Saying Goodbye

As I am sure most of you know by now, yesterday we had to put down one of our beloved ponies, Downland Eclipse. She was 17 years old, which isn't that old for a pony since they can live up to the ages of 30-40. But she had gone worse in health in the last 3 years, and ultimately the vet told us that the best thing for us to do was to let her go. She actually thought it would be the right thing to do in the spring, but as loving owners of our pets, we selfishly want them to last just a little bit longer.

Her breathing had started to go down hill around 5-6 years ago. Whether it was genetics or caused by dusty hay, you can never be sure. Many of the ponies shard the same food as her and they did not come down with heaves (as it is called in the horse world). Coughing and hacking was worse in the hot and dusty summer days. Many vet bills for medication including steroid shots and bronchial dilators came in as we tried to make her comfortable. She was always eating and happy. She was our foundation broodmare, and we bred her every year. Last year she did not conceive.My mom wanted to try her again this year but the vet absolutely refused. She said she didn't have enough oxygen for herself, let alone enough to carry a foal.

It was decided that we would put her down in the fall. We didn't want her to have a hard winter. Even when it came to the day we decided to do it on, my mom wanted me to ask the vet if she had gotten better. She knew deep down that the answer would be no, but she wanted some hope.

Eclipse's breathing was so bad you could hear her wheeze. Her torso heaved and sunk in deeply with every breath she took and exhaled. Despite all this, she was still the head mare of the ground.

Eclipse was born in 1993 on the welsh hills. My mom was looking to import a pony from Wales, and a breeder went out and scoped out what was for sale. My mom was looking for a black filly. Although all horses born black go grey (and true blacks are born mousey brown and then shed out into black), the breeder sent her a picture and she bought her. She was out of a well known stallion Downland Mohawk, who's bloodlines trace back to many Welsh Champions and a mare named Downland Eglatine.

Importing ponies from Wales was a big deal in the early 90s. The North American Welsh had started up by importing bloodlines from Wales and then breeding programs were set up. Many of our ponies can be traced within the second and third generation back to the homeland. Many North American breeders brought back stallions and mares to start their own breeding program. Established breeders start their own breeding line after years of selection, where they can finally use their own stallion for breeding. Many breeders in North America still use imported stallions but breed their own stock of mare.

When it came time for Eclipse to come to Canada, it took them three days to catch her. They had to chase her into the trailer. She jumped out of the back, and they had to catch her again. They put a board on the back of the trailer so she wouldn't escape. My mom was advised to board up her trailer when she came to pick her up. Eclipse came on a plane with 4-5 other little ponies.

When my mom brought her home, she was absolutely wild. I don't even remember how long or what we did to make her the calm, quiet, stress free pony she became. She was broke to ride when she was 3. I rode her from 1996 to 1999. We bred her the first time when she was 4 and she had a little colt in 1998.

Eclipse as a two year old in NY

Eclipse's bloodlines were great but they came with a heavy price. Many of her relatives were prone to a disease called laminitis or founder. While it is common, it is more common in ponies than horses. Her full sister had to be put down because of the dehabiliting disease. Founder is when a toxin occurs in the bloodsystem, affecting circulation. The most common way is through eating too much protein but there are other ways of getting it such as stress or kidney problems, for example. The end result is when the inflamed laminate causes a rotation of a bone in the foot called the coffin bone. This inflammation and rotation causes a great deal of pain and heat to the animal, making it unable to stand. Founder can be treated, but preventive measures should always be taken, as founder can return once a horse has had it.

Eclipse had her first bount of founder when she was four, shortly after she had her first foal. Once she recovered, we didn't ride her as much, since stress can be a trigger. Around the year 2000 I stopped riding her because we had other ponies to be ridden and she was much content to be a broodmare.

Since her time with us, she had many accomplishments. So many that we never really kept track of them all but my mom summed them up on her website:
• Welsh Pony and Cob Association of Ontario award of Top Producing Mare
• Several times Champion Section B Mare on the line in Canada and the USA
• Champion Dressage Pony in USA
• Several time High Point Champion Mare and Under Saddle with the Welsh Pony and Cob Association of Ontario
• Qualifier for the Champion of Champion Class at the Royal Winter Fair in Toronto, ON, Canada
• Her foals have moved on to Trillium and A Circuit Hunter Ponies and others have become breeding stock.

In 2005, my mom had her registered as an American Sport Pony.

Since she was 4, she has had a foal every year except in 2010. Her foals and her grandfoals and probably great grandfoals are all over North America. She has 12 foals over all.

From Canadian Live Stock Records:

MORTON'S EGLANTINE - 2000
MORTON'S EVENSONG - 2001
MORTON'S EVEREST - 2002
(These three were born when my mom leased out Eclipse when my parents were divorcing)
WIND DANCER ELEGANCE (Ellie) - 2009
WIND DANCER ELUSIVE(Louie) -2003
WIND DANCER EMPEROR (Elmo) -2007
WIND DANCER ENCHANTRESS (Emma) - 2005
WIND DANCER EPIPHANY (Pippi)- 2006
WIND DANCER EPITOME (Elvis) - 2008
WIND DANCER ESPIONAGE (Blizzard) - 2004
WIND DANCER HERE TO ETERNITY (Eternity) - 1999
WIND DANCER THE EXECUTIVE (Ex) - 1998

Yesterday, on her last day, it rained all morning. I woke up early and I gave her an apple. I opened up the gates connecting the two paddocks and let all the ponies on that side run together. Eclipse had a good run with her pasture buddy and her two daughters, Emma and Ellie. Once they finished running, I put two of them away in their stalls as the vet had to do work on the one, and she couldn't be left alone. I didn't want to leave Eclipse alone, so she stayed outside with Emma. I took a pair of scissors and I cut of a large chunk of her mane. I braided it and put it away for my mom, who requested not to be home when we did this.

Eclipse's last run

The vet showed up shortly after. We took Emma and Eclipse out to the area where we would bury her. We didn't want them to get upset by being separated. The vet told me she was going to sedate Eclipse first. We let her eat some grass while we waited for it to kick in. Once she administered the second dose of sedative, she instructed us to take Emma away. My step dad took Emma back to her paddock. Since Emma was alone, she ran the fence and called to her mom. Eclipse was too sedated to call back. There was a tractor and a tree obscuring the view. The vet thought it would be too traumatic for Emma to see her mom go down.

Once Emma was put back, the vet told me she was going to administer the euthanol next. She said that Eclipse would take a deep breath, then go unconscious. She would not feel anything. Then, just as she said it happened. We helped her onto the ground. I had been crying since the vet showed up, but I was sobbing uncontrollably as we sat near her on the ground. The vet explained it would take a few minutes to happen, but as soon as she spoke, she then added "Oh, she's already gone." Eclipse still had grass in her mouth. We took the halter off of her and covered her with a trap. Our neighbors volunteered to come over and help bury her. Once they were finished, I called them up to thank them. We buried her with a copy of her papers and some pictures.

It was a hard day, but at the end we knew it was the right thing. Then later that day my pony was bitten by a snapping turtle, but that will come later.

Eldest.

For my Back 2 School Back 2 Blogging Assignment this week, we were instructed to contribute 10 or more ideas to the Idea Bank and then choose one of the ideas to write about on your blog. Quite a few relate to parenting and marriage, which I have no experience in at all, but this one caught my eye:

Idea Bank #382

Where do you fall in the birth order of your family? First, middle, baby? Do you think that affected who you are today?

I am the eldest of two children. I have only one sibling, my brother. I am 16 months apart from him. I was 7 month old when my parents found out they were expected baby #2. My mom was 5 months pregnant with my brother on my first birthday.

I think both myself being the first born and our closeness in age has affected who I am today. First, my parents didn't exactly raise me on my own. I was only alone for for a year and a half of my life, which I do not remember. I do not remember a time without my brother. I do not remember a time when I was not the oldest. All my jealousy that I had towards my brother wasn't because I remember how things used to be without him, but came from how my parents treated us as they raised us at the same time, since I was never aware of being alone and being treated like the first child.

My mom in particular (and even to this day) is all about fairness. If she bought something for me, she would buy something for my brother, and vice versa. There were times when we got the exact same thing but in a different colour. Despite how my mom tried to be fair, it wasn't 100%. My brother was always the baby. To this day, my brother is still the baby despite being 24 years old. In the divorce, my mom and dad split custody. My mom didn't see my brother for the longest time during the procedures, and if she did, it was only briefly. During this time my brother had a serious accident; he was rollerblading across a parking lot when he was hit by a truck that was trying to avoid the stoplight. He was sent to a hospital an hour away from his home with a fractured skull. My parents were told that he would either die or have serious mental problems. He was in surgery for a long time while they carefully put his shattered skull back in place. My brother not only survived, but also never lost his ability to function. He sometimes has trouble remembering things from his childhood but his accident when he was 14 never stopped him from doing well in school and graduating from a technical college. His recovery was miraculous.

My brother was also the first and only boy on my dad's side of the family in that generation, and he was the first boy born on my mom's side. My first boy cousin wasn't even born for another 5 or so years. My brother was special because of this. He was spoiled on both sides, but especially my dad's side because he was the gleaming hope that our surname would live on, while me and my two female cousins were dubbed not as special. We also lived closer to my paternal grandparents than my cousins.

I do feel a little jealous of my brother, and this has always made me strive to be as best as I can so that my parents acknowledge my worth as well. This isn't to say that they don't think I'm worthy, or special, but part of me has always felt I have had to compete against him, for attention and praise. This is why I spent my time focusing on school. I was a lot better at school than my brother. I was terrible at math, but everything else I pulled high marks. I went to university while my brother did not. I came out with a bachelor of science.

But, even my own graduation was over shadowed. I was sickened by the fact that my brother, who stayed in high school for an extra year, was going to graduating the same year as me from his college. I had worked 4 years for my degree and he was in his program for 2. My graduation got rained out because the university I went to prided itself on being environmental, green and close to nature. Our convocation was supposed to be held outside. It started to hail as soon as we got to our chairs outside the library. The grads were ushered into the biggest auditorium the school had. It only sat 300 people. The parents were told to go wait at the reception hall. Nobody saw us cross the stage to get our diplomas. We were congratulated by the dean and principal amongst each other and not our families. We had to walk back to them as the rain poured down. All the food had been eaten by the bored parents. When we decided to leave, the sun came out.

The next month, I went to my brother's graduation. The college rented out a hockey arena in the town. There was plenty of seats. The graduation would go on rain or shine. I was jealous.

Even in the things I excel at, my mom sometimes chooses him over me. I will show the ponies all year but when it comes to the big end of the year show in Toronto at the Royal Agricultural Winter Fair, my mom will pass over all my hard work and have my brother show the ponies instead of me, earning him the glory when they win the ribbons.

To this day, I'm not as jealous as I used to be as a kid. Sometimes I get frustrated that he appears to be better treated than myself. I realize he is special, just like I am special to them as well. But being the eldest who always did what she was told and did well, I sometimes resent that I have to strive hard to make myself feel justified.


A Back To School, Back To Blogging Post

Louisbourg Day 5 & 6

I decided to lump Friday and Saturday together since Saturday wasn't much about Louisbourg.

Friday, August 27th 2010 (Day 5)

7:10 AM
I woke up and started packing since I was going to be leaving for Halifax from the Fortress. I had already packed up most of my stuff the night before and all I had to do was the finishing touches (you know, the toothbrush and toothpaste deal). Once it was all packed up, I dragged my suitcase and two bags down three flights of stairs and popped them in the car.

8:00 AM
Went down for breakfast and asked how to check out. They told me we were having french toast and since I had already had it during my stay, I could choose something else if I wished. I told him it was fine and I'd jut have the french toast again. I like french toast, so it was no big deal. I was just glad it wasn't the Island Bake again.

8:30 AM
I agreed to drive Larry to the site, and drop him off as I was leaving town. Bruce Fry stopped into our B&B looking for a couple who had sneaked into the lecture we were having at the Chevlier House. We weren't quite sure how they got in there since we were pretty careful not to let the public visiting the fortress in. Bruce told us that we were going to look at some siege sites outside the Fortress area so we should all meet up at the Visitor Centre parking lot and inside of it. We were also leaving after hours so we had to make sure we got our cars down to the Fortress since they locked up place after hours.

8:45 AM
On the way to the Fortress, Larry told me that we should pull over and check out Wolfe's Ridout. A ridout is a camp they would have made to prepare their troops for the siege. It was about a 5 minute walk. We quickly checked it out. When we met up with the others, Bruce asked us what had taken since we left before him. I told him Larry wanted to take a side tour.

9:00 to 10:00 AM
Bruce drove us around, stopping the cars every once and awhile so we could go out and explore. Since it had rained all day Thursday, the area was marshy and wet. The natural environment had over taken the siege sites and it was very hard to see what was left. We went to a ridout called Green Hill which was a valuable camp for the British since you could get a clear view of the Fortress. Back in 1758, this area would have been totally cleared of the trees.

10:00 AM to 12:00 PM
The others were eager to get back to digging, but I wasn't. I had already found something better than iron nails and glass. The site was slightly flooded as well due to the rain. I decided to stay back with the collections manager and help label and catalogue the artifacts. Most of it was writing on pottery shards and glass bits, but I enjoyed it. We had some tea, and talked about this and that. We decided we'd go to the site around lunch to see what was going on with the others. I wanted to explore the rebuilt town a little bit more. We got a chance to see stuff during the week, but there were still some places not yet ventured. Since the program had a "Do What You Want" attitude, it wasn't a problem.

12:00 PM
We went out with the lunches to the site. I went over to the site to find out what had been found (nothing) and inform them that lunch had arrived. They grudgingly left their work for food.

1:00 PM
We all went back to the site. I hung out for a bit, but then left to go look for the blacksmith from the day before. Hubba hubba.


1:30 to 2:30 PM
For an hour I went about the site, snapping as many pictures as I could of buildings, exhibits and people. I cursed myself for not charging my camera like I should have, since it was dying quickly. I talked to a few of the interpreters and while I didn't see the whole site, I felt like I had seen enough to get a feel of the place. I also picked up some more souveniers for people because I didn't have too much success in town. I took my stuff back to my car so I wouldn't have to carry it around with me all day. I walked back to the Chevalier House because I was going to go deo some more catalouging when I ran into Bruce on the way back. He said that he was just getting Heidi the collections manager and they were driving up to the site and I could catch a ride with them if I wanted to.

2:30 PM to 3:10 PM
I went back to the site and helped people shift their their dirt, which was now mud. It was a lot harder to find artifacts this way since they were all covered in mud. There were about 2-3 of us working on a bucket at a time.

3:10 PM
We packed up everything and the archaeology crew began covering the sites. We took our equipment back to the Chevalier House. During the week it stayed in the equipment tent. Once we arrived back the the Chevalier House, we were told we were going to go to one of the exhibits about fortification and the military before we met up for dinner at the L'Epee Royal, the upper class restaurant, at 4:30.

4:00-4:30 PM
We explored this little house with some artifacts of the remaining walls, drums and military explanations. We then walked to the L'Epee Royal.


4:30 to 6:00 PM
The meal was on the Program, so we didn't have to pay for alcoholic drinks like we had to Wednesday. I had a glass of red wine with my meal. We had the same type of soup from Wednesday, and we were also served fresh baked buns. The choice was turkey or salmon and I wanted something diffeernt. We were given a big bowl of rice, and Paul and I were given a plate of turkey with a wild mushroom and carrot dressing. Dessert was the same little brownie, but it was good.

6:00 to 7:00 AM
We went back to Chevalier House to pick up the rest of our stuff. After we all went to our cars and drove out to an area called Black Rock. This was a huge rock that over looked the Atlantic Ocean. We stayer there for awhile, snapping photos. I agreed to drive a couple people back into town. Paul's ride showed up at 5:30 and likely left him, so I told him I'd drive him back to Sydney since it wasn't really out of my way too much. I was driving to Halifax airport that night, with the unhappy event of sleeping in the airport since I had a 6:45 AM flight back to Toronto.


7:00 PM
We all said our goodbyes. I dropped off people and said my goodbyes to them. We had all given each other our emails to keep in touch and share photos.

8:00 PM
By 8:00 PM I driven to Sydney. I dropped off Paul and gased up the car for the first time in Nova Scotia, which I was a little impressed by. I spent the entire time driving straight through to Saturday...

Saturday August 28th, 2010 (Day 6)

12:30 AM
I arrived at the airport but like an idiot I went in the wrong lane. I had to find the gas station too since I was required to leave the car with a full tank of gas. I ended up driving up to the commercial car lane and an airport worked helped me out. I found the gas station at the airport and it was CLOSED. Ugh. I popped in gas station in my GPS I had brought along and it directed me to a gas station 10 KM away. I drove out to this gas station to have my credit card denied at the pump. I went to another pump, gassed up and had to pay at the window.

1:00 AM
I finally got to the rental car drop off at the airport. I pulled everything out of the car and repacked some stuff. I had not packed my mugs yet so I wanted to wrap them up well. I checked the car over for anything else that belonged to me. I was scared that the airport may be closed since I didn't think there were many flights coming in this late. I dropped the keys off into the drop off box, and prayed that they wouldn't charge me for the stupid stone chips out the window that were already on the stupid car in the first place.

1:30 AM to 2:00 AM
I walked around the airport, looking for the places I had to be in the morning. Wet Jet would not allow me to check in at their kisosks so I had to wait until the morning. I wanted to check my bags so I wouldn't have to sleep with them but I lucked out. I found a spot by the security that was also near a bunch of shops and an indoor playground for kids. There was also a wifi table so I logged in to check some stuff. I curled up on a bench with my three bags positioned so if someone attempted to take my stuff, I would have been awoken. I woke up three times; once because I was cold so I had to fish a sweater out of my suitcase, and twice because that was the time people were polishing the floor. At one point I grabbed all my stuff and slept on the floor because I was tired of getting bench marks on my legs since I stupidly wore khakis that day.

4:15 AM
By this time, people were coming into the airport. I awoke to the security staff talking. Since I was scared of being asked to move, I decided to wake up and go check my bags. I checked in on my laptop at the airport with its wifi when the kisok wouldn't let me so I had to obtain a boarding pass while I was checking my bag. I got one and was told I should get through security now since it would probably get busy soon. Boarding was at 6:10 AM.

4:30 to 6:10 AM
I got through security like a zombie. I got a little nervous when they took awhile to scan my laptop. I went to my gate and hung out there for a bit. When other people started getting Tim Hortons, I decided to get up and also get some breakfast. I asked for a bacon breakfast sandwich but got a sausage one instead. I didn't really care. I got a small cappuchino to keep me up since I didn't want to fall asleep at the gate. We boarded at 6:10 AM. I was surprised that I got the same seat as my flight in; 6A. I was delighted that in a three seat aisle, I was the only one in it which was strange since it was a fairly crowded flight. As soon as I was sitting down, I put my pillow to the window. I had fallen fast asleep before the review of the safety features finished. I woke up on the flight and checked where we are. We were nearing Toronto and I couldn't really get back to sleep. I watched the tv without sound for a bit until we landed.

8:00 AM
We arrived in Toronto at 8 AM on the dot. I decided not to call Linds, who graciously was allowing me to drop my stuff there while I attempted to get into Fan Expo until I was actually ready to leave. It took me awhile to get my bags, and I got lost looking for the luggage pick up since nothing is labelled well in Terminal 3 of Pearson airport.

8:30 AM to 9:30 AM
With my bags in hand, I called Linds who told me to take the bus from the airport to the subway to the subway drop off near her place. It was wonderful to just sit down and go somewhere without having to think too hard about it, like driving haha. I had a neat little trip going from Bus to subway to car. They came and picked me up and we got breakfast (yay!)

10:00 AM to 4:00PM
We hung out for a bit, and then we decided to try to leave for Fan Expo around 1:50 PM. We took the subway to downtown and the line ups were huge. Crazy even. As much as I love Sci fi, Comic books, D&D, Gaming and Horror, I wasn't prepared to wait in line for 6 hours and pay $35 to get in, and likely only get to get an hour out of it. I knew quite a few people who were there, and I was sad I didn't get to see them but I suppose I should have planned better. I wasn't too upset about it. We went back to the house, and I called to find out when I was getting a ride back home.

5:20 PM
Linds and The Newf dropped me off at the Go Station to I could get picked up at Oshawa. I didn't want my ride to have to come get me in Toronto.

6:30 PM
Back in Oshawa, got picked up, finally arrived home! Gave people their gifts and went to bed at 9:30 PM like a wuss. Slept in until 11 AM Sunday, haha.

Louisbourg Day 4

August 26th, 2010 (Day 4)

7:10 AM
An early wake up

8:00 AM
Breakfast was a quiche, along with the usual sides.

8:45 AM to 9:30 AM
Headed for Visitor Centre, got on bus, went to Chevalier House


9:30 AM to 11:00 AM
Since it was pouring outside, we were not allowed to excavate that day. Instead we had a tour of a building called the Carrerot House that was all about architecture of the time period. After we had finished touring that exhibit we then went to the forge to talk to the Black Smith about artillary. He gave us a tour of the artillary storage area, which was known as the The Royal Magazine. He knew a lot about weapons and that is what everyone kept asking questions about haha. I was quite smitten by the blacksmith.

11:30 AM to 1:00 PM
We had a lunch at the Chevalier House. I had a deli sub and my milk was bad haha.

1:30 PM to 4:00 PM
Since we didn't get a chance to get out to the site, we had all the presentations so we could spend more time on Friday at the site. The presentations were about the siege sites located outside the fortress, fortifications and the history of 1758.

4:00 PM
With the presentations over, we were given some time to do whatever we wanted. I decided I want to tour the little museum on the site that was built in the 1930s. Inside it had a complete model of the constructed town.


5:00 PM
By this time, we arrived back at the Visitor Centre. While there, I picked up some more stuff at the gift shop. We had agreed to meet up around 7 for dinner at the Grubsteake restaurant.

5:30 to 6:10 PM
A couple of us headed out to the 19th/20th century cemetery located along the coast. After looking through it, we went to the Royal Battery once again, but this time in the daylight. It was gloomy and rainy though.

6:20 PM
We stopped by the Louisbourg Marine Museum that was about boats and what not. It smelt really weird in there so I did not stay in for long.

6:30 PM
Went to a gift shop in Town to pick up some more things for my family.

7:00 PM
We all met up at the Grubsteake for dinner. I ordered the shrimp alfredo pasta with crab cakes as an appetizer. I had an alcoholic drink called a Louisbourg Fog Lift which was pretty much a Screwdriver. But it got me a good buzz. I then had Ameretto Cheesecake for dessert.

7:45 PM
We took a walk down Louisbourg so I could go to the Nova Scotia Liquor Board so I could pick up a bottle of red wine for my parents.


8:30 PM
I went back to the B&B for a nice hot bath in the jacuzzi tub. It was wonderful and so relaxing. I took a quick rinse off to wash my hair. I then watched the Simpsons. I then uploaded my pictures to let my family know I was still alive.

11:30 PM
A nice early bed time compared to the rest of the week after a nice bath.

Louisbourg Day 3 (The best day)

Wednesday August 25th, 2010 (Day 3)

Wednesday was the best day of the entire trip for me. Costumes, artifacts and more!

7:15 AM
Woke up to beat the alarm clock.

8:00 AM
Breakfast and it was my favourite; French Toast! This french toast was rolled in whole oats. It was absolutey fantasic.

8:30 AM to 9:00 AM
Drove down to the Visitor Centre, met up with group and bussed down to the Fort.

9:00 AM to 9:30
Had our morning coffee and tea and talked about what we were doing that day. We were going to go to the costume shop to talk to the costume curator and see the costumes.

10:00 AM to 11:00 AM
The curator, Elizabeth Tate, gave us a tour of the costume shop. She showed us the rooms where they kept both male and female costumes and explained some of the pieces such as the pannier which an upper class woman would wear under her dress to give her the belled hip look, and whale bone corests. We also were able to see the costumes for the men. I tried on the drummer's coat which was a justacourps, which I have always wanted. Maybe one day when I make more money I'll have one made. She took us down to a little room where they make prototypes of the costumes. They contract out the costume making but they research the design and find out what works. Once they have a prototype made, using the fabrics appropriate for the time period, they are sent off to be made. At the end of the tour, I asked if we could try on some tricorner hats. Larry joined me and we had many pictures taken.

11:00 AM
We went out to the excavation site as soon as we were finished with the costume tour. When we got there, I immediately found some iron nails. I found a piece of rock that had the tell tale sign of corroded iron on it, but I wasn't sure if tehre was anything inside. I got up to talk to the supervising archaeologist, and while I was other there, I was invited to dig in the interior area of the New England Powder Magazine. My group was digging in the exterior wall, looking for mainly glass and iron nails, but on the interior of the wall of the building they had found the floor boards, and had been finding things like buttons. The idea was that each one of us would come over while they removed the top soil and look for artifacts. Since I was already up, I was asked to participate first. At first all we found was iron and bottle glass which was different than the window glass I was previously finding. I asked if I should go get another one of the group since I had stayed for at least 3 or 4 topsoil removals. Blair, the guy I was working with who was a part of the archaeology crew told me to stay until we found something interesting.

11:30 AM
Around this time, we finally found something interesting. A tiny piece of yellow pottery could be seen in the dirt. Blair had to go into town and pick up the lunches, so he instructed another supervisor to come keep an eye on my excavation. He told her that he wanted me to excavate the piece of pottery by lunch. As he left, I began to excavate the item. The yellow glaze kept falling off, and I was instructed to keep it. I was told to put the artifacts in a dust pan as I went. I had many little pieces of chipped glaze wear covered in dirt. Finally, around 11:45 AM, I had excavated a piece of Staffordshire pottery. It was a little handle. Satisified, I asked if I should leave the site, or if I should clean up the corner of my area some more. The supervisor told me to clean it up a little, since lunch wasn't here yet.


12:10 PM
I glanced at my watch and saw it was past noon, but the lunch had not appeared yet, so I kept working. I noticed something sticking out of the ground where I was excavating. At first I thought it was a little nail. I pointed it out to my supervisor who exclaimed it was a buckle. I asked her if she wanted me to keep excavating it, or to leave it for someone else. She told me to continue. Once I got it out, I handed it to her. She told me it was near complete, then announced to the rest of the group that I had found a buckle. She then took my picture with it (the first picture in this blog). My little pottery piece was totally overshadowed by this find.

12:30 PM
Lunch had arrived and I was excited to tell everyone about my find. I didn't want to rub it in or anything, I was just excited. I had lunch, which was more exciting than the one I had yesterday (a ham sandwich). It was a chicken wrap and it was very good. I wish I had ordered another one in the week, but since we had to order before we had tasted the food, I decfided to play it safe and ordered a two ham sandwiches during the week.

1:00 PM to 3:15 PM
We went back to the site and had our group picture taken. Once our picture was taken, we went back to excavating. Everyone wanted to get into the 'prime' stuff as they were calling it amongst our group, so they could find something other than glass and iron. Unfortunately all was found was nails and glass. We were told we had to pack up early because the Fortress Association had bought us tickets to a dinner theatre event at the Fortress after dark. Since we had to meet up at 6:00, we all wanted some time to get dressed and freshened up before we went out. By the time we cleaned up, got back to the Chevalier House and sorted out rides, we all left for the bus around 4:30

5:00 PM
I went back to Cranberry Cove B&B to change my clothes, fix my make up and freshen up. Most of my pants were rather dirty by that time haha.

6:00 PM
Larry and I carpooled together back to the Fortress. All the cars had to meet up at another gate, and then we followed in a convoy back into the Fort. We were allowed to park our cars along the harbor street in the Fort, which was kind of cool.

6:30 to 9:00 PM
We had a 18th century style dinner in the Grandchamps restaurant, with an interactive play called For Love or Money going on as we ate. We had a beef stew with carrots, rice and turnips, freshly baked buns, and the entry was salmon with rice. For dessert it was a little chocolate brownie. The play was about a fisherman's daughter, Claudette, who wanted to make money so she could get married to someone with money. A guy by the name Laurent Chevalier who was a clerk but owed a Captain money for gambling debts. Chevalier bumped his debt over to the audience but said he was getting a new job with a rich family and he should be able to pay back his debt in time. Claudette meanwhile gets a job being a servant for a rich girl named Antionette. Laurent's job is to help the rich family's son get married to Antionette so they can use her money to pay off their own debts to the Captain. Augusta, the wife is horribly embarassed by her son Albert, and her husband George feels that the plan is rediculous as Albert has no interest in girls, only his books. Nerdish Albert just doesn't want to meet up with Antionette but they insist on having a party and inviting her. The night of the party Augusta hides Albert's glasses and he ends up embarassing himself and upsetting Antionette. Claudette goades Laurent for his stupid plan and refuses to help him. Antionette claims that she is going to leave for France, which would put Claudette out of her job. Claudette decides to help Laurent because Antionette would have to stay in Louisbourg if she was married to Albert, and she could keep her job. After numerous attempts to get them together, Albert and Ationette refuses to pair up. Laurent goes to the family's house, explaining he will try once again to get the two together. The Captain storms into the home of Augusta and George, demanding payment. The Captain realizes that Laurent's new job is working for a family that owes him debts. He laments that he needs the money so he can start his trading company when he returns to France the next day. Augusta and George reveal that they are banking on their son marrying Antionette and that will pay off their debts. Laurent had invited Antionette to the family's home, and she comes but says she is leaving for France and will not return because she cannot find a suitor who is romantic. The Captain woos her, and proposes to her on the spot, realizing that she has the money to finance his new company. Antionette accepts because he is so romantic to her. Augusta reveals to George that she really does love him, even after a small discussion in which she claims to not love him. Albert telsl Laurent and Claudette that books are absolutely wonderful. Laurent tells Claudette that now that his debts are paid, he does have a bit of money and a well paying job, and he would like to court her. Claudette accepts this and then the entire ensemble sings a finale song for the audience.

9:00 PM
I convinced some of our group to drive out to Kennington Cove. This cove is a beach, and also the area that James Wolfe landed with the British soldiers in order to take down Louisbourg in the Siege of 1758. I kicked off my socks and shoes and jumped into the Atlantic Ocean. It was my goal to swim in it, but I never had the time, nor the weather to. I tasted some sea water, and had a few pictures taken since the full moon was still out.

9:45 PM
Half of our group split off, and the rest of us went out to the Royal Battery. The Royal Battery was an area on the side of the fortress which would have had cannons alongside it to help protect the fort from an attack from the water front. There isn't much left of it now, but it would have been walled.

10:00 PM
Larry wanted to walk the lighthouse trail, but we ended up deciding once we got back to the lighthouse it was too dark, and way too narrow to drive the car through.

10:20 PM
We returned to the B&B and I uploaded the photos from that day as I got in the habit of doing.

12:00 AM
Once again, a late night for me! Finally went to bed at this point.

Louisbourg Day 2

Tuesday August 24th, 2010 (Day 2)

7:15 AM
Woke up just before the alarm went off, since I was scared of it.

8:00 AM
Went down for Breakfast. This was my least favourite of the bunch. It was called an Island Egg Bake and it was egg salad with onions and a dijon sauce ontop of a piece of flat bread, smothered in cheese and bacon. It came with the fruit salad and the toast. I didn't particular like the dijon sauce and it was way too onion-y for me. As mentioned before I don't like onions, but I didn't want to be rude and I champed up for it.

8:35 AM - 9:00 AM
Left for VC, got on bus, went to Fortress.

9:00 AM - 12:00 PM
We ran out of time talking about the primer the day before, so we had to pick it up right after the first presentation. The first presentation was given by the Parks Historian and a student who was doing an internship in history. It was her job over the course of a few months to look through documentations to find any information that was written about the three sites that were currently being excavated. After their presentations, Becki explained the use of the tools, a little about stratiography and what sort of artifacts we would probably find.

12:00 Pm - 1:00 PM
We had lunch at the Chevalier House

1:00 PM
We walked to the three excavation sites, where we got a tour of each one. There was a house property called the De Mazie/Carrerot Property where they had found burials under the floor boards. We looked at the French Powder Magazine, which another crew of Archaeologists were working on. It was a significally bigger area. We then headed over to the New England Powder Shed, where we would be conducting our excavation.

2:00 PM
Around this time, we were given the go to go ahead and begin excavating. One of the crew members of the site gave us a quick demonstration. I found mostly glass that day.

3:30 PM
We packed up our equipment around 3:30 as this was about the time that the archaeology crew would be bused back for the day. Bruce took us back to the Fort for a moew indepth look at the King's Bastion Barracks and the Govenor's House. Inside the King's Bastion barrack was an exhibit about the excavation and rebuilding of the fortified town. Upstairs, they had several cases of artifacts like pottery and glazewear. In the Govenor's House, which was another area of the King;s Bastion Barracks, they had set up exhibits on how the rooms would look. I took a few pictures, but avoided the rooms with oil paintings. There was also a chapel inside the Barracks.

5:20 PM
We rushed back to bus. We agreed once more to meet up at 6:10, but this was so we could go to Light House Point and check out the site of the first light house in Canada.

6:10 PM
Met up with some members of the group and we headed out. On our way, our path was crossed by a red fox. We headed up to Light House Point, where there were three light houses; two of them just remains. The very first light house in Canada had been built on that spot. A second one was built in the 19th century. I am not really sure what happened to it, but there is a third light house there which is more modern looking and probably not run by light house keeper, but some sort of automatic machine.

7:20 PM
We went to the Lobster Kettle for dinner, for lobster specifically. It was alright for the most part. After dinner we decided to go look for ice cream in town, because I was sad they were out of cheesecake at the restaurant. We found ice cream at a little store. We drove around for a bit, too giddy to head back to our rooms.

9:00 PM
We decided to head back to one of the B&B where three of the 8 group members were staying. One of the members had just come home from somewhere else and mentioned that she would like to go out to Light House Point since the moon was full and it would look gorgeous reflecting off the ocean. We decided this was a great idea, and piled back into the car. Once we got to the point, we sat out watching the waves, listening to the buoys and enjoying the scenary.

10:30 PM
By this time, I finally made it back to my B&B. I decided to upload my photos from the day.

12:00 AM
I went to bed at midnight, which was probably not the greatest idea but I survived.

Louisbourg Day 1

Monday August 23, 2010 (Day 1)

7:15 AM
I woke up to a blaring alarm clock that scared me so much that I stumbled out of bed and raced to the thing as fast as I could, slamming myself into the desk. It was so loud that I was afraid I was going to wake up the other patrons of the B&B.

8:00 AM
Went down to the kitchen for breakfast. The innkepers served me first because they knew I had to get down to the Visitor Centre by 8:30. They served up a Fritatta which was like a baked omlette with peppers, onions and potatoes. It was probably the best breakfast of them all, but they were all pretty good. They brought me a tea, and each breakfast came with this beautiful fruit salad consisting of blue berries, bananas, apples, peaches, melon and watermelon. It also came witha side of toast.

8:20 AM
I scarfed down my breakfast and left for the Visitor Centre which was about a 3 minute drive. I waited out at the Centre and noticed a lot of children. I decided to ask an official person about where the archaeology program was meeting up. She pointed me out to a man in a beige hat. When I approached, I was introduced to Dr. Bruce Fry, one of the head Archaeologists of the Fortress. I also met up with three of my fellow program goers.

9:00 AM
We boarded the bus adn drove into the Fortress. It was gloomy, windy and spitting. We walked to a building called the Chevalier House where we got to know each other and the staff. We were each given a water bottle, a coffee mug with "Louisbourg Archaeology" on it, a folder full of papers to be filled out (Safety procedures, membership, lunch menu), a duo-tang filled with blanket papers and a pencil. We were told that the mugs were a souvenir to take home, and to write our names on the bottom of each one.

10:00 - 11:00 AM
Dr Bruce Fry gave us a run down of what was going to happen during the week and the history of the Fortress.

11:00 AM
Bruce took us on a short little tour of the site where we saw the King's Bastion Barracks and the cannon ramparts.

12:15 PM
We all went to Grandchamp House where the program was treating us to a 18th century style lunch. I had the beef stew (with carrots and turnips), a cup of tea and a dessert called bread pudding which was actually a cake with a pudding like topping on it, and not so much the bread pudding I was thinking of. It was still very good.

1:30 PM
We were bused to the Compound, where the consveration lab and archieves were. We had a tour with the conservationist. We then walked over and had a tour with Heidi, the collection manager who showed us an array of artifacts. They also showed us their computer system and how they kept track of all their items.

3:45 PM
We took the last bus from the COmpound back to the Chevalier House. We then had our Primer explained to us by Becki, the Archaologist in charge. She gave us more indepth information about the excavation site we were working on and why coastal erosion was becoming a huge problem for the area.

5:00 PM
We all started to head towards the bus pick up to take us back to the Vistior Centre. Bruce said we were okay, as they hadn't fired the last cannon yet. Then, a group of soldiers came by with a drummer and a flutist towards the harbor of the fort. We watched them and their demonstration. Once they fired off the cannon, we headed to the bus.

5:20 PM
We caught the bus back to the Visitor Centre. I arranged for the majority of the group to meet for dinner that night around 6:30. I bought the book Endgame 1758 at the gift shop, and made a mental note about what sort of things wer ein there for souvenirs. I drove back to the B&B and freshened up for dinner. Around 6:10 I started walking towards the restaurant we had agreed on.

6:30 PM
Dinner at the Station House. I picked the Station House since none of us had gone there yet. We got to know eahc other a little better, and we all ende dup having the fish and chips. The food was okay, but nothing spectacular. I rather was disappointed in my suggestion.

7:00 PM
We walked along the board walk for a very short while, talking about many things. We then decided to call it a night after it beame dark and colder.

7:50 PM
I returned to the B&B

11:30 PM
forced myself to bed even though I really wanted to continue to watch Top Chef.

Louisbourg Photos

While I was away, I took almost 500 pictures of the town, the Fortress and other such things. I have sorted them into the most interesting photos, and uploaded them onto FlickR, as well as organized them into sets. Originally made to send to the people in my group, I figured this would be the best way of showing my photos without a) inviting everyone to follow me on Facebook or b) uploading photos on Blogger. So, while I prepare to write about 7 days on the Eastern Coast, here are the photos from my trip.

Buildings of The Fortress of Louisbourg
Buildings around the reconstructed town.

Exhibits and Historical Interpreters of Louisbourg
All around the town there were costumed staff that were interpreters of the town. The Fortress is set in 1744. In some of the buildings there were exhibits, replicas and artifacts.

The Marine Museum of Louisbourg
A small, non profit museum that houses some marine artifacts.



Archaeological Sites and Other Areas Outside of Louisbourg
There were sites outside of the Fortified Town, and even historical sites that exist outside the Parks Canada site, like the lighthouse.

Additional Cartoons

So in my list yesterday, I neglected some cartoons. I guess I watched a lot of television as a child. I guess that's what happens when you live in the country. Wait, what? Did I just say it's living in the country's fault? How can this be? Country life is hard working.

Yes and No.

During the light hours, we were expected to do stuff outside. My brother and I did the chores, we went for bike rides, we had out own playground with swings and a basketball court our dad built us, and I rode the horses, and he had his dirt bikes.

However.

You can only do these thingd actively outside... when it's daylight. This was especially hard in the winter when it was dark by 6 PM. Winter, early dark mornings and the evening was when we watched television. We didn't have any friends close by. My mom was a shift worker and my dad worked until 4:00 and neither of them wanted to drive us anywhere to our friends' homes that lived in the small town where we went to school. We only got to watch cartoons after school when waiting for my dad to pick us up or when my mom was home off her shift. My dad would harass us for watching tv in the afternoon. This was the same reason we weren't allowed video games often, which I'll probably write about later.

Anyways, despite living in the country, we did watch a lot of tv. We had active lives, friends, and we each had extraciricular activities but tv still was a part of our childhood.

Also - some cartoons just didn't last long. Some of these only had one season, haha. No wonder we went through so many shows!

Some tv shows I missed yesterday:

Animaniacs

We'd watch this when we got home from school. I used to laugh so hard I cried at "Bologna in our slacks"



Muppet Babies
I used to have a plastic necklace of Miss Piggy and Kermit as Muppet Babies that I wore a lot when I was 4-5. This was a fun show, and as a child with an active imagination, it was up my alley.


Inspector Gadget
Another 6 am show (We also would watch Top Cat) my dad would throw on while he was getting ready for work.


Countless Hanna Barbara cartoons - From Top Cat, to the Snorks, to Flinstones, to the Jetsons, we watched them all.

Alvin and The Chipmunks
I liked the movie where they go around the world collectinf dolls, but the tv show was something we watched and enjoyed as well.


Freakazoid
Sort of like the Mask, and that's what made it good.


The Cowboys of Moo Mesa
I liked this show. It was like TMNT but with COW cowboys. I thought it was weird they rode horses and had cattle drives, being cows themselves, but oh well, that's cartoons for you. Quick Draw McGraw did the same thing.


The Smoggies
This show was around preaching against pollution before Captain Planet, and I watched it for the bad guys, who were hilarious. It was a Canadian cartoon, so not many Americans know of it's existance. It was about two groups of characters, The Smoggies and The Suntots. The Smoggies liked to be messy and pollute the world while the Suntots lived green by using solar power, and being environmental conscious. My favourite Suntot was Sailor,the one with the blue 'stache.


The Wuzzles
An island of crazy genetic mutants. I had the Hippo Bunny cross.


Captain Planet
Preaching against pollution, everybody wanted to be a Planeteer because of the cool rings. I wanted the wind ring!


The Gummi Bears
Can't believe I missed this show yesterday in my initial list. This was a great show, with a catchy theme song and it took place in a medieval world. How could you go wrong?


Zoobille Zoo
Ok, I'm cheating since this isn't a cartoon but this was my favourite little kid show. I still watch the intro on youtube. I'm sure this is where a lot of current kid got grabbed inspiration from.

Cartoons That Shaped My Childhood

I haven't done a list for awhile and as I'm sitting here watching Rugrats on Nickelodeon Canada, I started thinking about the cartoons that defined my childhood for me. I still watch a lot of cartoons now, so I'll limit it to the age of 12. In no particular order!

1. My Little Pony
As if you couldn't tell from the name of this blog, My Little Pony (both the show and the toys) shaped my childhood. I already lived in a world of horses, and having a tv show and toys dedicated to cute little ponies was just fab. I still have my box of MLP toys in a closet somewhere, which I want to dig out sometime soon. I want to track down the movies which I was also a huge fan of. I can sing the songs from The My Little Pony Movie where they fight the Smooze.




2. Beetlejuice
I loved this show. I loved it so much I wanted a Beetlejuice action figure that spun his head, but I had a little kid crush on him, so I felt weird about it when I was given it from Christmas. My mom took it back. She did this with my Jack Skellington figure too, that I wanted but I also felt weird about having a figure of a character I had a crush on. She took this back too, and I wish she hadn't. Beetlejuice was just a crazy show that helped the blooming goth within. Ghosts, skeletons, monsters. It freaked me out at times since I was quite young, but I watched it every time it was on. It comes on Teletoon Retro and I couldn't be happier unless it came out on DVD.



3. Care Bears
The Care Bears cartoon was a staple for Canadian children. It was on every morning. Although the show itself was a little bland, the characters were lovable. The movie Care bears in Wonderland was a favourite. My favourite? Noble Heart and Brave Heart.



4. Ghostbusters
Just like Beetlejuice, Ghostbusters nutured the innter goth that I would later become. I still think I'm a bit gothic, although I don't dress in the extreme. I had a huge crush on Egon, which later determined I was a latent nerd. PI also liked Venkman. Didn't care too much for Slimer. Like Beetlejuice, the show scared me at times.



5. Teenaged Mutant Ninja Turtles
My brother was more into this than me, and because he had to endear MLP, I watched TMNT. I did like it, so I can't really complain. I remember the show coming on, and me and my brother would start bouncing all over the couches. I had a crush on Donatello. Yup.



6. She-Ra Princess of Power
She had an awesome outfit, a flying horse and she kicked ass in a mini skirt. She was one of the first strong female role models I had. I have her action figure still.


7. Rugrats
My dad stole satelite when I was growing up, and we were the only kids in school that got to watch Nickelodeon shows, as the US hadn't permitted Canada to Nick until November 1st, 2009. Rugrats was one of the first few Nick shows and we watched it. My favourite episode is Reptar On Ice.


8. Ren and Stimpy
This show was insane. Absolutely insane. I watched this show when I was 7-8. My parents were pretty lenient when it came to parent discretion. We watched a lot of mature stuff, but we turned out ok. I think.


9. Rocko's Modern Life
There was just something about this show I really liked. Probably because it was off the wall, and had so many adult orientated jokes in it that I would later get. It's also on Nick Canada. Camera Shy is my favourite episode from this cartoon.



10. Tales of the Crypt
Another show about monsters and ghouls. My favourite was the fairy tale one where Sleeping Beauty was a vampire.



11. Batman: The Animated Series
My first real introduction to Batman. I think we watched Tim Burton's Batman on VHS when I was younger, since it came out before I was born but the Batman of my lifetime will always be Kevin Conroy's Batman. I watched this show every day when I got home from school. I was never huge into action but the plots were always so captivating, and mature. I remember how sad I felt when Clayface died (I couldn't find his real death on yuotube, so his first 'death' will have to do). I have seasons 1-4 on DVD. Always a great watch.



12. The Mask
I watched this every morning before school when it came out. I had a thing for Stanley Ipkiss. When my best friend found out, she told everyone and I got made fun of for liking a cartoon character. I was 12 years old and mortified.



13. Super Mario Brothers Super Show and Legend of Zelda
A show based on video games, how could you go wrong. I have LOZ on DVD. It's pretty repeatetive but I still liked it. Missing Link is my favourite episode.


14. Captain N: Game Master
Another video game based show. I liked the concept of this cartoon, and who wouldn't want to live in Video Game Land? Simon Belmont hands down my favourite character from this series.



15. Chip'N' Dale
This was a great show from Disney. Not much to say about it except for "CHUH CHUH CHEEEEEESE!"


16. Winne The Pooh
When you're alone and there's nobody home, it's nice to be able to count on a friend like Pooh Bear.


17. Dark Wing Duck
A Batman like goofball. How could you go wrong? A hilarious rogue gallery too. I liked Megavolt.


18. Duck Tales
If anybody from the 1990s didn't like this show, they don't have a soul.

My Life With Horses : Part 1 - The Early Years

I've decided to write a little series about my 25 years living with horses, since they shape so much of my life.

Usually when the weekend rolls around, my friends asks me to come visit, go out for the night, spend the night and go drinking or to go away for a few days.

About 50% of the time, I have to sigh and reply "I can't. I have to make sure the horses are fed tonight, and someone will have to feed them in the morning" or "No one will be able to take care of the horses while I am gone".

If it's the summer, particularly in August, I grimace as I say "Can't. I have a horse show". Horse shows typically are on the Sunday and take all day Saturday to prepare. It also means an early night, so staying out isn't much of an option.

As I was preparing to get ready for a horse show today, I started to think about how I feel about horses, and the horse shows in general. But none of that would make any sense to anybody unless they knew the full story.

As far back as I can remember, we lived on a farm, and we had horses. My mom owned horses before she was married to my dad, and before she had us. When my brother and I were born, she had one horse, an elderly chestnut Morgan mare named Kelly. When my mom went out to do the chores, she would throw my brother and I on Kelly's back and the old mare would just stand there. We would bounce around, making animal noises to scare her into moving but she never moved. Sometimes she'd walk for a short distance but that was it. Later in life I would try to ride her with a saddle, and ended up having the saddle slip underneather her as she took off towards the barn, and I ended up falling in the mud.

When I entered kindergarten, my mom had made a new horsey friend who raised Arabians. My mom bought a grey Arab named Nytelyte off of her, in hopes of breeding. At first she bred to an Arabian, then to a Conemmera, and then to a welsh pony (which becomes important down the line). The horses sat in the yard and did nothing for the longest part. Our horses were Kelly, Nytelyte, Highlyte, Starlyte, and Budlyte (weren't we clever?).

Eventually my parents decided their house and property were too small. We moved to a nicer, bigger horse and a fabulous farm. It had a horse barn with 9 stalls, with cross ropes in the cemented hallway. It was attached to an ugly cowbarn that we stored our hay and straw in. We had two hayfields, and three paddocks and a riding ring that could also be used as a paddock. The only downfall of this place was its lack of an indoor ring.

Before we moved, my mom enrolled me into riding lessons. Instead of letting me hop up on a horse and wander where ever I wanted, I needed discipline and to learn the real techniques of riding. My mom started taking me to riding lessons at a dressage barn by a very well known dressage rider in the area.

I had two instructors. For one part of the lessons I was with one, then the other took over for the last half. I rode an old chestnut riding pony that went by the name of Babe.

I hated riding lessons. I was put up on the horses, and lead around for the most part. I was told to keep my hands in a 'box' while I rode, and to not move them. To me, this meant they couldn't jiggle at all, which I thought was impossible. I was always riding on the lounge line, with someone holding on. Everytime we troted, I was told to do a sitting trot, which is the hardest thing to do. Most people do rising trots, as it's easier on your ass and the horses' back insteas of you bouncing around like an idiot. It's hard and uncomfortable, but to be able to do it is a sign of a good rider. Or a horse with a very comfortable trotting gait.

Eventually, I was tired of lessons and my mom decided it would just be better to just buy me a pony and let me muck around by myself. She bought Babe and we brought her home. My brother and I would have our friends over and we'd ride her around the yard.

When my parents bought their new farm, the previous owners left behind two old ponies for us. Sugar and Tony were two shetland ponies of undetermined age. My brother and I would put lead chains on their halters and ride them bareback. Sugar was a nasty little pony who used to try and buck me off but she helped me learn the basics of riding.

Me riding Sugar, without a saddle, a bridle and a helmet haha.

I can't really remember what happened to Babe, but Tony and Sugar were sold, despite my brother and I's protest. My mom was moving into another stage of her horsey life. She found another riding school for me, one that I loved and went to for 7 years. My mom signed me up for Pony Club when I was seven, around the same time.

It was also around this time that my mom started getting interested in welsh ponies... which is the next chapter in my horse saga.