Thursday, October 31, 2013

bye bye October...


As October comes to a close, I can't help but take pictures of the beautiful fall days... the leaves are long past peak, and the trees are really getting bare.....
This almost looks like mountain range, but it's just clouds in the sky at the edge of our pasture....
I can see our neighbor's homes once again.. and enjoy watching their flag blow in the wind....
Kass,Reagan and I met for lunch today on this Halloween day.. so Kass had him dressed up in his little monster costume. It is almost needless to say that he was a big hit with all the folks in the restaurant!!!
I've been learning to knit off and on over the past few years. I love making hats and mittens.. and now that I have two "grands" to knit for.., it's so much fun. This is a little hat that I got done for Reagan.... the pattern is one that I half made up... and the wool is all hand spun, so I am sure he will be warm and toasty wearing it....
Such a little ham... he can catch your heart with that smile....













Kass sent me these photos... Reagan not only sits up now, but crawls... not up on all fours yet, more of a belly crawl, but he can scoot around pretty quickly, and Kass's days of sitting are long over, I fear....

Already for Halloween trick or treaters to come to the house....












Every Wednesday Kass tries to get Reagan to Storytime at the Library... which happens to be run by my dear friend and fellow puppy raiser, Kathleen. This past Wednesday.. when they went, Debbie was with Kathleen on a puppy swap... so... Kass and Kathleen got this photo of my two  babies for me.... (does Debbie look like she's thinking... "I could gobble those funny ears off you Reagan"....










Abbie stopped by on trick or treating to see her Tee-tee and Baby Reagan. She wanted to be a "black cat".... Kass asked if she could get a picture of them together, to which Abbie answered... "sure Tee-tee, but make it quick, I got lots of candy to go and get"... so, one photo... and they were off!!!!
And we'll be saying goodbye to this year's turkeys.... time for them to move onto their true calling. I will admit, that I feel sad about this, but it's "why" we raise them . To be honest, I am getting tired of taking care of them... they eat us out of house and home, and the water bucket seems to be empty all the time...








We have some pretty big birds here, so their home is getting crowded as well... and come the holidays (or even a cold winter night) they will provide us with a wonderful meal... thank you turkeys!!!!

Monday, October 28, 2013

winter fencing....


We were so happy that Abbie got to spend the weekend with us!!!! I love having her here on the farm and she seems so happy when she has the chance to come. She is really "into ponies" now and I was so surprised when she told me that she wanted to get Mocha out!!!
So down to the barn, and the first thing Abbie did was find her helmet.. she knows that "working around the horses we need to be safe".. and I am pleased to think that is a lesson she has learned. She led Mocha about for a bit and then said she wanted to go driving....
So we hitched up and had a grand little ride all around. Abbie even drove!!!! She did very well and listened to all the things I had to tell her.... looks like we have a little "horse man" in the making......
After being outside most of the day, it was time to come in and warm up.. with a tea party of hot cocoa, of course.... and then we were packing up and heading out.....
L.L. Beans' was having their pumpkin festival again. We went last year and had such a nice time.... we met up with Rachel and Rob.. and then with my parents... had a nice supper out and then onto the pumpkins. They were wonderful and certainly as many this year as there was last.....
Abbie had the greatest time looking them all over. So many different designs......
And even a pumpkin maze!!!! There was food and live music... lots of people and kids... it was a great family outing. The night was cold, but nothing that a warm coat didn't take care of!!!!
Since we did "boot pictures" last year, I just had to take on this year as well.....
Last year it was with Rylie... and this year with Debbie.......
We went into Beans to warm up a bit and Abbie loved playing in their fish tank. It is so neat that they have this big bubble that the kids can climb into ...
And feel just like they are in the tank with the fish. And the fish, are so used to it,they just swim right by your face. We had a little trouble pulling Abbie away so that we could go back out to the pumpkins!!!!!!
It so happens that this was (is) my Dad's birthday weekend. I am so blessed that I got to celebrate his birthday with him!!!!!!
Abbie, Meme and Amy... touring the many lines of pumpkins.........
another warming up time in Beans... Abbie wanted Debbie to see the big moose display... but I think Debbie was more concerned about what Abbie was up to and two big stuffed moose weren't that interesting.....
In and out of all the tents........
And a promise that she could run the pumpkin maze (again) got us back outside....
This was another great event to work Debbie at. However, I was quite surprised (and annoyed) at the number of people who said "oh a working dog," and yet they still reached out to pet Debbie. I usually just push them away by saying "ah ah, Debbie, you're working".. and then the people smile and step back... remember... don't interfere with a working dog!!!  :)
All the pumpkins are lit, which makes this so magical.. but at the end of the evening.. they all have to be taken care of... how does one blow out over 1,000 pumpkins?????
With a leaf blower... of course....
Though, they did get a bit of help from one little girl who had a blast blowing out the pumpkins before the leaf blower man came by......
Sunday morning we decided it was time to put up the winter fencing. With the hard frosts that we had have, nothing is growing any more and it's time to let the pasture "rest". The horses are never happy with the winter fence lines, because they get less than a quarter of their pasture area.. but if we want good grass next summer, it's time to pull back.
It isn't a "hard" job, but it is time consuming... by the time we will pull out all the supplies and run back and forth... it's surprising how much time it takes. This year however, we had a great little helper and Abbie was more than happy to run and back and forth with supplies....
She was great at pulling out the line... and we were happy to have the extra pair of hands..... she kept saying to me... "these are the things you need to do when you have horses to care for!!!" boy is she right about that....
And she was beyond thrilled when Papa told her she could drive the gator back and forth. Her driving skills leave a little to be desired, but one can only learn by doing!!!!!
I wouldn't be surprised if next summer, she will be able to drive without assistance....













Another weekend, come and gone... filled with fun, busy and family... it really doesn't get any better than that!!!!!

Saturday, October 26, 2013

the season has begun...

And just to keep it all "official"... the wood furance has been lit and the winter heating season has begun. We're pretty pleased, because we are about one week later than we were last year. Personally I was hoping that we might be able to hold off until Novemember 1st... but the house has been rather cold these past few mornings, so it's time.  I think one more load of wood from Rick will be all we'll need..........




And we're not the only ones who have smoke rising from the chimneys..... it's a New England thing for sure....

Thursday, October 24, 2013

October's check in...


well... we must be coming to the end of the month, because here we are.... back at NEADS for our annual check in. Actually we have today, and then our next will be early December, and that will be "it" for this year.... Debbie is looking good, though - like Rylie - she isn't going to be a big dog... and already I "worry" about what job she will find to do.....
Here we go.. representing all the "colors" of labs... Moxie (chocolate) Otis (black) and Debbie (yellow)..... such good puppies, waiting quietly for Dave to arrive....
And from here, the check in goes pretty much on schedule... into the training room for our chat and check in session. By now, the puppies know the drill well.... take a snooze and rest up for the day ahead....
Moxie found the whole thing boring, and now that she had moved onto therapy dog work with Rick... she probably wonders why she has to listen to all this 'service dog" talk.....
Today's visit, instead of going into the city, was all about "stores" and we hit the mall and various other places. Course, we have to stop for lunch.......
We say that it's good practice for "under" that table and not being interested in food. The restaurant was crowded (as we managed to arrive right at lunch time)... and the people around us were certainly impressed to learn that there were three dogs under those tables......
Then it was onto the store that (truthfully) I hate - the Halloween store. It certainly is a good training ground for working with "strange and unusual".. but it gives me the creeps. I am not a fan of scary things, and Halloween has never been a favorite "holiday" of mine... and why anyone would spend so much money on scary things is way beyond me....
The dogs had a little chat session before we began....
I took it slow with Debbie, if those creepy, jumpy, gruesome things make me jump, I was sure she would too. However, I am happy to say that she handled the zombies much better than I. In fact, she thought this zombie baby was quite fun, and decided just to pick it up by the head and carry it home... (don't think so)....
"really Mom - this bothers you --- can say for a fact.... it's all fake!!!!"
Otis says to his Mom "this isn't my kind of shopping!!!" The puppies did very well in the store and I was more than happy to move onto the mall. Which was more pleasant with the starts of Christmas decorations!!!!










And while we were at the mall, we came upon this beautiful work dog... (a balance dog)... she was as uninterested in our puppies as they were of her (which really pleased Dave)...


so all in all, other successful check in, with puppies going on course just as they should.... and we'll be back in December (yikes!!!)