Just two old horsewomen

05/06/2024

29/05/2024

I think I’m right in saying that the first time we saw Monty Roberts was over 30 years ago. We sat at a little riding centre in Henfield with probably no more than an audience of 50 people and we cried.
It was life changing. We had seen bits and pieces of horse training and bought up with the pony club, “ kick them on….take him in the corner and give him a good smack …. Etc “ 😢

Monty Roberts and Kelly Marks have changed the way we understand horses and shortly after the demo we followed their work with a discussion group and had some Recommended Associates out to help us with little worries…loading, behaviour etc.

The discussion group grew to people from all over the world exchanging ideas and putting Monty’s work to their own horses and seeing such wonderful results.

Kelly even sponsored a memorial ride which we arranged after losing Julie’s horse Flame. This ride raised a huge sum of money for research into laminitis.

I thought at the time, that they had created a wonderful community but it’s so much more. It’s a family. The demos became more widespread and we were able to volunteer behind the scenes. Intelligent horsemanship raised thousands and thousands of pounds through the DG which also included some amazing garden parties at Kelly’s for local rescue charities.

Horse trainers come in all shapes and sizes but IH recommended associates are there for your horse and above any small remuneration that they might recieve, it’s about helping you and your horse above all else.

Even now, 30 plus years on, the majority of our friends list are those who we’ve met through IH. These friends and RA’s would still to this day, be there at the end of a phone or even probably visit if the need arose ( equine related and personal )That’s why they are a family. We’ve lost a few along the way so this is dedicated to all of them particularly Eileen Cotton and Ali Sixsmith who would do everything to offer support and love.

“ For the love of the horse “ 💞

24/05/2024

Happy Bank holiday weekend to you all 👍

20/05/2024

Accidents….

We were talking today about no matter how careful you think you are, accidents will happen ….BUT it doesn’t help if you are a little gun ho 🥴☺️

I remember going to a farm with the trailer to collect hay.
The farmer basically pointed to the stack and said “ take what you want and I’ll be back to collect the money “

Err… ok. It was stacked about 14 / 15 bales high so I offered to scale up to the top and throw them down. I threw down the first couple but forgot that I’d made a hole in the stack, so when I stepped backwards, there was no footing, so I fell from the top of the barn onto a concrete floor 😬 the worst part was, I was literally inches from the farmers fork lift truck and it’s spikes 😱🙈

My sister checked me over and congratulated me for bringing the third bale down with me 🤭😂

The bit that hurt the most was when the farmer reappeared and said “ that’s taking you a long time “ 😫

I also would like to urge everyone not to use a wheelie bin to soak hay. We did…full to the top of water but we wanted to move it. Yes I know what you are probably already thinking but we didn’t consider that it causes a wave 🤷‍♀️🥴 as the wave inside shifted the weight, I tried to keep hold of the handle but it went over with my fingers still on the handle when it met the concrete. …ouch.
My brother in law calls us “ hammer and nails “ He says heaven help us with the sisters grim when you see them appear with a hammer and some nails 😜😂😂😂😂

17/05/2024

Embarrassing moments …continued. So I have my sisters permission to post as this falls very heavily on her 🤭☺️

We had a guy who called at the yard to empty the bins. He was a very, very chatty man and to be honest, sometimes you could lose half a day just trying to get away from him..

So, this particular day, my sister saw him coming and said “ I really don’t have the time for him today. I’ve got too much on “ and with that she dived into the stable. There was a beautiful new fresh shavings bed and she laid down and pulled her horses stable rug over the top of herself 🙈🤷‍♀️😂

He came over and the two of us leaned on the stable door. I chatted for a short time and then told him that I’d have to cut the conversation short as I had somewhere to go. He looked a bit miffed but then said “ where’s your sister today “ ? To which I pointed to the rug on the stable bed and said “ she’s under there “ ☺️😂☺️😂☺️😂☺️😂☺️

Her little face appeared from under the rug and she said “ oh, it seems fine…I’m sure the horse will be warm enough and cosy under there tonight “ 🙈🤭

Honestly I’m surprised that she ever spoke to me again but it was a priceless moment 👍🏻☺️

16/05/2024

You are never too old to learn something new…
Every day is a school day …
Getting older and wiser …. All inspiring quotes and something we still stand by. It was especially important when Julie went to view a new horse.

So, after the heartbreak of losing her “ horse of a lifetime “ she had spent a couple of years just watching me and her daughters with their horses. She knew that no horse would ever come close to Flame so we got her to look around at horses which were the total opposite in size, breed and colour.

One in particular caught her eye enough for her to visit 4 times to see how they gelled etc. each visit saw “ floss “ tied up outside of the brick stable building where we were welcomed to groom, pick feet, tack up and ride out. She was amazing. Never flinched in heavy traffic even with an ambulance on blue lights whizzing past her. The owners literally allowed us every aspect of checking her out. We were told that she was great with any herd environment / lived in or out. We checked her loading and travelling, looked at vaccinations, dental records and ticked all of our boxes. we truly thought that she was the “ one “

This is the gorgeous Floss who did come to live with us for the rest of her life, but guess what we missed ?!? I’ll add a clue in the comments but it just goes to show what a little detail can be missed 🥴🙈😬

15/05/2024

Sometimes, the very best photos are complete flukes.

It can be a mistake some years later to attempt to recreate them …..🙈😬😂😂

14/05/2024

I’ve heard of “ over horsed “ but equally you can be “ Under horsed “ 😉☺️

10/05/2024

When it all gets too much, take a little nap 😜☺️

08/05/2024

You can take colour Co ordination too far 😆

06/05/2024

Aren’t these lovely ?

04/05/2024

As you’ve got older ( and wiser 😜 ) have to ever considered how younger riders view you when you ride out together ?

This is a transcript of me and how I think ours would go 😉

Ok, off we go ?
Did you check your girth ?
Where is your Hi Viz ?
Have your got your phone ?

( mmm..I wonder if the signal is ok around here )
Ooo, mind you don’t get your knee caught on the gate.
Don’t forget about the hole down the side of the path ahead of you there.
Are you sure that your hat is done up properly ?

( I wish I’d put different knickers on under these jodhpurs )

Right, we are getting near to the road so wait for me and I’ll check the traffic.

( I must remember to phone the car insurance Co and try to get a cheaper renewal )

That’s ok… just wave the driver to slow down and keep right over.
Don’t forget to thank him for….. 😱🙄
Oh you absolute prat ! Yes you, you inconsiderate idiot.. I hope you get a puncture.

( yes, I’ve noted your reg number mate )

No, no, don’t worry, you are doing fine.
It looks as if the weather is turning, shall we head back ?

( please say yes 🙏 )
Ok, no worries. Yes I’m really enjoying being out with you. 🤥

That’s it …just stand up in your stirrups. Well done.
No, it’s fine. Don’t worry. Those ladies in the bus shelter are bound to have some tissues or wipes with them 😳🤭

( I must remember to put that cleaning product on my list to clean the kitchen splash back )

Let’s get back on the track.
Watch out that we don’t get any birds jumping out of the hedge.
Is that a piece of metal sticking out down there ?

( wonder if hubby has the lawn cut yet )
Yup, he is a good boy.. give him a rub.
We ‘could’ trot but this track is a little flinty. Maybe we should just walk a bit quicker ?

Oh ?! You are ready to head back ?

( thank goodness for that. My arse is killing me )

Well that was lovely wasn’t it ?
Shall we do it again next week ?
You aren’t free ?
Oh…how about the week after ?
No ? Busy again ? Oh, what a shame. I’ve really enjoyed it …😬☺️😆

Edited to add…… don’t take your hands off your reins to take Selfies 🙈☺️

03/05/2024

Can you guess what I had for dinner ? 😆🙈

02/05/2024

Happy “ Gotcha day “ Konnie. ( 8 years ago )A proper little cutie and diva ☺️

30/04/2024

If anyone loves a diary / journal. It’s an amazing discount for beautiful handmade products.

25/04/2024

Embarrassing moments. There have been many 😉

We decided to be really adventurous and do a “ Day ride picnic “ beautiful day so we set off early. I think it was 4 adults and 4 kids.

We’d had a fabulous morning and rested the little ones and the ponies up for a nice lunch. About mid afternoon, the plan was to continue this “ loop “ for the ride but which went horribly wrong due to my map reading. We were really lost and time was getting on. The first human interaction was with a lady in the back garden of her remote house but that didn’t go well when we realised she was sunbathing naked 😳🤭 but that’s another story.

We had begun to panic a bit knowing that we’d ridden out for many miles and probably a long way away by now from where we should be.

Finally, we spotted a farmer out in the middle of his field. I said to Julie and I’d ride up and ask him for directions. I trotted up and stopped right by him, smiled and said “ hello, I’m sorry to bother you but we are hopelessly lost and I wondered if you could give us some directions to get home “. He totally ignored me ?!

I was very confused. He was right there in front of us, so I asked again…… but, nothing ?? It’s running through my head that maybe he was deaf but suddenly he spluttered …
“ if you get your horse off my foot, I’ll tell you “.

Oops 🤭🥴🙈

24/04/2024

Where do they all go ? 🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️🤷‍♀️

If we had £1 for every lost hoof pick, I think we’d be pretty well off by now 😆☺️