Its no secret, you’ve seen more of the ponies this year than any other year. Normally they reside at my parents property, where there is space and grass for them. But for the last 6 months of last year, mum was feeding the horses molasses and hay and other goodies to keep them going. Normally the horses come in to my place, with its limited space, during the wet season and time of abundant feed in a small space, over the long school holidays. Of course the limited wet and ongoing dry conditions put paid to normal plans. So in January, with some rain having fallen and the horses condition somewhat improved we brought them in. And in they have stayed. This this means the kids have been riding them far more often, rounding up the poddies and generally just goofing around with them.
We taped out a new space for them recently, in the tick free buffer zone that exists around our village. Political machinations by a a couple of residents (some people are never happy?) meant that our usual little paddock was no longer available but where there is a will there is a way, and while there is dry grass to be eaten in front of full on hand feeding we will make use of that. The routine of feeding and watering the animals has become just that, and each day we poke on down with their daily ration and fill up their water trough.
In between, the ponies sometimes get ridden. Somewhat of a shock to their system, and taking an extra hour out of mum’s afternoon for the pleasure!
Joined by another horse loving little girl, and with the spare kid visiting after a long hiatus, the chatter of the girls was like a little mob of budgies on horseback.
Angus chose, wisely I suspect, to take up the offer of a truck ride delivering weaners with Dad and the local truck driver. Fortuitously for Angus, they pulled up in front of the house just as we were heading off.
I drove ahead in my buggy to supervise the ride (not quite confident in their abilities to go alone, especially with two kids not of my own tagging along!) and watched and listen to them come towards me. Let It Go was a popular song choice as they rode along…..
And then, all too soon, the sun was getting low in the sky and the chill of evening was encroaching on the warm winter afternoon, so trot back to the paddock they did, unsaddle and feed their valiant steeds.
Hopefully, given their advanced age, steeds are also partially deaf, to put up with the renditions of Let It Go…over and over and over…
(another afternoon in paradise, who’d want to live anywhere else?!)
If I could afford the plane ticket and a weeks worth of groceries I'd be sending my kids up to you and Fiona's every holidays.
ReplyDeleteI read an article on "Imagination" yesterday and how important it is for kids to go outside and entertain themselves…no games, no technology, no nothing…not even ideas from the parents….just go and use your imagination.
Mine would have a filed day in your digs xxx
It really does sound like a good way to pass time even if there were other things you would have liked to do. Sounds like the kids enjoyed it. I guess their confidence and skills will grow in leaps and bounds with the horses close at hand (okay so I suspect there is already an abundance of confidence which would have been part of your worry with a solo ride).
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