So these are my goals for this year. This is the first time I've done this to be honest. It will be interesting to see how much I will get accomplished at the end of the year :)
1. Save up for the NEW Parelli levels packs!!! A W S O M E N E S S
I am really excited about the new parelli levels. I am dying to get my hands on them, but will have to wait :(
What is really cool is that they now have a level 4 on DVD! I wonder what this looks like :p I have seen some photos of what level 4 students are doing and it looks really interesting!
2. Complete an equine physiotherapy course
This involves me ordering the books, self studying NOW, attending the 5 day course and doing my practical. This is my BIGGEST goal for the year. Since we will only be moving over to the USA later this year (not sure when, hopefully April) I decided not to waste money going to University this year. In my opinion I will rather wait one more year and start when I am in the USA. I have been wanting to do this course for a while now. I definitely want to go into this direction with horses. Fingers crossed!!!!!
3. Complete my SANEF Module 2
I'm still debating on this one. My last attempt really put me off BIG time. Why? Well, because the people are bloody disorganized, full of shit and can't do their jobs properly. My application was never sent through and when it came to exam day they didn't have a spot for me. Luckily, they organized an examiner for me (they better have!) and I got to do my exam. The longing was my biggest worry. I did okay, but don't know if I did well enough to pass. So, IF I get my results I will know if I have to redo my module 2 AGAIN. At the moment I don't think I will go again if I don't pass.
4. Start writing a novel
Em... I got these ideas for a novel. This will be a first for me :)
5. Get my own horse and do only parelli :)
A long shot, but you never know! I hope to eventually get my own horse. When I do I will start working towards my Parelli levels. And I will only do parelli. I have had enough of the traditional part of horses (no offense to anyone). However, it doesn't mean that I won't have any interest in traditional riding. I still believe in the classical seat and way of riding. This is just a personal journey :)
6. Get married
…. just kidding :p
Sunday, January 3, 2010
Friday, January 1, 2010
Pictures of my holi :)
The naughty husky at the place where we stayed in Joburg.
Sasha the husky.
The room I stayed in, in Bloemfontein. Pretty :)
The garden. There is no fencing separating the garden from the moutain. Ona good day you will actually see all kinds of buck grazing on the mountain side.
This is by far he biggest cat I have ever seen. It is a Norwegian Forest cat. HUGE!!!!
This cat like playing with the tap :)
A garden inside the house. There is actually a waterwall, but you can't see it in this photo.
The whole house was filled with art. I love this sculpture one :)
This painting is in one of the guesthouse rooms. It is so cool.
Bibi the pretty kitty cat :)
The beautiful karoo
Pretty :)
Meiringspoort
Meiringspoort. This pass was absolutely stunning!!!!!!!
Beautiful sunset!
Misty :)
My holiday :)
Ok, so I will just share with you guys a little of my holiday. It wasn't the most amazing holiday ever, but I got to see some places that I only heard of in conversation. I also made a lot of friends :)
Note, this was my first bus trip on my own. I was REALLY nervous, because knowing myself, I was bound to get lost somehow. I could just picture myself getting off at the wrong bus station (believe me if it could happen, it would happen to me, lol). Fortunately, everything went well. It felt a bit odd sitting on top of the double decker bus, way in the front, feeling the bus tilt from side to side almost like a boat at sea. Yes, that is how bad the wind was the whole trip up to Joburg! It literally felt like the bus wanted to capsize :p You get used to it though. So, after a VERY long trip (close to 21 hours?) I finally arrived at the bus station (an hour late, I might add). Late but safe. Cool with me :) My friend found me and we left for another 2 hour drive to the little town where I was going to stay.
I stayed with a friend in a little town called Machadodorp. It's a very small town. Very green! Perfect for horses! I spent about 2 weeks there. I didn't get to do much besides going out a couple of nights, meeting friends and all. For reasons I won't mention I didn't get the chance to explore the area (which is b-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l!). I don't care much for partying and clubbing (no offence to anyone that does) and really enjoy hiking and seeing everything. Like a nature person, just not all tree hugger like lol. There was this small town close by called Waterfall Boven (we called it Boven for short) which is soooooooooooo pretty and has a waterfall. I never got to go have a look (sob sob). So, this holiday was a slow one, but relaxing. I really needed it after a year of HARD work!!!
The day after christmas we left for our road trip back home. We decided to stay over in Joburg, then drive through and stay over in Bloemfontein and then doing the final stretch back to George.
The people we stayed with in Joburg (well, actually, a small town just outside Joburg called Boksburg). For reasons I won't mention,again cough cough, I was in a bad mood. Depressed would be a more accurate person. I was left alone with a house full of strangers all on my own. At this point I just wanted to be home. Luckily, these 'strangers' were really friendly and quickly made me feel right at home. Thank you guys!!! The had some really cool pets: 2 huskies, 1 playful hamster, 1 very friendly cat and a lot more. I loved the hamster :) So cute and cuddly!
Again, for reasons I can't mention (cough cough), we left for Bloemfontein really late. The trip to Bloem was easy enough. We folllowed the directions easily and got to our next stop something to 10 at night. The people we were staying with are friends of my dad (they baught many of my dad's art). Their house is massive!!!!!!!!!!!!! When morning came we got a chance to have a look at the house and it is beautiful! It is like the whole house itself is a piece of art. I wish I had a better camera to take photos with (me being blonde forgot mine at home so just had my phone). We also got to see the guest house. STUNNING! If ever anyone needs a place to stay in Bloemfontein, I'd say go there!!!
You can check out their website to have a look at their guest house :)
Anyway, so we got loaded with food for the road thanks to my dad's friends and left for George. They were even so kind as to get us a map and showing us what roads to take. Thank you! The trip went by really well. I got home safe and sound. I was just dead tired :)
All in all I enjoyed myself. I also believe that if I hadn't taken this holiday I wouldn't know what I know now (on a personaly level). I saw the place where I was born! Yes, I was a Bloem baby :) Of all the places I have visited this holi, Bloem is still my favourite. Home will be home.
Note, this was my first bus trip on my own. I was REALLY nervous, because knowing myself, I was bound to get lost somehow. I could just picture myself getting off at the wrong bus station (believe me if it could happen, it would happen to me, lol). Fortunately, everything went well. It felt a bit odd sitting on top of the double decker bus, way in the front, feeling the bus tilt from side to side almost like a boat at sea. Yes, that is how bad the wind was the whole trip up to Joburg! It literally felt like the bus wanted to capsize :p You get used to it though. So, after a VERY long trip (close to 21 hours?) I finally arrived at the bus station (an hour late, I might add). Late but safe. Cool with me :) My friend found me and we left for another 2 hour drive to the little town where I was going to stay.
I stayed with a friend in a little town called Machadodorp. It's a very small town. Very green! Perfect for horses! I spent about 2 weeks there. I didn't get to do much besides going out a couple of nights, meeting friends and all. For reasons I won't mention I didn't get the chance to explore the area (which is b-e-a-u-t-i-f-u-l!). I don't care much for partying and clubbing (no offence to anyone that does) and really enjoy hiking and seeing everything. Like a nature person, just not all tree hugger like lol. There was this small town close by called Waterfall Boven (we called it Boven for short) which is soooooooooooo pretty and has a waterfall. I never got to go have a look (sob sob). So, this holiday was a slow one, but relaxing. I really needed it after a year of HARD work!!!
The day after christmas we left for our road trip back home. We decided to stay over in Joburg, then drive through and stay over in Bloemfontein and then doing the final stretch back to George.
The people we stayed with in Joburg (well, actually, a small town just outside Joburg called Boksburg). For reasons I won't mention,again cough cough, I was in a bad mood. Depressed would be a more accurate person. I was left alone with a house full of strangers all on my own. At this point I just wanted to be home. Luckily, these 'strangers' were really friendly and quickly made me feel right at home. Thank you guys!!! The had some really cool pets: 2 huskies, 1 playful hamster, 1 very friendly cat and a lot more. I loved the hamster :) So cute and cuddly!
Again, for reasons I can't mention (cough cough), we left for Bloemfontein really late. The trip to Bloem was easy enough. We folllowed the directions easily and got to our next stop something to 10 at night. The people we were staying with are friends of my dad (they baught many of my dad's art). Their house is massive!!!!!!!!!!!!! When morning came we got a chance to have a look at the house and it is beautiful! It is like the whole house itself is a piece of art. I wish I had a better camera to take photos with (me being blonde forgot mine at home so just had my phone). We also got to see the guest house. STUNNING! If ever anyone needs a place to stay in Bloemfontein, I'd say go there!!!
You can check out their website to have a look at their guest house :)
Anyway, so we got loaded with food for the road thanks to my dad's friends and left for George. They were even so kind as to get us a map and showing us what roads to take. Thank you! The trip went by really well. I got home safe and sound. I was just dead tired :)
All in all I enjoyed myself. I also believe that if I hadn't taken this holiday I wouldn't know what I know now (on a personaly level). I saw the place where I was born! Yes, I was a Bloem baby :) Of all the places I have visited this holi, Bloem is still my favourite. Home will be home.
Tuesday, December 29, 2009
I am BACK :)
I am finally back from my little holiday. I really enjoyed it; I met so many people, made so many friends and saw so many places. I will write a blog on it, but first need to finish unpacking :p
Thanks to my family I was able to get a vet to fill in Jot's passort yesterday :) Yes, I found my lovable pony a nice home. The family she is going to has two kids (one six and one 8, both girls). They own three horses, but want something small for the kids. I really jope Joy settles in without hassel.
My family had to trailer Joy to our local riding club to have her passport filled in. This was just to cut costs as it would have cost a fortune to call out the vet to our farm. I was very worried about the trailering. Joy had only been in a trailer twice since I have known her and the last time she put up a BIG fight. Thank goodness for parelli! My dad (being creative as ever,lol) build a a tunnel with tyres and poles to simulate a trailer. My sister played around with Joy getting her to go in and out. So, when the day came to actually load Joy it was a piece of cake compared to the previous encounter.
Joy was unloaded and met some of our riding club friends. Everyone loved my pony! Yes, she is CUTE (told ya :p he he). The vet commented that Joy has very interesting markings. I will see to post a photo of Joy's passport so you can see. Very interesting stuff :)
So,now, if everything goes to plan Joy will be leaving on Wednesday. I'm both sad and excited. This little pony really krept her way into my heart... GONNA MISS HER!!!!!
Thanks to my family I was able to get a vet to fill in Jot's passort yesterday :) Yes, I found my lovable pony a nice home. The family she is going to has two kids (one six and one 8, both girls). They own three horses, but want something small for the kids. I really jope Joy settles in without hassel.
My family had to trailer Joy to our local riding club to have her passport filled in. This was just to cut costs as it would have cost a fortune to call out the vet to our farm. I was very worried about the trailering. Joy had only been in a trailer twice since I have known her and the last time she put up a BIG fight. Thank goodness for parelli! My dad (being creative as ever,lol) build a a tunnel with tyres and poles to simulate a trailer. My sister played around with Joy getting her to go in and out. So, when the day came to actually load Joy it was a piece of cake compared to the previous encounter.
Joy was unloaded and met some of our riding club friends. Everyone loved my pony! Yes, she is CUTE (told ya :p he he). The vet commented that Joy has very interesting markings. I will see to post a photo of Joy's passport so you can see. Very interesting stuff :)
So,now, if everything goes to plan Joy will be leaving on Wednesday. I'm both sad and excited. This little pony really krept her way into my heart... GONNA MISS HER!!!!!
Thursday, December 10, 2009
... tum tum tum :)
I had another great session with Joy again yesterday. Did more or less the same stuff as I did yesterday, but worked some more witht he plastic sheet. This time I used a smaller white one (thought a change in colour would be interesting, lol). I realy tried to push Joy's buttons to see if I can find any hints of her being worried about the tarp. I know it sounds mean, but Joy really couldn't care less :p She just stood there with this look of "mom, I think you forgot to take your pills this morning, maybe you should go lie down" :) I love my pony!!!
I had my sister ride her for a change. I thought Joy would benefit from having to cope with another rider. I showed my sister what I usually do, gave her some tips on how to use her aids :) My sister and Joy got along really well which is great, because I will be away for a few weeks and she will have to work Joy for me.
As I mentioned I will be going away for a few weeks. I am going on a short holiday with a friend. We not going anywhere special, just gonna go on a road trip through South Africa. I am really excited! I haven't seen much of my own country, so this will be very interesting :)
Unfortunately this will mean that I might not be able to post again soon. I will do my best to, but I don't know if I will have access to the interent :)
Until I blog again... Happy Holidays!
I had my sister ride her for a change. I thought Joy would benefit from having to cope with another rider. I showed my sister what I usually do, gave her some tips on how to use her aids :) My sister and Joy got along really well which is great, because I will be away for a few weeks and she will have to work Joy for me.
As I mentioned I will be going away for a few weeks. I am going on a short holiday with a friend. We not going anywhere special, just gonna go on a road trip through South Africa. I am really excited! I haven't seen much of my own country, so this will be very interesting :)
Unfortunately this will mean that I might not be able to post again soon. I will do my best to, but I don't know if I will have access to the interent :)
Until I blog again... Happy Holidays!
Tuesday, December 8, 2009
PONY :)
Hey there :)
I'm sorry for the delay in blogging... I have been so busy of late that I don't seem to get the chance to sit down in front of my computer ;)
So what have you missed? Well, I am still on the lookout for a home for Joy. There has been no development of any kind and it is getting to me, and not in a good way (lol). But I will keep on trying :p
Today I finally got the time to work with Joy again. I did work with her on Sunday, but that didn't go well at all. It is my fault though. I wasn't concentrating as much as I should have. I am glad to say that today's session was the best session we have had in a long time :) I played around with the parelli ground games... Joy has a very tricky horsenality. She is VERY dominant and doesn't seem to like being told what to do (at least not when you have her respect). And on top of that she gets offended very quickly, something I haven't come across before. For example, when I want to ask her to do something, like back up, she will walk forwards past me as if she wants to get the heck away. To not offend her I have to gently correct her in the right way which is very tricky. I'm learning how to get this right. This has been my greatest challenge with Joy. I have to learn how to assert myself and still be gentle and forgiving :p
Anyway, so today I thought I would try playing the games more naturally. My goal was to work on Joy's response to my "requests" and still have her enjoy being with me. I sat on the crate, which is always in the arena, and played the Yo-Yo game at first. She is really good at this game now... all I have to do is wiggle my finger!!! We did this a couple of ties and when things felt good I had Joy rest by me (still sitting on the crate). I took my carrot stick and played some friendly game. Joy just stood there all relaxed. She didn't mind me swinging the savvy string (attached to the carrot stick) onto her back.
The next thing I did was take Joy to the big blue plastic sheet (tarp). Joy loves playing with it! Today I thought I would see if I could get it onto her back. At first I had Joy check it out. As usual she just sniffed and pawed it. So I took it, rubbing it against her kegs. She didn't mind at all. I continued up her leg to her shoulder... still nothing. Next thing I know I have the tarp on her back... and NOTHING!!! She didn't care at all :) This got me wondering what else I could do with the sheet... I had Joy stand with the 12ft line on the ground (it wasn't tied or anything, just lying there). I started shaking the sheet while standing at her shoulder. When she looked okay I started walking around her shaking it. Joy just stood there :) I'm so proud of my pony!!!!
I also set up two trotting poles (spaced out for Joy walking over them). I used the squeeze game to get Joy to walk over them. This has been the game we have been working on lately, so using the trotting poles really helped me to stay focused. Joy didn't mind the poles... she just walked over them as if they were twigs :p
Our ground work was really good today and i left on a good note (yipeeee!!!!!!). For me the most important thing about my working sessions themselves is to have a session that ends well. It make both me and the horse feel like we have done ourselves proud.
After doing my groundwork with Joy I put on her bridle. At the moment I have her in a french link snaffle, with no noseband and clip on reins. I try to keep it nice and simple if I can. Anyway, so I put on the bridle with no fuss from Joy :) I hopped on bareback and we headed off to play the pushing passenger game. I haven't done this game in a while with Joy. It really was nice for a change to just follow Joy :) I let joy go where she wanted to, allowing her to stop when she needed to.
Eventually I got round to doing 15 minutes of follow the rail and freestyle riding. I started off just having Joy walk around the arena alongside the rail. She always starts off fighting to go to the centre, but today she was quite happy to follow my suggestion (could this have something to do with us having done the pushing passenger first?). I then started incorporating small circles. They start of quite big, but once Joy knows what I am asking they get smaller. We also walked over the trotting poles. She didn't mind them much, but she was a little bit difficult on the left rein (probably coz that's when we are facing away from home).
After 15 minutes I decided to hop off. Joy really behaved herself beautifully :) I couldn't have asked for more. It made me feel a little more positive about finding her a good home. She will make an awsome pony for kids :)
This photo was taken last week. The little girl and I thought we would make Joy all pretty :)
I'm sorry for the delay in blogging... I have been so busy of late that I don't seem to get the chance to sit down in front of my computer ;)
So what have you missed? Well, I am still on the lookout for a home for Joy. There has been no development of any kind and it is getting to me, and not in a good way (lol). But I will keep on trying :p
Today I finally got the time to work with Joy again. I did work with her on Sunday, but that didn't go well at all. It is my fault though. I wasn't concentrating as much as I should have. I am glad to say that today's session was the best session we have had in a long time :) I played around with the parelli ground games... Joy has a very tricky horsenality. She is VERY dominant and doesn't seem to like being told what to do (at least not when you have her respect). And on top of that she gets offended very quickly, something I haven't come across before. For example, when I want to ask her to do something, like back up, she will walk forwards past me as if she wants to get the heck away. To not offend her I have to gently correct her in the right way which is very tricky. I'm learning how to get this right. This has been my greatest challenge with Joy. I have to learn how to assert myself and still be gentle and forgiving :p
Anyway, so today I thought I would try playing the games more naturally. My goal was to work on Joy's response to my "requests" and still have her enjoy being with me. I sat on the crate, which is always in the arena, and played the Yo-Yo game at first. She is really good at this game now... all I have to do is wiggle my finger!!! We did this a couple of ties and when things felt good I had Joy rest by me (still sitting on the crate). I took my carrot stick and played some friendly game. Joy just stood there all relaxed. She didn't mind me swinging the savvy string (attached to the carrot stick) onto her back.
The next thing I did was take Joy to the big blue plastic sheet (tarp). Joy loves playing with it! Today I thought I would see if I could get it onto her back. At first I had Joy check it out. As usual she just sniffed and pawed it. So I took it, rubbing it against her kegs. She didn't mind at all. I continued up her leg to her shoulder... still nothing. Next thing I know I have the tarp on her back... and NOTHING!!! She didn't care at all :) This got me wondering what else I could do with the sheet... I had Joy stand with the 12ft line on the ground (it wasn't tied or anything, just lying there). I started shaking the sheet while standing at her shoulder. When she looked okay I started walking around her shaking it. Joy just stood there :) I'm so proud of my pony!!!!
I also set up two trotting poles (spaced out for Joy walking over them). I used the squeeze game to get Joy to walk over them. This has been the game we have been working on lately, so using the trotting poles really helped me to stay focused. Joy didn't mind the poles... she just walked over them as if they were twigs :p
Our ground work was really good today and i left on a good note (yipeeee!!!!!!). For me the most important thing about my working sessions themselves is to have a session that ends well. It make both me and the horse feel like we have done ourselves proud.
After doing my groundwork with Joy I put on her bridle. At the moment I have her in a french link snaffle, with no noseband and clip on reins. I try to keep it nice and simple if I can. Anyway, so I put on the bridle with no fuss from Joy :) I hopped on bareback and we headed off to play the pushing passenger game. I haven't done this game in a while with Joy. It really was nice for a change to just follow Joy :) I let joy go where she wanted to, allowing her to stop when she needed to.
Eventually I got round to doing 15 minutes of follow the rail and freestyle riding. I started off just having Joy walk around the arena alongside the rail. She always starts off fighting to go to the centre, but today she was quite happy to follow my suggestion (could this have something to do with us having done the pushing passenger first?). I then started incorporating small circles. They start of quite big, but once Joy knows what I am asking they get smaller. We also walked over the trotting poles. She didn't mind them much, but she was a little bit difficult on the left rein (probably coz that's when we are facing away from home).
After 15 minutes I decided to hop off. Joy really behaved herself beautifully :) I couldn't have asked for more. It made me feel a little more positive about finding her a good home. She will make an awsome pony for kids :)
This photo was taken last week. The little girl and I thought we would make Joy all pretty :)
Wednesday, December 2, 2009
Update
I have been a little stressed lately. Joy has been advertised and, so far, I have only received two inquiries. I know this will take some time, but I only have 4 weeks to find her a home and this is week one. I'm praying for a miracle!
Anyway, my one friend asked me a sipmle question recently. She asked what my favourite breed was. I was surprised that I couldn't answer her immediately :p To be honest I don't really have a favourite breed. For me each horse is unique in their own special way.
But if I have to pick these would be my top 3:
My first would be the Boerperd. This breed is a very hardy breed. They have strong hooves and limbs. They can compete successfully in all disciplines making them good all rounders. They are known to be even tempered and gentle.
Hehe, I know this horse :) She is an SA Boerperd!
My second choice would be a Thoroughbred and Thoroughbred crosses. I still think they make excellent riding horses. I have only ridden a few, but I have seen what some f them can do in the showring :) Oh, and I love Thoroughbred cross Andalusians! That is an awsome cross!!!!
Thirdly, if I had to choose a Warmblood, I would choose a Trakehner. I don't know that much of the breed, but Linda Parelli's Allure got me hooked on the breed, lol.
Now, if I had to choose my favourite breed of pony there is only one breed that I really like and that is the Nooitgedagter. This is an South African pony breed (of course!). They get to around 15h.h but are excellent weight carriers. They have strong limbs and hooves, adapted for traveling on hard terrain. They are even tempered and make excellent childrens ponies :)
Mmmmmmmm, talking about horse breeds... I have been reading up on the Akhal Teke horses a bit and read that they are excellent endurance horses (able to survive very HARSH conditions). They are like the Thoroughbred of the desert. I wonder how this breed will compare to the Arabian in an endurance race? I would bet on the Akhal Teke :) There is rumors (can't say for sure if they are true) that the Arabian breed comes from the Akhal Teke.
Another breed I find rather fascinating is the Marwari. I love how their ears curl inwards!!!
Anyway, my one friend asked me a sipmle question recently. She asked what my favourite breed was. I was surprised that I couldn't answer her immediately :p To be honest I don't really have a favourite breed. For me each horse is unique in their own special way.
But if I have to pick these would be my top 3:
My first would be the Boerperd. This breed is a very hardy breed. They have strong hooves and limbs. They can compete successfully in all disciplines making them good all rounders. They are known to be even tempered and gentle.
Hehe, I know this horse :) She is an SA Boerperd!
My second choice would be a Thoroughbred and Thoroughbred crosses. I still think they make excellent riding horses. I have only ridden a few, but I have seen what some f them can do in the showring :) Oh, and I love Thoroughbred cross Andalusians! That is an awsome cross!!!!
Thirdly, if I had to choose a Warmblood, I would choose a Trakehner. I don't know that much of the breed, but Linda Parelli's Allure got me hooked on the breed, lol.
Now, if I had to choose my favourite breed of pony there is only one breed that I really like and that is the Nooitgedagter. This is an South African pony breed (of course!). They get to around 15h.h but are excellent weight carriers. They have strong limbs and hooves, adapted for traveling on hard terrain. They are even tempered and make excellent childrens ponies :)
Mmmmmmmm, talking about horse breeds... I have been reading up on the Akhal Teke horses a bit and read that they are excellent endurance horses (able to survive very HARSH conditions). They are like the Thoroughbred of the desert. I wonder how this breed will compare to the Arabian in an endurance race? I would bet on the Akhal Teke :) There is rumors (can't say for sure if they are true) that the Arabian breed comes from the Akhal Teke.
Another breed I find rather fascinating is the Marwari. I love how their ears curl inwards!!!
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