I went to Alexandros Riding Stables for a trail ride last week, which was lovely in all ways. I left with some amazing fresh goats’ milk too, courtesy of these goats and their kind owner.
The woman who owned the horses mentioned there were puppies on the farm and said I could bring back Theo back to visit them. Since Theo adores dogs of all sorts and has an imaginary-puppies-who-live-in-hats game, I figured he’d love them. (They were amazingly cute, though Theo definitely expressed more interest in their mother, probably because she was more interactive and dog-like.)
When we first arrived at the stable to visit the puppies, a girl only a little bigger than Theo was taking a riding lesson. As we sat and watched, Theo kept asking “can I ride, can I ride?”
I have to admit that in my mind Theo was still too wobbly to stay on a horse and too timid to actually follow through with trying. (He was seriously freaked out by a man in a mouse outfit at the playground the other day.) However, once the little girl was done, Theo was offered a ride, and I figured I could at least stay very close at first to see what happened.
Theo blew me away. He held on, kept his feed in the stirrups, and had fun during two circles of the ring.
I frequently hear parents lament “losing their baby,” when they describe their young children growing up. While I have sympathy, I don’t share those feelings at all.I’m so excited to watch Theo become more independent and capable. To me, this is when it all gets interesting.
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