Monday, March 31, 2008

FLETCHER TOUR STOP




Here are some pictures taken by a friend of the tour stop, and the people attending.
Here is what I posted about the tour stop on the savvy forum...
THE WEEKEND WAS LIFECHANGING... again. Wow, my life starts now. I talked with Linda and Pat a few times privately and they now know me, know my goals, and have seen my website. Pat gave me a challenge and said it was great to meet me and will see me in Florida in a couple of years, I will be going down there for a long time for the courses, then maybe work for them because being an enthusiast isn't free, I will also hopefully be in Pat's Private Savvy Club and I will be down there for a while I believe. I have dedicated every single day to the program, what I do every minute of my life for the next two years are vital. I have to put my heart and soul into the program daily, my life has totally changed. MY LIFE HAS CHANGED! For the better, better than I ever imagined. I will need everyone's positive thoughts and prayers because of the wonderful challenging years ahead of me. A better way to put it, I HAVE CHANGED, my life has been transformed, my dreams are within grasp. The process in which I grasp the dream is the most important, I cannot get distracted. I am ready world, I am ready Pat... Look out!
Savvy ON!
Mariah Helms

Saturday, March 29, 2008

Welcome Pat & Linda Parelli

I am so very excited that you have been able to visit my site and very thankful that you have taken the time it takes. I hope and pray you will visit when you can and watch me grow in your wonderful program, I hope you find my story inspiring and my goals high. I am very passionate about the program, love to teach humans and horses, am a learnaholic and want to get as high as I can in the program and spend as much time with you two as I can. I am very excited about my future, and now that my future contains you two in it more than I could ever imagine I am ready to take on your challenge and be the best horsewoman I can be.
Good better best, never ever let it rest until you get your good better and your better best.
If you are ever on the SC Forum my username is Parellifuture5starinstructor...
My email is Savvysundance@hotmail.com if you ever get a chance to drop a hello it would be great to hear from you.
Thank you for your kindness, passiveness and persistance so people like me can live their dreams and live life to the fullest, beyond their biggest dreams and highest expectations.
I look forward to talking to you two tomorrow at the 'mini-conference'!
Bless you two, and thanks so much!
Mariah Helms
Future Parelli Instructor

Wednesday, March 26, 2008

Beauty in the Making

March 25, 2008-
Doc's Session
I have started to play and work with our 18hh 15 year old black percheron gelding. We bought him in the amish country of Ohio last august and he looked bad, he was drastically underweight, hair was chopped off and needed lots of TLC. Now he has gained his weight back, grown his mane full, and his coat is a beautiful black sheet of silk, he truly describes the term of gentle giant. He is an absolute sweetheart, I am working with level one stuff. Just the basics and he is catching on very quickly, he is very smart. I am classifying him as a left brained extrovert, he is very confident but he is curious about things at the same time. I'd say he is a little bored here because he was used to working hard every single day pulling carriages and other things, but now he has nothing to do excecpt the times I work with him, I guess it's a good thing becasuse he really wants something to do so he will ask questions and try his best when you work with him. In the picture above is Doc the big boy and then Bebe, Doc is 18hh so how big do you think Bebe is?
Doc has a very bright future here! :) He will make a great riding horse no doubt.

Sundance's Session
Sundance and I played with impulsion today, he was oddly over impulsive which is a good thing compared to the way he was. We played in our new play area and in the end almost got a nice slow trot all the way around, but then it got too dark. I really enjoyed Sundance today, he was very fun to be around and was willing to please. I am loving the progress in our relationship, I can't wait to see what we do next. Goodness, I just had SO much fun, I can't get over him. :)




xoxo m

Monday, March 24, 2008

Sunglass Hut

We finally found some sunglasses big enough for the horses at the beach this weekend,
Here are the results...


















Bebe was ecstatic, thats my boy! Sundance my little introvert was much less than ecstatic but was photogenic as usual. With Starsky, well he didn't really care. Sudance didn't mind sharing his sunglasses with Christian either!
I got a giggle, I hope you enjoyed! :)
xoxo m

Home with the Horses

I am home and heading out to the barn. :)
m

Good Mornings


It's 8:30 AM EST and we will hit the trail around 10:00 PM EST, it is a beautiful morning at 42 degrees and I am rested and ready for the week.
I have a huge week in front of me and am glad I got to save up some energy this weekend.
Look out horses, mommies coming home! I am ready to see my babies.
Have an awesome monday! :)

xoxo m

Sunday, March 23, 2008



Romans 5:7-8

Happy Easter to everyone! Did the easter bunny visit you this morning?

Have a blessed day,
Mariah

Saturday, March 22, 2008

Performing Horsenalities

Saturday 10:30 PM EST-
The show at Dixie Stampede was great, what a great group of horsemen & women.
The most splendid show of savvy and horsemanship was a gaited horse doing dressage, I am not totally familiar with dressage terms so please excuse my ignorance. He performed an extended walk (and later a trot) I believe, a beautiful spanish walk, rear on que and countless bows.
It was an absolutely beautiful sight, it fuels my passion for learning and also studying the discipline of dressage. If you want to see some great dressage, go to Medeival Times also another dinner and show. They have Lippizaner stallions that know what their doing, caprioles... the whole show. Okay, back to horsenalities! A majority of the horses were left brained introverts with ears back, swishing tails etc. which is very understandable because of the repetition.
Only two of the horses I saw were different, one of the horses was slightly right brained. He was high headed and bug eyed, it may have been from the tie down and harsh bit in his mouth or the hundreds of predators clapping and shouting around him... there could be countless possiblities of cause. The other horse was a 2-3 year old freisan, he was very interested and calm about what was happening around him. I would classify him as a 'temporary' left brained extrovert, his youngness and the newness of his job has probably caused his extrovertedness but that can wear off. I hope it won't, a mild left brained extroverted horse is an excellent horse. Playful, motivated, SMART, willing, asks questions and a great bonding type horse. My quarter horse horse Bebe is a definate left brained horse and very very smart, I have to make sure I give him what he needs in order for him to stay the way he is. He is an amazing horse and a definate keeper, he will make an amazing horse for me one day. He has an awesome future and is a great partner. :) Be exciting for your horse and never bore him, then he will give you more enthusiasm and willingness and will make a great partner.
xoxo m

Dinner, Show & Horses?!


Saturday 5:00 PM EST-

We are going to go to a Dinner and Show with horses, it is called Dixie Stampede.

I have attended this show probably 5x overall and enjoy going to it more now because I know how to read horses, it is very interesting to me. I do believe I found most of the horses have Left Brained Intoverted horsenalities because of the repetition they go through with the shows week by week, I hope they rotate horses/performers for their mental health and physical health.

It takes a lot to wear out a horse but after weeks and weeks of performing it probably gets tiring. I was pleased with the treatment and handling of the horses the last time I attended.

I wish everyone knew how to read horses, it is amazing what that knowlege can reveal to you in so many aspects of life with horses and out of the equine world. It will be very interesting this afternoon, I am looking forward to it. The show starts at 6:30 PM EST, so we will leave in about an hour. :)

xoxo m

Easters Eve


Saturday @ 12:15 PM EST-

The family is together and we are dying eggs! :)

I love dying easter eggs, they are so delicate and beautiful and you only get to do it once a year.

It is warm out, it is supposed to get up to 72 degrees so I have my shorts and a springy shirt on and am ready for the day. I bet it is a great day to ride at home, the horses must be enjoying the warmth today. I think today is going to be a great day, I usually start to get homesick whenever it gets close to feeding time for the horses but I WILL NOT get homesick today! :)

I called last night and my friend said the horses were doing fine and not to worry, they sent their love. So I will be a-o-k today, have a HAPPY easter eve and enjoy this beautiful saturday!

xoxo m

Friday, March 21, 2008

Hello Sun, Hello Life

March 21, 2008 10:08 AM EST-
It is a beautiful sunny morning here at Myrtle beach, I have not yet been outside but it says it's 49 degrees out. I am just about to get ready and hop on the golf cart and take a ride, maybe the sun will warm me a bit. I wonder how the horses are today, I have a friend feeding for me and will call him sometime this afternoon and ask how the babies are. The horses are cut off from their normal pasture because a man is coming to spray our yard and the wind may blow the weed killer into that feild and hurt the horses. So they don't have as much room as they usually do, but they get along fine and get plenty of hay so I am not worrying about it. As of right now I will be coming home mid-monday, and then will have a busy week following up a Fletcher Tour stop. It is 7 days away to be exact, I am very excited about the tour. My mom is going to be taking me to the tour stop, even though the weekend is probably going to be very boring for her not being an enthusiast like me. I love her very much, she is so sweet and understanding of me and my passions. No one forget your family and never take them for granted, they are all you have in the end and a gift. So say thank you to your mom today! :) and always forgive the ones that hurt you, life is too short to hold a grudge. I am still hurt right now from the past few days but you don't dwell in the hurt and keep it in, it is better to walk in love than to make yourself miserable. Life is better than you think, live it while you can, and live it well. We are all truly blessed. :)
1 Thessalonians 5:10-13
xoxo m

Thursday, March 20, 2008

Destination Approached

I am here at the beach, with the horses on my mind :)
xoxo m

On The Road Again...

The horses just got their daily ration of hay and I am starting to pack, we will be leaving around 12pm-12:30pm. I am not sure what DVD's I will take, I know I will bring the Natural Collection DVD to view. TTYL
xoxo m

Wednesday, March 19, 2008

MARCH 10TH POST

I want to apologize to those of whom where offended by the March 10th post.
My intention of the post was to state that I was amazed on how well she was progressing, I had not seen her progress so quickly with certain areas and that I was proud of her progress and hard work. I would like to say thank you to the people that gave her such a great foundation she needed in order to succeed in the way she is today and will later in life and I would like to say thank you for giving me such a great foundation. Without you I would not be where I am today, keep doing what you’re doing!
I hope you all will be understanding and forgiving.
Much Love,
Mariah

Rainy Day


I taught one lesson today, the other was cancelled because of the rain. I did get to do some liberty right before it started to rain though, Sundance did great :)
I will be out of town for the weekend, I will be leaving tomorrow around 12 pm and may be home Sunday. I hate being away but I need to do whats right, even when it's hard! lol :)
NEW: You can now leave comments about my posts, just click at the link at bottom of the post that says 'comments'.
xoxo m

Tuesday, March 18, 2008

Nutrition Clinic


I am attending a Nutrition Clinic for horse owners at our Ag center at 6:30 pm.

I have already fed the horses, I cannot wait to learn about nutrition for horses.

Learning is so much fun. :)

xoxo m

3.17.08- New Exercise Area

My new exercise area:

I have decided to use a new riding area for Sundance & I for several reasons:
1) I do not have an arena large enough to work on flying lead changes etc.
2) Sundance is over impulsive in large open areas, so we need a large open area to work on his impulsion.
3) Tit for Tat is hard to do in a small area.
4) This will help me tremendously with my power of focus, something Sundance needs me to work on.
This is going to be a challenge, but I love challenges! BRING IT ON!
This will be SO good for us when it comes to our relationship, groundskills and riding skills.

Monday March 17, 2008-
First I did some friendly then worked on our cantering on the 45 ft line, then I took off the lead and did the circling game at liberty (in an open feild, he did great). Then I decided to hop on and ride around the area so he could get used to it, he did fine for his usually strong willed but willing self. After a while I decided to take on his trot in an open area, he did fine until he was pointed to the barn. It was then he got his energy up and did his power trot, so I decided to do some cirles for his impulsion. After we gracefully (surprisingly graceful) did a few circles trotting he could sucessfully trot toward and away from the barn without getting over impusive. He jogged and cantered with me beside the gator at liberty up to the barn in the end, stopping when I did, trotting when I did and canterin when I did. How cool is that? What a great way to end a session! I think today will be as good or better, I will tell you how it goes.
xoxo m

Monday, March 17, 2008

As Requested

Here are some pictures as requested:








xoxo m







March 16, 2008

Yesterday was very interesting for me, I have learned that Bebe gets unconfident if you start off with the circling game in a session. He seems to feel more confident about the session if we do a task that makes him really think, isn't that what you need to do for a RBE? He is a LBE.
I guess when he is unconfident he starts to get slightly RB, so I need to just slow it down for the poor young thing. He catches on to things unbelievably fast, I love playing with him. Such a smart baby! Sundance and I worked on Liberty out in the pasture, he did very well. I am noticing a little comedian in my LBI, He is very fun to play with but I have to remember to keep the sessions short and varied for him because of his introvertedness even though it is hard. I am very blessed to have such great horses, I am sure they will become my super horses and will help me excel in ways I would ever imagine!
xoxo m

Sunday, March 16, 2008

Home is Here

I got home around 5 pm est, I viewed the Lead Change Ladder DVD out of the Success Series on the way home and absorbed it like a sponge, A NEW CHALLENGE. It was AWESOME, I can't wait to go out and play with some leads.
Now out to the horses :)
xoxo

Home Sweet Home

I just got back from walking on the cold beach, it was amazing! I love walking on the beach.
We are going to grab some grub then head on home, I am having fun here and will be back next weekend (maybe). I will be home around 3 pm est, I might have some time to do UDT, Friendly or some other small games Sundance or Bebe need to work on.
I watched some of the MARCH SC DVD and I loved it...
Backing Without Reins: Linda & Allure
I have not been exposed to this before, but figured this out with my LBI, SD. It's nice to know that what I was doing was right. Linda did a great job of explaining it and Allure did a great job of being SMART. Sundance knows how to do this very well, and Bebe hasn't been taught it yet. I find it interesting that after I taught him to back up by his tail he found it easier to back up without reins. I taught Bebe to back up by his tail 2 weeks ago, it took him about 10 minutes to get the concept, so I am guessing now that I have taught him to back up by his tail (so fast) He will be easier to teach when it comes to backing without reins.
Linda also had some burgundy breeches and some half chaps on... Hmm How Interesting. I just bought some half chaps just like hers last week.
I will post later tonight.
xoxo m

Saturday, March 15, 2008

At the Beach

Well, I am at the beach right now watching some Level 3 tasks on You Tube.
I am pretty much bored here, I am lost without horses! :) There's not much on TV and for some reason my computer is blocking the SC forum so I am stuck surfing elsewhere.
It probably would be a good idea to stick in the PNH DVD's I brought...
The horses were fed a couple of hours ago, it rained so much the man couldn't throw the hay out.
I am trying to keep my mind off the horses, but as you can tell it's not working so well! :)
I tracked my Level 2 Package and it arrived at Nita Jo's place Friday morning around 10:30 am... It's amazing what $20 can do, from NC to MI in about a day. I can't wait for the results, I also can't wait for the Fletcher tour stop... It's 13 days away and I don't even know what I am going to say to Pat & Linda. I am probably not going to be able to do anything the whole time, because of all the crying! I am glad I signed up as an ambassador, I love working with people esp. horse people. I am going to attemp to stop typing, I am only doing it because I am bored!
I will try and check in tommorrow,
xoxo m

Friday, March 14, 2008

Vacation Time :)

I get to go to the beach this weekend and will be leaving today around 12pm...
I will be back on Sunday and hopefully will know if I have passed Level 2 next week, I will also know next week if I get my braces off. They have been on way too long, if I get them off I can smile at Pat with pearly whites! Life is great, I love life!
Now, to relax...
OH YEAH: (added) I am going view the newest SC DVD and the Lead Change Ladder and Natural Collection from the Success Series, and can take my time doing it.
I can actually relax this weekend, my Level 2 & Students are behind me and I have a trusted person to feed my babies... I am so glad I get a vacation. :)

Thursday, March 13, 2008

Learning to be a Savvy Teacher

I taught 2 students today... One was a basic riding lesson for an 8 year old.
Another was a groundwork lesson with a 54 year old, I am growing as a teacher and am falling in love with teaching my students. I am very passionate about teaching and watching them excel.
They both did awesome today, such great students! I am love them and love watching them learn.
:) Mariah

March 11 & 12, 2008

Tuesday was a busy day, I had to be somewhere that takes up my whole day. Bummer.
Wednesday was amazing, we retaped some L2 blooper (tasks I thought could be done better).
Our warm up for the taping was very surprising, Sundance my less-motivated LBI was hyper! Oh my goodness, do LBI's get hyper? Or is his horsenality turning extroverted? He was very FUN to play with on the ground, jumping around with me, rearing, passing bodily gas... *haha* (once gain, isnt he a LBI?) The taping went very well and the package was sent this morning to Nita Jo. I can't wait to hear the results!
I have a 1 hour lesson to teach at 3pm est and a 2 hour lesson to teach at 4pm est.
Earning and saving for a Parelli Saddle!

Tuesday, March 11, 2008

Yesterdays Taping

Yesterdays taping didn't go so well, it was actually comical now that I think about it!
The saddling portion went well but when we did the bridling portion I got the bridle mixed up and Sundance my little introvert was not patient enough to sit there with his head down for me to get it back in place... SO that was not passable material and then he was uncanningly hyper (uh, when is my LBI hyper?) when we performed the drop to trot and wanted to canter too much. So I was all unstable because my horse was over impulsive. Which he never is, so that wasn't passable either. On top of that while my mother was videoing the criteria (without a stand to prop up the camera) our cat was torturing her by clawing her and climbing up her leg so the camera wasn't stable either. The whole situation was funny, hopefully it won't happen again!
We will be ready to tape today, it was a process of elimination type thing.

Monday, March 10, 2008

Cancelled Lesson

I have been teaching a 54 year old single mother of a physically limited (but sweet!) child the past few months and she has learned more the past 2-3 months she has come to me than she has the past 3 years at another barn. I have seen her progress not only in her horsemanship skills but in her emotional fitness, physical strength and cognitive skills she is also learning it is okay to be "assertive, but not aggresive". She had to cancel today because of business reasons so I am going to do some taping this afternoon. I need to do it today anyway because Nita Jo needs the rest of it by Thursday before she leaves so I will know if I have officially passed before I leave for the tour stop. I hope it goes well... I think it will, Sundance is a good boy.

Sunday, March 9, 2008

Swimming As One


Today Sundance & I prepared for the taping that will take place on Wednesday, he did very well.
I started out riding in our bareback pad and the parelli snaffle but ended up using our halter and lead rope as a hackamore, why? Because the snaffle will fold in two while focusing on techniques used in Finesse riding. We worked on four tasks today: 1- Trotting on a Casual rein in a figure of eight. 2- Performing a canter to trot to canter lead change. 3- Nine step back up from a walk. 4- Sideways without a fence for 20ft. bothways. He did great on task one, we had ridden a figure eight with a carrot stick (only) so he could learn the pattern by relying on my body language instead of not reading the way my body communicates to him and relying on the reins. That has worked wonders with HIS communication skills when it comes to understanding, he is a Left Brained Introvert and had been ridden with a bit and or harsh bits before I purchased him and he is not as responsive as I would like or as resposive as my 4 year old clean slate. So now he is reading my body and not relying on my hands to guide him through the tasks I ask him to perform, which has made my job even easier. The drop to trot lead change task was a task I personally needed delevopment on, the first time I was exposed to the concept of leads and lead changes was through the Parelli Program and I am glad that they were to people introduce me into the seem-to-be complecated task, now that I think about it Nita Jo Rush (3 Star Parelli Professional) first introduced leads and lead changes to me. In the arena it all seemed backwards to me,but with Sundances patience and plenty of time to think I have gotten a hang of it. Tasks 3 and 4 are things we do all of the time and both of us found it quite simple to perform. After our work/play session I took Bebe and we ponied around the property, the trailer was open so we practiced some of our level 4 tasks, communicating with horses on the ground while on horseback. I asked Bebe to load the trailer, jump and swim in the lake with us. We swam in the lake and it was unbelievably fun, both Sundance and Bebe splashed, swam, drank and had fun. Today was a very sucessful, educational and fun day.