- Blink Blink -

-Blink Blink-

It has been a long haul out of the depth of this blog, MoonSox's blog, to get through some of the most difficult, amazing, challenging and exhausting times in my life. Our life.

But driving home across the prairie yesterday, sun shining through the window, close horse friend seated beside me, I felt like everything was reinvigorated. Like the first time the sun shines on grass after a long winter. Like the warmth of a warm spring day. Like the crispness of the changing seasons, spelling new adventures.

Moonpie and I left the blogging world 2 years ago, and it wasn't the happiest time for us. We were hurt and we did what was necessary to make it through those times. But 2 years have passed, we've experienced a great many things, and while we're not fully sure where this is going from here, I had the overwhelming pull that it was time to see.

Wounds take time to heal. They do. But when the moment is right, it's almost not difficult any more to move forward. You lose those old pains, you feel refreshed to start anew.

I like to think we're there.

Happiness on horseback.

Where have we been for 2 years??

We built our dream home. We really did. Against all odds, all possibilities, we built our dream home. I broke free from a really, really unhappy relationship and fell headfirst into the greatest love I've ever known. Something I wake up every morning with an overwhelming sense of gratitude for. Not saying we're perfect, but that we're perfectly imperfect together. We have plans for a wonderful wedding next Fall, and he is so supportive of Moon and I that I know we have many wonderful miles together ahead.

We added a tiny furball of evil to our family, one Pixel kitten who is the reincarnation of a teddybear heart in a cactus body. And we love her. So does Halo. Sweet Halo tore her cruciate ligament earlier this spring and we spent a rather terrifying amount of money trying to piece her back together. 12 weeks of hellish recovery and only one set-back, and she's a happy dog again, chasing her cat and relaxing around our beautiful home.

We experienced a HUGE loss, when my best friends' horse Manwell (aka. The Black) had a laminitic bout that she just couldn't pull him out of. Watching their struggle was heartbreaking and hellish and more pain than I ever wanted to see her endure with her hearthorse. The thing that stuck with me was more than just how he was her heart horse, but they were Moon and my partners in crime. Galloping bareback beside the fields was not the same. Hitting the trails was not the same. Schooling dressage, feeding ponies, nothing was the same.

This past weekend a group of us ladies headed out for our first ever horse camping trip. Something that was on many of our bucket lists. And it was awesome. And horrible. Every time I saw H on the black steed she borrowed, I was angry it wasn't Manwell. I was. And Moon seemed to know it too, because we didn't race down the field the way you KNOW we would have, and we didn't canter the trails together the way we should, and it just wasn't right. We had grown to just expect to look over and there be H and the Black beside us, perfectly matched to us, smiling faces and that *glance* we'd share between the four of us that would cue H and I into kneeding our fingers into our ponies' manes and having them surge forward into a fast gallop as we raced side by side.

It was, and will never be, the same.

I don't know why, but for some reason this weekend helped me accept that that hollow will be there forever. Or at least for a very long time. Moon will get older, even when H gets another heart horse, I may have lost mine and not be ready for another. That's life. But as she reminds me, we had those moments, and they'll carry us through. Let's not miss out on making more.

So that is kinda where we're at at this point in time. This weekend camping out with the horses was incredible, and was the kick in the arse I really needed to get back to riding with Moon. We're SOOO close to being all done with our house building adventure and such a huge part of my life and happiness is on the back of that horse. I could feel it so much riding him this weekend and just how happy he is to be out. There's a huge connection there and I don't want to miss that.

Plus it's excellent exercise, gets me out of the house, gives G some time to himself without me and keeps Moon in shape.

Did I mention that S2 is moving her pony to H's barn this winter?! That's right! Her boy, who we'll call...Strider...is all alone at her place and she felt he could enjoy some winter company and we could ride together more! So he'll be coming out to the barn probably next month! Yay!

Add in, this weekend we unfortunately had one friend not able to join us on our camping adventure which unfortunately meant we were also one trailer spot short. How did we solve it??...well...we FINALLY used my beautiful blue trailer I fixed up 2 years ago!! We did!

Ol'Blue arrived at the camping site a'okay!

Our friend A from out of province flew out, and H hooked up my blue trailer and picked up her horse at a friend's barn. The trailer hauled out and back without issue (phew!!!), and besides being in need of a new set of tires, it seems to be doing just fine!

The real perk though, was that A gave me a hand in trying to load Mr. Moon into the trailer. You may recall me trying myself 2 years ago and it was a total flop. After a fair number of hours. I finally parked it at home with NO idea of whether or not Moon even FIT in the trailer. 

....well...in about an hour of working together, we had him loaded twice into the trailer, WITH the bum chain and door closed, and happily eating away from from the manger. :D Yup! And he fit! Maybe not with a ton of room, but appropriately without any body parts rubbing or squished!! I'm SOOOO happy! :D So that meant that there's no reason to sell the trailer!

Moonpie inside our very own trailer, FINALLY!! :D BLISS!!

...which was even more awesome when H suggested that we borrow her truck this winter and haul Mr. Moon to Coach W's barn for Friday night rides!! :D Her and I have loved riding together for so long, and it would be not only awesome practice for Moon to load in the trailer, but to work in a nice warm arena for a couple nights a month. The perfect compromise of all the things I wanted out of winter.

I'm THRILLED. A Friday night schooling with H and maybe a Sunday afternoon bareback trail with S2 or S2 and H, and I'm one happy lady. :)

I feel reinvigorated. I really do. It's weird. I'm so excited to get back out riding again. Something I haven't felt since last winter. At all. And last winter I didn't have the time for it. Nor did I last summer. It finally feels like it's time again. And I'm thrilled.

Jumping with Moonpie again, maybe teaching S2 to teach Strider to jump, riding out at Coach W's with H....I'm excited. I have every intention, and finally feel like it'll happen, to ride Moon on Friday night, to ride again on the weekend and just get serious about it again. It's time. This is it folks.

Manitoba MoonSox is back.

:D

A view we've all been missing for far too long.