What a DAY!

Gemini : played with cloverleaf, softening the forward cue, left lead canter with Jen. Jen worked on trotting in a frame a bit. Jen and Lynx got some nice, nice collected movements and they looked so much better! Lynx likes to go with her nose poked out, so this was such a pleasure to see. Jen also brought her new horse over for the exposure. He was not too keen on being tied and I think his presence added a bit to Lynx's energy level. Gem did great with the left lead canter and I'm getting better and better at feeling the lead from the hind.

Then, M! Worked on more giving at the poll, nice,

nice sideways and squeeze. Squeeze over barrels was funny - lots of hoof, not much jump. Into the trailer - no issue at all. He leaves soon so I wanted to be sure he could load. He's coming along nicely!

Little Reka more catching game and friendly time. I'm just spending time every chance I get with her to make sure she can be caught at home and trimmed, lead around, basic stuff. She's getting more and more comfortable with my presence, but it's tough for her when a 2nd or 3rd person enters the picture. She's getting more used to Kendall, which helps grow her confidence with humans since Kendall is more active than an adult.

Alice on Rain: I had a wonderful visit from a remote friend. Alice tagged along on her husband's business trip and came and spent the day with me and the horses. She has been spending time at a traditional barn and wanted to get some time in my natural facility and watch some natural horsemanship at work. She's got some background with natural horsemanship, but not as much with Parelli-stylings. I enjoyed her visit!! She helped me with chores and after watching me do some training, I asked her if she'd want to ride Rain bareback. She hadn't ridden bareback since 6, so this was basically a new experience. After I gave her a few basics on how I communicate with my horses, she just spent time getting to know Rain and feeling her move. She had perma-smile, so I think she was having a good time!

Rode Tina, beautiful response to the bit! She's doing so well! Need to ride her around the pasture! We were in the play area and I feel that she's a little over the bit, so I'm trying to pick her up slightly. She has great longitudinal flexion from the work we've done since her owner's visit. Now I want to work a little more on the vertical flexion. She was calm with the bit - maybe the most calm to date. Riding he felt great today!

M in the water after jumping out of middle pasture. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RG14g3KgEMA It's hard to see on the video, but he had his tongue sticking out to the side while he did this! What a hoot! I put he and Reka in the middle pasture for some grazing and movement. M thought that was a dumb idea and was out of their pretty fast. Reka stayed in, but then Cowboy also went in. Horse herd mayhem! Cowboy and Reka were grazing side-by-side, ribs nearly touching. Cowboy is such a nice horse and he's so easy to mix with other horses. I'm grateful for that.

Lesson with Kris: I rode Rain bareback through the

lesson. Chrissy rode Cowboy with Kris and I. We simulated trail riding in the arena by going single file, taking turns leading, and maneuvering around all the obstacles. We then let Kris practice managing Rio when the other horses left. Once Chrissy and I got far enough away for Kris to feel him get upset, she worked on swinging the hind back and forth until Rio calmed down. After 2-3 times, he let us get all the way to the other side of the arena!! Kris was happy. Now we have to stretch his boundaries farther and give him more opportunities to trust in Kris as his leader.

Kris trimmed 5 hooves - Rain's fores, Cowboy's fores, Tina's front left.