English Riding Lessons

We have been trying different activities for Gabby after school. We tried dance but Hip Hop was not working for her so we decided to try trampoline - only to find out that she is too young. So...we opted for English Riding Lessons.  First days are always exciting but I think Gabby truly loved it.  But we had a few horse issues...as it goes with animals.  The first horse Gabby was to ride was Sassy - she was out giving a lesson when we got there and when they were done - she went down. I mean down and was not getting up! It was hot and the horse was dehydrated so that one was not an option. So we waited for about 10 min and then they decided to put her on Zoey.  Beautiful horse and Gabby went to her stall, caught her, brushed her and helped get her saddle ready.  We were about 30 min into the lesson when Zoey decided to get excited. As this was Gabby's first time riding English and Zoey looked like she was about ready to jump the fence and take off - they took Gabby off. Zoey didn't want to calm down so we went back to the stables and got Prince.  He was tired but perfect for the end of the lesson.  The whole time I kept thinking that Lilly was going to be so jealous because she ALWAYS asks to ride a white horse :)  Prince was a good pony and did not move fast at all!  Gabby began to learn abotu stirups, keeping her heels down, to keep her pinky on the outside of the reins, how to have good posture in the saddle, and how to move and stretch and control the horse.  It was a good first day and Gabby was thrilled. She enjoyed the lesson and I think we will continue to do them every other week.  Here's to trying something new - for all of us!