Riding Lessons for ME!

Now you all know that my Jakes has been taking Riding Lessons with equine therapy for many years and that he loves it.

Jakes on MilkShake

This last Saturday, Jakes talked my out of my comfort zone of the chairs under the tree at the farm and into his world of horses.

I got to ride on Buttons!
BAREBACK!

Now I see some of what Jakes enjoys

Ms. Suzanne took a ride on Pumpkin

It was a great day!

Jakes on Shakes

Jakes had a wonderful lesson on Milkshake this past weekend!  doesn't he look AWESOME!!!!

The Down and Out Horse Limbo Competition

 At the farm, the trainers are riders as well as trainers.  Ms. Tori has won at Devon previously.  She looks marvelous on a horse, any horse!  Some where along the trail to the Barn Show a challenge was issued.  The students could out jump the trainers.  Challenge Accepted.

In the Down and Out Competition, the bar is started low.  Each time you make the jump you proceed to the next higher level.  If you miss the bar, you're out.  Whoever jumps the highest and is still in, wins.

First up, at a low level was Emily.

Emily on Buttons. She has been riding for about a month.  On her first ride at the Farm, Buttons decided he wanted to go over a jump.  Emily stayed right with him and is HOOKED!

Next up was Ms. Tori.  She makes it look easy.

Here is Eva and Milkshake.  Shake is her favorite horse at the farm and they have a special bond.

They moved the bar up a little higher and Emily was out.  This left Ms. Tori (trainer) and Eva (Student)

Good clearance, Ms. Tori!

Fabulous Jump, Eva!

They moved the bar to the highest level.  Ms. Tori went first.

And she MISSED!  Ut oh! Now Eva has to make the jump to be declared the winner

And she clears it with space to spare.  And judging by Jakes reaction, you'd think he jumped it himself.

What a beautiful smile!  You did great today, Eva!

 Suzanne is a mom of Emily.  Suzanne loves to ride herself and has just started back in the saddle.  She wanted to participate in the Down and Out with Emily.  So she got her own category, Horse Limbo.

Suzanne all saddled up and ready to go.

Way to go Pumpkin!  Let's see how low you can go!

And that's just one of the many ways we have fun at the Farm.  There is always much laughter and love in this little corner of heaven on earth.  Jakes and I were truly blessed when we were sent here.

Hello? Is anybody here? Just some Tidbits

Where does the time go?  I didn't think it had been so long since I checked in with ya'll!

Been livin' life.  Not much improvements to talk about.  Just waiting out my time until I have to make a decision.

Jakes sent over a picture of his middle of the marking period grades and I just want to say I am one proud Momma!  He's doing so well!  All A's and B's.  Just one C and that's in English where there is so much writing and he doesn't like that!  He's working on it though!

Just finished a Federal Application for work and while it took a LOT of reading (boring reading), I think it came out pretty good!  My bosses and other proof readers seem to be impressed with my work.  Fingers crossed that we get awarded the much needed funding!  Now onto reading the Mental Health Regulations for the state so I can write policies to get all the offices licensed.

Daddy received a commendation from the County Fire Police Association.  He's been a part of them for over 5 years now and they did a lovely job of recognizing him and others at their annual dinner. So proud of my Daddy!



We finally got back to riding lessons!  Its been either too cold or too wet and rainy since January for lessons.  We're hoping the weather stays clear so he can go back again this weekend.  The horses missed all the kids!



In a couple of weekends I am going to insure my place in Heaven.  I'm taking Sister Anne (she works with me and is an angel!) to a retreat in Massachusetts.  We'll be up around Stone Hill College so if you know of any good places to eat or just to sight see, let me know!  Also say a prayer for good weather on the drive up.

Dirty Pants

Jakes worked hard at the farm this weekend and Ms. Jill rewarded them with a long trail ride.  I took some videos to share with the grandparents.

Here's the result of riding bareback.....



Shhhhh!  don't tell him I took this picture!



Farm Stories

Jakes loves going to the farm for riding lessons.  He loves being able to stay after the lessons to work with the horses and the teachers.  And they love having him there too.  If anything needs to be done, Jakes is right there to help.

Pumpkin is Jakes buddy.  He loves Pumpkin and Pumpkin loves him.  Jakes was having a lesson on Nugget and another helper was out trying to catch Pumpkin.  Pumpkin was being contrary and didn't want to be caught.  Ms. Jill sent Jakes out to help.  Pumpkin came right over to Jakes and let him harness and lead him into the ring for work.

When Pumpkin was finished for the day, Jakes led him back into the pasture and Jakes scratched Pumpkin in his special spot.  Pumpkin LOVED it!  He stretched his head up and nickered.  And when Jakes was done, said good-bye, Pumpkin turned and nudged Jakes in response.

I watched Jakes riding around the ring on Nugget.  He was steering him and working the course all by himself.  I was amazed!  The last time I watched Jakes on a horse, he had to be lead and guided by one of the teachers.  Ms. Jill said he's gotten so much better.  This weekend, I will stick around and get some pictures of him.

There is a wonderful young man, David who is blind and has other special needs.  David loves riding.  David's grandmother loves Jakes and how he is with David. Jakes is gentle with David, he tells him where to walk, step and helps to hold him in the saddle.  Jakes and David are about the same age so they get along and chat about "boy" things.  Jakes considers David a friend.

One day at the farm, Jakes was helping to hold Pixie in the saddle.  Pixie is a 3 year old autistic girl and she is just adorable.  She doesn't make eye contact but she knows there is a world out there.  She will respond when you talk to her and she will answer questions.   Her dad wanted to demonstrate how smart she is.  She was standing over at a KIA van when her dad asked her to show him the K-I-A.  She pointed to each one and started to walk away.  Her dad asked her to point to the numbers on the license plate.  She was already "done" with showing off, but she still turned and waved her hand in the general direction of the car.

On the day that Jakes was holding her in the saddle, Ms. Jill was telling her that they were done and it was time to get off.  Pixie put her arms around Jakes neck for him to lift her off the horse.  She made eye contact with him when he stood her on the ground.  So Sweet!

Last week, Jakes made an obstacle course for the other helpers and then he judged them as they went through the course.  He also made up prizes and some were very creative.  I was impressed with his imagination.  I loved that the other kids were willing to play with him, working it in around their chores.

Jakes loves going to the farm, not only for the horses but also because he is accepted and valued by everyone, not just the adults.  I love Jakes going to the farm because he has a place where he loves to go and feels accepted and valued, by everyone.

Meet Pumpkin

This is Jakes favorite horse at the farm.  This is Pumpkin.  Every chance Jakes gets, he's riding Pumpkin either with saddle or bareback.  Pumpkin is most gentlest of horses.  He moves smoothly and will stop when he feels his rider is uneasy or off balance.  Jakes really has to work to get him into a trot.  And since Jakes is not comfortable trotting, this makes Pumpkin the perfect pair for Jakes.

Jakes LOVES Pumpkin

On the Saturdays, I drop Jakes off at the farm for a few hours.  He does his lesson, then helps out with tacking up the other horses, cleaning stalls, and grooming horses.  Whatever Ms. Jill or Ms BobbieJo ask, Jakes does.  And he's also there to help the other people who are there for lessons or the other helpers. 

Jakes has friends there.  I think that's the only place he goes that we can say he has friends.  And these friends aren't all adults or other special needs kids, but normal, unclassified kids who consider Jakes a friend. 

I love that! 

I love the farm and Ms. Jill and the wonderful atmosphere she has created there.  She is truly a wonderful person and probably the second best thing to happen to Jakes within the realm of Autism and special needs.  The first being the Autism Center that connected us to Ms. Jill and her farm.

A couple weeks ago, I arrived to pick Jakes up and Ms. Jill told me a story about Jakes when he was on a trail ride that day.  She said he was amazing and the other kids agreed with her.  There were 3 or 4 kids riding various sized horses, with Jakes being on Pumpkin.  Someone was on Hershey, who is the biggest horse on the farm.  Hershey pulled a little ahead of Pumpkin and for some reason, Pumpkin decided that he didn't want Hershey in the lead so he matched his gait to Hershey's. 

Before Jakes knew what was going on, Pumpkin and Hershey were in a cantor.  Then Pumpkin switched gears to a gallop!  All Jakes could do was hang on and yell HO!  But Pumpkin thought Jakes was yelling GO!  So he did just that.  GO. GO. GO.

They finally came to the corner of the field where Ms. Jill was watching and Pumpkin came to an abrupt stop.  Had he not lifted his head, Jakes would have tumbled right on over! 

Ms. Jill said she was terrified when Pumpkin took off. But there was nothing she could do but say a quick prayer for Jakes protection.  And Pumpkin did just that by putting his head up to keep Jakes from flying over.

Ms. Jill tells of Jakes facial expression as being one of shocked disbelief.  She was amazed that he didn't get upset enough to cry, which I think I would have!  Jakes scrambled off Pumpkin and they headed back to the waiting area with Jakes walking.  Jakes did get back on Pumpkin that day and they have gotten along wonderfully since then.

Even Horses Need Baths....... WW

Jakes gave Quest a bath last week

Fragmented Friday

I think I've had too much time off work, if that's possible.  I totally forgot that it was Friday!  Its Happy dance time!  Also, earlier this week, I was positive that the IEP meeting was on Wednesday when it really was on Thursday.  DUH.

The IEP meeting went very well.  The team was pleased that I chose to come and they loved that I had so much to share.  They didn't come right out and say it but I got the impression that they didn't get much from JF at the first meeting.  OH!  JF didn't even show up!  Father of the Year Again!   I will share more details on the meeting later.  BUT, I am even more convinced that I've done the right thing where Jakes is concerned.  I've given him the best chance at succeeding for now.

ESM shared her cold with EVERYONE in the compound, including myself.  I spent yesterday other than the meeting under blankets sniffling and snotting.  I'm feeling better today, just a little snotty and a little dizzy.

Jakes starts up with riding lessons again tomorrow.  Its going to be SO cold!  He's excited.  Me - not so much!

I don't think I'll be swimming in the ocean this year.  I just don't have the money for the sponsorship nor for the gas to travel to the beach where it's held.  BUT thanks to my daddy, I almost have my budget balanced!  I should be back on track with my budget by March.  Fingers crossed!

My plans for the weekend are for Riding lessons and after Jakes leaves, I have a cookbook to work on.  My housework is done, so there won't be that.  hmmmmm.....  Maybe a little creative writing on the side.....  if its warm enough, I'll turn Jaxon loose on the beach at low tide again.  He loves to chase the geese!  One day, he'll get one, if only he'd take the plunge in the friged water.

What are your plans?

My Weekend

Friday around 3, I started bouncing in my chair with excitement that I was getting Jakes in a few hours.  He'd been texting me off and on all day as he was excited too.  He sent me a text that said "I miss you super much"  awwww!  How sweet!

At 4:15 he called me to tell me he was out of his seizure medicine and needed me to get him more.  I told him to call his father.  HA!  I loved that!  Except that my kid needed his medicine and I wanted to help him get it.  So I called him back and told him that if his father gave Jakes the insurance cards, we could refill the Rx over the weekend.  Jakes told me that his father said he'd be ok without it until Sunday.

WHAT?!?!?!?!?!??!?!?!???!?!?!?!

I didn't scream at Jakes.  Or his father.  On the way home from getting Jakes, we stopped and I bought out of pocket (no insurance for a BRAND NAME medicine) 4 pills to take us through the weekend.  OUCH.  But my child had the medicine that he needed in order to insure he didn't have a seizure while in my care.

I have been composing a parenting-fail email in my head all weekend but I haven't sat down to actually DO it because my email will be completely unproductive.  I am going to try and compose a nicer version today, just so that I can have a record of the fact that he sent Jakes without his medication and without a plan for getting the medication for the weekend.  I might have to start with the bad email, just to get it out of my system, then tone that down.  We'll see.  But I need to document that Jakes didn't have his medicine.

The weekend was a pretty nice one with Jakes.  He still has attitude and mouth towards me but not as much.  Of course, there wasn't as much in the way of schedules and things that HAD to be accomplished this weekend.  It was mostly about Fun Stuff.

We had riding lessons on Saturday Morning, brrrrrrrrrrrr.  He's doing so well with the horses.  He seems to be able to take any horse they put him on and communicate and maneuver all over the ring.  Jakes seems to be afraid to trot the horses, but if they are walking around the ring, he's exceptional.  And that's not just Mom saying that, the teachers are all pleased with his abilities.  Last week, he was on a stubborn horse and still was able to get the horse to follow his commands.

In the afternoon, we delivered political flyers around the neighborhood for my parents.  Walking around with Jaxon and teasing Jakes, it was a good afternoon.

Sunday, we lazed about in the morning and finished delivering political flyers in the afternoon.  The best part of the weekend was that I wanted to be around my son.  I wanted to snuggle up and watch a movie.  I wanted to play video games with him.  I wanted to walk around the neighborhood chatting with him.

And Sunday when it was time for him to leave, I wasn't sad to see him go.  I wasn't glad, more resigned that this is the way things have to be right now.  This is the way it has to be.

Riding Lessons Part 2

Jakes has been counting the days until we could go back for his next Riding Lesson.  I can get him to do almost anything with the threat that he might not be allowed to go riding next week!  Not that I would do that to him, well.....   maybe. 

When we arrived, Ms. J asked Jakes what he remembered from last week and he rattled off several things.  She was thrilled!  She also commented that his posture was much improved and was pleased with his efforts.  So the lesson started out on a very good note.

Jakes went into the ring to get acquainted with his horse and for the life of me, I can't remember the name of the horse!  Anyway, Jakes started with brushing the horse and checking his feet to make sure they were clean.  He did such a great job!  And he loved being brushed with the horse brush himself! 



Brushing the horse





Checking his feet



Using his muscles to put the saddle on.
Gentle!




After putting the Bit in and climbing the steps, Jakes is up
And so happy!



learning the commands and walking around the ring



They wandered out of the ring and followed the driveway.
Jakes liked the sound of the horse's hooves on the driveway.



After removing the saddle and sharing treats,
a hot and sweaty Jakes gets to
lead the horse back to his field

Ms. J. is very impressed with Jakes focus when he's with the horses or just listening to her.  She says he has a sense of the horse and what to do with them.  Once he learns basics, he will be a fabulous horseman.

While Jakes was working with the horse, I texted his father to ask he if would take Jakes to the riding lesson next week when Jakes is with him.  He agreed!  I'm scared!  And Jakes is so excited to be able to ride again next week and to have his father watch him.

Jakes good behavior carried over into home life. We stopped for dinner and we were able to be a little silly with each other without Jakes getting over the top.  Once at home, he listened to instructions and did his chores without too much argument and he even left me alone so that I could sit with the family and watch the beautiful sunset!  See....  so many positive things from this!