Good Vibrations!!!

Five years ago a friend and I were cruising the shelves of WalMart looking for a movie to watch and I randomly grabbed The Secret.  I had heard someone say a few kids on the rodeo team had watched it and I casually picked it up and decided to try it out. In the next few hours, my life was forever changed. The friend I was with fell asleep out of boredom, but I was captivated.  I always think how different my life would have been if I would have fallen asleep too!  Sure there were some corny parts, but I was intrigued by the concept of the law of attraction and I started to put it to work in my life.  I realized how the law of attraction had worked for me already and how much more I could do with it. 

As a young girl I always had a vision  of myself riding a paint horse into the mountains alone with a dog by my side.  I didn't have a horse but I wanted to be free and independent.  In seventh grade I started working for a colt starter and he paid me by giving me a three year old paint gelding.  I had him until I was 23 and he and I covered a lot of country together- out alone in the mountains just like my vision.

Visualization is a valuable tool in everyday life, and I have seen proof of it working in others life as well as my own.  It's simple and effective.  See things as you would like them to be.  Place yourself inside the picture and see things through your eyes.  Feel the feeling you want to feel when you have created what you want.  Visualization helps you to practice for the future because when you get there, you will already feel comfortable and confident.  A lot of professional athletes will visualize a perfect performance. 

Every time I visualize something and think about it a lot and it comes true, my faith in the process grows.  I just moved to Arizona for the winter to ride horses and help  my boyfriend put on team roping jackpots.  Lots of exciting things have been happening.  I got offered an awesome apprenticeship with an NFR barrel racer, I walked into a restaurant today and picked up a waitressing job a few nights a week, and everything is just effortless and flowing. 

Matt, my boyfriend, followed the principles of The Secret and it helped him clinch the Collegiate National Championship in team roping with his partner Cody a few years back.  He just believed that they were going to win and he imagined it and visualized it.  It didn't look like they were going to get it, then in a crazy series of events, they had the title.

When I was getting ready for Miss Rodeo Montana, I would visualize when I was doing my cardio workout.  I would just run and feel the feelings of winning.  I was super nervous about answering the impromptu question at the fashion show.  I felt like extemporaneous speaking was my weakness and so I visualized a question I wanted to get and my perfect answer for it.  I answered this one question perfectly over and over again.

The day of the fashion show came and I was standing up on the stage waiting for my turn to draw a question out of the bowl.  I felt confident and felt like it was my time to win.  I reached into the bowl and touched a piece of paper, but something in my head said to throw that one back and pick another one.  I even laughed to myself because of how ridiculous it was that I had not liked the piece of paper and didn't even know what was on it.  So I grab a new one, pull it out, and read it.  I was blown away when it was THE QUESTION I HAD BEEN PRACTICING FOR MONTHS.  Needless to say,  I nailed the question without a bobble.  As I was crowned Miss Rodeo Montana a few days later, I felt so excited and knew my visualization and preparation had worked. 

Imagine the life you want to lead.  Put out the good vibrations.  Know that great things are coming your way.  Believe that people are out there that you will magnetize into your life who will influence, inspire, and assist you.  Know that you are a powerful part in creating your life the way you want it.

7 Things I'm True Lovin' Right Now...

1.)

Tights wit yo kicks

No not just leggings... that's been done before.  The other day I came across a photo of black cowboy boots with fishnets.  It looked suprisingly not-trashy and I really liked it.  I like it because its fresh and hasn't been worn out yet.  Let's see if this fad sticks???

2.)

The Vignette photo app on my droid... the top is the original photo and the bottom is the photo after I manipulated it with the app.  It has the capability to make photos looks like old yearbook photos, to change and enhance colors and to make them a square shape with a border.  I have been playing with my pictures and its super fun!!! 

3.)

90 Proof by Panhandle Slim.  I have always loved button up shirts on a working cowgirl.  The sexiest I have ever felt is in one of these on the back of a horse:)  Panhandle Slim makes some awesome shirts.  My boyfriend just got me a Wrangler shirt from Teskeys that is plaid with a turqoise yoke.  Plaid is hot right now and I can't wait to wear it roping this winter in AZ!!

4.)

Giddy Up Flix-  I just joined and am OBSESSED.  It is like a netflix for horsetraining.  You pay ten dollars a month and can rent out any of their hundreds of instructional videos.  So far I have watched Judy and Rachel Myllymaki's and Martha Josey's Barrel Racing Videos.  When you're done you just send it back in the mailer and they'll send you the next one on your list.  Ten dollars a month is a cheap investment for long term knowledge.

5.)

GYPSY SOULE has some rockin accessories.  I love this necklace! 

6.)

Cowboy Junkie Handpainted Tack.  This gal has so many creative ideas and makes beautiful tacksets.  I've never seen a breast collar like this.  Check out all of her gear on Facebook!!!

7.)

6 weeks doing the workouts in this book and you won't recognize the body in the mirror.  After 14 days of a particular routine your body reaches homeostasis, which means your muscles and figure no longer improve.  This book changes up the routine and ensures kick ass results.  It's like having your own personal trainer and includes meal plans and recommended cardio.  I stayed consistent on this for about two months a few years ago and felt like I had a brand new body.  

Loss as A Catalyst for Growth and Enlightenment

"For life and death are one, even as the river and the sea are one"  -Khalil Gibran

Ahhh. The blog post I've been dreading but know that it has to happen.  This is about my perspective on love and loss, on the inevitable... which we will all experience. 

My first experience with loss happened when I was twelve years old.  I was an animal crazy kid who had a furry best friend named Duke.  Anyone that knows me, knows I really love and connect with my dogs.  Duke and I were best friends.  In the spring during high water of the creek I was playing fetch with Duke and threw a stick in the water for him.  A current  violently grabbed him and took him downstream and he got sucked underneath a dam and drowned.  I was helpless to do anything and it happened so fast that there was nothing I could have done.  Duke hit his head underneath the dam and drowned.  When the water lowered later that year we found his body and buried him.

There are no words to describe how horrible I felt as a child, feeling so guilty for the death of my beloved friend.  I feel like God used this experience to prepare me for what was to come in my life.

I'm not going to go into too much detail, but when I was 18 I lost my boyfriend in a freak truck rollover accident in the mountains.  I was riding my horse behind the truck and found him dead.  I was miles out in the middle of nowhere and found a man camping in the woods who brought me to a camp to call 911.  Me and this complete stranger waited 8 hours for help to arrive.  After that day began the hell on earth that we all know as grief.  Anyone who has experienced it knows it is the most draining, terrible, horrific thing you can go through. 

But this isn't a story about sadness and negativity.  This is a story about hope.  On the day of the funeral, it poured down rain. And after that the clouds opened up and there were beautiful rainbows in the sky.  I looked up to the sky in my oilskin duster, and despite having just buried someone I loved, I knew that  a rainbow was a promise from God.  It was a visual reminder of hope for me.  I knew my life would change, but one day I would understand the Plan. 

A few weeks after the funeral, I went to church and I felt like the  pastor spoke right to me.  He said we all start out as a block of wood.  The hard times are like sandpaper, that are shaping us to be who we are.  In the end we become God's beautiful carving. I held on to that thought- that my adversity was shaping me.  I tried to read books on grieving and I hated them.  So I started reading self help and inspirational books.  I filled my mind with stories of hope and success and love.  I got a new puppy named Gus, who helped teach me how to love something again.  I set a goal for myself to be Miss Rodeo Montana.  I started a degree in Natural Horsemanship and decided I was going to be a horse trainer.  I let a new boyfriend into my heart.  I gained perspective on life and decided to live my dream.

These things never would have happened without the loss I endured.  I am certain you can choose how you let loss affect you.  It can either debilitate and crush you, or it can be a catalyst for growth and enlightenment.  I am blessed with my experiences because I APPRECIATE OTHERS IN MY LIFE DEEPLY.... I KNOW THAT WHAT WE LOVE CAN BE GONE IN THE BLINK OF AN EYE.... I AM MORE SPIRITUAL AND HAVE FAITH IN WHAT IS TO COME AFTER I DIE.... I REALIZED IF I CAN GET THROUGH THIS, I CAN DO ANYTHING.

Life is not always fuzzy and cute and perfect.  Sometimes it sucks. But I can promise you this.  You can heal your heart.  It may take awhile, but our souls are very resilient. And know that if you have had loss in your life, all it takes is the decision to move on and live and love fully,  and you will live a life you never before could have dreamed of.  And I believe with all of my heart I will see Duke and Dusty again.



Take 100% Responsibility for Your Own Life

There is only one person responsible for the quality of the the life that you live.

That person is you.

To be truly successful, you must take 100% responsibility for your own life. Every failure, every success, your friendships, your physical fitness, your debts, your feelings, your current work situation.  It is so easy to blame... the weather, your childhood, the people around you, your spouse, your lack of money, the list goes on and on. 

Dare I say, the real problem is usually you.  This means that you create what happens to you.  If you are constantly negative and feeling like others are hating on you and taking advantage of you, it will soon become the story you're writing for your life.  The life you are living now is the result of all of your past thoughts and actions.  Change yourself today for your future. 

I believe in surrounding yourself with positivity- positive people, images, books, ideas... If a really negative person comes into my life I really can feel them sucking out my energy.  Granted, people need help at times and everyone has rough patches.  But there are some people who are chronically negative and I don't think they want to change.  I choose not to be around those people. 

Pursue your passion.  I have always known I wasn't going to fit in the 9-5 mold.  I was never going to wear heels and a business suit.  I just would feel my soul dying if I had to be working at a job I disliked every single day.  Following your passion is not easy at times, however.  I have lived a gypsy life and don't have a house or a huge savings account.  But I know that will come.  I am glad to have the experiences of being a cowgirl and traveling and meeting people that invigorate and inspire me.  If you love something so much that it doesn't even feel like work, you can make it pay.  There is a niche for you.  I just feel like life is super short and the time is flying and I can't take all the material possessions with me anyways.  I am going to learn about horsemanship, rope, ride colts, and travel.  Your inner guidance system is your joy, and I have always felt the most alive on the back of a horse. 

We get one chance.  One life to live.  One story to write.  You are the captain of your ship.  Are you going to sit back and read about other people's lives on facebook and wish you were doing what they did?  Or are you going to take 100% responsibility for your own life and make it something incredible...

What Do a High Caliber Barrel Horse and Champion Western Pleasure Mount Have in Common???

Two different events- completely different, in fact, exact opposites.  How could these horses be anything alike? 

They both have excellent foundation and body control.  Their foundation, is most likely identical. 

No matter what a horse does, if they are good, they know how to control their body and perform certain maneuvers.  Rope horse, jumper, mounted shooting horse, barrel horse, hunter jumper, dressage horse, it doesn't matter. 

When you watch a barrel horse sit down and rate to turn a barrel, there nose will be tipped in and their hip in as well.  This is a similar position to a lead departure in western pleasure class. This is an unnatural movement for a horse, but when those muscles are built up and they are trained to be in that "C" position, it will make a very powerful and fast turn around a barrel.  It also encourages the proper lead on a circle. 

Today I watched my boss ride two horses that I struggled getting in this position.  To get the head position, flexed and tipped in, you must make it uncomfortable for them to get out of position.  They will seek the spot you want because it is more comfortable than the place they are getting pressure.  So I jiggle the reins when they get out of position and release when they are where I want them to be.  To move their hip to the inside, a horse needs to understand that leg pressure means move away.  You always start with a calf, then a touch of the spur, then a deep roll until they move their hip in.  When they make the slightest movement in, you release.  It's all about feel and timing.  If you are terrible at releasing, your horse won't know what you want him to do.  All they want is a release of pressure.  It is their greatest reward.  Nothing pisses me off more than watching someone never release.  That makes a horse confused and scared. 

A neat drill that helps build those muscles is using the fence and having a horse keep their "C" position sidepassing along the fence...both ways.  Just a training tidbit I learned today.

Every day I value cadence more.  Cadence in horsemanship is having a rythym to movement that is continuous.  For example, if I am doing ground work and sending a horse around me in a circle, I want them to walk in a constant rythym and not stop until I disengage their hindquarters.  I listen to their hoofbeats and can tell if they have it.  You don't want a horse to stop, then walk, then bolt off, then trot, then back up, when all you asked them to do was walk calmly in a circle.  I get my horses to stay moving in rythym until I say stop.  This helps so much when you get in the saddle.  The first three rides on our colts is all about cadence.  We give absolutely no direction.  All I do is set my stopwatch for five minutes, cluck to them, and over under them if they don't move.  I use no legs because legs are to teach side to side movement.  All I want is the colt to walk for five minutes.  If they break into a trot I either one rein stop or bring them into a small circle then start again.  Next, I ask for ten minutes of consistent trotting.  And I am not afraid to pop them on the rear in this process.  If I cluck, bring my end of my lead rope across to spank without touching them and they haven't trotted off yet, I spank them.  Its good to have movement above them like that in the first few rides especially.  Sitting up there like dead weight will get you bucked off when you wave to your friend or pet their neck. 

I have learned that my previous method of ground desensitization did not work at all.  It is what I was taught in school but I found that my horses were still spooky. You would introduce a flag or tarp or the boogeyman and then the moment they stopped running from it, take the scary thing away.  Well, now I have learned that you keep it moving even after the horse has stopped for about 5 seconds.  Then you take it away.  It seems like it takes a few seconds for the horse to catch up with whats going on.  You let them know that you are rewarding the correct behavior of standing still. I am seeing great results with this.  They lick their lips a lot and get desensitized fast. 

Sorry this is a smorgasborg of different thoughts about my job the last two weeks, so lets just call it a training tip buffet.  Very random, but some good stuff.

Cantaloping.  Nope not a fruit.  Its my boss's nickname for counter cantering as the English folks call it.  Since western people say lope instead of canter- we cantalope.  Haha.  Cantaloping or counter cantering is loping on the opposite lead that you are supposed to be on.  So if you are going in a circle to the right, you would be in the left lead.  If you are on a horse that can't control their body and is muscularly imbalanced, you will feel an extremely rough gait.  Males may no longer be able to have children it can be that bad.  I cantalope all of the horses.  If they have a rough time staying in the wrong lead, use more inside leg to drive their hip out.  The more cantaloping you do, the better your horse will become. They will be less stiff and more athletic.  But here's the catch... you have to do it both ways.  Otherwise you will just be building up the imbalance in muscles.  It's great to do also in a small barn where you would normally be constantly picking up their shoulder.  If you are cantaloping their shoulder is already picked up!  Oh and for all you rope horse people-  Lope both directions when you warm up.  If your horse can't even take their right lead you have some major problems!!  Shoulders will be dropping and you will be ducking.  They need to be strong in both sides to perform the tasks asked for in a run.  If you going around in a circle to the left for the entire warm up, I'm just going to assume you have no horsemanship skills:):):)

Okay I've got to hit the hay....  I will be journaling more of what I learn at work soon.  Wishing you the best from Red Lodge, MT..........

I've Been Thinking A Lot Lately About Getting into a Horse's Mind...

(my crazy gray)

I've been thinking a lot lately about getting into a horse's mind.  There are a lot of people who just take the air out of a horse to get them calm and really just work them until they damn near fall over dead.  They are so out of breath, they can't even learn. And guess what, the more you do that, the better shape they get in.  Then it takes longer and longer to get the task accomplished. 

It takes a very intelligent person to train a horse to think their way through problems, instead of just reacting, jacked up on adrenaline. 

I am working for a man who is the best horseman I have ever been around.  I ride his horses and they are collected, willing, smooth, calm, athletic, and responsive.  Riding a horse like that reminds you why you love horses so much.  Every day when I condition his cutters, I think to myself, "I want to make a horse that feels this good and is this confident."  I'm sure if I stick around him long enough, I will be able to.

I am going to get a little technical here, so bear with me.  I've just had so many AHA! moments these last two weeks that I can hardly keep them contained.  I am writing them partially to share with my fellow horsemen, and partially so I will remember them myself.  :)

The first thing I noticed about his horses was that they all bury their asses when they stop.  So I ask him how he does that.  He just nonchalantly replies, Oh all of my horses do that.  Okay... are their drills, or exercises???  He says no.  They just crave stopping.  I'm slowly trying to figure this out and I've observed a few things about getting these killer stops.  1... Every time I stop, I back the horse up.  Whoa doesn't mean stop.  It means stop and back up.  The more fluid of a motion from stop to reverse, the better.  2...  When training, I'm only supposed to say Whoa as a reward.  So if the horse takes the wrong lead and I stop them to reset and try again, I don't say Whoa.  I just bring them to a stop with my reins and seat and try again.  His horses love to stop because they when they hear Whoa, they know that after they stop and back up, they are going to get a rest and a rub.  On a 30 day colt, you clear your throat and they drag their tail and may throw you over the front if you weren't expecting it.  3...  Accelerate into your stops.  You must be building speed to have an awesome stop.  The horse cannot anticipate that he will be stopping soon for it to be smooth and powerful.  4.... He had to chew me out for using my reins when I stopped his horses.  He said throw the reins down on their neck, sit down, and say whoa.  When a horse stops well, you can't be floating their teeth.  They stop because they want to, not because they have to.  Horses want the reward of rest.  That is their favorite reward!  Stopping is mental.  This is what I mean about getting into a horse's mind. 

Okay lesson number 2.  Shouldering in on circles.  This is something a lot of horses do.  It feels amazing when you jump on something that doesn't have this habit.  You feel like you can sit perfectly in the middle of the saddle and the horses motion isn't throwing you to the outside.  So I'm loping this big beast of a horse around (1/4 draft, 1/4 arab, 1/2 quarter horse....why??? and who does this???)  I should be nice, he is actually a doll and I love riding him.  He is shouldering in on the corners of our figure 8 track and I ask the boss what I should do to remedy it.  He says, well what did you do?  I said every time I felt him start to lean in I would pick up my inside rein and drive him out with my inside leg (which I thought was a step up from dragging him to the middle of the track with my outside rein)  Then he says, well everytime you pick him up he is just going to fall back in again.  Let's make staying straight and correct his idea.  Everytime you feel him shoulder in, pick up your outside rein and tip his nose to the outside, then drive with your outside leg and reverse arc him at the lope around your circles.  This is HARD work for a horse.  In fact it is so difficult for them that it is often hard to keep them loping.  He said do this for a while then just release and lope around again.  By making shouldering in a very difficult job, the horse will choose on their own to stay straight and balanced.  I think this is genius.  This also builds up their muscles so they will have the strength to stand their shoulder up.  Hmmmm.... I never could have thought of this myself.

JUST GIVE YOUR HORSE DRUGS!!!

Every day, I pull my mare out and ride her and my boss helps me train her.  This mare is fast.  I have no doubt that when I get her foundation super solid, she will be a smoking barrel horse.  But because of her hot blooded RUN mentality, training is difficult.  She lives to be in adrenaline mode.  So he says he will help me with her.  The day before I was loping around on her and she just kept getting more and more amped.  She was trying to run away and just couldn't do anything slow and relaxed.  I didn't know what I should do, so I kinda had the okay you want to run, lets run idea.  I ran her around and around and around until she was so tired that she finally slowed her pace down. WRONG mentality.  This is trying to get them winded so they'll listen.  It's not getting in their head.  Now I know better.  So the next day he takes her into the roundpen and does some groundwork.  He goes to send her and she wants to run and just bolts.  He picks her up in the face to stop her, then drives her again.  At first I was really confused as to what he was doing because to me it looked like Go, then Stop, then Go, then Stop and I was like wow, she is confused.  Then I realized he was just trying to get her to yield in a C shape toward him and do it with cadence, slowly.  Every time he would ask her to move away she would want to bolt, so he would shut her down then ask again.  He kept doing this and changing direction and raising his energy and repeating, really getting her to move her shoulder out of the way and yield to him with cadence.  At the beginning of the session, her head was high and she was pumped and after a few minutes of him doing this her head was low and she was yielding perfectly shaped at the walk.  He stopped and said she is done for the day.  I said wow she sure looks relaxed and he said that he had given her drugs.  Really? I replied.  I thought he had aced her (I am blonde).  He said he gave her endorphins and now she was thinking.  Interesting....

The next day he rode her out on the figure 8 track.  Every time I wanted to just move her out at a nice quiet trot, she would break into a lope.  I had tried doing one rein stop after one rein stop and it just wasn't helping. So he went out there and pitched her the reins, asked for a trot and she took off.  He sat her down into the ground, backed her up a few steps, then repeated the process by pitching the reins and asking.  After about four times, she started thinking.  She started to slow down her trot and not take off.  The next day I got on her and it was like I had a finished western pleasure horse by the way she was trotting around.  Her head was low (which means she was on her DRUGS) and she just trotted around slowly on a loose rein.  I was blown away and I yelled at him, What did you do to my horse?????

Well there is so much on my mind with this horse training stuff, but I had better stop!  I'm so happy to be passionate about what I'm doing.  I chose horsemanship as my career path because I'm so eager to learn everything I can about being a horseman.  There is so much to know, and if you ever get bored, you can just change your discipline and your back to ground zero again! 

Happy training and getting into your horse's head:)

"Dream So Big That If Only Half of it Comes True, It's Still Amazing" Cowgirl Profile: Bobbi Jeen Olson

Not many women have a resume like Bobbi Jeen's.  She is a team roper, model, actress, television host for Arizona Country TV, and stunt woman.  She has appeared in numerous movies and TV shows including Walker, Texas Ranger and Hi-Lo Country.  Lots of things impress me about Bobbi Jeen, but the what stands out the most is her passion and love for the western way of life. 

She is the epitome of a Cowgirl Visionary.

After surveying a list of incredible accomplishments, I realized I was talking to a very driven woman who was a leader in the field of human potential.  I asked Bobbi Jeen what her keys to success were.  "I always try to treat people the way I want to be treated.  I am considerate of other people's feelings,"  was her response.  The older I get, the more I realize people that climb on top of others to get to the top won't stay there for long.  Bobbi Jeen is definitely not one of those people.  Her glowing personality and excitement for being a cowgirl is what has pulled her to the top.  She also shared a favorite quote, "Dream So Big That If Only Half of It Comes True, It's Still Amazing."  Yup! I think that one is working for her!

The other piece of advice she gave me was to surround myself with the best people I possibly could.  I could not agree more.  I believe we are the average of the five people we spend the most time with.  I want to hang out with 5 Bobbi Jeens!

When I asked her about adversity, she told me she cut her thumb off roping when she was twenty.  The doctor told her she was too pretty to not have a thumb.:)  She was ready to just say goodbye to it, but he insisted they would fix it.  So after three surgeries she was back roping again with her new thumb.  She told me that she thinks of her past as a learning curve to better herself and if someone shuts her down, she just goes a different direction. 

It came as no surprise when Bobbi Jeen told me one of her biggest role models as a young girl.  She absolutely loved Dolly Parton, with her contagious laugh and magnetic personality.  There is something that draws people like a radiant, confident, happy, and beautiful woman.  She also mentioned a gentleman at the sale barn that she worked at who taught her how to watch the reactions of animals.  This helped her become a cowgirl who could read animals and effectively manage stock.  

definition   cow*girl  (noun)

kou gurl

-a woman who herds and tends cattle on a ranch, especially in the western U.S., and who traditionally goes about most of her work on horseback.

To me it means a lot more.  To Bobbi Jeen, it means being out on the ranch with her family, watching colts and calves being born.  It means being surrounded by amazing people who have the same lifestyle.  It is being a compassionate horsewoman who lets the beauty on the inside shine through.

Here's to you Bobbi Jeen!  Keep making us proud!

CHECK OUT HER WEBSITE AT http://www.bobbijeen.com/

WATCH FOR HER ON Arizona Country TV!!!!!!!!!!