Chips rule and I LOVE my neddies!

Ive had a really hard week at work this week and insomnia has returned with a vengence so was feeling pretty tired and grotty today.I got home from work at ten and had arranged to meet M at lunchtime to ride thought i'd take dogs out then 'try' and have an hour sleep.Try being the operative word,I then got a phonecall to say M couldnt ride 'tried' again for a sleep..still no joy so got up and went up the farm.Took both saddles with me but didnt really have a lot of intention of doing anything.Stopped on the way to farm at the chip shop for some dinner,chip buttie which was yummy and obviously hit the spot because I felt a surge of energy to do something:)
I decided to take AliG in the school,no lunging today got straight on and rode him over,since he hasnt shown any reaction the two times ive ridden him after the break I didnt see the point.Got to the school to find it locked I asked one of the girls what was up she said the key was stuck inside the lock so they were waiting for the owner to come and sort it.Wasnt sure what to do at this point they didnt know how long it would be to get sorted so decided to go out on a short hack!
We went up the lane and other than being nosey and wanderey he was absolutely fine,I cant say enough how chilled and curious he is,its almost indecent how a 3year old be so self assured;)))...NOT that im complaining.
I still dont want to do too much ridden work on hard ground so will keep up the long reining and riding in the school but with the odd short hack thrown in.Im probably being extra carefull but as Caroline is finding when you pay this much money for a horse and they are so fabulous you just dont feel like taking risks!:)
I also rode Polo we went up the lane too but when a bit further AND I took all the dogs,Minx and Mouse are old hands at it but Buster has only been out twice and with my brother on foot.I usually take treats in my pocket when they first start coming out with Polo and every so often call them to his side and throw a treat down when they make eye contact with me,this way I know I have their undivided attention if I need to get them back quickly.Suprisingly after doing this twice Buster had it sussed,I havent credited him being the brightest dog so he suprised me!
Polo is brill with the dogs he watches out for them and will wait patiently while I get them under control.Minx was in heaven as there were rabbits all along the fields so she was in full hunting mode,Buster looks like he may follow in her footsteps as he was off with her unlike Mouse who totally heels Polo and has never shown any interest in hunting.
Smack my wrist and tell me to stop cantering on all the grass verges because no sooner had we turned for home and Polo was off and running.He feels great to ride at the moment totally forward but not crazy with it..usually when he's in forward mode you cant trust him not to throw in a dirty spook or bad buck but at the moment I feel really happy on him.This may sound silly as horse riding is meant to be a pleasure but a lot of the time with him it simply isnt nice but I could feel my irritation and tiredness draining away..weird they didnt pick up on my mood and become silly or agitated instead they changed my mindset completely:))
Ive been wondering if the Ranitidene has kicked in recently he probably hasnt been getting the full or correct does but maybe its been enough?
Just remember to mention when I read Jean's blog a while ago she had found some research which suggested ulcers occur in foals due to lack of milk or early weaning.When I thought about this I remember Polo's mum was a terrible broodmare in that she didnt have much of a bond or interest in him.At one point she had to be taken out of a field with other horses as she kept letting another young mare take Polo off her and he got really confused to which one was mummy,maybe this had an impact(ive always said thats why he's insecure!)..possible?
Early bed for me to catch up on the elusive sleep and dog show for Mouse tomorrow so no horsey 'stuff'.