It was windy, it was cold, but it was savv-ahy!

After Hallstrom we got home and let the ponies out in the pasture for a a few hours. Then we brought them in and played! Oh I should put in that we got our Level 3 pack!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WOOHOO! It came in the mail this afternoon, so I was excited. =-D So I watched the ground stuff and went out with a happy mood. It fit Eddie perfectly! He was hyper, because he hates this kind of weather, so we did more figure eight's (they're really fluid now), we cantered online, change of direction, trot sideways, cavaleties, jumped over the barrels, and sideways to the fence for mounting. When we did sideways, he was a bit cranky because he wanted to move, so I hopped on and walked around for a bit then got off. We had so much fun! I can't believe we're entering into the realm of Level 3. It feels like just yesterday we opened up the new Level 1 pack at the Madison tour stop in '07. I want to start applying the mentality of L3, not so much the tasks, just for me to have a better understanding and better savvy. I think it will help him, and me too.

Jingle bells, jingle bells, savvy all the way!
(I really love Christmas. Can it be Christmas now? I also can't wait for winter.)
SAVVY OUT PARELLI PEOPLE!
Lea & Eddie

BUGS!

I hate mosquitoes! So does Eddie. We played out in the pasture and the bugs were horrible. So we just did a bit of figure eight's, which he did perfectly, and then we went in the outdoor and backed up over the cavaleties. I really took my time with him. He was a bit right brain, so I just waited a lot then he would lick his lips and sigh. It was a good day! (once the rain stopped!) There was even a rainbow!

Lea & Eddie

Pictures from a few days ago...

Ponying Scout along...
Let's stand on a hill!!!!

Savvy out,

Lea & Eddie

Meet in the Middle!

First we rode in the outdoor, playing around with trotting over poles, I asked him to canter (unfortunately he didn't) and we did point to point. I had carrots on the barrels and we would sideways him towards it, and trot towards it.It was a lot of fun! Then this afternoon we trotted over cavaleties, jumped over the barrels a few times, led by the mane, and tried mounting from the ground bareback. It was such a savvy day! I love it! =-)

Lea & Eddie

Today was fantastic!

I played with figure eight's through barrels and circling. With the circling game, we trotted, he would come in get some grain, and then go back out and trot. The figure eight's went great too. Then I rode around and helped out my sister with a few things. It was a lot of fun!

Savvy on,
Lea & Eddie

Haven't posted on here in two days! Oh no! ;-)

Yesterday morning I took Eddie in the round pen and played around at liberty for a bit. We did very good. A little transitions, and a bit of the seven games. After he got really RB suddenly I put him back online and played over cavaleties and through cones and in between barrels. It was a lot of fun! I think he had fun too, once he was LB again, he seemed to enjoy the change of scenery. So then we just went back into the outdoor and almost jumped over the barrels, we went sideways over them and played with a jolly ball. Hey, I even climbed under him while he was standing on a mound of dirt! Silly me!

Today the finesse reins came so I just rode with those. =-) YAY! They're so cool! And they are something that I can advance with! =-) That's about it! He didn't have too much go, so we went in the pasture and then he wanted to walk. So now, I'm going to play with the circling game and cookies. (Like the Savvy Club DVD 'Cookie fest'. Wish us luck!

Savvy All day long!

Lea & Eddie

(I'll post pictures later!)

Pictures!

The hay Eddie was eating. This is it's view!

It was too funny!






Then I started taking pictures of all his toes. His new pretty trimmed toes!

I TOLD YOU!

Didn't I just post on here about having an awesome play session? Well we did! =-D I think it was just an 'off' day for us. Meaning we both got up on the wrong side of the corrals. So we switched. I rode Scout and Al rode Eddie. I'm glad I'm the one training Eddie, my sister's personality and Eddie horsenality clash. Anyway! Because Scout is a RBI, I worked on fluid movements and stuff like that. Keeping his confidence up and his brain engaged and not removed. Then with Eddie (we switched again) we just walked around in the big pasture. There were so many mosquitoes so he was swishing his tail a lot and stomping. The whole time I didn't lose my cool. Then I got off because I wanted to end on a sweet note. So then me and Eddie went back to the dry lot and ate hay. I took kooky pictures of him (will post) and just hung out. A little attitude check was all I needed.
I also realized, we've come so far. One way of a bit of confusion is no biggy. We're still in Level 2. I was trying to be Level 3. Not anymore. Deal with the horse that shows up. Take care of your horsemanship and it will take care of you. as Pat Parelli says. We'll get there. Take the time it takes.

Lea & Eddie

Yesterday and Today: dreams, goals, and not so savvy...

Yesterday was awesome! Mr. Boso came out to trim the horses' feet. They are so pretty! My sister and I are going to help out at the upcoming clinic, which will be so much fun! I really figured out what I want to do. Go for it. Go all the way for my Parelli dream. What have I got to lose? My parents are supportive, my sister knows I have a gift, now all I have to do is put it into action. Shine.
Saying that our play session today was much different. 'Deal with the horse that shows up.' Linda says. Well I forgot to. I noticed it now, and today when I play with him later, it's going to be different. My sister and I (doing a lot of those aren't I?) worked on Eddie feet. (because he wasn't too accepting with his front feet) We did a hard yoyo when he would fight the pressure. "Oh, ok. I guess I'd rather stand here and have my foot held up then do a bunch of backing." I could see his brain a thinkin'. When I played with him in the outdoor he wasn't too bad. Just LBI. Which is not bad, just interesting. So I had too many tasks, do this Eddie. No not like that! Like this! Not too open minded huh? "Why should I?" he'd ask me, and all I'd do for a reply was "Just do it!" So I realized it. Now I'm going to fix it. Today. Later today. I'm going to watch something in Level 2. Be inspired by it, and go and do what I want, and what he needs. That brings to mind, what does Eddie really need? He needs leadership. He's a LBI, so he doesn't need it, but he wants it. I will be the leader. "A benevolent dictator." as Linda also says. Think like a horse. Be precise, but don't be critical. What does the LBI need? FOOD! JK! Fun, they need fun. Don't like moving much (circling = boring) but falling leaf = =-D happy!
So, thanks for letting me vent. Hey, like you have a choice, you're a computer.... Well I better go eat lunch. How about some humble pie?

Lea & Eddie

Good Morning!

Yesterday, we had a great day. I prepared him in the corn crib for the trimmer (Mr. Boso) and played with his feet. Then we had to go inside to finish school before mom went to work. So in the afternoon I rode and Allison (my sister) played with Scout in the round pen. I worked on finding my seat, trotting, sideways and point to point.I filled out the self assessment so I'll post it here in a bit. I really found where our holes are, and what we need to play with a bit more. I was really surprised! We have a lot of little things in Level 3 and 4. Like, crack the whip, helicopter with carrot stick and savvy string in zone 5. I did those a few days ago... For sideways (online) we can sideways over a barrel away and towards, which is Level 4. Just stuff like that! Well I'm going to figure out how to post it here (maybe pdf?) and then I'll ttyl! Wish us luck for when Mr. Boso comes @ 1:30ish!

Savvy inside,
Lea & Eddie
Level 2 students
Future Level 4 Grads

Sunny, Savvy, Sunday...

After we got home from church (which was really good, Phil Vischer, the creater of Veggie Tales talked about dreams and stuff) we let the boys out on pasture and then we gave them a bath. Eddie was so dirty! Now we're just letting them have the rest of the day off. They're so soft now!

Ooh! Yesterday evening (around 5) I played with Eddie. Man was that fun! We went through every game.
Friendly: I cracked an old lounging whip. He did awesome with that! And I stood in zone 5 and did the 'helicopter' with the carrot stick and savvy string. He did great with that too!
Porcupine: We backed by the tail a few steps.
Driving: We did a bit of driving from zone 5.
Yoyo: He trotted towards me.
Circling: We did transitions, and change of direction. It was very interesting! He really became a LBE/RBE. It was so funny. He would just stand there, then jump in the air, then he would canter a few laps, then leap into the air like a bunny. I think he was RB, not LBE.... I don't know, I just did a big Yoyo because I didn't want him to jump on top of me. He was calm then, he had a lot of energy!
Sideways: towards, away, and over barrels.
Squeeze: We jumped over a jump and then we were done!
It was so much fun!!!!!!!!!!!

Savvy on!
Lea & Eddie

More pictures! (not recent)

Savvy ponies!
-Lea

We're not in Kansas Toto!

Right now we would be in the Kemper arena..... However; my mom got pretty sick the night before we were going to leave. So she couldn't drive and we didn't end up going to the Kansas City tour stop... But it's ok, we had two GREAT days with the horses and watched movies and ate deep dish pizza.
The sessions:
Friday=we saddled up and did a bunch of mounting tasks. Which went really well! He was great and it was fun to do the mounting tasks we hadn't done for a while.
Saturday (today)= I put the bareback pad on, used the hackamore and rode into the sunset! (not literally) We trotted A LOT and I really got my seat and he was just amazing!
Even though we didn't go to MO, we still had a fantastic weekend!

Savvy staying,
Lea & Eddie

P.S. sorry I missed you Kaite! <3

Loving Liberty!

Sun! Yay! I love nice weather!

I had another plan today, transitions/change of direction and seeing what he wanted to do. Well I took the 12 foot line off to switch to the 22ft and he left. How interesting! He went into the outdoor and started grazing next to Scout. SO I got him to follow me, we did point to point, sniff this, sideways towards and away. He did amazing!!!!!! very light and responsive! Then I hopped on bareback and bridless and walked around with the carrot stick. We trotted, backed up without reins, and sideways! It was amazing! He did so good today! The more and more I play with him the more he just lets me know what to work on. I'm going to go through the self assessment and see where our holes are and how we can fix them. That should give us something to work on after we get back from Kansas City.

Savvy sessions,

Lea & Eddie

Ok, change of plans...

Flexibility! It's pretty important when you have a LBI. I had an idea today, Follow the Rail, 15 minutes, nothing too hard. You know, preparing for our assessment. Eddie had other ideas, like me not riding. Well, I assessed the situation, changed my plan to transitions, walk, stop, back walk, trot, ect. After doing that, all was well! At first when I just gotten on he was ringing his tail and shaking his head, but after a bit of flexibility on my part, he was calm, cool and collected! It was very cool to see that if I remained calm and changed my outlook, things changed for the better. Thanks Pat and Linda Parelli! I couldn't have done it without you!

Lea & Eddie

The sun is shining and this road keeps winding through the prettiest...

...country Georgia to Tennessee....
It was so sunny today!
After going to hallstrom we came home and let the horses out on pasture. Then we went out and I assessed my Level 1 ground skills. I was going to do the riding, but Eddie was so sleepy and tired! It was the best 7 games yet! I'm so proud of him! I can't wait to do more Level assessments. It will be UBER fun!

Lea & Eddie

First play session after the rain!!!

YAY! The rain stopped and I finally got to play with Eddie! I took him in the corn crib to work on his feet and he did very good. He only fussed once and I corrected it and then he was great. Then we walked him through ALL the puddles to clean off his feet then we played with the sundial. He did great with that too. He was very spunky and hyper so I gave him a task, stay on track with the poles and he was very connected and focused. I'm so proud of him!
Well Kansas City is on Saturday! We're going to leave on Friday so we can get down there in time. From northern IL to eastern MO is about 7 hours. (driving) I like car rides!
Today was a great savvy day!!!!!

Lea & Eddie

Parelli Dreams!!!

Well it's still raining, we went to church and then came home. GUESS WHAT!? Me and my mom might be going to Kansas City!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I'm so excited! My sister said she would stay home with the horses and then we could go. I can't wait till my mom gives me the answer. Anyway, I'm so excited!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Building an ark (because of the rain) and becoming a future protegee (PNH rocks!)!
Lea & Eddie

Rain!!!!!!!!!! I'm sick of it!!!!!!!!!!!

Grrr..... From yesterday.... to today! The horses are dripping wet, the paddock is a lake, and I want to play with Eddie because I'm in a uber savvy/parelli mood! Also because I want to assess this week... Ahh.. the sight of a red string...
I can't wait until next June! The Parelli Celebration will be SO much fun! I hope we can be Ambassadors again, what an awesome experience! Anyway... I gtg...
Savvy out,
Praying that the rain stops,
Lea & Eddie

Grooming and more rain!

All we did today was groom the ponies and let them out on pasture. We were really tired form last night (kittens kept us up) so we let them have the day off. So now it's raining and we're doing more school to catch up on things for Hallstrom.

I think that's all for today! We went shopping, (hehe)! We went to Target and Kohl's just to look around and get out of the house. It was fun!

When we got home I let the horses out on the pasture and Eddie came up to me and stood by me and Scout did too. It was so sweet, I told him, "I told you we'd get a buddy for you." It was a long 15 months for him being alone. And then Scout blew into Eddie's nose and they let out content sighs. It was so cute!

Here is a pic of when Scout first came here in July:

I love you Scout! Never leave me!!!!!!

Last three days

Man, I knew I would get behind on this! Let's see....

On the 9th. we took the ponies for another walk, on the 10th. we played with them for over two hours! We went for another walk, then went in the pasture and outdoor arena to ride around. It was so nice outside yesterday! I love fall, favorite season, and unfortunately shortest season! Well today I tried join up... It went pretty good. I could see all the signs and then I let him in and he sniffed my hair. But then he didn't exactly do the follow up. (when you walk in arcs and circles and they follow you). But it was fun, because afterwards, he licked his lips and sighed. Obviously enjoying the rest. I was going to ride, but then we had to go finish up school. So it was a great last three days! I'm applying all the things I've learned from everywhere and it couldn't get better!

Here are some pictures form yesterday:

Savvy out!

Lea & Eddie

Pictures!

My favorite pictures of me and Eddie:

Patience and Persistence...

... in the proper position...

Oh boy! Eddie was very sleepy today! I groomed him and took a look at his cut on his hoof. Still healing very nicely! So I just decided to sit on him and have a nice ride around. It turned out great! He was calm, cool and collected!

We trotted a little and then just did point to point with carrots on barrels.

What a great day! I love Eddie!

Lea & Eddie

What a beautiful day!

The sun is shining! The breeze is refreshing! What a glorious day!
Eddie and I went for a walk around the pasture today! I took him by a big scary grape arbour and he did way better then I thought he would! He was calm and we really worked on finding thresholds and playing in them. My sister brought Scout along so Eddie would feel more confident. We walked around half of the pasture, then came back to his safe zone. We then jumped on bareback and walked around the pasture for quite a while. For a long time he wanted to go to one specific corner, but we did point to point with a shady spot, a chair, another corner and cavaleties which made him more focused. I'm probably going to play with him again later today because it is so nice!
Well gtg!
Lea & R Big Time Edition

The Rain Finally Stopped!

Eddie's foot is doing much better. He injured it by over reaching with his back hoof and scraped the back of his bulb. Ouch!
Today I did a quick review of the seven games. It went OK, I realized that I wasn't being the leader, so I got a little frustrated. But I sat on the grass, he grazed around me, and I took a deep breath and finished the rest of the seven games.
Then in the afternoon I had a better plan. He already knows the seven games, so that's why he wasn't too interested earlier. I put a 'savvy' face on and then we did his kind of play, uber play! We backed by the tail, change of direction at the trot, and draw at the trot. He was so much more happy to be moving!
Hopefully tomorrow's early play time will be more savvy!


Savvy on!
Lea * Eddie