Shannon's Baby

She was born about 5am this morning! A beautiful bay filly! She's our second baby born this spring. She's still wobbly but gaining strength. I was finally able to get this pic after a couple of visits. Most of the afternoon, she slept near the front of the stall and I couldn't get a good picture. Just before I went home, I tried again and she was up! What a cutie!

II Kings 24:4

Today in my Bible study I finished reading II Kings. Israel has already been exiled to Assyria. Now it's time for Judah's last days. While I was reading, a passage hit me between the eyes! II Kings 24:4 says "For he (Manasseh) had filled Jerusalem with innocent blood, and the LORD was not willing to forgive." (NIV, emphasis mine) Doesn't that almost sound blasphemous? Our Lord not willing to forgive?

Then I remembered that this happened before the Crucifixion of Jesus. The sins of the people of Judah were so bad God wouldn't put up with any more. There was no atonement through Christ.

How blessed we are because of Jesus! He took my place so I can have forgiveness. He took your place so you can have forgiveness, too. Isn't it wonderful to know that God will never be unwilling to forgive those who call on the Name of His Son? This means that there is nothing I can do to EARN forgiveness. I can never be good enough or righteous enough to rate forgiveness on my own merits.

When we do sin, we have an advocate with the Father. We can ask for forgiveness and receive it because of what Jesus has done! Jesus stands before the Father for me and says, "Father, forgive her. She is Mine." Thank You, Jesus.

The Maze

Here is The Maze! This tricky configuration of poles can be as easy or as challenging as you want. By entering and exiting through the gaps in the outer ring and changing direction, both you and your horse can get a real workout! Rusty and I worked the Maze at the trot and the canter today. Wow! Rusty was soaked when we were through! He wanted to run too fast and I had quite a time getting him to slow down and balance himself through the Maze. There is not a lot of room around that triangle so he has to be balanced and collected. At the canter, it almost feels like a canter pirouette! We worked both directions at the trot and then at the canter. This little exercise keeps you on your toes! Use your outside aids in the center circle so you are "pushing" your horse from behind not "pulling" him around the Maze. When asking your horse to exit the center, use your inside aids and move him outward.

I do not have the dimensions for the spacing of the poles at this time. I will try to get that from Marie. As you can see from the picture, our poles are knocked a little off-center in places. Don't be afraid to give it a try! It's a real experience!

What a Workout!

Today Rusty and I had our first lesson with Marie in several months! I feel it's important to take lessons when I can because bad riding habits can crop up without an instructor watching me and catching them. I'd like to take lessons more often, but finances are tight.

Today Rusty and I worked on "The Maze". The Maze is a triangle of jumping poles or PVC pipes surrounded by six poles set at angles to bracket the triangle. This is hard to describe without being able to draw it. I'll try to post a pic of The Maze so you can see what it's like.

Anyway, starting at the trot, you enter the inner circle around the triangle at one of the gaps in the outer brackets. You can go in and out of the gaps and around the triangle in many different patterns. You can change directions, too. This exercise really helps the horse work his hindquarters and be better balanced. There can be no speed demons here! The turns are tight and can be tricky!

After we trotted the maze, we cantered it! We didn't change direction mid-maze, but I was able to canter around the center triangle full circle and then exit through the gap! It was quite a workout for both of us! I'm looking forward to working on The Maze more with Rusty. Wow!

Here She Is!

Here's Velvet's new Baby! I took these when she was just over 2 days old. She was still wobbly on her legs. Mom was nervous about people around her little one so I got these two pics and left them in peace. She's black like Daddy and she was an unexpected early arrival!

We're still expecting several more little ones. Got to keep my camera handy!

New Arrival!

Very early Tues morning -- 4/7 -- the first baby for 2009 was born at the stables! She's a black filly and her mom is Velvet. As soon as I can, I'll try to get pics of her! Wow!

Happy Birthday, Rusty!

Today Rusty is 17 years old! Happy Birthday, Rusty!

Here's to many more years together!