Working Hard

Every evening I go to my little she-shed, creation station, studio, craft shed….. whatever – basically, my space has no name without one member of the family sniggering.

This was my view yesterday.  Perfect.  I really love my little room.  It was a good idea.

I am making my sheep for the shop in Lerwick. I like to go in every week to add to the decreasing flock, rearrange the display and add or take away some.  This is my latest herd getting ready for their trip into town.

I have also Wensleydale curls/locks in gorgeous black and white to work with and I love them.  .   They can transform anyone into a sheep of beauty.

I have the best fun with it.

These are my three curly-wurlies ready to travel.

So all is good.  I enjoy my sheep making. I listen to the radio and happily stab away.

I have not forgotten my animation – I am doing an online beginners animation course (university, dontcha know) so I have lots of homework.  I am enjoying it all very much.  Note-to-self – must buy some plasticene tomorrow for next film).

 

Pretty Things

My back is giving me jip.  I am due my spinal steroid injections hopefully very soon – note to self, must phone up and ask.

So today I am having a cop-out and putting up some arty-farty photos from yesterday.

I am not a huge fan of Instagram, mainly because I don’t “get it” – and you can add LinkedIn to the don’t-get-it list as well – but sometimes filters have their place.

Fivla looks lovely with a wafty filter.  She just lends herself to it.  Always has.  She is a fairy pony.

In real life she is just as special. I think it is her beautiful eyes and her soft nose.

Vitamin is just as magnificent, but in a different way.  She is very expressive and definitely the boss of everyone.  No one messes with Vitamin.

Little Tiddles and his docken patch.  He was rootling through the big leaves looking for nice new grass.

His beautiful combination of colours goes very well with the solid dark leaves.

You can tell I brushed them!  The floofies. And yes Tiddles has one blue eye.  He is not blind or deaf.  If you breed for specific colour variations, you will inevitably breed ponies with this feature. It is not a deformity and I know Tiddles has no health problems because of this.  Sadly Shetland pony foals in Shetland with blue eyes are not wanted.

Everyone should want a Tiddles.  He is a gorgeous chap and much loved part of my family.

And darling Newt.  “A lonely little petunia in an onion patch” with thoughts of world domination.

So, there you are. I will go back to whinging about my back and I must make that phone call tomorrow morning to the Anaesthetic Department.

Albie’s Life Lesson

You can get through life with bad manners, but it’s easier with good manners.
Lillian Gish

🌸 🌼 🌸 🌼🌸 🌼 🌸 🌼🌸 🌼 🌸 🌼 🌸 🌼 🌸 🌼

Fivla will put up with many things but if there is one thing she abhors, it is bad manners and I completely agree with her.
I found the herd today in a bouncy mood once I had reunited them with Waffle (again) who was resident in another field.  Having returned him to the fold, they all proceeded to run around madly.  I had left them to their shenanigans to return to the car and get my camera. So of course they all stopped and headed for the docken patch to eat.
Albie saw that Newt and Tiddles were having a lovely scratch and he decided that he wanted one too.
So he approached Fivla and tried to initiate a mutual scratching session in totally the wrong way.  He bit her.
Fivla was furious and she wasted no time in telling Albie he was rude and never do that again.
He had been well and truly bollocked.
Then, having learned his lesson, Albie asked nicely.  His body language was very apologetic.
And once Fivla was happy with this and that he had learned a lesson, she said they could groom each other.
They groomed both sides of each other and there were no more tellings off.
And this is why Fivla is one of the best mothers and teachers there are.  She hates rudeness. She will not tolerate it.  Next time Albie will ask nicely.  As he was an orphan he never learned this valuable lesson of asking politely  He had no one to teach him.
Well now he knows. A valuable life lesson learned.

Evil Genius(es)

Yesterday evening was peaceful and beautiful.

All was calm until we put Storm and Waffle into their field for the night.

And then there were mad Minions galloping around.

Storm decided he was an Arab stallion in a previous life.

Then Lilja saw them.  Having spent the winter sort of together – in adjacent fields – she was thrilled and galloped enthusiastically over to say hello.

Meanwhile Taktur was galloping up and down his fence yelling his head off in fury at the thought of Waffle being near his ladies (and daughter). All he could see was the hint of an irritating Shetland pony but he knew they were there and that was enough for his incandescent rage.

Luckily Lilja was not very impressed with the boys and quickly galloped back to her Icelandic family leaving everyone to finally settle down and eat peacefully for the night.

This morning, I came out to a scene of devastation.

All the water buckets were over (thank you Waffle – there is a stream in the field too so they had not been without water) and Storm was playing with one of the sheep’s bowls trying to convince me he would like his breakfast now.  So they got nothing but loaded up again and taken to the farrier, feet done and returned to their field where everyone greeted them like long lost friends.

Don’t get me wrong, I love having the Minions home and there was a very small moment while I saw them prancing about like idiots that I wished they lived here all the time, but it is anything but peaceful and I was rather relieved they went back!  All is very calm now.

Bloody children but I luffs ❤️ them

 

 

 

A Few Things

Monster is fine, thank you for asking.  He has his own seat at table now.  His table manners are pretty good.

Waffle and Storm are home for the night.  Our farrier is very busy up until he goes away on holiday so I am bringing the “Mountains” to Mohammed, so to speak.  Waffle needs an emergency hoof trim.  He is developing cracks which is not good and they need to be stopped quickly before they become anything more major.  Storm is along for the ride but if the farrier thought he would give him a quick trim, I am not going to say no.

Meanwhile, necessity is the mother of invention and this is my new improved fleece drying method.  My net curtain newly purchased for my wet-felting career strung up with elastic bands over the Rayburn (poor man’s Aga).  The wool is drying very nicely.  Next the storage problem away from moths.

For things horse, Brá is beginning to bag up (I noticed this yesterday) and today her nipples are pointing inwards.  Everything is changing. Her pelvis is relaxed.

And Hetja?  Well today it’s anyone’s guess.

She is fatter on her left side.  A noticeable bulge.

But nothing much on the bewb front, so possibly a few weeks’ away.  Taktur was in with his ladies for six weeks so maybe there is a six week gap.

So it is hopefully all systems go very soon, even if it is only Brá.  Oooh, exciting.