A friend of ours has horses and a passion for teaching people about them. She invited us out to the barn for a field trip on the basics of horse care and riding. The excitement was high as we drove out to visit on a beautiful spring day. Our friend, AnnMarie, is an excellent and patient teacher. She introduced the horses, Sunshine and Steel, to us and then brought out grooming supplies and treats (for the horses).
Everyone got their hands dirty in the good work of grooming the horses while we learned about horse ownership in general and the individual characteristics and personalities of each horse.
 |
| Connor enjoyed exploring the barn and being a go-fer of sorts :-) |
When grooming was complete, the saddling lesson commenced as each horse was geared up and the rides began. Sonja was, not surprisingly, the first to jump on. :-) The girl was a confident natural and I bet she could've ridden all day but she was good to trade out with Riley.
Connor and then Hannah followed. Hannah wasn't absolutely ready to be completely on her own, but Sunshine is an easy ride and just having AnnMarie close was enough for Hannah to enjoy her time.
When the horses were all tired out, cleaned up, fed, and set out to pasture, the children enjoyed trampoline jumping while I chatted with the ladies (AnnMarie's sister, Aliana also joined us). It was a wonderful first experience for the children and was a huge blessing for us all. AnnMarie invited us back--the children are already counting down the days. Thank you so much AnnMarie!
No comments:
Post a Comment