Monday, October 31, 2011

Little Bea the Pumpkin Head

Little Bea the Beazle-Bug


Hopping through the pumpkin patch


Racing up the field and back


Flying through the air.



Little Bea the Beazle-Bug


Dashing through the pumpkin patch



Leaving clouds of pumpkin dust,


Trailing in her wake.


Miss Brynn the Brynn Dog,

 

Romping through the pumpkin patch.


Playing in the sunshine,


and resting in the dirt.


Little Bea the Beazle-Bug,


Leaping through the pumpkin patch.


Waiting for the Brynn dog,



And biting her on the neck.




And Dooooooowwwwwwn came the good Fairy dog Beth


And she said....


Little Bea the Beazle-Bug, 
I don't want to see you...


Waiting for the Brynn dog
and biting her on the neck.


I will give you one more chance and if I catch you biting her neck again...



I will turn you into a PUMPKIN HEAD!

The very next day...

Little Bea the Beazle-Bug,
Hiding in the pumpkin patch


Waiting for the Brynn dog



And chomping on her neck.



Tweeedlely Deeeeeeeee
Tweeedleleeee Dooooooo
Little Bea the Beazle-Bug
Oh, Oh, Ooooohhhhhh...


The Good Dog Fairy, shook her head




and shook her head some more.


Then Pooooooof! 


Oh no...


"Ooops, guess you got that spell a little backward, good Fairy dog Beth" 


You thought you could get me, HA!


I am Bea the Beazle-Bug!


And you have a pumpkin stuck on YOUR head!


The End



Thursday, October 27, 2011

Disquietude & Coming Home

The past few weeks have been a drain on me emotionally, which has translated to a profound gap in blogging.  Sorry, no pictures this time. My computer time is limited until my hand feels better. 

This last weekend at Fire Ridge Sheep Dog Trial I had three runs with Brynn.   Three retires and one broken wrist.  I ran Brynn on Saturday with two broken bones in my wrist from a tumble down the stairs the night before.  Pain can be a wee bit distracting but vet wrap & ibuprofen are wonderful things.

I keep a notebook on my blackberry where I jot down thoughts that come to me.  Here is a sampling of what I wrote throughout the weekend - it sums my emotional state up aptly.  

  • I am tired of letters.  I am frustrated. 
  • I am a wee bit lost on this 'journey'
  • Don't giggle when your dog brings sheep around the post, does not end well  
  • I have been looking for answers outside of myself.  Searching for advice, miracle 'cures'  & not listening to my heart and what I know is inside of me 
  • I am afraid of success, self sabotage sucks
  • Why do I look to others for the validation?  The answers lie in me.  They will come through me, I just need to get out of the way.  
  • That last step can be a doozie
  • Camp fires make your hair smell
  • I abhor 'name droppers' & people who need to be the center of attention all the time
  • When someone shows you who they are, believe them
  • I am tired of following others and discounting myself.  I never learned how to separate myself from others opinions.  I am not a mirror...I am me.   
  • Humility, grace, honesty and kindness are things I cherish and admire in others above all
  • Not all dog people are nice, some people their saving grace IS their dog
The absolute best part of my weekend was coming home.

My handsome husband had the carpets cleaned, he pressure washed the house, driveway, porch and concrete, the house was spotless, smelled heavenly and dinner was in the oven.

Then Brynn tried to rip Ranger's nose off his face.

It was nice to be home.  

Tuesday, October 18, 2011

Just Stuff

It has been a busy couple of weeks, ruled mostly by sheep.  Throw in my husband, kids and granddaughter, followed by dogs & working on a couple of website designs it does not leave much time left to blog.

Speaking of which...

Check out Dianne Deal's new website - Orchard Run Border Collies.   It was a joy working with Dianne and I hope her new website represents her well. 

www.diannedeal.com


Now that I have covered that, the rest of this blog post will be ruled by rambling.  Blame it on the cold medicine.  Being busy leads to being exhausted, which means the beginning of a yucky cold.  You know the deal, headache, sinusitis, sore throat, ear ache, grumpy disposition.  My husband thinks the grumpy disposition is normal, ibuprofen and decongestants do not typically help with that, much to his chagrin.

Wednesday I am leaving for Fire Ridge SDT.  I am hoping that Brynn and I can actually finish a pro-novice course.    She has been working well at home.  Daily work and chores has helped me more than anything.  Confidence is the biggest combatant against fear.  With the confidence I am feeling things mesh, and hopefully able to project it through my whistles to Brynn. 

Today we had a lovely session.  My whistles have been so harsh in the past and I am learning to tone them down, soft & consistent which Brynn responds to nicely.  In turn I feel myself relax, Brynn stops fighting me and we work as a team.  Lets hope I can keep this 'zen' handling up when I am in front of people.  That is my weakness & our downfall.  Time and miles, I know. 

This weekend we were busy.  We put the redneck sheep hauler back into business.  Saturday we drove to Ferndale, WA (where I grew up) to check out a flock of border leicester/coopworth sheep.  The gal who raised them had been doing so for 17 years.  She raised them for fleece and meat. 



She has decided to switch to Finn's for their wool which she uses to create felted hats.  Her entire flock was in excellent health, beautiful well bred sheep. 


Together we corralled them and trimmed feet.  She wanted to make sure I had a chance to thoroughly inspect them.  We made a great deal.  We brought home two ewe lambs and left the ewes I selected there to be bred to her handsome ram, Roy.  We will pick them up in a month.  That will give us two distinct unrelated crops of lambs which it a good thing.  The best part was making new friends & connections. 



On Sunday John and I drove the redneck sheep hauler to Olympia to pick up the baby Behemoth rambouillet ewe lamb (she is 6.5 mos old and HUGE!).  She is a  black rambouillet. 


While she will compliment the direction I want to go in breeding I bought her mainly for her fleece, which is incredible.  She is cute too, she has a white spot on her head, which is unusual.  Another acquisition from a closed flock. 

To give you an idea of how large she is...here is a group shot.  She is standing behind the full grown Katahdins, remember she is just past 6 months old.


 Jim was not quite sure what she was. 


 They got it sorted out in short order. 

Thus ends our sheep shopping, much to Monique's relief. 

As I type this, Brynn and Bea are snuggled up together at my feet under the desk.  I think Brynn is going to have a harder time letting Bea go to Dianne for training than me.  These two are a matched set.



This post would not be complete without picture to make you go awwwwwww. 


Have a great week! 







Tuesday, October 11, 2011

Sheep Gone Wild

~ This post may not be suitable for viewers under 18 - or anyone else with an ounce of taste, class, or a sense of humor that has evolved beyond a 5th grader. ~ 

I have none of the above.  












*note to self:  do not use red marking paint on the ram next year, it is rather alarming for the neighbors & property owner to suddenly see red splashed all over the sheep*