After the Party

(For those who don’t know me IRL. I don’t have kids. I never wanted kids. I get nervous in the presence of kids.)

bday-party-2016-1

 

A birthday party at the barn …
twitch, twitch
… for a 7 year old …
twitch, twitch
… and 35 of her closest friends.
twitch, twitch
I narrowly escaped the pony rides.
whole-body twitch in sympathy
Instead, I groomed. Five kids per horse. Poke Alvin [Greetings] and Miss Lace [Queen] with brushes. Switch horses. Bring in next group.
twitch, twitch
Alvin stood like the champ he is.

Alvin’s response to the first group: Why am I surrounded by little ones?
Alvin’s response to the second group: Little ones come bearing sugar cubes!
Alvin’s response to the third group: Sug! Ar! Cubes! Sug! Ar! Cubes!

All without moving. His owner, Miss Julie [Show Report], was at the front talking to the kids and helping them feed him from their treat bags. I was at at the opposite end of the horse, telling Alvin how wonderful he was, and keeping the smalls from getting stomped.
twitch, twitch, twitch

At least I got a blog post out of it.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

bday-party-2016-2

Barn Sentiment

home-is

 

The word for today is Filler. Last week, I rode six lessons in four days, competed in an intra-barn horse show, then worked a birthday party. This week, more of same. Awesome but exhausting.

It’s that time of year when home horses, husband, & house get put on the back burner while I squeeze in as much saddle seat progress as possible before the end of October. [Let the Madness Begin, Again]

Photo taken at Whip Hand Farm, Franklin, TN.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

Letter Art: U is for Ulcer Meds

2016-letter-u

 

Note to self: Clean out feed shelf more often. We stopped using this in 2013 [Zeno]. Was it really that long ago? That is some serious fugiting by tempus.

 

u-rodney

u-milton

 

Second note to self: As the days get shorter, golden hour moves up accordingly. Schedule the day so that I am not chasing the setting sun into the pasture. Hard to convince them that my photo backdrop is not their hay snack.

2016 Alphabet

 

T is for Training Level
S is for Swim
R is for Reins
Q is for Quote
P is for Polo Wraps
O is for Opinion
N is for Nature
M is for My Missing Motivation
L is for Leadline
K is for Knabstrupper
J is for Jenny’s Jodhpurs
I is for I Love You
H is for Halter
G is for Ghost Gallery
F is for Fence
E is for Eventing
D is for Do
C is for Carrot
B is for Brush
A is for Apple

2015 Alphabet

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

Show Report: MTCC Driving Derby 2016 in Photo and Video

Driving Thursday

derby-2016-kb-1

 

Photo by Elizabeth Hickman

 

Practice Round & First Trip:

Second Trip:

Photos by Elizabeth Hickman, Nashville, TN, and Kate Bushman, Franklin, TN
Videos by Darren Murphy, Bethpage, TN

Show Details
Middle Tennessee Carriage Club Driving Derby
Valhalla Farm
Woodbury, TN
September 24, 2016

Greg & Lyricc, Katherine as navigator
Preliminary Horse: 1st of 1
Preliminary Division: 3rd of 5
(Winner of the division was the small but mighty Hero [Watching from the Sidelines].)

Kudos to Coach Kate, Whip Hand Farm, for the coaching, the cart, and the loan of the amazing Lyricc.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott

derby-2016-eh-1

Jod Straps Endorsement

Saddle Seat Wednesday

This is for those of us who need gizmos to tie up your riding pants. (Explanation for those of you with britches, or with no riding pants at all. Saddle seat pants hang below the heels when riding. When one dismounts, one needs elastic bands to keep the pants from dragging on the ground. Some of us like to jazz up our jod straps.)

I bought these straps [Giveaway] from The Little Chic Pony Boutique as an add-on when I bought supplies for a lettering post [P is for Polo Wraps]

polo wraps jod straps

Look carefully at the left strap. The outer material completely covers the inner elastic. Usually the outer covering is a simple sleeve.

I noticed the feature. I made sure it was in the photo. I put them aside for showing and didn’t think beyond that. Then I used them. Suddenly I didn’t have to worry about the elastic snapping back into the sleeve. With the standard model, idle straps have to be vigilantly kept closed to prevent this.

Magnifiqué!

If they came with more vibrant color &/or bling, I wouldn’t buy anywhere else.

Disclosure: No back room deal. No contact with seller other than through sales and commenting on her blog, Riding like a Lady Truck Driver. I just really like the straps.

Thank you for reading,
Katherine Walcott