The best part about life is you never know where it's taking you.

Hey Everyone,

I know it's been far too long since I've last written. To be honest it's been quite the emotional past month for me and it has just been easier to avoid putting anything down in writing.
But I've realized the hardest parts of life are what shape us, build our character, and turn us into the people we are to become. The highs keep us going but the lows put life into perspective.
Returning from young riders with 2 silver medals left me on cloud nine and then shortly after to come home and find out the horse that gave me everything needs to be pulled out of the competition ring for 8-10 months due to a tendon injury. That was a hard one to swallow especially after having these huge goals all season to everything feeling like it has come crashing down. I know every rider or even athlete has gone or will go through something like this but until it actually happens to you, you can never truly understand what it feels like.
But through all this it has made me realize God has a plan for everything and when a door closes another one opens. The most important part is keeping your head held high and eyes looking forward.
So that's the latest on Rif and so to all those unanswered questions about World Cup... we'll shoot for next year instead :)

As for Stentano, he is doing great. He's been my strong and steady you could say. However I did have someone come out and try him last week and they really liked him and so they are coming back next weekend to try him again. Reality hit on that one last week and caught me a bit off guard I must say. Letting something you love go is never easy... but if I find him the right home it will make it that much easier.. I hope!

So that's my horsey life right now... but mom and dad have been so incredibly supportive through it all so they have truly made it that much easier.

I hope you are all doing well.
Best wishes, moni :)

NAJYRC video footage!

Hello hello!

Well it finally came and has been uploaded to YouTube!  If you have some time and would like to watch my rides online here is the link!!!


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oSdf_YwUsJI

This brings back so many good memories!

Miss you all and see you soon!

The family is coming out this weekend and staying for a week and then I will go back home with them for a week so hopefully I will be able to catch up with a lot of you!

All our love from sunny California!!

Monica

Settling back into reality

Hey Everyone,

I'm sorry for dropping the ball on my postings here. It felt like I got back home and had no choice but to hit the ground running in order to get caught back up with reality!
I think that finally it all is starting to sink in and by far this has been one of the most incredible experiences of my life. It all is just so cool and I cannot help but realize how blessed I am.

So now that I'm back into the swing of things.. all is very good down here! Living and soaking it all up! Still busy and enjoying working with dad, the horses are going great and happy, and the sun continues to shine!
I spent the weekend with some of my second cousins from central Cal that were out on the coast that I had never met before so that was really cool and then Tuesday one of my best friend's that moved out to Nova Scotia is coming to visit me!!

Sabine is over in Europe right now with her 6 year old at the young horse Championships so I'm super excited to find out how she's doing!


I hope you are all well back home!
I'm still waiting for the YouTube link of my rides in KY but I'll get that up as soon as I get it!


love to you all,
Moni

Settling back into reality

Hey Everyone,

Rif and mom made it back safe and sound on Sunday and then I followed on Monday. It is so nice to be back and out of that humidity lol but I must say I miss being around everyone. There's something about being with people that have the same goals and dreams as you do, who understand how much sacrifice it takes, and who just love horses. It's a good feeling to be around a group like that and so it was hard saying good bye as they all headed back to BC and across Canada.
However I arrived back to El Campeon with such a warm welcome and such joy for us and back into the office where everyone was thrilled for me! It's such a blessing to have people in my life like this. I feel so incredibly blessed by you all and I wish I could give you all a piece of my medals because without all your support this would be impossible!!
So now it's back to reality... Rif is getting most of this week off and enjoying some grazing time meanwhile I'm trying to make Stentano feel loved again :)
I had the videographers film all my tests so they are posting them to YouTube so once I get the link I'll post it here!
Once again THANK YOU all!!!!!

<3 Monica

YR Freestyle SILVER!! 70.8%

My apologies for not updating you all last night. It turned into a very late night between the late ride, having a bit of fun at the competitors party and then packing Rif all up for her flight out early this morning! :) So the princess is on her way back to California with mom and I'm here until tomorrow because closing ceremonies aren't until this afternoon where I'll get my medal from yesterday!

So back to yesterday! Wow wow wow! We did it! We held our 2nd place all 3 days right behind Brandi and Magic! I could not be happier with my beautiful girl! She truly brought it all and let me in so we could go out there and dance together.. or prance around as Stephen Colbert put it =p.
I came into this with the goal of top 3.. I knew we were capable of it and that everyone believed I could do it but I really didn't know we could pull it off so well! It still hasn't really sunk in.. I'm just beyond thrilled and I feel so blessed to have been given this incredible opportunity!
I owe huge thanks to my family for all the support and enabling this to all happen and then to all of you for encouraging my every step!
And I cannot forget to thank Sabine Schut-Kery for training me back at El Campeon and then Albrecht Heidemann for his eyes on the ground at this show. :)

This is just such an incredible feeling! I don't have any pictures yet from in the show ring but I'll get some up soon! For now here are a few of our team pictures from yesterday!

YR Individual Silver!!

So am I completely on cloud nine? Holy smokes yes!! Crazy crazy crazy!
Before I rode today it seemed everyone was convinced I was going to medal but I for some reason had a hard time believing that. It suddenly hit me to place top 3 out of 41 riders is not easy! I guess going into the team test I had no pressure so I went and just rode but today I had that feeling of holy shit this is intense! But heck it sure paid off! We had a clean test and she once again gave me her heart and oh it was just so fantastic! A 71.2% to win silver!! Brandi Roenick won on Weltino's Magic with a 75% which was a gorgeous test and then another Canadian from Ontario bronze medaled with a 70%! It is always so neat representing your country on the podium!! I absolutely love it! Poor Rif was terrified in the awards and our victory gallop turned into a full out gallop alright... I couldn't stop her for the majority of it but by the time we hit the out gate we somehow managed to find the breaks ;) poor princess!

Thank you for all the congratulations and Facebook messages and texts! You are all such great support!
Tomorrow are the freestyles which will take place in the evening and so I ride at 7:02pm (eastern time!). One more time to get in that ring and dance with my amazing girl!!

Ready, set, and individuals here we come!

Hi Everyone!

After a morning of light schooling and wandering about the horsepark to see what other disciplines were competing today mom and I made it back to the hotel for a bit of down time and air conditioning!! 

Rif was really good today and all I wanted to do was get her out to stretch her legs and keep it easy because tomorrow I go at 2:04pm and so it will be extremely hot so I don't want her feeling too tired out!!  She is coping with everything really well which is so nice because they really cannot get out very much except for walking them around the barns during the day. 

These last 24 hours have been kinda crazy because suddenly the reality of medalling tomorrow could come very true.  You can see the excitement in everyone's eyes when they talk to me about tomorrow and I just keep telling them anything can happen let's wait and see ;)  I'm so ready for this though.  I know exactly what I've got to do but most importantly I want to go out and just have fun again with Rif and go out there like it's just her and I.  =)  So who knows what will come of tomorrow but no matter what I want to thank you all for the incredible support and encouragement especially on facebook!  You guys are such an inspiration!  Thank you!!!



Andrea Taylor snapped a quick picture of us a few days ago warming up!

Team BC at opening Ceremonies!

Thank you People on Horses for the beautiful browband!!!  I think Rif feels like a true Canadian pony now ;)

http://www.peopleonhorses.com/

 Out for our ride today and feeling mighty fine :)

A ride never to be forgotten

I don't even know where to start! This has been an incredible day! My heart is just overjoyed because I think, actually I know I've been blessed with the mare of a lifetime. Today we danced together and it was amazing. She gave me her all and I had the absolute most fun out there with her!!
It was one of the moments where you salute to end the test and tears come to your eyes because you know you left everything out there in the ring! I am just beyond thrilled! I owe a huge thank you to you all for the support and to everyone else who was cheering ringside and of course my amazing mom! Albrecht was there to support me and had a few words here and there to keep us on track :)
I don't have any pictures at the moment from today because my mom was so nervous for us she forgot about that detail ;) We ended up with a 69.6 and individually placed 2nd but that doesn't much matter today as it was the team test but that gives Friday a lot of excitement for the individual round!

I want to write more but I'm so tired I can't even think clearly so hopefully tomorrow on our "day off" I can find time to write more!

All the best,
Moni

Live stream!!

Hey guys!
Had to drop y'all a quick line..
I just found out we'll be live streamed on usefnetwork.org in case you're interested :)

Moni

Holy craziness!

I think that was officially one of the most hectic days I've had in all my 4 years of coming to najyrc! So much went on!
It's just about 11pm and to explain things a bit we finally found out our ride times for tmrw at 9:30pm where we were all waiting anxiously in the barn! Our first rider goes at 7AM... so apparently sleep these days is underrated! The weather has suddenly taken a turn and the temperature has spiked along with the humidity!
I go at 1:06pm tmrw and I'll be the last ride for our team! Let's go team BC!

To back up quickly we had our warm up in the Rolex arena today and Rif was amazing!! We then went on to the jog at 4pm and passed beautifully. From there we proceeded to opening ceremonies and then a big BBQ/party at the neighbors big farm next door!

So as you can imagine I'm exhausted and tomorrow calls for an early morning so I shall leave you with a couple pictures and be off to bed! Thanks for all the love and support! We are finally here and ready to do this!!! Time to dance!

xoxo
Moni

Hello and goodbye Monday!

Well I have no idea where today went! That was one crazy day! I'm exhausted now and feeling rather grubby so I'll just update y'all quickly.

I had some help from Albrecht today and it was one of those learning experiences where you realize no one knows your horse better than you do. He realized he's not here to change anything.. he's needed to be that eye on the ground to tell me I need more angle in that shoulder-in, or that pirouette smaller and so tomorrow we are going with that approach. I am so grateful he has stepped up so kindly to help me out!!

This afternoon we were given all our swag!! And oh my goodness we have some amazing sponsors this year!! Thank you 2012 sponsors!

We then proceeded to have a mock jog for all the Canadians to make sure we are all set to go for tomorrow! That went well and was great to have people like Evi Strausser, Tom Dvorak, and Albrecht there to tell us exactly what we needed to do more or less of.

This evening ended off with a patio party at the USEF head quarters on the grounds so that was very nice of them to invite us fellow Canadians!

Here are a few pictures from today and I shall let you all know how the jog goes tomorrow! And then Wednesday is the team test :)

Love you all!
Monica

Sunday - a day of rest.

Everything is starting to come together and more and more people are arriving on site.
Today I gave Rif her "day off" meaning I just walked her undersaddle and gave her bit of a stretch in the trot.  She needs one down day before the madness begins!! ;)
She continues to be a happy little clam and is not phased by the atmosphere at all!  She however has decided she does not like her friend that moved in behind her so we had to put some curtains up to avoid the dragon girl from coming out.  Other than that I could not ask for anything more from her :)  I really feel like she is starting to trust me but more importantly respect me as well.  I never quite understood when I first got her how people would tell me when you have a good mare - she'll do anything for you.  Well I think I finally understand that.  When we are clicking on the same page I can't describe what a neat feeling that is to have with a mare - especially Rif. 

I received a really nice email from her previous rider when the Leatherdale's owned her and it almost brought me to tears.  She wrote about how thrilled she was for me but more about how much of an amazing team the two of us have made together.  That really touched me.

I'm starting to feel the reality of the competition hitting and for a moment I had that feeling of oh my gosh I'm about to shit my pants.  It's an incredible feeling to know the potential to do really well is there but to keep myself in the zone is going to be 100% the key. focus. focus. focus.  Oh and smile somewhere in there too right ;)  I was told before I left - don't worry about what's going on around you, just ride for yourself and your best.  I want to canter down that centreline with that huge smile on like I know together Rif and I will do our absolute best and put it all out there.  I want to show this amazing horse off and how much of a blessing she is to me.

So with that, tomorrow Albrecht will be here to see what's going down and hopefully he can just be that last little (or big) voice in my ear to really bring it all out! 

It's almost show time.. but until then it's time to take in every moment and enjoy the entire experience!

Thank you all for the support and encouragement!!  I feel so blessed to be here and to have all of you following along with me :)

xoxoxo
Monica

Welcome to Kentucky - Canadian style!

Hello!  Sorry to those who saw the jumble of pictures on my blog earlier with no writing.. I quickly threw them up yesterday.  Somehow the day I thought would be rather easygoing became a lot busier than I thought - surprise surprise lol

We have started to mark our territory in the stalls just in case our eh's aren't a clear enough give away of where we're from. ;) Team BC baby!!

And thought you might like to see the weather forecast..... ya wonderful eh?  But it's sure heck of a lot better than last year in the sweltering heat and blazing sun!!  I'll take the odd thundershower here and there over the nonstop sweating!

And here is the girl midflight on our way to Kentucky!  She was such an awesome trooper!  I could not have been happier with how she travelled!!  She was so relaxed about the whole thing!

It was really awesome to be able to travel with fellow teammate Sydney and her horse.  She has been training down in the San Diego area for the past couple years so we were able to depart on our adventure together. 

Here is the plane we travelled on.  We flew with the company Tex Sutton http://www.suttonforwarding.com/ and they were fantastic!  Such a great experience and the grooms on board were so great with the horses.  You can see the ramp on the left side was what they were walked up into the plane on and then their "stall" was built around them.

I could not help but share this =p  I've made 2 really good girlfriends who ride just down the road from El Campeon while I've been out here and they came by the barn the night before I flew out with Rif and brought this poster for me!!!  They are adorable!!  And then when I got here I opened my trunk and found another poster!  Thanks Amelia and Morgan <3 You guys rock!!

Settlin right on in y'all!

You know you've made it to Kentucky and the midwest when y'all is attached to everything they say... I guess that's how people feel about us Canadians and our 'eh,' eh?
Anyways.. back to the stuff you actually all care about! The flight was fantastic! I could not have been more impressed with HE Tex Sutton. They were so professional and just all around great horsemen. Rif was such a champ and walked right up and remained a happy clam for the entire flight :)
We had a transport company pick up up to the airport for the 20 minute ride to the horse park where mom was awaiting us with everything ready! Thank you mom!!
She settled in right away and you'd never have known she'd just come from California that morning!

Today I rode her early and just kept it easy and she felt really great. The weather is a million times better than last year!! Of course it's humid and all but not sweltering hot!
Tomorrow I'll put her to work and see where she's at! Albrecht is going to be helping me here so I am really looking forward to that!

We have been busy setting everything up and so tomorrow I'll have more time to get some pictures up and fill you all in better! Just thought you should at least all know we survived the flight :-)

Xoxo moni

Heading off on a jet plane.. horsie style

Well holy crap it's really happening!! This is crazy!
So I got myself a short and sweet 2 hr power sleep in before rising bright and early for 1AM and now currently I'm sitting in the passenger seat as a very friendly Scottish man with a ponytail escorts us to the airport.
We left El Campeon just before 3AM and I drove up to the barn to find the head groom there waiting for us to make sure we loaded up and got off okay. That made my day! I was driving up to the barn thinking this could be interesting arriving in the pitch dark up in the mountains.. so I was so happy when I pulled up to lights on in the barn - thank you El Campeon for the amazing staff!
My heart broke a bit when Stentano realized he wasn't coming but I told him he'll be much happier staying home this trip ;)

So now we are just about at the airport so this shall be a whole new exciting experience!!

I'll catch you all on the other side in Kentucky and let you know how we faired the flight!!

Moni and Rif

The countdown is on!

Hello :)

I hope all is well with everyone.  It looks like the weather back home is finally starting to cooperate so that is finally nice to see!

As for me here, well Kentucky is all of a sudden literally right around the corner!  It's crazy!!!  Rif and I fly out Thursday EARLY in the morning.  We have a 5AM flight out of the Ontario, CA airport so that means we have to be there at 3:30.. which requires us to leave El Campeon at 2AM.. So Rif and I will sure be bright eyed and bushy tailed - ya right lol.  I'm so excited to get to fly with her but have no idea what to expect so it will sure be an experience!

Training has been going really well and we are going through our tests on a regular basis now and getting as prepared for everything as we can!  Of course with horses you can never be totally prepared because there is always a certain amount of unknown but that's the fun part right ;)

Mom and Dad fly in tomorrow night and then mom will be here Tuesday to help me get the last few things together and then she flies out Wednesday to Kentucky and I'll meet her there with Rif on Thursday.  Dad won't be joining us this year because he has to make a trip out to Holland and then April has her beach volleyball summer games the weekend after that dad will be cheering her on at! 

As soon as I get to Kentucky I will be blogging on a much more regular basis.. so keep tuned!  Right now things are crazy trying to tie things up at the greenhouse so I can leave for 10 days nevermind getting everything packed for KY so I'm a tad bit busy at the moment if you can imagine ;)

For now a couple pictures :)

Stentano and his friend?  Or..... somewhat terrifying looking creature!

And then my wonderful sister and I were able to spend a really nice day together on Tuesday up in Santa Barbara.  She stopped in LA for a couple days on her way back from Guatemala :)

Miss you all back home!  All my love xoxo Moni

O Canada, O Canada

Happy Canada day to all my Canadians!!  I have to say O Canada has sure become a sweet sound to my ears and there has not been one day that has gone by down here in America where I have not been proud to be a Canadian.. even though the eh's and polar bear jokes seem to be never ending! ;)

I finally have a day to catch up on things and relax.  So hence with the Canada day theme going on why not share the latest that we are proudly sporting..  A huge thanks to dad and the company for being such an incredible support and allowing me to live out my dream!

And my beautiful girl posing for her photograph.  Thanks to Arista Equestrian for the jog jacket!

Our journey is about to once again get very exciting again and I cannot tell all of you how much your support means.  I never would be able to do this on my own so to everyone who has been apart of getting me to where I am - THANK YOU!

A special horse, with a special place in my heart.

We've reached the point in time where I have to put Stentano up for sale.  It absolutely breaks my heart to do this but dad has been pushing this and I can only keep delaying it for so long.  He has been incredible to me and has taught me so much.  We've been through our up and downs.  Our moments of thinking both of us are completely crazy, and then our moments of making it the podium 3 times at NAJYRC together where we both knew we did it.  I cannot express how much this horse means to me and I truly hope I can find him the right home to someone who will truly understand the special boy he really is.  If you know of anyone who may be interested you can send my contact info out.  monica.houweling@houwelings.com or (805) 907-0915

NAJYRC here we come!

Hey Everyone,

The official announcement for the North American Championships was yesterday!  BC's stickin together :)  It brings back a lot of good memories.. 2 years ago that was the name of my Gold medal winning team with Esmee and Sylvie so Team BC definitely is close to my heart!  I am so excited to be going with Ellika, Colby, and Sydney.  This will be the first year for all of them so I'm excited to be able to share and help them out as much as I can now that this will be my 4th trip out to the ever so humid Kentucky! 

This year I will be flying out with Rif on July 12.  We felt there was too much risk driving her out or sending her on a transport because she really does not travel well by herself so this way she can get there in 3.5 hours and off we go!

I promise to get some pictures up tomorrow and hopefully video footage!  I am so sorry between work and the horses I have been rather busy!!

Thank you all so much for your incredible support throughout all of this.  It really means so much to me!  And a huge thank you to everyone who came out to our BCYR Pub Night fundraiser last weekend!

It's a team effort!

Moni

Jumping into the 70's club!

Hello hello!

First off I'd like to say a huge thank you to those of you who were following me on facebook over the weekend as I posted results from the show!  You all are such an incredible support to me!!
This past weekend was one of the best shows I have had all season.  Rif and I are starting to become so much more of a team and I think we are really starting to understand one another a whole lot more!  It's pretty exciting to finish on a show like this right before North Americans!  The count down is officially on (well as soon as teams are announced)! 
Friday was our team test (PSG) where we scored a 70.95%.  Saturday was our Individual test where we earned a 71.67% and then Sunday was the freestyle where we finished with a 73.25%.  I am beyond thrilled with Rif.  I feel like now I am actually going in those tests and riding her and it is starting to feel reliable and solid.  That is a pretty sweet feeling. 
Stentano came along too, but I decided not to show him and just school him on the grounds so that I can put all my focus into Rif and really give it our all.  He was her buddy for the weekend and trooped along like a champ.
The weather up in Sacramento was a wake up call for Kentucky.  It was hot hot hot and reached over 100 degrees which is close to 40 Celsius!  Kentucky will have the humidity which will kill us more but to realize how we need to manage everything in the heat was a really good experience for us.  Short warm-ups, lots and lots of water, and fans for the ponies! 
Sabine had has prepped so well for the show and then I was able to have Dirk and Katrin Glitz helping me out at the actual show.  Dirk knows Stentano from when I trained with him and Karen a few years ago and he had seen Rif go at one of the earlier shows this year but otherwise doesn't know her very well.  However he picked up on her right away and so he offered to be some eyes on the ground for me while I warmed up and that turned out to work fantastically!  Mom was such an incredible help for me as well coming out all this way and driving up with me and of course such a huge encouragement!
I am working on getting some video footage and pictures up soon!  So until then, Rif gets a few well earned easy days and then we will be right back at er and gettin ready for Kentucky in less than a month now!

All my best,
Moni

When one door closes, another opens!

Hello to you all!

I hope the weekend treated you nicely!  What they call “June Gloom” has officially set in here.  The fog seems to like settling in over the coast as the sun sets and doesn’t seem to like to leave us until well in the afternoon the next day.  So for all those days of beautiful sun we had while it rained up in Vancouver.. I think we’re getting payback lol.

Other than gloomy mornings everything has been rolling forward nicely!  I was supposed to be in another show next weekend that would have been a qualifier for World Cup but I found out last week they cancelled it.. That really bummed me out because I still need one higher score so that means I would have to wait until North Americans and I also wouldn't have a show to get myself back in the ring again before North Americans.  But today I came across another CDI in 2 weeks up in Sacramento.. I hesitated because that's a good 7 hour treck up there so I called mom and she said 'let's go for it!'  She is such an incredible support to me to have her standing behind me and believing in me like that! 

Here are a few pictures of my pumpkins from the last show :)

Just when you think you're good to go...

Happy Tuesday to you all!

Well... where to start.  First I should probably explain to those of you who were keeping an eye on scores over the weekend why nothing was showing up for Rif.  Wednesday we had bit of a hurdle thrown at us.  I've been fighting against scratches (mild infection) on Rif's leg the past while and last week I had the vet out to look and she put her on some mild antibiotics to hopefully kick it.  Well wednesday we found out that was not enough.  Her scratches blew up and so I knew we needed to put a stop on things and get it under control.  Nobody thought it was that bad at all but it's amazing how quickly things can flare up.  We had to leave wednesday to the show so we took her with us because at that point we weren't sure what was best and still had some phone calls to the vet to make to find out what to do.
Because of the level of show I was showing in international drug testing can randomly occur and I knew we needed to get Rif on some meds.  I felt it was best to have the vet treat her and deal with the situation instead of showing her on a swollen leg and risk stressing it unnecessarily.  It was hard because she has been feeling amazing and I knew this was going to be our show but this was one of those weekends where the welfare of your horse becomes way more important than test scores.  So the story continues and we had a vet come out wednesday night and he gave her some heavy antibiotics and other meds to bring the swelling down that she remained on throughout the weekend and now she is in great shape.  I was able to ride her lightly over the weekend to keep her moving and boy did she feel amazing still!  It was so hard, I had to keep telling myself to keep it easy because she just felt and apparently looked stunning.  Since working with Debbie and having Sabine there watching we have really turned a corner and started clicking!  I know this weekend was bit of a curveball for us but I'm not going to let that discourage me.  I'm looking at it as another way of getting to know her and finding out how to prevent this from happening in the future.   One step at a time :)
So now about the cute chestnut.. water trucks and tractors are not his friends.. at all.  That was reconfirmed on Friday when I had to warm up with rings being harrowed and watered all around us.  We did not fare so well.. squealing and jumping around began in the warm-up and you can just imagine how that turned out in the ring.  We were rather tense and got stuck in that 60% again.  Saturday we had a bit of tension left over but he was so much more rideable and we almost had both our lines of changes =)  Sunday was the freestyle and I was so happy with him!  We scored 65.8% and he definitely gave me hope that he can maybe do it ;)
So I have to say going through this experience this past weekend truly reminded me of why I am doing this.  Because I just love being with the horses and joy I get from riding them even though it doesn't always go as planned.  Showing is more than ribbons and medals.  It's about what you get from it and no matter what, you have to always put your horse first.  There will always be people better than you and you have to keep your head out of the crap that goes on and stay true to the person you know who you are.  Everything happens for a reason and it's trusting that all works out in God's plan and timing. 
So that's my little pow wow from the weekend.. sorry to ramble on ;)  I will try to get some pictures up in the next few days!
Hope all is well!
Moni

It's time to show her off!

Hello to you all!   I thought I'd drop a few lines to you all before I head off to the show with mom tomorrow!

First off, I hope you all had a lovely weekend!!

Mom flies in tonight with dad and then tomorrow we will be off to Flintridge.  This show is a CDI* which means it is both a qualifier for North Americans and then the freestyle score can also be used towards our World Cup average so I am really looking forward to getting out in the ring again.  Sabine will be there giving me help throughout the weekend which I am so grateful for. 

Since having help from Debbie and realizing what I am really capable of getting out of Rif, Sabine and I have decided it is time I really go out there and push for what we know is in there.  The past shows have really been me just trying to figure out how to ride Rif in the test and almost playing it a little too safe.  We will see what happens this time around but I feel I am at the point now where Rif and I can trust each other a whole lot more and know we can make it through a clean test so it's time to really see what we can bring out and show her off.

As for Stentano, well who knows what he will bring.   Sabine has had a bit more time so she has been helping me with Stentano quite a bit since the last show.  We have been working on getting him a lot more through and supple by doing a lot of work in the canter and spending time in the pirouettes to really get them correct and in control.  And as for the changes, well that is still a hit and miss type situation.  I really want to give him this year to see if we can work through some of these issues so by no means am I giving up yet!

I have never been to these show grounds before so it will be an adventure!

Let's bring on the fun!

Monica :)

Onwards and Upwards

Happy Belated Mother's day to all the mom's out there!

I was MIA for the weekend and decided to jump aboard a 737 and surprise my mom, so yes I was able to enjoy sunny (yes, sunny!) vancity for the weekend with her!  It was a lovely weekend and just all around so nice to catch up with friends and family!  The support and endless love I get from you all touches me so deeply - so thank you all so much for the excitement!

Last week I had another 2 lessons with Debbie on Rif and 2 lessons with Sabine on Stentano.  It was one of those weeks that builds you up and makes you believe anything can happen - it's all about the hard work, persistence, and dedication and to see it all start taking off even more than before inspires you to do nothing less than to keep making your dreams come true.

I was thinking the other day about everything that's all happened since January.. and I kind of had one of those moments that makes you go holy crap and I'm only 19!!  I feel like my true life journey has just begun and it's time to step out into the real world and really go for it!  The opportunity is there so heck YR World Cup.. I think it's time to seriously consider making a run at that!  Only 1 Canadian young rider is selected to go to Germany in December based on the highest averaging freestyle scores.. it's a huge goal but why not keep reaching for the stars!  Anything can happen and I'm loving this road I'm on so nothing's stopping me!

I've got 2 weeks until my next show and then possibly one more show before North Americans and then we'll be amping up for the humid Kentucky heat mid-July assuming all goes well with team selection and most importantly Rif's well being :) So off to another great week we go!

Wishing my best to you all!!

Moni

YR Freestyle 70.5%

Alright here it is!  Sorry mom was rather nervous so it's a little bouncy ;)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MvWZRNE2pbM&feature=youtube_gdata

An update on the week!

This week was absolutely fantastic with the horses!  I was able to have 2 lessons with Debbie and she really helped me figure some more things out with Rif!  Now that I have gotten to know Rif a lot more I feel like the timing is just right to have help from Debbie because we are at the point where it is time to start pushing for the best and really going for it - which is super exciting!! We are going to try to keep these lessons up on a weekly basis until Debbie goes back to Idaho :)  I still cannot quite believe it! 
Sabine was also able to help me with Stentano this week which was awesome.  She is so calm and methodical and really understands how Stentano needs to be approached.  We worked on throughness throughness and more throughness by using the pirouettes to really put him in the right place.  Boy I tell you when he cooperates and gets into that right place he can sure feel super.. I've got hope for him!  We just need time :) 

Today was such a lovely day out at the barn with them.  The sun was shining so bright so I decided to take them out and ride them on the grand prix field.  They were both so happy out there and we just had lots of fun together - it's times like today that are so special, where it feels like it's just me and the horses and that nothing else matters.  It's such a blessing to have moments like that with them.  They are just such amazing animals and every day I am reminded how lucky I am to have 2 beautiful animals like them in my life.

This weekend the weather has been so lovely.  Tomorrow the horses get their well earned day off and so I'm going to meet up with some friends from back home that are out at Disneyland!!  I guess I can go have a little fun too ;)  I hope you are all doing well! 

I am uploading my freestyle from the show last weekend to YouTube (it is just taking awhile) so once I get it up I'll post the link here!

All my best,
Monica

A learning curve each step of the way!

Hi Everyone!

I am so sorry for taking so long to get another post up.  I have been so busy lately I just haven’t found the time to sit down with my computer but finally here we go =)  So much has happened since the last time I wrote so I’m sorry if this post goes a little long ;)

The first thing I must talk about and give a huge thank you to is Arista Equestrian!  I am proud and so honored to say that I am now sponsored by Arista.  They are a fabulous equestrian clothing company and so I got my very first pair of white breeches from them to show in at the CDI this past weekend!   Thank you Arista!!   http://www.aristaequestrian.com/

And I must thank our company Houweling’s for all being so supportive and encouraging.  I will be riding soon with our logo’s on my saddle pads and if all goes well on the horse trailer too!  Got to keep daddy happy by repping the company name ;) http://www.houwelings.com/

This past weekend was the Del Mar National CDI.  It’s held at the racetrack/fair grounds in Del Mar which are super grounds!  The footing was awesome and the atmosphere was electric!  The CDI was held in a big dome type indoor but with open ends on both sides where you could see the fair and circus tents out back and so it was definitely quite a hyped up environment to ride in but so much fun!  Rif had a really hard time but by Sunday I figured out how to ride her through it a lot better and came out with a fantastic freestyle score of 70.5%!  Stentano coped really well with the atmosphere and we were starting to get closer and closer to getting better lines of changes.  We scored 62% both days which I was happy with because our tests are still far from perfect and we still have obvious thoroughness issues in the show ring itself.

Even though the show itself may not have been as successful placing wise compared to previous shows, I feel what I learnt and the opportunities that opened from this show brought about just as much or even more success.  To be honest it was a really challenging show trying to figure out how to deal with her tension and I was trying my best and it just didn’t seem to be working.  I was determined to get to the other end of it and I have to thank Sabine Schut-Kery a tremendous amount for her help throughout the whole weekend.  She was so encouraging and just kept reminding me to ride each movement and focus on accuracy and to keep on believing.  I really feel Rif and I have taken a huge step forward together from this weekend and that we are starting to really understand each other better!

A huge door was also opened at the show for me.  Debbie McDonald (for the non-horsey people out there is a very successful US Olympian) was there with Adrienne Lyle (her student trying for the Olympics this year) now that they are back from Florida and she was so encouraging and excited to see how well things have been going for Rif and I.  Debbie has been a big part of Rif’s training since the Leatherdale’s imported her 5 years ago so she knows her really well and really wants to see the best come out of it all for Rif and I.  She offered to come over to El Campeon to give me some help with Rif so this week I have 2 lessons which I am so excited about!

 As well, another really exciting thing for me was that on Wednesday at the show I was able to get a lesson with Steffen Peters who is very interested in working with Rif and I as well.  It went so well and so I am excited to see what unfolds in the future with that now too!

It was so lovely to spend the weekend with mom and to have all her help!  I would never be able to do what I am doing if it wasn’t for her so thank you mom!!

Before I end up writing a novel, I think I better call it a night and I will do my best to get back into the routine of updating more regularly!  I wish everyone the best who will be competing this weekend at Southlands!  I wish I could be there supporting you all but know I will be there in spirit :) 

Thank you again so much for all of your support!  I truly thank you from the bottom of my heart and I feel so blessed.

All my best,

Monica

A peak into my world :)

Hello! I thought it was time I share some pictures of what I have been up to instead of writing a novel for you :)

We have some Dutch interns out for 3 months so today I took them out to the Santa Monica Pier!
A gorgeous Sunday at home!

Jessica York's awesome photography

By Jess York

Stentano :)

Having a little fun on her Sunday stroll around the farm :)

El Campeon!

By Jess York.. just playing around with some buttons ;)

By Jess York.. my princess!

And the dream lives on..

I hope you all had a lovely Easter! It was so nice to be back home for the weekend - with beautiful weather I might add ;) I had a great time catching up with family and all my friends and of course I couldn't keep myself away from the barn so I got to ride Bentley (mom's horse) this past weekend as well :) I'm sorry I couldn't see everyone but for those of you who I got to see - it was so great catching up!
As for my ponies back down south, well they had a well deserved break and enjoyed field turnout and the walker while I was away. I think it did them well, especially for Stentano mentally. Our next show is in sight at the end of this month so as nice as it was to have a break we only have a couple weeks until we're back at er!

I believe the time has come for me to update you all on my new plans! This past weekend when I was home I was able to get a visa under my dad's work visa which will allow me to live in the States until I am 21. At this point I do not know how long I will be down here for but as of right now I am planning to spend the rest of the year here!! Dad, mom and I talked a lot about it and it seems to make a lot more sense for me to be down here as things are all just going so well with the horses. This is all so exciting for me and honestly I cannot believe how blessed I truly am to have this amazing opportunity. So with that said, if anyone wants to make a trip down to the sun you are more than welcome to come visit!!

All the best to you all and I hope to get some pictures up soon!
Monica

Never a dull moment at the show scene!

Hey Everyone,

Goodness gracious it has taken me a few days to finally get myself unwound and sitting down to give you the run through from the weekend, but at last here we go :)

Well that was a very interesting weekend and to be truthful quite a stressful one. We arrived safely to the show grounds in San Juan Capistrano on Wednesday. I had never shown at this venue before so it was all a brand new experience for us. It was fun because there was a huge jumping show going on as well so there definitely was no shortage of action going on. Both Rif and Stentano settled right in and had no problems at all with so much going on around them.

Thursday we had our warm-up test and had a few little hiccups but for the most part it was a good start. Rif won with a 67% and Stentano came 3rd. Friday came around and ended up really well with Rif winning the young rider class and Stentano holding his own as well. This show was definitely the most competitive one I've been to you yet with 13 in my class, 2 of which were medalists at last years North American Championships so to win the class was huge!!

But to fill you in on the stressful part, Rif picked up a fungus on her face around her muzzle area at the first Burbank show and it was all clearing up so nicely, but then a couple days before this show it came back. The fungus causes her to lose her hair around her muzzle and starts causing irritation and then raw skin. Well you can imagine this does not bode well with the bridle on. Friday her face was still in okay shape but by Saturday and Sunday it really was not doing well but because I was in the CDI I couldn't scratch so we were doing everything we could to cover up the rashing and keep her comfortable and presentable to the judges. She kept trying so hard but it was evident she was not the most comfortable in the mouth with all this going on - and nor do I blame the princess! So we ended up 3rd on Saturday with a 67% still but several costly mistakes because she wasn't taking the connection in the mouth like she normally does. Stentano tried hard but the tempis are still a struggle in the test for us.

Sunday was freestyle day and I found out according to FEI rules I can only ride one horse in the freestyle so I took Rif because she is the one I need the scores with. However it turned out to not be our best go between the electric atmosphere and a rashed up muzzle. We came 3rd with 66%. I have to say I could not have been happier with her though amidst it killing me that she had to keep on keeping on with such a horrible rash going on that could not have been comfortable at all. She really did try so hard. So even though we weren't set up the best for the show we still made it through and kept it together.. or so we tried ;)

It was so great to have more Canadians down for the show and to see Karen ride her grand prix tests! It was one of those weekends where you gain perspective and really learn a whole lot about how to deal with situations that are far from perfect.

This weekend I'm going to be coming home for Easter :) I can't believe I've already been away for 3 months!! Craziness! Hopefully I'll have a chance to catch up with a few of you :) Miss you all and hope everything is going well!

In the awards ceremony for our team test win!

And a new week begins!

Hello!
My apologies on taking such a long time to get up another
post! Somehow last week just disappeared
and as for the weekend.. well I don’t even know where that went!
Last week was bit of a rough week for me.. I got really sick
and was stuck in bed for 2 days with a really bad fever. It’s funny how life works out because grandma
came down midweek with mom and April and made me a big pot of chicken noodle
soup! Nothing can beat grandma’s
soup. And then thank goodness for my mom
and Karen coming out last week to help Jayne and I because she was able to keep
the horses going for me while I was completely out of commission. Finally by Friday I made it back out to the
barn and it felt so good to be back on the horses!!
My good riding friend from back home, Esmee, also arrived on
Friday and we spent the day at the barn with a mutual friend from back home who
is now living in LA, Jess York. We all
meandered back over to the house for the afternoon and all had a lovely dinner
together and just caught up and shared some good laughs! Jess is finishing up school in photography
and took some pictures at the barn so I’m hoping to get some from her and post
some up for you all J
Saturday Es and I did the horse thing again and just enjoyed
spending the day together and catching up!
Then we met up with some friends and all went for a nice dinner and
extremely delicious dessert at PF Chang’s and then to finish up the night we
went go-karting! Sunday was a really
nice day starting with a lovely birthday morning and a brunch and then of
course what do girls do when it’s raining out.. but go shopping!! So we met up with some friends that both Es
and I know that ride in the same area and went and shopped until we dropped.
I dropped Es off early yesterday morning. It was so hard letting her go! But now it’s time to get my head wrapped
around this weekend! It’s show time
again baby!! My class is the largest one
yet with 14 young riders in it and it is going to be competitive alright! I am super excited now that I’ve got my first
CDI down with Rif – no more messing around.
We are bringing it and coming out in full force ;) And as for Stentano
we are going to give it another go alright with those changes and perhaps work
on a little bit more of his listening skills =P
I will keep you facebookers all updated this weekend and
then when I get back I will fill you all in on the weekend :)

Thank you all so much for your support once again and all
the birthday wishes! I am so grateful to
have all of you in my life!

All the best,
Monica

A relaxing Sunday.. at last :)

Happy Sunday to you all =)
Well I finally have a day all to myself where I don't need to be doing anything..! I think this is the first in a long time so I thought it might be kind of nice to share some pictures with you all from the show last weekend :)

We have all unwound ourselves from the show last weekend.. but have our eyes set on the next show just 2 weeks away now! There is this balance between unwinding and catching a moment to take a breath but then keeping myself in show mode as well.. it's tricky to keep on that mental game and not let the anxiety of it all get to me but that's what I love... the constant challenge of living in the moment and not getting ahead of myself.

I am really looking forward to this week and weekend to come. Mom, April, and my grandma will be joining dad and I here for a week and a half to spend my birthday next Sunday with me. =) And then Friday Esmee is coming to join us as well (one of my really good riding friends from back home). It will be so nice to take a weekend to reflect back on these past couple months and enjoy all the blessings God has given us.

The horses this week have been a challenge but also so great. It's always a little bit tricky the week after a show because they need some down time but they also have to keep moving and then near the end of this week we picked things back up. Rif thought it might be fun to take advantage of that but Sabine was as always so great and kept us rolling on the right track. Stentano has been trying so hard this week and so I'm continuing to chip away with him and keep it all in persepective! Karen is out this week for a few days as Jayne (another client of karen's from back home) arrived early last week so she will be out to help us both.

I hope that all is well at home and that hopefully Spring will start setting in soon :) As for us.. I think winter finally decided to hit.. we had quite the storm yesterday! Wind, pouring rain, hail, rocks falling down the mountains, flooding, power outages, a very angry ocean .. yes I felt like I was back home!! But then go figure today the sky is clear and the sun is out shining brightly! Go figure.. this crazy Southern Cal weather!
All my love to you back home xoxo

Stentano proudly wore both 2nd (for Rif) and 4th place for the freestyle awards.

Pretty little Champion :)

My superstars and amazing mom!

Getting our smile on for the jog ;)

Hey there gorgeous mare mare

The Canadian YR force ;)

Yes I love you too handsome ;)