Another treasure on the way!

Exciting news today! Our lovely chestnut mare, Tara, has succeeded in her mission to attract a tall, handsome stallion, and now has a foal in her tummy. I am super excited, as I'm sure you can imagine. My dear foal friends are now yearlings, and are looking like little horses, rather than ponies, so it is fantastic to have a new wee one to look forward to. 

Today we were lucky enough to have Johnny come to see us working in the arena, so I have photos. Isn't Zanny looking beautiful? Her coat is dappled, and she is maintaining her weight easily currently. I should have worn a different cardigan as I clash badly with my lovely new saddle blanket. Zanny matches it beautifully, of course. 

 She was checking out the new bus-stop style covered teaching seat with Johnny sitting inside. Who is that in there? Possibly a monster. No, just John.

 She looks quite smart here, but we were having rather a lot of head flicking. I'm seriously considering exploring trying a bitless bridle with her. She has a very sensitive mouth, and I can tell before I have put her bridle on that she doesn't like having the bit put in her mouth. She gets all fidgety and chomps her teeth unhappily. I have been told she is too old to bother changing things now, but I really think it could make a difference. We already use the softest bit possible.

 I was practising movements required for an upcoming dressage event. Not sure if I will enter, but we can certainly do the required halt, walk and trot movements for the introductory level test.

We almost had a crash on the way back to the stable. Poor Zanny did the worst ever stumble I have experienced and almost went down. Thank goodness she managed to stay up, as I really thought she was going to land on her knees. She stumbled on the exposed roots on the path, probably because she was thinking about getting back to the stable yard as quickly as she could. I will have to direct her path more firmly- I usually let her pick her way back.

Look closely- can you spot something sitting in the grass in the stable yard?

 There were two tiny bunnies munching on the grass. One ran away, but the other seemed oblivious to the arrival of two humans and a large horse.

 I hope the wee bunny is quicker to disappear when the dogs are around!

 Finally, a lovely view of the sky over the family farm. Johnny spent quite a bit of time experimenting until he photographed lots and lots of stars. The night sky in the country is so beautiful without the competing lights from towns and cities.