O8ur new guest room holds a surprise...

I love seeing people's faces when they look up!

A loo with a bit of a view...

I have to admit to keeping some binoculars on the shelf nearby, it's great watching deer grazing and the odd horse wandering past.

Bathroom prize finished at last!

I won a fabulous bathroom set in the Sunday Express, am not usually a competition fan but this looked easy and I never dreamed I'd actually win it.
We supplied the fitting and tiles and floor, Imperial Bathrooms kindly provided the rest, as an extra touch we installed a jacuzzi kit in the bath and it's proving a huge hit with the whole family, though all of us have foamed the floor the first time of using it...

Bathroom prize

Tiles

I was really worried when they started tiling, it looked like an ice cream parlour, but thankfully once grouted it calmed down a bit!

Portrait of Narramore Jezebel

This superb head shot was done by a horse and Hound forum member Laura Barber-Riley, immensely talented she caught her expression perfectly, and we can even see Chocolate her sire and Rosie her Grandam in this expression too, so perfectly captured by the artist.
Jezebel died as a result of a massive joint infection earlier this year, and her owner only rode again for the first time yesterday so devastated has he been.
I think when you lose a healthy horse of such a young age (4) with such great potential and with the sweetest friendliest nature it's doubly hard; never mind all the work you put into making them super, we miss her huge personality more than anything else. She always left the herd to wander over to say hello to any humans, she nickered to anyone from her stable, and everyone remembers her good manners from the vet to the farrier.
The portrait will remind us of her forever, but the loss will never heal I think.

Second round of the show jumping

This was Jezebel's first show, a small country show with a ferris wheel, lots of stalls and everything from pony and carriages to several thousand people thronging the showground.
Phil hadn't prepared her very well, he'd popped her over a couple of showjumps at home but she'd never seen "proper" jumps much less a course!
She trotted round the first time knocking a few down as her eyes were everywhere but the jumps, but second time round at 2' 3 "/2'6" she suddenly clicked she was supposed to jump, and boy did she ...
My daughter tried her at home a few days later over some much bigger fences and there was no doubt she would have been eventing in 2009.

Jez second time in the ring

By now she'd clicked she was supposed to jump over the jumps and flew round..

Happy Christmas 2008

Despite feeling very much bah humbug this year tonight I did our cake.
It's a gluten free version with lots of brandy injected into the bottom, so hopefully that will mask any difference the gluten free flour leaves.

jacques first PN Nutwell Court.

He's proving very talented in all three phases, so we've taken him gently this year. He's easily doing Novice/Intermediate fences when XC schooling but needs experience before he moves up a level.
he makes me smile because he is so like his Grandsires XC, just point and he's off!

Grrr! Just missed the picture I wanted here..

Can dogs smile?

I reckon this one can!

Tide coming in.

Teignmouth view

I stopped the car to take this, it looked so incredibly beautiful.

incoming meets river

this is the mouth of the Teign estuary, where the river is flowing fast out to sea and the tide is coming inwards. It's an incredibly dangerous spot for swimmers and dogs, as the currents pass over the top of each other dragging things down beneath them.

I should have moved to the right...

Shutting his eyes is his way of ignoring my calls to come out!

Harry

making circles, I think he had just shaken his coat hence the water droplets.

Chocx

this was before the Sj at The Grange, it was supposed to be 3' 3" but 2' 6 was more like it. He came 6th.