While one is sick....

I have been sick this week with some sort of H1N1 viral flu, maybe, or perhaps a viral pneumonia. The doctors were unclear with me but what I DO know is that I am SICK! I have been coughing up a lung and napping for hours everday-- it's been going on for a week already and I have been starting to get a little bored of the nap, pet kitten, play with puppy, nap, repeat, repeat routine.

So, I have gotten busy and decided that I NEED to finish this baby gift for a dear friend.... It's not quite big enough yet and I have to admit I have fumbled the pattern in a few places, but generally speaking, I am very pleased with the results!

 I also splurged and used a gorgeous Cascade Wool...  check it out, if you are into fancy wools to knit with... Cascade Yarn Superwash Paint.  I used the tropical seas colour scheme because I think it's an interesting set of bright, vibrant colours for a baby. No pastels here!  Hope she agrees with my choice!!


Can't wait to show off the finished product at the end of this!

PLEASE, save this cat so I don't need to

I met this cat yesterday.

Porter.  Please click the link; I tried to post his photo but it wouldn't let me.

He broke my heart- he is a huge cat, so big I wonder if he is a Maine Coon mix or something and they say he is just a year but he looked older to me.  He looked at me and I opened his run. MISTAKE!  He immediately climbed into my arms and refused to go back into his kennel.  I walked away with tears in my eyes as I was immediately drawn to the sadness in this cat. He acted like his heart was broken and he was desperate to find someone who can see beyond the messy mass of fur he has, the matts by his ears and the unkempt look he has to him.

I am trying to block him out, but its painful and difficult.  I CANT have another cat, I really can't! SO, please my cat loving friends, go and see him. Give him a chance so I know he is ok! Otherwise, I am a little afraid that my catty family will expand by one more!

To agility or not to agility?

I love agility. I really do!  However, I have not been committed to training my dogs at all in the last couple years. I am not sure why this is the case, but my motivation has really fallen off. I guess, sometimes when you hit inertia, it is easier to stay there.  So, once I quit attending classes I stopped really doing any work.  Last winter, I thought maybe I would train a bit on my own.  I went maybe 3 times; I rented a great space to use but even that wasn't enough to inspire me. I did some work in the yard but it was tough; once the snow sets in, I cant say that I am all that motivated to work on weaving,

So, I thought maybe I would try something new. I called a local Obedience trainer but they didn't return my call.  Frustrating!  Then, I contacted the Local Retriever Club, hoping to train Reason in retrieving. They hold practice times at 9AM on Sunday AM's.  I have just been asked to assume responsibility for the 9AM mass at my church, as well as playing piano for the 11AM.  So retriever classes are totally out as I am committed to doing music at St. Mary's. I am not prepared to take time away from that at the moment.

I ended up sitting with it for a few days and really pondering what I want with my dogs.  The reality is that I have trained Spike to a point where it is wasteful to not continue.  He has several titles:  he is Spike SJATD, FD-CHs, ADC, SGDC.  The first title is his therapy dog credentials. The second is flyball and the last 2 are agility. We are 3 legs short of his advanced games dog title (out of 9). I want to do that. I want to continue to run Spike. I have started training both Murphy and Reason. There is no reason (haha) to not continue this work with them.  Really, I have no excuse to not train Sophie in nosework either; this is a sport that she will LOVE and be able to do with no mobility issues at all.

I made my decision yesterday officially.  I am taking my 3 dogs back to agility classes and I am prepared to work HARD with them. I also have LOADS of work to do on myself as I am so incredibly out of shape at this moment. But, it's a turning point for me, I believe. I am starting over, allowing myself to find the fun and joy in an incredible sport where I get to play with my dogs. I love working with them and this is an exciting decision to make.

So, watch out world; Spike and I will be trialing this winter for sure. Reason and Murphy may well trial as well!  It's a good, good place to be!

I wonder if I should be concerned...

I brought the cats home a present today. I think they like it!  I wonder if I should be concerned or worried??

Can cats OD on catnip??

Life is so complicated sometimes....

I have been away from this blog in so long I doubt I have any readers left. I'm tired of promising to write and not do so. Or promising to start reading blogs again and not doing it. So, I am just going to jump back into the swing of life and show you bits of what has kept me going and busy over the last months...

First, it started with this little black bundle of fluff...

This is Ryder.

Then, these two quickly followed.

This is Ophelia.

This is Oliver. 

They all have a story behind them but I want you save that for another day. Just know that Ryder, Ophelia and Oliver have captured my heart, the dogs attention and they have begun to rule the house with their quick to strike out at a wayward Murphy, should she decide to chase.  It's been interesting integrating 3 cats who all arrived within about 2 weeks of each other into a home where dogs have ruled supreme forever.

Spike has reacted to the cats with curiosity then a shrug of his shoulders as if to say "I guess they are staying.  I'm afraid of them, but if I don't get too close, I'll be fine!"  Sophie is more interested in their food than in the kittens themselves. Reason hasn't even seemed to notice them. Murphy is the only one who seems to a have a death wise as she pursues them and they tell her off with a quick hiss and swipe of the paws.  I have to admit, I am worried about Murphy and how she is responding to them; her freedom is restricted in the house now and it's been a little rough.

In other news, I have started teaching some piano lessons this year. I am loving being back in the world of music, of playing and even of accompanying again; I play weekly at mass and that is great.  It's going so well, I am going to attempt to teach out of my home this next year. I am wavering on how to make this work out--- do I renovate my garage and create a fantastic studio?? Or renovate my front porch and create an all season space so I can keep the dogs out there and actually gain some room?  Big decisions!  In the meantime, I am going on a cleaning binge and I plan to overhaul the whole house. You know, be ruthless and get rid of stuff as I have realized that my house is small and I have stuff.  Lots of stuff.  So, the fun begins. I just have to decide where to start.... It's time though!!

Anyway, I have to admit its nice being back at the blog.  I think it won't be so long between postings again.

Sir Paul McCartney

I saw Paul McCartney this week. What an experience!!  I will never forget being part of a crowd of nearly 40,000 singing "Hey Jude" with him. Amazing...

Photos to share the experience with you all too!

The crowd and the stage.

My friend and I- we went down together.

More of the crowd. I have never seen Mosaic Stadium so full in my life.

The stage view we had. Not great seats, but it didn't matter. The energy was high, the crowd was great and Sir Paul does a show that is amazing!

Sir Paul

His funky piano. I tried to get decent close up pics but it was hard. Sorry for the quality, but it gives an idea of what this amazing experience was like.

I have some video of it too, but I am not sure whether I will attempt to load the clips or not; they are large and I am a bit nervous of copyright laws. In any case, I will never forget Sir Paul singing some of my favourites- Let it Be, Yesterday, Hey Jude, Helter Skelter, and mostly Blackbird.

FINALLY...

I have missed blogging. I have no excuses about why I haven't blogged, but I can tell you this;  I miss it.

So, here goes... an attempt to revive this old blog and get back to it!

I just spent 7 days on a little vacation to Alberta, without the dogs. It was great; I spent time with my parents then I went to Brooks, to visit an old friend, Al.  We haven't seen each other in about 4 years and it was so good to see her, to get caught up on life and to learn a few new things along the way.  Seriously, Al is a pretty wise gal; I doubt she is even 30 yet, but she is darn smart and taught me a few lessons about budgeting and meal planning. I will share those another day, but for today I just want to share some photos of the trip.  Oh, and you can meet Al yourself by heading over to her blog.... Al's PolkaDots and Paisley.

In the morning before I left, we drove out to Dinosaur Provincial Park to hike in the badlands. I haven't hiked in a long, long time and for me, this was a pretty serious adventure. It showed I am out of shape but it was pretty amazing and I loved it!

First of all, I had a nearly 5 hour drive, but some of the scenery was absolutely spectacular and I couldn't help but photograph it.

Somewhere, in the middle of nowhere, Alberta.

 Pretty canola, all yellow in the field... love it!

The rest of the photos are images from Dinosaur Park.  We hiked up through these hills on a trail that is marked for people to walk.  There are several throughout the park and we chose a middle of the road difficulty one. I loved it; so beautiful!

I know this post is very "photo" heavy but I fell in love with this area! I haven't had a real holiday in years so it felt so good to get away and actually just do something for me.  I can't leave it this long ever again.