Gettting It?

So after my last post about the search for Contact, I decided I needed to practice. I took a spare set of reins home with me and made my husband hold the bit ends while I practiced holding the contact-he's so tolerant!
I had read in a book that some people find it easier to hold the reins with more tension between their forefinger and thumb, and use their other fingers to take up more rein if needed, but to concentrate on most of the contact being on the forefinger and thumb. So I experimented with that, and found that for me, it does indeed help me keep my contact much more consistent. Also, I noticed that if I concentrate on turning my wrists slightly out, it helps me remember to NOT cross my reins, for my habit is to have my hands too close together and want to cross them over JJ's withers. But if I keep my wrists turned out a little, my thumbs stay on top, my hands stay the proper width apart, and I am less inclined to move my hands in too much. It also helps me remember to keep my elbows in close to my body, for if my wrists are slightly out then my elbows naturally fall in.
Now I'm not saying to ride around with your wrists cocked out, but for me it really helped me get the right feel in my mind so that I can! For the first time I was able to get him to worke! Hey, any progress is progress.