Horze Bridle headstall

Nice, huh? Soon to be a giveaway, the Horze Venice Bridle...

Close up of the Horze Venice bridle

This is the browband -- love the stitching on this Horze Venice Bridle. Soon to be a giveaway!

Horze Venice bridle -- wait till ya see it on Ri!

Photo from Horze.com

This is my next giveaway, a Venice bridle from Horze.com.  Riley will model it, I'll show it from a few angles, and give it away! It's butter-soft and gorgeous, in Full size. Stay tuned.

My photo of the actual bridle, sans reins (which are included!)

Batwing Newman II and Bob update

This is a busy time of year at work, and some projects that are things only I can do --"the Stacey Show" -- gotta get'em off the ground myself. Also I'm prepping for my second trek to visit my folks and praying for decent weather.

Bob update
 Bob is on week three of radiation, stronger this time. He is losing his fingernails and toenails, and while this is expected, the painfulness of the process is an unexpected and unpleasant surprise. He can't use his hands much, so I'm his go-to for opening jars, some doors, twisty light-switches, etc. To top it off, he fell twice on Saturday, once in the house and once on the way to an awards banquet. No explanation.

 There is an awesome Horze giveaway coming up (hint -- need a dressage bridle?) which will likely stretch into several posts.

 Meanwhile, more kitty cuteness. Newman in repose.

Thoroughbred High Point, LVDA 2014

This year -- the 2014 show season -- a friend of mine and I collaborated to sponsor a new award in our local GMO (Lehigh Valley Dressage Association). The Thoroughbred High Point Awards was given for the first time to three lovely ladies and their thoroughbred dressage horses who excelled in schooling and recognized shows last season at Training, First, and Second Levels.

It was very gratifying and fun to see these ladies be recognized for their success. Harvey is nodding in approval, as is a lovely boy no longer with us, Manhattan (Rudy). Go thoroughbreds.
 

Birthday Credo: Don't dream it, be it

This.

Today is my birthday, which is not an event I typically recognize too much, but I happen to have a great image for it. Happy birthday to me, and this birthday inspiration comes to us from Tim Curry, aka Frank N Furter -- TC, the walking illustration of drag-queen-cool, versatility, and longevity. Thank you.

Mom and me: childhood photos

The left-hand photo is my mom as a child; on the right is me. I'm not sure that we look that much alike generally but you can see similarities here...

Louisville Airport -- take beauty where you find it

This gorgeous wire sculpture is in the Louisville Airport. It took my breath away.

Runaway Carriage Horse in NYC

Even the horses in NYC are in a hurry! This carriage horse slipped away from his handler and went for a brisk tour of the city...

 

Batwing position

This is how Newman likes to lie down -- it looks so uncomfortable, but he splays out with feet tucked...

Harvey's rainy day hair

Harv loves his Dutch door. Even in near-freezing weather he pokes his face out and enjoys the fresh air. Love his wet face...

 

Harvey's winter fruit salad

Red roan cuteness

Wishing I were shorter...

Harvey's got his eye on you!

Riley sighting -- chestnut and orange

Here is Riley in enjoying he morning.

Harvey's beautiful coat

Harv's coat is thick and long and beautiful. Here it stands up a bit in the cold...

Harvey in the sunshine II

He has just eaten, and he seems a little sleepy.

Harvey in the sunshine I

I'm away with my family, so I'm sharing some recent family (horse family) photos. Gorgeous day and finally in the thirties -- time to enjoy some sunshine.

Dad update

My dad was in the ER Friday night (the 9th) with abdominal pain. On Saturday they said his digestive system had slowed or stopped and they thought it was all of the meds (cancer, Parkinsons, blood pressure) he was on. Dad is now off all meds (except pain) and is out of immediate danger. As I'm writing now, he may be going home tomorrow, Monday the 13th. I will be flying home to visit with him.  Not sure what the future holds. I'm leaving Bob to contend with his radiation and yet another change in his chemo drugs. I'm so grateful to have wonderful people taking care of the horses in my absence. 

Black lace helmet?

Nothing says sexy like a lacey riding helmet from KEP Italia Cromo Black Lace Helmet -- available at vrtack.com for just under $900.

...

Pink (orange?) Python helmet

From KEP Italia, Python Limited Edition, (under $900)....

Just crappy news...

Out-take from the Christmas photo shoot. Harv was NOT READY!

Bob underwent radiation therapy in November -- total skin electron beam therapy. He concluded treatments in early December, and we were hopeful that it might bring lasting remission. The theory is that the radiation knocks the cancer back to square one, and it makes the job of the regular drugs easier.

Well, this time it was not to be. The remission lasted only about five weeks, and while it did make his skin improve (normal!) it caused other issues that detracted from what might have been enjoyable good health.

Round two of radiation starts next Tuesday. This time they're going to hit it a little harder -- poor Bob, he had reactions to "treatment lite" -- now we'll have to deal with some blistering and swelling beyond what we had the last time.

Bob is not working now either. Even in the few weeks he was starting to get well, he was talking about going back to work. No chance of that now, at least not yet. He'll be commuting 90 minutes one way to his radiation treatments four days a week.

He seldom complains, but recently he did state (pretty loudly) that he was NOT going to let the disease stop him from the things he enjoys. He's hanging in there. But it is harder for him, I know.

The rough thing is, there is no cure -- it's got to be managed -- and that seems to be getting harder to do. One doctor told us we just needed to find the right treatment. I hope he  is right...

Still got it! Have I posted?

Buckskin Morgan doing Dressage

Love this horse -- color and talent!

Dressage nail art!

Nail Art By Kerioak features a dressage nail art, including this Rider on Dressage Horse Nail Art Stickers -- at $4 it looks like a fun purchase!

For the non-dressagey there is...

And for others, there are cats, dogs, ferrets, and wild animals...

Robert Dover demonstrates passage

I don't think RD has a reputation for being a super-affable trainer -- but here's a lighter moment in a clinic...

Lisa Wilcox on Thoroughness

Huge horse, great insights.

Blue roan pony love...

More Blue Roan Love. This time it is pony mare love, Donatella ridden by Hailey Johns...

Harvey's new year message

Happy New Years from Harvey. His words of wisdom for a great 2015...

Keep the sun on your back, keep the feed dish full, have a cushy digs, and don't worry about a few extra pounds. 

I feel so lucky to have Harv and Riley in my life. 

I know I don't talk much about Riley lately. Riley gets wonderful full-service care at his barn, and I never worry about him--I just go and ride and have fun. No recent video either, and here's why.  Bob came out once and found my trainer videoing me in a lesson. I got a severe scolding from him -- while my trainer was perfectly willing (just short segments), and it is very valuable to me to review it,  it is a distraction and maybe asking too much. Bob seldom pushes hard on an issue, but he actually forbade it. Now I only have video when Bob comes to watch. Sorry!

So that's Riley.

Harv is a stronger focal point in my life right now, because he needs me. He is my last "chore" of the day, and I visit him every night to feed him, heat his water, clean his legs, change his wraps, pick his stall, and pat him. It takes about 45 minutes to do everything. Harv follows my progress through these chores, bright-eyed and attentive -- it's like I'm his TV. When it's all done and he is tucked in, I feel such a mixture of emotions -- satisfaction, love, and relief in knowing he is safe and tucked in. I can finally relax and let the day be over. It truly is the best part of my day...

Here's to a wonderful 2015, all!