Aslan's Own

Camping With Dogs 1

2010-07-12T15:13:00.001-07:00

We haven't been camping in over six years. Don't ask me why, it just hadn't happened. But we went last weekend. Me, Maggie, Al, Ace & Winnie. Barbie stayed at my sisters house.

Barbie doesn't camp. Pass the chips, please.
Ace was the designated camp clean up dude. Getting him to put stuff in the trash bag was a bit of a challenge though.He preferred eating worms to putting them on hooks.
Maggie is a first class crawdad catcher.
Winnie being extremely brave to check out such a big drink of water.
Pearl Lake at dawn, lovely.
Ace checking out the big, big world. As you can see, much of the campground had been logged off.
Zooming around in his camp pen. He played well in here when he couldn't be loose in camp.
Winnie preferred to be in Maggie's coat in the mornings. Coffee, please.
The lake was lovely. Ace had never seen such a big water bowl before.
So have you ever camped with dogs? Tell me about it!

To Be Continued.

Dogs Are So Helpful

2010-07-07T05:27:00.000-07:00

One of my many children remarked that everytime one of them turns 18 I get a new puppy.

This can't be true of course, because I don't have 10 dogs. Admittedly, a few we've had over the years have been rehomed for one reason or another. I wonder how they came up with that. Not sure I want to think that far back.

Anyhow. A good puppy is a tired puppy as you see here. After thoroughly killing the pheasant, coon, mallard and penguin, Ace sleeps.Here is why this morning, in the rain, sopping wet, EVERY dog toy we own is out in the yard. Someone likes to empty the toy box. I'm gonna have to teach this dog to pick up after himself.
But look at me ma! I'm nearly grown up!
We're going camping near Steamboat Springs this weekend. I've washed all the sleeping bags and got the stuff sacs out preparing to stuff them back in.
Or not.
Oh - we like this, are we coming? Can we help?
This one's mine!
So I stuffed Ace instead.
It was raining and wet at 5:30 this morning when I went out to get the paper and feed the birds. Ace is dragging the paper in for me.
He was annoyed by tripping over it so stopped to get a better grip.
Holding it like a big dog, waiting for the door to open into the house.
Carrying it through the laundry room.
Into the living room. "Can I kill it Ma? Huh?"

Introducing Pili Lani Kilohana Kei AKA "ACE"

2010-06-28T13:14:00.000-07:00

So much for being a Lazy Trainer. You can get away with that to some degree with little dachshunds.

Another dog just wasn't on the radar.

My friend Holly Trumble bred her Portuguese Water Dog Keilani in February. She had her puppies on April 21st. I was there to watch and assist. This big boy was dubbed "Moose" from the get go. I like him from the start, but I didn't want another puppy. Or so I thought.
But here he is. An incredible 50th birthday gift. He's only been here two days and he's captured our hearts already. This morning I started clicker training him. A third of his dinner on sits, third on downs, third on stands. He was great.

Ace the Portuguese Water Dog, 5 weeks old.Ace at 9 weeks before getting his "Lion Clip".
After his first clip, playing with Winnie. Shaving his muzzle would have been too stressful, though he was really good with his backside, we fed him his dinner, kibble by kibble as I clipped. I scissored his muzzle a bit so we could see his eyes.
You know you want this stick!Ace's Dam - Keilani
Ace's Sire: Isaac

Daddy!

2010-04-09T06:28:00.001-07:00

Something really, really special is happening this weekend.

My Dad is coming to live with us.

(Here he is with Ruth, and me peeking)We have a great guest cabin all ready for him, which will give him his own space and privacy, yet he can be a part of whatever he wants. The circumstances that are bringing this about are sad, yet, the goodness that will come out of this is beyond comprehension in my mind.

(Dad & Jessica)
Our society has, for the most part, gotten so far away from multi-generational living.
I am excited for the opportunity. My sister, Lauren, Al and I have been working to get the cabin in top shape for him. It will be done Saturday. He'll be here Saturday night. My son Cyrus is helping bring him and the last of his furniture over.

I can hardly wait.
Welcome Home, Daddy.

Kidz & Dogz & Dreadz

2010-02-18T06:07:00.000-08:00

The first big dog show of the season happened in Denver recently - The Rocky Mountain Cluster. A four day show hosted by the Plum Creek Kennel Club and Colorado Kennel Club. This was Maggie's first time showing Blaise, one of Pam Gale's lovely Irish Setters. Saturday she placed 2nd, and in the pics below she was placed 1st! A hard earned win as last year her highest placing was second. I love this photo, as you can see her dreads with the dog comb, how she's showing and the judge looking at the class.Moving around the ring. The boy behind her is Shane, also showing one of Pam's dogs.
In the final line up.
This was the Junior Novice class and I loved all these little boys - with a girl on the end.
My Winnie had a good weekend considering the tough competition. Friday and Sunday she went first in her class and Reserve Winners Bitch, just one placing out of points! Saturday and Monday she went 3rd, not so good, but it keeps us coming back! I don't have any picture of Winnie at the show, but here she is the day before.

Graduation Weekend!

2009-05-25T07:39:00.000-07:00

Anna our #10 child graduated High School at 16 years old this weekend... Here are the photos of the weekend: Al and I at the party.
Son Josh.
Daughter Mary
Daughters Ruth and Alyssa.
The gorgeous cupcake tier Alyssa made for Anna.
Ruth with Paeton, a friends baby and my grandson, Ronan.
It's a girl think I guess..
Graduation Day, children Jessica, 22, Ruth, 18, Mary, 25, Anna 16, Cyrus, 27.
A few more in the photo, Josh 23, and neice Deannah on the right, 21.
Anna with Tad Carls and Allen Howlett receiving her High Honors tassels and Salutatorian Medal.
My dad, Larry, step-mom, Judy, Anna, Me, Al, Jessica, Ruth, Maggie.
Grandson Ronan eyeing a little Pine Siskin.
Jessica stealing a shot of herself on my camera..

An Enjoyable Afternoon

2009-04-30T16:53:00.000-07:00

One of my favorite things to do when it gets warm enough is to prepare for a backyard sit. It doesn't take much effort, but it does take some thought. The idea is to prepare well enough that you don't have to get up until you want to. That can be harder to do than you think. (for me anyway) As it was I forgot a camera battery and my glasses, and had to go get them but it didn't ruin my afternoon.

Here's my spot. I put on a overshirt as it was about 60 degrees out, partly cloudy.
I start with putting the hot water on and while it's heating I gather my gear. Ideally; binocs, (my sweet new Swarovski's), both of my cameras, reading material which today was my favorite birding magazines, phone (sometimes both my cell and house phones), and glasses. Then making my drink I head outside to have a seat on the patio and a good read.The first yard bird to join me was this Robin. I get buzzed daily by Robins as they feel quite at home here. "Um.. the mealworms are gone again, more please?"This Chickadee has been snitching mealworms from my other oriole feeder, but having eaten them all checks out this feeder too.. no mealworms here.My view from where I'm sitting.To my left.. I'm not getting much reading done.Next to visit was this sweet Downy female.Sneaking in behind the rocks a Mourning Dove.So much for peace and quiet! They've found me.. Reina, Winnie and Barbie - The Weenie Girls.
Amazingly enough, most of the bird in my yard are used to these gals and don't flee when they are in the yard.
Don't let our size fool you. We're tough.
But don't tell Chet Baker - we have a crush on him. Those eyes..I tried to pick up a magazine, really I did, but then was visited by this lovely American Goldfinch.One of the Robin pair that frequent the yard dining on Russian Olives. Robins love these old trees and their fruit. Oddly enough my little dogs eat the olives too.And then the Warblers came. At this point I gave up on reading and watched as several warblers began hawking and picking insects off of the trees. Yellow-rumped Myrtle variety was the most common. A subtly colored Orange-crowned joined them for awhile. At least a half dozen moved through the yard while I was watching.Mama squirrel showed up and began taunting the mini's.
"cchchhcchh"Who fell for the challenge.....and the game was on again.Here is a picture of our old Russian Olive trees. Now I know Russian Olive trees have become invasive along riparian areas and would not plant them. But, I have these trees in my yard. 5 trees, 6 large trunks and they are dying. What to do? The birds absolutely LOVE these trees, and none seem in danger of toppling. Every day up high in the dead branches (not all the trunks are dead, only 2-3 so far) birds take a break from eating or bathing and commence to have community up there. Preening, breeding, lookouts, sleeping. The trees still bear much fruit which the birds (and my dogs) have continued feasting on all winter through this spring. At some point they will have to come out, but I hate to do it. (it's not cheap either! $1500 to remove all and grind the stumps) We're considering taking the left grouping out first and putting in something like a ponderosa or spruce. Then in a couple of years take the right side grouping out and put in some aspens or something like that. Any ideas are welcomed. I don't know if we can even do it this year. The birds love them.Thus ends my beautiful afternoon. Clouds rolled in and the temperature dropped, my hot chocolate is gone so I headed inside. We're expecting more rain and a bit cooler weather. That's spring for you.

Springtime Collage

2009-04-25T18:48:00.000-07:00

Spring time has hit here in northern Colorado and so has yard work fever. I love working outside in the yard, most of the time. Once in awhile when I have a heavy physical task I shouldn't tackle alone and help is not available Right When I Need It. That's when I must practice patience. Anyhow, to break up the physical work I take a day off now and then to go birding.

Here's what I found at Pawnee National Grassland on Thursday, Dueling McCown's Longspurs.A pretty male allowed my jeep quite close.
And now back to the yard. This lovely molting Lazuli Bunting male showed up on this gray, drizzly day today and delighted me with his presence. Will he be back tomorrow?
My Purple Leaf Sand Cherry is blooming.
Pretty tulips. Now, I love native flowers, bushes and other plants, but I also enjoy non-invasive species from other areas.
A quick view of my garden area. The beds on the left are all planted, the new beds on the right, mostly so. Lettuce, spinach, carrots, onions, leeks, brocolli, tomatoes in the wall-o-waters and some early herbs.
I have a little meadow with native flowers and grasses. I can see the little plantlets coming up!
Spring!

Family Gatherings

2009-03-02T16:55:00.000-08:00

About a week ago we had some fun family gatherings at my brother Das's house and my sis Laurens. Dad just turned 75, step mom Judy 74, my mom turned 65 and neice Deannah just had her 21st birthday. PLUS we have a new neice in the family; Dax's little girl Shy Summer. We had plenty of reason to celebrate!

Here are Dad, Deannah, Maggie, Cyrus and my sweetheart Al.

Cyrus and Satchel playin' us all some Johnny Cash tunes.

Aisha and me, I love that girl..Ever tried deep fried twinkies and ice cream? We didn't either! The oil was not hot enough and they became Oily Twinkie Sponges.
A sibling photo for our parents. Dax, Lauren, Me and Satchel. Typical.
Deannah and her sleeping Mom.
Somebody snatching Lauren's yummy mini cheesecakes. Mmm.
Proud papa and Grandma.
Mom and Mary. Mom looks amazing for 65 eh?
A with an Attitude. That's Anna. Maggie making a point.
Ruth in her element. Baby Element. Mom lovin' it.
Anna copying Ruth. But she loves it.
Al and Judy deep in conversation.
Dad's always happy at 5:00!
And Shy Summer. Enough lovin today from the crowd.

Christmas Candy Thievery

2008-12-22T07:28:00.000-08:00

Our family went out for the evening last night at various places. Husband Al and I to a work gathering at one of his co-workers homes.We took our little puppy Winnie with us and left the older two mini dachshunds at home. They are well behaved and can be left just fine..as long as you remember to put the candy for the Christmas Stockings out of their reach that is..

We came home to this:

Now, I pretty much know who the initiator was for this stunt, Reina who has been a food-aholic and thief since a puppy still lapses into such behavior when presented with the opportunity. I imagine it went something like this:

Bored at our absence and probably knowing candy was in her reach, Reina went upstairs into our bedroom behind the alcove curtain to really check it out.

Not to be left behind, but also not wanting to start trouble, Barbie joined in. Reina then proceed to rummage the bags until she found something she could heist - a bag of Snickers Minis. I can see it now, Reina dragging her prize to the top of the stairs while Barbie is running circles around her, darting in for a bite or two at the bag. Reina proceeds down stairs - OUT THE DOG DOOR - and into the yard with the goods. All the while Barbie is probably yapping and darting and circling. ("I can't beLIEVE your doing this?!)

Once outside the real fun begins with the tearing of the bag ceremony and commencing of opening and devouring seven Snickers minis. I'm not sure if they quit because they were full or because of the freezing temperatures.

Needless to say, breakfast this morning for them was light.

I'm Thankful!

2008-11-27T16:28:00.000-08:00

I'm so thankful for the people in my life and a great family. I love my job and my boss and coworkers are great too. Here is a pic of a turkey for you to enjoy.

Also, way cool, is this article in NY Times about Project FeederWatch, which I'm in.

Have a Blessed and Happy Thankgsgiving!

Back To School..

2008-08-27T08:37:00.000-07:00

Well here we are in August, kids heading back to school. I can hardly believe my little Anna is a senior this year! Sweet 16, too.

A tough, but thought out decision for me this year was what to do with Maggie. We've been home schooling since January and through the summer, but came to the place of her going back to public school. Home schooling 1 is very different from homeschooling 4-6 kids. Plus with her other sibs out and gone or in school it's been lonely for her. So she is now going to Walt Clark Middle School and joined cross country running. I have a total peace about it and plan on being involved to some degree. Here she is on her first day:

Not An Ordinary Mother..

2008-07-24T21:06:00.000-07:00

So, we're on our way back from Al's Local Union meeting in Boulder last night. We pass, for the zillionth time, the old house and barn that are sitting in a field. The house is still on a moving truck, but the barn has a severe lean to it now, that is has been sitting on the ground with no foundation. I love that barn and it makes me sad to see it deteriorating..

So as we drive by and I say my typical "I love that barn", Maggie pipes up, "Mom, I love you!" "Why?" I say, "Well, see, you are not an ordinary mother." "What do you mean?" I say. "Well" she says, " You love funny things, like weeds.. and old barns and trees in the house and things like that."

"Yes, I do." I say.

Funny.

Summer

2008-07-08T21:18:00.000-07:00

Been awhile. What's going on? Nothing particularly exciting, but Andrew Wommack Ministries Summer Family Bible Conference was last week and though I couldn't go they had it available free and live online so that was awesome. The depth of Gods love for all of us and the completeness of the work that Jesus did on the cross is incredible.

Lauren, Maggie and I did our two week New England trip which was fun, about 4 days too long and successful. Lots of new birds and a great time visiting family.

Since then I've been glad to be home, taking care of family and place and messin' with the dogs. I love having a cup of mocha with Al on the patio after he's home from work.

It has been a great spring and summer, not too hot, lovely weather. I even have a bit of a garden and my "mini meadow" I planted (also known as the Dachshund Forest, or Barbie's Jungle) is doing quite well.

We had a family of squirrels raised in our bird house, followed by a family of starlings. Grackles, House Sparrows, Starlings, Flickers, Downy Woodpeckers and Robins have all been bringing their young into the feeders which is great fun to watch.

We had a great June Birthday Celebration here last week with not all, but lots of family and lots of FOOD.

No big plans for the rest of the summer, which is fine with me. Hopefully some day trips into the mountains.

Such Love

2008-05-02T21:19:00.000-07:00

Ephesians 2:4,5
But God, who is rich in mercy, because of His great love with which He loved us, even when we were dead in sins, made us alive together with Christ.

I have been overwhelmed lately by a renewed revelation of just how much God loves me. Not only me, actually, but all of us. It is nearly incomprehensible it is so big.

God gets such a bad rap from religion. Hurricanes, earthquakes, and other natural disasters are all attributed as "Acts Of God". This is not so! God is NOT schizophrenic! There was a time before Jesus and after the law came that God showed wrath toward people. But the sacrifice of Jesus was complete and satisfied God. HE IS NOT AN ANGRY GOD, waiting for us to mess up and then gleeful at the chance to ZAP us. Think of the life of Jesus. NOTHING that He ever did was vengeful or full of anger, He loved, healed and forgave. Then he died for the sin of the whole world. Past. Present. Future. Future? Yep, future. Amazing Love.

Amazed By Him

2007-10-12T21:22:00.000-07:00

Can you figure it out?

It's windy outside and I feel the Wind inside me too.

Like God is stirring, stirring.

I have been saturating myself with DC*B's new album Remedy. Somethin' else for sure. I have recently finished reading several books by Donald Miller, including Blue Like Jazz.. wow. I love it when God shows me how very much He loves me and not only wants me to know Him, but He wants to KNOW me! I am so tired of religious rules and regulations and formulas as a way to get to god. It's a dead and lifeless road.

Loving God and loving others. What a big change for all of us that would be. So easy to say, sometimes (all the time??) so hard to do. It's not about checking everything off on the road-to-God list to make sure you are going along good. Life's about living the life of Love, like Love did when He was here on earth. Amazing, absolutely amazing.

Where do we even start?

Begin to pay attention to your surroundings, your family, your spouse, your friends. Be kind, do something sweet, put them first, do what you're asked with out grumbling. Notice someone in need? Buy them a sandwich, help them with the door, carry out their groceries, buy 'em coffee, listen to their story, tell them yours, look them in the eye. Hugs. A clean shirt, time, rake their leaves, bake a cake, give them your best cookies.

I am overwhelmed by His Love:
For GOD is sheer BEAUTY, all Generous in LOVE, LOYAL always and EVER Ps.100:5

If I speak with human eloquence and angelic ecstasy but don't love, I'm nothing but the creaking of a rusty gate. If I speak God's Word with power, revealing all His mysteries and making everything plain as day, and if I have faith that says to a mountain, " Jump" and it jumps, but I don't have love, I'm nothing.

If I give everything I own to the poor and even go to the stake to be burned as a martyr, but I don't love, I've gotten nowhere. So, no matter what I say, what I believe and what I do, I'm bankrupt without love.

Love never gives up.
Love cares more for others than for self.
Love doesn't want what it doesn't have.
Love doesn't strut.
Doesn't have a swelled head,
Doesn't force itself on others,
Isn't always "me first",
Doesn't fly off the handle,
Doesn't keep score of the sins of others,
Doesn't revel when others grovel,
Takes pleasure in the flowering of truth,
Puts up with anything,
Trusts God always,
Always looks for the best,
Never looks back,
But keeps going to the end.
Love never dies....

But for right now, until that Completeness, we have three things to do to lead us toward that consummation:

Trust steadily in God,

Hope unswervingly,

Love extravagantly.

And the best of the three is Love.
(1 Corinthians 13)

For GOD is sheer BEAUTY, all Generous in LOVE, LOYAL always and EVER Ps.100:5