They never said it was going to be easy!

Pony and I had a great dressage lesson last night. With me being horse poor and all I cant take weekly lessons, therefore make more progress, like I would LOVE to do so we have to take advantage of the one we get a month. One of my weak points, having never ridden 2nd level before now, is that although I can really feel a difference in my lesson and am starting to understand the feeling I want it is still hard to 1-get there and 2-know when it is good enough. We are at the point where he knows how to do it all... IF I ride him well enough. And its the riding him well enough part that is freaking HARD! You know that feeling when your trainer tells you something and you thought you were already doing it? Yeah that has been my feeling with my hips/shoulders! I feel like I am turning them so far to the inside I'm about to be looking backwards (okay that might be a slight exaggeration but really!) but when I watch my video it looks like I am barely doing it. Then when I can get my body turned even more our shoulder in gets that much better. That is almost the hardest part about all of it, if I could just ride him better he would do it all! We are going to work on cleaning up our travers (or really just working on it in general. We havent done too much of it) so that the next time Mary rides him she can start his changes! Its so exciting to have a horse with fun buttons. One of my dreams is to ride tempi changes, could pony be the one?!

Here are some highlights from our lesson:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4KiLzsx-Ajs&feature=c4-overview&list=UUVHw-LY_2U2B0WK4ue3bJZQ


Tolo of course had to go get in a kicking match and has a nice cut and swollen knee as of this morning. Something always seems to happen once you get them going nicely doesnt it?! Hopefully a little rest, cold hosing, and wrapping will due the trick. Here is a video of us from Sunday. He keep getting better and better!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YYLP5qIji5w