All about Verena

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February 20, 2023 5 min read

Today we are catching up with Verena, who is also known as A Girl About The Yard! As well as loving all things equestrian, she is also a lover of tea which you can find out about on her Instagram profile!

Verena tell us a bit about yourself, what do you do, where are you from, where we can find you online and what makes you tick?

Hello, thank you for having me! I am an avid Earl Grey tea drinker, love carbs and quite honestly love the simple life. Not a minimalist, but simple; I love finding joy in the day to day mundane life. I live with my husband and 8 month old baby, Angus; neither of which feature on my online life, because I don’t want to be upstaged…

I am a riding instructor by ‘trade’ and a wife/mother very much by the rest of my time. I absolutely love being in the kitchen baking and cooking up a storm. My happiest is when there is a gang of people sitting around the kitchen table munching on good fresh food. Or the pizza from the local pub, prawns and chilli sauce on a pizza is a game changer. WOW!

Daily ramblings about my day, thoughts, horses, dogs and the rest can be found at www.instagram.com/girlabouttheyard ; I am based in the North West England on the top of a hill!

I can also be found on my monthly newsletter, ‘my monthly ramblings’ where I give a bit more insight to how my month has gone and recommend some of my favourites. I’d love to welcome you there!

What do you do in your spare time & what you get up to offline?

In my ‘spare time’ I like to scottish dance and flirt with everyone; I thrive off laughter and discovering other people’s passions. I am also a massive cheerleader for everyone, I think you’re just amazing and simply bring the best unique thing to the world. Thanks for being here!

We have seen you doing your baking on insta and love watching this, can you give us a favourite recipe for our readers?

Thank you, it is my form of self-care. Time flies when I am baking and it brings me so much joy. I do eat it all – I do have to admit that! Absolutely, I will share my banana bread recipe with you – it is so delicious, I make it practically every fortnight – perfect for after a ride, to recover from a night out or even just to enjoy whilst listening to the rain fall!

100g sultanas soaked in, 80ml earl grey (or just water) - *NOTE* I substitute these for chocolate buttons most of the time. Just use 100g chocolate drops/buttons instead (use your fave flavour).
175g plain flour
2tsp baking powder
½ tsp bicarbonate of soda
½ cinnamon (I go for a ‘splash’)
125g melted butter
150g maple syrup (or runny honey)
2 eggs
4 ripe bananas (well mashed)
1 tsp vanilla extract

Preheat the oven, at 170 degrees – or keep a space in the Baking Oven of the Aga . Grease your usual bread rectangle tin - whatever design you’d like your bread to look like
Put the sultanas in the tea, and leave to soak as you mix the rest. 
Mix all the dry ingredients in a bowl. Melt the butter and the maple syrup over the heat, and keep mixing, then add to the dry ingredients and mix further. 
Beat in the egg, and then the mashed banana. Drain your sultanas, add to the mixture, and add vanilla extract. Mix away, fold if you desire. 
Scrape the mixture into the already greased pan, and left it off with a palette knife.
Cook for an hour, I find that it is more like 50 minutes in the Aga, but keep an eye on it past 40 minutes. 
When the skewer is clean, Bob’s your uncle. 
Remove from the over and allow to cool!

What is your ultimate Hiho love (favourite piece from the Hiho collection) and why?

I have to admit that Hiho was one of the first brand I bought from when I was deciding what my ‘style’ was going to be. And I kicked my Hiho collection off with the Sterling Silver Snaffle Ring, which I wore on my thumb for a very long time. I am ashamed to admit that I took it off to clean out a drain whilst on a horse-riding camp and have since not seen it. Hopefully someone else is enjoying it instead. Lucky them. I do also love the horse trial charms that Hiho bring out!

I am a big fan of the equestrian collection, there is something incredibly special about the equipment that comes with a horse. I think it is a constant reminder of the memories that we enjoy with our horses, the questions they bring up (which rug is good for today, should I change his feed or is he just having a quirky day today…) and the joy they bring.

How is the riding, any tips for anyone wanting to get a horse?

Shameless plug, I have written a book on this, because there is so much noise out there about how to do X or how to do Y. It is called ‘So You Want To Get A Horse?' Available on kindle or paperback from Amazon.

My advice? Work out what you want, ask lots of questions – there are no silly questions, even when people look at you weirdly (that’s their problem, not yours), ask, ask, ask. Use other people’s life experience to better yourself. Oh, and definitely get the horse, it’s the best and most exciting (definitely not easy) experience!

My favourite thing about horse riding is the endorphins, the rollercoaster ride of owning a horse and that time simply stands still. Whether that is when mucking out a soggy stable, or cleaning tack (not something I do that regularly, I must admit) or just leaning over the field gate checking that they are still breathing and can survive without us. Time stands still and we simply listen to the birds, breathe in the fresh air and enjoy our time. And suddenly panic sets in because there is a cake in the oven, or someone coming for supper and we haven’t showered yet… you know the one!

And finally - what is the best piece of advice you have received?

Live in the present. For the now. Worrying about the future makes you live the experience twice, which takes twice as much energy. Worrying about the past doesn’t make it better. There is a reason that the rear view mirror is smaller than the windscreen.

Live for right now. Right now being the cup of tea in front of you, or the chapter in the book you’re trying to read – or even right now, putting on your Hiho Silver jewellery to finish the look so you can smash your day! Go you, I’m cheering you all the way!

Anyway, enough of me. Well done you, you’re brilliant. I’m very proud of you and what you bring to the world. Have a lovely day and see you at Girl About The Yard.

Thanks Hiho; keep up the good work, we look fantastic as a result of your collections!

You can find Verena on Instagram at @girlabouttheyard

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