Moving Weekend II

Sunday evening, sitting in our new appartment and using Shawn´s internet stick. Telia hasn´t hooked us up with internet or phone yet. I will call them tomorrow again. I hate when things take such a long time.
The last three days were really busy and hard. We had long days. Worked 14 - 16 hours every day to get things organised. The new appartment looked like shit when we moved in. We took it over from a "friend" but that is still no excuse to leave a place like that. The move would have gone much smoother without all that extra cleaning.
I start to like the new place. With a little bit more love it´s going to look really nice. Next step will be a house or a farm!
I just went to see Milva for a short time in the last few days. Yesterday I went out there with a long lost friend. We had our horses in the same stable - before I moved to the stable where I´m in now. Weronika knew Saxon my old horse I had when I bought Milva. And Weronike knows Milva from the day I bought here. We are neighbours now which is fun! I met her on the street yesterday when she walked her dog and convinced her to come with me to see Milva.
When we came to the stable which was rather late we saw a beautiful red fullmoon. It truly felt magical!
Milva is doing fine. I´m going to start playing with her again tomorrow! Can´t wait!

Moving Weekend

Yesterday I played 20min with Milva - mostly transitions and tossing the rope over her head standing in z5 and z3. Today we started to move and I just gave the horses their breakfast and that was it. I will make time tomorrow though to see my babyboo.
Feeling a bit stressed about the move and getting everthing done so I just will relax at the stable.

Blizzard

We had the worst snowstorm here ever. Just went to the stable to give the horses their morning hay, filled up hot water in the bathtube and snuggled with Milvs for a bit. She didn´t look to happy today.
One very positive thing happened today though which really made my day. Annika - a girl I meet threw Sofie in Birmingham, called me today and we talked for half an hour. I´m looking forward to meet Annika and her husband Stefan at the next playday.
How lucky am I :)))
I´m really grateful that I got in contact with Sofie. Threw her I´m going to meet other Parelli people here in Sweden :).
I still hold very strongly on to my Canadian Parelli friends. That´s were my heart is. But I can´t deny that it´s feeling good to get some new contacts here in Sweden as well.
I´m one of those lonely wolves - like doing things on my own and have never been a group human. But maybe it´s time to get out of my shell for a while :)
Decided to send in my level 2 online audition after all. It´s going to be good to get some feedback.

Level 2 Online Audition

Shawn helped me to film our audition in -13 this morning.
I´ll upload on here later on - it takes an awful long time to upload something on here. We had to start 6 times cause Milva got all punky. I uploaded the punky videos as well.
What I have learned today is that I want to be filmed more often - at least once a month.
We are moving this weekend and are full up in packing....

Brrrrrrrrrrr

10 below this morning so we didn´t film. Going to try tomorrow morning instead.
I played for a little while in the ridinghouse. Backing up from z5 doesn´t work right now. I must be doing something different cause I can see that she tries to understand me but is confused. Hmmmmm....how intressting.
The rest worked fine though so I´m pretty confidenet with the filming tomorrow.

Cosy Day At Home

My plan to film today didn´t work out. Instead Shawn and I had a lovely, cosy day at home. I went to the stable in the evening to give the horses their eveningfood. I took Milva out for a little while and let her eat some haywrap outside.
We are trying to get up early tomorrow and film around 8 a.m - before the twins start to train their horses. But usually they don´t ride before 11.00 a.m. which should give us enough time to film at least one audition.

Fun Day With Sofie

Sofie came down for a visit today! It was super fun and inspiring to hang out with another Parelli gal!
Sofie arrived before lunch. We had some tea at home and talked about Parelli and watched some parts of the celebration dvd. Sofie is going to the fast track course in Colorado in june - so freaking awesome!! And really good for me! I already got alots of facts today about the course which I didn´´t know before. Sofie is a big help!
For lunch we went to Mamma Theresa a very nice pizzeria in Landskrona - my favourite pizzeria. They just use high quality incredients for their cooking which makes all the difference!
After a short visit at Shawn´s shop we went to visit Milva. My plan was to have a rehearsal before filming tomorrow but the ridinghouse was occupied with other riders again so I couldn´´t built up the whole course as I wanted to. We put some cones in the middle line though and Sofie showed me how to do the weave pattern right. We also did some figure 8 but The Milvs was going punky today and had her own ideas how to do the figure 8. She is such a clown!
Sofie explained to me that I have to get z2 more out and voila the figure 8s worked again. It´s not that Milva doesn´t know how to do them it´s more that she is bored with them now and making up her own games instead. I can´t blame her. We have done them way too often so it´s time to move on to something more exciting now.
My french sister Sophie gave me a great idea today. She had a lesson with a Parelli instructor today and learned how to do the weave patterns backwards :). I will try that with Milva next week.
We also played a little bit with the green ball but with having other riders in the arena I didn´t want to do too much.
It was fun to watch Sofie play with Milva! As you all know I´m very picky with who is allowed to touch or play with The Milvs. With Sofie it felt good and natural. She can read horses and I didn´t have to explain things cause being another Parelli gal she knows the deal. It was so easy and it felt right.
I also didn´t need to feel stupid - well, there should never be a reason for feeling stupid anyway but boarding in a stable with "normals" the reality looks different. So anyway, it felt good to just play and not to think about what the other ones are thinking. A Parelli person knows the importance about not to do anthing in some situations or how important it is to wait for the licking and chewing! It´s hard to understand for "normals" sometimes. "Normals" - I would rather call us Parelli people "normal" ;)
I booked the ridinghouse for 18.00 tomorrow so we can film. I thought Shawn can film us playing. Not sure if we do a real audtion. I would like to get filmed on a regular basis now so I can see our progress and what to improve.

Preparing For Audition

We were working on the weave patterns in trott today and figure 8´s in trott.
Figure 8´s needs some freshing up again so I´m not certain if we can film on the weekend. Or well, she did them fine just there was no slack in the 22 foot line.
Weave patterns went fine too but I better watch the patterns dvd again to make sure I´m doing it right.
I also threw the 22 foot line over her head standing in zone 5. Milva doesn´t really care about the rope flying over her head as long as I don´t hit her too many times on the head.
Also did some walking in z5 and backing up from z5.
More tomorrow...

Just Work And No Play

I had to attend a workrelated course today and had to leave at home at 11.00 am already. Just had time to feed the horses in the morning and to clean up a little bit. I had Milva out for eating a little while as well. Just not as long as I wanted to.
Going there early tomorrow to spend some time with my pony.

Tuesday Play

After letting Milva eat outside for a while we played with the green ball. I had to start playing with her outside the stable - between ridinghouse and stable because Malin was in the ridinghouse with Dijon and the twins were riding as well.
I rolled the ball away from Milva and she followed very chilled. I always had to have one eye on the other horses though so they wouldn´t freak. Milva even tried to kick the ball a few times.
When I saw everyone leaving the ridinghouse I went in there. Malin had put 4 cavalettis in the middle of the arena so we played a little bit with them. After Milva explored them by herself and sniffed and stumped on them she walked over. I let her go over each direction a few times. She is so chilled with everything! I´m so used to her behaviour that I´m really getting surprised how other horses are reacting sometimes.
Halfway threw my planned session Malin entered the ridinghouse again with Baldur. She lunged him and Milva and I watched for a little while. When I started to play again Rebecca entered the ridinghouse with Basse so we left. 3 persons in the rh is 2 too much in Marion´s world ;).
And as Pat is saying: "Some persons can drive any horse crazy."
I let Milva eat some more, filled up the bathtube with water and cleaned up the "dry" part of the stable. I looked at the bedding a few times and started to dig in it a little bit but was getting frustrated again and stopped.
I will start with it tomorrow though.
I have to go back to work tomorrow and work for 3 days in a row. Hopefully we can film my level 2 online this weekend!

Mediocracy Is Not Me

Mediocracy = the swedish word lagom
I discussed mediocracy with Shawn right now.
Mediocracy is average, not raising above. Being satisfied with the second best.
It´s going with the flow - but in a bad way. Like doing what everyone else is doing and thinking it´s ok and being satisfied with it.
Mediocracy is deffinitely not me! But I guess I don´t have to explain that to you who know me.
I´m way above mediocracy and could never be satisfied with the second best.
That´s the way I´m and how I work. I can´t change that.
One of the reasons why I love Parelli so much cause it takes you above all the other mediocracy riders and for doing Parelli you actually have to be intelligent and put in some effort and time. It´s a never ending self improvement journey and I´m glad I discovered it.
But just because mediocracy is not good enough for me doesn´t mean it´s not good enough for other people. I just have to learn to except them how they are!
Which is not easy but I´ll work on it!

Playing Again

I´m so greatful for having a ridinghouse. It started to snow again over night and it was freezing cold.
When I got to the stable I took Milva out to let her eat a bit of hay. While I was gone the other people in our pasture decided to give the horses 8kg of hay a day. 3kg in the morning and 5kg in the evening. Sounds good in theory. Malin said that her horses are getting 8kg. Just they also get grain 3 x a day and they live in boxes and not outside. Another thing to consider is that when you feed a horse in a box the horse will get all the food shich our horses don´t. One horse eats faster than another one. Milva is a very slow eater and Orkan for example eats fast.
Oh well, I will just feed her outside the pasture and I will start feeding her grain again as well.
I started to clean out the stable a little bit but was getting so irritated so I stopped again. It´s sure nice to have a big bedding for them to sleep in. Just they don´t have a try spot to stand on right now. When the horses sink in with their hooves they stand in the wet bedding and when they run around in it all the wet stuff is coming up. It looks try and cosy on the top but it is not cause horses are heavy and sinking down with their hoovs.
I mean it´s not like that our horses are just going to the bedding for laying down.
I know I am a perfectionist when it comes to horses and especially when it comes to Milva. I´m almost never satisfied when other people do something. It´s not their fault. I´m sure they are doing the best they can do. But I can´t help it - it is not good enough for me.
Anita is a little bit like me and doing the very best for Orkan. I can rely on her and Helene to take care of Milva and the stable when I´m gone. But the rest...no, deffinitely not.
Well, enough complained. Complaining is never helping only actions are going to make a change. I just had to vent for feeling better...
Milva and I had a fun playsession. She was breeding fire and leaping and flying in the air like a dragonhorse. She was very expressive and exuberant today.
It was super fun to watch her but I´m sure glad I didn´t sit on her.

R.I.P Little Red One

The little red pony next to our pasture had to be put down last week while we were in Sälen. He broke his leg in the pasture. Hopefully he is in a better place now!

Home Sweet Home

We are back home again after one week skiing in Sälen and it feels good to be back.
We drove home yesterday to avoid the sunday traffic coming and going to the skiarea.
This afternoon I went to see my little pony. She is alive, not hurt and was more than happy to see me. She was standing outside and sleeping when I got there. I called her and she gave me a big whinnie and nodded with her head. Sooo cute! I just love my little Milvs! You could see that she was glad to see me. I really missed her while I was gone!
Some disturbing things happened in the stable while I was gone and Malin the owner was acting strange today. I don´´t want to write about it on here though.
But I do want to mention that it was not a nice day at the stable!
Tomorrow I start playing with The Milvs again and when I feel for it I will start riding her maybe next week.
Shawn and I are moving in to Helsingborg next week so it´´s going to be a busy week - once again.

Winterbreak

Milva is now officially on winterbreak. It´s still freezing cold here, -13 again this night.
We are leaving tomorrow night for our skitrip and aunti Anita will take care of Milva. I know she is in good hands but it still feels awful to leave her alone.
I made Milva some hot herbtea today with honey and she loved it. I´m worried she is not drinking enough in this cold!
1 am in the morning, time to go to bed and sleep a few hours before feeding in the morning.

Touch It

It was another sunny winterday here. One more time I went to the stable early to feed the horses. It shows now that Milva is on a diet and she has lost a lots of weight already.
After mucking out and filling hot water into the bathtube I played 'touch-it' with Milva.
After two times she knew exactly what I wanted. I just had to focus on a subject, walk in z3 or z4 and she touched whatever I was foccusing on with her nose, turned around and waited for her carrot. Too funny. My little smart pony.
She touched all kinds of stuff she never saw before and definitely tought it was funny as well.
4 more days until we are leaving for our skitrip. Getting doubts now if I can leave her by herself here...

The Horse | Cold Weather Nutrition

The Horse | Cold Weather Nutrition

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The Horse | Winter Hoof Care Tips

The Horse | Winter Hoof Care Tips

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The Horse | Cold Weather Horse Care Review

The Horse | Cold Weather Horse Care Review

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I found this article on Elisabeth´s blog. After all those discussions we have in our stable I thought it´s a good idea to post it.

Let It Snow, Let It Snow

It snowed again almost all day and it was freezing cold. Mucked out the stable and filled the bathtube with hot water.
Walked Milva for 20min in the ridinghouse then there came to many people in and I left.
Otherwise I had a very unproductive day and didn´t get much done.
Oh well, another day tomorrow :)

Nonviolent Communication by Marshall Rosenberg

Linda Parelli recommendet a new book on her blog. Definitely going to order it.
www.cnvc.org

Stary Winternight

We got up late today. After working over Christmas and New Years it felt good to stay in bed longer. The cats usually wake us up a few times a night, playing and chasing each other.
I got first to the stable late in the afternoon and the sun already went down.
We had a wonderful stary winternight. I just love the winter!
When I came to the stable I discoverd that no one fed the horses this morning! Not good at all! That means they went 21 hours without food. Poor Milva baby was sure hungry and probably cold too!
I gave them alots to eat and Anita and I decided to give them more food now as long as it´s so cold.
The stable was very busy this evening. I expected it to be empty so late on a saturday evening. No use to go into the ridinghouse with so many people in there.
I will just take it easy with Milva the next week. Taking her for walks and playing Touch-It outside. When we come back from skiing I will start to ride her and work on our level 2.
Pizza and movie now!

Gott Nytt År - Happy New Year

2010 has arrived. I´m thinking about my New Year´s Resolutions and will post them later on.
I had to work yesterday and I´m also at work today. Milva and I spent undemanding time together and cuddled alot. She is such a cuddly horse.
It´s very cold here right now -12 tonight. Hope my little pony will not freeze too much.
Well, back to work....