I don't know how it's been for you, but here it's been a pretty drab start. Grey, grisly wet and depressing.
Despite this or perhaps because of ? We've knuckled down to get some basics learnt, we've trucked Normany, ridden miles and hopefully got some foundations in place, or  we're on the road to being understood at the very least.
Visa has started jumping at Gavray



as has Cloud



Popeye has forded streams



as has Monty



And yes, that's the Mouse back in the saddle remembering how to ride ponies that don't know how to be ridden,( and giving me ear ache that they don't have any steering- telling me!)

 Turnip has been doing dressage at Brecey



as has Charlie



Okay so maybe there's some work to do here here, but they did do some good stuff in between that kind of stuff





While Red ( nursing a cough picked up from Beny) has been chilling at home with the piggies




Although we're pretty tired after all this pony stuff, it's been kind of nice to have a break from doggies.



As you can see, we have in recent times resembled Battersea dogs home



taking in extended family ( they're all relations of Muddy or Mini) while their owners travelled to foreign lands.

We've also had some festive feedback from more recent litters

Hizy

Diesel

Huggy

Rita
and

Gypsy!

It seems like we might be a puppy farm, half of Normandy seem to have one of our doggy descendants. It was the impression we tried to escape when Gypsy's new mum came to choose her.
Muddy and Mini had both had pups within the same week so we had eight pups all looking for new homes and it seemed a good idea at the time to advertise the litters separately and limit prospective purchasers to viewing this litter or that. It worked very well and all  were sold, awaiting collection UNTIL Gypsy's new owners decided to pay a surprise weekend visit to her a week before her departure.
A mystery car  pulled up and who should issue forth but Gypsy's new parents, being a chicken through and through I fled to hide in the stables leaving eight pups scampering and yapping boisterously round the garden. This left the dogsbody in a rather awkward position, having to explain away an extra four mystery pups.But thinking fast on his feet,( there  being only about a dozen steps from car to  front gate), he grabbed the nearest handful of pup fluff and dumped them in a horse feed bin in the garage.
The dogsbody was then presented with a box of chocolates by Gypsy's proud family, who had driven all the way from Cherbourg, a good  hour and a half, just to check up on her.There then ensued a most embarrassing ten minutes, heard by me cowering in the stables, of Gypsy  being petted , cooed and  clucked over whilst the odd muffled yelp was emitted from within the garage.
Goodness knows what they must have thought, the chocolates were nice though, so I'm pleased they made the trip. Looks like they still love Gypsy too!

And cattily, to finish; you must have seen the Duchess of Cambridge's new potrait?
What do you think?



Oops no wrong one



Aah yes that's better she must be absolutely thrilled with it's accuracy. Potraying her at her pudding faced,forced smile, dungeon lit best.
Crikey we all have bad days and it's easy to have a photographer capture a bad angle, but for a painting! This really isn't kind. What kind of lighting did he use, wasn't he looking to light her from her best possible angle?
Let's hope noone paid too much for that one.