Sun and Sunshine Award

It's gotten colder, but aside from a few showers on Sunday it continues to be dry and beautiful here. The horses are enjoying pasture time, and I am enjoying the good riding weather.

Today Alanna at Pony Express nominated me for a Sunshine Award. (Thanks, Alanna!)

The Sunshine Award is for people who ‘positively and creatively inspire others in the blogosphere.’ The nominee of this award must do the following: thank the person who nominated them, nominate 10 bloggers of their own, answer the 10 questions given to you in a post, and add the Sunshine Award button to their blog.

I can see why Alanna was nominated; she has battled cancer at a young age with grace and good humor, continued riding, and is fulfilling her dream of owning a Welsh Cob sired by North Forks Cardi. She is definitely inspiring! Me, well, I don't think I'm in that league. It's mostly just me and my horse, learning to dance together far from the bright lights and big-name judges. And I don't even know 10 more horse bloggers I could nominate! So I'll just answer the questions, and mentally thank all the horse friends and teachers who have encouraged and inspired me over the years, but don't have blogs (like Kate, Val, Carmen, Estelle, Holly, Sylvia, Suzan, Debbie, and Julie).

So here are the questions:
1. Mares or geldings? Geldings. I've had mares, but geldings are more fun, less drama.

2. English or Western? English – dressage, to be exact. But me and my dressage partner, we're good trail buddies, too. ;-)

3. Do you prefer younger or older horses? I like to get them young and train them myself, then enjoy a long relationship.

4. Have you trained a horse from ground zero? Yes, for myself and others.

5. Do you prefer riding or ground work? I start every horse with lots of ground work, but there's nothing as wonderful as those times in the saddle when my horse and I feel in perfect sync.

6. Do you board or keep your horse at home? Be it ever so humble....

7. Do you use all natural things or just commercial stuff (the products you use)? I don't use a lot of "product," but I purchase what I use.

8. All tacked up or bareback? As a teenager I spent most of my time on the bare back of my horse; now I think my horse and I are both more comfortable with a well-fitting saddle.

9. Equestrian role model? Debbie McDonald, Jane Savoie.

10. What's your one main goal while being in the horse world? To enjoy riding until I die! (Long before that I'd like to earn the final score needed for my USDF Silver Medal, and eventually join the Century Club.)