Lisa El-Ramey

A major drop in temperature.  It rained last night and the cold was very penetrating most of the day.

At 7:30 I went out to the barn where I was assisted by Mady (who attended to Ronin and his stall)

and her father Joe who drove her to our farm.

It was nice to have company.

Sara (my farrier) arrived at 11 to trim Rebel and Seamus....

Ronin watched.

Both were very well behaved and happy to get back out to the intermittent sunshine.

Around 2, our house guest arrived.  Her name is Lisa El-Ramey and she is in town for the weekend to present a lecture tonight and lessons on Saturday and Sunday.  She is at the lecture right now and since she is from Florida (and it's in the 40s) I'll bet she is pretty cold at the Renaissance Equestrian Center Indoor Arena.  We had a great time this afternoon talking about everything from her horses to ukuleles and cooking.  So interesting! And she is so good with visuals!

Lisa has pursued nearly every equestrian discipline in the United States having

undertaking saddleseat, hunter/jumpers, western, driving, polo, dressage, and even

worked cattle, team penned, and roped. Ms. El-Ramey has had the opportunity to

train with many talented and knowledgeable instructors over the decades including;

Alex Konyot, Bettina Drummond, Juan Matute, Hubert Rohrer, and Kathy Connelly.

As an instructor, Lisa has a unique ability to clarify concepts and techniques to help

riders incorporate these into their own riding. Always willing to work with horses and

riders of all types, breeds, disciplines and levels, she is able to impart awareness and

understanding to her students. While mainly focused on dressage, Lisa has helped

countless hunter/jumpers, as well as time and game, western, saddleseat, and driving

competitors improve their horses, riding and driving.

Ms. El-Ramey currently holds the United States Equestrian Federation "S" Senior

Dressage judge license. She received her Bachelor of Science from the University of

Florida in Zoology in 1989. Lisa's unique experience, education, and background

combine to create an holistic approach to training, riding and interacting with horses.

I made a peach pie for dessert when she gets back.  (She just walked in the door)

Tucked the ponies in and now am headed to the kitchen for dessert.

Night all.

PS

Need to give props to Daniela, our granddaughter, who plays Division 1 Soccer for Illinois State

and was recognized as MVP/player of the game.

Normal, Ill. - Goalkeeper Daniela Grgas posted Illinois State's first shutout of the season as the Redbirds played to a scoreless draw with Valpo Thursday night at Adelaide Street Field. The result secured the first point for the Redbirds in MVC play and snapped a five-game losing streak.

Grgas stood tall all night as she posted the second shutout of her collegiate career and her first clean sheet since April of 2021. (3-0, 4.3 vs Southern Illinois). She made a career-high six saves including four in the first half.

Grgas and freshman Jade Rehberger teamed up for a game-saving stop in the 88th minute as Molly O'Rear earned a breakaway chance for Valparaiso. Rehberger chased down O'Rear to deflect her initial shot and Grgas stopped the rebound attempt to keep Valpo off the board.

Grgas set the tone early with a highlight-reel save in the 11th minute. The Beacons play developed at the near sideline, setting up a cross to the top of the box. She dove towards the far post to keep away Kiley Dugan's shot from the penalty arc and the match remained scoreless.

Scoring chances were limited as the Redbirds battled hard with the Beacons. Illinois State generated pair of shots, both of which came in the second half.

Haley Glover and Katelynn Buescher accounted for the shots from the Redbirds, with Buescher's chance going on frame in the 53rd minute. The Redbirds played a corner kick in for Buescher, who shot it to the bottom left corner.

Ten minutes later Glover's shot from inside the 18 went high in Illinois State's best scoring opportunity of the night.