Coldest Morning of The Year

Or it certainly felt like it. After running around for quite some time the afternoon before, packing up saddles and bridles and directing child traffic from odd places where they were avoiding work, bright and early and before a very COLD daylight, we headed off. Destination, “helping” the neighbour walk home some cows for weaning time.

Fortunately, horses had been transported earlier but needed saddling and persuading that the cold weather was no excuse for bad behaviour.

Finally we moved ‘em out… after the obligatory rollcall photo

I think there was enough man and kid  power there!

The spare kid was still in residence, yet to be handed back to her parents, so she was having a lovely time with our lot. Was nice to have her, it had been a long time since she’d visited. So she got to ride Chester, meaning Angus was without a mount. This did not bother him at all, his riding skills minimal and his desire to really improve them not great either. The apple did not fall far from the paternal tree with this child and his love of mechanical horsepower over the four legged version.

As you can clearly tell, I was at the back end of the mob. Angus and I followed along in the buggy, he found ways to keep himself entertained (mostly involving feed the starving beast – he has NOT stopped eating since his tonsils were removed)

(new favoured driving spot, not overly OHS compliant but highly entertaining for small boys and handy for jumping off to chase slooooow cows out of bushes and logs).

We need to work on this kids foot and weight placement when riding…suspect the legs are just there for ornament at the moment and all of the weight is on her bum.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The weather was quite lovely after the freezing start, and the couple of hours it took to get to the laneway were not a hardship to withstand. Really, there could be worser ways to spend a morning.

Snacks, a little spell and some buckjumping antics were enjoyed at the laneway. Disappointingly the buck jump rider did not perform close enough to the camera to capture the action, although suspect the pony in question did not really have his heart in it.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Angus scored a ride with his new mate, when one of the other kids was seconded to wrassle with a baby calf in the back of my buggy (calf having decided he’d had enough of this walking caper). The end of the laneway was but a short walk to the yards. Yarding was done without incident.

However once yarded bulls had to be cut out from the main mob as they were already shaping up to cause strife and needed to be locked up in small yards away from each other. (testosterone ridden males typically chest beating and scrapping for a fight!) I am not sure any of the smaller kids were in any way shape of form useful in this process but they certainly thought it was fun. My kids have never cut out on horses before, nor probably even seen the process although this was something that I grew up doing.

And that ended that! a leisurely lunch and then the repacking of all saddles,jumpers, buggies and children…and home again with the hope to get there before dark. We made it by the skin of our teeth.

And geez, didnt they sleep well that night!