Willow Passes Her CCA

 GMGRC Photo ... Willow (R)

On Columbus Day weekend, after baths for all and all car bedding washed, we were packed and left in the 5:30am foggy darkness and headed to Northern Vermont for 20 month old Willow's "Canine Certificate Assessment" ... 3 AKC judges independently evaluated her, as compared to the "ideal" Golden Retriever and she earned 83 out of a possible (near impossible) 100 points  ;o)   It was a sunny warm day and the folliage color was just supurb ... perhaps we'd camp overnight and explore the north country and enjoy a leisurly trip home!

? Bees or Mushroom ?

Just 48 hours prior, Willow had a severe allergic reaction to ? bees in the wild Asters or a dust cloud from a ruptured "Puff Mushroom" while out playing ball after supper ... Benadryl for 4 days finally brought the hives swelling down!

Emma 5 1/2 Months Old

Willow & CCA Rosette

Emma continues to "grow like a weed" and recently started thinking that she owns the recliner ... OhYa!!!!

She continues to amaze me in "doggie school" with her sitting calmly for greetings, downs-out-of-site and heeling at my side while weaving amongst the other classmates ... good girl ;o)

Enjoy their photo story ;o)

Willow & Emma Sacked Out!

You Could Have Saved Me Some!

Sparring!!!

My Show is On!

Grooming ;o)

Sutter, Emma and Willow invite you to come back to see more of our Fall excursions ;o)

Emma 5 Months, Starts CGC, Willow in 2nd Rally Session, Retirement ;o)

What a Pretty Girl ;o)

The Geraniums have lost their summer blooms and Emma is almost too big to photograph on the picnic table, but we'll see how it goes!

Emma 5 Months

Willow & Her Toys ;o)

Emma had her 2nd week of "Canine Good Citizen" class this week and Willow is about to start her 2nd" Rally" Obedience class this week ... maybe prejudice here, but Emma seems to be fantastic in all our training together and we're continuing to LOVE working together ... on the other hand, it's taken Willow and I a little longer to mesh as a team and get the moves down ... in Rally, the team walks along a course with sign markers that tell you what to do ... "Halt, Sit", "Reverse Direction","270 degree Turn", "Weave Cones", "Halt, Down, Forward, Fast" etc and the moves get increasingly more difficult and complicated as you progress! We were entered in our first Rally trial in October (OMG) but had to drop out hours before the closing hour because we couldn't get a motel room in the area (dog show/leaf peeper reservations) ... considered car-camping, but the nearest campground was miles from the showsite and heaven forbid if it was really cold or it rained with 3 dogs!

Emma & Margo Gang-up on Willow!!!

Willow is Such a Good Sport ;o)

   Foster Margo continues to enjoy visit time with us and as you can see the "playtime" is non-stop between the almost one year old, the 20 month old and the 5 month old ... lots of fun retrieving and swimming at the pond, running & chasing thru the woods, plus helping with lots of property chores ;o)

Who Dug This Hole?

Then there is this unappreciated project of theirs ... digging of a hole under the porch to get a mole ... and by golly, they got it and killed it ... "Good Girls" I guess ;o)

Emma & Willow At Day's End ;o)

Cute Pup & AK9C Pumpkin ;o)

Apple Pickin'

Catchin' a Nap With Sutter ;o)

But no matter what adventures the day has brought ... there is always a sister-snuggle to end the day ;o)

 Oh ya ... RETIREMENT ... it's now only 5 days away and we're all very happy about all the upcoming time home together at GOLDEN EMBERS ... without a schedule and with the freedom to do whatever comes up ... YIPEEE!!!

ONE CHAPTER of LIFE CLOSES and ANOTHER ONE OPENS ... bring it on  ;o))

Emma Graduates, New Computer Arrives & Retirement Appoaches ;o)

Emma 4 Months Old

Hey, What's That?

Many changes are happening at Golden Embers as the leaves begin to turn to their Fall colors:

•  With all the heavy Summer rains, the Beaver continues to overflow the pond into the meadow and put trees/bushes under water ... with a portion of the "Invisible Canine Fence" now under water, he chewed thru the wire and the 10 acre protection was lost (just as Emma had a "crash course" to respect the electronic fence boundries) ... it's still a daily battle to keep the spillway open but the kayaking is great!

Overflow Into Meadow  ;-(

As Emma turned 4 months and has grown way too fast, she graduated with flying colors from her 7 week  "Basic Pet" class ... now it's on to CGC "Canine Good Citizen" class next week and we're loving training together ;o

Emma Graduates ;o)


• Sutter is on continued training "hiatus" until her favorite instructor finds another indoor facility where she can successfully train without "zoomies"

Emma, You Can Swim ... TRY!

 

• Willow is in the middle of a "Rally" (type of Obedience) class as a break from her Agility training ... still trying to find something that she is excited about ;o)

Girls Free-for-All ;o)

• With some persuasion, I decided to go satelite/wireless with a new HP laptop computer both to increase memory and speed, but after failed attempts to go thru "Wild Blue" and a desk top mobile "Hot Spot", I am having problems with satelite reception for opening emails and posting photos to this Blog ... so unfortunately until resolved, posting updated photos continues to be a real frustration and I can be seen walking around the yard with laptop & Hotspot trying to get reception ;o)

Bringin' In Kindling for Woodstove!

• In less than a month, Retirement becomes a new way of life ... the work stress will be gone ... "I can't because I'm working" will no longer be limiting what I want to do ... it's been 2 years in thought and 3 months in active planning ;o)

Home Sweet Retirement ;o)

Shimmer Visits Daughter Emma ;o)

It was a beautifully sunny day and Emma was surprised by a visit from her biological mom "Shimmer" for some playtime down at the pond ... at this point Emma at 15-16 weeks is not swimming out from the dock, but watches the "big girls" swim out to retrieve bumpers ... she seems to have a very relaxed lil' "motorboat" swim from the kayak in to the dock, but thus far she is just stepping off the dock onto the shallowly submerged flat rocks, walking back and forth or pawing out at the deeper water ... she'll do it in time ;o)

That's My Mom Out There ;o)

Don't Slash Me Mom!

OK Mom Now Let's Run ;o)

Following ;o)



Emma & Shimmer



Family Time at Day's End :o)

Come Visit Again ;o)

13th Week of Emma's Adventures ;o)

Sutter (L) Margo, Willow and Emma (front)

Two days ago I spent all day, before and after going to watch "Foster" Margo strut her stuff at a local Dog Show, preparing this Blog photo entry and finished it by day's end, only to have something go wrong and all was lost ...
Grrrrrr, slow, slow Dial-up computer!!! Now let's just see how many household projects I can get done while the photos upload this time ;o)

So here goes the second attempt and hopefully it will be even faster/better ;o)

First Day of School ;o)

I'm Happy When I'm Kayaking!

I Won ... I Beat Willow!

It's been amazing to watch the weekly changes in this sweet pup and how quickly she is learning ... Emma first day of school was thrilling ... she just seemed to excel in her lessons of "Basic Pet" ... a class of 6 older pups/dogs ... we went equipped with her training bag full of toys for chasing & tugging and different chew bones to keep her interested ... when it came time to go out the door, she balked and wanted to "go back for more" ;o)

Watch the Teacher!

Yummm ... Blueberries ;o)

Got the Big Girl Bumper!

Ahhh ... Snuggly Blankie After a Swim ;o)

Getting My "Big Girl" Bed Ready!

Emma & Sutter ;o)

Hey, Can That Pup Play With Me??

4-Dog Line of Bone Chewers After Swimming ;o)

First Mate ;o)

Wait,  I Think the Dog Whisperer is on!

Wow ... Blackberries All for Me???

1st One in the Kayak Gets the Ride!!!

SO THAT'S IT ... 4 MONTHS and GROWING  :o)