Meanderings and the Brookwood Bubble

Almost five months!

2009-10-11T21:05:00.000-07:00

Wow! Where does time go??? I couldn't believe it when I did the math and saw that Lil is almost 5 months old!! It seems she's still such a puppy- waking me up every morning EARLY and constantly tormenting her big brother. I finally got around to registering her and she's officially Coedwig's Dark Goddess. She definitely can be quite the demon sometimes, but she is absolutely gorgeous!! So, I guess I need to be more regimented about table training and ring practice as I think her first show will be in January at the Golden Gate KC show- which I believe is an open benched show- Hmmm, not sure that I'll dig it, but gonna give it a whirl anyhow. I'm undecided about the Portland show as it's just sooooooo big!! I may just go and spectate and catch up with all my wonderful cardi mentors!!
I was able to get some post bath pics of Lily tonight that I want to share. Still working on table training and have been unable to get good stacked shots.. Soon, soon..

tease stack shots

2009-09-22T21:04:00.000-07:00

Over the weekend I had Steve and Kelly watch Lily for me since I had to work three nights in a row and my roomate was unavailable. I figured it would be good socialization for her since he has 12 week old puppies on the ground and tons of visitors each day. He raved about her when I came to pick her up on Monday, going on and on about how great her disposition is. It's always good to hear these things! I was pretty tired from my night shifts but I managed to get a couple pics with his help of her stacked, only I realized later that we didn't have her on her show side-DUH!!! So I promise I will work on getting some better shots, but here they are for now for the curious minded.
She is definitely taking on that great cardi length, not only in body but in neck. She seems leggy to me right now, but maybe she's just spurting?? Love the topline and tailset though. And and check out them ears!!! She's about to set sail!!!
She's sweet, spunky and social. I love her colors, she even has black whiskers on one side of her face- so cute. Need to curb the barking though and wish she wasn't such an early riser- but then, can't have it all!

dog daze

2009-08-26T19:04:00.000-07:00

And just when I thought the pace couldn't be busier, I had to go and bring this wild whipper snapper home and top it!! She's growing up quickly it seems and is finally tolerating her crate better so the potty training is improving. She and Ash just wrestle and play constantly, and when she's not with him on the nights I work she comes running up to my door and cries to get every one outside while I'm sleeping. Oh babies!!

I tried to pose her by my flower box on the deck and she wasn't really having any of it, but I manage one decent shot.

Off to dinner then to pick one of my old high school friends up from the airport- fun times ahead!!!

Fennec fox in disguise

2009-08-20T19:02:00.000-07:00

Shasta, who is pretty much now Lily or at times still "puppy", is 12 weeks old tomorrow. She is fitting in nicely here and we are still working on those typical puppy challenges. I'm sure the housebreaking is going slower than usual due to my tenant and I sharing the care until I go to part time in September. I'm also trying to get her used to her crate as she whines and cries every time she's in it. I think because she came from such a large litter it's probably harder for her to accept some alone time. Other than those things she's a confident, happy and healthy puppy.
Thanks to Carolyn, and after a couple of failed attempts, I finally got her HUGE ears up. She looks soooo different now! She looks just like one of my fave foxes- the fennec fox! Hopefully it will all come to proportion soon. Here are some goofy pics of her to enjoy!

First mug shots

2009-07-30T00:12:00.001-07:00

Surprises all around!

2009-07-29T21:39:00.000-07:00

Soooo, I've been slowly looking for a blk/wht bitch to add to my pack and though the timing is very tricky for me right now I couldn't resist looking at the latest litter out of Crystal and Rocky from Coedwig. Of course this was a large litter with lots of pretty girls to choose from, Kim offered me the second pick of the litter. I drove up through the PNW ( in unbearable heat BTW) and on the last day of my vacay we made a quick stop to Kim's in Portland. Perhaps it was the heat, but probably more the irresistable puppy breath everywhere I did in fact end up taking the girl known as Shasta home.

She is undeniably cute and has gorgeous markings- that true black and virtually no points on her. She was extremely good on the 7 hour drive back home and of course to no surprise Ash LOVES her. As Kim said- I won't have any problems with sex drive in that boy!

First night she slept for a good 4 hours and then kept me up from 6:30 am to almost 8. This will definately be trying being a night worker- but it was truly only with the offer of my friend and tenant that she could watch her while I'm gone at work that I can pull this off for now. I've completely forgotten what having a puppy is like and I'm certainly drained but when she looks up at me with those sweet, sweet eyes it makes up for it all!! She is very confidant yet cautious with other dogs and we are working on my older girl accepting her right now. I can only hope for harmony and then it's back to shows for me!!!

More photos to come!

Coming Along

2009-03-21T21:06:00.000-07:00

Sometimes i feel that since Ash is a Champion now and i've decided not to special him that there's just nothing to blog about!! But as someone so nicely reminded me (Thanks Kim ;-) ) I do have a lovely new home that I own and we are feeling like kings and queens on this beautiful redwood forest of 5 acres! It's actually really funny the things that i get excited over like- Yay! I just had 8 yards of gravel delivered to our roadway and yay, I just got the compost piles up to speed and yay, I just got my new on-demand water tank installed (that one I'm REALLY excited about!) Next month I will be ripping out the old wood stove and putting in a new one and maybe topping /limbing some trees to allow some light in on the studio. Down the road I want to convert the storage garage into some dog runs and start building my own cardi empire- I figure I'll wait till I'm done working nights and have more normal people's hours before that happens. It's just absolutely amazing and empowering how owning your own home feels- lots of work but oooooh the freedom!!!! Oh and not to mention, I just filed my taxes and because I closed in 2009, I qualify for the $8,000 first time home buyers credit!!! Yep, I'm getting almost $10 grand back this year in taxes! Vegas anyone?? So, I feel buying this home was the smartest investment move I could of ever made.

As far as Ash goes, he's finally out of his splint, which he ended up developing a yeast infection underneath- because they expected me to keep that leg dry despite our heavy rainfall. So then he needed to live in a cone head- which broke his spirit. After a week of that he was released on light duty ad he's slowly been feeling his normal self- he still doesn't always put his weight down on that foot, but I'm hoping it's just a habit thing. He's still the best cuddler in the world! Oh and i will put out in the cardi universe that if anyone knows of a nice show prospect blk/wht bitch know that I have my feelers out again for one now that I feel more settled in my new home.

Hope all is well, it looks like it as i keep up with your blogs and might have to follow suit eventually and switch to word press- nice job Kate! I'll keep updating with new pics of the house especially as the gardens begin to come along!

Ouchy puppy!

2009-01-31T11:37:00.000-08:00

Mr Ashman has a compound fracture of his fifth digit (our pinky) and unfortunately is so bad that he needs to wear a splint for the next 4 - 8 weeks!! It so sad to see him hobble around and he wants to play soooo bad. I just had one dog on the mend and now this. Figures!!!!!

Ash and his kitty

2009-01-14T01:53:00.000-08:00

Ash and Kitty are BFF's. When my roomie Amy leaves I'll probably be in the market for a new kitty for Ashman. Aren't they adorable???????

Dating and dogs

2009-01-07T17:21:00.000-08:00

I have been welcoming 2009 for quite some time now as '08 was a year of constant change and learning. Not only did I begin a new career and deal with a five and a half year relationship break-up, but also was a complete novice to the dating scene. Looking back I'm actually quite impressed at how many fellows I did end up sharing some moments with over the year, though obviously to no avail as here I am still single, yet a little wiser than I was a year ago. I have learned that the older I get the pickier I get. The no brainers are that they must have a car, a college degree, a legit job (you'd be amazed at how many pot growers there are in my town), have a good sense of humor, have a similar political viewpoint and respect for the earth as I do. Some more personal prerequisites are no children from previous relationships (at least not yet, as i get older I may reconsider this one), an interest in eating healthy- organic, local, food awareness and of course not only must they like my dogs, but if they have dogs of their own, our dogs MUST get along. Interestingly enough, this last one has been my hardest challenge. Pretty much every fellow that I've dated here has had a dog. A couple of those dogs did not like Ash. Of course, I don't blame them as Ash gets in their faces and asserts himself. he turns from mellow cardigan to ADHD cardigan in seconds. He mounts and he spazzes out which turns the other dog growling and snapping every time we try to do anything. I think Ash has even managed to scare some decent potential dating material away due to these scenarios. Looking back, I think I only dated one guy over the summer who didn't have a dog and it made things so much easier!!!! I'm almost even considering that as a pre-req no kids or no dogs!!

Guess who's two??

2008-12-14T13:57:00.000-08:00

I know i haven't updated my blog in ages, but since my little corgi man just had his big second birthday i figured it was worth commemorating by taking pics and sharing. So I ran outside during a break in the weather today and snapped a few off with my new Canon EOS Rebel digital SLR. I didn't wash the boy just spritzed and brushed him a bit. He still remembers how to stand so well on the table. In fact, he did better than I did at stacking him. I think he's finally filling out nicely, of course all that extra hair helps! His chest has dropped some, though he could use alittle more in front. I love his non-show side sooo much better than the show side. Anyway, it was fun to play show dog for a few minutes as it's been so long. I'm not quite sure what's next in that department. I'm not really interested in specialling Ash. I will be getting hip X-rays soon and then decide whether to keep him intact or not. Eventually I'd like to add a show quality blk/wht bitch to the crew, but I can't imagine raising a puppy while working 13 hour night shifts, then coming home to sleep for seven hours, three days out of the week. I've been a RN now for five months in acute care and want to try and at least get a year's experience before applying for another nursing speciality that will hopefully have normal people hours. For now, we just LOOOOOVVE our time off and when the weather permits we make it to the beach or the trees. Hope everyone is well and gearing up for the holidays!

Yet another year passes

2008-09-20T17:06:00.000-07:00

Now that my computer is back from the shop and all the updates have been installed I hope I'll find blogger more user friendly for a mac. Ahhh, today is the two year anniversary of my mom's passing. This year seems tougher than last. Partly because I've had so many damn changes this year. And now that I'm working as a nurse ( mom was a nurse for around 42 years) I feel more connected to the hard work that she did and the love she poured into others. Of course i miss her dearly but I believe strongly she is still with me and especially now, on this date. She was an incredibly strong and independent woman who had a great sense of humor, even in the dimmest times. I think one of her best qualities was giving sound, logical advice. She listened with her heart and soul and you knew she was truly listening, then in ususally one or two sentences she would always steer you in the right direction. I really, really miss that about her. Life is full of so many hard choices and I often wonder if I'm doing what I'm supposed to be. I need to learn how to be still with myself and listen.....

The most incredible thing happened last night at work. Right around midnight my charge nurse came up to me and said "I don't want to freak you out, but I have to send you home." My initial response was that I did something wrong and they were terminating me on the spot. I must of had a strange look on my face because she quickly followed her statement by explaining that we were now overstaffed since we sent a few patients home during the shift, and the hospital doesn't want to pay for extra nurses and apparently my name was the next on the list to be sent home. I couldn't of been happier. It was my third night in a row and I was exhausted, also with today being such an emotional day for me anyway. In some ways I really feel like someone else was pulling some strings for me.. Now I have a few days off and the plan is to drive down to Lake County tomarrow and spend a night in some historic mansion at a place called Wilbur Hot Springs. I hope to soak in the minerals and cleanse, release and purify my inner well being. I believe there is a massage scheduled as well. I believe in nurturing oneself especially during these tough times. You can't keep it all inside. I'm so excited for this trip and when I get back I'll be renewed just in time for the equinox- my favorite feasting time.

Took some funny self portraits last night I had to share- yes I'm in my PJ's, but hell I'm always in them or my scrubs, so that's me..

love them Nor Cal summer days...

2008-09-02T21:05:00.000-07:00

I'm in the process of getting used to life lately. I'm in my new home, that is so so comfy, and I've been recently released to be a solo nurse, without the assistance of a preceptor. It's going well, considering that I work only nights now. Granted I'ved only worked a total of 5 night shifts now, I still have to admit that nights seems easier than days. I have more time to look things up and come on, the staff is much, much cooler. But then I did have that problem last night where it was my day off and i couldn't fall asleep until 4 am!!! Good thing the dogs don't seem to complain much. Feel bad when they were used to being fed at 7 am for so long and now they have to wait until 11am, reminds me of the good old college days ;-) So we did happen to make it out to the river the other day and I snapped some good pics

old puppy pictures

2008-08-22T22:40:00.000-07:00

My friend Steve who lives here locally had a couple litters early summer and it was so fun to come visit all the cuteness. He had a very pretty black bitch whom I'ved already named Raven and i tell him she should be Aldergates Black Magic Woman. I wish I was set up to take her but for now I'll just admire from afar. Thought it would be fun to post some puppy pics because who doesn't love that!!!!! And lastly a picture of Ash for good measure.....

pics of the new rental

2008-08-03T20:53:00.001-07:00

My feet freakin hurt!!!!!!

2008-08-03T19:53:00.000-07:00

I finally have internet at my new rental so I can get back into blogging. For those of you who don't know, my boyfriend of five and a half years and I split up in January. We are still very close and he allowed me to live with him while I finished the nrsg program. So in June I found a great rental in McKinleyville and my girlfriend Amy and I moved in July 15'th, I started my new job as an official RN on the 16'th. Needless to say I have been busier than I can EVER remember. I'm currently orienting with my preceptor and things are going fairly well, the 12 hour shifts FLY and my feet ache like a son of ______ at the end of the day. But all in all, it's good to be joining forces with Uncle Sam after such a long break of it. I feel like I'm helping people and I'll get better, more efficient and confident in time, I know. The pupsters are good too. Ash loves his new place. He has his very own fenced in back yard to run in and he loves trying to attack the water from the hose when we are watering our garden, that by the way was already set up for us. I've been enjoying lettuce, chard, cilantro, tomatoes, blueberries, parsley, fresh dill and cauliflower. Still to come are peppers, squash, strawberries, peas and broccoli. Time to relax in my giant soaking tub in the master bath- photos to come soon

Lost Coast KC Show

2008-06-28T21:32:00.000-07:00

I know I've been a BAD blogger but lately I've been flying by the seat of my pants. After my girlfriend had her baby and I did some of my own post graduation celebrating, I finally buckled down and studied for the NCLEX-RN (the test that we nurses have to take to obtain our official license). I finally went down to Sacramento last Tuesday for the test on Wednesday. The test itself was utter hell. I ended up having to take the full exam - 265 questions, which took me 5 and a half hours. After about the third hour, I had completely lost my momentum and was tired, hungry and cranky- I really didn't even care at that point if I passed, I mean there was a part of my that felt that if I failed then I could at least have some more time to be selfish over the summer and do as I pleased (since you can only take the exam every 90 days in California). After the exam was FINALLY over, I had a bad feeling and left feeling bitter and kinda like a failure. At least I had a dog show to take my mind off things.

So this morning as I was frantically getting all my odds and ends together prior to heading south to Ferndale, I decided to check the BRN website and when I punched in my name- there I appeared Anne C Jeffrey RN!!!!!!!!!! Whooooo-hoooo! I never have to take that dreaded test again and now I'm officially a nurse- exciting and kinda scary! I went off to the show feeling like I was on cloud nine. I still can't even believe it. I begin work July 15'th after a week in the midwest- kinda wish I was going somewhere better- like Hawaii, or maybe Bali- oh well Indiana it is ;-)

I really don't have much to report on the show except that I had a great photographer there and he got some wonderful shots that I wanted to share. One of the nice things about a local show is that your friends show up and you then have a cheering squad including a personal photographer! Ash took BOS, and it was an interesting experience going into the breed ring, kinda like before only less hoops to jump through. He was a good boy today, although he wants to check out the hot females behind him all the time, we'll see how tomarrow goes.

Benbow Arts and Music Festival

2008-06-06T09:17:00.000-07:00

Last weekend I took some time off from studying and went to the arts and music festival. As ususual it was a fun time and I got some good people watching in. For instance...

And the weather was beautiful!!

Sir Thomas Patrick Fitzmaurice IV

2008-05-27T21:07:00.000-07:00

Some pics of the proud new parents and Tommy Jr. Also had to buy Ash some new toys for being incarcerated... Too funny!

It's a boy!!!!

2008-05-27T11:31:00.000-07:00

Whew, what a weekend! Details soon to come but I had to at least let the world know that Therese and Tommy delivered a healthy 8.2lb baby boy yesterday at 7:15pm! Therese amazed me with her strength and endurance. She joked and told her new son that he will never know what she just went through! They will be coming home from the hospital today after 4 nights there!!
On another note, Ash gave me a heart attack on Sunday night when I came home to find him lame in his hindquarters. I raced him to the ER vet where he checked out fine neurologically and the vet thought it was a leg injury and sent me home with rimadyl. He seems much better already and starting to get whiney about the crate rest. I called my regular vet today and they can't get him in until next Monday when we will discuss X-rays to rule out spinal injury. Sorry buddy gotta stay cooped up until then.

Bring on the Birth!

2008-05-23T09:15:00.000-07:00

One of my dearest friends and soul sister is pregnant with her first child. I've known both her and her husband for about 12 years now. I actually met Therese at Purdue when I lived in Indiana and if it wasn't for Therese I most likely wouldn't be living a dream life here in Northern California. It was Therese who spearheaded the idea that we all pack our things and move out west. We were twenty something and full of mysticism. So from Lafayette, IN eight of us crammed what we owned into a large Uhaul and made our way out here- Tommy, Therese's husband, included. Today Therese is officially 42 weeks pregnant and all along she has been wanting a homebirth. She has been working very closely with two midwives throughout her pregnancy and has been ready for weeks to deliver. She has been told that after tonight, she needs to deliver in a hospital. Therese made another attemp yesterday by drinking castor oil- I know what some of you are already thinking, but my area is very "all natural" and these things are perfectly accepted here. So after another quiet evening we are all keeping our fingers crossed that this baby decides to come into the world TODAY! I'm honored that Therese has asked me to be by her side during the birth of thier baby and so my life is also on standstill, but I'm perfectly alright with that. I suppose it's just one of the great mysteries of pregnancy- the actual due date is never known. Another small mystery is they don't know the sex yet!

As far as my timing, it couldn't be better now that finals are over and my NCLEX review class finished yesterday- I've got all the time in the world! ;-) Here are some pics I took of T&T a few weeks ago in the backyard. It's hard to tell but Therese has henna art on her belly. Aren't they glowing!!!

Hot fun in the summertime

2008-05-18T00:25:00.001-07:00

I think our heat wave is about to end- I'm gonna miss those warm summer nights. Ash is already over it!

School is done!!!!!!

2008-05-16T09:14:00.000-07:00

Whew, made it through my finals and ultimately the RN program!! It's taken me a few days to recuperate from it all and today may be no exception. The weather here has been an anomaly with record highs of 80 degrees in Eureka and up to 100 in Trinidad. I joke and say I kinda like what global warming is doing to the coast! Maybe all the more reason to buy a home here.. Once I'm a RN and making good cash I figure I could pull it off.
So, one small hurdle to go still with obtaining my nursing license. It's called NCLEX. It's a national exam that costs around $300 and can be quite challening to pass. They ask all these questions where it seems that every answer is correct ( multiple choice answers) and the key is to go with the best correct answer. I need to schedule it for sometime in June and most likely drive about three hours away and stay in a hotel the night before. I have bad test anxiety as it is so I'm not looking forward to it. Not to mention I need to sudy my ass for it as it covers pharmacology, pediatrics, obstretrics and med/surg material. Some of that I haven't looked at in years. I'll do fine though and I can take it more than once if need be.
As far as jobs go I accepted a med/surg position with one of our local hospitals with my start date as July 14'th. They want me to have my RN license before beginning, thus another reason to pass NCLEX the first time around. I'll be doing full time (3 12 hour shifts) and working nights!!!! I'm horrified at this as I'm very in tune with my circadian rhythm but as a new grad I kinda get stuck with the crappy shifts. The good thing is, it is a great place to start as it's a quiet busy verses a crazy busy and I know I have so much to learn still. My challenge will be keeping my dogs on that schedule somehow too. Those days when I'm sleeping they are going to need to entertain themselves. But then I'll have 4 days to play with them.
Speaking of, for those Ash fans- he's doing great. I'm hoping to certify him as a therapy pet in June. I've been through the course he just needs his eval. Though I need to work with him alittle because it might be that he's still alitlle too young for this and i have gone soft while in school on his obedience. Our challenge is greeting the neutral dog as he just wants to play soooooo bad with the strange dog. I'm going to try and put him in a sit position and get him to stay....Wish me luck. Then I'm thinking I'll enter him as a special for my local dog show which is late June- The Lost Coast Kennel Club show. If anyone is going, they can stay at my house!!! I'm pretty sure Kelly will be there with Bryer- but it's just for fun anyway since it's local. Besides Ash is still a measly 32 pounds and his chest hasn't seemed to drop anymore, he has a great prominent breast bone but not much drop.. yet, hopefully there's still time for that to come in. Ok I just wrote a novel and have too much caffiene coursing through my viens. I'm going out now to enjoy another unusually warm coastal day. Here are some of my latest dog pics- Enjoy!

3 weeks till I can be a regular again.

2008-04-25T22:44:00.000-07:00

In the meantime, poor dogs just snooze all day long...

The long awaited win photos!

2008-03-27T22:48:00.000-07:00

Well, I finally scored a scanner. I tried going to Kinko's sooner but I was denied for copyright purposes. Thankfully (and covertly) my girlfriend was able to hook me up with her scanner and I finally digitized Ash's win photos. Of course I had to add the Easter pic taken of Ash about a year ago when he was a mere 4 months old! He was such a cute puppy! Hard to believe how quickly they grow up on ya. I think the champ pic is great, and thanks to Mandy for the photographer shoot grooming help! In the photo where Ash is on the ground he was only 6 months old, the one in between I think he was 9 months.

Back home again

2008-03-23T10:02:00.000-07:00

Spring break was awesome! I wish I could forever have spring breaks! As many of you know it started in Albany, OR for the dog show. I was able to reconnect with many of my cardi friends, not to mention going to a fun Mexican restaurant and having a damn good veggie burrito and a margarita with some of the gang! I was able to get lots of cardi puppy kisses and loves and of course the grand finale was finishing Ash on Sunday! I can't wait for the picture to get here and I'll make sure I post it.
Now that he's a champ, we will take it easy for awhile. Next month I'm doing the delta society training and then evaluations are in June. Fun!
As for the rest of my trip, I headed further north to Seattle and met up with an old friend of mine, Matt. It was so good to see him as I've known him for a long time and he's been thru some rough times. He's all grown up now and doing very well! He plays the stand-up bass, which he has a degree in music for. He's in about 4 bands and works for Hammond Ashley- a violin and bass shop. He is living his dream in music, which is very difficult to do. He also introduced me to the Trailor Park Boys and Ninja Warriors on the geek channel! We laughed alot. I then stayed in a beautiful cabin in Gold Bar, WA at the base of the cascades. It was located on the Skykomish river with a beautiful view of the river and the cascades. I saw deer crossing the river and a few bald eagles from right inside the cabin! The cabin was fully loaded with ammenities such as a hot tub, heated tile floors and a fireplace- actually even had an Ipod player! I was mainly a sloth there as I needed to unwind from my semester, though I did take a short hike to Wallace falls. An impressive almost 300 foot waterfall and then I also drove to Leavenworth, WA. The community has turned the town into a Bavarian village- everything was uniquely designed and apparntly most people are dressed up and in character, but I happened to get there on an off day and instead opted for an Italian dinner.
All in all, I truly enjoy the Seattle area and think I would fit in well there, of course on my drive back I ohed and awed at the Smith River along the 199 and pretty much the rest of the drive from there to my little home in Bayside. I do live in a very magical place and feel very blessed to be here.

My Goofy Guy

2008-03-09T21:34:00.000-07:00

Spending the next two days cramming for my midterm on Wednesday, then after that I can start packing for Albany! Should probably try and get Ash up on the table a few times as I'm sure we are both rusty. Five point majors both days, damn the nerves are kicking in! Can't wait to see everyone though and afterwards I think we will cruise on up to Seattle and visit a long time, old friend of mine and do some playing in the Cascades.... Getting excited!

Though we've been missing our little black and white housemate I thought it would be good to lighten things up a bit and post some silly pics of Ash.

A Tribute to El Bandito

2008-02-29T15:50:00.000-08:00

Yesterday the hard decision was made to put little Bandito to rest. He had been mysteriously ill for a few weeks and his condition progressed to the point where he was no longer eating. He had been vomiting constantly and the vet concluded that he was in end stage renal failure with a very poor prognosis. It's never an easy decision to decide whether to take the wait and see approach or the vet's recommendation for euthanasia. Dito had quite the fan club as Amy's sister, her friend Reba, her boyfriend Chris and I all crowded in the tiny vet's office to say or final goodbyes. I've known Dito since Amy found him running down the street 7 years ago and she took him under her wings. He has always been the clown, the infant, the dirty old man and more recently one of Ash's bestest pals. We will miss you little guy, but you shall live on in our hearts.

Humdog

2008-02-22T12:58:00.000-08:00

Last weekend I participated in our local Humdog Expo. It was a good turnout and Ash made a few fans. I of course proudly represented the breed along with another local woman who has two cardis. She was at the booth next to mine and her dogs were very sweet, though they didn't quite share the same puppy enthusiasm that Ash still has- In fact her female let Ash know what was up in the middle of the breed parade. Of well, I don't think Ash cares! Oh and I just realized that the pic of my cardi display shows that my magazine article on cardigans somehow got flipped to a page with pics of pit bulls! How funny, didn't notice that till now! Cardigans, pit bulls- same diff, right? :)

Ash's new 125 lb friend

2008-02-20T18:36:00.000-08:00

This is Burl- he was born in a redwood stump. He is a big boy and Ash's favorite new playmate.

Tis' the Season

2008-02-11T12:38:00.000-08:00

I know I've been a bad blogger lately. Believe it or not I still hop on blogger almost daily and read up on everyone else but just haven't had anything too exciting to add to mine, nor have I had the time! I'm on the final countdown with school right now with finals being May 14'th, putting me at only 3 months away till graduation!!! I'm currently fighting a small head cold and studying for my first quiz on Wednesday! Yesterday, I took the dogs about 45 minutes inland to the snow. I'm pretty sure it was Ash's first snow experience. He was exhausted afterwards, poor thing trying to get those short legs up and over all the snow drifts! He loved it though and overall great fun was had. Next weekend, one of our local dog groups (Humdog) is having a sort-of Meet the Breed expo and Ash and I will share a booth with some pembrokes! It's basically a PR event for the public to come learn the good, the bad and the ugly about several different breeds. I know I'm still new to the breed, but I think I have enough reference material and resources to give it a decent shot. We will do a breed parade at noon as well. I'll try and have someone take our photos! No shows in the near future besides the Albany one in March, it will also be spring break for me then so I'll be celebrating!

Aren't we cute?

2007-12-26T13:01:00.000-08:00

This was a first!

2007-12-18T20:51:00.000-08:00

Both my pooches had big birthdays recently (Ash turning one and Kiaya turned 10!!) so I thought I'd bake a special doggie birthday cake. Mainly it was flour, egg, carrot and strained turkey baby food, ummm, yum!! I used yogurt as icing and jerky strips for lettering. All in all it was about the strangest thing I've ever done, but what can I say, I love my furkids! We took great video, because all three dogs had a different reactions to the cake, but I'm having difficulties uploading it to You Tube. I'll keep playing with it though, because it's halarious! Here are some stills from the momentous occasion.

Ash is 1 year old today!

2007-12-13T09:46:00.000-08:00

And we will be celebrating by getting a bath and then later mom's going to try out her baking skills on a doggie layer birthday cake. I took some pics yesterday, thought they'd turn out better pre bath, but I might take some today after his wash. I think he looks pretty good at a year old, in my novice opinion! :) At this point, I'm just cheering his chest on and hoping it will drop more. He's a solid 32 pounds and still the best cuddler ever!

On another note, I wrapped up the fall semester with a 90% (not too shabby) and I'll be enjoying this week doing as my heart desires and then I'll be flying to the great midwest for Christmas to see friends and family there.

Almost halfway!!!

2007-12-10T09:55:00.000-08:00

Tomarrow is my nursing final for the fall semester. This time tomarrow I will again have a life for about three weeks, and then I get to do it all over again starting Jan. 2. Though I hear next semester is alittle more demanding, I'll still have nice 4 day weekends and I'm certainly not complaining there. I've started looking at shows after the new year. Ash is entered at Golden Gate kennel club for one day. It's a benched show and since i've heard mixed reviews regarding benched shows, I figured one day would be enough. I'm still thinking about going to a day or two of the Portland shows and seeing some new dogs for a change, not to mention some puppies!!! Then there's Albany in March and way down the road I see a show in Merlin, OR? Ash MAY be finished by then but I might go anyway since it'll be so close to me (3 hours away!) Yep, I gotta drive to far and away places when I want to show- the price I pay for living in the far corners of the earth.
Alright, time to get back to studying.....................almost there, almost there.

Pepperoni and Santa

2007-12-08T19:39:00.000-08:00

The photo didn't quite turnout as I expected. The photographer manged to cut out both Santa and most of Ash. She probably was upset that Ash decided to mark the pillow lying next to Santa, Oops!

They Say it's My Birthday

2007-11-25T15:54:00.000-08:00

It was a gorgeous day on the coast and so we took a trip to Clam Beach. Sometimes I forget what what a great place this is and how fortunate we are to be able to go to the beach and have it almost to ourselves. The dogs got covered in sand and are pleasantly sacked out at the moment. Time for me to de-sand in the shower and get ready for Mexican and margaritas! Ohh, how I wish thanksgiving break would never end!

We know how to do Thanksgiving

2007-11-22T22:00:00.000-08:00

Lots of great food, alittle burnt fried turkey, but we still had the steelhead to back it up. Whew, what a feast, even the dogs got a round of it!

Stranger Than Life

2007-11-12T09:00:00.000-08:00

It seems lately that the world is testing me. I had three days in a row where something really bad happened followed by something really good or vice versa. On Thursday, I found out that I had been awarded the preceptorship that I applied for in the nursing program. Meaning that I will get to work alongside a nurse next semester in either OB or OR (surgery), and there's a good chance that I may get hired on with that department. Then almost a half hour later I found out that US Airways CANCELED my flight back to Indiana for the holidays. They just said that US Airways was not servicing Arcata on those days. As for the dog show, we had our great day on Saturday and when I went back for the best puppy ring and waited almost three hours to have them switch rings at the last minute and I completely missed the judging. Part of it is experience and learning that they do that sometimes and I guess just being prepared for anything, but I was sooooo bummed as Ash was a tired puppy which means he would of performed well and it was most likely his last opportunity for something like that since he will be no longer considered a puppy after next month. He's a year old Dec. 13'th. Then yesterday he was a complete brat. Not interested in anything else but wanting to play with the younger puppies while in the ring! He literally was screaming in agony because I had to get on my knees and force him to stack and not let him look at the cute bitch behind him. I'm honestly amazed we got the point as his behavior was terrible, probably the worst ever. Is this just an age thing?? Because after yesterday I'm just quite frankly embarrased to show him. How do I get a dog who LOVES other dogs to not love them so much???? Anyway, that's been my weekend. Not the worst but definately not the best.
Oh and a big thanks goes to my girlfriend Becky for snapping these great pics and for supporting me during my moments of angst. Also for accompaning me for my first wine tasting experience in Napa!

Did I mention that I love fall?

2007-11-06T20:23:00.000-08:00

One thing that I miss about the midwest is the spectacular fall colors. Here on the coast we don't get seasons so much, but if you look hard enough one can find a big leaf maple tree in the neighbors yard which provides for a good photo shoot!

"Mom, are you done studying yet???"

2007-11-03T19:20:00.001-07:00

Halloween Treats

2007-11-01T13:40:00.000-07:00

We had a cool visitor in our apple tree yesterday and of course I had to dress the pups up for the kids!

Sac Town Take 2

2007-10-29T00:29:00.000-07:00

I'm home finally and it's late but I thought I'd do a quick post on todays results. I did end up having Steve show Ash for me and he did no better than yesterday as far as wins go, but he did behave better. Granted both days were 3 point majors in dogs and so there was some good competition. One of Sharon's dogs took WD and is now a finished champion, and Bryer took BOB. It's late and so that's all I can remember for now. Some general thoughts for now; I need to make time to practice more with Ash so that I don't feel rusty and get all nervous. I'm wondering if I should go to Napa in two weeks? We are entered but the entry tally is posted and it looks like there will only be 2 dogs- Ash and ??, Hopefully not one of the new champs. Not sure how that works if there's only one male? Perhaps we will wait the 9 - 12 months out and not show again until after he's a year. I'm hoping his coat will be more relaxed by then. Anyway too many thoughts at too late of an hour, I'm going for some zzzz's.

Sacramento Dog Show Take 1

2007-10-27T17:19:00.000-07:00

We had a nice early ring time at 0900 this morning. The temperature was perfect and I was going on little sleep but none-the-less excited to be taking a break from my studies. I did my usual couple laps around the grounds with Ash to try and get him relaxed for the ring. He was the only dog in 9 -12, so despite his unrulyness he took the class. For winners we went back in with Gaylen, a 6-9 month dog that Kelly Shane was showing and one of Sharon Curry's dog. The good news is that Gaylen took WD, and is now a finished champion! :) The bad news is Ash was in no mood to pay attention to momma and performed poorly. I'm not blaming it all on him, for some reason I was more nervous than usual and I'm sure Ash detected that. Kelly's dog took reserve, and Bryer took BOB.
I'm thinking of having Steve Porter take Ash in for me tomarrow. I know regardless it's a new day but I know Ash performs better for Steve. We do ring practice at his place and sometimes we switch up dogs and Ash is always PERFECT for Steve. I'm torn of course because there's something to be said about being owner handled "all the way." But it is just one day and it would be interesting to see if it might make a difference.
Ring time is at 1pm tomarrow so wish us luck and regardless a fun time! I also entered him into the Napa show as well so there's always then too!

Ten months old on Saturday

2007-10-11T18:36:00.000-07:00

I wanted to take more pictures of his front and other side but my camera ran out of batteries. So this pic will have to suffice for now. I think he looks pretty good, he's got some "endearing quirks" but for the most part I think he 's a fine suitor for being my first show dog. He is such a love as well, I can't wait to get him therapy certified.

My Saturday clinicals are almost over (dos mas) and I already have him entered in the 9 -12 month class for the Sacramento Dog Fanciers KC show late October. It will be nice to be back in Dixon when it's not 100 degrees out. After that there's the show in Napa, which sounds fun as I can maybe tour some vineyards while I'm there!

As for my studies we have our midtern next Tuesday, I can't believe I'm already half way through the semester!! I decided to go off caffeine for awhile and it's been a challenge to get those synapses firing, but that's where espresso dark chocolate comes in handy. Well, I must get back to my books and then a study break for the Office and a dog walk. Just wanted to let ya all know that I'm still alive!

This made my night

2007-10-09T21:53:00.000-07:00

Furry Ears

2007-09-19T11:14:00.000-07:00

And no I'm not talking about bunny ears, Guppy :)

When I was over at a friend's house for ring practice last week, Steve's wife looked at Ash and said that I should start trimming in his ears! Now I know Ash has a plush coat, but he certainly isn't a fluff. I don't know why I should trim his ears if he doesn't resemble a fluff in any other way. She said something about perhaps he has a fluff gene in him and that the judges would recognize that by seeing his ears. So without seeing him up close I'm attching some clickable pics and perhaps I can get your opinions. And if I do need to trim in there, what scissors are recommended? I think his are alittle small compared to alot of other cardis I've seen, so perhaps trimming that hair back would make his ears seem bigger?

In other news, I guess I really am hooked into dog shows, it's been almost a month since Grass Valley and I think I'm having withdrawl! Dreaming about them, constantly checking Info dog for win results and upcoming shows. I think we will enter in the Sacramento/ Dixon show that's in late October. The weather should be nice then and it looks like there's been a good show of cardigan's in the past. Did you go last year Carolyn? How was it?

Well yesterday I had my first exam and I did fairly well on it, and I passed my math exam that I had to pass with 95% or better in order to continue on the program- so I can relax about that now.
Tomarrow is the one-year anniversary of my mom's death. I plan on taking a nice long walk on the beach with my furkids. God, I miss her. But I know she's still with me in many subtle ways.

My weekly blog update

2007-09-12T13:29:00.000-07:00

Finding time to blog has been a bit of a challenge these days, but really I don't have much dog news. Ash will be 9 months old tomarrow and he is weighing in at 30 lbs now. I'm finally a believer that he will meet the cardigan standard for average weight in males. We also went to our first basic obedience class on Monday and I learned that he has figured out how to tune me out. All he wanted to do was play with every single dog there rather than pay attention to his momma. I think it's time to turn things up a few notches and crack the whip. Tomarrow we have ring practice, so it will be interesting to see if he cooperates- especially since our last ring practice was about a month ago. So how long does the male teenage period last for all you male cardi owners? He really is a good, sweet boy but he has developed a mind of his own lately and I'm hoping it's just a phase.

As far as school for me I have my first clinical this week. I begin my rotation at our local psychiatric hospital... deep breath. Should be a learning experience. I miss the summer and it feels like fall already around here. Check out our apple thief in the backyard!

More wet dog pictures

2007-09-04T21:00:00.000-07:00

Whirlwind weekend

2007-09-03T08:34:00.000-07:00

I ended up only going to the Grass Valley dog show on Sunday. There is too MUCH going on in my life right now and I used the extra time to get almost caught up. Besides I did hear that Saturday was not only hot but humid and the judge was Sunday's judges' wife and so I think they both liked similiar things. The best part about this dog show was that I had kennel help!!!! So I have pictures!!! The fairgrounds were lovely. Lot's of Sierra pines and shade! I wish we had more time to snoop as the brief glimpse I saw of Grass Valley left a nice impression. Apparently G.V. was the place to go 10 years ago. Cute historic mining town in the foothills of the Sierra Nevadas.
Ash got reserve on Sunday to Heather Hutchison's Reese's Jamaican Rum and it was this dog's sire that took breed both day's (Ch Reese's Bold As Brass)- So I can live with that. :) Galen took the major on Saturday and that's also good news. After the show we stopped along the Trinity River and the dogs played in the water. It was beautiful out and I didn't want to go home and face my monster textbooks, but eventually the time was up. Back to books today. IV starts tomarrow.

Quickie

2007-08-29T19:16:00.000-07:00

Today was the second day of the nursing program for me. I'm feeling better than yesterday but I sure have alot of re-learning to do. Next week will be my hell week as we learn the remainder of the skills that a RN can do in their scope of practice. This is so that with the rest of the program we can be doing IV starts and central line dressing changes on real people in the hospital setting. I also think it's time to make the switch to decaf so that I can keep some of my anxiety hidden!

As for dog news, we are entered in the Grass Valley show coming up this weekend. Ring time on Saturday is 12:45 and on Sunday is 9am!! I'm beginning to think that we will just go on Sunday to avoid the Grass Valley heat and so I can not feel so overwhelmed by how much I have on my plate right now. But we'll see, maybe I'll decide at the last minute to go- I'll keep ya'all posted none the less.

T minus 5 days

2007-08-22T13:32:00.000-07:00

My life as I know it is about to drastically change, as well as Ash's. I hope it won't be too much of a shock for him to suddenly have me gone for 8 hour days several days in a row. At this point I don't think he's ever been alone for more than 4 - 5 hours at a time. One good thing is that we are enrolled to begin a basic obedience class beginning in two weeks. That will at least carve out some consistent training time for us and include some bonding with other people and dogs too.

We are entered in the Grass Valley show for next weekend, but I'm still unsure if we we will actually go. Largely in part of what time ring time will be. If it's an earlier time we will try to go. Grass Valley will be just as hot as Dixon, if not hotter and I'm sick of all these HOT dog shows. We are the coastal kind and the heat is too much to bear. But of course I'm torn because it will be the last two-day show we can attend until November due to my school schedule. Lucky me I get to have clinicals on Saturdays! So, I'm thinking Salem, OR will be our next show and at that time Ash will be almost a year old! Hopefully that does not look strange to have a gap like that and hopefully Ash doesn't somehow wreck his show career in the meantime, but you never know I suppose. Anyway I better get back to reading about the immune system- as I sneeze. :)

Dog Show Report

2007-08-20T08:21:00.000-07:00

Dog shows are really funny. Just when I was about to call it quits and skip out on the final day Ash gets his second major and BOW and BOS! It still feels surreal. Now we can relax about the majors and work on the rest of the points as time allows.
Digger's littermate, Galen picked up the major on Saturday- which was the only day he was entered in, so I'm sure that felt good. And one of Sharon Curry's dogs took WD on Friday. Autumn took breed all three days. For bitches Steve Porter's Unforgetable Rosey took WB on Friday and Lynhill Ebony Elegance took WB on Saturday. One of Sharon's bitches took it on Sunday ( I was still in shock over Ash's win that I didn't catch the number). We didn't enter in the sweeps as I didn't even realize that this show was a supported entry until after it had already closed. Emily Fish was the judge and I missed who she placed for best in sweeps- I think it will be on info dog soon, right? So that's about it for now.
In other words I came home last night and weighed Ash and he came in at 30 pounds!!! I started putting a half scoop of show stopper in his dinner about a week ago. I wonder if it's already bulking him up. He does have more energy than ever- which at times is too much. The guy seriously needs a hamster wheel for corgis. Anyone know where I can get one?

Ash models with the ball...and for the ball

2007-08-14T18:42:00.000-07:00

In the meantime we are getting ready for a three day dog show down in Santa Rosa,CA. We leave on Thursday, show Fri, Sat, and Sun and we'll drive home after Sunday's show. If everybody shows up, then the counts show 3 point majors offered on Sat and Sun. Again it should be warm out but hopefully not quite as bad as the Dixon show. I already know that the hotel I'm staying at is not wireless, so unless I find a cafe, I'll have to give the report when I'm back home. Well, wish us luck and good times!

8 months today!

2007-08-13T09:58:00.000-07:00

It's just amazing how quickly they get older. And everyone was right about male cardigans changing daily. I'm sure Ash has some minor changes to take place still but I believe most of his rapid growth is done. Today he weighed in at 28 pounds- looks like he's just gonna be a smaller boy, but he doesn't think so!

Travelin' Woes

2007-08-10T10:38:00.000-07:00

I have been a dog owner for almost 10 years now, Kiaya will be 10 in November, and we've managed pretty good. But I'd have to say that one of my most challenging issues as a dog owner is traveling. As some of you know I live very far away from pretty much anything. I have immediate family back in Indiana and not so immediate family 6 hours south of here in Santa Cruz. Then there's the once in every two years big vacation that I try to take such as the trip to Yellowstone I just did. When I was younger and more carefree I had no problems having my roomates watch Kiaya for me while I was away. In more recent years Colin has been a blessing and has helped in the care of Kiaya when I've taken a trip or two back east. Well now one dog is two, with the second being an unruly puppy at times. Don't get me wrong it worked out great that Mark and Kim could watch Ash for me while I was Yellowstone, but the whole time I was missing him like mad and communicating with Kim almost on a daily basis. I kept thinking about the answer Carolyn gave me when I asked how she handled her dogs when she went for vacations. She said "they come with me." And I believe Kim said the same for her dogs. I want so badly to always have them with me, so bad that after Yellowstone I have been looking into sportsmobiles, but then how do I handle flying to Indiana for the holidays? I vowed to myself before I brought Ash home that I would get him used to being boarded in a kennel so that traveling could be easier for me and him. But I think I was fooling myself because now I just think about him being surrounded by barking dogs and getting very little human interaction and being all alone in a cold, dark kennel. Am I humanizing him too much? I've never boarded Kiaya because she is VERY sensitive and she would be severly depressed if I ever had to do that to her. But now my local friends are getting older and have their own families or careers to tend to and so I don't want to burden them. I guess I'm just curious to hear how some of deal with traveling and your dogs, especially those who have family far away. I have to get plane tickets for Indiana for the holidays, but then I realized that I would miss Ash's first Christmas- he's just as much family to me as my Indiana family. I'm torn as to what to do. (Sorry such a sad and serious blog:( )

Ash gets a makeover

2007-08-07T18:29:00.000-07:00

I said as soon as I got back from Yellowstone and the Dixon show that I was going begin refreshing for the nursing program. Well, I decided to clean my closet out yesterday and today as soon as I cracked the book I fell asleep. Somehow I guess I have to get myself excited about it. Tomarrow is a new day.
I was over at my friend Steve's house the other day and he showed me what Ash would look like if his tan points were more vivid by chalking above his eyebrows and on his checks. It was amazing, it really brought out his white and even the blue in his eyes. The photo doesn't quite do it justice, esp since it matches the table he's on, but see if you can notice a difference. Colin says " I don't know about make-up for dogs."

Show news

2007-08-05T19:16:00.000-07:00

I'm soooo glad to be home, and I could ramble on forever about the weekend but I'll just git to the nitty gritty. Sat- Ash took his class, tho he was the only dog in it and went on to get reserve for winner's. Reese's California Reign took the bred by class and one of the Shonleh dogs took the open dogs class- it was her dog that took the points on Saturday, completing his championship. Autumn took BOB. I didn't pay attention to bitches- sorry. Sunday, Ash won his class, Reese's California Reign took bred by and Digger's brother- C-MysteBaledwr G'Day Terratote took the open dog class (Gaylen, right?). Reese's CA Reign took the points, with Gaylen taking reserve. Today Bryer took BOB- Yeah Kelly! So that's it in a nut shell. I feel pretty good about Saturday since this has been our biggest show and thus more competition. Ash did really well despite the fact that it was 105 degrees out and I now know how to keep a coastal dog cool in the heat (ice packs, fan, solar canopy)- me on the other hand I wanted the heck out of there! Today was cooler but WINDY! OK enough for now, I just thought I'd please the anxious ears just as I'm eager to hear how the Umpqua show went...waiting patiently..

Off to Dixon, CA

2007-08-03T10:51:00.000-07:00

Ash and I are once again hitting the road. The show in Dixon offers a chance at 4 point majors both days for dogs. Wish us luck and we'll keep ya'll posted!

A Window into Heaven

2007-08-01T10:33:00.000-07:00

Yellowstone was INCREDIBLE! It rained on us mostly but it didn't stop us from taking advantage of every single minute we had there. I could write a chapter on our week there, but that will have to come later. For now let me just say that if you ever want to see some spectacular wildlife viewing, then Yellowstone is the place to visit. We saw 8 grizzly's, 2 black bears, a dozen coyotes, 4 wolves, hundreds of buffalo, antelope, moose, elk, mule deer, and those are just the large mammels. We saw many small critters, birds and fish as well. I took over 200 photos and I'm waiting for alot of it to be developed still. The grand finale was on the last day we watched a grizzly fend off 3 wolves from a bison carcass he was on. It was so special to witness and a good reminder as to what the bigger picture is all about. Here are some pics for now with more to follow.

Back home, briefly

2007-07-19T15:12:00.000-07:00

I had sooo much fun on the houseboat. It ended up being an older boat with some of it's ammenities not functioning well, but we made due. It was so nice to not have a cell phone ringing or internet or TV as a distraction. We had beautiful weather and the water was so refreshing to swim in. The group got along great and I'm so excited for the the opportunity to do it again! I've posted some photos from the trip at http://www.dropshots.com/acj5. I'm trying dropshots out so the photos are at a lower resolution until I sign up. I'm still figuring it out and trying to decide if I like it, but they are up there for now.

In other news I picked up a new gift for myself and ultimately the health of our carpets. Now that I have Ash I can just barely keep up with all the dog hair accumulating in the house. I knew that cardis had a double coat and that they shed alot but I really didn't know how bad it really gets. So after reading the reviews I purchased a Dyson vacuum specifically for animal hair. I busted it out and used it today. It's amazing!!! I had to empty the chamber three times for just a small area. The suction is incredible and it's pretty lightweight to push around. I'm really happy with it so far and it feels so good to walk around on clean carpets. It was a spendy vacuum but if it means a having a relatively dust and animal hair free house it's worth it to me.

Colin and I are leaving on Saturday - I think, for Yellowstone. We are going to make a slight detour and head north first so that Kim can watch Ash for me. I know that he will be taken good care of with her and maybe he'll even get alittle handling/ ring practice in while with her, especially since I'll be picking him back up only 2 days or so before the Richmond show. Thanks again Kim! Well, it's back to unpacking, cleaning and packing back up again, when do I get a vacation from my vacations?? :)

Let my weekend Begin!

2007-07-14T09:07:00.000-07:00

We are almost off for a houseboating trip on Trinity Lake. I've never been on a houseboat before so I'm super excited. We have it for 3 nights and there will be 11 of us and one toddler whom we all adore. I went food shopping yesterday and I have enough food to feed a small army- gotta love Costco. The dogs are staying with others- Ash going to a boarding facility- so I'm feeling guilty about that. I hope it doesn't corupt him and turn him into a barker. We will be back on Tuesday and then Colin and I leave for Montana on Friday- whew, the summer is just FLYING by.
I did end up flipping a coin, OK multiple times, on which dog show to go to the first weekend of August and the consistent answer from the penny was Dixon. I think it will be a good experience for me to see what breeder judges are like and I hear the grounds are nice. Although I realized after I paid for it that we will be in the central valley in August!!! It will be HOT and Ash does not do well in heat- we are the coastal kind and so that part may not go well. Oh well, just learning at this point.
I did look ahead at what other shows we could go to after August and due to returning to the nursing program in the fall- the options are slim. Unfortunately the first 6 weeks of the program I get to have Sat morning clinicals, and it doesn't seem worth it to drive all that ways for just one day (Sunday)-so unless someone else wants to show him for me we are probably not going back out until Jan?? I had hoped to finish him relatively quickly but hopefully there should still be time.
Well that's it for now, time to deliver dogs to their respective places and hit the road for the lake adventure!

Heads or Tails

2007-07-11T17:03:00.000-07:00

The closing date is a week away for the Richmond show and the Umpqua show. Since both are the same weekend I'm having to choose between the two. I think I'm leaning towards the Richmond show mainly because one of the judges at the Umpqua show will also be at the Santa Rosa show I want to go to later on in August- I believe its Mr. Hubbell. And it looks like the past entries on Cardigans for the Richmond show has been fairly large- good chance for a major I guess. And I may even see my wonderful puppy mill friend with one of her cardigans there! (being facetious) But then again, Colin and I will just be getting back from Yellowstone and I will have been without Ash for 10 days or so- we may both be rusty. But as Louise put it " dog shows are good ring practice". Decisions, decisions- Im the worst at making them.

My utter thanks and appreciation

2007-07-09T10:11:00.000-07:00

It's been quite the week! After the LCKC show last weekend, perhaps due to stress, I caught the stomach flu on Tuesday- which was unfortunate for many reasons but one in particular was that my best friend whom I've known since I was 9 was flying in with her 3 1/2 year old that day. I remained sick throughout the week and by Friday knew that I had to make some quick decisions about making it up to Bandon. I decided to go to the walk-in clinic and see if that could help make my mind up. The P.A. told me that something was definately going around in the community and she thought perhaps it was a salmonella related bug- yuck!! She herself had caught it and she was out for 7 days! She perscribed me Lomotil to help slow things down and I made the decision to skip out on the camping for Friday night and just get a room in Coos Bay. This ended up being a good decision since I was up at 2:30am sick once again. The next morning I popped a lomotil and drove to the dog show. It was gorgeous out and WINDY!! By the time I got to the show I realized that not only does lomotil slow things down in the GI tract but it slows things down cognitively too- I basically was high as a kite off antidiarrheals! But the good thing was it was my cure and I was able to camp with the crew on Saturday night, though being cautious about what I ate I did enjoy the lovely albacore Tom picked up at the docks and some Chardonney. My favorite part was taking 11 cardigans and 1 bulldog for our after dinner walk- damn I wish I would of snapped some pictures of that! Ash was in heaven as well- he played hard with Mirhhi and then the next day my puppy became a teenager as he repeatedly tried to mount Celie. Celie finally learned how to tell him "No!" good girl Celie.

The next day was alittle better since I actually slept better and I was on the mend. Louise and Carolyn gave me some wave controlling pointers on Ash and it was off again to the show. Ash did take WD that day and I really feel like I owe that ribbon to Carolyn. Thank you Carolyn for "mentoring" me especially on a dog that is unrelated to your lines. There's a part of me that wishes I had waited for a pup from a litter of yours or from someone in the group, even though Ash is turning out to do well in the show ring- so thanks for adopting us. I like how Tom put it once- Ash is a rescue dog since he came from Florida!
AND I know eventually I'd like a show female so I'll be pestering you when that time comes around, and by then I'll be less of an amatuer!

So now we are back home and guess who has the stomach flu? Poor, poor Colin- I know exactly what he's going through. My girlfriend and her daughter are also still here but we've been sending them off with other friends so that they don't catch it. We have plans to go out on a houseboat next weekend on Trinity Lake and we need everyone to be well! Ash will be taking a small break from the shows until August. I definately want to go to the Lake County Kennel club show the third weekend of August and then there's the Umpqua show which is the same weekend as the Richmond show and I can't decide which one we should go to. Any suggestions? I heard the Richmond show is breeder judges but what does that mean really?

I didn't take many pictures of the Bandon weekend- I just had too much going on, but I got this cute one of Ash and Mirhhi and one of the coastline- Ahh, it was worth it all.

show photos

2007-07-02T22:48:00.000-07:00

I was too busy trying to learn the ropes, but my wonderful personal photographer did a good job of documenting the weekend. The first photo is Ash after his bath on Friday- he has such a funny look on his face!

Exhausted but gleaming!

2007-07-01T19:26:00.000-07:00

Ash and I had a great weekend at our local LCKC show. It was hot out and I was more nervous than I had expected but Ash performed very well for a puppy. On Saturday he won his puppy class with a total of three dogs and today he won his class again and then went on to take winner's dog for a 3 point major!!!!!! Not bad for his first show AND mine! I realize that I need to watch more shows because I had some moments of disorientation when we went back in for BOB- and I think Ash sensed it and he began sitting alot and broke gait a few times, but overall it was so much fun and I'm truly beginning to understand what the craze is all about. A pembroke ended up taking BIS, so that was pretty exciting to see too! I'll try to blog more when I have more energy but for now I'm going to go cuddle with my little winner!

Gearing up for the LCKC show

2007-06-27T13:43:00.000-07:00

Our first show is three days away! I'm trying not to get nervous about it and taking lots of time to do leisurely things this week such as gardening and reading in the sun. But of course show stuff keeps creeping into all my thoughts. "It's just for fun, it's just for fun, it's just for fun," has been my mantra lately.
A friend was able to help me get some MORE stacked shots of Ash today. I love the top photo because his head is nicely stretched out (I feel like he needs more length in his neck), but the bottom photo I have his hind feet pulled back better. What I really need is a show person to help me take these shots or I need to buy a mirror and place it behind the table because I still can't tell how far to pull those feet back! I try to keep our sessions on the table short so I don't sour him, and so it's hard to get that perfect photo, but these are alright.

Ash attempts to swim

2007-06-25T23:56:00.000-07:00

To lighten the mood

2007-06-23T13:50:00.000-07:00

Not to brush off the topic of my last blog, but I took some fun photos today of Ash. The dogs and I played in the creek in the back yard and then I dried Ash off and poofed him up a bit for some pics. I'm amazed at how well Ash stands on a table now, I just put him up there, tell him to stand and then I back up and I take my photos. The side shot has me slightly worried about his weight. He's only 24 pounds but his belly looks so round!

Chip the hellhound

2007-06-21T08:32:00.000-07:00

Ahhh, back home again from my week in Santa Cruz. Time to get back in gear just in time for some upcoming shows. Although there is something in the background that I feel I need to confront again. I have a skeleton in my closet that I think it’s time I face. Because it involves a certain cardigan corgi, I’d like to ask the advice of my blog friends.
Some of you know that I have had a bad experience with a backyard breeder back in December, well in many ways it’s still unresolved. I’ll try to keep to the short version.

I had been looking for a cardigan puppy to add to my family for a while and I of course was being very particular. I really wanted a blue male with blue eyes- Certainly now I would add with a good temperament and highly socialized with dogs, kids, ect. There is a guy here locally who has cardigans and sometimes has litters. He was due to have 2 litters in November and it turned out that neither of his bitches took. I was bummed, probably not as bummed as him but regardless my time was running out as I am returning to school late August and I wanted the winter and spring to work with the puppy to bring him up to par. So I did what I’ll obviously never do again, I googled CWC and I found a woman who lived in California, only about 4 hours away from me so I sent her an email inquiring about puppies. She said she didn’t have any litters on the ground but that she had a blue boy with blue eyes who was 5 months old- all housebroken and everything. His name was Chip and she raved about how smart and outgoing he was. I was truly on the fence about whether I wanted an older puppy; I really wanted to start from scratch with a younger pup. So she gave me an offer that I thought sounded pretty good and that was that I could have him for a trial period and if things didn’t work out I could bring him back. So I went for it. We met halfway at some rest stop in Corning, CA. I noticed that Chip had some missing patches of hair on him and the woman said that it was from his sister pulling him around. The dog was very friendly and pretty looking, so I took him back home with me. That was mistake number two. Mistake number one was that I gave her the asking price in cash before I left the rest area. BAD ME!
The events that happened in the following few weeks were hellish. The first thing Chip did when I brought him home was mark all over my entire house. I thought, “ Hmm that’s strange for a 5 month puppy to do.” Soon I learned that he was also food aggressive and had separation anxiety. When in a crate he would bark incessantly. I tried to put him in a small enclosure and he would FREAK OUT! He would claw at everything around him; jump and body slam into the door all while barking. I did everything the training books said to do and nothing worked. It was so bad that he would urinate and salivate all over himself while left alone.
I took him to the vet soon after having him and it was then that I found out that Chip was more like 8 – 9 months old. He weighed in at 33 pounds, so I suppose he could have been even older and that the missing fur patches were actually mange. I knew I had been deceived at this point, but I went ahead and began treating the mange and tried really hard to make it work for 2 weeks. All awhile I was calling and sending emails to the woman whom he came from and she was suddenly MIA. I knew I couldn’t keep Chip, he wasn’t what I bargained for, and now that I have Ash I realize how truly ill tempered Chip was. I ended up getting a hold of Cardigan Rescue because I didn’t want to just place Chip in another home- he needed rehabilitation and I wasn’t up for it. I worked with Sherilyn who finally was able to get a hold of Chip’s breeder and explained to her that it was in Chip’s best interest and her moral responsibility as a breeder for her to take him back. After 3 weeks she again met me in a rest stop this time bringing her husband along. Thankfully she did the right thing by taking him back, but she claimed the money had been spent and that she would just give me a puppy from her next litter in exchange. I countered this by stating that I just wanted my money back and she said that wasn’t how she does things. Bullshit right?
At the time I had no other choice, the rescue people said that because this woman wasn’t a CWCCA member she couldn’t be cited and that I probably didn’t have much of a chance in court, so I was just so glad to be rid of Chip that at the time it was almost worth a slap in the face ad losing the money.
Well that all happened 6 months ago and Ash has been keeping me happy, but now I’m beginning to feel like maybe I should open the can of worms again and try to get my money back, or at the very least warn others about her. What can I do? The local cardi guy has said that I should write a letter to the AKC, but Sherilyn said that they couldn’t do anything. Is the only way to get my money back is to really take a pup from her and then sell it to someone else?? Or is that just counter effective? Perhaps it’s just a hard lesson to learn that involved losing a lot of cash. Perhaps it’s just a slap in the face for trusting a stranger, who by the way is in law enforcement. I had never bought a purebred anything before- I should have been more patient and done more homework. Shoulda, woulda, coulda… Do I just lay it to rest or do I go after this terrible, terrible woman who is giving a bad reputation to our loved little breed?

6 months old today!

2007-06-13T08:06:00.000-07:00

Wow, I can't believe how quickly my little guy is growing up! Although he's definately still a puppy who is quickly approaching his teens- scary, he really is such a good boy. He listens 98% of the time and just loves people and especially other dogs. He's even been alot more trustworthy out of the crate and hasn't chewed on any non- dog item since the last carpet incident, but no worries I'm not trusting him 100% yet! I'm just so happy he turned out to be what I wanted and how I thought a cardigan was supposed be like. After my bad BYB incident (topic of my next blog) I was hesistant to try again with the breed. But he is just a joy and he's heading down to meet the rest of the Anderson family tommarrow. Colin and I, and the dogs, are going to Santa Cruz to celebrate his sister's gradution. Since part of the family is coming from Texas, we will be there for almost a week in a very FULL house. I feel sorta bad bringing the dogs on top of it, but I think it will be good to expose them chaos once in awhile- kids too. In fact the house is so full that Col and I will be sleeping in his aunts Volkswagon van, with the dogs mind you. Pretty funny, huh? I figure it will be a good trial to see if something like that could get me around if I seriously got into dog showing. I'll be sure to snap some pics of us. Until then here's some recent shots of Ash. Happy half birthday little man!

Silly New Video

2007-06-09T09:35:00.000-07:00

I especially love the part where Ash goes from flirting with Kiaya to remembering that he was having a better time chasing his tail. Enjoy!

Lions, Tigers and Bears

2007-06-09T00:04:00.000-07:00

My neighbor at the end of the block called today and left a message on the machiene saying that she watched a mountain lion take off with her cat on Wednesday night. She was just giving us a neighborly warning about watching out for our small animals here at the house. How scary and sad, but how cool is that? Sorry call me alittle twisted but I love that I live in a place where I have to worry about where I stand in the food chain. Granted I would be sooooo bummed if anything attacked and ate my dogs, but that's just the reality of where I live. I have a B.S. degree in wildlife mangement and I believe that we are encroaching in their environment- what do we expect?? Poor, poor kitty- perhaps it shouda been an inside cat around these parts.

2007-06-07T22:36:00.000-07:00

Ash is rid of his puppyhood- at least his teeth are anyway!
I'm soooo glad the teeth came out the all natural way, so thanks everyone for your advice, comments and moral support.

Going for a Ride

2007-06-07T09:22:00.000-07:00

So the question is- who is taking who for a ride?

I just entered Ash into the Lost Coast Kennel Club show and the Bandon show. Being that we correctly filled out the forms we are now locked in. I also just ordered close to $300.00 worth of grooming supplies, so hopefully Ash and I LOVE the sport of showing otherwise I have some nice replacements for anyone interested. Any helpful tips and hints for a beginner at this point is greatly appreciated. I'm reading 'The Absolute Beginner's Guide to Showing your Dog', and using some good websites that explain conformation stacking and I just ordered the 131 Westminister from Netflix so I can study the handlers, anything I'm forgeting?? Really I just want to have fun, but not looking like a complete novice is an added bonus. Ready or not, here we come!

Short but sweet

2007-06-05T11:43:00.000-07:00

We are back to the lovely cool climate of the coast. We all had a nice time away, ate good food, saw an amazing play, got lots of good mother nature time in and played with the dogs.
Now it's time to start daily training for both of us. Getting a good trot down, standing nicely on the table, practicing the freestack all while having a good time. Oh and good news, one upper baby tooth came out today!! I'm hoping the other goes on it's own as well but we have an appt with another vet for tomarrow morning so perhaps she'll just speed the process up and pull it! That's all for now.

Kiaya

2007-06-02T18:32:00.000-07:00

I'm finally done with work, WHOOOO-HOOO! I'm so glad to have it behind me because if I had to write one more stream report I thought I was going spontaneously combust! My sweetie and I are going to do a quick celebration trip to Ashland, OR tomarrow. Have a nice romantic dinner and then a play. We soooo need a get away like this, and of course we are bringing the dogs. For those of you who don't know I actually have two dogs. My other is a female aussie X going on 10 years old. She IS my heart dog. It's funny to have a mix breed and than a purebreed. Everything about Kiaya was free, of course it helped that I worked for a vet when I got her and I gave her all her vaccines and assisted in her spay. She's never got into trouble with illnesses or injuries and she's still rather healthy for a senior. In fact she has set the bar quite high for Ash as Kiaya is SOOO smart. She knows several commands and is so well behaved. She's still adjusting to having Ash around, she has been used to being the only spoiled dog for so long. She truly does think she's human and would rather not run with the pack, which is why eventually I want to get another cardi for Ash to have a snuggle, play buddy- but for now I'm happy with my small family.

Looks like we might have an issue

2007-05-31T09:05:00.000-07:00

Yesterday I took Ash to the vet because I had some concerns regarding some excess discharge he's been having from his eyes. Turns out the eyes are fine, I'm just treating with terramycin for awhile, but the vet pointed out that Ash is retaining his puppy teeth. Both of his upper adult canines are coming in right NEXT to the puppy canines. SInce the adult canines are just beginning to emerge I'm keeping my fingers crossed that they will still push the baby teeth out. The vet said they should be out in the next 2 - 3 weeks, if not they may need to be surgically extracted! It may also affect his bite. So far he has a scissor bite but it does look like on his right side the upper and lower canine are not even. Hopefully this will all correct itself and I can stop fussing! BUT his first show is 4 weeks away and I'm wondering how this will play a role in all of it?????

5 month pics

2007-05-29T08:27:00.000-07:00

I'll get some table shots later today but for now here is a photo of Ash's front. Perhaps not bad for 5 months but he does seem to have alot of head and I wish he had more neck. I think his feet look good- could be alittle closer, I'm still learning though.
Also have some movement shots where I think he looks pretty good. I'll have to keep working on getting the suspended in air shot.

2007-05-28T09:32:00.000-07:00

I'm off to begin my last week of work!!! I'll be then enjoying a nice stress free summer prior to going back to school to finish my last 2 semesters of the nursing program. Friday can't come soon enough!!!!
On another note, I had to post this classic photo of Ash playing with his bestest buddy.

Cardigan joys?

2007-05-26T15:41:00.000-07:00

I hate to admit it, but I really don't get out all that much. My days are fairly routine, which have been nice for raising a puppy. Although, the last fews times I have decided to go for an evening out Ash has revolted against it. So let me back up, when I'm gone and he's unable to accompany me he is gated up in a small room - that connects to my bathroom. It's about the size of a small dog run. He has TONS of squeekies, chew toys, stuffed animals and tough bones to entertain himself with. And mostly they do the trick till I get home from work. BUT lately when I go out at night he chews the carpet! It's beginning to get pretty bad in there where he has now two corners pulled back. I've tried spraying it with bitter apple, putting extra treats and chewies in there with him, and he still goes after it. Please tell me that this is still just a puppy tendency?? Or do I need a metal room for him? Am I destined to lead the life of an agoraphobic hermit?

Today is a day when I love where I live

2007-05-23T08:23:00.000-07:00

I can't believe I've lived here for almost 10 years and I never knew about the dog park 12 miles north of my house! Perhaps it's new, or I really just don't get out enough? Regardless I took the pooches there yesterday and it's AMAZING! Extensive trail systems opening up to large grassy pastures- all with the sounds of the ocean in the distance. Conviently located trash cans everywhere for proper poop disposal and doggie bags- but I usually have a few stuffed in my pockets anyway. We were there for 45 minutes and I still haven't seen all of it. It wasn't too crowded either, of course it was a weekday, but it was the prime hour of 6pm- so I'm super excited about our new stomping grounds. Then I came home to a very excited boyfriend telling me about how tree swallows had discovered his first handmade bird house. I got some good pics!

Baby photos

2007-05-14T22:45:00.000-07:00

Some cute pics of Ash at 8 weeks old. He turned 5 months yesterday- man time flies!!!

Mother's Day

2007-05-13T09:27:00.000-07:00

It's mother's day today and I'm trying to stay afloat. I lost my mom on September 20- so this is one of the days the bereavement groups prepared me for. I think the anticipation was worse for me- all the adds, commercials, ect. But now the day is here and thankfully I don't have to work. It looks like the weather will hold out and I can go for a hike to reflect. She was an amazing woman, and most definately my number one hero. In many ways I'm following her footsteps. She was a midwestern girl and moved to Southern California right after nursing school and worked as an ER nurse in LA- Oh the stories she told! She met my dad there and had me. Unfortunately they weren't meant to be and she moved back to her family in Indiana- where I was raised. Now I live back in California and I'm pursuing a nursing career! She is with me all the time. I look at photos of me aand I see her smile in mine, her hands in mine. Her friends say "Wow, you are just like your mother." I just hope so- she was such a strong, independant, shining soul. Her greatest skill was listening and then knowing exactly what to say- it wasn't much but it always seemed dead on. Her funeral was attended by MANY of her patients families (she was a hospice nurse) who had nothing but wonderful stories of her. I am so honored to of had her as my mom, it's not fair at all that I lost her at the early age of 62- but she sure left her mark. I love you mom.

Ash's new favorite toy

2007-05-09T19:44:00.000-07:00

During one of our puppy kindergarden classes they busted out a 9 foot long agility tunnel and Ash LOVED it! So I splurged and ordered one- not professional quality but it serves the purpose. I'm not sure if Ash has agility in his future or not but we sure are loving the tunnel. I don't even have to tell him to run through it he just does- back and forth, hopefully he doesn't become one of those neurotic dogs with some strange obsession.

Louie

2007-05-07T09:59:00.000-07:00

This is a picture of Ash's sire- Ch Pecan Valley Singing the Blues, aka "Louie". I wish I could of met him in person but Cathy assured me that "he was a doll." Very social and eager to please. It looks like Ash will share some of his features like that amazingly beautiful white collar! I wish I had more pictures of him to post- I'll have to bug Cathy.
I added a recent photo of Ash's show side for comparision- (I just set him on a bench- so his stack is probably all goofy- still learning!)

Two-timin'

2007-05-04T10:55:00.000-07:00

Last weekend my boyfriend left for an all guys fishing adventure. Check the photo for who got to keep his side of the bed warm!

First gait photo!

2007-05-02T11:21:00.000-07:00

Taking a digital picture of your dog while walking him on a leash really isn't easy!

Contemplating

2007-05-01T10:35:00.000-07:00

Well, I got my offical form letter accepting me into my final phase of nursing school. Classes will begin in the fall and as I'm eager to get it done with I'm also sad that my slow pace of life is coming to an end. It's only 2 semesters so it should go fast but I'm expecting it to take over my life for awhile. The big question is where do I go after school? Do I stay in the sleepy town of Arcata, or do I head somewhere with more jobs and better pay? And what specialty do I go into? I know in nursing there is often burnout so I want a job that is mostly rewarding and most importantly gives me time to do what I love. I always wanted that job where I lived to work, but now I realize that I will be working to live. Life is short so I better have ample time to live and love. OK this is getting heady, sorry! On a lighter side I got some fun ppics of Ash after a bath. I love the way his coat darkens when it's wet. Enjoy!

Fresh camellia

2007-04-28T21:47:00.000-07:00

Who says that blue eyes are startling?

memories of bringing Ash home

2007-04-26T09:03:00.000-07:00

I was on the fence about flying a puppy, but many breeders whom I had spoken with seemed to have no reservations against it at all. But this was my first purebred dog and I was learning alot about the trade. It turned out that many airlines have great pet - flying programs where they hire staff just to watch over the animals. They will not fly an animal if it's over a certain temp or below a certain temp. If the flight is delayed overnight the airlines will put them in a boarding facility, or if an animal gets sick they will bring them to a vet. This was alot higher standards than I had previously believed. So I figured I would try it. Poor Ash did end up having a rough day. He got a late start in Florida, which really upset Cathy. All in all it was a 12 hour day for him, not to mention that then I had to throw him in my car until we could get a few hours up the coast. He was so tiny!! He was 11 weeks old already but only weighed 10 lbs. He was so happy to see me, but dismayed when we had to go for another small trip. He cried the entire time. It was painful to hear, I was hoping I didn't traumatize him from the whole experience. We finally got to the hotel in Willits, CA. I couldn't make him stay in that crate any longer, he slept in bed with me. Needless to say neither one of us slept well that night. But in the long run if I had to fly an animal again, I would. It may have been a hard day for Ash but it definately didn't scar him. He loves car rides now, and he's really not afraid of anything. Very bold and outgoing and cute!

I'm so glad I have small dogs

2007-04-24T20:41:00.000-07:00

a friend emailed me this picture today. It's almost hard to believe it's true but I had to post it.

My Glamour Boy

2007-04-24T00:01:00.000-07:00

I love this shot of Ash- he's sooo cute- can't he just stay a pup FOREVER!

Couldn't be more pleased

2007-04-23T23:18:00.000-07:00

Now that I've had some time to R&R from my mini road trip yesterday I can now catch up on my blog. Ash and I went and visited Carolyn from C-myste corgis in Oregon. Carolyn has been into the breed for 21 years and I knew she'd give me some good feedback on Ash's structure, ect. Ultimately Carolyn said "he's a keeper". Not that at this point it would have matterred as the little guy has won me over BIG time. Some good points that I learned that it looks like he has good hocks and thus a nice rear. He has good shoulder placement and his forearms support his body well. He has good tail carriage and gait (when he's not doing his puppy bounce or pretending that I'm a giant sheep). It looks like he might be wide in front but still has good bone and I'll just need to work on getting him to stand pretty on the table. There's more but I don't want to bore the non- doggers. So it looks like I'm gonna show him and it's a new and exciting world for me! He won't be 6 months until June 13'th so his first show will be our local Lost Coast Kennel Club show late June. The most exciting part is- I FINALLY choose his registered name- drum roll please... Sunkissed Playin' With Fire. So watch out, cuz you all know what happens when you play with fire... you get burned!!! OK, for those who don't know me - I'm far from competative, but I'm working on it! Enjoy these cute pics from our first road trip together.

Trying to take the dullness away

2007-04-17T20:55:00.000-07:00

Since I've brought my new puppy home, my work schedule has been altered to accommodate us. This means that my ordinary 20 hour week that I was doing in three days, in order to enjoy a nice four day weekend, has now been stretched out to four hours a day five days a week. This way I can go home for lunch for a few hours each day to feed puppy. I know pretty coosh, but I MISS having those four days for errands, me, ect. The work that I do is pretty damn monotonous, so to pass time I just listen to NPR and then to XMradio and try not to stare at the clock wishing it was already time to leave. The big picture is our grant funding for my position will be up the end of May and then I'll have just about three months of complete utter freedom until I have to sell my soul as my final push through the RN program. Let's just say come'on May I'm ready!!!! I have so many plans to travel and camp and show my dog and garden and scrapbook and play and....... I just hope three months will be long enough!

Wow, I CAN do it!

2007-04-16T21:47:00.000-07:00

Ok, my first blog... What on earth to say, where to begin?
I suppose I will just begin from the present and others will pick up the pieces as the story unfolds. My most exciting thing occupying my days lately is my new Welsh Cardigan corgi puppy. He's almost 18 weeks old and and is as cute as a freakin button. It's a long story about how I fell in love with these dogs but I'm beside myself that I finally have one I can spoil, love and call my own. His name is Ash, and at some point I will have a fancy registered name for him but we are still working on it.
Ash lives with my other dog, Kiaya, my boyfriend, six chickens and three ducks. Also currently residing with us is my friend Amy and her Boston bull and cat. Our house is basically like stepping foot in a zoo, where the animals rule.
Tonight we finished our fourth puppy kindergarden class. Ash has come a long way and is getting smarter and smarter each day. Soon we will be able to discuss the inner makings of the space time continuum theory.
This upcoming week will actually be a milestone as we have meetings with couple of well respected cardigan fanciers who will take a look at him and let me know how his overall form and structure look. I'm anxious to hear what they have to say. He has a pretty face but I am just a novice at this point and am seeking a good mentor. Regardless he's been loads of fun and heart lifting, especially in such a sad world these days.