Just a quick "Hello" ....
Check out the new facebook page .... www.facebook.com/therapyhorsechildrensbooks
I've posted new illustrations on the facebook page as well as on the website at www.therapyhorsechildrensbooks.com.
Things are moving smoothly forward. Still making some edits to the storyline as things progress.
Continuing to learn what needs to be done to be able to self-publish. There are some great resources online including the Bowker page where I purchased the ISBN numbers.
More to come.
Kathleen & George.
Sunday, April 27, 2014
Saturday, March 29, 2014
MY FIRST BOOK WILL BE OUT IN 2014!!!
Winter 2013-2014 was a great Blessing! I was introduced to Jan Asleson, an amazing artist who has agreed to illustrate the George the Therapy Horse children's book. For more information on Jan go to her website at www.spiritwingsdesigns.com.
Currently, I am learning and setting up the administrative part of having a book published and printed. I'ts a hard slog for someone who knows nothing of publishing ... but I know a LOT more now than I did when I started. We are anticipating a June 2014 printing date but you can check out the website at www.therapyhorsechildrensbooks.com or facebook at Therapy Horse Children's Books for updates.
As soon as all is finalized, I will be looking for locations to do some book signings ... which sounds like great fun. I will also be marketing to Therapeutic Riding organizations, Equine Assisted Services organizations, counselors/mental health organizations as well as young people who love stories about horses!
The first book, George the Therapy Horse - George's Big Move will be available online only at first for a retail cost of $16.95 each.
Keep in touch.
Blessings.
Kathleen.
Currently, I am learning and setting up the administrative part of having a book published and printed. I'ts a hard slog for someone who knows nothing of publishing ... but I know a LOT more now than I did when I started. We are anticipating a June 2014 printing date but you can check out the website at www.therapyhorsechildrensbooks.com or facebook at Therapy Horse Children's Books for updates.
As soon as all is finalized, I will be looking for locations to do some book signings ... which sounds like great fun. I will also be marketing to Therapeutic Riding organizations, Equine Assisted Services organizations, counselors/mental health organizations as well as young people who love stories about horses!
The first book, George the Therapy Horse - George's Big Move will be available online only at first for a retail cost of $16.95 each.
Keep in touch.
Blessings.
Kathleen.
Thursday, February 9, 2012
SUMMER - WINTER - SPRING
Wow ... what is happening to Kansas weather!!!! We had the hottest summer in 2011 on record! This winter has been so mild (no complaints here) and now I'm ready for Spring.
What a year!!! Things are really moving forward with my collaboration with Horses to Humans (www.horsestohumans.com). I am now fully certified as an Equine Specialist with EAGALA - Equine Assisted Growth and Learning (www.eagala.org). I have a website specifically for my Equine Assisted Services work at www.ktequineassistedservices.com (go for the obvious, I always say :)
George is doing great ... he just turned 16 last month but is fit and happy. I have him boarded at Lone Pine Stables (www.lonepinestables.com) which is only a few minutes from home ... so a great arrangement for me! We've been riding out in a large hay meadow recently and he's much more into that than riding in the indoor arena!
Although I am still working on getting the first George the Therapy Horse book printed, I was thrilled recently that someone found my site and requested a copy! So ... it's something that I've got to make time to do. Any encouragement is greatly welcomed!!!
Wichita is hosting Equifest this weekend. I will be sharing a booth with Horses to Humans so if you are in the area, come by and say "Hello".
Get outside and enjoy this amazing world that God has created for us.
Love and care for each other.
Kathleen.
What a year!!! Things are really moving forward with my collaboration with Horses to Humans (www.horsestohumans.com). I am now fully certified as an Equine Specialist with EAGALA - Equine Assisted Growth and Learning (www.eagala.org). I have a website specifically for my Equine Assisted Services work at www.ktequineassistedservices.com (go for the obvious, I always say :)
George is doing great ... he just turned 16 last month but is fit and happy. I have him boarded at Lone Pine Stables (www.lonepinestables.com) which is only a few minutes from home ... so a great arrangement for me! We've been riding out in a large hay meadow recently and he's much more into that than riding in the indoor arena!
Although I am still working on getting the first George the Therapy Horse book printed, I was thrilled recently that someone found my site and requested a copy! So ... it's something that I've got to make time to do. Any encouragement is greatly welcomed!!!
Wichita is hosting Equifest this weekend. I will be sharing a booth with Horses to Humans so if you are in the area, come by and say "Hello".
Get outside and enjoy this amazing world that God has created for us.
Love and care for each other.
Kathleen.
Saturday, February 19, 2011
SPRING IS COMING!!!
Yes, that's what I said ... "Spring is Coming". It's inevitable I know but it's long awaited by residents not only in Kansas but most of the country!!! Wow ... what a winter!!!
George (the real one) moved to a new stable this winter. He loves it! We now board at Lone Pine Stables in Derby, Kansas. This is also the new home for Flint Hills Therapeutic Riding Center (co-incidence ...?) and classes have begun for the season. They had several cancellations due to weather but this last week as been full tilt! If you live in the area or are visiting Kansas, please come by to visit them. They are the only Therapeutic Riding Center in this area.
Check out their new services in equine therapy ... Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) and Equine Assisted Learning (EAL). For more information see their website at www.flinthillstrc.com. This is a wonderful work and if you enjoy horses there's just no other way to go. The results of equine therapy are astounding!
The "George" books are still on the shelf (sorry .... couldn't help myself!). I have confirmed an illustrator so am now working on finances to cover all the other aspects of getting a book published. Keep us in your prayers that God would guide me to accomplish this feat!
Enjoy those warm days we've been having by getting outside to ride your horse or start working on your gardens.
God Bless.
Kathleen.
George (the real one) moved to a new stable this winter. He loves it! We now board at Lone Pine Stables in Derby, Kansas. This is also the new home for Flint Hills Therapeutic Riding Center (co-incidence ...?) and classes have begun for the season. They had several cancellations due to weather but this last week as been full tilt! If you live in the area or are visiting Kansas, please come by to visit them. They are the only Therapeutic Riding Center in this area.
Check out their new services in equine therapy ... Equine Assisted Psychotherapy (EAP) and Equine Assisted Learning (EAL). For more information see their website at www.flinthillstrc.com. This is a wonderful work and if you enjoy horses there's just no other way to go. The results of equine therapy are astounding!
The "George" books are still on the shelf (sorry .... couldn't help myself!). I have confirmed an illustrator so am now working on finances to cover all the other aspects of getting a book published. Keep us in your prayers that God would guide me to accomplish this feat!
Enjoy those warm days we've been having by getting outside to ride your horse or start working on your gardens.
God Bless.
Kathleen.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
WHAT'S HOT IN KANSAS?
What's HOT in Kansas??? Wow, Wichita Kansas is very HOT this summer.
When we have day after day of temperatures above 100 degrees F we focus on keeping ourselves from overheating. But let's not forget our equine friends even though they do acclimate to high and low temperatures better than we do.
George has done pretty well this summer as I haven't pushed him to work unless the temperatures are comfortable ... for me, that is!!! We ride in the earlier part of the day before the temps start soaring. Even so, a 60 minute ride with only a couple of spurts of cantering and trotting, he breaks a pretty good sweat. I reward his willingness to work for me with a cool bath when we get back to the barn and some hand grazing ... I pick out some nice spots around the yard that have some fresh grass. It's a nice relaxing time for both of us.
With temperatures like we've had in Kansas this year (I can't remember the last time it rained) ... don't forget the basics: Plenty of available, clean water and some shade.
The Therapeutic Riding Center where I volunteer has not been having classes past noon and as I work full-time I've been unable to spend any time out there. In September we'll be having classes again in the evenings so I will be able to re-connect and get into my Equine Therapy groove again.
This September I'll also be attending the EAGALA Part II Certification class at Selby Stables just outside Haysville, Kansas. This will complete the requirements to participate in Equine Therapy Services as the Equine Specialist part of the therapy team.
Seems like it's been a very busy summer and the "George The Therapy Horse" books have yet to go to print. It's something I hope to focus on this fall and winter.
Best Wishes to you all .... and try to stay cool!
When we have day after day of temperatures above 100 degrees F we focus on keeping ourselves from overheating. But let's not forget our equine friends even though they do acclimate to high and low temperatures better than we do.
George has done pretty well this summer as I haven't pushed him to work unless the temperatures are comfortable ... for me, that is!!! We ride in the earlier part of the day before the temps start soaring. Even so, a 60 minute ride with only a couple of spurts of cantering and trotting, he breaks a pretty good sweat. I reward his willingness to work for me with a cool bath when we get back to the barn and some hand grazing ... I pick out some nice spots around the yard that have some fresh grass. It's a nice relaxing time for both of us.
With temperatures like we've had in Kansas this year (I can't remember the last time it rained) ... don't forget the basics: Plenty of available, clean water and some shade.
The Therapeutic Riding Center where I volunteer has not been having classes past noon and as I work full-time I've been unable to spend any time out there. In September we'll be having classes again in the evenings so I will be able to re-connect and get into my Equine Therapy groove again.
This September I'll also be attending the EAGALA Part II Certification class at Selby Stables just outside Haysville, Kansas. This will complete the requirements to participate in Equine Therapy Services as the Equine Specialist part of the therapy team.
Seems like it's been a very busy summer and the "George The Therapy Horse" books have yet to go to print. It's something I hope to focus on this fall and winter.
Best Wishes to you all .... and try to stay cool!
Saturday, April 17, 2010
WHAT IS YOUR LIFE JOURNEY?
A good friend told me today about an equine assisted organization's website at http://www.unbridledchange.org/. In it I read some of the founder's "Life Journey" and it got me to thinking ... we ALL have a life journey, don't we? And wouldn't it be great if we could all share the twists and turns and outcomes with others in a way that would help and encourage them?
I'm just focusing on my life journey today as it relates to my life with horses. One of my earliest memories is riding the donkeys at the sea-side in England and how much I loved it! Nobody in my whole family were 'horse people'. I remember sitting on the back of the sofa pretending I was riding a horse. And I remember wanting to hang out with the local girls who had horses. Then there was the time in my young teenage life when I would ride my bike to the next village to clean stalls at a stable so that I could ride a horse in exchange. This must have been a complete mystery to my family that I would go to such extremes to be around a horse. But it was never mentioned ... I think they thought it was a 'whim' and would eventually pass. After all .... don't ALL little girls love horses?
Well, it never passed. Except for a brief time when I thought dating should take the place of horses!!! (age 16-21) I have loved and been involved with horses for all my life. It's been such a part of my life that it hasn't seemed special or important ... it's only now at the age of 61 that I am starting to realize what a WONDERFUL element this is in my life. I'm completely amazed ... Wow ... where did it come from?
I spent several years raising my two children on a small horse farm where we lived and breathed horses from breeding to training to showing. We only showed our own horses, never did it for a business, but it was a total committment and I loved it. When I thought I had to give it up due to a divorce I went back to college and got a degree and spent the next 20 plus years working in an office environment ... but the desire to be outside with my horses never left me.
It was late in the Fall of 2008 that circumstances led me to a local Therapeutic Riding Center where I began volunteering ... and I found the love of my life! Helping children with disabilities through the use of horses. This led to being a part of a pilot program in our area with an organization for mentally ill adults utilizing Equine Assisted Therapy. Wow ... my eyes (and my heart) were opened up in a way I had never experienced.
Now I see my 'journey'. I see how things came together through the years to bring me here. And I see that my journey is an ongoing, living thing that will continue until I breath my last breath. And I hope that my journey with equine assisted services will lead me to places where I can be a part of the amazing world of helping people ... with the assistance of a horse!
God Bless.
Kathleen.
I'm just focusing on my life journey today as it relates to my life with horses. One of my earliest memories is riding the donkeys at the sea-side in England and how much I loved it! Nobody in my whole family were 'horse people'. I remember sitting on the back of the sofa pretending I was riding a horse. And I remember wanting to hang out with the local girls who had horses. Then there was the time in my young teenage life when I would ride my bike to the next village to clean stalls at a stable so that I could ride a horse in exchange. This must have been a complete mystery to my family that I would go to such extremes to be around a horse. But it was never mentioned ... I think they thought it was a 'whim' and would eventually pass. After all .... don't ALL little girls love horses?
Well, it never passed. Except for a brief time when I thought dating should take the place of horses!!! (age 16-21) I have loved and been involved with horses for all my life. It's been such a part of my life that it hasn't seemed special or important ... it's only now at the age of 61 that I am starting to realize what a WONDERFUL element this is in my life. I'm completely amazed ... Wow ... where did it come from?
I spent several years raising my two children on a small horse farm where we lived and breathed horses from breeding to training to showing. We only showed our own horses, never did it for a business, but it was a total committment and I loved it. When I thought I had to give it up due to a divorce I went back to college and got a degree and spent the next 20 plus years working in an office environment ... but the desire to be outside with my horses never left me.
It was late in the Fall of 2008 that circumstances led me to a local Therapeutic Riding Center where I began volunteering ... and I found the love of my life! Helping children with disabilities through the use of horses. This led to being a part of a pilot program in our area with an organization for mentally ill adults utilizing Equine Assisted Therapy. Wow ... my eyes (and my heart) were opened up in a way I had never experienced.
Now I see my 'journey'. I see how things came together through the years to bring me here. And I see that my journey is an ongoing, living thing that will continue until I breath my last breath. And I hope that my journey with equine assisted services will lead me to places where I can be a part of the amazing world of helping people ... with the assistance of a horse!
God Bless.
Kathleen.
Saturday, March 20, 2010
HOW A HORSE BECOMES A THERAPY HORSE
Not every horse can become a therapy horse. Too many times a horse owner contacts a therapy center and offers their 'old' horse to the program. And too many times, the horse has to be turned away because they did not pass the evaluation.
Therapy horses, whether they are for therapeutic riding or working with clients on the ground, need to fit specific requirements. Yes, the older horse does seem to typify the horses used for equine therapy but it's not their age that qualifies them ... it's that the horse has probably come to the end of their career.
Maybe the owner no longer wants to work as hard with their horse or the horse just doesn't have the same kind of stamina but they want their precious friend to still be useful but in a new career that isn't as demanding.
Sometimes, the equine therapy candidate IS a younger horse, but they meet the criteria of the equine therapy center, so are accepted into the program.
Any candidate, whatever age, must posses many skills. These will include but are not limited to .... A good personality; Willingness to learn; A great temperament; Used to being handled; and Does not get agitated easily.
If you know of a well behaved horse who is free of bad habits and is gentle and kind ... you may be looking at a future therapy horse!
Therapy horses, whether they are for therapeutic riding or working with clients on the ground, need to fit specific requirements. Yes, the older horse does seem to typify the horses used for equine therapy but it's not their age that qualifies them ... it's that the horse has probably come to the end of their career.
Maybe the owner no longer wants to work as hard with their horse or the horse just doesn't have the same kind of stamina but they want their precious friend to still be useful but in a new career that isn't as demanding.
Sometimes, the equine therapy candidate IS a younger horse, but they meet the criteria of the equine therapy center, so are accepted into the program.
Any candidate, whatever age, must posses many skills. These will include but are not limited to .... A good personality; Willingness to learn; A great temperament; Used to being handled; and Does not get agitated easily.
If you know of a well behaved horse who is free of bad habits and is gentle and kind ... you may be looking at a future therapy horse!
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