visitng with the brownies...

Thanks to Jesse..... the doggies have been able to get outside. The big snow drift that was right in front of the door (and measured about four feet) was, of course, the door that leads out to the dog's yard. However, with the winds that came with this snow, there were actually bear patches in the yard and if you look, that's where Jesse was shoveling to.....

Camille and Hunter certainly appreciate their tunnel... look at how much deeper the snow is than them!!!

Now, Rylie... she took another approach... after surveying the situation.....

It was ... one - two - three..... she loves this snow.... I don't know if it's a "lab thing" or a "puppy thing" but either way, she has had great fun these past few days.....

There are two dogs in this picture... the bigger lab is Cappy, a guest doggie that was staying with us. He loved the snow as much as Rylie did (does).. but because he is so much bigger, he could break some good pathways for everyone. That's Rylie, right behind him.. determined to keep up.... they spent more time swimming that running!!!!

This was the sunrise on Monday.... know that saying .. "red sky in the morning".. well, it was right, by noontime we had a little storm of snow and sleet. I'm beginning to wonder if that ol groundhog had any idea of what he was talking about....

This afternoon however, Rylie and I had a very important date. We went to visit a local brownie troop to talk about dogs and service dogs in particular...The girls were very excited to meet Rylie and they were very interested in her story.

After we talked about service dogs and answered some questions... the troop wanted Rylie in a group photo..... Rylie was right in her glory.. all these little girls just for her...

They practiced the "lap" command with her, and awarding her a brownie cap... made her an official member of their troop. I have been asked that next year, I need to report to them about Rylie and how her training all went...

But here's the magic.. this little gal sort of hung back in all the activity. After Rylie had done "lap" with about all the girls.. this little gal came to me and said she thought she would like to try "lap" with Rylie. Turns out she was a little bit "worried around dogs'.. but once she saw how gentle and kind Rylie is.. she decided she could do it. Rylie was so sweet and knew she needed to be careful... the smile that came over this little gal's face when she was able to do it... priceless...... I never get tired of moments like that.....

ya, we got snow..

hold

they call it "Nemo" ????

soooo.. as predicted (for the entire week) we woke to snow falling this morning. It was earlier than I had expected but the experts kept assuring us, that this wasn't the "real snow" but a cold front coming in ahead of it. Real or not, it's  still snow... anyways, because the blizzard was due to start in the afternoon, Ed and I offered to get Abbie to the old home town in the morning, it's her weekend with her Dad and we didn't want anyone being out on the roads in case this storm proved to be what we were told. The morning actually worked out quite well, as we met up with my Mom and Dad and Kass... and all had a nice breakfast out together. Then Ed and I made sure we had "food and gas" (just in case) and headed back for the farm.

The snow was already beginning to pile up, and it does appear that we're in for it. By the way... when did "they" start naming these storms.. and who came up with "nemo" of all names..... have to admit, I think it's really silly.... I also wonder what "they'll talk about on the news" when this is over.. because it's sure taking up a lot of time now...we live in New England, we get snow... what's all the hype????? 

We went down to the barn in the early afternoon. More than likely the horses will be  kept in, so I wanted to get the stalls done, throw some hay down and fill the buckets. Just do as many chores now, so we don't have to do them later. Tonka was out enjoying the weather....

As was Duke, these drafts seem to be built for cold weather.. and I don't think they'll be very happy with me when we lock them in. I could leave them so they could go out, but if we loose power or the fence gets knocked down, I just don't want to have to "worry" about where they are.

And when they heard us putting "dinner" out int he stalls, they waited rather impatiently at the doors to be let in.....

Annabelle was all cuddled in, she knows how to ride out a storm... chickens and guinea hens were fed and watered.. and headed in ourselves...

OK.. it looks promising, and the wind began to pick up... so what more can I say, except welcome "Blizzard Nemo"... hope you have a good time.....




oooo... one more thing, I got a call from my boss.. and the post office is going to be CLOSED tomorrow (ever heard of that???) I don't have to get up for work.... now that's exciting!!!!!

2/7/13

running an errand...

So, today, after church, Ed and I find ourselves on a little adventure for my dear friend, Linda. She wrote me a few days ago, saying that she had bought a loom, and if we could... would we go and get it and keep it here until she can come for it. It was such  a pretty ride, and very close to where Deb and Dave live, so it was a fun afternoon.

The loom was at this pretty little farm... they have llamas!!! and not that I would ever really want one, but they are pretty neat. This lady is a spinner and weaver, and was selling this loom for someone else... she has plenty of her own. That's the "trouble" with hobbies... it's easy to "collect" when you have them. She was very nice and was quite interested in how I knew Linda, and the fact that she lives so far away, and yet, we are pretty close friends. The world really isn't that big, ya know.

The loom was bigger than I thought (glad Ed convinced me to bring the truck and NOT the jeep!!!) It fit nicely into the back and traveled well the ride home. We also stopped a minute to visit with Deb and Dave, and just enjoyed a winter afternoon outing... this time of year, I always appreciate a change of scenery.

 So, dear friend... here it is.... now waiting in the garage for you... and it might be wise not to wait too long to get it.. or I could "get used to having it around!!!!"     :)

Happy Groundhog Day

 

 

Well, I'm not sure what to believe... I watched the groundhog come from his burrow this am. And according to "him"... not seeing his shadow... winter was over and we're in for an early spring. However the Farmer's 2013 Almanac said that "snow would keep the groundhog below". So, my best decision... wait and see, and come May, I'll know when spring arrived!!!

 

but, no matter what the predictions are... it's February and winter is on  the down hill side.. and I hope your Groundhog's Day was a good one!!!!!!

cold day in the city..

It's hard to think that we haven't been down to NEADS since November!!! With the holidays and our trip to DC, there wasn't time to do a December check in, and I remember thinking as we left in November, "it will be the new year before we are back", that seemed like a long time away, but here we are, and it wasn't that long. We are in a stretch of cold weather... and this was the temp as we pulled out this morning... brrrrr... hope Dave has "inside work" for us!!!!!

We met at NEADS, did our usual "round table" discussion, and then it was onto the mall. (whew --- way to cold to go in the city today!!!) The mall had (has) all sorts of training opportunities, so it was a good day of work. Another glass elevator... what is it about this area and glass elevators... we don't have them around here....







Along with watching the dogs work, hearing about where they are at.. Dave also takes pictures each month to go into their files. This is Marv, he's only about 8 months old, and he's huge!!!! Each month he gets bigger, we fondly call him "pony"....

Rylie was pretty un-impressed with the mall and the elevator. I like her quite attitude, though I do worry a little about her "drive"... she is very laid back, which is good, but she is a lab and I expect a little more excitement out of her. I actually told Dave that I wished she had a "little more", but he doesn't seem concerned.

Dave likes to switch dogs and handlers around. So, I wasn't able to work Rylie, but I got lots of pictures of her working with others. She doesn't care who she is with, her work is her work, and she does it well for anyone.

Even though the puppies are not allowed on escalators, being around them is a good thing. They do make all sorts of noises, and people riding up and down look different. Moxie and Rylie dealt with alot of escalators when we went to DC, so this was "nothing" to them.

Regular stairs are another good working tool. The puppies need to know how to stop cold on the stairs and wait, they could be matched with someone who might lose their balance on the steps, or someone who might need to lean on them while doing stairs. Here Marv and Rick do a nice job of "waiting on the steps"......

Now, Kathleen and Rylie start their "stair stepping" . Rylie did pretty well here, but she could use more work. She tends to take one step ahead and I need to work on her keeping back.

Here's something that you may or may not notice.. a "scary lion" in the window. I see so many things differently when out working with the dogs. This would more than likely be something I would walk by and never even notice... but a puppy might!!! Actually none of our puppies were even concerned, but these are the kinds of things we are always on the watch for.....

And kids, especially little ones, often run out of no where to see the puppies. Right now, we aren't too concerned about the dogs ignoring other people, we work to keep their attention on us, but being so young, it is expected that they will be distracted. Fortunately all our dogs love children, so this isn't a big deal. As the dogs get older though, they do have to learn how to not be distracted with things of this sort.

It's hard "not to see us"coming... we do bring a lot of attention to ourselves when working like this. (even more reason to have THE best behaved dogs in the world!!!!!)











By the end of the day, Rylie gives me this look like "I've been good, I've worked hard... let's head home".. though she certainly isn't as tired as she was when she was younger. When I think of it, I figure she and I have about six more check in's together and it will be her turn in time. Basing your life on "what service dog you had at the time" sure shows you how quickly it passes. but that's still a whole summer away.......