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Phew! A few weeks since I’ve written. Have been riding a lot and just too tired at the end of the day to update. And, as usual, my weekends are pretty packed so by the end of the day, I just want to relax.

Let’s see what I can remember from the weekend (kind of a sad statement there, isn’t it?) Kick-started my weekend by taking my niece riding. I’d bought a bareback pad (I hate it) so that the two of us could ride together. I have never ridden Justin double or bareback but there we were, doing it. I figured if I were 12, I’d do it in a heartbeat. Sometimes, you just gotta live like you’re 12. So, we got Justin all set up. I parked him on the fence line – he’s such a good boy and always stands quietly – hopped on, then had my niece do the same and voila! We were on our way.

The day was overcast but it was still just beautiful in the woods. All the trees have all their leaves and everything is a lush green. All the trimming I did at the end of the winter was pretty much for naught. With all the leaves on the trees now, the branches hang lower and I’ll be needing to trim things up all over again.

Anyway, Jessie and I did my usual ride – out the back end of the property, cross the creek, along the creek, cross the creek again, up the long grade thru the pines and cedars, along the truck trails, past the deer stands, past the collapsed cabin, around the pond, then up the very steep hill (Justin was such a good boy), past the hunting shed, across the cement water bridge, thru two more creeks then out of the woods thru the neighborhood.

Jessie loved it. We had to get off a few times to readjust the bareback pad. Justin would twitch like crazy and that would tell me one of the buckles might be sitting on his rib or something. So, we’d hop off, fix it, she’d leg me up, then she’d get on by stepping on my foot. I got such a kick out of this because that was how we’d get on bareback when we were kids. One would swing up (yes, there was a time when I could do it), then they’d put their foot out for the other to use it like a stirrup (thankfully, that part I can still do).

We had a great time and I was thrilled to be able to take her out on him while our combined weight is still at a decent amount to where we don’t make him miserable. She’s getting so tall. I think she’s only about one or two inches shorter than me! Later, Bob and I took her to dinner at our favorite Italian place.

Bob and I started off Saturday with breakfast at Silver Diner. It’d been awhile since we’d gotten to do that and I love when we get to hang out together. After that, we went to Home Depot to look at frameless shower doors (yay!). Ahh, the home improvement thing is never done. We did find one, got the number off of it and took measurements home to make sure everything checked out. The following day, we went back (after breakfast at IHOP, of course) and it turned out, there were none in stock. There was another man looking for the same thing and after he shared his frustrations with Home Depot’s inventory system and their lack of concern for the problem, we decided we’d head to Lowe’s. I’d been there weeks earlier checking out the same thing and knew they had the same doors. So, off we went to Lowe’s, were lucky enough to get service right away and ordered the door (it was not in stock). It should be in in about 3 weeks. My contractor is happy.

Other cool house related stuff is that we finally got a good estimate on our deck. That will get underway this upcoming week. Pretty pysched about that. I know Bob is very psyched about it because this is a project that he has the most interest in. The last one was pretty much for me.

OK, back to Saturday. So, after we ran around a bit, went to Target, etc., I went to Codi's for her graduation party. So good to see her and Liz and everyone else. Just hard to believe Codi is all grown up!

Afterwards, I headed out to the barn. It was a beautiful day and while I felt I should really work on my position on the flat, I decided the day was too pretty to waste in the ring. So, we went out for a trail ride. Aside from being so peaceful, the trail ride is so good for Justin because there are hills and he has to work across a lot of uneven ground. It is a good workout for him without doing much more than a walk. We did canter a bit. He started to trot and I just let him do what he wanted. He chose to canter and he felt good.

Yesterday, I went to Hillsboro to look at some horses. Very cute place and cute horses. I’m telling Terri about one. I rode both. One was a cute chestnut mare and the other was a baby – a 2 y.o. coming 3. He was adorable. Unfortunately, I didn’t get to ride Justin yesterday but I plan on getting out to see him today. The whole week is going to be beautiful.

Didn't get to do a ton of riding this weekend. Here's how things played out: Lisa and Phil were in town for Gold Cup. I had dinner w/them in DC on Friday night. It's a tradition we have so that we can spend some time together before things get crazy the following day. Saturday was a dreary Gold Cup day but I got ready to go. Had to go pick up my car from the shop first (I already scratched it). Once that was done, headed to GC and met everyone there. I think I was the only person on the entire grounds with a coat. It was FREEZING. I think we only watched a few races, which is typically true of going to Gold Cup. But, all the same crew were there in the tent which is always nice. My boss and his wife and daughter stopped by so that was nice. Anyway, I stayed until 4:00, the whole time, itching to ride.

When I headed home, I stopped off at Lowes to pick up some paint to do my bathroom. Then, Bob and I went to dinner at IHOP. I get a kick out of IHOP. Bob and I normally go there for breakfast on the weekends but since we didn't get to (he had Reserves), I decided we'd do it for dinner.

The next day, I got up, had breakfast and started painting the bathroom. Had one coat down and left for Warrenton to visit my friend Joan to help her with her young horse, Eddie. He's an adorable off the track Thoroughbred. She and Eddie did great and we had fun messing with him. After that, I headed to see my horse.

Decided to ride Justin in the ring for a bit. Maybe just do trails on the weekends. I am so concerned about keeping his topline up and keeping him strong behind. Ring work is the best for that, although hills out on trails are always good for the haunches. Justin always impresses me with how much he remembers. He was a good boy.

Today, I had to get out to the barn to meet Mark, who shoes Justin. My appt was at 3:00 so I left the office at 2:00. After Justin got shod, I rode. It was pretty and I enjoyed getting another ride in. Justin was good again. I'm working on getting him supple on both sides. He is much more supple to the right. I did a lot of work at the walk and very short work at the trot. I did bending and counter bending, haunches in and half passes. We worked a lot on the bit. I let him stretch out long and go on the buckle at the end. He was a very good boy and only fussed a little.

Hopefully I can ride him some more this week and keep up my program. We have these 5:00 meetings at the office lately and that can cramp my style. We'll see...