Bits Of Progress

 I didn't ride at all this past week. 

But, never fear, I did spend almost every spare minute at the barn!

These two were just enjoying some time in the field at 'their' barn this week

I was actually at 'my' barn, where the horses don't live (yet), but hey, it counts, right?

Their attached paddock to be. Currently a little less picturesque than where they are now ;). The blue house is ours (currently rented to a nice lady), yellow is the neighbour.

I'm sore and tired after a week of digging and raking and building things, and I only have what feels like a shockingly small amount of progress to show for it. It really is worth it to pay for a machine to do the work for you! Unfortunately it is a small place and there is only so much he can do with a big machine - it's on me to clean up the smaller nooks and crannies on the property.

Before

Not exactly after...but getting there? Rehanging the doors and a new paint job will help immensely, I think. Plus I'm strategically planting some gardens and climbing roses to hide the ugliest parts ;)

Get some wood stain and flowers in here STAT! The photo angle makes this look like the longest wall in the world, but it's only 10' long and 7' high ...there is reasonable hope the new shrubberies can hide it :)

I feel like I've temporarily made a bigger mess by dismantling fences and making mulch and construction debris piles. The visuals are also not helped by the fact that it's been pouring rain and the whole place has basically turned into a giant sticky clay/mud pit. So, really ,it's just as well I'm taking a time out from the big machines while we clean up the smaller stuff and prep for them to come back. Just like progress with the horses, I guess it's going to get worse before it gets better!

Oh my. I optimistically bought grass seed, but don't even want to think about how much gravel and drainage is going to be required back there before I plant anything.

Meanwhile, on the other side of town...grassy fields and a sunnier day. Boarding does have some benefits, lol

Aside from cleaning up the area immediately around the barn, I saved a bunch of  hazelnut and berry bushes from the property (they grow there like crazy) and then potted them to save for later re-planting along laneway. I hit the garden centre as well and bought a few shrubs (lilac/california lilac/elderberry/nootka roses) to fill any gaps. Wood prices are through the roof (if you can even find cedar for fencing) so I'm going to do a nice black mesh fence with an informal hedge set inside. If you haven't guessed, I enjoy gardening so I'm actually having quite a lot of fun planning all of that.

I've also started dismantling old fences. A lot of it is rotten, some of it has to come out simply because we need space to get big dump trucks in and turned around and water lines put in. I'm cursing my previous self for cementing the original fence posts in :)

Do you think she knows how spoiled she is?

All in all, there is so much work to do that I'm not even optimistic they'll be moving in this coming fall. But, I'm in my element and I love doing this kind of stuff, so you'll be seeing lots of little progress updates for the foreseeable future. I'm slowly embracing the idea of reusing the building, and have some fun things planned for it.  Hopefully, once I'm less obsessed/excited about it I'll get back to using some time in the evenings to ride instead.