I did it

I cantered! Yay! I went out yesterday with my younger son for a hack. And I cantered. Twice!


This is our beautiful horse. She's a darling, and so good. I realised yesterday that I needed to relax and trust in her. So I did. Into canter, hands quiet, relax. Beautiful.

We also went to see Will Young in Cabaret on Saturday. He (and the whole cast) was fantastic. Hoping that we can catch it in the West End when it goes there. I do have a bit of a crush on him again !!

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Day off...

Had a day off today from work.  So did my husband.  He came back from working in London last night and we had decided we would take the dogs to the beach today.

So we did. Despite the weather forecast which said it'd be windy and rainy.  We went to Holkham Beach on the North Norfolk coast.  I love it there - the beach is huge and even on a busy day it doesn't feel crowded.  So on a wet Friday morning in September it was really quiet.

The dogs had a blast - poor Smudge is knackered now and his arthritis is troubling him.  We had to bath them when we got back as the smell of wet labbies is none too pleasant !

Planning to go to Norwich tomorrow morning, and I want to look at sewing machines.  I also want to get the fabric to make a bag - I have decided which one I want to make first.  It's not too complicated (I hope). It's in a book called Bags - The Modern Classics by Sue Kim.  I really need something to do in the evenings when my husband is away.  As you know I horseride once a week at least, but on the other evenings I need to be keeping busy.  I used to go to running club, but I've stopped running now since I had an operation on my knee last year.  It is something I'd like to take up again, but I am a little nervous with all the problems I have had with my knee.  Losing a couple of stones in weight would probably help !!

It's been lovely having a Friday off - I expect Monday will be here all too soon....

Knock Knock

I'm here...

Not been in for ages, I'm actually shocked how long it is since my last post .

*slaps self for inexcusable absence*

What's been happening?

Older son has passed his driving test, so we rarely see him now unless it's to wake him up for work or to feed him!

Younger son is still riding as much as he can.  Back to school last week (year 9) and not quite the full-on moody teenager yet. Give it time...

Husband working in London Monday to Friday, tho he usually comes home midweek if possible.  

I'm still working in procurement. Been there six months now - not bad for a 10 week temp contract!! 

We all went to Italy last month for 10 days. Lake Garda. Beautiful. 

Horse photography going well. Really want to devote more time to it. 

Horse and dogs are fine. We had to have one of the chickens put down, so we've rehomed the others. 

Have got plans to make bags and restart my photography studies - hmmmmmmmmmm

Also plan to be better at blogging. Again, hmmmmmmmmmmmmmm

Oh and my cantering is proving interesting again.  Why can everyone else canter and I bounce? A lot. 

Me again

Hi Not been in for a while - just been so busy. Work is full-on, loads of work to do and it just keeps coming in. I suppose that's good.... Husband has got a new contract. He's working in London and travels home midweek as well as at weekends. Not ideal but we need the money. No.1 son has failed his second driving test - real shame as he's an ok driver, but he will pass eventually! Oh, and he's got a job :) No.2 son is away with the school at the moment - back tonight. We have been riding together quite a bit too. It's nice. Off work today with a monster earache which may be connected to sinusitis . Feeling very sorry for myself! Pull yourself together woman!

Long Time No See

How long has it been? Ages I think..... Younger son has turned 13, riding again quite happily (tho not on Shankster yet). Older son has taken and failed a driving test - fingers crossed for the next one. Husband has got his motor-glider rigged and has been flying it loads - in between looking for a new contract. I am still working at the Cabinet Office. Ridden a bit but not as much as I had hoped. And I have sold a few of my Equestrian Photos :-) Constantly tired - need more hours in the day!

He's ok

After his accident last week, my son is fine thank God.

He's been back to the yard and has ridden again, on Lara of course, but he has been in the field with Shanks. He's riding Lara later. Seems quite comfortable again.

I've been poorly this week - horrible cold, which has manifested itself as a sore throat, swollen glands, stiff neck, sneezing, headache, did I mention the sore throat?

And my husband has been away since Wednesday, collecting the motor-glider. Ferry from Harwich to Esjberg, then driving with the trailer through Denmark and on to Arvika in Sweden, and back again. He's on the ferry now, due to dock at Harwich at 12.00. Then he's driving to the airfield to store it in the hangar, dropping his dad at his house ( went along for company) and then back home.

I need to sort out the photos I took at the cross-country last week before it all went wrong. I have to make CDs of the photos for the girls who rode, and also upload the best ones to my Facebook page, Sue Abbott Equestrian Photography. Also need to put some on my website too www.purelyphotography.co.uk It all takes time tho and I need to go to Tesco, do some washing, clean the bathrooms, Hoover, take younger son to the yard.... And the F1 is on so nothing will be done for the moment!

All Change

Not popped by for a while as it has all changed around here. My last visit was on a Monday, a couple of weeks back I think. I got a call from a job agency during the day for a temp job I had applied for. I had a phone interview that evening, and on the Tuesday I was told I had got the job, and could I start on Wednesday ! So I did and I am there on a 3 month contract. I'm doing project support work in an office about 40 mins drive from here. Not difficult work, but there is loads of it !

So I haven't ridden in a while, but here is a whole other story. My younger son went to do some cross country riding with Bev from the yard and some others. I went along to take photos. He was a bit nervous at the start but soon was having a blast. Then his horse, Shanks, reared and my son fell. But the horse had lost his footing in the mud and fell over backwards onto my son, and he couldn't get his footing to get up quickly, so he ended up rolling on him a couple of times more in the effort to get up. I cannot describe to you what it's like to see your 12 year old son screaming with a panicking horse on top of him. Shanks, bless him, got up and stood still but my son was in agony. He couldn't move his left leg and his ribs and chest hurt. Ambulance was called and the fab paramedic, Mark, was calm and reassuring and the major worry was my son's leg. He gave him gas and air, which my son loved and it helped him so much. Boot off, jodhpurs cut, no visible sign of a break. But into a neck brace and onto a backboard and into the ambulance still sucking on the gas and air. After declaring that he felt "so stoned" he had the mouthpiece taken away from him!! Paramedics, the doctor and nurses were all fantastic, so kind and caring, we really do have the best medical team in the world.

The important thing is that he was xrayed and there were no broken bones. Thank God. He was wearing a body protector which saved his ribs from being broken. There is no doubt about that at all. And a riding hat which prevented any concussion. He is bruised and sore, of course, and he has a hoof print on his ankle. But it could have been so much worse. So much. I thank God that he is ok, that he wasn't out on his own, that Bev was so calm, as was everyone, that the ambulance got there quickly, that the whole medical team was so fantastic, that my son is safe. And that the horse is fine too. It wasn't Shanks' fault. It wasn't my son's fault. It just happened. I am so grateful that the outcome was so good.

It's Easter weekend, so we have a long weekend which is just as well bearing in mind what has happened!

And as for getting the motor glider back from Sweden, that is proving more difficult and complicated due to plenty of circumstances which have cropped up which could not have been factored in at the start.

Kettle's on - coffee I think...