It is fair to say that the adult residents of this house have decidedly itchy feet - not medically, but agriculturally. June flew past in a blur of mowing, baling, wrapping and horse shows. And then it started to rain. And rain. And it is still raining.

We keep comparing assorted weather apps and reports, and trying to define some sort of average across the board. Last week the forecast was for…wait for it... rain, but one of our neighbours blatantly ignored Met Eireann and he mowed a meadow. This triggered a fervent debate, titled ‘should we or should we not put the mower on the tractor’. We decided against. The joke was on us and the inaccuracies of the Met Eireann weather reading persons, because it stayed dry. The next day, the same neighbour was happily wrapping his freshly baled silage, whilst we dealt with our own regrets.

Convalescence

June was a great month for me. My lovely grey mare put her best hoof forward at three Dressage Ireland shows. She brought home wins, placings and rosettes every time out, as well as picking up two tickets to the Dressage Ireland National Championships in September. I was very pleased and more than a little relieved to get all the qualifying out of the way, because I had to go for surgery at the end of June. Everything went well, other than the appallingly boring period of convalescence. The husband played a blinder, and did a masterful job of looking after myself, the child, the farm and the equines. He does not particularly like horses, seeing them as expensive and fragile non-essentials that sometimes make his wife cry. Still though, he never complains and I am so lucky and grateful to have him.

European Championships

Speaking of dressage, what an exciting time it is for Irish riders. After the baffling debacle around not sending our first ever qualified team to Tokyo, things looked a little bleak. We need not have worried. Currently, Irish High Performance Director Anne Marie Dunphy has eight qualified combinations for the upcoming European Championships. Last weekend saw Abi Lyle and Sorrell Klatzko achieve personal best international scores at the Hartpury CDI 3* show, and along with Carolyn Mellor, all achieved notable placings.

We are back out competing again this weekend. Myself, the child and the ASBO cob return to Oldcastle Show, to defend our fancy dress crown. Wish us luck!