First Ride on Jellybean

     Some of you may recall that Jellybean is very lethargic after a rabies vaccination from the last time she had shots. As a result, I decided it might be a good time to get on Jellybean. We walked her out of the stall, and over the round pen. I walk/trot/canter warmed Jellybean up, just enough to make her realize she was lazy at heart, and feeling poorly to boot. Then Robert led her around the round pen with the halter and lead before I climbed over on her back. She didn't do anything, not even a tail swish! Now this could be due to fortuitous timing, or she just likes me too much to throw me in the dirt (unlikely). In any case, this is just a small step towards the bigger goal of having a broke horse. 

My Goals for the next six months, not neccessarily in this order:

• Accept bridle
• Ground driving with bridle
• Lunging with side reins
• Accept rider
• Drive under saddle
• Accept leg pressure

As the fall comes back, (which will be sooner rather than later) I want to set up a weekly ride with her, where we work on the basics of giving to pressure and accepting more advanced cues.

All of this is great, but I was REALLY REALLY excited to sit on the back of my pony yesterday :)