November 2019

It has been quite the month. We started off celebrating your 14th birthday. I can't believe you are already fourteen years old.  People say be careful not to blink because life moves quickly. That is what I feel like, a blink and you have gone from a baby to a teenager. We had cupcakes in bed. You got your gift from China. This year it was beautiful note cards. Your other gift is a dressage pad ordered from a company in Sweden.

Linda came down to visit Stephanie for her birthday. We joined them in Georgetown for dinner at Filomena's. We had an amazing dinner

You had several major horseback riding events again this month. It seems this is an every month theme these days! Your first big event was the PVDA fall show. We went down on Friday and you competed on Saturday. You did a great job riding Nicki. You were hoping to get a 63 on your Training Level 3 test to qualify for a musical dressage number for Ride For Life. You got a 64.310. You did it. I am not surprised! Aunt Leslie and Emma came out to see you ride. Aunt Leslie is always so proud of you. It was an exhausting day, as you can see by my activity monitor!

Then we were back at the barn on Sunday for you to finish your C-1 rating. You needed to do the cross country portion. You excelled yet again. Bonsai didn't want to go over one jump but you coaxed him over and then we flew over the jumps. One jump he thought he would fly over! You are now a C-1 Pony Club member.

You did an ISHS show at a new barn. The pony, Relish, had a rough morning. The girl who rode him forgot to tighten his girth and the saddle slipped. She fell off and he went wild. They gave him a little break and then you rode him. You did an awesome job on the flat. He was nervous but you got him to settle. You got two first place ribbons. Then came the jump class. This was going to be his first jump class. He didn't want to go over. They told you to grab a crop, even though the instructions said not to use a crop. So you just held it without using it. He went over. People cheered with each jump you went over. You were doing great, until there was a loud noise as you were approaching the 6th and last jump. He turned out and you fell. You got up quickly. You were sore but not hurt. You were flustered. You handled it well. 

We finished up the month with Thanksgiving. It means so much to me to have Aunt Leslie here with us. I wasn't sure she would make it but she was with us and in great spirits. I am hoping she continues to fight and enjoys many more holidays with us. Nick and his girl friend, Natalie, Aiden and Emma joined us too. We had a good time once everyone got there...albeit several hours late. We played some games and tried to get a picture of you and your brothers for our annual Christmas card. I managed to get a good picture and you all had fun while I was doing so.

And our furry family members are all content.