Well after a fashion, with snow on the ground for the nth day running, Knickers away and many creatures to tend to. I'm re-schooling them all to accept a later than usual breakfast time by getting up 15 mins later every day. Am now on 6:10am from 5:20, aiming for the environs of 7am. Today is technically Day 5 of my hols but only now am I starting to slow down a bit.
Yesterday I seemed to be at it ALL DAY. Why does that happen I wonder. Took ages to get both cars started in order to get the ovlov to the garage. Sid had to go in to work to collect his laptop, so once I got back from dropping him off I set about yard duties. OK so having everyone out in snowy fields with frozen troughs there is the ongoing requirement to minister to their needs for water and forage, which takes some time. The boys come and go as they please, and continue to do so now that we've flattened the bad bits outside the back of their stables (in a blizzard), but the girls need to be taken out and so do the goats. And it's not really necessary to put the beds up every day either. Technically I suppose it's not essential to take the boys' rugs off for a bit so they can roll and prance in the snow either. But this doesn't really explain how I can spend the best part of the day arsing around out there.
Dan next door had a mains water leak which necessitated turning off our stop cock. Presumably because our houses used to be one, we have their stop cock in our house, so if we turn it off then nobody has any water. Meanwhile Robin the farrier was due, and texted to say he was running early. Early! What sort of horse professional arrives early for anything? I remonstrated with him but he was unrepentant, muttering something about refits. The boys were done first and I don't know why but I always feel a thrill of undeserved pride when Robin talks about how perfect Q's feet are, as it were anything to do with me. But they are perfect. Maybe I'll get some photos so you can see just how beautiful they are. And clean, in this weather, which is one of the few nice things about the snow|horse interface. Anyway - the girls were done next and behaved impeccably. Much less anxious. Again, pride, as though any of it were really anything to do with me instead of that amazing Luso temperament. OK we introduced them gradually but it's hardly rocket science.
Meanwhile Sid was trying to get home from London. The same old story that was repeated up and down the land - no trains, and very little information as to when one might be expected. Eventually he managed to get home about 4ish, making an 8 hour round trip for an hour and a half in the office and the collection of one laptop. I left him making a fire and finished off the yard, bringing the girls in, the goats, herding the chickens in, doing dinners etc etc practically dead on my feet by this stage and wondering how on earth I was going to summon the energy to hump 50 bales of hay shortly, when Pheel was due round with the Christmas consignment of hay. In the end we agreed that he'd send it round this morning instead, which was nice as I was completely and utterly battered by this stage and really, really needing to sit on my arse for a while.
So today I decided to take a different approach.Up at 6, as mentioned, and why not just get everything done first thing. Girls out, hayed round, mucked out x4 + goats, goats out etc etc, in quite short order. Hay arrived at 8:30, made the boys a cup of tea and the hay barn was stuffed to the brim by the time I went back out there. Timed that well :) So now all that remains today is to do waters and feeds and bring the girls in later, which leaves me several hours stretching ahead during which I can actually relax. But doing what? It seems I've forgotten how to sit about taking it easy and I keep thinking of all the things I could and should be doing. So I thought I know, I'll make a list. It's a useful thing to do but one which I can do from the comfort and warmth of indoors. So here's my list of the things I'd like to do over the holidays:
* clean out the feed room
* clean out the rug room
* clean out the grooming room
* tidy the bedroom DONE
* finish Christmas shopping
* arrange hay delivery DONE
* arrange for muck clamp emptying
* arrange for snow melt so I can ride
* milk Angie :wibble:
If I get all of this done I shall be (a) pleased and (b) knackered.
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