Why can't my Money tree GROW? I fertilize and fertilize....nothing.

Recently there have been some articles written regarding “how to stretch your showing dollars” or “how to save money while competing in shows, “ and the list goes on. We’ve all read these articles, and some of the solutions offered are great, but I would like to address the “how do I afford lessons on the ROAD to showing.” Sharing breeches, sleeping in your trailer at shows, splitting hotel rooms, sharing a horse – all of those are great ideas if you’re already at show status….but I’m talking about square one…..GETTING to the point of showing is expensive too. I have included some ideas below that I’ve used to stretch my money in order to pay for lessons, because we all know – they’re not cheap.

I’m a newcomer to all this show stuff, in fact my first show is Sept. 19th, but what hasn’t been addressed in these numerous articles over the years, is how an average income, full-time working mother of one finally gets into the swing of fulfilling her childhood dream and showing her average “stock” horse. I know of girls in the area that rely on daddy’s checkbook to buy them their over-priced horse, their lessons, pay for their show bill for their trainer, and quite honestly some of the girls take it for granted. I know this because 3 years ago I worked part-time at a show barn where the trainer got paid A LOT of money to ride these horses all day long, get them ready for the show, give lessons to the girls, take them to the show, win, and then collect the check from the parents at the end of the month. I don’t know if these parents were dr.s or lawyers or what…maybe they took out a second mortgage for this stuff. All I know is that if my child wants to do this someday…I have no clue how I’m going to pay for it. Again, I’m not knocking anyone that has the means to do this, I just want to try to help out the people that don’t have that disposable income. Plus, I know there are show moms and dads that don’t have a disposable income, but fork out those dollars anyway they can, and hopefully my tips can help.

As much as I love all of the radio shows, I hear A TON about pony clubs, and show stables trainers, and other organizations you can join to get further along in your riding “career.” I’m not here to criticize pony clubs or organizations, but I would love for someone to address the other half of the industry….the over the age of 35 group of women that are trying to pursue this little dream of showing. I know they’re out there, because my trainer works with them, and my own friends are like, “how can you afford that and find the time?” Well, it’s not easy. So…here’s my attempt at putting more money into my “lessons jar.”

1. I stopped purchasing $28 dollar liter bottles of salon shampoo and conditioner and went to Target and bought TreSemme for $4 – that’s one lesson in a month…..cha-ching, and my hair is just fine. J
2. I quit going to get a pedicure every 2 months and bought some cute polish and a manicure set for $5 bucks….I soak my feet in a bucket on my patio while staring at my 3 horses….cha-ching…that’s another lesson.
3. I started clipping coupons for everything from diapers to groceries to gas. It’s adding up. In fact I saved $11.47 cents at the grocery store last week. Cha-ching….in a month, that’s half a lesson.
4. I changed my cell phone plan from unlimited to 600 minutes plus rollover….saving close to $20 bucks a month. I wasn’t even coming close to 600 minutes under the unlimited plan….and $20 bucks is $20 bucks.
5. I quit buying breakfast and coffee at the coffee shop I the morning….I get up five minutes earlier and have a bowl of cereal. It’s cheap, it’s healthy, and it’s saving me nearly $10 a week.
6. I’m starting a Mary Kay business, aside from my full-time job. As I’m getting my feet wet, I find it very fun, and my husband says that whatever money I make, is my money to do with what I want. (and we all know where it’s going – lessons) Cool. Plus, it’s not about hosting Mary Kay parties anymore, many people order through the internet, so a few hours a week after I get in from the barn, I can make some horse money.
7. Ask yourself, “do I really need this?” I’m not a huge clothes shopper, in fact I hate it, but I occasionally enjoy getting a new bag or a great new pair of shoes. Right now, personally I would rather have a new pair of breeches, after all, I need to start a whole new show outfit (I bought a jacket from my instructor for $10, and a tie for $5) – but being less than five feet tall, and not a perfect slender size 4 – I need to order my breeches and black boots large and short….try finding that combination at a used tack swap – you can’t. Believe me I’ve tried.
8. Drink water instead of soda. We have a cafeteria where I work and I’ve developed a nasty habit of getting a soda everyday from the vending machine. Yep, a whopping $1.35 a day. Now I fill up my water bottle and pour in a “kool-aid single” (I hate plain water). I did the math and that’s $21 per month savings ($1.35 x 5 days X 4 weeks minus $6 – the cost of 2 boxes of “kool-aid singles”) Plus – it’s better for me than soda, and I’m not wasting bottle after bottle after bottle – I use my own water bottle and get cold water from the water fountain.
9. I stopped buying expensive horse treats. A horse treat is a horse treat…the horse doesn’t care what it is, he just knows them as “treats.” One apple goes a long way, a large bag of peppermints from Wal-mart for a buck goes a long way, plus a large bag of horse cookies goes a heck of a lot longer than a small foofy bag of specialized treats that my horse just doesn’t understand. I haven’t calculated the savings, but I know my trip to the grain/feed store is now cheaper. My horse loves a good pat down as much as he loves a good treat too.
10. Group lessons and/or hosting a clinic. I gathered as many horse friends I could find and hosted 2 lesson/fun days at my place. I don’t have a fancy arena, but my paddock is all dirt/sand and it makes for a fantastic arena when the back gates are closed. In fact the footing (thanks to my hubby) is better than some arenas that my instructor has worked in. I charged $40 per person. They received a lesson, a lunch, and a fun hour at the end of the day. They watched others have lessons, and it was an all-around great day. I received a free lesson, my instructor got 2 new regular clients, and the horse company was fantastic. I networked, and made a great new buddy who agreed to come to my first show and be my support staff.
So, there are my top ten ways I saved money for horse lessons gearing up for my Sept. 19th show. As I further my dream and hopefully move up the ranks, I hope I can think of more ways to pay for this dream. Wisconsin lottery…are you listening??? Pick me! Pick Me!

The best lesson yet, and I didn’t even get on a horse…

Last night I ventured out to Billie’s place, where she was going to have me ride one of her schooling mounts, Ashton. He’s a big, lazy, chestnut warmblood gelding, but he just didn’t appear to be himself while we were tacking up. When Billie got on him, he sort of exploded, which right away sent my fear and Billie’s confusion into overdrive. This was such odd behavior for him, that Billie right away assumed something wasn’t right. After some lunging and awkward movements by him, we concluded that it was best to retire him for the evening and later try to figure out what was wrong, because nothing appeared to be obvious.

So, that’s when my questions started…”Do I salute in a beginner test? Do I post? Do I canter? How long is it? What am I allowed to wear? What do I need to buy before August? Do you really think Bug and I will be ready? The questions just kept coming and coming, so Billie had a great idea. She started drawing out the dressage ring on the back of my speeding ticket warning from the morning (ouch), and started explaining the big picture. She pulled out her very meticulous record books and all of her old copies of past tests and showed me her ribbons, trophy’s, titles, plaques, etc, and I was amazed. We looked through actual test booklets to see what the judges’ comments were, and what my first tesst will actually be like. I’m a little intimidated with memorizing the path and questions of the test, but I can do it, and I have never been so excited. The whole time, I’m thinking, “I can do this….it may not be pretty all the time, but I can DO this.” Even if I place last, and my marks don’t get above a 4 – I have to start somewhere, and I can’t wait.

Billie and I could talk for hours, so my 50 minute drive home ended up being in the dark, and all I wanted to do when I got home was saddle up and practice with Bug. I’m sure my neighbors wouldn’t have appreciated that though, as the lights of the paddock/arena sort of blare right into their bedroom, and Bug’s noisy little trot would have rudely put a damper on their early bedtime. (oh, if those dang pine trees would just grow faster!!!) So, I decided to give Bug, Gunner, and Dundee some treats, some good pats, and tidy up in the barn for a few minutes. Little does Bug know that he’s going to get quite the workout in the next couple of weeks. So, I put the boys to bed and went in the house and crashed myself, and stared off into the beautiful full moon and thought about everything I learned, what I need to do, and what I can do to scrounge up some more lesson money!

Bending and Braiding

Why I need to wear fleece at the end of June in Wisconsin is beyond me. I know Wisconsin has strange weather, but 50 degrees June 30th? Seriously? Bug and I braved the rain, the cold and the wind to take a much anticipated lesson with Billie. As Billie and I could talk all night long, we got right to the lesson and started to work on “the bend” again. “By George, I think she’s got it!” Finally I was grasping the concept - because not only was I seeing it, I could feel when he was bending. Practice Practice and more practice over July 4th weekend is what’s in store for us. After going around and around, and around at the bend, we did some trotting and cantering at the two-point and Billie could really tell that we’ve been practicing. Getting out into the field really boosted my confidence level, my balance, and projecting where I’m going. Can’t wait for the next lesson…Billie is going to jump on one of my other horses and we’re going out and trying the bend and two-point on a trail. Can’t wait! After Bug gave me a fantastic two-hour ride, Billie stayed and showed me how to pull a mane and braid to get it to lay down. Bug has a beautifully thick mane and tail, but it is really out of control right now. I believe Billie’s words were, “We have some work to do, girl.” So she started near his back and I stood on the tallest stool I could find and started braiding. My husband said this morning…. "What did you do to Bug last night? He looks funny.” Well, give it a week, a little elbow grease, a good pulling comb, and bath or two, and he’ll look great. Can’t wait to post pictures – a “before” and “after.”

And….about Bug’s health with all this new “work” he’s doing? All I can say is that he is a completely different horse. His joints used to click and creek when he walked, but now, he’s as good as new. He’s been on “Joint Armor” from Kentucky Performance Products for nearly 6 weeks and never been better. He walks different, he’s peppy, and he just seems to be in a better mood when we ride. Thanks KPP!!

I’m in the process of organizing a mini-clinic at my house, and looking forward to lessons this weekend if Billie is available. Last night my husband said he couldn’t have wiped the smile off my face when I told him about our ride. We're looking ahead to a show in August, Sept, and October. Wow...my dream come true.

Until next time, I will repeat to myself, “Inside rein, outside rein, inside leg, inside rein, over and over and over…..”

Into the Wild Blue Yonder....

This was a very hectic week with Dave “gone fishin” in Canada – which means that it was just me and Indy at the farm, and we were busy! We didn’t get any riding lessons in unfortunately, but Indy and I had some great bonding time, so that makes it wonderful. Dave finally arrived home on Friday, so Saturday consisted of catching up on outside chores around the house like mowing, dragging, weed-wacking, gardening, fence-fixing, watering, etc. After a long day on Saturday, we celebrated Father’s Day by just lounging around in the beautiful weather. Dave gave me a couple hours in the late afternoon to play with horses, so I took him up on it.
Bug has been ridden in the arena for the past couple of weeks as I build my confidence in an English saddle, but I had enough of the arena…… boring. So I mustered up some confidence and saddled him up and took him out to gallop around the pasture and the hay field. Yesterday I scoped carefully for gopher and woodchuck holes, and we had the green light. As I turned the corner to hit the straights, I gave him a little leg, kissed to him and he broke into a beautiful canter. I was a bit nervous, but I quickly realized that if I just relax and sit the canter, it’s easy! I’ve been cantering and galloping Gunner out on trail rides and across the field, but that was different. I was in my big western saddle, on little 15.1 quarterhorse Gunner, who has a small stride. This time I was on Bug – 16.3, long-strided thoroughbred, in a little bitty English saddle. Wow. I felt great, and I think my confidence boosted about 2 notches. Plus, this new English saddle of mine is 5 times more comfortable than my western saddle even thought of being – And I have an awesome Circle Y western saddle that is pretty comfy on trail rides!!! Anyway, I went around and around and gave Bug a pretty good workout, and worked on keeping my feet quiet, my hands quiet, and my seat moving with him. It was awesome. I felt like we could have ridden anywhere, and being outside the arena fence wasn’t so frightening after all. I can’t wait to do it again. I’ve heard from the Eventing Radio show that many riders do their flatwork out in the middle of a field – and I can start to understand why. Instead of letting the fence be my guide, my seat was, and I felt that Bug was paying closer attention to where I was pointing him and looking than just following the fence line in a circle. – now I fully understand the “look where you’re going” instruction that Billie engrained in me. I’m very excited to do another lesson. If only my horse money tree would really bloom!

Lessons Learned

Saturday morning was the first time I ever hosted numerous riding lessons at our place. A few of my friends came over with their horses and we all took riding lessons from Billie. It went great, but I’ve learned a few things….
1. Make more blueberry muffins. By the time I got around to snagging one, they were gone. Dang!
2. Have plenty of beverages on hand. I felt like a big dummy because I only had two sodas and kool-aid to offer my guests. I forgot to buy enough beverages for everyone. Although I wasn’t getting paid for anything, I wasn’t a very good host when I can’t even offer juice with the muffins or a cold soda in the afternoon after a very hot day. Jeez.
3. Have an actual schedule. That way the instructor can know who’s up next, when she can take a break, and everyone knows when they need to be ready.
4. Don’t go last. Five people were before me, and when I finally got in the saddle, I was hitting information overload, the sun was the most intense, and I was just plum tired and so was the instructor. We got a good lesson in, but I think I would prefer going first, that way I can sit back and relax and simply watch the others instead of trying too hard to play hostess. The Saturday lessons were great though, and i'm looking forward to hosting another one.

Bug and I had a good lesson, but learning how to ask him to bend at the trot (there’s an actual name for it, but I forgot) has been the most challenging so far. For some reason I just wasn’t getting it. He did it a few times, but I think he was confused as to what I was asking, because I’m sure I wasn’t asking very clearly. He kept wanting to turn, so I need to keep my outside rein solid and he gives me a little bend to work that inside hind leg. I felt like I was a complete mess – not as much excitement and warm fuzzies as my previous lessons, but I guess you’ll have those. I’m anxious to practice practice practice. I think the first chance I get I’m going to take Bug out of the ring and see if I can just frog around at the trot in the field just to get my feet planted in the stirrup during the post.

Wish I could afford lessons at least 3 times a week – but that money tree hasn’t really bloomed yet. I have foregone my hair appt, a pedicure and a night out with the girls to afford my last two lessons…what can I sacrifice next? I’ll think of something. :)

Mud and "Gonna Fly Now..."

On my way home from work my husband called and said that he drug the arena a few times, but it still seemed to slippery for me and 3 of my friends to have lessons. Dang it! So, I called Billie and we rescheduled for Saturday morning. I was really disappointed – which is sort of interesting because when I was younger I would have given ANYTHING for my piano lessons to be cancelled because of weather or mud. This is so different. But, because Saturday will work out for everybody, I can be patient for a couple more days.

Instead, my neighbor came over and we took out my other horses for a spin around the field. Both of them were on their best behavior, even Gunner who had to take my neighbor and her 4-year old daughter who argued with her mom constantly that she should take the reins. I cringed at first thinking, “oh, please be good, Gunner, PLEASE be good.” He was a perfect gentleman, and my neighbor commented, “why can’t my horse be this well-behaved?” I was very proud of him.

Bug, not getting any attention – decided to run along the fence and play and kick up his heels. It made me realize how far he’s come. When he first came to us, he could barely walk from the farrier having to take as much of the rotten hoof off as possible, and build from there. I don’t even think he was ever even allowed to graze and be a horse. His life was a stall, and showing, back to the stall, and show some more, and then get a new owner, back to a stall….and over and over again. Now all we have to do is build up some muscle….and when I was thinking about that, all I could think about was the “Theme from Rocky” playing in the background as he was cruising around. Yeah – I know, cheesy – but hey, I gre up in the 80’s – what can I say. The Joint Armor he’s been on for almost four weeks is really making a difference with his joints. He doesn’t crack and creek like he used to, and he moves 10 times better.
So, hopefully the clouds will stay at bay until Saturday….can’t wait to take another lesson.

Is it Summer yet?

The weather has not been cooperating here in Wisconsin. I mean seriously….40 degrees? Are you kidding me? I’m used to weird and wacky weather in Wisconsin, but when it’s June and I have a riding agenda, I’m not as patient about weird weather it as I used to be.

Last Thursday the farrier put front shoes on Bug. It was funny because Bug held his foot there like, “Jeez mom, I was wondering when you were going to put these back on.” Hopefully that will solve a few feet problems. Because of our crummy, rainy, cold weather, I haven’t had anytime to practice, and Bug and I have another lesson tonight. I’m going to sneak home at lunch time, drag the arena, and hopefully the sun will obey the weatherman and peer out this afternoon. If not, there’s always a good ole ground work lesson, or perhaps go through a magazine or two with my instructor and circle the things I will need to buy within the next few months in order to prep for my first real test. I love buying horse things – would rather shop for horse stuff than go to a mall anyday. Don’t get me wrong – I’m a sucker for a great pair of shoes, and a comfy pair of jeans, but the stars have to be aligned just right for me to enjoy clothes shopping. I absolutely hate it.

Last night I went out to the barn after I put my son to bed, and I was feeding Bug his supplement. I was leaning up against him as he was munching on grain, and he was so warm and snuggly. I was surprised that he wasn’t covered in mud like my other two horses. Bug likes to be clean and slicked up – he loves a good grooming session. My other horse, Gunner – man, give him a groom and 2 minutes later he’s rolling - like clockwork. Anyway, as I was standing there, I thought a minute about how blessed I am to have a husband who allows me to be horse crazy, a son who tolerates putting his boots on hanging out at the barn sometimes (“Look mommy, horsey!), and three horses that nicker to me every single time I walk down to the barn – whether it’s dinner time or not.
Can’t wait for the lesson tonight even if the sun decides to stay in hibernation. Hopefully I won’t have to put a stick behind my back like last time – but I wouldn’t be surprised if I had to do it again. It really worked! Let’s see – I have to remember….shoulders back, sit up straight, hands back, heels down, hips up, look where you’re going, knees loose, absorb the shock, sit two, extend….what?!?! Practice practice, practice.

Welcome to my blog! I’m very excited to share Bug’s and my journey of becoming an eventing duo. Last night I had my second lesson with my new instructor, and it was interesting to say the least. As we’re working on Dressage principles, I needed some help with my arm and hand placement, and not going a very good job at it. So, Billie, my instructor, put a dressage whip behind my back and through my elbows – which made me sit up straight, my back to arch, my hands to stay put – and let’s not forget the little red welts by my elbows afterwards from the stick – but seriously – it worked! Wow, what a difference it made in my position, and the way Bug and I communicated. I learned to make him stop with only my seat, which I never even knew I could do. The rest of the lesson went fantastic. I didn’t want to quit. Billie believes that we will be ready to do our first show/competition at novice beginner this fall. I almost peeed my pants. “Really? Are you serious?” I’ve never done ANYTHING like that before…only riding in parades and some trail rides….so I’m very excited.

The bad news is Bug’s poor feet are starting to take a beating. When Bug came to our barn, we took off his shoes and seen that his hooves were rotten from having shoes on in a urine soaked stall for several weeks past the recommended limit for shoes to stay on. The sole of his hoof was gooey and rotten. My farrier has been working on getting his feet strong ever since. He’s been shoeless for 2 years now, but I think the shoes will really help. My farrier comes this afternoon, and I’m anxious to let him see what’s going on.

The other day, I was holding my 22-month old son, and he tapped on my helmet and said, “Crash?” I bursted out laughing, because I figure his daddy must have taught him that. As we go on this new journey, I’ve never been more excited about riding and horses in my life. In fact, I never wore a helmet, breeches, chaps, gloves, etc. before. It was always about just throwing my western saddle on and taking off across the field. I have so much to learn about everything. I think I could have 5 lessons on just the ground (pulling manes, shaving a bridle path that isn’t 6 inches long -my instructor noticed that one last night…oops – even bits, and bridles, and everything. Anyone out there know how to make your butt look smaller in breeches? Holly smokes! They’re waaaay more comfortable than jeans, but wow. Something about the full-seat says – “look at my butt.!”

My homework for the week – get Bug’s feet situation under control, start him on some muscle building strategy, and practice, practice practice.

Ride On, Amy