When I was a kid, I learned to ride on horses. The normal sized version. A friend of ours had an amazing pony that her daughter junior rodeoed on, and her name was Dolly. She was the pony that made me believe in the awesomeness of ponies. Fast forward a solid twenty years, and my mom (because she’s a wonderful grandmother) purchased a pony for my kids. She and my dad drove 8 hours over a few mountain passes to Driggs, Idaho to procure the pony of any child’s dreams. And so we came to have Sparkle in 2016. She was a 2 year old who was broke to ride and drive by a very salty eight year old cowgirl from Idaho, to whom we are forever grateful. That night I wondered if my aspiring cowgirl would try to sleep in the barn.
In the years to come, we would have lots of good times with her and a few challenges (really only one in the form of a slightly broken arm). She was adorable, reliable, forgiving, and taught my kids and I so much.
And now, while we’re still a little sad, we get to pass her on to a couple of kiddos and a family we know and love. You can’t keep a half mini/half shetland forever (because those kid legs GROW), but you can make sure she gets used and loved forever. She has made her next move to my cousins’ place in Lingle, where they’re having a ball with our favorite very spicy Sparkle Pony. She sure does sparkle things up wherever she goes. Love you Eva and RJ! She’s a lot faster than she looks, hang on tight!
