ENTERED BY PAMELA ON MAR 2, 2010:

We are facing the decision: to breed or not to breed. We have retired Thea and we are looking for a home for Kessel, but we plan to keep breeding Molly. We took a year off last year, because we have so many babies and we are so busy. We now have to decide about this year: Molly is ready & Gavilan is more than ready! However, we just don't know if we will have the time and energy to add another baby to next year's roster. Feel free to weigh in, if you like. Once summer arrives and our current crop of babies is cleaned up & ready to show, we may even place a "for sale" ad in the CDS newsletter. If we do, it will be the first time ever that we have offered homebreds for sale to the public! Of course, the "public" will have to be some pretty special folks. Anyway, it's a great dilemna to have.

We have yet another school horse! "Logan" is a 9-year-old Welsh pony, about 14.2 hands, very elegant, quite calm & friendly. We expect him to make a great addition to our program in a few years, once he learns his new job. We don't have a picture up yet, but look for one soon. "Kindle" is doing really well; he has settled down and is starting to allow riders other than Pamela on his back. We hope to have him ready to show this summer. "Ponyboy" is under saddle, more or less, at least for 30 seconds at the walk and a brief trot down the long side. He currently lives with Kindle and they are BFF, eating together & grooming each other. Kevin lives next door and seems quite jealous -- he want his own pony, too!

Please welcome Kathleen, our newest student, to the Rancho Viejo location. Look for Sonia as well; she's been riding at SJB, but she'll be at RV on occasion. As always, please introduce yourself to any unfamiliar faces.

As many of you know, Sarah is going down to part-time with us. She is still doing some teaching on weekday mornings, as well as helping out as needed around the barn. Chauna has officially left (so sad!) and will return only as a part-timer when school permits, probably doing stable chores. You will be seeing more of the rest of us at RV; the current (as always, subject to change and likely to change) schedule is:

Mondays: Pamela or Carrie from 3:45pm to 7:30pm.

Tuesdays: Pamela or Carrie from 4:30pm to 7:30pm.

Wednesdays: Caitlin from 3:45pm to 7:30pm.

Thursdays: Pamela or Carrie from 3:45pm to 7:30pm.

Fridays: Pamela from 3:00pm to 6:45pm.

Satudays: Mary from 8:45am to 5:30pm.

Sundays: Carrie or Caitlin from 1:30pm to 5:45pm.

We hope to expand our schedule, but we can't really offer any weekday mornings at this time. Keep checking in with Pamela to see what's available. Don't be shy! Ask her! You never know what she might be able to work out, if not now, then in a few months.

As for San Juan Bautista, the current (and, yes, changeable) schedule is:

Mondays: Carrie from 10:00 to 2:00; Caitlin all day.

Tuesdays: Carrie & Pamela from 10:00 to 2:00; Mary all day.

Wednesdays: Carrie from 10:00 to 2:00; Pamela & Mary all day.

Thursdays: Carrie from 10:00 to 2:00; Pamela from 8:15 to 1:00; Mary all day.

Fridays: Carrie from 10:00 to 2:00; Pamela in the mornings; Mary all day.

Saturdays: Carrie, Pamela & Caitlin all day.

Sundays: Carrie in the mornings; Pamela & Mary all day.

We can offer evening lessons, as we do have lights for the 2012 arena. We currently don't seem to have anyone who would like to ride after about 4:30pm, but we are open to change. Again, don't be shy! Ask for what you want! We'll do our best to accomodate you.

Finally, we are sorry to say that the lunging situation at Denville-Kanani is going to keep us from going to either the March or April shows there. We may to go to some later shows at D-K; we plan to attend every show at American Sport Horse and at Osierlea. We may also consider taking some of the horses to Webb. If there are any other shows that a majority of you want to attend, let us know. As always, we'll go anywhere that appeals to enough of you to justify the disruption in schedule.

Stay dry, remember to check for dis-mounted sessions on rainy days, ride as often as you can when the weather permits. We'll see you at the barn!

ENTERED BY PAMELA ON FEB 5, 2010:

Lots of news:

First of all, we want to wish Chauna good luck as she transitions from being a full-time trainer here at Seven Oaks to being a full-time student. Chauna is working for us part time while she organizes her future university plans and she may continue to work for us part-time, if her schedule allows, for the indefinite future.

Second, the CDS omnibus has finally arrived, so we will be posting possible show dates on the calendar. Please let Pamela know if there are any shows that won't work for you OR if there are any shows that you particularly want to attend.

Third, please welcome some new students: Kathryn and Ayako at Rancho Viejo, Sonia and Andi at SJB. As always, if you see an unfamiliar face, introduce yourself. We would love for everyone to know everyone else, if at all possible. Please also welcome another working student at SJB: Emily. Emily joins Kay in helping us part time, doing barn chores, riding greenies, and helping to back the babies.

Fourth, we are coming to terms with the fact that we have too many youngsters. So, we are going to offer any of our young stock for sale. As always, there is a special price for Seven Oaks people; if a horse goes to the general public, we will ask market price and also require references. Most of the horses aren't under saddle yet, or have been backed but aren't really "broke" to ride, so even the fancier horses won't be very expensive. Check out the homebreds page to see what we have and then ask us for details. We'll put ads in CDS and on the web this summer, so there's no rush.

Finally, some sad news again this month: Pamela's father died recently. As many of you know, Pamela wasn't close to her father, but it's always hard to lose a parent.

Well, make the most of whatever dry time you have!

ENTERED BY PAMELA ON JAN 15, 2010:

I intended for my next news block to be a cheerful one, so I'm very sorry to start off with bad news: "Bean," one of our young horses, had to be humanely destroyed today. He had a twist in his colon and was not a candidate for surgery, so we made the very difficult decision to put him out of his pain.

Our other news is better, but I'm not really in the mood to go into detail tonight, so look for more information later this month or at the beginning of February.

So, in brief: we have another new school horse, "Ponyboy." Although he IS a pony, he is named for a character from the SE Hinton nove, "The Outsiders." Ponyboy is an unbroke 5-year-old Welsh cob, about 14 hands, a black version of "Rosie." You won't see him under saddle any time soon, but I'll try to get a "head shot" on the school horse page.

Also, please welcome two new students: Deb is riding at SJB and Kathleen will starting riding at RV next month. Please introduce yourself to them when you see them.

Next, although we haven't yet received the 2010 CDS Omnibus, we have been looking at horse show dates off the newsletter. Our first show of 2010 will be Denville-Kanani in March. So far, 10 horse-rider combinations have been entered. If you would like to try to compete at this show and haven't yet asked us to enter you, contact Pamela or Carrie.

Finally, we bid a sad farewell to two members of the Seven Oaks team. Kathy S, a regular at RV, is moving with her husband to Los Angeles. As well, Emily M and her horse, Kasper, are going to take a break from training for a while. We wish them well.

I'll be back soon with more news.

ENTERED BY PAMELA ON JAN 3, 2010:

First of all, some very exciting news! Congratulations to Cristina, who has just purchased Chad! While we are sad to sell such a special horse, we know that every horse deserves his own person. Cristina is going to be the best possible person for Chad. They will stay in training with Seven Oaks, so everyone will have plenty of chances to wish them both well. (Cristina will be happy with your good wishes, but Chad prefers a tootsie rolls.)

Second, please welcome two new working students to the barn: Kay and JC. Kay comes to us from Belgium, where she rode Jumpers for over 10 years. She is working hard to add dressage to her equine skill set and has already earned a project horse for herself--Colin. We hope that you will be able to see them both this summer at a few shows. JC is also new to dressage, but we expect great things from him in the near future.

Please also welcome three new students: Pam, Liz and Ramona. Pam brought a horse to Rancho Viejo and will be taking lessons on our horses as well as her own. Liz keeps her horses at home and is riding on our horses for now, but plans to trailer to SJB in the future to work on her horses' dressage along with her own. Ramona is Beethoven's younger sister, and is eager to improve her riding ability. Beethoven and Ramona are Sarah's nieces, and Beethoven is also an honorary working student at Rancho Viejo, doing fantastic riding on Charley.

And, of course, please welcome a new horse: Kindle. Kindle (formerly Enrique) just arrived at Seven Oaks last week. Most recently, he trained as a hunter-jumper pony, but we think that he will make a wonderful dressage horse with some time. Look for him at shows this summer.

Finally, the CDS (and some other) year-end statistics. (Please note that I am doing this from memory, so excuse any mistakes, let me know where I goofed, and I'll fix everything soon.)

General awards so far:

Carrie & Calypso: 1st place, all-breeds American Sport pony, 1st level.

Carrie & Rosie: 5th place, all-breeds Welsh, Training level.

Rosie: 6th in the state for dressage ponies.

CDS plaques & plates for 2009:

Beatriz & Hawk at Prix St Georges

Carrie & Kasper at 4th level

Emily & Kasper at 4th level

Barbara & Quinn at 2nd level

Chauna & Quinn at 2nd level

Helen & Jiggs at 2nd level

Caitln & Eric at 2nd level

Carrie & Mijo at 2nd level

Helen & Jiggs at 1st level

Carrie & Calypso at 1st

Sarah & Ula at 1st level

Dianne & Rosie at 1st level

Pamela & Kevin at 1st level

Romy & Berry at Training level

Tina & Berry at Training level

Chauna & Voyager at Training level

Sarah & Ula at Training level

Carrie & Rosis at Training level

Mary & Kevin at Training level

Pamela & Kevin at Training level

Mary & Satchel at Training level

Caitlin & Mijo at Training level

Chauna & Sebastian at Training level

Carrie & Satchel at Training Level

Emily & Satchel at Training level

Caitlin & Alex at Intro level

Pat & Satchel at Intro level

Romy & Berry at Intro level

Claudia & Berry at Intro level

Celeste & Teddy at Intro level

Holly & Satchel at Intro level

Chauna & Sebastian at Intro level

ENTERED BY PAMELA ON DEC 7, 2009:

Well, winter has arrived. We need the rain, but it does cut into our riding time. Be sure to come out & ride any day that voicemail confirms lessons are on, even if it's a day that isn't one of your scheduled days.

We would like to express our sympathy to Carol, who recently lost her father. Also, not as difficult but still very sad, we are sorry to say that Hanna's mare, Cocoa, didn't work out and has been returned to her former home, with Hanna's aunt. Fortunately, Hanna has made some good horsey friends with some of our school horses, so she can still come to the barn and enjoy her rides.

Please welcome new students Monica and Anson to the barn! Also, we are about to say good-bye to Trevor, as soon as we find him the right home. We are actively looking for a replacement horse or pony, preferably something between the ages of 6 and 12, no larger than 15.2 and no smaller than 13.3 hands, must be a gelding and be okay with living with other horses, and -- of course -- must love our kind of dressage. Fortunately, that last requirement seems to be the easiest one to fill.

Don't forget -- I'm always looking for news from the Seven Oaks team, so email me and I'll publish it here.

All of the horses & people are healthy & happy, we hope that everyone stays that way throughout 2010! See you when the weather clears up!

ENTERED BY PAMELA ON NOV 5, 2009:

Year end results are arriving:

Dianne's horse, Rosie, has won at least one year-end pony award and one Welsh award.

Barbara's horse, Voyager, is currently in 5th place in the Dutch all breeds at Training Level, with a median score of 71.4%. He is in the top 6% in the nation for all horses showing Training Level at USDF shows--wow! Another of Barbara's horses, Quinn, has a median score of 65.2% at Second level which places in him in the top 74% in the nation.

Pat's horse, Calypso, is currently in 1st place for Sport Ponies at 1st level.

We'll have many more year-end stats as time goes on -- watch this space.

Gracie and Annabelle are now both firmly "under saddle" in regular work, although they will get the rainy season off. Minty and Eli have been backed, but they will now stay out to play this fall and winter. Next year, we only have 1 baby to break: "Bean." However, with 5 babies in all under saddle next spring, we may need to reconcile ourselves to selling one or two of them. If you are interested or you know of a very good home that might be interested, feel free to ask us about the possibility of seeing a baby go. We aren't offering our babies to the general public, but we will consider a new "mom" with recommendations from the seven oaks family.

We have had to say good-bye to Clark, who has found a home being a trail horse. However, Nemo is now back in full work and Colin and Trevor are coming along well, so we should be well-horsed througout the winter. As you all know, Pamela would love another Welsh cob or a Halflinger, if the right combination of size, rideability, training and price comes along. Having said that, all of our babies above are geldings or geldettes (except Annabell), so we may just fold them into our program, along with Kevin, for advanced riders. We'll see...we are very lucky to have the school horse program--it's the perfect justification for failing to sell horses even when we have too many to ride ourselves.

Finally, please welcome back Danielle and welcome Lisa to the barn. The SJB program is still small, but growing every week. If you normally ride at RV, think about coming down to SJB some weekend to see the horses and riders (and meet the dogs, cats, pig, donkey & baby horses). You could even schedule a ride down here, if you like.

We'll see you at the barn!

ENTERED BY PAMELA ON OCT 6, 2009:

Teddy has arrived safely at his new home in Switzerland. I've put a few photos on the gallery page--check out the grass next to him. He grazes on that grass!

Donna is settling in at her new home near Seattle. She has a house, a fantastic new job, and a barn to visit, even if only to "smell" the horsey roses. We really hope that she finds some fun way to ride soon. If not, she needs to return & ride with his -- Frankie misses her...

We've been having a great time riding the new babies. Everyone has at least been on someone's back. Look for Gracie and Annabelle at shows in 2010. Eli and Minty won't really be "broke" to ride for another year or so.

We had a chance to try out our fire disaster plan. This past Sunday afternoon, a fire broke out in a eucalyptus grove about 1 mile away from us. We could see flames and the wind was blowing in our direction. We started to prepare for evacuation even before talking to the local fire department. The fire department told us that, while they hoped to have the fire contained quickly, they couldn't guarantee us that we would be safe. So, we started moving horses from the farm to nearby Valley Animal Hospital. We use Valley for most of our equine veterinary needs and they have, along with a barn for patients, a boarding facility. They generously accepted all of our horses, at the last minute, on a Sunday afternoon. We are very grateful to them, as well as to former student Katie , who brought her rig to help us move horses. Thank you!!! Rich, Lori, Angel, Jamie, Lawrence and Katie--you are the best!

Fortunately, the fire was contained by Sunday evening and we retrieved all of the displaced horses on Monday morning. We were able to reach all of our clients Sunday to reassure them that their horses would be safe, then we kept everyone up to date with the ext 3 outgoing voicemail, so everything really worked out well. We truly hope we never have to test our plan again, but we're relieved to find out how well it worked.

We have some very fun preliminary news: Carrie & Calypso look to be the champions at 1st level for Horse of the Year all-breeds American Sport Pony. Congrats!

If you have other interesting news or if I've left something out, please let me know. Also, if you aren't on the gallery page, please email me a picture of you on your favorite horse. And, of course, if your favorite horse isn't on the gallery page, even if you are, email me a picture of him or her.

Enjoy the great weather!

ENTERED BY PAMELA ON SEPT 9, 2009:

First of all, we are very sorry to have to say good-bye to Donna. She and her husband have moved to the Seattle area. She promises to come back and visit us; she also will return to visit "Frankie," who is remaining behind. Donna has very generously made it possible for Frankie to become a Seven Oaks school horse. We will all miss her cheerful attitude, her witty comments, and her inspiring riding!

Frankie's new "moms" are Helen and Romy. Look for them at shows in 2010. We hope that Frankie helps both of them to get their bronze and silver medals.

In other show news, congrats!! to Sarah and Ula, who attended the final two shows of 2009 by themselves: they won all of their classes at American Sport Horse (68% at Training level) and Yarra Yarra (73% at Training level, 68% at First level). We are extremely proud of the hard work that Sarah has done with this talented, but challenging!, mare.

Ula's 4-year-old full sister, Annabelle, is now under saddle. She is every bit as talented and challenging as her sister and she will be Carrie's and Chauna's project this winter. The two 3-year-olds, Eli and Minty, are about to be backed. We'll play with them a little bit more, then turn them out for the winter. Gracie and Zoe, the two 5-year-olds, are doing really well, and we expect Chauna to show them in 2010. In fact, Zoe is doing so well that we expect her "mom", Romy, to start riding her regularly next summer.

Speaking of riding regularly on one's own baby horse, Joe and Meg are turning out to be a wonderful match. Joe's working on a way to ride Meg more often, so that he can be even more effective with her training. Holly, who is currently in France for two months, has been riding Alex regularly all summer, and we expect her to do some of his showing in 2010. Pat is now doing almost all of the riding on Mijo and as much riding as she has time and energy for on Calypso--look for her to show Mijo in the spring and Calypso later in the season. Patsy is riding Sebastian every time she comes down to ride Karl, and they are doing really well together. We hope that Patsy will have the time and energy to show off her partnership with Sebastian in 2010.

We have some new faces, so please welcome the following riders to the barn: Hanna (the adult visiting from Germany), Hanna (the teen), Jill (Hanna's mom), Cocoa (Hanna's horse), Kristie, Laura and Lynn. They'll be around, so introduce yourselves.

The riding school in San Juan Bautista is going strong, but still has a lot of room for more students. We are going to continue our promotional pricing ($25/lesson) throughout the rest of 2009, then we'll see how things are going. If you want to add some additional lessons and you can make the drive, the SJB program is great way to do that. The riding school at Rancho Viejo is, of course, quite busy, so we will have to discontinue our summer specials. However, for those of you that are in monthly riding programs at RV, your individual lesson price is even lower than our promotional price, so you can continue to enjoy yourself without having to spend any more money. We really do know how expensive it is to ride and we very much appreciate how hard everyone is working to continue riding during these times. Thank you ! all of you ! for making it possible for Seven Oaks to be as successful as it is.

We'll see you at the barn!