March Recap/April Goals

Lessons are rained out this morning, so it seems as good a time as any to go over my monthly goals!

Pics from yesterday to break up the text - no riding this weekend, the rain has been incredible yet again

March:
Self:
-Eat well. Yep. Can always be better though
-Exercise 5x a week. Walk min 10k/day on varied terrain or run/walk 5k. Nope. I exercised 5 days a week for sure, but the trails from our house were blocked due to logging and time/convenience became an issue -I didn't meet my distance goals consistently
-Ride min 5x a week.  Done
-Be proactive about tackling my remaining hang ups re: riding Ginger - expand the comfort zone! Meh. I rode her on the trails, I rode in a new 'scary' arena, but I chickened out on riding her in the clinic and never felt great about the other stuff.
-Remember to be patient. Nope
-Try to think more positively and confidently about myself and my riding skills. Recognize the negative self talk. Was a yes until the bad clinic weekend put me into a bit of a tailspin 
-Housekeeping - budget for new boots (ordered them today!), sign up for remaining club memberships for summer riding activities and shows. Done

Bridget:
-Weekly lessons. Done
-Improve canter departs and distance she can hold the canter. YES!
-Related to above, continue to work on pony`s overall fitness and willingness. Yes
-Tame the mane. It's better
-More trail rides, less ring work. (Find her happy place) Nope, did the opposite and pissed her off
-Front shoes? Not yet, but not needed
-Better trailer loading. She`s fine, but not as confident as she could be. Way better right now, trailered her out a few times this month with zero issues

Ginger:
-Weekly lessons. Nope, missed the last one
-Survive clinic mid month. Nope. Took Bridget because lame pony and scaredy cat owner
-Tame mane, beard, and tail. Yes
-Get her out and about (for the clinic plus trail rides)Counting this as a yes because we did get out quite a bit and she came to the clinic even though I didn't ride
-More tools to address lack of focus/spookiness/confidence. Some, but not enough
-On that note, sign her up for the extreme trail cowboy clinic in April. Signed up for clinic, but they might not have the spooky horse/desensitizing stuff due to lack of interest. May end up riding Bridget in a shared lesson re: getting a better canter
-Unhappy with her feet again - I need to be strong/assertive and discuss necessary changes with farrier at next visit. Or use Bridget`s farrier. Who does a really good job, but Ginger hates. And who isn`t `the barn`farrier. Sigh...so much drama. Discussed and I have the OK to trim her myself between visits or use other farrier now and then.

Looks like the ponies held up their ends of the bargain, but I fell short on getting a better handle on my emotions (confidence, focus, patience) and some of the related goals suffered. Always a work in progress :)

The field doesn't look bad at a distance, but the reality is we're drowning in mud and water!

April Goals:

-Continue with March goals that weren't completed
-but, Be realistic re: goals with Ginger and plans for her. Have a good chat with S and vet about plan heading forward
-Get Bridget more confident/enthusiastic about cantering in the ring. Better transitions and more than one 20m circle at a time :) 
-Continue building up canter distance on the trails to help with above
-Clinic third week of April - try to ensure it's a confidence booster/fun time for us both
-Mock show Easter weekend. Pick a couple of dressage tests to run through and schedule some lessons then as well. Get organized for camping out at show grounds and make it fun for Bridget!
-Trailer to big arena and put together a small jump course with lots of room to build momentum. See if that helps Bridget find a purpose!
-Make it to at least one Backcountry Horsemen ride and educational meeting.
-Need to shop for a new helmet.