A New Addition

So this is it then... thankyou all so much for your comments on my last post. I have decided to use my other blog, which up until now I've just played about with, to showcase my cards and other creations. If you want to have a look, and hopefully follow, please go to Eden's Tree
I have decided to have a go at some challenge blogs for cardmaking, which would work much better over there, plus as I've said, I make a card nearly every day and there just isn't room on here, although I'm sure the odd card will make an appearance from time to time.
Because the fact is, too, that things are pretty busy on the horsey front, and that's what this blog was originally created for, so the farming and horsey adventures will stay here.
I've realised I need to keep this blog to record what goes on, so that I can compare things from year to year. For instance, the horses are already out at night, which is a couple of weeks earlier than they went out last year. This is bliss for me as I no longer have to muck out (even more wonderful at the moment as Missis is in America, so I'd have been doing all four horses this week).
It's a bit of a problem for Barnaby though, as it's gone cold again. As you may remember, I clipped all of his coat off in the winter. If you're not horsey, I'd better explain this bit of barmeyness. Horses grow a thick coat in the winter to keep themselves warm. Fine. But then we come along and ride them, which makes them sweat like mad and take hours to dry afterwards, which can make them have a chill or a cold. So, like clever souls, we clip all the hair off. It's great for Barnaby because it means he dries in 15-20 minutes. But then they don't have their hair to keep them warm, so we go out and buy massively expensive rugs to warm them up again! Clever, isn't it? Of course, if you're a naturally warm horse like Barnaby, if you get too hot, you rip a big hole in your rug to provide your own ventilation. Or you stand by the fence and rub the neck of the rug on a fencepost until you've shredded it. Yes, we've learned the hard way not to over-rug.
I've clipped him because it takes ages for his winter coat to come out and he's still normally very hairy by the end of April, when everyone else is sporting their sleek, glossy summer coat. But even Barnaby had a little bit of winter coat growing. In the very warm weather last week, he decided to abandon it, and lots of little hairs came off him, but it's left him with very little hair. This has left him prone to a) sunburn and b) cold. So although he's out at night, it's with quite a heavy rug on. The poor boy doesn't know whether he's coming or going.

It was quite handy on Sunday though, as we did the first Amber Valley Riding Club pleasure ride. It's called The Bolsover Ride and this is the third time I've done it and the second time on Barnaby. I don't know why they call it that as I don't think it's particularly near Bolsover (fab castle there) but I'd have to check on the map.
This ride is listed as 14 miles, but we've always felt it was longer. When you do a lot of endurance rides, you get a feel for distance, and although there is a long uphill slog of about 2 miles at the end, it still feels like a long way. And so, imagine my delight at hearing a conversation at the burger van at the end, where two women were discussing the distance, the first woman saying that she felt it was a long way. The second woman said that it was actually seventeen miles, but the organisers felt that if they put that on the schedule, no one would do it, as it's so early in the season! So, thanks for that then. That means my beautiful boy did seventeen miles in incredible heat, well done my darling.
I have to say, I spent the first few miles feeling very lop-sided. At first I thought it was my stirrups, but it turned out the saddle was slipping because the girth was loose. In the end we stopped near a bench and Mr O pulled the girth up another hole. How can this be on my Lardy Lad? (I also look distinctly lop-sided in the photos, so needless to say, we won't be buying those!)
Because of this, I put the weigh-tape on him yesterday and to my astonishment, it says 504kg. That means he's lost a total of 92kg since the beginning of March. I can't believe it. If, like me, you don't 'do' kilos, it's the same as 14.48 stone, which is roughly what Mr O weighs! He must feel like hubby just got off him! I am so happy about this I could cry. I don't want my beloved boy to drop underneath me because of a heart attack or something, so I am thrilled at this progress. It's probably the slimmest he's ever been. It makes me want to give him a treat, just to say, "Well done!" No wonder he went like the clappers yesterday, if he's half the man he used to be!

So don't forget to pop over to my other blog folks, and leave a comment to let me know you've been. I am going to be busy, running two of them, aren't I?
Take care everyone,
Mrs O.