(no subject)

Ah, what a weekend. Rode outside Saturday and Trudi was HOT and inattentive and about as flexible as a brick. Wow, felt like a throwback to last year. I insisted on a not-so-fast trot, which got me a short neck and trailing hind legs and a horse pulling like a freight train, but whatever, I insisted. We had big tantrums by the mounting block, and I had to keep insisting that the left rein really was mine, and there was launching and plunging and eventually halting and trotting on, and also a smack with the whip that said "move over REALLY". Then there was more spooking and carrying on about the loud booms coming from the dumpster and I forced her through 10 steps walk, 10 trot, 10 medium trot, 10 working trot shoulder-in, 10 working trot haunches in, 10 walk, and so on. And eventually she decided to listen a bit and settle some and we even managed some not completely terrible canter.
Sunday hiked for like 2 miles with the family (12th anniversary, go us!), in a beautiful park in the mountains, complete with climbing up rocks so that we were about 3 stories up with a view of a lovely mountain meadow. Trudi would have gone nuts for all the lovely grass there. I rested in the car on the way home and decided to go ride that evening. Rode outside again, where it was pretty quiet and Trudi was a much better horse than when she came out yesterday. 20 minutes in, hubby called for help dealing with an exhausted 4 year-old meltdown, so I had to cut it short. Oh well, better to leave when things are going well.