AUTUMN CHANGES SO FAST

Autumns first bath



Time to play in the leaves



Here Mom, let me help you with that.

I've been meaning to update all week but like FV says, time management is an issue. With me too I guess. Since I last posted, it has been a very busy time. Was at a conference on the weekend, Friday and Saturday. It was too nice to spend all of a beautiful autumn day inside so snuck out early and helped hubby with the fall clean up. We live on a corner lot in a very old tree lined neighbourhood. Needless to say we get a ton of leaves to rake up every year. This year, I must say was a lot of fun. We had our own little Autumn helping us. Saturday she decided to help with the bags. As I was filling, she was redistributing. Then on Sunday, she decided it was play time not work time. She is growing up so fast. She is now 12 weeks old, 25 lbs, a foot high and two feet long. A little dog now, not a puppy. Then on Wednesday, it was bath day. After playing in the leaves and digging holes in the yard, she was not the pretty cream colour, more of a muted gray. So in the bath tub for a quick bath and then a blow dry. She wasn't sure at first, but in the end, she seemed to be fine with it all. We're going on three half hour walks a day now so I am really starting to feel the difference. My clothes fit better and I am feeling alot better physically too. Heading back out to the lake for the weekend and hopefully get a ride in on either Digger or Peps or both and maybe even talk FV into coming with me. I know Johnnie would love to get out. It seems all I blog about now is the puppy but really the rest of my life is pretty ordinary. Nothing new with my kids right now, everyone is just busy with their own lives. Angela (DVM2012) is coming home the first two weeks of November to study for her NAVLE, (Licensing exam). Should see her for abit though. I know she'll want to see both of her ponies, which means I might get a chance to go for a ride with her as well. Have a nice weekend everyone.

AUTUMN MEETS WINSTON

This is one of Sherry's favorite of Autumn on the weekend. The kittens had ventured up the hill so she thought she could follow.


this is Eurus when he arrived home from Saskatoon. I am not that short, he is just a very tall horse.



Robert and Cara cleaning up the leaves



Autumn playing with Winston

Since the whirlwind trip to Saskatoon, it has been a very busy week.Eurs has settled in well in his new digs.It was Thanksgiving and we had 2 out of 3 kids home. Robert came up from Medicine Hat and our youngest Cara managed to find some time to spend with us out at the cottage. Brian and the 2 of them did some fall clean up. Raked and disposed of all the leaves, put the boat away for another year and positioned the snowmobiles to the front of the garage for easy access oncce the snow arrives. Helped Sherry (FV) wean the babies and also ran up the calves to be tagged and readied for the truck. Had fun, although I haven't run that much in a long time, so I was definitely feeling it. It was a good feeling though. I did some good exercise and got some fresh air and was able to burn off a little built up stress. Also our little girl Autumn got to meet Winston and Skeeter. Winston was a saint with her but Skeeter never was one for young pups.Took Winston a bit but wasn't long before he was down on his back playing with her. She also met some of the kittens and couldn't figure out why they wouldn't play with her like Elliott the cat did. Sherry also guided me through the procedure of giving Autumn her second set of shots. She is such a good girl. Pretty much house trained now. Hasn't had an accident in the house and has been left alone twice now and no problem. She sleeps about 7 or 8 hrs a night and I can leave the door open and she doesn't wander the house. So till next time, enjoy the beautiful "autumn" Ha ha

RUNNING BACK TO SASKATOON

Elliott in the suit bag making sure he didn't get left behind.



This is how Autumn spent most of the road trip

Whew! What a whirlwind of a weekend. Had to take a road trip this weekend to pick up Angela's (DVM2012) horse Eurus from Saskatoon. She won't have alot of time this coming winter to ride him so felt it was better to have him home here than pay high boarding fees and he couldn't stay at where he was. He had been at a temporary location for the last week of September. Felt since we were going anyway we would return Mr. Elliott the cat back to her. She has been on an extended externship and vacation. So weekend started with hubby heading to Fernvalley to pick up the truck and trailer. I need to thank Sherry (FV) for loaning us her new trailer and her hubby's truck. We couldn't have done this otherwise. Hubby gets back to the city with the unit and we load up Elliott and Autumn who is just 9 weeks old and we head east. This is a 5 to 6 hour trip.I must say the trip went really well. Puppy waited till we got gas at Lloydminster, 2 1/2 hrs, east of Edmonton and then we stopped at a little place called Maidstone Saskatchewan for a lunch break. Got to Saskatoon at about 3:30 p.m. just when Ange and her brother Rob arrived from Winnipeg. Ange and I went and saw Eurus, who was very excited to see her and then went back to her place and unloaded the cat and the dog, who met two more cats. They didn't think to much of this fur ball hell on wheels. She stayed the night with Angela. I must say, it was really nice having a good night's sleep. The hotel was quiet and no puppy to look after. Mini holiday for me. Next morning, Ange met us with Puppy and we headed to Eurus's old location to pick up her tack and other tons of stuff and then head to get Eurus. He is located 40 klms east of Saskatoon, heading the wrong direction for us. After getting him loaded we head out for another 6 hour drive west, actually 7 because we had to take him to Sherry's sister-in-laws place which is about an hour west of Edmonton. Stopped in Edmonton first to drop off Puppy at home and then continued on. Eurus seemed no worse for wear. He travelled really well. Settled in to the hay right away. It was quite the adventure, but being parents, you do what needs to be done to help out your kids. I think Angela is very fortunate to have a very special Auntie who too cannot say no and goes out of her way to help her as much as possible. A big thank you to Sherry again and to her sister in-law Connie and Neice Rene for taking in Eurus whether it be short term of for the long haul, we don't know but appreciate very much all that everyone has done to make this unfortunate situation a much better experience. Although we miss Elliott the cat, things are somewhat calmer around here and Autumn is having no trouble keeping her self occupied. Looking forward to a quiet Thanksgiving out at the cottage. Autumn had her vet check in Saskatoon and passed with flying colours. She can meet her new friends Winston and Skeeter this weekend. Should be fun.

AUTUMN IS HERE

This is the Autumn the week we brought her home.

This is her and Elliott the cat during a time out

This is my little "EWOK"

Now this can be taken two ways. One the season Autumn has arrived with a bang. We actually hit 32 degrees (celcius) that is for the first time this year. The weather has been unbelievable this month. The colours are stunning. Went out in the boat the other night and the setting sun reflecting off the golden trees was breathtaking. I always enjoy keeping the boat in that extra month to enjoy the colours and peacefulness of the lake. Two, my little Autumn is now almost 9 weks old. I weighed her this morning and my scale must be wrong as it said the difference between holding her and not holding her on the scale was 16 lbs. She cannot possibly weigh that much. She is growing fast and her potty training is going well. Sleeps about 6 hours at night now and when she does wake up, she wakes us up to go out. The only time she has an accident is when she is so busy rough housing with the cat that she forgets. She knows she's done bad cause if you say her name and ask what have you done, she sulks and slinks off. We started walking on a leash this past week. We are now going around the block, although she'd rather go without but she is getting to fast for me to catch her now and in the city don't want to take a chance of her running onto the road. At the lake, she can run free. She loves to sleep on her back and her ears flip back and she looks like an EWOK from Starwars fame. I could go on and on about her. All I'll say is that is sure is nice having her around and having another dog in my life. "OUR WHOLE LIFE DOES NOT REVOLVE AROUND DOGS, BUT HAVING AND LOVING DOGS MAKES OUR LIFE WHOLE" Truer words cannot be said

MY SWEET GIRL IS HERE

Boy, what a birthday present! Picked up our sweet pup "OAKLEY'S AUTUMN" on Friday. We weren't home 5 minutes and she and the cat were wrestling and tearing around the house. Don't know how many laps they did. We've never really been into crate training, so potty training consists of watching the pup and trying to guess when she needs to go outside. The first night, everytime she moved, I got up thinking she needed to go outside. We took her to the cottage on Saturday. She loved it out there. She even got to go for a boat ride. Quite soemthing considering the other two were never allowed even when they were adult dogs. Another sign of this one being spoiled is I brought her into bed this morning. Mistake! Her morning nap happened cuddled up between the pillows. Don't have my camera here as I left it in the car when we went to pick her up or I would've posted a picture of this. So this morning there were four of us in the bed, me, hubby, Autumn and the cat Elliot. I have forgotten after 13 years, how much work puppies are but I'm sure when she's six months old and not the cute little fur ball she is now I will be wishing she was a puppy again. They grow so fast. Luckily the breeder sent home a CD of pictures of her as she grew for the first seven weeks. I don't have too many of my own yet. I will definitely have to get some of her in the fallen leaves. Won't be able to find her.

I'M BACK SORT OF

It has been over a year since I last posted. Wasn't sure if I would ever again but things have a way of working themselves out. I won't bore you with the past year's events but certain ones from this year I need to express. First of all in March, we lost our dear golden retreiver Rosey rather unexpectedly. She suffered a severe seizure from what drs say was a ruptured stomach tumour. She was only 11. just over 2 mths short of her 12th birthday. I was devastated by her quick passing, but I knew having her humanley euthanised was the best for her. I couldn't see her suffer. Good news is we are bringing home our new puppy on the 17th of September. She will never replace Rose, just as Rose never replaced Holly, but there is room in our hearts for another. She is another golden retreiver. We will be setting Rosey's ashes next to Holly's under the willow tree at the lake very soon. Just this past Sunday, I said goodbye to my beloved gelding "BLUE". He suffered for years with unknown lameness issues. He saw chiropractors, equine massage specialists and many others until last June (2010), he was officially diagnosed with navicular disease by my daughter, Angela, DVM 2012 and a partner from a clinic she was working at. We tried a number of treatments, the best being corrective shoeing and arthritis meds. This kept him comfortable and fairly sound for a year and then this year, nothing seemed to help. He was having difficulty walking, getting up and was in alot of pain. He went very peacefully and thanks to Dr. Dave for making it so. Special thanks to my dear friend Sherry for helping me through this. She has been through this and truly knows how it feels. You need to know what the right thing to do is and when to do it even though it tears at your heart.
Blue was born at Fern Valley Farms on August 19, 1994. He was perfect. He lived his whole live there and became very special to everyone who knew him. He was a kids horse right from day one. I don't know how many pictures we have of him with 4 or 5 kids drapped all over him. He became mr reliable, mr safe for all who rode him. He looked after everyone and never complained. I lost Schiroc, Blue's dam in 2006 and now him in 2011. Someone once siad to me, We do not ask horses to be part of our lives, we ask to be part of theirs. I would like to quote Iian Shamir, the author of Advice from Nature series,
ADVICE FROM A HORSE
Take life's hurles in stride
Loosen the reins
Be free spirited
Keep the burrs from under your saddle
Carry your friends when they need it
Keep stable
Gallop to greatnesss
I learned alot of this from my horses and will continue to enjoy my mare Peps and my daughters horse Digger.
I will introduce you to the newest member of our family after the 17th.
Thanks for listening.

THERE IS LIFE OUT THERE

My sister Donna and BIL Mike on their cruise, February 2010

Summer is almost over and I haven't had a second to catch up. When I last posted, I talked about my BIL Mike and his battle with cancer. This is where I will start my summer. Our beloved Mike finally let go and took his last breath on June 26th. We had a wonderful memorial July 6th with over 100 family and friends. Mike's favorite drink was Gibsons Rye and on special occasions he would pull out the Gibson's rare. It was sacrilege to add mix to this so on his day we toasted to Mike and with each toast a shot of Gibson's rare was to be enjoyed by all. After many toasts and many stories we all became much closer and understood who Mike was. It was a beautiful day and we will miss him dearly.

After this I needed to get away and recharge so I took my daughter Angela, DVM 2012 and we went on a four day back country horse pack trip in beautiful Lake Louise area. It was absolutely perfect. It was just the two of us with a guide and a cook. Although our first camp was destroyed by a grizzly, it made the experience even more special. We just made a cook tent and a camp tent out of what was left and had a great time. It was nice to spend some one on one time with Angela. The horses we had were two great appys. One was a young horse named Skyler that had never been on a pack trip before and after two days and 8,000 feet of climb, he finally slowed down and took things a little slower. The little appy I had was a rescue that the Alberta SPCA has rescued about three years ago from a reserve. His name was Sunchild and he was the owner's favorite and I was honored that she felt I was trustworthy enough to take her baby out. The trip was too short and I would definitely go again, only longer. The scenery was spectacular and the company and food exceptional. This outfit is first class. Timberline Tours, Sue and Paul Peyto

Angela and I on our pack trip to the mountains.

Then in August, hubby and I went back to Manitoba to the family cottage in the Whiteshell. The lakes in Alberta are pretty scuzzy except for the mountain lakes and some of the bigger ones in the north so we headed east to enjoy some quiet time and great swimming. Westhawk lake is a meteor crater formed lake so it is very deep and clear. Over the past thirty years that I have been going there, the water has always been very clean and you could drink the water. It is now starting to show signs of over use and the quality is not as great as it was but the swimming is still great. We spent hours sitting on the dock, listening to the loons, going fishing and tons of swimming. Hubby and i spent two evenings at a little lake called Hunt lake with our simple fishing rods, our earthworms and catching small fish. It was fun putting the worms on the hooks and catching fish. We had our Golden Retreiver Rosie with us and what a hoot she was. She quickly understood if the bobber moved, there was a fish. We would pull it up and she would play with the fish. Not hurt it but paw at it until it jumped back in the water. It was such a special time. I will remember and cherish this time forever. We took our time getting to Wpg. Usually we do the trip in about 14 hrs straight but this time, we stopped in Saskatoon to deliver items for Angela for school, headed south to a little place called Abernathy where my husband's family first started out in the early 1900's. Drove through the most beautiful country. Who knew that Saskatchewan was so beautiful. Everyone claims, Saskatchewan is so flat that if your dog ran away you could watch it for three days. Not so. Absolutely breathtaking. Coming back was a different story. We drove from Northwestern Ontario to Edmonton in 14 hrs. Our young Vet student became quite ill and ended up in hospital in ICU. Developed a blood infection from a previous surgery that hadn't healed well and then working with horses all summer picked up some strange bacteria. While she was in hospital her younger sister and I cleaned up her living space at the clinic and helped her repack her belongings and got her ready for her return to Vet school in Saskatoon. So thinking okay, time to head out to our cottage and to the horses for some riding time. Not. Started a reno of our downstairs bathroom. What we thought was a simple bathroom renovation is turning into a complete reno of the rec room as well. Taking longer and of course way more money than we thought. Hubby and I spent most of yesterday putting up drywall and putting in electrical. Trying to save a buck my doing it ourselves as much as possible. Well after the 12th sheet, the last two being 10 feet long, I was exhausted and physically beaten. Had a hot bath and went to bed and slowly hauled myself out of bed this morning. Every muslce and joint hurt. The day wasn't all work and no play though. Went to the local horse show with Sherry from FV yesterday. Only been in one other show in my life and that was many moons ago with my old mare Schiroc. Just a little local show but fun. Thought I would take my young Mare Peps, so entered her in a halter class for 5 yr and up mares. Peps is a bit of a flighty mare. Gets excited and nervous. Thougth this would be a good learning opportunity for both of us. Spent Saturday, cleaning her up, practising squaring up, trotting in hand etc. She picked it up really well. Get to the show, and unload her and she is as calm as can be. The whole environment didn't seem to bother her. We practised some more and all went well until her little buddy Cat left her side and did her class. Settled again once Cat came back. Took her to the gate to enter the arena for her class and bingo, the anxiety and nervousness took over for both of us, her more than me though. I forgot all about squaring her up in front of the judge. she did trot well though in hand but would not stand still in line. All the other horses are standing nose to tail, very quiet and here is Peps, standing 90 degrees to everyone else and taking me for a ride in circles. Really wanted Cat for security. Right at the end of the class when the judge in making her selections did Peps decide to stand still. Left the arena and she was good and quiet and well behaved again. She's never been in that atmosphere before so hopefully this was a good learning experience for her. We were probably the talk of the place afterwards, " What a joke that was" but I don't care. I had fun, spent some great time with my horse and learned alot too. At least I didn't have to crank on my horse before the class and after as so many others were doing. Peps and I were just ourselves. No pretense or trying to be something we're not. So during all these things over the summer, I did manage to get in some pleasure riding. Helped FV with getting the mares bred. Ran for re election to the Summer Village Council. Kept my flower garden and rose garden weeded and they're still blooming. My other horse Blue is doing great. With his new shoes and his arthritis meds, you can't tell that he has navicular and arthritis. He still is not 100% and will never be but at least now he is comfortable and hopefully pain free and when we do get time to go out, we have fun. Haven't ridden at all in August, but end of July I had a good ride on each of my ponies and actually Peps and I had our first gallop in an open space. It felt good. She was having issues leaving the farm but with FV's help got her going and we had a great ride. I've also started making jam and jelly. The apples and crabapples are a bumper crop this year.

It is now approaching the first week of September. Maybe now things will slow down, the weather will straighten out and I can finally get back in the saddle and enjoy the fall colours.
p.s. I will add more pictures once I get to my own computer. stay tuned!