I have been putting the Christmas decorations up at home, including the wreaths that Diva helped me forage for supplies. I had promised Diva a more interesting and, more importantly, an edible wreath for her stable door.
This time I went foraging alone as I was not sure the supermarket would be impressed if I tried to take Diva inside! I had decided to make the wreath with parsnips, carrots and apples, and I was pleased to find some carrots still with the tops on. So that part went well.
The next challenge was how to attach the vegetables to form the shape of a wreath. I decided to use garden wire rather than a frame as I thought it would be easier for Diva to snack on the wreath if the vegetables were only attached by one wire.
I planned the order before I started to put them on the wire. Carrot, parsnip, carrot with tops, apple and repeat! I pushed a hole through them with a metal skewer and in no time at all they were all attached.
I hit a slight problem when I joined the ends of the wire together as the wire was too flexible to hold in a circle. So, did I opt for a rather oval wreath? After a little think I hung the wreath on the door and then tied another couple of bits of trusty baler twine to open the oval up into a bit more of a circular shape.
By this time Diva was trying her best to put her head over the stable door to see what was going on. I brought her out of the stable to have a little munch since it is nearly Christmas after all.
I did have a chuckle when she first tried a parsnip, then went for a bite of apple before selecting a carrot for dessert.
I will let her have a munch a day until it is gone, being careful to ensure her teeth are well away from the wire.
I wish everyone a very happy Christmas and best wishes for the new year!
Once again I threw Arlo in at the deep end, affiliating him purely for the Arena UK second round show, and once again he pulled it out the bag. How lucky am I to have such a wonderful little horse? We haven’t really competed this year. I don’t really compete over the winter, and also my horsebox was away for repairs up until the beginning of June, so I had no transport even if I’d wanted to.
With the dry ground we don’t seem to be having much luck with shoes, as little madam managed to pull both her front shoes off within 12 hours the other day! We entered the arena with two shoes on for a schooling session and left it with one missing (took about an hour to find it). Then that afternoon, as I went to put some hoof ointment on, I looked down and had to double take, thinking I was looking at the wrong hoof. But, no, the other shoe was missing too.
After having a long wait and some lunch at the onsite café, it was time to get ready for the Joan Wolfe Overall Supreme Shetland Pony Championship. I got changed out of my usual showing outfit into black trousers and a maroon top with white spots, as you are expected to be a bit more “bling” in the evening.
We were all set to go for our next outing, and were super excited. That was until I heard the dreaded clunk of a loose shoe! I checked it over, praying it wasn’t too loose, but, nope, it was going to need a refit.