The Story of Malibu

Ok, I feel like telling you all about my beautiful and amazing baby girl. Maybe you (and you are currently nonexistent,) can get to know her a little better. But first I have to tell you the story of my first horse.
I have been begging my parents for a horse since I was six years old. Dreaming about them, thinking about them, learning about them, loving them. I got sent to horse camp for two weeks every summer since third grade. I loved horse camp, and I wanted to board a horse there. I fell in love with a few of the horses there and begged my parents to buy them, even though they were not for sale.
In August of 2007, my parents agreed to lease a black TN Walker named Bo from a guy who lived about five minutes from us. In the three months that I leased Bo, I fell in love. I wanted to buy this horse in the worst way. The guy though, asked way too much for him. My parents knew they couldn't buy him, but in November they got me another black TN Walker. His name was Elvis. I didn't think I could love a horse more. I was very wrong.
I loved barrel racing back then. I boarded Elvis at the place where I used to take lessons. That was a barrel barn, run by a barrel trainer. I was going to have a TWH who ran barrels. Bad idea. But I took lessons on him a started to teach him barrels. He wasn't really that bad. I aslo liked going on trail rides.
That spring, the weekend of the beginning of my fall break, a group from our barn trailered our horses (including Elvis) to a benefit trail ride. That weekend, he lunged out and bit my best friend in the neck for no reason whatsoever. She wasn't in too much pain or anything, but it was pretty gruesome. And right next to her jugular area.
We got him home, everything seemed ok. I went to the barn Monday. I tried to catch him. He had always been terrible to catch. Now he was worse. He was hanging out with a group of mares. He mounted one of them while we tried to catch him. My trainer told me not to try to catch him or ride him and I can ride her horses.
It turned out he had been a stud until he was six. He was 10 when we got him. He had been a sire. He was proud cut. He was dangerous and he needed to go. On that Thursday, my trainer's husband's employer gave us a 23 year old mare that they didn't need anymore. I named her Malibu. This is the horse I love more than air.
Our original intention was to take her until we could sell Elvis and then give her to the barn as a lesson horse and buy a new horse. I now laugh at this idea.
During the time we tried to sell Elvis, which was all summer, I rode Malibu. She was kind and gentle and obediant. I realized what a terrible horse Elvis was. That we let him push over us. I started to hate him. My mom still loved him.
That whole time, Elvis bucked off both of my parents. My dad nearly broke his arm. My mom had a few broken ribs and a mild concussion. Elvis tried to kick us a zillion times. And do pretty much everything a horse could do to you. We had to get him gone.
In around October, we finally sold him. We had bought him for around $2000. We were so desperate, we sold him for $400. Stupid economy. But he was gone.
Malibu was a barrel horse. We weren't very good, but we had fun. In August, she got a tendon injury. Three months of stall rest and walking by hand for fifteen minutes. Wrapping her leg every day. Taking extra good care. It was a long, painful journey. But it was so worth it.
One of my friends had a pleasure horse. My trainer was going to take me and another friend (the one with the neck bite,) to her the pleasure trainer, Kevin, to look at some horses.
I rode a few of them. They were so smooth, I fell in love with pleasure. I took a lesson on my friend's pleasure mare, Fancy, a few weeks later. Fancy is so much better then the two I looked at. Pleasure was my new thing.
I took lessons on Classy, Kevin's lesson horse, every week. I loved it. Kevin is a great trainer and I was having fun. In December, when Malibu was able to walk, trot, and lope, Kevin took her for a month of training. Ever since we got her home in January, 2009, Malibu and I have worked on pleasure.
I knew she would never be good. Kevin told us she might be good enough for a Saturday night show. I never imagined I would ever get this good. This summer, because of personal issues, we moved Malibu to a new barn. This barn had much better facilities. Mailbu's training took off. A lesson every week and lots of unpleasant practice in between pays off. Because in March we are looking at maybe showing her in AQHA. For the epic win.
But I knew she would never be good enough for my goals. I want to show at lots of AQHA and big shows. Malibu isn't that good. Or at least she wasn't in July, when we got our 2 year old plesure prospect, Jude. (BTW I named him after Hey Jude. Your welcome, Mr. McCartney.)
So that's about it. Right now we are going through feet problems. Malibu's hooves are so uneven that our farrier is baffled. Stupid natural hoofcare. We use a real farrier now. He has to wait for her feet to grow out so he can even then up and put on shoes. We she gets them, she'll be so much better. I can't wait. Only two weeks, baby.
Jude is doing pretty well. Kevin thinks he'll be great. Like, amazingly great. He's coming home to our barn in January. Until then, I can only ride him once a week in lessons.
Anyway, I know this is long. Sorry. But I felt like getting it all out. I don't think I've told the whole story like this. Please look for more posts soon. DFTBA.