NorthWoods Farm

08/25/2025

Congratulations to all the Trail Trotters 4H Horse & Pony Club ladies who competed at Districts!! Super proud of the NorthWoods Farm competitors who are moving on to the State show in October!

08/25/2025

🐴DRESSAGE SOLUTIONS🐴 Improve Rein Connection

To improve your rein connection ...

Imagine your point of contact with the bit is in your elbows, triceps and back, and that your arms, wrists and hands are just extensions of the reins. This allows the connection to be held in your body rather than your hands and allows the hands and arms to be soft.
~ Jessica Miller

🎨 Sandy Rabinowitz

08/15/2025

Congratulations to all the exhibitors from NorthWoods Farm!

08/14/2025

And for those who were unable to attend, enjoy brief moments of the sounds of nature and the beautiful sound of the singing bowls!

08/12/2025

What an absolutely perfect night! Huge thanks to Jessica Pennella of Endless TriYoga and Sabrina Ann Trapani of Ithaca Farm Yoga for our Twilight Yoga and Sound Bath. The weather was lovely! Thank you to everyone who came out to enjoy the evening and support the dream!

08/03/2025

Our next sound bath and yoga event is Monday, August 11 at 730!

08/03/2025

07/27/2025

“If you’re not first, you’re last” is a phrase I’ve heard a lot in my riding career. It was used in dead seriousness, as a phrase of endearment, or as a joke (as it often was on my college equestrian team). There is a lot to be said about placings at horse shows and how we as competitors react towards how we do. When used in complete seriousness, the above phrase is very far from hitting the mark.

What is important for each and every competitor to understand is that “everyone wins well, but not everyone loses well,” as my trainer likes to say. I’ve thought about this phrase a lot, and put some thought into how I lose. A year ago if you asked me if I was a good loser, I would have answered, “Absolutely not.”

I became a perfectionist with my riding during my years competing in IHSA. My first two years at school I was in a lower level due to my lack of a show record, and didn’t get a lot of practice losing which caused extra disappointment from my end when I didn’t do well. My coach would allow everyone on my team “30 minutes and a cookie,” before we had to get over our rough ride and get back to being a team player. A few times I very clearly remember taking all 30 of those minutes to get over my results.

It wasn’t until I got into a higher level of IHSA and dipped my toes in some rated competitions as a working student that I realized not only was I definitely not always going to be the winner, but being the “loser” wasn’t always such a bad thing. Each experience I have had in the show ring has been an opportunity to grow as a rider and a competitor.

Now, my style is much more “You can’t win them all.” I’ve learned that there’s much more to each class than the color ribbon you get at the end. This was very hard for the perfectionist in me to learn, considering the fact that I still beat myself up just a little bit for the things I did wrong on my way back to the barn.

🔗 Read the full article by Amanda Terbrusch at https://www.theplaidhorse.com/2021/01/06/learning-to-be-a-good-loser/
📸 © The Plaid Horse / Lauren Mauldin

07/17/2025

It was a pretty great evening at NorthWoods Farm on Monday ~ yoga, meditation, and quality time with Tiko the Mustang. After relaxing our bodies and quieting our minds, we learned how horses mirror our energy and teach us to move with calm intention. We also learned about Tiko's journey from California to Pennsylvania, lots of horse facts, and how to properly lead a horse.

Many thanks to Kristin for opening her facility for this special event and taking time to share her knowledge.