The dreaded “C” Word is Cleaning and I am not very good at it or very enthusiastic about it.

I have been doing cleaning because No 1 daughter, Daisy, is coming home from St Snotters for Christmas.  Her last exam was yesterday and she is flying in tomorrow morning.

So I cleaned the house, well bits of it, well I put clean sheets on her bed, ok, I dabbed about ineffectively with a duster having sprayed polish in the air to give the impression of cleaning and turned the radiator on in her bedroom.

I found if I do housework without my glasses on, there doesn’t really seem very much to do!  My back does not like housework at all.  I pay the price afterwards with some nasty twinges/muscle spasms.

I think there will be a queue of fur-people who will be thrilled to see Daisy.

She has been missed….

… and I think she has missed us too.

We have much to do for Christmas preparations and may need a few willing volunteers who happen to be outside offering their services.

I can’t wait to see Daisy.  Christmas can sort of start to begin in our house.  Floss gets in on the 20th, all being well and then I will be properly happy.

Anyway, the house smells cleaner.

This is Storm’s shed.  No one else’s.  Storm’s shed.  He ❤ his shed (and his rug, oh yes and his carrots, and his food and his Mum) …… but he loves his shed the most.

The others are allowed in.  He is not mean and is happy to share with anyone.  Even Taktur has been found in there with three minions behind him (it was very sweet).

Today it has been snowing on and off or someone is throwing freezing polystyrene packing balls at us.

I feed my Minions their hard food in the morning into 4 separate bowls.  Tiddlypom has got the plot now and they all share very nicely with no arguments.  While they are eating, I muck out their, sorry, Storm’s shed and they then go in to finish any hay leftover from the night before.

I was feeling guilty as I haven’t been spending much time with The Minions (those reindeer bebbies are enchanting) so BeAnne and I sat with them in their shed this afternoon while the weather did its worst outside.

Taking photos was particularly difficult as I was instantly inundated by furry noseys.

Little Tiddlypom is coming along fine now.  Easy to catch, talk to, do anything really (except lead – we must work on this skill).

He got to know BeAnne and she was very patient up to a point.

I sat against the wall on my coat and chatted to whoever came up.

The Minions are all looking very well and seem very relaxed this winter.  They go outside into their big field every day and come back when I call them, always keen to see what I have brought.

Looking after these little guys is never a chore.

They are the best therapy ever and I leave them always with a smile on my face.

I couldn’t resist.  I mean they are so cute, delicious and de-loverly and they need me to hug them and kiss their noseys.

…. and they could be baby reindeer.  I am just not sure.

Anywho, I have spent some lovely hours with my new lodgers and they are huge characters.  I now know not tofeed them apples cut up small because they have no idea what they are and will eat around every piece.

So, having tried to obviously poison them with my apple-bribe, I needed instant forgiveness and brought out The Minions’ toy box.

I had noticed that they had a penchant for buckets anyway so I think, therefore, QED, they could be Shetland ponies after all.

And they did like the “toys”.

They also “liked” BeAnne, who is putting up with a great deal of investigation. She has started to tell them to mind their manners now.

There is also one that tries to stuff as much hay in while the others are playing.

Ooof – they are unbelievably cute.

What do you reckon?  Baby reindeer or Shetland ponies?

Winter arrived.  We have had a smattering of snow but, by golly, it is nippy and then it is gales and snow then gales and snow for the next few days.

I have stables now for everyone but, as it wasn’t windy yet and I am a huge believer in fresh air (as well as sleep) as a cure for all ills, I threw everyone outside while I mucked out.

The Icelandic horses had spent their first night in their new shed.  It is 48 square yards big with rubber matting on the floor.  Lots of space for everyone.  Getting Haakon off the wet mud will help his hoof to heal better.

So this morning, I evicted the Icelandics into their field.

Then it was the turn of Bjørn’s foals, my refugees.  I had not intended to let them out during their stay here but it was calm.  I stupidly thought they would follow me and my bucket over to a field.  Did they heck?  No, they instantly scattered and after 10 minutes of unsuccessfully trying, I gave up.

It was like herding cats so I decided to approach the matter another way and went to fetch Waffle.  They flocked to him immediately and I led him into their new field.  Of course they all followed and I shut the gate and took Waffle back to his friends.

They are very sweet, though and tonight they followed me like the good children they are.

We appear to have some refugees in the indoor school.

This year’s foals from Bergli Stud are not enjoying the unceasingly crap winter weather and it is getting to them.

Apparently they were not looking or using the shelter provided, just standing there becoming colder, wetter and more miserable.

So they have come to Thordale for a holiday in the shed.

They are lovely and look like baby reindeer…..

….who are very keen on food.

I expect you can guess what I am going to be doing a great deal of, apart from pooper-scooping?  Yup, hugging if they are huggable.  At the moment, they are just finding their feet but I think a small introduction to carrots may let me into their hearts.

It is strange meeting other folk’s “bebbies”.  They are brought up very differently to mine and I realise The Minions seem almost hand-reared by comparison because that is what circumstances dictated at the time.  Even little Tiddlypom is one of The Minions now.  Although they are tight little group, they rely and trust me about everything.  I am very much their Mum and if I say it is alright, then it is alright.  The filming proved that.  They just got on with it because I was there and told them this was normal.

Anyway, I shall take some time to get to know them and I hope they enjoy their holiday with me.

BeAnne kept a good distance.  She knows what little foalios are capable of.