Thankful Thursday - 10

This week I'm thankful for...


1. Dog Agility. We have been going to dog agility training every Wednesday since April 1. Sherlock absolutely adores agility and everything that goes along with it. Yesterday he was a little bonkers as we missed two weeks and he's been shafted lately due to us being busy with our move. It's exhausting chasing him around all the time, and I tried very hard not to get frustrated. Our trainer, Sherry Taylor, just said, "Well at least he's happy! If there's one thing I hope he gets out of this is that every week he is happy to be here." Boy is she right. I've never seen such a happy dog galloping away from his owner to visit the other dogs that were trying to train! Anyway, back on track... agility also keeps me active. There is a lot of physical and mental exercise that goes into it. Especially mental in the sense that I can feel myself getting frustrated, but I can't; it's a great exercise in patience. (I can't figure out how to get videos from my Shared files on my phone onto a computer or I'd upload some actual exciting footage of Sherlock doing the obstacles!)

Sherlock working on his contact

Sherry, our agility trainer, encouraging me after Sherlock went on a puppy rip. We were working on "Serpentine Jumps"

Sherly posing on the table! You can see one of the other dogs, Milo, in the background. 

2. Almost ready to move. We've been gradually packing for a while, but this week it is crunch time! It's stressful. I don't think David and I have ever fought this much! At least we both know it's because of stress and we never go to bed angry. We made some excellent progress with packing yesterday, and sealed and stacked many boxes! I'm not looking forward to the deep clean we're going to have to do after we get everything out though!

Getting there!

3. Growing up with a dog. We got Jewel, the Bernese Mountain Dog, when i was in Grade 2 (I only remember this because I brought her for show & tell when she was a puppy). We may have been in a little over our heads, but she was a wonderful family dog. I don't know how my parents did it. Four little kids and a puppy... She wasn't the brightest crayon in the box, but she sure was beautiful! I may be biased, but I think every family should have a dog. 

Can you tell how much she loved me draping myself over her? Not...

Poor dog had to put up with so much! She reminds me of the dog in Peter Pan in this photo. 

Sherlock's First Birthday

Today is Sherlock's first birthday.

One year ago today Ruby had a litter of puppies. Here is an excerpt of the post from Shel, the breeder, the day they were born!

At 9:01 on August 26th Ruby whelped her first litter. Louisa arrived weighing in at 10.4 oz.   Next came Queen Charlotte at 10:11, weighing  12.4 oz..  At 12:25  Prince Rupert arrived weighing in at 12.8 oz and next was Jervis at 12:57 ad 14.2 ounces. 

Rupert later became our Sherlock. 

Ruby just after having her first litter

Sherlock on day 1. Looks a little like a hamster!

Sherlock at three weeks

Snoozing at 5 weeks!

The four pups (L-R): Jervis (Gunnar), Rupert (Sherlock), Louisa (Poppy) and Charlotte. 

Here's a comparison of each of the pups at 7 weeks and then now. 

Gunnar

Sherlock

Poppy

Charlotte

If you want to see some more pictures of Sherlock as a puppy, you can view my other blog post about Sherlock Growing Up. 

Sherlock's been such a wonderful addition to our family. 

Today Sherlock weighs in at 46 lb. He has completed 24 weeks of obedience classes and takes agility classes every week. He loves to learn, play, swim and retrieve.

Just for kicks, here's a comparison from the day we brought him home to today. 

Much to Sherlock's chagrin, we also had a little puppy party for him. 

Look at this handsome guy! 

Puppy party with his best friend, Shadow!

Story Time - Sherlock's Creepy Crawly Night

The most heinous thing happened last night, and I just have to debrief about it.

We were lying in bed on the iPad because we wanted to go to bed, but it was too early to be respectable. Sherlock was full of piss and vinegar running around our room, rummaging through everything, and playing with his toys. Nothing new here.

He had been quiet for a little while (20-30 seconds) and I grew concerned about what he was getting into. We look over to see him just staring at his bed in his crate.

He was staring INTENTLY at something in there. It was like he was scared to move. And then he put his face down a little and JERKED it back.

At that point I muttered, “I don’t even WANT to know what’s crawling around in his crate right now…”

David walked over to his crate to check it out and Sherlock refused to move for a bit. Staring at his bed. David pushed Sherlock out of the way and stuck his head in there to investigate. That’s when he saw it…

A GIANT WOLF SPIDER IN SHERLOCK’S BED!! Big enough that we briefly considered giving it a name and teaching it some tricks.

Upon further investigation it appeared as though Sherlock and the spider had had an epic duel, which resulted in Sherlock squishing the arachnid with his longest dog toy; as we would use the longest stick possible to kill a spider.

After David removed the creature from the crate and viciously smashed it with a shoe and paper towel to ensure there would be no resurrection, we shuddered and crawled back into bed. All of us, that is, except Sherlock. He continued to stare at his crate. Something about that spider spooked him good enough to want nothing to do with his bed after that. We coaxed him into his crate, and he viciously sniffed around the whole bed and lifted up the corners to check for more hidden fugitives.

In the end, Sherlock did not sleep in his crate last night. Every time he got up to move to a new spot in the room he would sniff around all the corners just to ensure there were no surprises waiting for him before he laid down.

Here’s Sherlock clutching my pillow for dear life after David got rid of the spider in the crate. 

Moral of the story.... SPIDERS MUST DIE!

Agility & Theatre Sports

This was our last weekend before we move! We loaded it with fun things to assist in procrastinating with our packing!

Saturday morning I went out to the Dog Agility Nationals at Swangard Stadium in Burnaby. I spent a few hours talking with Shel and watching the dogs run. My favourite course to watch is Regular Gamblers. 

Here is Sherlock's mom, Ruby, modelling his new leash I bought him!

After agility, David picked me up and we headed out to Heather Park by Adam's house to have a BBQ picnic and play some tennis. There we got to meet the girl Jeff's been hanging out with all summer as well, Julia. We got along great, but she leaves for Ireland to continue her med school there next weekend. 

After our BBQ and tennis, we went down to Granville Island to watch Theatre Sports; one of our favourite things to do on a weekend in Vancouver. Only this time, it was different! Colin Mochrie from Who's Line is it Anyway? was there! Improv legend!

It's always a great time, and a very fun night out. I would HIGHLY recommend this for a first date if you're looking for ideas!

On Sunday I was playing bass in church and then after church we went over to Katrina's parents house for lunch to say goodbye to Katrina, Brayden and Henry. They leave for Edmonton on Tuesday this week so Brayden can to go law school at U of A. Going to miss them!

After lunch on Sunday, David and I continued to pack. We feel like we packed so many boxes and made so much progress! As it turns out, our place is still a mess and there is still lots to do!

Poor Sherlock is being totally shafted throughout this process. We don't have much time to play with him other than our daily walks. He's probably as excited for us to get settled in as we are! Until then, he will just be a hyper-active goof I guess!

Trying to make sure he feels as loved as possible!

Next weekend will be a very different kind of busy!
Very excited!!

The Inlaws

I previously posted about how much I love my parents, so now I'll post about how much I love my in-laws! You often hear stories about what nightmares in-laws can be. They even make movies about it, like Monster In Law. I am one of the lucky few that doesn't apply to.

Larry and Shelley have done an amazing job raising their three kids. Rachel, David and Allana all grew up with a deep love for their family and very strong values. Larry and Shelley worked very hard to make sure their children were always loved, happy, and got to make the most out of life. 

They welcomed me with open arms when David and I started dating back in September 2007 (wow... that's almost 8 years ago). Of course we had our moments and it wasn't always easy, but I don't think it would be natural for everything to be perfect all the time. How does a relationship grow if there aren't conflicts to work through? 

They foster a very outward style of love and affection, which took me a while to get used to. I'm much more reserved with my affection (just ask David), but I've learned that it's okay to receive and give love more outwardly. My love language is the little things: emptying the dishwasher, lighting my favourite smelly candle, pouring me my favourite drink. Theirs is the outward things: saying I love you, hugs and kisses, giving gifts, etc. We've learned to appreciate each other's styles over time.

Overall, I have to say even though David's parents and my parents had different parenting styles, they still raised kids with very similar values. David and I wouldn't be the people or the couple we are today if we didn't have them to model our relationship after. Larry and Shelley have been married for 30 some-odd years already, so obviously they're doing something right!

A Larry in his natural habitat

Mother in-law & Daughter in-law

Photos at Bear Creek Park before our wedding

Can't you just see the love oozing out of them?

Thankful Thursday - 9

I feel like I just did one of these! I guess because I did! My last Thankful Thursday post was done a few days late and now it's Thursday again. How does this happen?

1. The many faces of Sherlock. I seriously don't know how we lived before we got this dog. He's really taught us patience and how to work as a team towards a common goal. Also he's so cute I could just squish him.

David may be less than impressed that I'm posting this, but Sherlock was creeping Facebook over his shoulder. Too cute!

"Pleaaaaaaaaaase?..."

This picture just so represents Sherlock's personality. Such a goof!

2. Our big move in 9 days! Every day we get more and more excited to move into our new home. I am all of a sudden very aware of the fact that my pay cheque tomorrow is going to be my last pay cheque before mortgage payments start coming out. We coincided our payments to be biweekly with my pay cheques. Every two weeks I'll be paid; and every two weeks 75% of that will be taken away for the mortgage. Yikes.... Things are stressful! That doesn't even include utilities, cable, cell phones, insurance, strata fees, property taxes or general living!

A map showing where our new place is located.

So beautiful! Can't wait to call it home.

3. My parents. Parents in today's day and age do not get enough credit. As I get older I develop more and more respect for them. Mine in particular (because I'm biased). They somehow managed to raise four kids on very little money AND have maintained a model marriage for over 28 years now. Since getting married and moving, my relationship with them has definitely changed. Visiting becomes much more intentional and we talk a lot more. I can honestly tell my parents anything and know that they will respond in a loving, non-judgmental way. I'm sure when I'm a parent I'll have even more respect for them. They did an amazing job raising my brothers and I. Somehow through it all, they managed to create four intelligent, balanced children who would love nothing more than to hang out with the family.

Aren't they adorable? 

Both Mom and Dad walked me down the aisle at my wedding. Wouldn't have had it any other way. 

They still know how to have fun. **DING DONG!** WHO'S THAT AT THE DOOR?!

So much love.

28 years of marriage and going strong!

De Jongs at the Cabin August 2015

The De Jong family had the cabin rented from August 4-16. David and I went up on Friday, August 7 after work and stayed until the very end. There were up to 25 people there at one time. We had to sleep in a tent, but luckily we got the mansion of all tents for us and the dog. It wasn't so bad. Only one night in there was WAY too hot... and smokey. 

This post will be mostly pictures, with some captions to highlight the events of our trip. Most of the days are passed eating, drinking, swimming and sun-tanning, so not much to report. 

Travelling in style. I feel like Sherlock is smiling for the camera too!

David literally spent all of Manning Park trying to catch up to this Corvette. We followed right behind it all the way from the end of Manning Park to Keremeos, where it turned off into a driveway. David said his trip could just end here and he'd be happy. I wasn't convinced. 

Shadow in her happy place. Fetching sticks in the lake! 

I did not personally hike the mountain (or hill) this year, but this is the view from the top. Gorgeous Osoyoos lake! The cabin is pretty much dead centre in this photo.

Sherlock and Kipper (Shadow's brother) were off to a rough start, but by the end of day two I had them both sitting at my feet while I ate. 

Sherlock is standing on the floatie in the water. He decided this was the opportune moment to shake and dry off. He's so adventurous; I love it!

Cue Jeff's signature face...

Oma De Jong taught us all this "Crazy Dice Game". There were many tournaments had over the weekend, and I don't know that there was ever NOT a game of this going on somewhere on the property. 

All the young adults headed out on Beer Island for a float in the evening sun. Stocked up with enough beer and water to last all night. 

Not my photo, but gorgeous nonetheless. Uncle Reynold spent most of the weekend stacking/standing rocks and teaching others to do the same. 

Storm rolling in over Osoyoos.

Jeff had a little too much fun at the Beer Olympics at the neighbor's property and took an impromptu nap on the lawn. We were in the cabin and decided it would be funny to put some warm water in a bottle and squirt it on Jeff's back. When Adam did this, David yelled, "SHERLOCK! NO!" Jeff proceeded to calmly wake up and go to the lake in disbelief that Sherlock had just peed on him. He even brought Sherlock into the water saying, "What did you just do?! Why did you pee on me you little twerp!" It wasn't until a little later that we told him what had actually happened. Great prank Adam! (P.S. this was supposed to be a video of his reaction, but in all my brilliance I forgot to change the phone from photo to video, so I got a photo of this, and then one of him in the lake rinsing off... oops!)

This is from our last full day (I realize now these photos are horribly out of order. Oh well!). It was very windy, and Uncle Anthony decided to take the boat out for a rip. I went with him and we drove to the end of the lake and under a bridge. I drove back from the end of the lake through the super rough waters. More than a few times I was scared we would flip, but he just sat there laughing and assured me I should trust myself. 

Jeff took Rachel and I for the tube ride of our lives. I fell off twice, and he whipped us through the reeds, resulting in a few welts, one of which was even bleeding. 

Beating the heat in/on the water. Note Sherlock on the left up on the floatie again. He kept swimming out to us and we didn't want him to get too tired. 

Juanita and I heading out to our day of wine tasting!

The first winery we hit is called La Stella. It's an Italian inspired winery and they have a beautiful tasting patio in the back. 

They also have a tower with stairs so you can walk all the way to the top. There are two little balconies at the top with a view of the vineyards and the lake. I could retire here. 

A photo of our first red wine of the day with the patio, chairs and gorgeous view in the background. 

At La Stella we could walk right into the vineyards to see the grapes. Here is a shot of some of the ones closest to the tasting room. 

Next it was off to Hester Creek for some more tasting and then lunch on the patio. I bought a bottle of their Chardonnay and Character Red to share, and then mom and Sonya brought Poplar Grove cheese and some other delicious cheeses and meats from Platinum Bench. Remember how my love language is wine and cheese? Boy did this hit the spot. With a view to boot!

On top of the delectable wine and cheese, there was great company!

It was Anthony's birthday, and he decided he wanted to go to Silver Sage Winery with everyone as well. If you've never been here, it is SO worth a visit. Definitely the best experience for tasting. Also you get to try 12 WINES! They have amazing dessert wines and other fancy things. Make sure you're prepared for the amount you drink though... Don't leave there and then hop in a car to drive. 

As I mentioned, it was Anthony's birthday that day, so when we got back the people who stayed behind planned a little surprise for him!

So many margaritas were consumed at the cabin. Or... shall I say... Stugaritas. That name is catching on as it's a recipe my dad introduced to many people.  

I mentioned in my previous Thankful Thursday post that there was a forest fire in Oliver while we were at the cabin. This was the first night of the fire when we could see the flames. It was very eerie and ominous. 

David took both this photo and the last one from the front lawn at the cabin. 

The day we were smoked out at the cabin. 

The gorgeous sunset. The sun was red because of the smokey skies.  

If there's one thing you need to know about the De Jongs, it's that they LOVE food. Every day seemed like a gourmet meal for at least breakfast and dinner. 

Highway 3 was closed from Keremeos to Osoyoos due to the Oliver fire. When we drove home it had re-opened, but you could certainly see why it would have been closed! Everything right up the road was charred. 

It was so weird to see this. I've driven this road dozens of times in my life and it's always looked the same. I suppose this will be good for the vegetation in the long run? 

I kept thinking how I really hope there were no cows in these fields or that they all escaped and were safe. 

Just for good measure, here is my new favorite picture of Sherlock. Sleeping "toller style" in his crate on the way home. He woke up just as I tried to sneak a picture. 

Never a dull moment at the cabin. I love it there and feel so lucky to have spent 10 days up there with the family.