Australian Shepherd Puppy Plays in Water Bowl

Just a quick update on Molly and Lucy, our new mini Australian Shepherd puppies....

Molly discovers the joy of water!  Check out this short video of her digging in the water bowl.

We think Molly is going to be a water girl... what do you think?!

Meet Molly & Lucy ~ Mini Australian Shepherds

Molly (left), and Lucy (right)

Welcome Molly and Lucy, mini australian shepherds, to our Kansas homestead!

These two are sisters, born March 2nd, and are red merles.  Molly is the bigger of the two, and I've already nicknamed her Molly the Monster, because she definitely has the upper hand over her sister, Lucy!  Being that they are mini aussies, they will only weigh in the 20 to 30 lb range.

Molly strikes a typical Aussie pose

We have big plans for these girls in the future... perhaps some agility training and competition, or frisbee training.  We'll see which they prefer.  :-)

For now, basic puppy training will get them headed in the right direction.  We have fresh, new blank palettes to work with, and we want these girls to be polite and well-mannered from the get-go. 

Lucy chews on the tug-rope

There's a whole photo album posted on Facebook, so friend me if you want more puppy love.  I'll try to be a better blogger and post frequent updates here for everyone.

The next few months will be lots and lots of fun with these two very smart and intelligent girls!

Changing the Subject to DOG

If you've never visited my friend Neil's blog, Life With Dogs, I'm going to give you the best excuse EVER.  Do it now.  Click the link and watch a short video of dog vs pool.

And then bookmark his blog to get your daily dose of everything DOG.

I'm still crying I laughed so hard ....  it's short, only 1:46.  DO IT NOW.  I guarantee your best laugh today.

Blizzard, Kansas Style ~ 2011

I took a snow day today.  A rare day spent enjoying the cozy comforts of home, catching up on everything that seems neglected for the last two months.

I tried to get some outdoor photos, but need I stress how cold a wind chill of 14 below is??!!  Even bundled up with insulating underclothes and double gloves, I just couldn't take it for long.

Paint horse gave me his opinion of our "blizzard" ... or perhaps he was expressing his dislike of the photo session??

The girls love to play when it's cold and snowy...

 ...funny how stop-action photos make them look so ferocious!

 Tori poses while Trixie feints to the right

The sun was beginning to slide down in the western sky... or should I say "haze", as the sun itself was virtually non-existent today?

snow drifts are everywhere...  the wind blows incessantly

Here's a short video clip of Trixie and Tori playing outside... short, because I was freezing!!! You can hear the wind blowing, and trust me, it freezes right to your bones in seconds.  Especially when you walk out onto the front porch in your slippers and no coat.  *grin*

Ringo makes two very brief cameo appearances....

Ringo the Persistent Frog Hunter

Na-na-na-na-na!  That dog ain't  EVER gonna catch us!!!

(Those darn frogs wouldn't even let me get very close for a good pic... so you'll have to click to enlarge the pic and see the frog......we've got frogs here big enough to fry up some frog legs, LOL)

The Not-So-Purty Side of Nature

We rarely see cardinals in our neck of the woods. But in the last few weeks, hubby and I had noticed a strikingly beautiful cardinal hanging out around our house and near our tree break.

I found this today.

And this.

 Fluff.  Suspect Number One.

 Barack. Suspect Number Two. 

I've told him repeatedly, NO BIRDS, only rats and mice.  But he is full of cat-titude and has refused to abide by my rules.  We are sad that our cardinal is gone and quite possibly endured a heinous kitteh-style death.

Ringo sez he didn't see anything while we were gone this afternoon.

Hmmmmm ...

looks like he just woke up to me.

A Little of This, and a Little of That

It's a beautiful sunny day today... isn't it amazing what the sun can do for a person's outlook?  You can't help but feel more cheerful and have an agreeable disposition and outlook on life.  Perhaps I'll take the furkids on a walk around the property later this afternoon...

As promised in my last post, I've put up a dog book giveaway at my Lazy G Ranch website.  So hop on over and make a comment to enter... you have until Sunday the 28th.  Earn extra points if you tweet, facebook or post on your blog about my book giveaway ~ just let me know in your comment if you do so.  Subscribe to the Lazy G blog and earn an extra 5 points!

Since several of my readers have asked about my grandmother, I want to let y'all know that upon my departure from Ohio she was doing exceptionally well.  No longer at death's door, she was not only eating and taking her meds voluntarily, but she was up and about, going to eat in the nursing home dining room and meeting other ladies.  So I think she's got quite a bit more time here on this lovely planet, contrary to the doctor's prognosis.  Thank you to everyone who asked about her, and for all your good wishes and prayers.

While in Ohio, I found several old photo albums at her house.  If only I had drove to Ohio, then I would have brought those home with me and reorganized them (many are falling out of the binders) and then scanned several to add to my post here.  I should have selected a few photos to bring back home with me, but alas, I did not.  There's a wealth of old, old family photos there.  Our great-aunts were fascinated with the family genealogy, and so I did manage to snag many of their written research materials.  I've started a family tree on  Ancestry.com {just another of my many projects that I don't seem to have the appropriate amount of time to devote} but as soon as I can get back to it, it promises to provide an additional wealth of information.  In the materials that my great-aunts put together, I have family names dating back to 1769; Leonard Barnes, who was born that year, would be my great-great-great-great-great grandfather!!  Five generations ago, how cool is that?

 

The above photo sits right here by my computer; I've had it a long time. This is my great-great grandfather Joshua (also my son's name) and his wife Sarah, married Christmas eve 1885.  Joshua was 24, Sarah was only 17.   Joshua passed away in August 1936, Sarah in January 1942.

When I get those photo albums back home, I'll have lots more really cool old pics to post.  I'd like to put up some pics of my gramma, both in her younger days and more recent photos too.

Now I did say "a little of this and a little of that" in my post... here's something else on my agenda these days...

This is a baby quilt I started for my son and his wife, oh, about 3 years ago?  Some of you may know that they had a miscarriage in 2006, and then another in 2007, and possibly a few more before they even knew they were pregnant.  It's been a rocky road for them, but this time it appears we're going to have a new family member by June...I'm going to be a grammy!  Soooo, upon my return from Ohio last week, I removed the above quilt from my living room chest because now I need to finish this bugger.  I am hand quilting inside each heart and around each heart, then I need to get some yarn to do some random hand tying in the border.  Wish me luck... this is my first official quilt project!!

 close-up of the heart detail

This is the book, below, that I adapted my heart quilt from... I know this isn't the best picture, but you can kinda see the heart quilt on the cover of the book here.  I like the country look of their quilt (it's a button quilt) and maybe I'll even do a second one like it... I modified mine for a baby with the soft, muted natural tones.  If you're interested in this book, it can be purchased at Gooseberry Patch.  It's a wonderful book with really cool country designs and recipes too!

I think that's enough of "this and that" for this post... stay tuned for my next post, as we discuss a unique and adorable alternative to staying at hotels which may have bedbugs!!  

And for your reading pleasure, here's a recent news article in the Wichita Eagle ...  I think if you are travelling through our wonderful state, you may want to think twice about staying in ANY of our hotels.  Seriously.  Any of my readers are more than welcome to stay at our place.  We would love to have y'all!

*sniff* The Lazy G Needs Some Comment Luv

I've got another giveaway going on... this time over on my Lazy G Ranch blog! Just leave a comment at the Lazy G, with the answer to one simple question, and win a hardcover copy of "The Dog Listener" by Jan Fennell.

Check out this book on Amazon.... many readers have given it an enthusiastic thumbs up!

Click the image of the book to go to The Lazy G Ranch...

"Homemade with Love" Dog Treats Giveaway

UPDATE: Deadline to enter is extended to Midnight EST, tonight!

Enlarge to see detail.

Trixie Lou's Cheesers... we (me, Trixie, Tori and Ringo) have finally perfected this dog treat recipe so that they are yummy, crunchy and good-for-your-pooch! Made with organic oat flour and brown rice flour, they are free of the ingredients that typically cause problems for our pups - wheat, corn, soy and yeast. I've added co-jack and parmesan cheese to the dough, and sprinkled some co-jack on top for a crunchy finish that our dogs love. There are no preservatives, so you'll want to use them up within a week or keep them in the refrigerator.

So what are you waiting for? Leave a comment now for your chance to win a bag of these yummies for your pooch(es). The giveaway will close tomorrow night, Monday, at 6:00 p.m. EST and a winner will be selected by none other than Trixie. Maybe. If I can bribe her to pick a name! Winners are limited to U.S. ~sorry! I can't afford the overseas shipping costs.

I have also decided to sell my "homemade with love" dog treats for the next few months. Price is $6.50 + shipping, payable via Paypal (see button to right, in sidebar), or you can mail a check. Email me at suzgarten(at)yahoo(dot)com if you'd like more information.

I hope to add a beefy and chicken flavor biscuit soon, but for the moment just the Cheesers are available. There are approximately 2 dozen medium size bone-shaped treats in the bag, which weighs between 6 and 7 ozs.

I am trying to keep the cost of shipping reasonable, but the United States postal service makes this task difficult. As long as the total weight of the package is under 13 ozs, it goes first class, approximately $3.26. If you want 2 packages, the box weight tips the scales past 13 ozs, so we'll use Priority mail, the small box rate, which is $4.95. If you want more than two bags of treats, I'll work with you to keep the shipping costs down.

Treats will be baked on weekends and shipped on Mondays and Tuesdays only so that they don't get stuck at the post office over the weekend.

There is nothing better than to end a bad day covered in dog slobber!

Wordless Wednesday

The Big Question: Is Ringo Gender-Challenged?

The farrier was here Saturday to trim the horse's hooves. His border collie, Gunner, took a likin' to Ringo. The only problem? He liked Ringo a bit too much, and they're both of the male gender....

Sheesh~

Cheap Facelift in a Difficult Economy

Flowers - hey, it's what country folk do to old, dilapidated
farm buildings and antique cream separators.

I'll take another pic in a few weeks when the
morning glories start to bloom!

Isn't my steer pot the coolest?! Hubby got it for me. :)

Lazy Sunday

Yesterday our weather was most accommodating in providing a lazy day. We had overcast skies, in fact they were stormy looking skies, but there were no storms in our forecast. The temps were in the low 80s and there was a lovely breeze. The bugs seemed to be almost non-existent.

So we took a walk around the pond - it was a very pleasant walk since hubby had just mowed all around the perimeter on Thursday. On our way back to his shop, he suggested we grab a few chairs and some fishing rods. I volunteered to go to the house for some beers, and we were all set to do some serious relaxin'.

To-do list for pond:
1. get some moss-algae eating carp
2. build a dock
3. get small rowboat

Hubby caught half a dozen or so assorted bass and bluegill

We topped off our lazy afternoon by grilling some burgers and dogs, and having a margarita or two while we watched the horses in the pasture. All in all, one of those exceptionally nice days!