We are out!

Well after today's play time and ride with Prince I think we are out of our two play time rut/ rough spot. Today was INDESCRIBABLE!!! But I will try and capture it for you.

Yesterday I had a BFO and realized that the reason Prince and I were kind of going through a rough spot and neither of us were having fun when we played was because of MY attitude. I still don't really know what it was but for some reason it was really effecting out play times. So I purposed that today it would be different and I wouldn't get frustrated at Prince when he didn't do a figure 8 right even though he had been doing it for almost a year, and I wouldn't let other peoples opinion on Parelli effect our play time, Prince doesn't deserve that.

So after I had finished playing with Twosox I went back down to the corral and haltered Prince. I made sure to reward him for the slightest try. It really helped me because then I didn't get over focused. Prince and I took our time getting up to the riding ring. I saddled Prince in the corral but I didn't rush it. I spend some time scratching him and just hanging out with him. Then we went up to the riding ring and played. We BOTH had a blast!!

Sure something went wrong, like Prince being over exuberant on the Figure 8 and knocking the barrels over, running off etc, or Prince not changing direction when I asked and instead kept cantering around. But all that was okay. We still had SO much fun.

We played with transitions, got some AMAZING change of directions, we did leading by the tail, short range circles, sideways towards me, sideways away from me with out a fence really fast [almost at a trot!] and LOTS more!!!

One time with Prince was circling around at a canter he was really pulling on the rope so I ask him to slow down and move his rips over. Every time he pulled I would just ask him to move his rips over. Pretty soon he was arcing his body and was circling with out pulling at all! There was LOTS of slack in the rope and he would walk and trot around me on a really close circle. Even when he was farther away he was able to trot and be really light. He is such a smart horse!!!

After that I got on. I rode around a little then had to tighten my saddle. Then my mom and I set up a Question box. Our riding ring is a little on the small size for it so be ideal but we can't help that so we made do with what we has. At first Prince wasn't listening to me and all he wanted to do was trot off and do nothing else. It was kind of hard not to get a little frustrated so I had to stop Prince and recompose myself then we carried on. Then it got REALLY fun!!!!!!!!

I didn't get frustrated at Prince when he wanted to go around smushing all the tires and I didn't get so legalistic about Prince doing a perfect circle. So since I wasn't do all that we had a lot of fun and Prince figured out the pattern so quickly it was amazing!!! We soon were trotting the pattern and then stopping in the dead center of the box. It was really funny because Prince was paying so much attention to me that as soon as I relaxed he would stop, normally I relax then he stops about 2ft later. I caught myself a couple times stopping right before the center of the box that way Prince would stop in the center, well since Prince was paying attention to my seat he stopped right then and there. Then I had to ask him to go again and stop in the center. It was so funny!!

Prince was SO good!! He already started asking questions as soon as we were coming up to the box. Then one time after Prince had licked and chewed and licked and chewed and then did some MORE licking and chewing we went sideways from the middle of the box to the fence. It was almost a perfect sideways!! We stayed at the fence for a couple minutes then we backed all the way back into the box. Prince did so well, I was amazed!!!!

I was so proud of Prince. Before I got off I practiced some of the things that I saw on the July Savvy DVD about improving our balance. Then my mom was like "When you are done can you slide of Prince's bum?" I was like "Sure! Why not" I have only done it once before and that was over a year ago. Prince just stood there like nothing was happening. I LOVE YOU PRINCE!!!!!!!!

Prince's scapula is almost perfect now!! It just goes to show you what a good saddle can do!!

~K