First real ride of the season!

Well we had an exciting weekend here. Horse back riding and hanging out with little cousins. Cody and I were excited to work with the horses all Sat since the weather was so nice. We've got two mares that are just 3 years old that we've been working with since we got here. They were both born with us at the summer rental house after we first got married and this is the first time we've been able to see them on a daily bases. Coco is a draft horse to the core both in size and in temperament. Her mother was a appaloosa and her father a Clydesdale. Her sister Pokie was sired by the same father and an Arabian mare so she's a bit smaller with a lot more spit to her. Needless to say she needs much more work than her sister :) Anyway, I got some darling shots of the kids with them and surprisingly enough Asher had yet to ride on a horse so we got him sitting on Coco which is about all he can do right now. Cody and I took the mares out for a big ride on Sat with Cody's brother Landen (who was also riding a very green and unpredictable horse) so we all had our own adventure trying to get to the top of the mountain. The ride was lovely and afterwards Cody and I thought we'd try and do some control exercises in the field afterwards. Apparently the horses had had enough cause upon running them Cody was bucked off Pokie and just a few minutes later Coco had also bucked me off. For a first ride of the season it wasn't that surprising and we're all paying for it today! Poor Landen was bucked off when I pulled at an old stitching on his horses chest so the day ended horses 3 humans 0. But they paid for it in sweat! Funny thing is that if you're reading this you're probably thinking "That does not sound like a very fun day to me" but I had a blast the whole day. Other than landing on my backside. That hurt pretty bad. :) I expect great things from these horses. Especially Coco who has an unusually kind and human heart for a horse. The funniest thing that happened with her was during my ride I noticed that she was itching herself on whatever she could find. Especially her face. Finally she dropped her head and I thought she was going to itch it on her leg and instead she dropped onto her belly and I jumped off her just in time and she rolled onto her side, rubbing her whole body on the ground. I guess there are just some itches that only rolling can get. I couldn't believe it. I'd never seen a horse do that before in the middle of a ride. And it was so slow and purposeful that I never felt in danger. Just shocked. Next time I'll have to bring my camera up with me to take a picture of the gorgeous mountain area we were riding in. I sure love being on horseback! Anyway, enjoy!