Gusty today.  You can tell by the hair – ( I have just noticed that this is not the best camera angle for Hejta – she looks like a heffalump but she is not, truly. She is a working mother).

Anyway, the hair is all over everywhere.

Everyone is doing fine – all packed full of fibre or whatever they need to stoke their central heating boilers to keep them going through this endless Shetland winter.

I love how Hetja is just not going to budge.  Her food has to be brought to her when she feels like it.  I am just the waiter.  That’s my job in winter.

Lilja is a constant sweetheart.  She is becoming the nicest of ladies.

Kind, gentle and easy to work with – a delight to have around.

I am hoping she is teaching all she knows to her little sister, Sóley-the-Foalie.  As siblings, they are very close.

She is watching everything, taking it all in.

I always enjoy visiting Les Grandes Dames.  They are very well organised by Hetja.

These two are very close.  Best buddies, in fact.

And they have perfected the Art of Annoying each other.  It is a great sport.

It’s a two way thing.

No one horse starts it.

They take it in turns to annoy each other.  All is very fair.

(I love this picture with Dreki’s ears all pointy!)

To be honest I am surprised either of them have any fur left.

Efstur and Dreki are very similar in so many ways – tongues out for the camera when I shout “oi!” – I have just remembered they share the same Mum, Brá.  Nuff said then.

And suddenly butter wouldn’t melt.

And off they go again!

Life is seldom dull with these two around.

Outside hurt.  Serious owie.  This afternoon when Floss and I were on our way out to drive around feeding and checking on everyone outwith Thordale, we were caught in a barrage of hail being blown (Force 11) at us.

It was like being viciously attacked with many, many needles that were not giving up.  I have not known such horrid sharp evil pain. We couldn’t run anywhere because we were laden down with necessities and the wind was blowing us back with the hail/needles into us.

So forgive me if there are no photos of animals or weather or anything really.  The best I can manage is BeAnne in the sofa this evening.

I made her a nest for her with a lid.

And she has made it her home, while she wears her thundershirt which, although is doing good is really no match for what is going on outside.

Apparently the next two days are looking much better – a brief respite but, still, I will take what I can.  Lots to do then while the wind blows slightly less.

On the good side, however, all the animals are doing well and seem happy with our Storm routine.

I finally did it and I realise now (hindsight is such an accurate science) that I should’ve done this years ago.  I bought BeAnne Duvet a Thundershirt.

We are currently living through 3 days of storms (a feisty Force 11) and the house is shaking and rattling while outside buckets of water are being hurled at us.  It is also very noisy.

But life is good!  For the first time ever, BeAnne has not spent her day under the towel rail in the bathroom shaking.

Obviously Monster is intrigued at this new fashion and, having never suffered a day’s anxiety in his life (apart from when his battery-operated food bowl failed to open at 3am – WORST DAY EVER and yes he has five meals a day, so shoot me! You don’t have to live with him), he is not getting one.

BeAnne even managed to scrounge at lunchtime and that is how I know she is feeling fine while Hell continues to erupts outside.

After feeding horses, feeding horses again, checking ponies, feeding more horses and throwing horses out into fields where horses belong, I went to my she-shed/shudio to make a sheep and Her Maj happily came along too.

Meanwhile, Monster’s anxiety has reached fever-pitch.

So all is good.  I am glad we have this amazing invention and I just wish I had bought a Thundershirt sooner.

Just so you know, BeAnne is not wearing it 24/7, though to be honest in this weather I think she should but the instructions say she must have a break to see if it fits ok and there is no skin irritation.

Edit: The Thundershirt back on now!  She loves it. Monster is so jealous!

Another edit: A little known fact – a Thundershirt is a f***er to put on when you’ve had a gin, or two, or three……

So you know – here to help!