Like Mother, Like Daughter (Sort Of)

This little cowgirl all decked out in the cowgirl hat and fancy chaps is me at approximately age 4.

I was visiting my grandmother when a man came through her neighborhood offering to take pictures of children on his  pony.  Even though this was more than 50 years ago, I still very vividly remember this event, as well as my excitement over being on a real, live horse for the first time.

 

This precious little cowgirl wearing an eyelet trimmed denim skirt, boots, and her hat at a jaunty tilt in the photo below is my daughter at age 4. 

A shopping mall in a neighboring city was offering pony pictures.   That happy grin on her face should have been my first indication that this would not be the last time she would be on the back of a horse!

After we were there the first time, my daughter relentlessly begged me to take her back to the mall the next day so she could “ride” the pony again.  That should have been my second clue that I had a budding equestrian on my hands!

 Throughout my childhood,  an occasional pony ride at the fair or on a brightly colored carousel horse  was pretty much the extent of my horseback “riding” experiences and I soon outgrew my excitement over horses.

On the other hand, in the 23  years since that photo of her on the pony was taken,  my daughter’s  passion for horses has never waned. 

Not.   For.   One.   Second. 

As a small child, she has always had a special, extraordinary love of  all animals but, as the saying goes, she really  “eats, sleeps and breathes” horses. 

She  started taking weekly horseback riding lessons at age 9.  

She was 13 when we bought her first horse. 

At 16, we bought her a second horse.  Even through those potentially troublesome teen years, the only place she ever wanted to be was at the barn, riding her horses. 

Primarily she rides English (Hunter/Jumpers)…

 

 

 

But she has been known to throw on a western saddle and cut a few calves too.

 

She also loves teaching other little girls all about horses, horse care....(like routine deworming with oral paste dewormer)… 

…and how to ride.

 

 

Although she has certainly tried many times to make  working with horses a full-time job, living in the city has made it very difficult and almost cost prohibitive.   However, the 30 acres and 3 barns at our new  house in Hooterville  will give her a place to establish her own business of buying, training and selling horses, running a boarding facility, and giving riding lessons on a full-time basis.

Every time one of her riding students wins their first ribbon at a horse show (like in the photo below), she truly experiences a genuine thrill so my heart swells with love, happiness and pride that she will now be able to make horses her business and share her passion of horses with others on a full-time basis…especially horse-lovin’ little girls.

This is why I am so willing to move away from  My Cottage of Bliss in the city for a more rural life in Hooterville.

And who knows… with horses in my own backyard, perhaps I’ll rekindle my excitement over horses. 

Maybe I’ll even decide to ask Daughter to teach her old mom how to ride!