Nov. 29, 2008- We had a wonderful visit today with Heidi, who brought along Trinity and Merlin to see us. Heidi is a fantastic author and takes a lot of photos that have unusual phenomenom in them. We have a picture of what appears to be extoplasm and has been examined by experts and declared genuine. This is only one of many that Heidi has sent us.

Nov. 28, 2008- Happy Birthday Sneaker !

Nov. 27, 2008- Happy Thanksgiving to our American friends !

Nov. 26, 2008- We recently switched to a new dog food. The dogs absolutely love it. They cannot wait to come inside in the morning and start eating. It used to be that they would pick at their food and make it last for most of the day. Now they eat it so quickly that many are done before the next ones are even fed. Let's hope they keep up their enthusiasm for their new food.

Nov. 25, 2008- Only one month until Christmas. Have you started shopping for your pet yet ?

Nov. 24, 2008- It's only a month until Christmas Eve. Already we are wondering where to put our tree so that Carrie won't get into it or try to remove the decorations. I suppose hanging it from one of the skylights is out of the question. I remember the first year that we had Mocha, Tigger and April. Mocha and Tigger were forever crawling up the tree and batting the glass balls down with their paws. My mom and aunt were over one afternoon and the cats broke about 6 or 7 ornaments just during their short visit. Of course April was perfect and just like to lie in front of the tree and look beautiful. I only hope that Carrie will be too busy fetching dog toys to worry about the tree.

Nov. 23, 2008- A friend recently attended a dog show and while there, had her car broken into and her wallet stolen. This was accomplished by punching out the car door locks. Thankfully one of her dogs, which was in the vehicle was not taken. Apparently another person had her purse stolen at the same show. So if you are attending a dog show or any other event this time of year, please make sure that you keep all valuables with you. This time of year seems to bring out the worst in some people.

Nov. 22, 2008- With all of the snow that we have gotten over the past couple days, it is hard to believe that we have not " lost " a white dog in the snow yet. It is amazing to see nothing but white out there and the occasional black nose. The trees' branches are covered with a foot or two of snow. It truly looks like a Winter Wonderland out our windows. You could almost swear that the Christmas cards showing a snowy winter scene were taken right here.

The dogs are loving it outside. They love to submerge their heads right into the snow and then snort and send the snow flying straight up. Another favourite antic is to pick up a head full of snow and toss it upwards while trying to catch it. A couple days ago, one of the dogs decided to grab onto an evergreen branch that was completely laden with at least 2 feet of snow. Of course everyone had to run over to see what Frosty was doing . Before you knew it, all of the snow came tumbling down and completely covered the dogs. It is so much fun to watch them rolling on their backs in the snow or see the snow flying out behind the dogs as they race down the 140 foot length of the dog run.

We try to remove as much snow as possible from the dogs when they come in . We don't want the melted snow trapped in their coats and causing hot spots from the increased moisture . It is also important to remove any clumps or balls of snow from between your dog's toes. These can cause frostbite if left in between the toes. There is nothing worse than standing beside your dog when they come in from outside and shake snow all over . Not only do you get wet but the walls and floors bear the brunt of the shaking as well . So please dry your pets thoroughly. Dry your floors as well.We don't want to slip and fall on the ceramic floors which become extremely slippery when wet.

I think the only difference between dogs and human kids playing in the snow , is that dogs don't complain that they are cold and ask for hot chocolate. I kind of miss making hot chocolate with little marshmallows in it for Cody. Maybe I can convince her to take a few of the dogs outside today and play, just for nostalgia's sake.

Nov. 21, 2008- We have been working with Carrie on fetching. She has gotten the idea very well and will usually bring the stuffed toy back 6 out of 8 times. Of course we don't train very long at any one session, since collies tend to get bored very easily. I think what helps a lot is that Sneaker also wants to participate in the fetching game. This gives Carrie a little more incentive to get the item before Mommy does.

Nov.20, 2008- More snow today and we lost power again for the second time in less than a week. Of course both days it happened just before the football game that Artie wanted to watch. Fortunately for him, the power came back on last night in time for the start of the Steelers game.

Nov. 19, 2008- Carrie is such a lovable little girl. She loves to come and just lay her pretty sable head in your lap and wait to be petted. Of course, that is after she has been back in the house awhile...when she first comes in watch out ! She comes barrelling through the house looking for the first person whom she deems is just dying to get a hug and sloppy kiss from her. She has also gotten a bad habit of counter surfing from Opal. Nothing is safe on the counter if those two are in the kitchen. We are hoping that Carrie will revert to her mommy's good manners and stop trying to steal whatever food she can.

Nov. 18, 2008- We got some more snow today and now have about 45 cm ( 18 inches ) all over our yard. It looks just like a calm white blanket until the dogs get out in the runs playing and throwing the snow up in the air with their noses.We even had our laneway plowed yesterday. We have a local farmer who comes and does our laneway with his tractor and huge snowblower. It sure beats the heck out of trying to shovel it.

Nov. 17, 2008- Chris and Braeden went home today. I am sure that the dogs are going to miss them as much as we will. Especially Heidi , for she got special treats each morning . I know that Opal is moping around , looking for her littlest buddy Braeden. I think Cody was a bit jealous of all of the attention that Opal was lavishing on Braeden and vice versa.

Nov. 16, 2008- Happy 1st Birthday Jingles ! We have gotten 12 - 15 inches of snow since yesterday afternoon. The dogs and pups are having a ball playing in the white fluffy stuff. Even Cody's kitten loves it. It truly looks like a winter wonderland outside of our windows. You would almost swear that it is a photograph done in black and white because that is all you can see....the black of the branches or at least what little isn't covered by a foot of snow and all that lovely white snow.

Nov. 15, 2008- We offered to give Braeden a day off and let him sleep in. But he was having none of that. He knew that we needed his help. Sometimes more really is less ! But he does enjoy helping and that is what is important.

Nov. 14, 2008- The dogs, especially Opal are enjoying all of the added attention that they are getting from Braeden. I think Cody is feeling left out, especially when Braeden did the unthinkable and asked if Opal could sleep on his bed. Sneaker and April keep waiting for Braeden to drop some of his food but unfortunately for them , he is a very neat eater. Maybe tomorrow will be their lucky day.

Nov. 13, 2008- Chris and Braeden have been helping out a lot with the dogs. Braeden , who is 7, helped by washing all of the floors whether they needed it or not. He is giving Cody a good workout by having her constantly give him a piggy back ride. He is also helping me cook. He calls himself the " Cook's Chef " and wants to be a chef when he grows up. He figures being homeschooled by me this week is the perfect way to achieve his goal. He is the best cheese grater I have ever had the pleasure of working with, in our kitchen !

Nov. 12, 2008- We have family here visiting us this week. My nephew and his son are here . Braeden is really enjoying playing with the dogs and keeps threatening to have Opal sleep with him at night instead of Cody.

Nov. 11, 2008- Venus went to her new home today. She is going to be living with Wayne and Eileen. They seemed to be just as taken with Venus as she is with them.

Nov. 10, 2008- We got over 30 cm. ( 12 inches ) of snow last night and another 4 - 5 inches today so far. The dogs just love to romp in the snow and throw it up in the air with their noses. By the weekend it is supposed to be back up to warmer temperatures, so I am sure that all of our lovely snow will be melted .

Nov. 9, 2008- Venus has found a new home. She is going to live with a lovely couple who reside quite close to us. That way we will be able to visit her. She will be here until Tuesday or Wednesday.

Nov. 8, 2008- Yesterday we wrote about Yuki carrying the full buckets of water and tipping them over in the dog run. Strangely enough she doesn't tip over water in the house. Carrie on the other hand will not tip over a bucket but will grab any dog dish full of water and dump it. We have towels under our water dishes in the kitchen to catch any drips as the dogs drink but unfortunately the towels are not big enough to absorb a full dish of water. I am going to have to find some rimless dishes so that Carrie cannot grab onto the dish. The things that pups think of !

Nov. 7, 2008- It appears as though this warm spell is coming to an end. I don't think the dogs will mind the cold weather showing up. They all actually appear to enjoy being out in the cold rather than the warmer weather.

Yuki is quite a character. She continues to pick up full buckets of water and run with them . She takes them down the yard and then looks back to see if we are watching her. Then she dumps them over and I swear, she smiles at us. I guess we are to tell her what a good dog she is ! Then we have to go and fetch the pail ( just like Jack and Jill ) and refill it. We have tried clipping pails to the fence to prevent this but not all of the pails have handles any longer . So Yuki searches out the ones that are free standing and full, of course, and then dumps them. I don't know why she can't just be content tipping over an empty bucket or playing with some of the toys in the dog run.

Nov. 6, 2008- I have decided to have a Cookie Exchange again this year. Last year's Exchange was very successful so I am having another one . It is a lot of fun and you get to have a large variety of cookies on hand for Christmas without having to bake them all. You just have your friends bake and bring several dozen cookies of the same type, plus one dozen for sampling. The cookies are prepacked with a dozen to a bag. Then all the cookies are set on a table and people get to choose which ones they wish to take home. They get to take as many dozen as they bring. We are going to have a lunch as well and then tea and cookies for dessert. Last year Cody and Artie went to the movies during the Cookie Exchange. When they got home, all of the cookies were put away and poor Cody was so disappointed. She thought that we had eaten all of them while she was at the movies! I guess we had better get busy deciding which cookies we want to bake and then do our shopping. I will let you know how the Cookie Exchange goes but it won't be until December.

Nov. 5, 2008- Against our better judgment , we have decided to let Carrie start sleeping in our bedroom this weekend. She usually sleeps in her crate at night or even walks in there during the day for a nap. Cody is going to give me a hand to puppy proof our bedroom so that Carrie will have nothing to chew during the night. She already loves to jump up on the bed and wrestle with Sneaker. I am afraid that she might think that action can continue every night. I guess if I bring enough toys into the room for her, she might actually play quietly and sleep.

Nov. 4, 2008- Today was election day in the United States. It was an election that would bring about a history making result no matter which side won. We would like to congratulate Barack Obama on becoming the first African American ever elected to be President of the United States of America. I am sure that he will serve his country well and put the USA back on its feet.

Nov. 3, 2008- I am more convinced than ever that Carrie would do wonderful at Agility. Today she was running through the house, which is not unusual. Artie was sitting it the lounge chair part of the couch with the leg rest extended. Carrie cleared his legs easily with lots of room to spare and didn't even break her stride. I think we will invest in a tunnel and some other agility equipment or see if there is a class in this area . When Sneaker was a puppy, she loved to race through the cat's tunnel that we had in our rec room. Sadly she grew too big to fit through it and we were unable to find any for sale in this area. I am hoping that that will not prove to be the case this time.

Nov. 2, 2008- I hope that you all remembered to turn your clocks back an hour last night. It is also a good idea to change the batteries in your smoke detectors twice a year , when you turn your clocks ahead and back . That way you always have reliable batteries in your smoke alarm should the occasion arise that you need to use them.

Nov. 1, 2008- Sadly no one came to our door last night, trick or treating. Cody was all dressed up for the occasion . She wasn't too upset though , that she got to eat the Hallowe'en candy that we had bought.

Don't forget to turn your clocks back tonight as Daylight Savings Time ends.