First game of the day – Spot the Lambie.

Of course, I was immediately captured by his Winning Smile!  What’s not to love?

Daisy and I went on a good dog walk, without Monster, and afterwards left for town to buy Lovely Things.  We haven’t had one of those days for ages.

Lerwick’s unique charm is that there are very few chain-store shops, so the independant shops can really shine with Lovely Things you don’t usually find.

So I managed to dent the bank account fairly well and Daisy will go back south with lots of lovely New Things – it’s her birthday soon so this a good excuse for me to splurge on her.  She deserves it.

Guess which local shop this is an advert for?

The local opticians!

Obviously there was some evidence of sulking when we got home – something about “why didn’t you take me?”, and “but, I always go with you!”

I tried to explain but it fell on deaf ears.  And Pepper would’ve been very hot in the car and it was probably better she was safe and cooler at home.  Anyway, OH came home early and took them all for a second dog-walk so that was fun.

Apparently……

This is what I saw, while I was feeding the ponies…..

And then this…..

After breakfast, Daisy and I went out with the intention of brushing the Ancients as they haven’t been touched probably since the last time Daisy was here.  I am not very hot on brushing at the best of times.

First, we brushed Kolka and Haakon and then moved onto Iacs who was having a snooze in the morning sunshine and refused to get up.  So Daisy, who trusts her horse and knows how to read the signs, brushed him in situ.  I don’t advocate this as half a tonne of horse getting up is quite an explosion.

We also had the dogs with us as we planned to go on a walk afterwards.

Pepper likes the horses and she enjoys sitting with them and they don’t mind her either.

Pepper secretly wants to lick their noses.  Iacs was not so keen on this but he tolerated her attention.

This was a cheeky lick!  Poor Iacs. His face!

And with that he “passed out”.

So I put Pepper on Haakon’s back for a little sit and to give Iacs a rest.

Once Iacs had regained consciousness, Daisy went on with brushing his forelock.

So that was our morning. It was nice to see Pepper on horseback again.  It is always more difficult in the summer as there is less coat which ensures a securer seat.

Guess who has come home for a few days?

Daisy.  I fetched her from the airport this morning and, after lunch, we took the dogs out for a walk around the fields.

Iacs was thrilled to see his best friend.

And then Daisy kindly checked over the Minions for me, which was kind as I sometimes struggle to know whether I am doing the right thing for them.  Too fat, always too fat.

But of course it was Lambie who ran from the far end of the field to be with his most favouritist person of all times (apart from Flossie who he also adores).  He never see him like this with me.

Again, I took up my role of She Who is Chopped Liver.  I honestly don’t know why I bother.

Hey ho, still, it is lovely to have Daisy home.  Now, to put her to work……. as well as being Lambie’s slave 24/7.

I always forget this but, after the sheep are sheared, they go a little odd.

Yesterday evening, I found Lambie asking to go into my shed.

It was very still and the midges were out.

Of course, I let him in and proceeded to make a sheep while we watched another American medical drama.

Lambie had an initial mooch ….

And then settled beside me in a state of misery.  I stroked him and told him it would all be alright, once the wind started blowing again.  Once I had finished my sheep, I nipped to the big shed to get a new fly collar, and fitted two for good measure.

I also gave him a painkiller (because I managed to shut his leg in the door and he started to wave it about and then limp).  So I was now feeling awful, on Lambie’s behalf.

I went around each sheep with a big bowl of TurmerAid which they all ate very enthusiastically – it is good for itching and just calming a situation down.  Lambie perked up a bit after that.

I found Harrel in the shed and we had words about bullying.

“Tomorrow is another day” and this morning I was minus one sheep, Edna and everyone else was still in a funny mood.

But I got them to follow me to the big field and we went to find Edna.

I had a vivid imagination of all the awful things I would find (remember Puzzah?), but Edna soon appeared.  She’d probably had enough of the fighting.

Anyway, they are all together again, the wind is blowing (no midges now) and hopefully they will all settle down again.  I hate the histrionics.

I got a text last night from Morgan, my sheep shearer, promising to turn up tomorrow morning.

So I had to get everyone into a confined area.  Fat Madge has decided never to go into the shed again with all her friends, and I have been working on her special skill of being fed in the wee paddock behind the house.  That is the compromise.

Ditto Lambie who hates eating with anyone as they always steal his food, so he has learned to go into the Minion’s indoor space to have his breakfast but this time I shut the gate on him.

The other five were in their bedroom.

When I came out later, I found Morgan had already started.

He had made excellent progress.

But then came the problem sheep.  Madge was having none of it but a swift rugby tackle by Morgan soon stopped that nonsense.

And, sadly, Madge retained her title of the “fattest sheep I have sheared”!

And last up was Lambie, who was unimpressed.

I let them all out and there was the inevitable argument started by Harrel.

Lambie was beaten up horribly by both Bert and Harrel.  He was running away all the time and ended up standing behind me for help.

Even out in the big field, they didn’t stop.

I just prayed Lambie didn’t have a heart-attack as I watched him run away.

An hour later, when I took the dogs out, I found they had sorted out their differences and all was well again.

But I did think Bloody Barrel.  He was unnecessarily mean and a bully.

So that’s us for another year.  Phew. I am so glad the sheep been sheared and I am sure they are too.  It’s been a hot day by Shetland standards.