Spring Show Day 1: Setup

I'm sitting in the world's most adorable hotel room, downing Earl Grey tea like I'm the captain of the Enterprise (though I take mine with cream), and trying to make one last attempt at memorizing my tests.  I've ridden them each multiple times, but they are just not sticking.  It might be the physical exhuastion.  But why would I be exhausted when I haven't even shown yet?

 Seriously, so adorable, that's a closet and another bedroom with a bathroom across the hall

Could be the speed loading of the trailer so we could stay on schedule when it was hooked up all of fifteen minutes before we were supposed to depart.  I was rather proud of myself that I can still run uphill with a wheelbarrow full of stall supplies.  That nonsense is heavy!  But the important part was that we got everything on the trailer in a somewhat organized way, including the horses, only ten minutes late.  In barn time, that's a damn miracle.  We're were sweating, wheezing, and exhausted.  We hadn't even gotten to the show yet.

The two hour drive became three hours as a Masshole caused an 'incident' in the Callahan tunnel in Boston.  But since we were scheduled to show up right as stabling opened, that was more a blessing then a curse.  We cruised in at 2pm, found our stalls, and unloaded all of the stuff we'd just finished throwing on the trailer.  Miss Thang and mi papi thought this was a very neat outing and proceeded to munch on their hay while watching other horses arriving.

Checking out some fancy WB mare down the aisle

Once checked in with the secretary, we took the kids to check out the competition rings that were open for schooling.  Miss Thang lunged, then walked them in hand.  Theo walked them in hand, then schooled in the ring he's using tomorrow.  Despite the sirens, tent coming loose in the wind, tractor starting up, and general insanity of a three ring circus dressage show, he held it together.  I was quite proud of him for only having two spooks under saddle and both were justified and contained.  I startled at the big white tent pulling loose, too.  We only did about fifteen minutes under saddle.  It's going to be a long weekend, he needs to keep his energy up.

Back to bed for the kids.  Miss Thang got braided up since her first ride time is at 8:30am tomorrow and she takes forever to eat.  I lent her Theo's sleazy since she hates being braided and her mane is very difficult to tame.

This is what a humiliated mare looks like

Trainer A does not approve.  No one is telling Trainer R.

Theo's coping well with his first away show.  He was pretty irritated at night check to still be in a stall, but some extra hay and a short stroll around the stabling area seemed to soothe the savage beast.  Hopefully he'll lay down tonight and get a good night's sleep.  My teen copilot is already passed out cold in the next room.

As for me?  It's still hours until my usual bedtime.  I'll be drinking tea and surfing the internet for hours to come.  At least I get to sleep in till 5:30am tomorrow.  So luxurious.  That's why we pay extra for stabling and hotels.  So we can enjoy our weekend just that teeny bit more.

Tomorrow, we show!