Baby Ike

Before……                                                                                      After!

            I’ve been called crazy more than once. These past few weeks I’ve heard it more times than usual too. I guess it does take a certain level of insanity to spend your entire spring break sitting in a cold barn waiting for your mare to give birth to her first foal. I’m still questioning why I traded in sunshine, the beach, my bikini, and a trip to Aruba for snow, dirt, my Carhartt, and the stables. And who would sacrifice a queen sized bed for a week after living in a college dorm to sleep on hay bales?

Okay, I did that. But it was all worth it in the end.

Unfortunately my stubborn mare and her equally stubborn colt decided they didn’t want me present for the birth so he was born a week late while I was already back at school. I went home this past weekend to finally meet this much-anticipated colt that I’ve waited over 11 months for. And I decided that after seeing the little bundle of joy of a foal that my mare gave birth to, I would make the same decisions again given the opportunity.

There is nothing more spectacular than the gift of creation and I was blessed to be apart of such a wonderful miracle. To see my mare big as a house and overdue in her pregnancy when I left and with a little one by her side when I got back warmed my heart.

The millions of pictures and videos I’ve posted of him on all my social networking sites just don’t do him justice. At a week and a half he’s already a charming, flirty little thing who thinks he’s already the king of the barn.

            The waiting for this little bugger has also changed the attitude at the barn. Horseback riding always comes with drama no matter at what level you compete. We were all able to put our petty bullshit aside for this birth though and unite in the miracle we were apart of. Everyone wants to be part of something as spectacular as birth and fortunately we’ve all been there for each other during this special time at the barn.

            Each new life brought into the world is a miracle in and of itself whether or not we actually believe it is. This foal has already stolen my heart and being away from him is difficult.  It’s also incredible to see that such a little thing can bring such big smiles to people’s faces. He knows he’s adorable and uses it to his advantage which will probably end up backfiring on us at some point. Nonetheless, I can’t wait to spend all summer with my little man.