“A racehorse that consistently runs just a second faster than another horse is worth millions of dollars more. Be willing to give that extra effort that separates the winner from the one in second place.” H. Jackson Brown, Jr.
"We're Going to the Farm...
We'll see the chickens and the ducks,
We'll hear the "quacks" and all the "clucks"!
We'll ride a big tractor, and feed a tall horse,
But the best will be the goats, of course!!!" Hilary Martin
My Little Brat started 2nd grade today....this quote best describes her mindset:
"I am always ready to learn although I do not always like being taught." -Winston Churchill
Seems like just yesterday I was sending her off on her first day of 1st grade......and not so long ago Kindergarten was the big hooplah! It won't be long till Sophie and CJ follow in her steps and head down the education highway as well...sigh.
We have reduced our price to much less than what we now have into this fine property....our loss is your gain! We are motivated and ready to negotiate! Please call for an appt. to see your new home!
Westwood is one of the original Plantations located on Guinea Station Road, as seen on the Virginia Civil War Trails Map and Guide, Antebellum Homes (Stonewall Jackson Shrine).
Westwood is situated on 65 acres of lush Spotsylvania countryside. It is one of the original Historic Plantations located on Guinea Station Road, and the second oldest in the county. The original home was built in 1818, with a small office and kitchen added in the early 1900's. This home has been witness to many decades of war, prosperity and family. This home was restored about 30 years ago. Additionally, the home and facilities have been lovingly restored over the past 2 years to include a new kitchen, master bathroom, office, and more!
Westwood is located on historic Guinea Station Road. During a night reconnaissance at Chancellorsville on May 2nd, 1863, Stonewall Jackson was wounded by his own men. While being carried from the field, he was dropped on his wounded arm, and he lost around half of his blood as a result. His left arm was amputated, and Jackson was sent by ambulance down Guinea Station Road to the Chandler House, where he spent his final days. Gaze from the front stoop out to what must have only been a dusty country lane and you can almost see the dust cloud left trailing behind Stonewall’s ambulance. If you close your eyes, and listen to the distant whistle of the passing train, you can imagine yourself back in that time, where Westwood stood witness to this historic event.
Westwood is ready to offer you many years of quality country living without sacrificing the comfort of modern conveniences and location. Simplify your life, and build your own history with this endearing Spotsylvania gem.
Westwood has undergone caring continuous improvements from 2007 to date. The land has been cleared and cultivated, the home has been remodeled, and the facilities have been upgraded. New roofing, support structures, septic system, and weather proofing will help ensure Westwood stands for another 100 years!
Beyond the standard conveyances (i.e. appliances, ceiling fans, washer/dryer, etc.), Westwood offers all the equipment and supplies you need to either run your very own equestrian business, or pamper your own ponies in private!
Thinking of sub dividing? We've already documented the process involved...contact our realtor for more information?
Westwood boasts about 40 acres of Orchard Grass hay fields. How about those hay fields? We have documented both the soil and forage maintenance process for you, as well as identified key local farmers to help you, if necessary.
Westwood has been in "Land-Use" status for many years. This status was just revalidated for 2011.
Westwood isn’t just a charming home on a gorgeous piece of land, it is also an income producing property! Consider this unique opportunity to run your very own boarding, training, and/or horse show business. The earning potential is endless!
Westwood is currently operating as a horse boarding business and frequently hosts horse shows and clinics for various state associations.
Westwood averages a gross income of MORE THAN $4500 per month between 2007 and 2010.
What I love about Westwood is the safe, quiet, relaxed, environment. Also, the ability to work my horses year-round! ~Leah Roehl, Owner
What I love about Westwood is the escape Westwood provides from my daily grind in corporate America! ~John Roehl, Owner
What I love about Westwood is playing in the mud, catching Fairy Flies, riding horses with my mom, swimming gin the water troughs, and jumping on round bales! ~Randi Roehl, Owner
What I love about Westwood is working in the garden! ~ Kathy Diggins, Gma & House Guest
What I love about Westwood is the facility has everything to offer and for any style of riding. In addition to that the place is picture perfect!~Corrie Watson, Boarder
What I love about Westwood is the relaxing peace and quiet to ride and spend time with your horse to lose all the stress and just relax!~Ginny Johnson, Boarder
Westwood is the answer to my prayers and I am grateful to you and the rest of the Westwood family! ~Susan Wood, Boarder
If you would like to view a virtual tour of Westwood, click on one of the links provided below:
I am somewhere close to 30 rides on Ms B now, our 3 yr old POA mare. Since our last video, we've established a consistent jog and can now transition btwn the jog and trot fluidly...we've also introduced the canter as of a few weeks ao and are working towards a consistent lope! Her headset has also steadied and requires minimal correction when working alone....when working with other horses inthe pen, the distractions are cause for a bit more proactive riding....that will pass in time as she gets more mileage and more exposure to working in traffic...she's been introduced to bth english and western tack and rides just as well in both....what we will be working a lot on for the near term are transitions and leads.....
we are very excited about this little lady's future...I've submitted her entries for Pleasure Driving, Western Pleasure, Hunter Under Saddle, and Trail in our POA Regional Show August 10-12...stay tuned for more updates!
Was just going thru our family schedule for the next several months...wasn't specifically aware of what all we have going on until I put it in writing....perhaps my own mind was blocking out the volume of commitments I have made in an effort to protect me from myself....me and my senseless desire to be busy...more than busy, actually...not sure there is even a word to describe this...I may need an intervention...here we go!
...this weekend is packed with a personal driving clinic with Priscilla Lane to ensure my rigging is correct as I start spending more time with Ms. B in her cart, Randi and her friend have a lesson to work on posting and diagonals, I promised a friend I would take some pics of her and her daughter at some point this weekend, I also promised another friend she could come out for a ride, and I may have to pick up our new POA gelding late Sunday or Monday...somehow, I think it will all actually happen...lol
Next weekend is a VQHA show in Culpeper...I told a friend I would bring Bo for her son to do leadline plus my two will be doing leadline and Randi will be doing small fry classes on the new POA gelding...I will be hauling Ms. B to school in the warm up pens....we need traffic!
The next weekend we are driving to WI for Family Packer Night! That is a whirlwind trips Thur-Sun with 14-15 hr drives each direction....still, it's the only time we get to see his family each year, so it's worth it!
The next weekend is our regional POA show in MD...all 3 of mine will show and I may even get Ms. B in the ring if she's ready...my friend said she'd come to help corral the kids for me....the trick is bringing someone along they are comfortable with...they are NOT friendly with strangers, so I can't leave them with just anyone...clingy kids!
I have been having a blast getting this pony ready to pull a cart....we are learning together! Here is the process I have followed to get us to this point... Step 1. Wake up! I have a very lazy pony...she is almost always sleeping when I go to her stall to get her.....I like to wake her with a song, but you should tailor your wake up routine to your pony's own personal preference.
Step 2. Introduce the harness. This only took a few repetitions until I was comfortable that she was comfortable with all the dangly things and doohickes associated with a driving harness. I am not a professional, so if you want technical terms this is not the place to look!
Step 3. Ground Driving...or as I like to call it: 'getting my dust jockey on'! I ate a lot of dirt during this task as I worked on this for a significant amount of time. Me goal was to get a solid walk, jog, and extended trot with a consistently level topline before we moved on...I also wanted to ensure I had a good handle on her for turning, stopping, and backing. I figured it would be easier to correct her clearly and quickly in this phase than down the road with the cart between us.
Step 4. Pulling Pipes. To simulate the awkward feel of the shafts against her body, I slid PVC pipes into her tugs (unsecured) and had a friend lead her as I walked behind. I had the ends of the PVC pipes tied together at my position for easy handling. In this position, I could easily pull the pipes out of the tugs in the event of an emergency. I also allowed the pipes to drag behind her a bit to simulate the scary pony eating noises that carts are known to make! She took to this rather quickly. I also pulled these around when I was riding her for extra exposure, which helped!
Step 5. Push it. "Look at me...if I can do it you can do it!" In this step, I literally push the cart around while tugging my pony behind me....she got to see and hear and even occasionally taste the cart in action....she's a little mouthy, so pony teeth marks on all things that come within chomping distance are inevitable....fortunately for me, my pony didn't care too much about the cart rolling around her....my arms and legs were spared from doing this more than 2 or 3 times...I did do it enough for my appreciation of the effort it takes to move that thing around to multiply tenfold tho!
Step 6. Hitch it...ALMOST. In this step I simply slid the shafts thru the harness tugs to let my pony feel the weight of the cart on her...My handy helper took the lead while I kept my hands on the shafts in the event I needed to pull them out...these carts don't grow on trees, ya know?...and I am kinda fond of this one. A few times around the pen without incident an we were ready for step 7!
Step 7. Hitch it...FOR REALS. OK, perhaps I am being over cautious here...but it is my life at stake when I hop in the cart! ...and I love my life! Sooooo, I hitch her up...and lead her around in all her driving glory! There's no turning back now! No simple escape maneuver to get her unattached from this contraption at this point....just me, my pony, and a couple hundred pounds of wood, metal, and leather.....deep breathe, and we ready for step 8.
Step 8. Drive it! This was a little scary....I had thoughts like, "Have I ground driven enough?" "Have I exposed her to the cart enough" "Am I going to faint in this heat and fall off the cart and be trampled to my death?"...but in the end, WE DID IT! I hitched her up and a dear friend stood in as my 'header' (person handling the horse from the front while the driver is in the cart) and led us around the arena.....
When we determined that my precious little cart pulling princess of a pony was ready for some more Independence, we switched up from the leadrope at the head to a lungeline....my 'header' stood at the center of the arena and I drove her in a circle around her....this is what you will see on this clip below.....I think I will do this 1-2 more times before unclipping and driving independently....she seems to be taking it all in stride, but I'd rather be safe than sorry!
Stay tuned for more footage next month when we are driving solo!
Happy Trails,
Leah
PS...Thank you Ms. Beth for your assistance! Also, thank you to my dear hubby for his excellent video taping! xoxo
On a sidenote...this was Bree's introduction to a flag...out of her stall and to the field we went...I thought it fitting to capture the essence of American freedom on a Pony of the Americas (POA)....gotta love a good POA ;)
Got btwn 7-10 rides on her now, depending on whether you consider bareback strolls around the property a 'ride' or not.....she is coming along well moving forward at the walk and trot...she is also leg yielding as well (sidepass, pivot on the haunches, pivot on the forehand)...here's a clip of us under saddle yesterday:
Here is a clip of her getting her harness on...note that her first direction was a bit smoother than the second...so far the most resistance I get from her is when her and I have a disagreement as to who is actually in charge of ending the workout....she likes it to be her, and this just illustrates me working her thru that....such a Diva! Her, not me...OK, maybe me too...enjoy:
Finally, this is CJ getting some practice in for his leadline debut on Ms. B at our next ODPOAC show June 16.17!
Stay tuned for another update at about 30 rides! Should have a good amount of progress to report at that time!
Veterans are easy to recognize
By their special swagger
And their shattered eyes
By the way they stand so tall
When the flag is raised
And how they bow their head
When the Lord is praised.
They may have clabbered voices
And brown and mottled skin
A missing arm or leg or eye
But you can see the youth within.
What horrors did they see
What hell did they endure
To keep my flag and liberty secure?
What would our nation be like
Without veterans such as these?
Let us remember each of them
When we bow our knees
And may we give all reverence due
To the brave men and women
Who defend the Red, White and Blue.
More than 35 years ago my father was a young man and a Navy Seal on tour in Vietnam. It was there that he was exposed to Agent Orange and contracted cancer as a result. The cancer worked through his body swiftly, and before I turned a year old he left my mother and I to make our way in this world without him.
Please take this day to reflect on our veterans sacrafices for you, me, and this country as a whole.
The kids and I headed to MD over the weekend for our first MDPOAC show....Me + 3 Punks + 2 Ponies = Great Memories! This was the first time I've ventured to haul the whole gang on my own to an activity this long and this far away from home....I opted to leave Tuff Pup at home just to be sure I wasn't going to be biting off more than I could chew....
Turns out we had plenty of time to hang out and play between Randi's classes....Sophie and CJ enjoyed the wash rack immensely! Filling buckets with water appears to be a lot of fun!!!
...and of course there was plenty of saddle time for the little ones as well....I had scratched the leadline classes as I wasn't sure I'd have the time to get them ready, but I'll definitely be entering them next month! They fought for saddle time on ole Bo..so much so that I ended up letting this little lady perch during a break while Bo grabbed a drink of water and a bite to eat....
...and CJ snatched up a ride in the shade between Randi's classes.
When they were washing buckets or in the saddle, they engaged in tickle wars....
Sister smashing...
...and momma luvin.
Our accommodations were top notch for the weekend! We owned a spacious 10x10' stall with matted floor and plenty of fresh air flow!
...what little girl WOULDN'T want to sleep next door to her pony (that is Bree in the background and Bo just past her)?
Each morning I bundled the punks up and let them get their Froot Loop on while their sis caught some extra winks.....we like her to get all the rest she can get....it's best for everyone ;)
My favorite part of the weekend was all of the pony luvin' going on....CJ, in particular, was head over heels for ole Bo....all weekend he would see Bo and say "Oh, Bo" and then give him a hug....ridiculously sweet!
...and Randi was able to pull Bree out of her stall on breaks to give her some attention and grazing time too....
I don't mean to downplay the main reason for the trip tho.....the SHOW! The turnout was great and Randi held her own in the Open division with ole Bo....they brought home many ribbons and a ton of useful experience....
...and even better yet, NEW FRIENDS!
I have a feeling these two are going to be spending a lot of time together this year....and for years to come. Missing my childhood riding buddy, Lindy, when I see these two frolic in the warm up pen like this....bring back so many great memories of the horse shows of my youth.
All went very well and I look forward to the rest of the season and the additional friends and memories we will be making together...
