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Well guys, we’re getting down to the wire. Sadie officially passed the 270th day of gestation last Friday – the last stop on our fun little timeline before Little Nugget is a fully developed foal.

He’s now approximately the size of a big German Shepherd (this timeline is more for stock horses than warmbloods so ours are a bit bigger), and he has a coat now, and a tail. The markings (If any… come on, give a girl a stripe or something.) are all visible now. We already know he’s going to be bay or brown, so that’s less of mystery. Mighty Magic has lots of white but Sadie has very little and her line seems to suppress it, so we’ll see who wins the battle of the markings.

So far, everything looks good. Michelle has been on “belly watch” for a couple months already, observing their activity. All of them seem plenty active, and one day when she put her head up to Sadie’s belly Little Nugget kicked her in the head. That sounds about right. Soon the mares will start getting super huge and more uncomfortable and then belly watch will turn into foal watch. Hopefully Sadie doesn’t take her angst out on the barn walls quite as much this time (eh… sorry ’bout all the teeth marks on your nice barn, Michelle…).

Sadie’s “due date” is March 17, but of course horses don’t really have due dates in the same way that humans do. That date is just based on the average gestation of 340 days… anything from 320 to 360 is considered average. Last time Sadie went 330ish days, so we’ll see what she feels like this time. Things are about to start getting real, and anxiety levels are about to start going through the roof.

Next stop on our fun timeline: an actual foal! We’re close. We’re really close. So… holy crap, this is it y’all. The home stretch, after two years of planning.

For those who have asked how Merlin is doing – he’s super! He’s had a couple of “pre-k” lessons (learning to wear surcingle, boots, and a little w/t on a lunge line) and reports from his owner and trainer are that he’s been super. He’s quiet, easy, and a quick learner. Also he’s a total giant already at 18 months. Granted, so was his sire. Super interested to see how the Mighty Magic compares to big brother since they have very different sires!

Sorry I’m a little late with this! There were so many good logos submitted that it took a little longer to get everything sorted and ready to roll. Many thanks to all of you who sent logos to Michelle… the entries were a little slow to start but by the end she had over SIXTY to choose from! Picking a winner was no easy task, I’m sure. So, without further ado, the winning logo is:

There were several top contenders, but in the end it came down to a matter of branding. What was the most versatile logo that went best with the vision of Willow Tree Warmbloods as a business? What would embroider well on a hat or jacket, translate well to a computer screen, and look right at home on the saddle pad of a Grand Prix horse? In the end, this logo (which is Lissa jumping over a willow branch, with a round shape that hints at something global or international) gave WTW a logo that serves as easily recognizable branding for the business. And if you’re into the symbolism side of things, willow trees are known for being able to take root and grow in pretty much any environment just from planting a single branch, so the “hidden meaning” here is super cool – like each WTW horse is it’s own branch, ready to take root and grow into something marvelous. It’s simple but poignant, and truly representative of the WTW vision.

We also picked two runners-up to receive gift cards from Riding Warehouse! Congrats to the creators of these two logo concepts:

Just to give you an idea of exactly how hard this decision was, here’s just a tiny sampling of the entries submitted:

Britt, Leslie, and Carrie, you should all have received emails this morning about your prizes. Many thanks again to everyone for your time and effort and participation!

And of course, extra special thanks to all of the companies that pitched in and made it possible for us to offer such an awesome prize pack: Lund Saddlery, Teddy’s Tack Trunk, Hamer & Clay, and All Ears Selfie app!

The one and only time I ever attended Rolex was in 2001. It was actually the first event I ever went to, having grown up in h/j land. It was a big part of the reason why I decided to be a working student for an eventer after high school; I remember just being completely blown away by the sport (and the horse park, and Lexington in general). Giltedge won that year, but I fell in love with the fiery little Jacob Two Two and eventing itself.

And yet, I haven’t ever been able to make it back to Rolex. I was just too damn poor for most of my 20’s (plus severely airplane-averse), and for the last couple years pretty much every spare penny has gone to my show budget. But since this year is a more relaxed year for us, and certainly very flexible, maybe it’s finally time to go back.

I’ve already looked at tickets and am thinking about flying into Nashville and then driving down with Hillary. Here’s what I really need to know to get my planning started:

• Who else is thinking of going?
• Things I must see/do/eat/drink?
• Stuff I should bring?
• People I must meet?
• Shenanigans and debauchery that I must participate in?

You know… all the important stuff. Let’s plan!

We were lucky enough to have some seriously nice weather here in Texas between Christmas and New Years. Temps were mostly in the 70’s and it alternated between sunny and overcast. It climbed up into the 80’s a few days, and one day it stayed down in the 50’s, but still – it did not suck. What did suck was how sweaty and gross my ridiculously hairy horse got on those 80 degree days.

I did Henry’s Irish clip in October, and pretty much all of that hair had grown back with a vengeance. Like, no kidding, his clipped part was hairier than an un-clipped Halo. For a horse that already has a heat tolerance issue, this meant it was time for haircut #2. I toyed with the idea of giving him his usual hunter clip (leaving the legs and a saddle patch) because it looks better, but I’ve actually really liked how the Irish clip has worked for us so far this season. Yes, it’s a little goofy looking, but it keeps his back and hind end warmer and requires less aggressive blanketing. Practical Me doesn’t often win out, but she did this time.

It looks especially goofy because his unclipped part is SO HAIRY  (we’re talking 3″ butt and leg hairs when he’s all fluffed up), and because of, well… his ears.

He will let me clip all the way up to the base of his ears with no complaint, but even a draft horse dose of tranqs plus a twitch (I know this from previous experience) aren’t enough to take the fight out of him when it comes to his ears. I have no interest in clipping the hair out of the inside of his ears, but it’d be nice to get all that (gross curly) hair off the backs/sides. Alas, I decided a long time ago that it’s just not worth the fight with this horse. If Henny wants his hairy squirrel ears that badly, he can keep them.

We like to say that the hair is required to keep the hamster in his brain warm. Or maybe all that hair keeps his brain from falling out of his ear. Either way, we can all agree that this is exactly why ear bonnets are a life necessity. Just stick a pretty little hat over them and nobody ever has to know about the mess underneath.

After last week’s fairly shitty solo jump school at home, I was in dire need of another jumping lesson.

Not gonna lie, I was having one of those “oh god, did I ruin my horse in one ride” mini panic attacks. Short version of what happened a week before: I just could not get my canter right, which made all of my distances total shit (as in, I missed really badly several times in a row), which finally made Henry mad enough to stop. While I definitely deserved it, I still tapped him twice on the butt for stopping at a little 3′ vertical. His job is to jump the jumps as long as it’s safe to do so, and he could have, he’d just gotten tired of my monkey riding. Fair enough, I had that coming, but you still have to do your job even when I don’t do mine.

After that he came unglued enough to where I had to drop my whip completely, because he was cantering in place and wanting to run THROUGH everything. Apparently I seriously hurt his feelings with two butt taps. Duly noted. A few days later I went out and cantered a couple of jumps on a circle until all seemed fairly okay, but he was still kinda grumpy in general. Feelings, he has so many of them.

So naturally I spent all week internally freaking out about having ruined my perfect saintly horse. That’s normal, right? When we got to Trainer’s place on Friday I filled her in on what had happened the weekend before. She just kind of giggled at our ridiculousness (I know I’m crazy, this is not news to me) and set up a vertical with canter poles to help address our rhythm issue. After hopping through it both ways and steadily raising the height (while she said the word “balance” approximately 1500 times) things were clicking again.

Since we seemed pretty much back to normal by that point (Henny grudge: over), she put the jumps up to 3’3″-3’6″ and made a course for us.

Other than the fact that I really could not make myself wait to the base of the barrel vertical when I didn’t see the distance, it was actually fine. At some point I will learn that just because it’s bigger, I don’t have to attack it when I don’t see anything. But uh… at least I’m not pulling all the way to the base? Maybe eventually I’ll find the middle ground. Maybe. Let’s just take this as a small victory.

The good news is, Henny was very very rideable and totally back to his normal self, thank god. I didn’t ruin him, I just pissed him off and we had to visit Trainer for some relationship counseling (aka reminding me how to ride). Crisis averted. Ah, the life and times of an amateur horse…