chloe on butler

She is getting better, more confident, and more comfortable with each lesson. This week Butler had a little stumble that made Chloe quite nervous. They always feel worse as a rider than they actually are. It scared her but I didn't really know until afterward how much so.

It is really fun to share this love with her. My mom has befriended a couple of the horse owners who gave us permission to bring carrots and feed their horses after Chloe finishes her lesson. It's a treat for all of us. Even Geoff gets in on it, but he only feeds one horse named Elvis.

During her lessons she has had the opportunity to ride several different horses. There was Candy, another guy whose name I can't remember, Chief, and now Butler. She LOVES Butler. He is the biggest of all of them, but gentle, and responsive. She was on Chief for several weeks and she was kicking him with all of her might and he just would not move into a trot for her. We were all frustrated for her, it was hard to watch. Finally they switched her over to Butler who will trot with a gentle nudge or a word, and she has been all grins ever since. Now she has the chance to work on moving him in and out of cones, and over the pole at a trot! 

It's fun to watch her make progress. And yes, I'm still totally jealous. Maybe we should look for a little dude ranch for a few days this summer? My fortieth birthday is coming up, after all. Feel free to send dude ranch links my way. Wink wink. 

Here she is feeding Ladybird, one of our new friends. And sitting waiting for her lesson. This was my contribution to week eight of LTWRL, have you checked it out? It's pretty fun.