Entertaining your Pony Princess This Summer!

The summer holidays are very nearly upon us and I can hear parents across the country worrying about how to keep their little ones entertained for weeks on end!  If your little ones are lucky enough to have their own pony then they can have fun at the farm not just riding but grooming and caring for their equine partner, perhaps using one of our junior grooming kits.  The summer is also a great opportunity to try something new - a new hack, join the pony club, set up a fun little gymkhana with your yard buddies or pop along to your local show. 

If you are not a horse or pony owner but you're little one is pony mad then you're in luck as many riding schools run extra activities for little ones in the holidays including pony camp, own a pony day, junior rallies etc. You can use the British Horse Society website to find an approved place to ride in your local area.  These activities are a great way to learn more about riding as well as pony ownership and I have fond memories of these as a child!

When away from the yard there are also plenty of other pony themed activities that little ones can enjoy! When the weather is bad why not get a couple of friends round for a craft play day.  The Melissa and Doug Wooden Stamp Set is great for little ones to make cards and pictures for their loved ones. Plus it's not too messy to clear up!!   

When going on holiday it's also worth taking a few toys to keep your little ones entertained when you are busy.  The Horse and Riders Magnetibook is a lovely toy for children aged 3-8 years.  This horsey toy contains four interchangeable scenes, three landscape boards and 24 horsey themed magnets for little ones to make a variety of pony scenes. Plus the set all comes in a handy book/ box so they can be kept together and lightweight for travelling.

It's great to get the children outside to run off their excess energy and our horse skipping rope will also help with that!  Lightweight and easy to transport to any location, children can either play on their own or with friends making up various games.

On a quiet day when your little one is feeling tired perhaps they would enjoy some down time with a snack and one of our puzzles.  The Horse Floor Puzzle is a popular one - you just need a floor space so your little pony lover can create the beautiful horsey scene on this jigsaw puzzle.  

We hope we have provided you with a few extra ideas for the summer holidays and want to wish you all a fabulous summer time.  Don't forget to let us know what you've got up to - we look forward to receiving photos of you with your ponies!              

Cambridgeshire County Show

Last weekend I took my first ever visit to Cambridgeshire County Show. This was held at the beautiful Wimpole Home Farm (also worth a visit if you are ever in the area), about 30minutes away from us and an easy drive on a Sunday afternoon. We were expecting a few rain showers so we were pleasantly surprised when a bright and sunny day was upon us. As promised here are a few snaps of the event. However I had another camera disaster! This time the batteries were well and truly charged up, trouble was I left the camera back at home- Whoops! I did manage to get a few of my phone camera so here they are....

The Pony Club were there giving the audience a great display of their skills! The youngest member was only 3 years old and she was sitting on a very gorgeous and well behaved shetland pony!

The Suffolk Punch gave a spectacular display of their strength and beauty...

And who says heavy horses can't do dressage? The below shire is one of the shires from the heavy horses kept at Wimpole Home Farm. This was only his 5th time wearing a saddle but he behaved perfectly. The aim is to use this horse for dressage competitions - I cant wait to meet him at a local show! Looking at the display they put on at the weekend I think he'll do rather well.

Below is a picture of another one of the shires at Wimpole Home Farm...

As you can see from the snaps we weren't the only ones who enjoyed a lovely day out at the show. It was lovely to go to such a busy, fun event and we will certainly be returning next year!

Summer Picnics!

The holidays are fast approaching and luckily this week we are seeing a tad more sunshine hurrah! If you are starting to think about activities for the children during the summer break then why not consider a countryside picnic? We got our picnic table out at the weekend for an event and I realised its barely ever used but is such a nice thing to do with friends and family and it doesn't cost a fortune. You can get the childen to help you prepare a picnic at home and they will love packing their very own lunchbox. If you're little one is pony mad, the new pony girl lunchbox and water bottle at The Horse Diva will go down a treat! You don't need to travel far and its not an expensive activity as you can use whatever food you already have in the fridge. Plus once the summer is over, these are great items for school packed lunches- there is a name tag on the lunchbox and the water bottle fits inside perfectly. These are light and easy for children to carry but a good size to cram full of food for a day out at a horse show or Pony Club event. But remember if its hot and sunny put on some sun cream and reapply it during the day- and if you're horse or pony is anything like mine this may be applicable to him too!