Breakfast In Bed

That´s how I met the horses this morning. Lina is missing cause she slept in the stable instead.
I sat next to Milva for about 10min before she decided to wake up and when she did she gave me a deep whinney. I fed her some oats while she laid down and she stayed down for another 5 minutes, completly relaxed.
I put the 45´ on her and got my carrot stick and took her to the ridinghouse, fed her some more cookies gave her some scratches and left again and took her grazing combined with 10min of stick to me over cavalettis.
25min passenger lesson on Orkan, using my bareback pad, around the pasture. Yesterday I rode him 20min - passenger lesson.
On the way to the stable I listened to an awesome Parelli audio. I think it was the one from May. Got to listen to it again and write down some information about it.

RB?....And It´s Not About....

I screwed up big times.
Instead of putting our relationship first I totally got obsessed about our level 4 audition. Well, I should have filmed it a few weeks ago when things still were going fine because now it might take a while to get to that point again.
As Linda likes to say....it´s not about....
What got in my way was my sense for perfectionism. Another quote of Linda...horses hate perfectionism...
Milva looking outside in the circling game - see post underneath - yes, she rather would be somewhere else than playing with me.
Today she topped it when she started to whinney which she has never done before on the circling game. Well, good thing she has never done it before!  It was like an alarm clock going off - wake up and face the problem. If I still would have ignored that sign and continued to torture her with the circling game I would have destroyed even more.
Another problem I had to face today was her galopping in the circling game instead of cantering. She did give me a nice lap in the beginning and that´s where I should have brought her in and rewarded her and let her rest to give my little lbi more time...but I did not...which resultet in protesting even more.
Oh my... but it´s no use to beat myself up over it, lesson learned and time to move on...
After consulting with my Savvy sisters I have new arrows in my quiver and a new plan.

Longeing vs. Playing by Linda Parelli

I´m just saying - WOW, sometimes I´m a real idiot!!! I should get this article tattoed behind my eyelids!! How could I forget...

Something is happening with Parelli students all over the world that is a bit concerning, and it compelled me to write this blog. I need to clearly explain the difference between longeing (or “lunging”) and playing with your horse – because I’m seeing the Circling Game turning into longeing!

At the very first clinic I attended with Pat Parelli in 1989, he said, “I am a one-man coalition against longeing. I think it is one of the worst things you can do to a horse. Longeing exercises the body while the mind goes to pot.”

Wow. That hit me hard at that time; I was longeing my horse for at least 30 minutes to get him safe to ride. But of course he didn’t get safer, just fitter.

Recently I’ve been able to watch a large number of students, in different parts of the world, warming their horses up for riding and I’ve seen a pattern developing that would make steam come out of Pat’s ears!

- People walking in circles watching their horses intently as they trot around them.

- Horses being asked to carry their heads low as they trot.

Yikes – this is just like longeing! The horses are going in mindless circles, and their heads might as well be tied down because it is not by choice that they are carrying their heads that low.

I don’t know where this is coming from, but it’s spreading and I need to say something about it before people start to think this is how it should be done!

Warming a horse up on the ground means that you allow him to express himself; you give him what he needs and then he’ll want to do what you want. This is what Pat means when he says, “Cause your idea to become your horse’s idea, but understand your horse’s idea first.” Circling is often the first thing people do on the ground, but it is not necessarily what the horse needs. Yes, you should be able to do the Circling Game, but don’t make it your automatic go-to first thing.

How not to longe your horse: Keep your feet still, encourage the horse to use his brain (he has to think and take responsibility to maintain gait and direction without micromanagement), and allow him to put his head anywhere he wants because that’s going to tell you about his mental and emotional state and help you think about what you need to do.

- If his head is up, he’s on adrenaline: You’re going to need to get him calmer by getting him to go a little faster and run off the adrenaline (see my previous blog about asking the horse faster for a lap and waiting for three to see the effect, repeat as needed); if it’s a left-brain horse, do something else to get him more connected, such as a Touch It Pattern at walk then trot, or going exploring with him.

- If he is looking out of the circle, he’s wishing he was somewhere else! You probably need to back off the pressure, stop micromanaging or bring him in more often to find comfort with you and maybe even get some scratches or treats.

- If he lowers and stretches his neck, with nose leading (not over-flexed) and above his knees, he is relaxed and swinging through his body. This is what you are aiming for, and when you use the right approaches for your horse’s Horsenality™, this is what you will get. And once you’ve got it, your horse is probably ready to ride.

I hope this helps you to think more about how to do what your horse needs and to focus on making sure you are using psychology rather than mechanics as you play with your horse and develop your skills. Your horses will thank you, and we’ll keep that smile on Pat’s face… not to mention keep making the world a better place for horses and the people who love them.
Tagged as: linda parelli, Parelli Media
.
http://linda.parellinaturalhorsetraining.com/2011/12/longeing-vs-playing/

Rain, Rain Go Away

another one of Johan´s pic. I love the colours in those pictures!
Not much new on the horsey front. Very unlike me I made a very short trip to the stable today, only to check on the critters, gave Milva some extra hay and left again.
My beloved Scooty decided to break down yesterday when I was about to scoot home from work - at 10.00 p.m. The downside of working in another country - like me in Denmark, is, that it can get pretty complicated to get home in the middle of the night. All the pouring rain didn´t make it any more fun either.
One of the reason why I love my job so much are my amazing collegues! When one of them found out that I was stranded, she immediately called her husband, without telling me - they live 40km from our work, and he came in the middle of the night to lend me their car so I could get home and he drove home with my collegue. Gotta love them!!!
As a typical sagitarious I thought a little bit of rest, some more gas and oil would fix Scootys problem - like with horses, a bit of undemanding time, some carrots and hay. Needless to say it did not...lol...
Now I´m looking forward to an adventerous trip home tonight, using train, ferry and bus.

My Heart And Soul

Milva is putting all her heart in  trying  to understand what I mean, now that I got particular with the circling game.
We played with cavalettis to help her to lift her back up and some small jumps. Milva will never become a jumping horse though. After every jump she stops and turns around...lol... too much squeeze game, maybe ;).
We got 4 perfect flying leadchanges as well and all 4 times she continued to canter. Those flying leadchanges come very naturally to her, it´s a bigger deal for me than for her ;).
Another picture taken by Johan.

Hi Ho Off To Canter We Go

...and happily looking outside, with some grass in her mouth - to make the circling game a little bit more fun you need to bring a snack - of course ;). I totally understand her, I would do the same thing...
Playing with lots of sideways - to loosen up her shoulders which will help her with the flying leadchanges.
As Pat says, the better they can go sideways and back up the better they can do everything else.
We also play with lots of backing up to bring her weight more back.
Lots of transitions like 8 canter strides and then 8 trotting steps and then 8 canter again. Lots of canter transition will helpen her to get more strength plus keep the circling game interesting and her more alert. The more I keep her occupied the smaller is the change that she starts to make up her own games ;).
I also make the circles smaller and then bigger again.
My goal is that she will lift her back, arch her neck and relax from her poll and that she will not fall on her inside shoulder and twist her head to the outside. So I wanna bring her nose onto the line of the circle.
Can´t be that hard, really.

Glad Midsommar - Happy midsummer everyone!

Anita and I spent all afternoon/evening in the stable. Needless to say we were the only ones. Everyone else was out celebrating midsummer, which is huge holiday in Sweden, almost bigger than Christmas.
Anita brought her young Main Coone kitten Apache for environmental training and he got to meet Milva and Orkan.
I played with Milva a little bit at liberty and got a lovely sideways over the barrels. I could send her sideways over it from standing several meters away - yeah!
Online we played with some level 4 tasks I wanna have in my audition like longreining her in trot in the weavepattern, circling game with 3 flying lead changes,...
I could film my audition any day now BUT I really want to get her canter better on both leads. To the right she still likes to look outside, push her shoulder in and takes off.
Like Anita said she simply doesn´t have the strength, muscles nor the physics yet to stay in better balance and the right lead has always been her weaker side.
Let´s not forget that Milva is not ridden either, she is only played with on the ground. A well ridden horse has of course a better physic, more muscles and strength and therefor a better balance.
It was good to get Anita´s input on some things cause she can see things I don´t, or just got accustomed to and think it´s normal.
I´m pretty satisfied with the canter on the left lead though. It´s more balaced, relaxed, uphill and slower. We will just continue to play with the canter some more and see how much we can improve over the next few weeks.
My ropehandling needs to get better too - I´m still getting Milva or myself wrapped up in the 45´ - or I stumble over it...lol. The good thing though is that Milva always stops as soon as I got her tangled up - even if she all exuberant and bucking around. As soon as she can feel the rope between her legs or under her belly she stops and gives me the look - "again?"
I also rode on Orkan in the NH and using my bareback pad, doing 20min of passenger lesson. It was super fun! I need to watch more freestyle dvd´s though and the fluidity dvd´s as well.

After we took the horses out in the pasture again we met the stable owner and she asked me how it went so I told her about our canter challenge. Big mistake - why do I never learn to just shut up and not tell her anything. Of course she gave me her opinion which was that you need to put sidereins and a bit on a horse to get it in the right form otherwise you will never get a balanced, uphill canter and the horse will never use the right muscles.
Really? Well you just watch me....

Snuggle Time

2 hours of grazing time with the munch this morning. I let her take over and just followed her where ever she wanted to go and graze - except for the big field cause the grass is growing again and we are not allowed back there until they cut the next batch of haysilage.
I still think it´s very fascinating to see which herbs she chooses to eat.

Stick To Me In W/T/C

I totally love all those pictures Johan took! An awesome, professional camera, linse, tripod and a good eye for the perfect shot makes all the difference! Also, he is always willing to come - early mornings when it had - 20 outside or late evenings, even though he has to get up early next morning to leave for work. We sure have the perfect neighbour - and I do think he likes my cooking...lol
Yesterday, Anita and I spent 2 hours of undemanding time with the ponies. We sat in the sun and let the horses graze between two pastures.
Today I took her grazing in the morning, asked her for one lay down in the sand paddock and then played a short session of circling game with one flying lead change.
I know now why the flying leadchanges didn´t work for a while. When I asked her to change direction in canter I put my energy so much down so she would slow down and trot instead of maintaing gate.
It always works best if I just do things without thinking and analyzing too much.
I guess the flying leadchanges came just too easy to us and that´s why I started to over analyze them and trying to figure out why it worked so easy.
Today I was just going with the flow and waited for what happened, and see there - it works again - dah!

June Photoshoot

Johan, our neighbour came with his super cool camera to take some pictures tonight.
Those pictures are taken between 8 p.m and 9 p.m - love those light swedish summer nights.
I was in the stable in the afternoon as well but just as I started to play with Milva the stable´s dressage trainer came and started with her lessons... needless to say that I do not wanna be in the ridinghouse while she is teaching and it was pouring outside. I took Milva grazing instead for a little while and went home again and watched some videos on Parelli tube to get some inspiration.

The Mayonnaise Jar Lesson

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day is not enough, remember the mayonnaise jar and two cups of coffee.

A professor stood before his philosophy class and had some items in front of him.
When the class began, wordlessly, he picked up a very large and empty mayonnaise jar and fills it with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.
The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured it into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.

He then asked the students again if the jar was full. They agreed it was.
The professor next picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar. Of course, the sand filled up everything else.

He asked once more if the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous “YES”.
The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty space between the sand. The students laughed.
“Now,” said the professor, as the laughter subsided, “I want you to recognize that this jar represents your life. The golf balls are the important things - God, family,

children, health, friends, and favorite passions. Things, that if everything else was lost and only they remained, your life would still be full. The pebbles are the things that matter like your job, house, and car. The sand is everything else -- the small stuff.” he said.

 “If you put the sand into the jar first,” he continued, “There is no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. The same goes for life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you will never have room for the things that are

important to you...” he told them.

 “So... pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Worship with your family. Play with your children. Take your partner out to dinner. Spend time with good friends. There will always be time to clean the house and fix the dripping tap. Take care of the golf balls first -- the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.”

 One of the students raised her hand and inquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled and said, “I'm glad you asked. It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there's always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.”

Playing In The Big Field

We have been playing in the big field for the last week, mostly with different variations of the circling game like travelling circles in trot and canter using the whole 45´line, lots of transitions and change of direction, S-pattern and making circles bigger and smaller.
Left lead circles are going very well, right lead circles need some more practice.
It´s totally fun to have her on the end of the 45´and watch her way out there while she still stays connected.
I hoped to take some videos today and pictures but of course it´s rainy again...

"I Believe - When What You Believe Matters!" written by Eldon Taylor

I know, I always say - this is one of my favourite books...but honestly, if you only read one book a year then read this one.

From NY Times Best Selling Author - Eldon Taylor

What is the foundation underpinning success in all areas of life? Is there a blueprint? What if you learned that your beliefs were the very cornerstones that supported success, and that having a few of these could give rise to success in some areas while complete failure in others? Would you choose to build a stronger overall foundation?

Very few people today doubt the power of positive thinking. We all know that if we expect to fail, then failure is inevitably what we get, and there is also the issue of the mind/body connection—science is repeatedly demonstrating the power of mind and belief to heal. What you believe can and does have a huge impact on the quality of your life—from success in business to success in relationships, from your ability to learn and master new subjects to your ability to heal your own body. But have you ever stopped to consider your own beliefs—to truly examine them and decide for yourself if they are serving you or sabotaging you?

www.eldontaylor.com

Harnessing The Magic of Your Beliefs

What is the foundation underpinning success in all areas of life? Is there a blueprint? What if you learned that your beliefs were the very cornerstones that supported success, and that having a few of these could give rise to success in some areas while complete failure in others? Would you choose to build a stronger overall foundation?

Very few people today doubt the power of positive thinking. We all know that if we expect to fail, then failure is inevitably what we get. We are all familiar with the mind/body connection, and science is repeatedly demonstrating the power of mind and belief to heal. But this power of belief goes much further! What you believe can and does have a huge impact on the quality of your life—from success in business to success in relationships, from your ability to learn and master new subjects to your ability to heal your own body. Your beliefs influence almost everything in your life, from your DNA to the operation of your endocrine and immune systems; from your emotional well-being to the stability of your mood states and attitudes; from your relationships with others to your relationship with yourself—in short, with literally every aspect of your life?

But have you ever stopped to consider your own beliefs—to truly examine them and decide for yourself if they are serving you or sabotaging you?

Eldon Taylor has spent over 25 years researching the power of the mind and developing scientifically proven methods to use this power to enhance the quality of your life. I Believe is a book that will not only inspire you, but will highlight the kinds of beliefs you hold that may be causing you to fail. In the process, it will provide you with the opportunity to choose, once again, the beliefs that drive your life.

On The Way Home From Work

The most stunning sunset when I scooted home from work last night. This picture was taken at 10.10 pm! Gotta love those light scandinavian nights. I must have one of the nicest way to work. I´m passing 12 stables to my to work and the road takes me through some huge forest and of course there is the ferry ride which is just amazing, and so it the view on my way home when you can see the sea at night or the lights of Helsingborg on the other side.

Parelli May Shipment

May Audio CD
"The Original Three L's! Loading, Liberty & Lead Changes"Pat explains the origin of those 3 L’s, including an eye-opening experience involving trailer loading – a classic “What did you learn?” moment. Pat learned that trailer loading is the ultimate measure of trust, because it brings horses’ claustrophobic tendencies and resistances to the forefront. The Seven Games were truly born from those three original L’s. Pat goes on to talk about lead changes and diagonals, and how they truly are part of a horse’s natural movement; we just need to learn how to be in time with the horse. Pat concludes, as always, with the reminder to “keep it natural.”

May Mastery Lesson
Pat's Lesson - Wait for the Weight
Linda's Lesson - Lead Changes

May Savvy TimesThis month's issue features articles on Building a Great Relationship, Fear of Flying, Auditions 101 and more...plus your stories from around the globe.

Such A Perfect Day!

Aren´t those the cutest cupcakes ever!
The old farmer cut the grass the other day and yesterday he put wrap around it so now we are allowed to play on the big field for a couple of days. It would be the perfect place to film an audition.
We spent three hours on the field and it was totally magical. Milva was all tuned in and very much in a "Yes, Mam" - mood. I only needed to think about a change of gait or direction and she would do it.
Mostly we played with different variations of the circling game using the 45`. She wasn´t like that yesterday though, yesterday she was more like rascal - a very sweet one but netherless a hoodlum ;).
I devided the circling game in three short sessions with a long grazing break in between, perfect for a lbi.

Parelli Play Evening

Patricia and I met again for our weekly Parelli play evening.
Mainly I played with the circling game tonight, doing lots of transitions and change of direction.
Grazing 1 hour in the morning and 1 in the evening.

Cheeky Munch

+10 C today, windy, rainy and cold - welcome to Sweden.
15min liberty session: close range circles, stick to me in walk, trot, canter. She is totally cracking me up when we play with stick to me. She tries very hard to mirror exactly my steps, which goes fine in walk and trot but when it comes to canter she is more or less hoping up and down to not get ahead of me and trying to mimick my steps.
Sideways towards and away from me and some spins.
I also got a very nice lay down. She starts to stay down longer and longer - in a laying down position and not sitting up.
She did leave me twice during our playsession. I didn´t prevent it either and just watched what she would do - going down to the other half of the riding house and standing there with her bum towards me, when I engaged her hindquarters she would come stompeding towards me. She did that twice and the third time she tried to leave me I put a tiny bit of pressure on her hindquarters which she thought was not fun at all and decided then to stay with me instead. To funny!

The Importance Of Undemanding Time

or well, that´s my excuse for just chilling out with the Munch. I have to admit we are not getting much done lately. It´s seems to be that as soon summer arrives in Sweden (well, we had 1 week of summer and that´s probably it for this year ;) ), I start to slow down, feeling like Ferdinand the bull, smelling flowers, watching the clouds,.... I´m definitely more effective in the wintertime. Munch pony doesn´t mind though. I think she is right on the page there with me ;).
I´m taking her grazing 1 - 2 hours every morning while I read a book - yes, even in the rain and storm - swedish summer, that it is.
The farier was here last thursday and she was behaving like a super star, didn´t move at all and volonteerd to give all four hoves, standing with her head low, totally relaxed and now and then she would turn her head to check out what the farier was up to.