My Canine Companions ~ Blessings !

 I don't think I can ever underestimate the many ways my canine companions have enriched my life. This is Whimsy our German Shepherd. If I had known many years ago what an amazing breed German Shepherds are Whimsy would not have been our first GS Dog. I believe we have been mightily blessed she is our first because of her willingness to please us and quickly learn our ways and routines , mutually beneficial to all concerned. And how could you not love a face like this ? She is looking at me in this picture. She watches, studies, and follows me , humbling me with her unwavering devotion.

 This is Hawk, our old Vizsla , settled in front of our fireplace with our other constant companion, Blizzard. Blizzard may look like a cat, but he is 20 pounds of muscle in a cat body with the personality and friendliness of the average snuggly dog. Blizzard actually becomes a nuisance when we have company because he runs to see who's here and then proceeds to jump in their laps, especially if that company includes children. He loves being in the midst of loud playful kids and often frustrates them by snatching their toys for himself. Alas, Blizzard usually has to settle for us and our dogs, but he has no qualms about thrusting himself upon us. Hawk always appreciates a warm body to lean into and he and Blizzard are friends.

 Beatrix is 11 years old and such a faithful dog. She and Whimsy do not get along because they both strive to be by my side. Whimsy works hard at keeping Beatrix away from me by circling us as we walk and nipping Beatrix , trying to bully Beatrix to stay back away from me, far away from me. This works too , because Beatrix will back away from me and flatten herself on the ground when this happens. It is apparent Whimsy has quickly become the "alpha" in my little pack of four. I am working with Whimsy to teach her manners, it is not polite to mistreat your elders . This has really been my biggest challenge with Whimsy. I will not allow her to abuse Beatrix , and Beatrix is the only dog she picks on. I have been thinking on this since Whimsy was 6 months old. Why does Beatrix seem to concern her regarding me ? How can I stop her from bullying Beatrix... still working on this, but Whimsy has not physically harmed Beatrix , and thus far Whimsy has respected my insistence on this. ( She'd better ! )

 This is Willow, Beatrix's older sister. She is 13 years old. Both Beatrix and Willow were born in my kitchen. They are full sisters from different litters. Willow and Whimsy are companions, sharing the back yard and porch. They sleep together too. Willow gets along with everyone, people, other dogs, cats. She loves nothing more than food and her beef bones. She is always carrying a beef bone around with her and sleeps with her favorite beef bone. Willow is one of those dogs often unappreciated until they are gone because she is so easy to have around. Sometimes she is silly and it is fun to watch her roll around in the grass , one of her big pleasures. Rolling, rolling, rolling.. and snorting with pure doggy joy as she does.

All our dogs love to hang out with my grandchildren , and all my grandchildren love dogs. My canine companions enrich my life, entertain me, and I hope I give to them even a fraction of the love and devotion they give to me. My dogs are a blessing to me and I am thankful for them. ( Picture is of Whimsy and one of our grandsons, daughter's youngest son. )

Sunday Sunshine Therapy

 There were a few moments of sunshine between down-pourings of rain . I took a walk along our little road  with my pack of 4 dogs . We watched my geese and ducks swimming in sunshine reflections.

 Me, my puppy ( she might be large but is still in her youth ) and our 3 old dogs who have all been with us for more than a decade, took our time. I allowed the dogs to examine every log , stick,stone and puddle. The Labs just had to take a splash and a swim in the pond. Therapy ~ that is what you should call a walk in sunshine with dogs you love & enjoy.

The very old Labrador Retriever ,Willow ( dog with collar ), is always limping and in some pain , but she is one of the happiest dogs I spend time with. She gets along with all the dogs and cats and is easy company. She was born in my kitchen many years ago, 4th and last generation of Labs born here at Cedar Pond . She has been such an easy dog to train and have around I have taken her for granted. As I watch her in her old age I am appreciating more and more what a treasure she is.

Just a simple walk with my dogs, some Sunday sunshine therapy.

Summer Time & The Living Is Busy !

Ella & Fella my Sebastapol geese enjoy the long hours of summer by eating grass , swimming in our pond, and following me around as I tend my flocks and weed the gardens. When I sit on the porch and spin my wool into yarn they sit under the bleeding hearts plants nearby and watch me , sometimes poking their bills through the porch rails just to make sure I am still there.

Hawk, our Viszla is afraid of Ella & Fella. I'm not sure when they taught him to run away from them , but they did a very good job of it. He sits on the porch with me, but when he spies the geese he runs to the opposite side of the porch. The geese are not allowed on the porch and at least Hawk can count on it being safe , but he makes sure he is as far away as he can get from them. We seem to have our own little comedy show here on our front porch , but Hawk probably thinks it is not so funny.

My Jacob sheep lambs are growing up quickly and some are already stretching their necks for the trees and bushes growing overhead.

I have four hens raising chicks they've hatched out and two batches of chicks brooding in the garage. They are my future laying flock , plus some bantam chicks I am adding to my Silkie and Cochin breeding program. ( Yes, I have a plan and a program ! ) The chicks shown here with their mama are Porcelain D'Uccles my grandson gave me. The father of these  chicks did very well in an open poultry show recently and we have high hopes for the chicks.

Here Ella & Fella are walking their babies around the gardens. Their babies are actually ducklings Ella hatched out. The ducklings have been well tended by their adoptive parents but bit by bit they are becoming ducks . Waddling, quacking, and eating like ducks ...not geese. Poor Ella & Fella try and try to keep the ducklings with them but the ducklings are spending more and more time with my other ducks, leaving the geese to forlornly follow me without them. I hope next year Ella & Fella are able to successfully hatch out their own goslings , they're good and devoted parents.

We had the last Thursday Ladies Bible Study of the season last week. We won't meet again until the fall . This Bible study has had a tremendous impact on me and I am so thankful for the ladies God has brought into my life. It was an eventful year for all of us and all the ladies involved have had life altering events . One of the ladies became a widow, another happily remarried. One of our members has moved to the east coast to live happily ( yes ! ) with her daughter and daughter's family & to spend much time with 4 of her beloved grandchildren. There are other big events not to be shared publicly, but all the more a blessing we have been able to meet, study the Bible, pray with and for each other and always bring it back to the One who knows and loves us perfectly.

This must seem a long post, but the days are long and the hours I need to be working outdoors in the summer seem to stretch from very early to very late and when I come indoors there is little time for me to spend on my computer, so I am summing up my thus-far summer days in one post . Weeding, tending my herd & flocks, spinning wool when I have time , training my dog, playing with the old dogs, keeping my home neat & clean, and as I get older, I am working on taking the time to sit and appreciate the bounty of my blessings. The best part of all is sitting on the porch with my husband, sipping coffee as we watch the birds at the feeders and enjoying each others' company. Summer time and the living is busy, but not too busy to enjoy !

A Christmas Whimsy , Blizzard, & Hawk

 My Whimsy, almost 6 months old and already she loves to pose for pictures. ( well, she SEEMS to )Do you see the spray bottle under the Christmas tree ? It is full of vinegar water for....

 ...our Blizzard who thinks it is fun to catch the bird ornaments and dismantle the tree. So when I catch him at this game I spray him with vinegar water. Actually, all he needs to see is me reaching for the bottle and he scoots out from under the tree and disappears  from sight. ( The little red boot ornament was a gift to me from my first grade teacher in Massachusetts many , many years ago. Mrs. Miller still rates as one of my favorite teachers.)

Our Christmas dogs. Hawk, wearing a bell and a worried expression, and Whimsy , just waiting to play after pictures are taken .

 

We hope your Christmas festivities and celebrations were times of making new & precious memories with loved ones, and times to reflect on the many blessings God bestowed upon you in the years past. May you  also be able to look forward to whatever 2014 brings to you with boldness and peace because you know the One in charge... Jesus !

Whimsy's First Winter & We're In The Deep Freeze

 Cedar Pond is frozen. We had about an inch of snow last week, and for the last few days our nightly temperatures have been below 20 degrees. Right now it is 11 degrees here. The pond just starts to thaw in the late afternoon , then the temps drop and it re-freezes. The weather forecasters predict these temps until the middle of next week.

 Our fountains are frozen. Our animal water troughs are frozen. I was looking forward to spending the cold winter days indoors, spinning and weaving my wool, reading my Christmas magazines, baking cookies,blogging....( you get the picture ) but instead, I am carrying many, many buckets of hot water to my poultry and livestock . My husband & I have also been carrying many loads of firewood indoors to keep our home warm & toasty. Just past midnight my husband was outside checking the pipes and putting heat lamps on some of them, then he added more wood to the woodstove & stoked it up.

 Whimsy, my German Shepherd puppy turned 5 months old a few days ago and this is her first freeze.

 She checked out our first dusting of snow...

 ...and the ice on the pond.

 

Whimsy also checked out the red bows on our Christmas decorations and thought they were great chew toys. But she is a very smart dog and after 3 attempts to dismantle the decorations for her amusement, we convinced her this was not acceptable behavior for a good dog like her.Now she leaves the bows alone. Good dog Whimsy .

 

Whimsy & Hawk

Summer Garden & the Grapes Are Running Amok !

 The grape vines are taking over Cedar Pond. In the orchard, in the front porch gardens,even the front porch itself they are running amok ! It is a good thing my sheep love to eat grapevines because my husband & I have a steady supply of snacks for them. There is no need to wonder where to cast all the prunings and weedings we do around here. With poultry , sheep, and a goat, the excess grape vines, blackberry vines, and edible weeds are quickly eaten and turned into fertilizer for next year's gardens.

 Look ! Our male kiwi is finally climbing the arbor towards the female kiwi. She is shy and taking her time growing towards him. We thought she was dead, but no...she tentatively cast a tendril upward and towards him and maybe next spring they'll meet and touch. Who knows, they may produce fruit for us sooner than expected, but not this year. 

 My hydrangea is blooming too. The blue flowers are among my favorites in my garden, but if I let my watch down the grapes will strangle her. It is good to have pruning shears in my hands when I check her out. Those grapes are kind of sneaky, the way they weave in and out of the flowers and bushes around here.

 My granddaughter's bicycle sports a hanging geranium,a gift from my sister.

 The honeybees love these flowers planted near my dovecote. I do too.

And then, there is Hawk, who simply wants to be near me, no matter where I am, but especially in the garden where he will find the most comfortable spot to supervise my work. Summer gardening around here means taming the grape & blackberry vines, training the kiwi, harvesting from the vegetable garden anything the wild rabbits have left us after their nightly feasts, and remembering this season passes quickly,so enjoy and be thankful for all  it brings. ( mosquitos too ? ) Now I am hoping the little birds will leave us some of the grapes from the grape vines run amok. Grape juice and grape jelly from our own grapes would be a very nice treat for a winter's breakfast. Happy gardening to you !

Happy Dog

Our happy dog Hawk just soakin' up the sun on a beautiful spring day. I hope you're enjoying sunshine too !

Sunshiny Autumn, Happy Hawk !

I was working outside and noticed my constant companion, our Vizsla , Hawk, was not following me. Very unusual, he seems to be attached to me at the knee when I am outside.I looked for him and found him just standing...

..and soaking up the heat of the afternoon Autumn sunshine. Here is a dog dear to my heart that knows when to stop and soak in the blessings that come our way, sometimes for only a few scarce minutes.Thank-you God for allowing me the privilege of enjoying animals who know to stop and take in the everyday blessings I so often hurry by, only to remember days or years past, if at all.

"The happiest heart that ever beat 

was in some quiet breast

That found the common daylight sweet,

And left Heaven to the rest."

John Vance Cheney 

 

From My Porch ~ Bad Dog!

Hawk reclining on my quilt-draped wicker porch furniture. He makes himself mighty cozy.I think I disturbed his nap.

"We never really own a dog as much as he owns us." Gene Hill

Hawk & Blizzard

Blizzard our Siamese cat enjoyed a day in the sun.

Blizzard wears a harness and leash because we have lost too many beloved cats to predators, and we also do not like our cats to eat the many wild birds we feed.

Blizzard enjoyed chasing bugs & butterflies, bees and ...

...ducks!

But the most fun of all was stalking, attacking, and wrestling our dog Hawk, a willing participant in their never-ending games, most often played indoors on Hawk's pillow in front of the t.v.

O.K. Rest time in the shade, the games will continue later on tonight,indoors.

Blizzard keeps watch on Hawk, and stalks him all day, attacks Hawk whenever he can grab him, and when the two of them are exhausted, they fall asleep together on Hawk's pillow. I think they are pretty evenly matched, but most often Blizzard shows himself the winner of their friendly wrestling matches.I think Hawk allows this because he loves having a furry companion to cuddle and claim as his own. Whatever brings them together and binds their friendship, they are fun to watch !

Scenic View On The Way Home ~ HOME !

My traveling companions Beatrix and Hawk peer from the back of my car as I take a walk down to the scenic view outlook.We have been gone for more than a week visiting the granddaughters who live 6 hours away on the other side of the mountains. On the way home I stopped to buy coffee for me and cheeseburgers for the 3 of us. Hawk and Beatrix look forward to their plain cheeseburgers! I also took time to take in the beauty of the mighty Columbia River across from the Wild Horse Monument just over the bridge from Vantage, Washington. Breath-takingly beautiful .The scenery here seems almost barren, yet just a few miles from here the freeway heading home takes me through the highest snow-capped mountains filled with lush vegetation and evergreen trees, then down into King and Pierce Counties in Washington where there is so much green it makes my heart sing ! I do love the place I live ~ even the rainy days, especially the rainy days. Hawk , Beatrix, and I will be much happier to get home so I do not linger long at the scenic outlook. "Where we love is home.Home that our feet may leave, but not our hearts." Oliver Wendell Holmes I am looking forward to reading and posting blogs again after being away from the internet, but now, a good night's sleep in my own bed !

Thanksgiving With Some of My Favorite People and Dogs

Thanksgiving was celebrated over the mountains and through the woods, 6 and 1/2 hours away with our oldest son and his 4 daughters, pictured above.

My beloved Beatrix was with us...

..as was my husband's dog Hawk. We had a wonderful time of family, food, and fellowship ~ and LOTS of snow! "As the season turns toward December , we are settling in. The woodpile high, the freezer filled, heaters ready to be lit,snow tires on - we can face the world with a smile." Gladys Taber Now, on to December and the hustle and bustle of Christmas!

Distracted By Bouncing Spots!

I have been reluctant to get to work around here. There is a lot to do, and my husband is preparing a special dinner Friday night for my sisters and their husbands...but I keep finding myself standing by the fence line with Beatrix ( above).....

...I have chicken pens that need a lot of work done in them, wool needing to be spun and locker-hooked, but I am standing at the fence line with Hawk ( above)...

....there are dishes and glasses needing that extra special polishing , table linens to select and arrange, a dessert to be baked, but I find myself standing at the fence line with Willow (above)...what are we distracted by?

Bouncing spots!Little bouncing spotted lambs. They are so much fun to watch, and watch, laugh and watch some more. Sigh.........I am not going to be getting as many things done as quickly as I had planned. And then to add distraction upon distraction,

Miss Alice from Thoughts of Home* sends me these squares of fabric for quilting projects that perfectly suits my color and fabric taste. Now I am distracted by bouncing spots and blue and yellow squares and so much more fun to come. Thank-you Alice!

Distraction: "Confusion from a multiplicity of objects crowding on the mind and calling the attention different ways;" fr. American Dictionary of the English Language