Easter Bunny

P2 is the proud owner of a fabulous set of ears, which had more than one person in the barn asking if she was the Easter Bunny.  I'm not sure the mare knew why we were fussing over her big floppy listening things, but they are darn cute and they seemed rather festive on such a lovely Sunday afternoon.

stop I'm embarrassed...

Easter was beyond GLORIOUS out here.  Somehow it actually hit 70 degrees and there wasn't even a speck of rain in the sky.  Both totally rare events in Seattle and worth noting..

Lacking any children demanding egg hunts, The Boy and I had a nice quiet holiday that included a fantastically wonderful morning at the barn.  P2 was a total snuggle bunny and seemed to enjoy her grooming more than usual (or maybe it was just the giant bag o treats).  And I can certainly say that I was enjoying feeling a warm breeze in the barn aisle.

I could hardly believe that I was peeling layers down to a t-shirt as we mounted up in the Outdoor.. there's just something about that first warm day in the saddle where you don't suffer for 10 minutes desperately trying to get blood pumping so as not to regret leaving a jacket behind on the mounting block...

On top of the fabulous weather, I really couldn't get over how fantastic our ride was.

P2 was a GEM.  G.E.M.

I finally felt some of my timing and sensitivity coming back.  When we cantered I felt like my legs were dripped over her and supporting the bend like they are supposed to (not wobbling back and forth like a wooden puppet).  We flexed, we counter-flexed, we cantered, we counter cantered, we lengthened and collected a bit.  We picked up our counter-canter lead, we halted.  We had transitions that stayed soft and supple!

also - not one (not even a hint) of the drama llama at any point in the ride.

walk-canters? BAM, leg yields? bam-bam.

dare I ask for a half-pass? baaaaaa - ok.  maybe not a "bam" but a "ooh! we can do that kinda!"

Long story short, the mare felt locked in, soft through her back and really, really forgiving.  Also, I felt like I could think ahead a few steps instead of trying to manage every-single-moment as it was happening.

When my mouth was tired from smiling, we cooled out on a long rein, totally ignoring the donkey, other mares in heat and general happenings around us like a total champ.

I really can't help but think that I totally lucked out with this mare.  I know we'll hit some road blocks and I also know I'm not pushing her boundaries at all, but I'm so thankful that she doesn't take advantage of me - and she really just seems to try even when she's getting weird/mixed/wrong signals.

definite signs of bunny-ness

When we were done I threw the mare out on some grass to enjoy the sun and parked myself in a chair to watch a few lessons and get a shot of vitamin D myself.

Not exactly a church, but certainly enough soul for me