Getting married is very exciting, yet very stressful. I have learned a lot about myself during this process as well as a lot about my fiancé and my family. While it can be a stressful time, there are many great things about it too, one of which can be the generous gifts from your family and friends.

On September 22, 2012 Pete (my fiancé) and I had gone out to lunch with his family for his younger brother’s birthday. After we go out for someone’s birthday we typically go back to Pete’s parents’ house for cake and ice cream, and this day was no different. As we were getting out of the car to head up to the house his mom said to us, “We would really love to give you guys your wedding present early.” We were kind of caught off guard as we had just gotten engaged a few weeks earlier, and weren’t going to be getting married until September of 2013. Although we were surprised, we were very excited to find out what it was. They proceeded to walk across the lawn over to their garage. As we began to follow them, out of the corner of my eye, through the trees I saw a…. horse trailer!!!

I was in such shock I started crying. I could not believe they had bought us such a wonderful and generous gift. They know how horses are such a big part of my life and how much something like this would mean to us. Although Pete does not ride as much as I do and horses are not his passion, he does own his own horse and we enjoy trail riding together. His parents knew we would get a lot of use and enjoy having it.

Pete began to show interest in riding shortly after we started dating. As many horse crazy girls know, not many boyfriends like horses never mind would they ever go riding with you. I was lucky enough to find someone who would not only put up with my passion for horses but was willing to even try it! He even liked it enough to buy his own horse, and now we have our very own trailer. I am a lucky girl 🙂

About Jessica Ross

Jess as a rider: I have been riding for the past 21 years. I have done a little bit of everything from Dressage to Saddleseat, to barrel racing to trail riding. My foundation and passion are in Dressage. I believe horses are in my blood. I rode all through high school and into college. At the end of my Senior year I had the opportunity to ride in Germany which was an amazing experience. I currently own 3 horses: an American Saddlebred named Cody, a Polish Arabian named Khann Do and a Quarter Horse named Sienna. I am lucky enough to have all my horses in my backyard! Jess as SmartPaker: At SmartPak I am part of the Customer Care Team. I enjoy chatting with customers to help them find the best nutritional program and the best products for their horses, as well as the best tack, equipment and apparel for themselves. All About Cody: Cody is a 9 year old American Saddlebred. I bought him as a 3 year old. He was broke for Saddleseat which I had never ridden. I learned to ride Saddleseat just so I could buy him! After a few months, I decided to go back to my roots and start training him for dressage. Now we enjoy riding dressage, doing some jumping and going on trail rides whenever we can! Cody is the coolest horse I have ever owned and I am lucky to have him :-)