[QUOTE=whitney159;7698630]
This was exactly what I was thinking too! Mixes the gymnastics with the horses!
You know if my daughter was a couple years older I would JUMP on leasing that pony from you! He is TOO cute![/QUOTE]
I wish, but she’s got cheerleading on the brain right now. Otherwise, my Friesian/Percheron would be perfect for that but he’s for sale too darn it.
[QUOTE=SmartAlex;7698619]
That will vary on your agreement but make sure you outline it in the agreement. When I leased a horse routine care and vet care were my responsibility and the lease stipulated that I had to carry medical and replacement insurance on the horse for X amount.[/QUOTE]
I have to agree with this. If it is a full lease then they are paying for everything. Including routine care. But make sure all those things are covered in the lease.
Thanks. Got it.
OP, I went through this with one of my daughters. I was so disappointed and frankly, heartbroken. She was so talented with so much potential. One thing about riding, it is more of an individual sport rather than a team sport. Some kids want to be with their peers doing something they can all enjoy.
I am really impressed that you are recognizing her present need to be her own person. At this age, and for the next 10 years :), you will probably see her express an interest in a a variety of things. Hold on tight! Best wishes to you both!
[QUOTE=Zuri;7698720]
OP, I went through this with one of my daughters. I was so disappointed and frankly, heartbroken. She was so talented with so much potential. One thing about riding, it is more of an individual sport rather than a team sport. Some kids want to be with their peers doing something they can all enjoy.
I am really impressed that you are recognizing her present need to be her own person. At this age, and for the next 10 years :), you will probably see her express an interest in a a variety of things. Hold on tight! Best wishes to you both![/QUOTE]
Yes, you encapsulated it perfectly. I am kind of mourning what is not meant to be. 
And we’ve got a great little group of adults and kids all riding and showing with our coach, but again, it’s just not doing it for her so yes, time to throw in the towel and let her hopefully figure out what is. The only up side right now is that it will probably be cheaper at least. I can buy a whole month or 6 weeks of classes/lessons for gymnastics/cheerleading for what two riding lessons were costing. Then again, competitive cheerleading is astronomical :eek: but we’re not quite there yet thank goodness! Ironic and somewhat perverse, I am SO NOT the cheerleading type. But if my daughter is, that’s all that matters. One of the moms of one of the kids who also takes lessons with our coach said she picked that out specifically BECAUSE it’s not my thing. Figures.
Gah! Girls and their drama. Change of tune, dear daughter has reconsidered and now does want to keep riding in addition to cheerleading. She brought it up to me last night at the barn. Seems she’s been missing our evening mother/daughter time feeding and putting the horses back out as I had told her that if she wasn’t going to ride any more then she was excused from these duties and made it “me/my time”. She’s promising to give pony more time without having to be harassed into it and not treat him like a stuffed animal she can just shelve. I have my doubts but am not going to sell her pony out from under her if she’s not resolved to it. Maybe she will take him for granted less now that she understands the consequences. We shall see…
Bravo Mom. Wish it were my son saying that. Keep up the good work 
Well if I ever had hope that my son would catch the horse bug he cleared it up for me last night. He is almost 5. When asked if he wanted to learn to ride, he said “nope, I want to learn to drive a tractor”. “so you don’t want to ride?” Him-“I want to ride a 4 wheeler, boys don’t ride horses, that’s for girls”. whoa, now wait a minute! When simply telling him that boys do ride (he was unconvinced) failed I brought up cowboys and how they ride and rope cows etc, …time to take this kid to a rodeo! While I have no hope he’ll ever want to event, I always thought it would be fun to get a team penning team together with me and the two kids.
My daughter is two and a half…no sign of horse obsession in her yet. Sigh…but you know what, if she turns out really girly and just likes to braid hair, I’ll make her into my show groom and she can braid for me! I suck at braiding! She seems happy enough to feed and talk to the horses.
OP, It sounds like riding and Mom are intertwined very deeply in your family.
I think you can expect her to go back and forth about riding. She’s at the age where she is starting to psychologically pull away from being “Mommie’s Baby” and start to become her own self, the person she will be in adulthood. That woman may or may not ride.
But you have instilled the skills into her that should last for the rest of her life, and she will be able to, if she wants, to spend time with Mom out on top of a horse of some sort.
Hang in there - and Jingles.
[QUOTE=FatCatFarm;7703922]
Seems she’s been missing our evening mother/daughter time feeding and putting the horses back out as I had told her that if she wasn’t going to ride any more then she was excused from these duties and made it “me/my time”. [/QUOTE]
You never really know what you’ve got 'til it’s gone
[QUOTE=Sparrowette;7703954]
OP, It sounds like riding and Mom are intertwined very deeply in your family.
I think you can expect her to go back and forth about riding. She’s at the age where she is starting to psychologically pull away from being “Mommie’s Baby” and start to become her own self, the person she will be in adulthood. That woman may or may not ride.
But you have instilled the skills into her that should last for the rest of her life, and she will be able to, if she wants, to spend time with Mom out on top of a horse of some sort.
Hang in there - and Jingles.[/QUOTE]
Thank you and you are probably right. Whether or not she keeps doing it, she will always know her way around the horses and will be able to pitch in and help. I’ll support whatever she does as I am sure she will continue to support me and my horse craziness if not be an active participant.
Wait, you have a kid who just wants to do chores around the barn with you & you’re telling her she must keep riding her pony to do so? That seems backwards, haha.
[QUOTE=independentlyawesome;7704039]
Wait, you have a kid who just wants to do chores around the barn with you & you’re telling her she must keep riding her pony to do so? That seems backwards, haha.[/QUOTE]
Heh! :lol: Not exactly. She must keep riding her pony in order to justify keeping him. If she wants to keep helping with the horses regardless of keeping and riding a horse herself, that’s optional. I think the change in routine made her think about it more. But no, I wouldn’t be surprised if she ultimately does stop riding or only does so haphazardly, and that it lessens as time goes on and priorities change. shrugs What will be, will be.
Many riders immediately envision pink show bows and a stunning white pony the moment the ultrasound tech says it’s a girl. They see themselves as the beautiful mom in the pretty hat and Lily dress leading their adorable tot into the leadline at Devon or Upperville.
It can be tough to accept that our children don’t have the same passions that we do. Doing horses is hard, frustrating, often dirty, and to stick with it requires passion for it. It hard enough sometimes when you want it. Imagine how hard it is for someone who doesn’t really want to.
My older daughter has always had the horse bug. Younger daughter always said she didn’t like to ride. She didn’t like eventing or trail riding or show jumping or vaulting. We discovered that she loved polocrosse and dressage. After I told her she didn’t have to ride any more, she decided to only do polocrosse and dressage through pony club. She did dressage through 4th level and low level polocrosse. As a young adult, she rides when she comes home to visit, although does not ride regularly like her sister.
[QUOTE=Linny;7704292]
Many riders immediately envision pink show bows and a stunning white pony the moment the ultrasound tech says it’s a girl. They see themselves as the beautiful mom in the pretty hat and Lily dress leading their adorable tot into the leadline at Devon or Upperville.
It can be tough to accept that our children don’t have the same passions that we do. [/QUOTE]
Meh, for me it’s been more about sharing the joy of something I love and find very enriching; not playing fantasy dress up. And for the record, we never did leadline. I’m just trying to give her enough room to decide if it’s something she wants to continue doing or not.
[QUOTE=Linny;7704292]
Doing horses is hard, frustrating, often dirty, and to stick with it requires passion for it. It hard enough sometimes when you want it. Imagine how hard it is for someone who doesn’t really want to.[/QUOTE]
During last winter, with subzero temperatures, I kept repeating, “I love horses. I love horses. I love horses.” 
I’m not sure if my DD was repeating the same thing, as her face was too wrapped up in scarves to hear her.
I have been begging my daughter to quit for years because she doesn’t want to put any work in at all. We are blessed/cursed with the ultimate packer so she can ride once a week in a lesson a couple of times and go to an event and win so there is no incentive for her to work harder. I have tried telling her if she didn’t ride at least twice a week outside of lessons she couldn’t take a lesson but I generally cave. I would much prefer she just walked away altogether and be done with it than string it along forever.
[QUOTE=FatCatFarm;7704564]
Meh, for me it’s been more about sharing the joy of something I love and find very enriching; not playing fantasy dress up. And for the record, we never did leadline. I’m just trying to give her enough room to decide if it’s something she wants to continue doing or not.[/QUOTE]
I love this! You have the wise perspective! It seems the more you push, they more they push back. Ugh. I went through this with older daughter, now 23. She did resume riding. I just had to back off and let her decide. Good for you!
[QUOTE=FatCatFarm;7704564]
Meh, for me it’s been more about sharing the joy of something I love and find very enriching; not playing fantasy dress up. [/QUOTE]
When my niece was born I think all us girls had visions of pink bows and tiny jod boots, but now that she’s actually out in the barn it’s much more about the fascination of watching her entranced by these huge animals and how gentle they are with her. I remember my first experiences with horses. It is wonderful to watch hers from an adult perspective.
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