Levi

Levi is now official retired from Agility Trials and training.  I know he is only 4 years old, but he just doesn't care for agility.  I have tried really hard to make him enjoy it, but no luck..My final decision was made at the 5 Star Trial,the beginning of Sept, he just wasn't interested, even the judge commented on his lack of enthusiasm

 . I think what helped me decide to retire him was training Wynn the past 4 months, she loves it and runs with great joy.  Levi was 18 months old when we rescued him from his 5th or 6th or 7th  home, it is always hard with a rescue dog, he doesn't know how to play with me or even the other dogs, and he has had so many homes you just don't know how he was treated.. It bothers me that i am giving up on him, but I am not giving him away, he is in his forever home, and he will spend the rest of his life on the Homestead with the rest of the pack..if he had had his way last night, he would have spent the night chasing bears... the dogs were wild and barking their heads off...Jackson barked for hours... Levi laid on the front porch and barked..he would have been gone if he had backup but Dixie and Wynn were in the house..

So now I will spend all my $$ and time on Wynn... wish i had a video camera and i would get someone to take a movie of her runs... last night i was messing up my share of the run... and the little witch was whining at me, telling me to smarten up and get with the program.. I had to laugh at her..she is so darn fast, we start the fall classes soon, in Merritt, so the gas cost gets cut right down.. i have to travel 90km round trip to get to the Summer classes on Iron Mountain..about 50 km round trip in the Winter... this is Wynn practicing her Zones. "2 on, 2 off" that is used on the teeter, the dog walk, and the A frame... front feet in the dirt and back feet on the obstacale..she has amazing " zones" .. She should be ready for trials in the spring...

this is the dogs water bucket.. filled with pine cones.. Larry must have emptied it 5 times.. he has a big orange box just full of pine cones..

These are the socks that i now own... the grey ones are made by the wonderful Sock lady, i asked for Grey as the main colour and every shade of pink she had... and of course she had to make them just a little wild with a dash of orange... very cool... and the green ones are one that Marg Sjorstrom made me for our FB exchange... she calls them Beaufort Sea socks.. fit like a glove.. will write soon.... hugs

finally summer

What a great September we have had... the weather has been wonderful.  Denise and I went to the Kamloops agility trial the long weekend, and we almost froze the first night, I got up put on my sleep pants, my socks and my sweater and was finally able to warm up..the days were beautiful, the grass was green (previous years it has been brown and dry and very slippery), but with the late spring and all the rain, I am sure they had lots of water in their well to keep the grass nice.  Levi was his putzy self all weekend,  the whistle would blow for over time and he would start running, or he would know that we were half way thru the course and he would start to run... even the Judge noticed it... so i made the final decision and I am retiring him at the end of September, I have paid for the month so will finish it... Wynn is doing fantastic, she has discovered that this new game we play is FUN...she is truly amazing, she does every jump with grace and a grin on her face, and clears it by miles...her weaves are getting awesome, last class she did 3 jumps in a row and made her entrance into the weave poles at a gallop...i was so excited that i stopped to reward her... she should be ready for trials by the spring.  My friends are amazed that she has only been doing agility since June..
I have been busy making jams and jellies... strawberry, raspberries, apricot, black currant, red currant, chokecherry (for my buddy Lynne, who can't pick berries and watch for grizzlies bears at the same time), and crab-apple jelly for my friend and my mother, and i just finished making "Lady Rose Relish" also for my Mom.. made half a batch and it still made gallons (well sort of)..wanted to do some black berries, but Larry is too busy, and it was his idea...  My crab-apple tree finally had some apples on it, so will make some jelly from them when they get a bit redder, and my Grannie Smith has some nice apples, so will do a couple of pies, and the DAMN squirrels have stolen my Peaches, i had about 24 nice peaches just waiting to ripen, the last time i looked there were only TWO left...little buggers...
Only a month until the October retreat, I will have to start spinning to make sure i haven't forgotten how..I also have a scarf that i have to finish for an exchange..got one done, just the final one to do...
Our truck is feeling ill today, Larry headed to the coast and it was running very poorly, so he came back to town and went with his friend... buying more JUNK...

this is Jackson after spending the morning chasing squirrels, and boy do they tease him... he hates being hot, and plays with the sprinkler or his wading pool.

this is our Levi the Putz... enjoying life at home and not having to worry about agility... i will still take him to classes just so he gets to go out with me..he is such a tough dog, so stubborn and strong minded, just like the Aussies..

I am also getting a new back porch, I cleaned the old one out yesterday and threw most of the junk away...and it was just junk... I am trying to take something to the Food bank every day... trying to declutter this shack...works well... i start a pile at the beginning of the week and by Thursday I have a few things to take...
Yankee was been talking up a storm and adds new words almost every day... his latest is "give me a cold beer",(we never have beer in the house), Morning Dear, Kayda's a porkchop, do ya want to go outside, and of course tons of words that i forget... I must write them down...take care will write again soon    S