Jeez, not sure where to start, we moved to the Sunshine Coast last May (2022). There you go, a good start. It was a whirlwind romance, we needed to find a house as ours was sold, my friend and Realtor, Rachel Dempster said this place was coming up and I should see it. Never been to the coast, husband was in Costa Rica with my youngest on vacation, I brought my best friend over. We ran through the house, looked at the barn a couple of times and figured it ticked enough boxes. House inspection the day after, offer in the day after that, competing with two other families. Realtor was on the side of the road, trying to get home from Mexico, husband was in Costa Rica with dodgy wifi, each offer had to re written when we offered more money. It was pretty tense, I can tell you!! Well we got it, because we are here. Not sure you have ever had that feeling that you were meant to be somewhere, but this house, as soon as I sat on the sofa, I felt like I should always have been living here. Weirdly, our furniture just slid into place, it was like we had bought and furnished our last house for this house.
The horses arrived and everyone just took a deep breath and relaxed. Henry was on Vancouver Island, hoping to be backed, well I was hoping he was going to be backed, he was not so keen on the idea, but I will do a post about that one separately. He came back in the summer with much better manners and all the ground work ready for me to continue his education. Cass just relaxed and has been a different horse since arriving here. Again, another post on Cass and her journey. One of the things I really wanted on my own property was for my horses to live as a herd. I wanted it to be as natural as possible and for them to be able to hang out with one another, play and move as a herd. Which brings me onto Bella, oh Miss Bella. When I bought Bella, I wouldn't say it was a panic buy.....but it was kind of a panic buy. I knew Henry was going to be away, Gramma had left us and I needed someone to keep Cass company when we moved (she would not acknowledge the minis, still doesn't, apart from to chase them...), so I went off to my favorite rescue, Second Chance Cheekeye Ranch and met a few horses and fell in love with Belle. Little black morgan cross (I would think). She was so sweet, intelligent, very sweet and attentive and I thought she would fit in perfectly. However, once we all arrived at the farm, it became apparent that Bella was a very reluctant herd leader. How do you tell a horse they do not have to be a herd leader? Until someone else comes along who is willing to lead the herd, or there is a mutual understanding of sharing the responsibility, the herd leader stays in place. Now, being a herd leader is one thing, being a total bully is another. She took her role very seriously and no one could eat where she wanted to eat, she would kick everyone if they got to close, looked at her the wrong way and the poor minis were totally terrorized. Long story short, I have leased Bella out and have a lovely new boy Ben, yep you guessed it, they both get their own stories! I never want to sell Bella as I would be so sad if she fell into the wrong hands, she is very happy where she is now and I will always ensure she gets the best ownership.
Hmm, so what else, well the property is amazing, but due to the fact, I literally run around the place for an hour, I didn't realize the extent of the property, lets just say, I am a reluctant farmer, it has been a quick learn. We have an orchard, so we have many apples. Apples bears like to munch, oh did I not tell you about that bit? Yep, we have bears, again, since not ever being to the Coast before buying, I didn't know we had bears, I certainly didn't know I would find bears hanging out of my apples trees after shaking all the yummy apples out for a snack. Erm...... So with all of that in mind, once the fruit was ripe, I had to pick it and store it. Blackberries, grapes, figs, raspberries. I think I spent a good amount of the summer picking fruit! Also discovering gardens, again, we did a walk around, but didn't realize of what we had. It really has been a year of discovering little pockets of nature. I love it!!! Honestly, we have really lucked out with this property. It is a nature haven. I suppose that is some of the reason I have been so quiet this year on line, exploring this place, being present in nature, hanging out with the horses and trying to get my business up and running here. Now that bit has been harder.
However, as with everything it gives me time to reflect, to take my time with things and to finish off my studies. Last week, I passed my ICF accreditation and I am now an ACC Life Coach. This year is all about finishing, so my University of Guelph Equine Studies will be finished at the end of the year, I have one elective to complete and then I am done. I want to complete my paperwork for Equine Facilitated Wellness this year as well, hoping everything else falls into place in the meantime.
Anyway, that is the summarised catch up. I shall post my horses individually, as their stories have evolved and we have exciting news!!!
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