Cross Creek Horsemanship

I received exciting news this week.  Lee Cullen from Confessions of a Struggling Dressage Rider honored me with the Beautiful Blogger award.  It looks like this:

I love horses and I love to write so I thank my mom for letting me own Cross Creek Horsemanship, which allows me to share my two loves with others.  She also counts this as part of my school work.

With the acceptance of this award, I am supposed to share seven things about myself that you might not already know.  This is harder than it looks because some of my readers know me very well and some do not know me at all.

1.  I have mutton busted three times at the Grimes County Rodeo.
2.  I carried the Texas flag in the grand entry of the rodeo while riding Ladd.
3.  My favorite author is John Erickson, who writes the Hank the Cowdog series.
4.  My favorite dinner is chicken-fried steak with gravy, mashed potatoes, green beans, and corn-on-the cob.
5.  I am a Christian.
6.  I like to cook and am learning to grill.
7.  I am dyslexic.

I hope that my blog encourages others.  I want to help people enjoy horses.  My mom has taught me that talent can only get you so far.  It is passion that separates you from the crowd.  I certainly have a passion for horses so I hope that what she says is true.

Clayton riding Commander.

Watching nature is very interesting.  The behavior of horses is one thing that I have been watching lately.

I told you about our horse, Commander.  Since he has been here on our ranch, he has been at the bottom of the totem pole with the other horses.  They kicked at him, bit at him, etc.

As far as a riding horse, Commander was great.  He would do anything that you asked him to do.  He was a pleasure to ride.

But something has changed.  Commander is asserting himself with the other horses and with us.  He has earned himself the title, “Boss Man of the Herd.”  When all the horses are out of their pens and together in the big pasture, Commander is telling the mares when they can move, where they can go, etc.  He is also driving the other gelding away from the mares.  Angus has to graze alone on the other side of the pasture.

Commander is using his body language to control his newly-claimed herd.  With a turn of his ear, the mares will obey him.  He has fought Angus and apparently won as top horse.

I do not care which horse is in control of the herd; however, I do care when a horse asserts itself on one of us.  Now that Commander is numero uno, he is being difficult with any rider.  Regardless if it is PawPaw or my brother, Clayton, riding him, Commander has been rearing up and bucking.  He is no longer a pleasure to ride.

What to do with a misbehaving horse?  Clearly, show him who is boss!  PawPaw has taken Commander back to school.  Several days a week PawPaw works Commander hard in the round pen.  Commander is slowly realizing that PawPaw is still the boss of him.

On Tuesday, the coolest thing happened at my house.  It snowed!  It snowed very hard!  It was exciting!

I thought you would enjoy seeing some pictures that my mom and I took.  The day before the snow came, my whole family worked together to put blankets on all of our horses.  They do not have a covered shelter yet.  The barn is not finished.

Our horses, like us, are not used to snow or any winter precipitation.  We take special good care of them.  We feed them extra grain when it is so cold.  Of course, you have to break the ice off of the watering trough.

I think the horses liked the snow, but not as much as my brothers and sister did.

It is really snowing!

My baby brother, Andrew, is trying to catch a snowflake on his tongue.

Commander eating his dinner in the snow.

Angus in the snow.

Jesse in the snow.

A snowy pasture.

Clay in the snow.

Kyla, Drew, and Isaac in the snow.

I hope that you enjoyed seeing our day in the snow.  I hope that you stay warm throughout the rest of this unusually cold winter.

Yesterday at a 4-H meeting, Don Sowell, the Grimes County Sheriff, spoke to our club.  I know Sheriff Sowell well because he is the head of the Jr. Mounted Posse.  If you have read many of my articles, then you know that I really enjoy being a part of that organization.  I learned a lot by listening to Sheriff Sowell yesterday.  I wanted to share it with you.

Sheriff Sowell designed the badge that he wears based on the history of Grimes County and the city of Anderson, which is the county seat.  Since I wear the badge as a member of the Posse, it was very interesting to learn about the design.

When settlers first began settling in what is now called Anderson, Texas, they noticed that the town was built on seven hills.  They called it “Little Rome” because of the similarities between this town and the ancient city of Rome, which is also built on seven hills.  Later the town changed its name to honor Kenneth Anderson.  He was the last vice-president of the Republic of Texas.  Unfortunately he died at the Fanthorp Inn in Anderson.

My Posse Badge

Looking at the badge, a seven-pointed star is in the background representing the seven hills of Anderson.  Then you will see the circle and a five-point star.  The star is the traditional star of Texas.  It holds the seal of Texas, too.  Traditionally, early law enforcement officers carved their badges from a cinco peso coin.  Since Grimes County was created in 1846 after Texas joined the United States, the sheriff’s badge has the words, “Est. 1846,” on his badge.

In addition to the badge, I learned who the county is named after.  It is named in honor of two men who were father and son.  Jesse Grimes, the father, signed the Texas Declaration of Independence.  His son, Albert Grimes died a hero at the Alamo.

I will wear the badge proudly.  It is so nice to understand the meaning behind it.  I thank Sheriff Sowell for taking the time to teach us about our county.  Regardless of where you live, try to find out its history.  It might surprise you.

Ladd and Jake

Valentine’s Day is this Sunday.  We are making special heart-shaped cookies at home.  We are thinking of ways to show people that we love them.

I like Valentine’s Day.  I like getting sweet little notes.  I love eating chocolates and candy.  I like surprising my mom and dad with a homemade card, but I also like to do something sweet for my horses.

Months ago I wrote an article called “Where is Your Horse’s Love Spot?” for a different blog.  I am proud of this article and recommend that you read it.  I know where Ladd’s love spot is.  He loves it when I rub between his jaw bones under his head.

Spend time this week finding your horse’s love spot.  Bring him/her an apple or carrot as a treat.  Brush them down for no reason.  Detangle and/or fix his/her hair.  I have seen horses with braided tails, braids in the mane, etc.  Take them on a fun ride.

Whatever you do this Valentine’s Day, remember your horse.  Remind them how much you love them too.  I talk a lot about enjoying your horse.  Let them have a reason to enjoy being around you, too.

Happy Valentine’s Day!

Can you say “BRRRRR!!?”  Man, last Saturday was extremely cold.  It was overcast the entire day.  There was a stiff breeze that sent the just above freezing weather straight through your body.

Dressed as warmly as possible.

I had blue jeans and chaps to cover my legs.  I had my Posse uniform on, which consists of a long-sleeved shirt and vest.  I put my heavy winter coat on under my Posse windbreaker.  Of course, I had on gloves and warm socks.  I also wore my felt cowboy hat with stampede strings tight under my chin.   Stampede strings saved my hat from being ruined.  The wind was blowing so hard that I would have surely lost my hat on the ride.

Ladd and I trotted and loped a minimum of 1 mile at a time.  We had 3 legs to ride before the parade entrance to the fairgrounds at the end of the day.  All in all, Ladd and I rode a total of 4 1/2 miles that day.  The exercise was good for both of us.

The second leg of the day was my favorite part of the day.  Ladd and I rode the leg immediately following my sister Kyla’s leg.  I got to watch her ride up to me and I took the saddle bags from her.  Then I took off for exactly one-mile.  That mile seemed to go the fastest because Ladd was warmed up nicely.

The scariest part of the day was having to ride down the busy Highway 105 on horseback.  18-wheelers, motorcycles, and the possibility of a train sounding its horn combined to make my a little nervous.  I was very thankful that two Grimes County Sheriff Deputies drove next to me to help keep me safe.  They stopped traffic when needed.  They kept up with our pace.  They stayed right there beside Ladd and I.

When we finally made it within a mile of the Grimes County Fairgrounds, our Posse met up with the Harris County Posse.  Together we walked the rest of the way in a parade fashion.  By this time, I was a frozen Popsicle.  A Go-Texan cook-off team had prepared dinner for all of us, but my family decided not to stay.  We were all so cold.  The horses were cold.  And, we all just wanted to go home.

We had a successful Pony Express ride.  Nobody got hurt.  No trucks and/or trailers got stuck in the mud.  We were representing our Sheriff as well as the Go-Texan Committee.  I think we did a fine job being ambassadors for them.  If you are interested in being a part of the Grimes County Jr. Mounted Posse, contact the sheriff.  His office number is (936) 873-6442.

I am waiting the handoff last year.

In the spirit of the Pony Express, which brought news and mail to the pioneer families out west, the Grimes County Sheriff Junior Deputy Mounted Posse will be re-creating a pony express run throughout the entire county on Saturday.  This event coincides with Go-Texan events at the Grimes County Fairgrounds.  They will have their barbeque cook-off teams preparing for the contest.  Winners will be announced Sunday.

As far as the Posse is concerned, we begin in Bedias, which is in the northern section of Grimes county.  Our president will read a proclamation to the city officials inviting them to come to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo in the spirit of Go-Texan.  Then we take turns riding a mile carrying a saddlebag which contains the other proclamations for the rest of the cities of Grimes County.

In relay-style riding, we hand off the saddlebags at each leg of the race.  It is not a race to beat one another’s time; however, we are on a timetable to meet up with the Mounted Posse from Harris County.

We travel to Iola.  Then down through Carlos to Anderson.  The latter city is the county seat.  It has a beautiful historic courthouse.  It is the only one in Texas that sits in the middle of Main Street.

From Anderson, we trailer our horses to Plantersville.  Not only does this save us time, but FM 1774 is not safe to ride down.  There are not good places to ride along the road.  Deep ditches and steep hillsides follow the curves and hills of the road.

In Plantersville, we meet up with the Harris County Posse.  Now there are two groups in relay down the busy Highway 105.  Things get a little crazy when we head up Highway 6 to Navasota, the largest city in Grimes County.  It is home to the fairgrounds.

We form a joint parade with the Harris County group as we ride in formation to the fairgrounds where people are awaiting our arrival.  Some members are carrying flags.  Some are experienced riders who are about to graduate high school.  Some are young inexperienced riders who have just begun their time in the Posse.

We read our last Proclamation.  The mayor of Navasota, the county judge, the sheriff, etc all speak.  The newspaper reporter takes notes and pictures of us.  When all is said and done, we visit with the members of the Harris County Posse and eat together.   A cook-off team always prepares us delicious food.

Wish me luck on my second Pony Express ride.  I hope to have fun and be safe!

Today I walked with my brothers and MawMaw to see the horses on the ranch.  I went into a big pen where one of our geldings, Spur, was eating hay. While he ate, I petted him on his belly and neck.  When I turned to leave Spur bit me on my lower back. I was very surprised!

It hurt!  I really did not have any warning that Spur was going to bite me. The reason is because I was turned away from Spur.  I had my back facing him.  So, I couldn’t see what he was up to.

I know that when a horse puts his ears back he is not happy and might bite you.  So, I have learned a lesson from this horse bite, “Don’t turn your back on a horse, especially Spur!”

My Mawmaw and I made a video today showing how to clean horse hooves. We used Ladd as our assistant.  Hope you like it.

Oh, how I wish I had a few thousand dollars!! I know exactly what I would buy.  Can you guess what it is?  That’s right, a horse.

His name is Bojangles.  He is a bay gelding.  Bojangles will do anything that ask him to do.

Last Saturday, I rode him all over the ranch.  We traveled with my friend Steve as he took turns riding different horses from our ranch.  Steve rode Jessie, Commander, Spur, Angus, and Shania.  My dad rode Cheyenne.  A friend of Steve named Smoky rode his own horse named Goose.

We had a great time riding all over the ranch.  Bojangles has a very soft, smooth lope.  He is a joy to ride.  He responds quickly to every direction and cue you give him.  The only thing I was not used to doing on a horse was stopping Bojangles.  He likes to be told “Whoa!” while you pull back the reins and move your feet forward.  It was not hard to do. This just goes to show that each horse is different.

Steve brought Bojangles to the ranch to teach my dad how to open gates on horseback.  My dad’s horse fights him while he is attempting to do so.  So Steve thought that a trained horse would help show my dad what he is supposed to do in order to get a horse to respond.  Now my dad understands and is able to open gates on his horse.

I completely enjoyed my day riding Bojangles.  The most surprising thing about him is that he had not been ridden for many months.  Most horses get spoiled if not worked with regularly.  Bojangles was ready to work immediately.  If he was my horse, I would ride him everyday.  I really wish I could afford to buy him.  Since I only have $390.00, I guess that Bojangles will never be mine.  But is there any harm in wishing?