Well another week has gone by and Christmas is only a few days away. Unfortunately I will not be coming home for the Holidays and therefore will be spending another Christmas season in Germany. So far I do not have any big plans. I will be spending Christmas Eve with my friend Mirjam, like last year. The first day of Christmas I will be with one of the boarders here, and the second day of Christmas I will have to myself. This Saturday is our barn Christmas party, and in a last minute decision I will be riding the quadrille along with Mirjam. This last week we had our first two practises and they were quite good. We only have one more rehearsal and this time we will add the music....I hope all the horses can keep it under control for the big show night.

This week was even quieter than last week. I had one evening out with one of the boarders here. We enjoyed a very nice dinner and conversation. On the weekend Mr. Reisch was away in London, therefore we were alone in the stable. It was a lot of work but we managed to pull it off.

Focus enjoyed her week holiday and is now back in work. I am only in Germany for another four or five months and in this time we will secure her at the Young rider level. Upon my April return to Canada, Focus will be three weeks in quarantine and then hopefully by the beginning of May she will be able to start showing. For next year the goal is to ride her Prix St. Georges and try and qualify for Canadian Nationals or for North Americans. She will have to play it by year and see where she is in a few months. Focus is only six years old and I do not want to push her beyond her limits. The art of riding is a balancing act between your goals and the realities of the horse. As far as her return transport, nothing much has advanced in the last week. She will have to stay three weeks in quarantine here in Germany and then another three weeks back in Canada. In total she will be almost three days underway. First she will have to drive six to seven hours to Luxembourg. Then she will have to stay a few hours in the airport facilities, then a 12 hour flight to Calgary, Alberta. After a couple hour stay in Calgary she will then drive 16 hours from Calgary to home in Langley British Columbia. In the end hopefully she will arrive safe and sound just like the trip here.

In the coming week Christmas preparations will launch into full swing. Next week’s article will for sure be an interesting one, including pictures and a write up about Saturdays Christmas party, a Friday afternoon in Düsseldorf visiting the Christmas Market and more on Focus.

So, until next week...

Erika and Focus