Oh, to be in England

Ok, so that line may be about Spring in England and not winter, but Christmas in over here holds a certain special something for me.

I'm not sure if its the plethora of Nativity plays, Advent Fayres or Shopping Centre Santas, but theres a little magic here that I couldn't find in the US. Sure, the house decoration over there completely exceeds anything over in England, but there are definitely some missing items.

Firstly, Christmas Day is it over there. No Boxing Day, which means people actually work between Christmas and New Year... I know, right! That time should be for food, booze, crappy movies and family!

Next, there is no Panto... seriously USA guys, google Panto; you are missing out on a hilarious British Tradition.

The British TV adverts (John Lewis, M&S etc) are all part of the magic buildup. Then we have the Queens Speech, Christmas Cake, Pork wrapped in pork, Mince Pies and Mulled Wine. Crackers (not the eating type), silly hats and Port.

Before all that, I get to go to Olympia, Dog Agility, high level Horses, Shopping, Santa and Champagne all rolled into one event!

Oh and we still say Merry Christmas. Yes 'Christ' is part of that. We haven't moved to the more PC version of "Happy Holidays". Thank God (ha ha).

So, as we head towards the one day, where we tell our kids that its ok for a obese stranger (who really likes young children) to come into our house while we sleep. I want to wish you all MERRY CHRISTMAS and a HAPPY NEW YEAR!

xoxo

Punishment inequality...

There is a little thing in the US thats been bothering me rather a lot, maybe its my British upbringing but I make no apologies for what I believe in.

I read an article a few weeks back. The story basically goes, that the eight year old girl threatened another student, she was taken from class and placed in the room way from the rest of the group. According to the school, the door is left open, students continue their work in the room and the student is free to use the toilet, have snacks and so forth while in there. The mother went to pick her child up and the child was apparently upset about being in the room and the mother took photos which she sent onto the News Channels. The child is now apparently 'traumatised' and was 'sick for three days' because of this.

Now, I must be a very, mean Mum, because if Ethan threatened another student and was put in a timeout room, I wouldn't only be supportive of the schools decision to remove him from the class, but would certainly be having words with my child to find out why the threat was made in the first place.  He'd probably have to deal with much more of a consequence than a sitting in a small, quiet room.

However, the discussions that popped up from the link on the News channels Facebook page were almost always on the side of the Child and Mum. People were absolutely disgusted with what they cited as 'abuse', and talked PTSD, closing down the school and so forth. Very few people seemed to support the schools actions and I was quite surprised by the outrage involved.

A few days after I read this I linked through a friends Facebook Page to a local dog trainer. This trainer uses 'pinch' collars, shock collars and an amount of punishment in his training, along with food and toys to reward. There was plenty of support for his 'training system'. People stating that anyone who thinks dogs can be trained purely with treats for protection work, clearly knows nothing. Support for the difference that a 'pinch' collar made day to day and how their life would not be the same without it. Now before I go on, and for anyone who thinks in any way shape or form a pinch or shock collar is the best option, that is just crap. Sorry but there it is. Every being can learn new behaviours or change behaviours through positive training. If Butterflies and Wild Monkeys   can be trained through positive training then so can your pet pooch. Yes, there is consequences to the wrong behaviour, don't let people tell you that its about letting your dog walk all over you, it isn't at all. The wrong choices still have to have a level of punishment, but the punishment is withholding food, withholding toys, or sometimes, yes a short timeout! Is it a longer journey to teach a dog not to pull using treats, rather than slapping a collar with spikes onto your pup, yes it probably is. But is that really how you want your relationship to be? One based out of pain and fear rather than enthusiasm and respect?

Does punishment work? Yes, of course it does. Cesar Milan has show years of dogs who've been scared by him badly enough that they shut down totally, learned helplessness. Its a thing! How many of you have suffered some form of learned helplessness, an overbearing teacher, parent or partner who scared you enough into saying the wrong thing that you couldn't say anything at all? Horses that have been so scared by the backing process that they just shut down and allow you to do anything to them. Does it all work? Does it all result in a seemingly compliant willing being? The quiet dog with the big eyes, walking quietly next to his person, too fearful to take an extra step in front for fear of punishment. The quiet ex cowboys horse who can carry your baby and granny, too fearful to show pain, even when he's riddled with arthritis. The perfect child, the one who never argues, too fearful to speak up in case his parents beat him, the perfect wife, all smiles and support, too fearful to see her friends for risk of angering her husband. They are all abuse.


I feel that the lines are closer here in the UK. Positive learning is shining through everywhere, dogs, horses, humans and so forth. But there also needs to be consequences, if the dog breaks his stay or your child hits a friend something should happen, whether that punishment is withholding a favourite toy or having a few minutes alone to cool down.

Of course, I realise that is by no means everyone, there are many people in the UK that allow their kids much freedom and never punish at all, then smack their dog in the face for stealing some food. There are plenty in the US who are firm fair parents and train their animals through positive training. However, is is my observation, that less consequences for children yet (still) punishment training for dogs is more widely spread and acceptable there.

My hope is that as time goes on, things will equal themselves out more over there, but sadly, Im not holding my breath.

*Article about the Time out Room http://kdvr.com/2017/11/08/mother-raises-concerns-about-elementary-schools-use-of-small-time-out-room/

Countryside Living

So, as ever there are upsides and downsides of every living location.

Being in the countryside definitely has its challenges, no takeaway delivery, decent drive to any shops and sadly for Ethan, no trick or treaters (good for us)!

However, with that said, the upsides so far, hugely outweigh the downsides. Firstly we have finally been able to go out as a family to watch fireworks this year. Usually one of us is stuck home to look after Linx and Boo who are scared of the bangs. At our previous house in Thatcham, it used to sound as if a war was going off outside, for day after day, from October into the New Year. Where we are now, we haven't heard a single pop (apart from the odd shooting party that drifts through at weekends). Last night we got to attend the fireworks at St Gabrielle's School with friends and it was lovely to be able to do so together.

I also love the doorstep walks and the absolute peace and quiet- heaven!

Tonight we will be staying in with the dogs, but even though its the Saturday before Guy Fawkes I have a feeling it should stay peaceful out here!

Really quite Nice

Nice! What a wonderful city it is. None of the pushy, big, tourist feeling of Paris but all the Vin and Brie you could wish for!

We arrived after an early flight and as soon as the doors opened we were greeted by the sunshine and warmth. A quick ride to the hotel Radisson Blu and we were ready for our weekend. They had our room ready early as we had requested so we went straight up. The room had a stunning view and Nic had arranged for a bottle of Rose Champagne to be sent up too. So we spent a large part of the day, sitting up on our balcony, looking down on the Promenade des Anglais, drinking champagne and eating french cheese and Prosciutto.

The first evening we went out for dinner at La Roustide. The restaurant is known for its Truffles so we both had set truffle menus, Petit for me and Grande for Nic. Both meals began with an Amuse Bouche with Basil and Truffles and were followed with a Butternut squash Veloute with Truffles, then for Nic Salad, Risotto, Veal.. all with Truffles of course! The restaurant was tiny, with just seven tables and only one seating a night, they expect their guests to spend the whole evening there, wonderful!

The following day saw us have a huge and delicious breakfast at the hotel and then we walked into Nice, strolling along the promenade and into the old town we walked through the central gardens which are expansive and strolled past Hermes, Versace and many more! Once we hit the older areas we found ourselves in tiny paved, pedestrian streets full of flower shops and spice stores stocking the most amazing herbs and spices including tiny dried flowers which smelled like Heaven! After hours just wandering and chatting we headed back to the hotel for some much needed R&R before dinner. That evening we headed out to Les Jardins du Capitole, this was a lovely restaurant on the Promenade and again we had a beautiful meal. I had Onion Soup (amazing) followed by the duck (incredable) and Creme Brûlée, all washed down with an delicious red.


Our final day and we spent the first few hours sitting by the rooftop pool at our hotel sunbathing. After that we headed back to Nice to check out the Antiques Market and find some Socca (a local treat, in between a flatbread and a pancake). Again we strolled, chatted and checked out the huge market they hold there every Monday, we ate Socca and fries at a restaurant on the market and brought some french chocolat from a chocolatier off a tiny street. One of the treats today was finding that the Cathedral was open and we could walk in and look around. It is probably the most beautiful cathedral I have been into, intricate and covered in gilt, marble and stone carvings, it is colourful and the attention to detail is simply mind-blowing. If you are interested, have a Google of Nice Cathedral/ Cathedrale Sainte-Reparte and have a flick through some of the photos.

After an exhausting two days of around 25-30kms walked, multiple bottles of wine and champagne guzzled, plate after plate of french cuisine consumed, we were ready to head back to our family, dogs and friends in England.But Nice will always have a special little place in my heart!

Nice Catherdral

Au Revoir Nice! 

Balloons, Robots and Ponies!

This week I have been able to get back into a riding lesson. Having tried multiple times to get hold of Tallend School and failed, I managed to get hold of a trainer from Overdale Equestrian instead. Overdale runs courses with Mary Wanless and the main trainer there is one of her head trainers. The reason I wanted to seek out this, is to really break down my position and look at some things I have found tricky to really be able to move on.

I really like breaking things down and making sure my foundations are correct. I have been lucky enough to have amazing instruction over the past years which has given me lots of confidence and foundation and felt like I wanted to perfect my position more. It makes sense to me to look at it from a biomechanics angle as I have some straightness issues which get more pronounced when I am tense or trying hard with anything. I also wanted to get an eye on how I am sitting and if there was any tweaks I could make to improve it.

Karin the trainer didn't change huge amounts of things, but just enough to make riding feel slightly alien at times. We began on the mechanical robot horse, using him to look at my position in neutral. Karin found that I was actually slightly behind the vertical, not by much but enough to make it difficult for me. She had me bring my collarbone in line with my ribcage and asked me to push my back slightly into my belt. The other thing we did was shortened my stirrups by a hole which got my leg underneath me more and stopped them from sliding out in front of me. We looked at breathing and core, we worked in canter on the Robot horse, blowing up a balloon without pinching it off. It sounds easy but you have to be able to control your breathing and core to now allow the air to zoom back out of the balloon into your mouth whilst you blow it up, it does help you to feel all the correct muscles working which was fascinating!

We moved onto one of their school horses and took the same learning onto her, I could feel myself wanting to fall behind the vertical and we looked at correcting that. Was fun as Mary was riding her horses at the same time so nice to be able to sneak peeks at her too.

It was a very helpful session, not the fanciest ride I have ever had but very helpful with some small tweaks that should help to make a big difference.

I also got to try a possible lease horse. He is an adorable little Andalusian Stallion that is as bombproof as anything I have ridden. He is classically trained and I found him very tricky to get going on our first ride but did trust him. I need to go back and try again and see if the second time clicks any more easily as he was a sweetheart but I am just not sure if he's for me. I also saw the most beautiful KWPN mare, she's a amazing opportunity but not in ridden work this point in time and I am in communications with her owner about her!

So, the last week or so I haven't been riding as have been away to Nice with my gorgeous husband! More about that in my next post.

xoxo

Things I forgot

Things I forgot about England...

The roads in the countryside are really tiny... and the tractors/ lorries/ buses don't slow down when passing!

London is not that cosmopolitan... I was well reminded of this when a drunk tramp nearly threw up on my child, in the street on Friday night.

The higher humidity is not helpful for keeping my hair neat after straightening it! Definitely need more product!

The countryside is beautiful and I LOVE the freedom of walking the dogs off lead from our doorstep.

British TV ROCKS!

The weather isn't really that bad.

All in all, the last few weeks have been pretty fun. Its been wonderful catching up with old friends and seeing family and as Ethan is off to stay with his grandparents soon, Nic and myself also get to spend some time together. We really need this at the moment as Nic is working harder than he ever has in his life, he loves his job but its taking everything from him at the moment, so some couple only downtime should be just what we both need.

The house is feeling more like home, I have hit Dunelm Mill pretty hard, and we've also found some lovely second hand items to make the place feel lived in and loved. The absolute joy here for me though, is the garden and the location. Tucked away in the countryside out here, it really is a peaceful little slice of heaven!

Next stop, get my arse back in the saddle... literally!

Back on British Soil

Well, well! Here we are back in the homeland! I would be lying if I said it wasn't a bit odd being back here. Driving the same roads, seeing the same places and faces and shopping at the same stores.

It was quite a road to get here. The biggest worry was always the dogs. With two old boys now, flying them over the pond was always going to be stressful but everything was done to make them as comfortable and relaxed as possible. They arrived just fine and were really happy to see us at Heathrow Pets area. Of course, by the time they got back to our new house 'Millstream', they couldn't wait to be out of their crates and run around the garden. They did take a few days to settle in the new house, with some upset bellies and waking up during the night it was an exhausting and worrying few days, but a week on and things seem to be so much better.

Ethan has now begun school and seems very happy here. He is going to a very small school, and its very friendly and kind which has allowed him to settle with the least amount of stress to him that we can provide. This Sunday we have Harvest Festival at the church with his school which he is really looking forward to. He has seen a few of his old friends and has been enjoying the paths around the cottage garden on his scooter!

The cottage is beautiful and we have been busy making it feel more homely. Dunelm Mill has seen us so much that I am sure they expect us to just move in, and Facebook Marketplace is my daily browsing. Slowly, the cottage is beginning to feel like home, and each day we enjoy it a little bit more. The biggest downside is the battle we are having with getting WiFi here. There are apparently problems with the exchange and nothing much is happening. We are both running off our mobile phones at the moment but as the reception in the cottage is awful, its a bit of a hit and miss game!

However, its a gorgeous place to live, the house is great for entertaining and we do love to have friends over. Also the walks from the front door are amazing, I took the footpath outside our cottage yesterday with the dogs, it runs through some gorgeous fields and follows along next to the river, then excitingly for me; the footpath links up to Headley Ford which is one of my favorite walks from when I lived in the UK before, you can walk the whole way around here and link back up with another footpath which comes out a few houses down the road from Millstream. I have always wanted to be able to just walk straight from where I live, In the US we had some nice hiking paths and now here, we have the countryside literally on our doorstep.

One of the things that I am really loving here is being surrounded by nature. We have brought a fantastic feed station/ bird table for the garden and are having finches and some other birds starting to visit. During yesterdays walk we had a pheasant pottering along the path in front of us and we can sit out in the evening listening to the owls and watch our little resident bat flapping overhead. I think one of my favorite moments though, is to brew a cup of tea and to sit and watch the Red Kites hunting in the fields around us, its quite a sight.

The first week has been busy, we have seen lots and lots of family and friends, I have loved having everyone over and hope that never changes!

Some days, you just need wine...

Make that all days... every, single, day right now.

Things seemed like they were bumping along here very well, plans were laid, everything arranged and then poof, poof, poof it all went crazy.

Firstly the truck sale has been a nightmare. Without boring you with specifics it was all to do with notarized power of attorney forms, badly organized banks and a lot of going backwards and forwards. It was a big old mess which finally, last friday we sorted.

That night I came home to an email from the school we hoped Ethan would be going to in the UK. Due to the individual setup they have and the gap with Ethans age etc, the department of Education decided that they needed about a million things from the school. The wonderful teacher there, was more than willing to do this for us, but with no idea of how long it could take to get agreed (or not) she suggested it was too big a risk for Ethans education and suggested that we look at another school instead. Of course, we were all gutted as we love the school so much and breaking the news to Ethan was tough. But as always, onwards and upwards... Now luckily we know the other school well, having been to school plays there, and having looked around it, when we were thinking we would stay in England (before Colorado happened). It's a wonderful school and still very close to the new house so I am sure it will work well. I contacted them and they do have a space for Ethan which is a huge relief and are very happy to take him on!

The next hit was about the dogs. Firstly theres been a huge kerfuffle about Crate sizes, so I was asked to take the dogs over to Denver Airport so that they can be looked at and confirmed on the spot. Not a huge deal but, of course the truck had been sold and the crates won't fit in Nics car! So luckily my lovely friend who brought the truck allowed me to pop over and borrow it for the day. The bigger issue was that I was told that there is a heat Embargo with BA until the 15th September. I was confirmed this via email so all our plans and dates were for that. Oh but then it comes to booking it, now maybe it was my mistake but apparently that means upto and INCLUDING the 15th! Flying at the weekend is way too expensive so that meant they now need to fly the same day as myself and Ethan. This means on the day: trying to navigate dogs around carpet cleaners etc. Then renting a big van, loading all dogs, crates, 5 suitcases, hand luggage and my child up, heading to DIA, dropping off and sorting all paperwork etc for the dogs, flying back over to the van rental which is 20 mins from the airport, dropping off van, pulling out luggage. Hopefully being collected from there by a friend then heading back to DIA (hopefully) with enough time to check in and not panic! It also means an extra vet visit as they need to send European Health Certification paperwork off to the USDA and get it back in time, BUT they also need to be seen for wormer treatment for no more than 5 days prior but no less than 2 days prior to entering the UK. What a mess! But again, it will be just fine. I hope. My final panic that resides is the fact that they can extend the heat embargo in at Denver. I am hoping and praying the weather cools by then and am obsessively watching the weather app for signs of cooling. 85f is the cut off... come on Denver, it's nearly Autumn!

So, this week is nuts, crazy with appointments and so forth. But at least I am busy!

Photo we had to take to see if Hoax was too big for the Crate!

Something Different

I am happy to say it looks like my wonderful truck in going to be brought by one of my closest friends over here. It makes me really happy as I LOVE that vehicle and its been so trustworthy that I am pleased she can go on to look after a friend.

Because of that I am driving Nics car. Its definitely not a quiet, easy drive. It's a manual instead of Auto. Thats not an issue as such but as I am used to the stick being on the other side of me, I keep taking my left hand off to change gear and find nothing but air! Its also very powerful with the capability of nearly 500 Horsepower. (0-60 in 4 seconds). As you get used to it, its really a fun car but you have to be respectful too. The interesting thing for me is how changing a small thing with something you should know can really affect your performance and confidence.

I think its something we should always keep in mind with life. Firstly to always push ourselves to do something new and a little nerve-wracking. Its good for keeping our egos down if nothing else! Next it helps remind me that for animals its just the same, if not worse as we have made the choice for them.

Anyhow, any change is a big deal. Going back to the UK after a few years here in itself if a shock. I will be interested to see how I find it. The weather, the restaurants, the people and so forth.

We are at the point now, that we have begun to look forward to the move. Things are powering down over here and I am finding it difficult to keep living normally as my brain is all over the place. The house is packed away of many personal items which are of course the things that make the house feel like a home and our life definitely feels like its running between being on fast forward and pause at the moment.

Anyhow, today I have some distraction in the form of a dressage lesson with Sara. I am not really present at the moment but nevertheless, I can at least have some fun!

Crazy Head Space

Well, its been an extremely busy few weeks of organizing, stressing and packing.

The great news is that we already have renters for our US house. It went on the market, that evening a couple came to view and by the next day the contracts were signed ready for move in after we leave. We have also signed the lease on a lovely cottage in England so have somewhere to go when we arrive!

However, all has been crazy here. I am worrying about shipping the dogs as this is so important to get right, both from an emotional point of view for our guys welfare and also from a paperwork and logistical side. It will all be fine but definitely plays on my mind. My gorgeous guys mean so much and they will always be a huge worry.

On top of this is packing up. We are renting the house furnished so all our stuff doesn't have to go into storage but we still have to pack all paintings, entire garage, shed, kitchen items, decorative items, toys, clothing and so forth. It doesn't seem like a lot on paper but in reality is a lot of work. We then have to sell/ lease cars, pause or cancel contracts, sort schooling and our house that we will be renting in the UK. Nic leaves tomorrow and bless he has actually been working his butt off packing everything he can away to make my life easier, he's a good guy really.

Ok, so I am whining a bit now and it really isn't all bad. I am getting excited about our time in the UK: Christmas, Spring and friends and family- "Eeek"! Cant WAIT to see you guys.

Hanekoms Crazy Lives

I realized earlier today that not only have I not blogged in a long time, but we have such a huge life change happening again that I thought I had better write an explanation.

Recently Nic was offered a fantastic new job here in Colorado. On the surface it all seemed simple, move from one executive roll in Denver to another executive roll in Denver. However, after a bit of research from his now company, all was not so easy. As his current company are a UK based business and the new company are a US based business the Visa is basically non transferable. At first we thought "no big deal, Nic heads back to the UK to sort it". But alas, of course that isn't the way these things work. To reapply for the new Visa, we all have to be back in the UK for a period of 12 months, after that, we can apply for the new Visa and THEN only are we allowed back to the States. Of course, all this is ridiculous - apparently Nics many US tax dollars aren't acceptable and they would much prefer we pay them to HMRC for a year or so instead!

The decision to return to the UK isn't one that we made lightly, the stress and expense of the move, plus the uprooting of a whole family (dogs included) is a pretty big deal. But, the benefits this has, in the long term for our whole family is huge. Not only is it a bigger and fancier job for Nic, but a more secure future in the US as far as Visas and Greencards go. After a fraught couple of days we decided we would risk it and make the move back.

The next choice we made was to not stay in our UK house. We instead are renting a fully furnished property further into the countryside in Headley, Thatcham. There were a few reasons for this. Firstly the stress and hassle of hiring and buying furniture, crockery and so forth was quite terrifying. Plus, we have great tenants already in the house and on top of this we are marketing our UK house for sale (all those viewings... no thank you)! Finally we wanted space for our UK and US friends to come and stay and something a little more rural than before.

I of course am very excited to see my family and amazing friends again in the UK. I can't wait to go for Sunday lunch in the local pubs, spend weekends wandering around National Trust manor houses and drinking wine with our best buddies. But I am finding it hard to leave (albeit temporarily) a life I really love here. The weather, the house, the hikes and our hot tub! Not to mention my wonderful lease horse Ritz. Also I have made some of the most amazing friends here and it hurts my heart to say Goodbye.

So, as ever we seem to be living our crazy life on fast forward. By the end of September (just in time for the British winter) we should be in our new UK house and starting to plan out the year. So Brits, apologies if any of my Americanisms offend you, they are here to stay! However, get ready for dinners, wine and lots of catching up!

Photo of Ritz by the amazing Somer McCain

Happy Wife, Happy Life!

The last few weeks have been really very interesting for me. Ups and Downs but really mostly ups!

So, I was recently offered the amazing opportunity to half lease a horse. Sara gave me a lesson on him before I signed the contract and it was quite honestly, the worst I have ridden in ages. I didn't think I felt nervous but apparently my body disagreed and I was tense and just generally total crap up there, we couldn't get rhythm, balance or anything that resembled a dressage partnership. I bounced around and couldn't get any nice work. So, what did I do when I got home? I signed the lease. I knew this horse had a sweetness in him that appealed to my heart, as a wonderful friend of mine (Heather Noddle) once said, the finger twitching will tell you all if its meant to be yours. I knew in my mind that I could ride this horse and that when I learned how to, the reward would be wonderful. Now, just over a week into our partnership things have moved on immeasurably. Yes there is plenty that we are both still learning, this horse isn't a push button dressage trained horse and I am not a professional rider but we are having so much fun learning together with the help of a pretty fabulous instructor!

The other thing that has really helped me this week is to audit the Dressage Symposium and really crack on in my head with actually becoming a better rider for Ritz. As always, I learned less than I hoped as there is only so much a brain can process, but a few gems stuck with me...

Steffan Peters body... no not in that way! His strong core position up there on the horse- my new Mantra... "SIT LIKE STEFFEN"

"Do not hold the rein just to hold the rein, be playful, be creative" Steffen Peters

"You are in control of the tempo, if you do half halt and do not get a response then full halt and try again" Steffen Peters

"A bad reponse is better than no response" Steffen Peters

"Your inside rein is your playing rein, your fun rein" Axel Steiner

"Talk to him through your seat, and with your legs, let him know what to do" Axel Steiner

"I can remind you about your leg position (or elbows, shoulders etc) but until you keep reminding yourself it will not become habit"

These gems have really helped my riding, these little mantras are clicking over in my head again and again and hopefully will become non cognizant eventually.

Honestly, the whole thing was wonderful. My friends Lauren S and Caroline rode with Axel, Lauren S and Lauren W and Jess with Jane Savoie and Sara rode with my new idol Steffen. All the horses got pumped with the speakers, marquee, people etc but no one ate dirt... so thats good! I came away so inspired.

But, what has really inspired me is having something to call my own again, to bond with, to fuss, to bling and to love. To ride, to train, to get better, to have some truly terrible rides but still be able to give him his Twizzler and a kiss at the end of each ride. My heart is full of love for this sweet, quirky, hot, lazy and very gentle and loving horse. Thank you to my darling Nic who made this possible (and brought me a dressage saddle, new hat, boots etc) and Sara, Rhonda Emily and Emily 2.0 who share this lovely boy with me.

Anyhow, its Friday night after a very long week and I am ready for a big glass of wine and the hot tub... my body hurts from Stressaging!!!

xoxo
Gemma

Sara getting a talking to from Steffan ;)

Feeling pretty OK!

Life goes on over here and at the moment I'm feeling pretty ok! The sun has been put most days, and our outdoor patio area is progressing to be a wonderful place to relax! I will post photos soon.

We are gearing up towards the summer now and are excited for so many things. We have an amazing vacation booked. Ethan starts Baseball and will have an official team, shirt etc. Also I am looking forward to watching and supporting my friends at Dressage Shows here. Of course, we also can't wait for my Mum to come back over and see more of Colorado. Plus we want to have lots of BBQs and socials at ours!

I was flying around Today, running chores in the sunshine and all of a sudden I realised that it's starting to feel more like home here. I know where to get my groceries, where to buy outdoor furniture. I have a hairdresser, a nail place, a dentist and dry cleaner. I know where to go for steak or Italian (and where not to go)! We have friends we love and a fabulous school for Ethan. All in all I feel like I might be ok... for right now anyway.

Tomorrow the weather is set to change, much needed rain is on the way so the joy may be short lived.

Anyhooooo, my bed is calling- another busy day ahead tomorrow!

BFN xoxo

Hitting the Hacking on Flame with Mandy (Ben) & Jess (JD)

Easter is on it's way

Every time a holiday pops up I get a little homesick.

Easter is close by and I am missing England, I miss shopping for Easter Eggs. Here there are Marshmallow chicks, solid chocolate bunnies and candy filled plastic eggs. But, the supermarkets aren't filled with aisle upon isle of gigantic hollow chocolate eggs. I loved shopping in the UK for Easter Eggs, the colors and choices were wonderful and the selection here just isn't that good. I will have to make do with some Lindt Chicks and Cadburys Creme Eggs, not a bad option but still not the same.

The weather has been a bit nuts, hot weather brings out all the spring flowers and tree blossoms, then we have a few inches of snow dumped which melts in 24 hours and the weather goes back to the 70s again only to hop back to snow a few days later. The poor horses are bouncing between moulting and shivering depending on the day and the flowers are trying their hardest not to die in the frosts.

Easter was always such a big deal in the UK, the kids are all off school for the long weekend and get full and crazy on too much sugar, here there is a regular school schedule which kind of dampens the whole deal. Its also a time i really miss being around my friends and family as I know what a big deal they make of it for Ethan.

Easter in the US

Easter in the UK

Santa Fe- long post!

We are back from our long weekend in Santa Fe and have had a great break there.

The trip started off a little tricky as many area were having a Spring Snowstorm, because of this the drive ended up taking a lot longer than originally planned but we got to see some beautiful views (when you could see through the storms that was)!

We arrived in Santa Fe and settled into our hotel before heading off for our first dinner to a Mexican Restaurant. The restaurant was packed and a buzzing atmosphere which was great fun, although why so many people feel the need to shout at each other across the table is beyond me, a noisy buzz in one thing but really, people! A few margaritas later and we headed back to the hotel exhausted from the drive.

The next day we spent checking out the farmers market and Railway Yard area of Santa Fe. I love the buzz at markets and we couldn't resist buying a pot of Raspberry Chili Jam, delicious! After that we headed over to a Shopping Centre to buy a box of Chocolate from a local Chocolatier (Señor Murphy Candymaker) and visit a quirky little Bug Museum called Harrell House. The Bug Museum was quite something. It was started by a guy who had been collecting since he was ten. He had displayed the (dead) bugs in a really beautiful and artistic way and the collection was bigger than anything I have seen before. As part of the experience there was a section with live animals, snakes, tarantulas, scorpions and so forth. We spent a good hour or so wandering around here and at the end got to participate in a pretty much private handling session. We got to hold/ touch a hissing cockroach, whiptail scorpion, giant millipede and and beautiful and very tame tarantula. Ethan had an amazing time here. For dinner we headed off to the Ranch House where I had the most delicious Smoke Pineapple Margarita along with a great steak.

The next day, needing to walk off some of the weekends calories we headed over to the Bandalier National Monument. This is a super cool and beautiful place where ground dwellings sit alongside cave dwellings, and natural beauty. Its pretty busy on the main tourist trail but we also took some extra trails to get some peace. We sat up in complete peace by a stunning outlook to eat our lunch. This place is super cool as it has stations along the route telling you the history of the area or cave that is in front of you. Many of the caves have ladders so you can climb into them and see the rooms that people used to live in. We took the extra mile hike too which takes you to 140ft of ladders, you get to climb and climb and see some amazing views. A few nerves saw Ethan a bit shaky after descending but he absolutely loved the experience. We ended up spending a good four hours hiking and investigating and went back to the hotel to relax by the pool. At night we headed off to another mexican called Los Potrillos. As always, it looks like a dive from outside but was buzzing with locals when we went in. I had the most amazing Fajitas, fresh and spicy and of course... a couple of margaritas! What a great restaurant, fab service and quirky, funny decor.

The final day was all about exploring Santa Fe town. After breakfast we headed into the main town and wandered around looking at shops and soaking up the atmosphere. There is a wonderful Cathedral in the centre which we spent quite a lot of time in, its beautiful and serene and has that special feeling that cathedrals have when you are inside them. It really hit Ethan emotionally and he needed some private time just to sit for a while. The main square was lovely, with a real sense of history and benches and traders all around it. After that we went to the weirdest place I think I have ever been, its called Meow Wolf and is an 'immersive art experience'. It really is pretty much indescribable. It is inside an old bowling alley/ warehouse area. You begin by walking into a 'garden' outside a house (The House of Eternal Return), as you enter the front door you have multiple options of where to turn and it just gets weirder, crawling through washing machines into an alternate dimension, playing music on dinosaur bones and sitting in a garden created from a sofa. You can go into the fridges, truly go through a wardrobe into a wonderland and climb down ever shrinking staircases. If you ever go to Santa Fe, you just have to visit it, there really in nothing else like it. Oh and its the only art installation that you are encouraged to touch EVERYTHING! Just awesome! After that we spent the afternoon relaxing (recovering) by the pool before heading out to for one last delicious dinner (and margaritas of course)...

Dry and Dangerous

The weather here at the moment is just gorgeous. We have had day after day of sunshine and almost no precipitation. Of course, in hand with that after a typical dry Colorado Winter comes wildfire risk. Usually by this time, Denver has seen over 40" of snow. We barely got 20" this winter so everything is even drier than usual. Today alone has seen two fires spark in Jefferson county and it's terrifying and exhausting for emergency services and residents. Tomorrow however sees a big shift in weather, with a big storm coming though. It looks like a week of on and off rain... or snow. No one quite knows yet! We travel to Santa Fe on Friday morning and have a friend coming to house/ dog sit for us. I am hoping that for our travel safety and my friends encase that the rain comes and no heavy spring snow! Time will tell...

http://www.thedenverchannel.com/news/local-news/firefighters-responding-to-wildfire-in-deer-creek-canyon-1-structure-burned

Spring!

Spring has arrived in Colorado, this week temps have hit over 70f most days, the daffodils are blooming and the grass is turning green. Today has been a scorcher, hot enough for bikinis and wine in the garden. It's been an interesting and very happy day for me today. We have been in the area for seven months now and winter has kind of cloistered all the neighbors away. In typical 'Suburban America' fashion the first really nice Sunday saw everyone outside, we were washing cars, trimming hedges and the kids began to appear. Ethan got up the courage to go and make conversation and made some neighborhood friends. The group of about eight kids have spent the whole afternoon running from backyard to backyard, playing on climbing sets, running through sprinklers and bouncing on the trampoline in the sunshine, I know it sounds like that kitsch American upbringing and maybe it is, a bit so, but it has really made me smile for Ethan. For me to see him running and playing in a safe neighborhood is special and makes me heart happy.

Life in Colorado is still pretty great. Yes, there are things that bug me, there would be anywhere we lived. The winter can be tricky with big snow storms making driving difficult and Spring weather comes with the risk of wildfires and flash flooding. As we spend longer here, we spend less time on the tourist trail and a bit more time doing the boring stuff, home improvements, washing cars etc. Making a conscious effort to still do fun stuff is important but easily overlooked.

This year we have finally planned some real family vacation time. We have a Spring Break booked to visit Santa Fe in New Mexico. We plan to hike, visit some museums, drink Margaritas and eat lots of Mexican Food. After that we have a stint before summer break. Our first proper family beach vacation in years is booked for summer, and we are all super excited. After that my Mum is coming out to visit for a decent holiday this time and we can spend some time with her, showing her everything that Colorado has to offer, well some of it at least.

All in all, some hugely exciting times are ahead, I promise to try to blog more... sorry!

New Year

Well, how did that happen! 2017 has arrived and my favorite holiday (Christmas) is behind us.

We really had a wonderful Christmas this year. My mum flew in for way too short a time but she spent Crimbo with us. It really was as wonderful as we hoped.

We had a day or two to show her a few local things. She came hiking in Ken Caryl and got a dressage lesson (she hasn't had a lesson since she was about six) from Sara on the amazing Boomer aka Bombay. Luckily we have the hot tub so she could ease her muscles afterwards!

Christmas Eve we headed up to the mountains to spend the afternoon and evening in Breckenridge. We spent an hour or so wandering through the town centre and then headed up to the Golf Course for a Horse Drawn Sleigh Ride. The Belgian Drafts were gorgeous, the views spectacular. It really was a magical evening.

On Christmas Day, I did the usual crazy routine of cooking, cleaning, gifts etc. It was crazy but wonderful and with my Mum, plus Neil and Mel over, it felt like the proper family Christmas that I love. We ended the day tired and stuffed, just how it should be!

Boxing Day was great, we had friends over for nibbles and drinks. The full house of people was fun and entertaining and again, we ate and drank, far too much. It was wonderful seeing friends though and my Mum got to meet some of our people over here.

The next day we said goodbye to Mum which was really sad, but we are hoping she comes back for a longer break this year so we can show her Colorado!

So, now we head into 2017 and I am not sure what it will offer us. We hopefully have some family and friends visiting in the summer and are planning a few trips through the US ourselves. I feel lucky to be starting the year with a whole new circle of friends out here, through school, sports, Nics work, The British Girls Group and especially through the barn with my Horsey Gals! I don't do resolutions as such, I think progress and change should always be at the forefront BUT I do need to stop eating Peppermint Bark... NOM NOM!

Beautiful Breck

Memories were built this way!

Christmas Day!