Mons-Tur-Briska-Fil has been put on a diet.

Since arriving, he has become fatter and fatter because he nags until someone feeds him.  He now resembles a turkey stuffed with beef brisket stuffed with gefilte fish.

Hence his Sunday name – Mons-Tur-Briska-Fil.

The boy has chins, crevices and creases.  It is not right.

It is our fault – we reinforced his behaviour by feeding him to shut him up.

We have done Monsturbriskafil no favours and so he has just become obese.

Worst of all, he is not able to reach the important parts that need to be kept clean.

So the diet is on. We have to stay firm.

We are saying no to the carbs, on his behalf.  I read on t’net he can have two to four mouse sized protein lumps.  Today it is raw beef mince.

I am doing this because I can barely pick him up!

Preparations started with Lambie having his daily TurmerAid (turmeric pellets).

Then Haakon had some as well.  Old age and not being ridden has made him stiffen up quite noticeably (I worry).

Next I gathered the troups together.

And we were ready for the off.  The straggler, aka Lambie, quickly went off into the hill.  He came home later on in the afternoon when it started raining.

Meanwhile, Daisy was riding Kappi and Flossie was on Iacs. They brought up the rear, slowly catching us up.

It wasn’t long before us foot-soldiers were overtaken.

But we marched on.

Daisy and Flossie vanished into the distance.

Haakon could see them in the distance.

He kept shouting at them which is very rare.  I can probably count on one hand how many times in over 20 years Haakon has ever neighed.

Finally, the riders were on their way home.

And again, we met up and were swiftly overtaken.

This is Floss’ last ride for a while – she is off to distant shores for a few months.  We will all miss her hugely (mostly me – she has become the cook of the household, which was brilliant while it lasted).

Safe travels, Flossie.   Remember home – that is what this blog is for.

I have just discovered GarageBand on my ‘puter – I may be the last person in the universe to do this but it is fun.

So I have been playing and “creating” in the loosest sense of the word.

Today’s mission was to make a film to accompany my latest masterpiece while sitting in the field with the Minions .  They were the closest and the most willing of subjects.

Anyway, I hope you enjoy my film.  The theme was watching the Shetland ponies in the field with my youngest daughter, Flossie.  A perfect afternoon.  Lilja comes under the title of “Artistic Licence” as she wanted to be in every shot.

The YouTube Version – I am just trying to upload a HD version on Vimeo. It may be some time!

Maybe I will stick to my day job.

This sunny Shetland afternoon, Floss and I sat in the Minion field waiting for our friends.

I was wearing a sun hat, which I was forced to take off.

So I popped it on various volunteers.

First up was Albie.

He wore it well.  With a certain je ne sais quoi.

Then there was Storm.

There was a bit of jealousy from Tiddles who had a bit of a hankering but was not brave enough.

Storm loved this hat – after all it is a “Peter Storm” hat.

It stands to reason really.  The look.

The hat frequently swapped between Albie and Storm.

It was a competition of who wore it best.

To me, there were no winners or losers.

Each had their own flair …..

….. and style.

Even a friend was brought in to give an opinion.

So, who wore it best?

You say.

A day with Lambie (et al) is spent with him mostly sitting outside the house waiting for permission to come in.

There are certain factors that have to come into play before Lambie is allowed indoors, namely OH has to leave the house and go to work!  He is not a fan of letting Lambie in the house.

Once inside, it takes a while for Lambie to settle down, even with his favourite radio station playing.  He needs to reacquaint himself with his surroundings and introduce himself to the locals.

But once settled, Lambie is happy.

And he quickly goes to sleep.

Sometimes Lambie has to change his position but he quickly sits down again.

And nods off. Truthfully, Lambie is no trouble.  He loves being in the house (and I love having him here).

If I am going outside, the Boyzens tend to follow for a while, either taking themselves into the hill or to come with me on my daily walk.

Today, they came too. It was nice to have the company.

There was a certain amount of argy-bargy so I swiftly disowned them.

And so did Lambie.  He hates being hassled.

I miss not being able to take Haakon with me on my walks but he is very stiff and footy so having time off for the time being.

Never mind, there is always an aternative volunteer.

These days I am rarely lonely!