
Pony was nonchalant and finished her meal quietly.
Once the meals were finished, we practiced cutting some of
the other horses away from the herd – just for fun, you know! By then, I had had about all of the fun in
the cold that I could stand, so I documented my success, and headed back to the
warmth of “inside.”
I feel incredibly accomplished!
 |
| She is *sooooo* impressed... |
