This is it, I promise!  I went back to miserable work on Tuesday, so all the fun ended on Monday.

I intentionally took Monday off work because I think it's a crime to have to go to work the day after travel.  It blows.  A day trip?  Fine.  Two flights?  No.

D and I slept like the dead and I didn't even stir when he got up to go to work on Monday.  Poor him.  He's also "under the weather", which means that he's just a tad sick, but he's in the health care profession, so he's dying.

I lounged about the house for about an hour after waking, watching something like Elementary or Bones.  And then I headed to the barn.

I was super excited when I got there because no one was there.  This has never happened.  And then I realized that I could see a tacked horse running circles through the trees.  Recognized the horse, knew who would be working her, remembered that it was a school holiday and happiness fell just a notch.  Whatever.

Husband bought me a gorgeous pair of Equi-Star synthetic field boots (insert reminder here about being a vegetarian) and I spent a minute moving the spurs to them from my paddock boots.  And then I spent another few minutes removing them from the field boots and putting them back on my paddock boots, because I could not zip up the field boots.  This has never happened to me.  A quick perusal of the reviews on SmartPak shows that these guys run small and to only get the wide.  But wide take six weeks because they come directly from the manufacturer.  And the November show is in five weeks.  So, the boots are going back to SmartPak, husband is getting a refund, and the next time we're in Charleston, I'm going to try on every single boot that fits and just get something.  It's a shame though - these fuckers were gorgeous.

I grabbed the Kid, who seemed happy to see me.  As I was walking him out, the Eventer and I crossed paths.  I was a little more sad-faced, because I had hoped to have all the spaces all to myself.  Birthday weekend.  It ended up not mattering, though, because she went off towards some mystery trails that I didn't know existed.

I tacked him up, put on his fancy boots, set up a crossrail and got to it.  We spent time going forward with contact at the walk and trot, trying to do the same at the canter.  BM's kid was riding in the ring with me, doing her fancy Western stuff.  I ask her questions every single time I see her and I've learned so much.  Anyways, we started trotting over the cross rail in both directions.  And then I dismounted and lowered it super low.

And we cantered it.

Multiple times.

On both leads.

And here's the kicker, the no-shit,-I-knew-Beka-was-a-wimp:  I've never willing asked Archie to canter a jump.  There have been times where he was cantering towards a jump and I would let him canter over it, but I never asked for it.  I never lined him up and demanded that he not break.

And my horse was freaking awesome.  And I'm super excited to start cantering more jumps because it's like something in me woke up, like something in me has been perpetually waking up at this new barn, with the jumps and the trainer and the abundance of professionals.  And I caught this shit on video, yo.

Noms.

32 oz Miller Lite, cheese nachos, and a book.  Yes, please.

Anthropologie glassware.

Tiny and $12.

End of Birthday Weekend!