The Men in My Life

I'm fortunate to have two wonderful men in my life.

This is the most recent photo I was able to share with them both.

Both bring a smile to my face on a daily basis and most of the time don't even have to say a word.  I was blessed to spend the weekend with both of them and reminded of how special they each are.

First Trip to the Carolina Horse Park

Derby Day, Cinco de Mayo and Carolina Horse Park all in one day!  May started out with a bang.  Houston and I packed up at 7:30 am to travel 2.5 hrs to the Horse Park for our first horse trials of the season.  Neither of us had competed at the horse park we I was very excited/nervous and he was very talkative.  He talked to everyone in warm-up, everyone in the barns we passed and every horse that passed him. 

The heat rose to almost 80 before we even rode our dressage test- whew!  But we got through it with a decent score for us and Houston even greeted the judge upon trotting down the center line with a huge neigh.

2 hours later the cross-country was walked and we were gearing up for a quick show-jumping round and then off to cross-country we went.  Show- Jumping was flawless- I love this horse!

Houston & Jason watching the division ahead of us.

Excited to go Cross-Country

We started cross-country with gusto and Houston was a machine soaring over everything and keeping the perfect pace.  We approached number 10, the water complex and he stopped dead 10 feet away and refused to have anything to do with the water.

This is as close as we ever got.....

 After about 3 minutes we were eliminated.  Houston was genuinely scared and thought something was going to happen if we went in the water, he's not one to refuse or do anything dirty.  We will plan some water schooling days this summer and try again in the fall.  Nothing changes how amazing he was during EVERYTHING until the water.  I'm very proud of my old guy and look forward to the next event.

Happy 21st Birthday Houston

My wild, crazy, lovable Houston is 21!  His birthday present arrived this week. 

Bright Eyes

I realize this post is way out of order but the topic is often at the forefront of my mind.

In September of 2009 I experienced something all horse owners dread.  Finding your horse in the pasture with an eye swollen shut.  Houston approached the gate for his morning feeding and his left eye was the size of a softball.  Of course it was on a weekend, he doesn't operate on a weekday injury schedule.

The vet came out and discovered an ulcer on Houston's eye.  A lavage system was put in place and we began treatment four times a day with three different medications in hopes that the ulcer would dissolve.

A week later the lavage system was removed and the ulcer was still there with little improvement.  Houston's patience with me, treatment and stall rest was phenomenal he was more patient than I was.  Dr. Bradford decided to do a scrape to see if we could get some cells from the ulcer and determine what it was and why it wasn't healing.  Watching a HUGE needle be plunged into my horses eye socket was a little unnerving to say the least.

Four days later the scrape showed nothing and Houston had little improvement.  The referral to Virginia Tech came only a few days later and off we went to see the Ophthalmologist.  Sounds crazy, but when you love your horses you see specialists :o).

Virginia Tech was a gift from God.  The doctors were amazing, helpful, informative and determined to help Houston and me.   Another scraping was done and we were sent home with 4 more medications to do 4 times a day.  Daily phone calls came from the vet student assigned to Houston and 3 days after our appointment a fungus grew in their lab from the ulcer scraping.

The thought was he had poked himself with his hay and was growing a fungus as a result from a mold spore.  While they were optimistic the fungus would die and Houston could go back to normal work they were not optimistic that the ulcer would dissipate and advised he would have a scar.

3 weeks of treatment 4 times a day, a very patient horse and with lots of family and friends support, Houston was treatment free.  The ulcer receded and he was left scar-less and this beautiful eye is healthy once again. I are thankful everyday for all the Vets who worked together to heal Houston.

Schooling

After a hiatus from our last event, we are ready for the next one a year later.  With a lot of changes in my life and Houston getting older it took a year before we were both ready to compete again.  We will be heading to the Carolina Horse Park May 5th for a low key starter horse trails.

Today we schooled cross-country for the first time in a very LONG time.  Needless to say I have a champ!  21 years young and bucking all the way.  Houston really spent more time playing then he did schooling, but the schooling was great for me he just thought it was a party.

Back in Action

Three years ago when I graduated college I immediately started my full time job.  Houston unfortunately took a back seat to my new daily routine and demanding job.  Recently I made the decision to follow my heart- quit my job, accept a new one working with a vet, move back home, take classes and work towards applying to vet school.  With my new found "spare" time Houston and I got to work.  Riding 5 days a week for a month and two weeks we prepared for our first show in 3 years.  At the ripe old age of 20 my frisky thoroughbred rose to the challenge of getting back in shape.

This weekend we competed at the Hillcrest Horse Trial in the Maiden Division, simply because I wanted to start him out slow.  Houston thought I was nuts when it came time to jump.  They were tiny and he was VERY excited.  He flew over each jump as though it were 4 ft tall and with pricked ears galloped towards the next "challenge". 

With a 31.5 on our Dressage test we finished out the day at the top out of 8 people.  I could not have asked more of my boy and couldn't contain my excitement when we crossed the finish line on cross-country after a brilliant run.  I've caught the eventing bug for the second time in my life and Houston's on board!

Gift's that Give

Many times I feel that gifts take up space and don't offer the true meaning they once did.  With so many people/animals in need, each year it becomes less important for me to receive gifts.  This year only a week before Christmas I stumbled upon a unique gift that gives back.  Opening my Riverwood Therapeutic Riding Center newsletter I was captivated by a unique gift that a local jeweler, Deva, had created in honor of the organization.   The silver disk necklace featured the Riverwood horse head and heart logo.  The proceeds go to help support Riverwood's terrific program.  After commenting and researching the necklace on Riverwood's website I pushed the thought aside knowing Christmas was only a week away and moved on.

Christmas morning came and the present opening commenced.  Much to my surprise when I opened a package from Jason a bright purple Deva bag was inside.  I knew IMMEDIATELY what was inside!  I opened the bag and tears filled my eyes.  Not only was the surprise of the gift heart warming and wonderful but knowing that it was unique and provided funding for an organization that is close to my heart made Christmas perfect.

If you are a horse lover and supporter, or simply love this unique piece.  It can be yours by visiting www.riverwoodtrc.org