As the wind howls around the house shaking the branches of nearby trees I think back on the past week and can’t help but smile. This week the sun was shining more than the rain pouring and the horses were on top form.
Sunday I headed the town of Tiel to visit family from my Oma’s side. My journeys there and back were smooth and without any problems. The sun was shining making the train rides that much more enjoyable. On my arrival I was greet by my uncle and we headed to their home. We spent the day chatting about how my job was, the family, and what I was up to back home. At times it was hard to communicate due to the language barrier but we made it work. In the end, it was a fun filled day that I will cherish for years to come. There is no knowing if I will see some of them again so I must cherish ever moment/memory for the rest of my life.
Monday was the start of a new work week. There were four of us so this gave us the opportunity to accomplish more things throughout the day. In the morning I got the time to ride one of my horses before doing the midday muck, change horses around, and feed lunch. After lunch it was time to do a quick change of horses and then have our lesson with coach. This went extremely well and helped us all to see the great qualities each of us has and see in each other. After our lesson coach and I had my private lesson around horse nutrition. This was very interesting because I learned more about how the horse’s digestive system works. After, I went to free worked two of my horses before doing the evening muck and bringing horses in. At 5pm I had a lesson with my young horse. This went well! After it was time for finish the day before dinner. After dinner there was some free time before going out to feed evening feed and calling it a night.
Tuesday was a good day. Started off with doing the usual mucking then I fed out hay nets in the stallion stable to help the manger out. After our coffee break I worked a horse in hand before having a fabulous riding lesson with trainer. Then it was time to feed lunch, change horses, and muck the paddocks. After our lunch break I cleaned the grain buckets, lunged a horse, and mucked the mare stable. I then did some finish the day tasks before having a lesson at 530 with my young horse. After my lesson I swept the mare stable before heading in for dinner. Then it was time to do some computer work for the course before quickly popping over to the store for some stuff and feeding the evening feed. After it was time for some much needed relaxation.
Wednesday was evening better than Tuesday. In the morning I mucked then had time to scrub the waterers in the mare stable and groom two of my horses. After our coffee break I got a trail lesson with trainer. This lesson was awesome! Not only was it a really good workout but it was also a lot of fun because we could use the obstacles to create exercises to help with strengthening and suppleness. Once my lesson was over and my horse put away I tackled some extra cleaning before midday mucking, changing horses, feeding lunch, and mucking the paddocks. After lunch I had a training session with my new training horse which went really well. I am really going to enjoy working with them over the next month and a bit. After I lunged a horse before evening mucking, bringing horses in, and feeding evening hay. Then it was time for finish the day duties. At 515 I went in to do some computer work in preparation for a horse that was going to a new home the following day. Then it was time for dinner and down time before bed!
Thursday was super. In the morning I mucked and then did some touch ups on the horse that was leaving that afternoon. This was so relaxing. I felt like I was getting ready for a horse show in the early morning calm. (I miss those mornings) After break I got a double lunge lesson with one of my horses. This was a break through lesson because I came to understand more about the work of double lunging and lunging in general. After, it was time for the usual before lunch routine which went really smoothly so we were able to start on some tasks from the afternoon. In the afternoon I worked one of my horses in hand, free worked another did some extra cleaning, and made lunch for Friday. After getting this all done it was time to do the evening muck, bring horses in, feed hay, and finish up for the night. After a delicious dinner with duck in it (yes duck and it is amazing when cooked right) made by the manager it was time to feed evening feed and calling it a night. It had been a busy day but the sun was shining bright and it was warm out so there are no complaints!
Friday was a day off for me. For once I finally slept in past 7am and didn’t get up until 8am. (you may laugh now) After breakfast I read for a bit, did some work for my course, and did the large pile of laundry that I needed to get done. In the afternoon I read some more and did my weekly cleaning. In the evening I tagged along to take one of the girls to the train so she could go home for the weekend. After, we had some dinner before unwinding for the night. Overall it was a very relaxing day off for me.
Saturday was a day to get things accomplished. In the morning I did my usual mucking and did some extra mucking down stairs. After it was time to sweep before coffee break. When 1030 rolled around it was time to head back out to get our morning plans done. I groomed two horses, free worked my young horse, helped change horses, muck, fed lunch, and muck paddocks. We had some spare time before lunch so we tackled the pile of hay nets that needed to be filled for tomorrow. After a relaxing lunch it was time to head back out and tackle the afternoon with style. For me that meant lunging two horses, free working another, mucking, bringing horses in, completing finish the day tasks, feeding, and grooming some of the mares. Then it was time for dinner and down time before evening feed.
This past week was full of sunshine. Not just the gold one illuminating the sky. I am finally feeling like I know what I am doing here. I actually feel like I belong here now and know how to go through my day smoothly. (I just hope it comes across that way haha)Bring on next week!
Dream, Believe, Imagine, Achieve,
Meredith