Signs

I know Diana likes signs so I took some pictures of some in Waterton I thought she might like :)

Medicine Hat Agility Trial

I had such a great time this weekend at the Flashing Canines Agility Trials in Medicine Hat. I love their trials, they are so fun!
The heat was almost unbearable, it was 35C both days, soooo hot. I even resorted to completely soaking down the boys with water so they could be comfortable, Tate enjoyed it, Kort not so much!
They were both so good, Tate out did his younger brother & Q'd in 3/5 trials. Kort Q'd in 2/6.
Kort blew one run by looking away & missing a jump, I was at fault with both Tate & Kort in a Jumpers run, with Kort I missed part of the course, & with Tate I pushed him too far resulting in him missing a jump.
Kort had some issues he's never had before, on 2 days he refused to lay down on the table, very strange for him, I "made" him do it the 2nd time, he was so mad :) He even jumped off the dogwalk one day.
Tate continues to amaze me & had the judges in stitches more then once with his puppy antics. I am enjoying trialing with him, he makes me so proud.
Kort is coming into his own & his weaves are awesome :), he also made me proud.
I would also like to add for those of you who have never done an AAC trial, it is so much more difficult then CKC!.... right off the bat in Starters you have 12 weaves, or 6 depending on the judge, this weekend it was all 12 :), in CKC their are no weaves in Beginners. The courses for Starters are equivalent to an Intermediate in CKC, with at least 2 side changes, & they are not all straight lines either. You are not allowed mistakes at any level as well, if your dog runs by a jump, even at the Starters level, it is considered a refusal & you get an NQ, you can however make a booboo at the weaves & still Q at the Starters level.
I enjoy it as it is much more challenging & makes you a better handler for sure :)
Here are some video highlights from the weekend ......

TATE......


KORT......

Off To Another Agility Trial!

Tonight I am off to Medicine Hat after work for another AAC Agility trial !! Tate & Kort are both entered but Woody will be staying home with Brad this trip. The Medicine Hat trials are my favourite so I am looking forward to the weekend :)

Friends

Friends are a wonderful thing to have :)
They are there to cheer you on, make you smile when you don't feel like smiling, & comfort you when things aren't going so well.
I had a bit of a tough day yesterday, my birthday, but as soon as I got to work my friends cheered me up right away, I got awesome gifts, a wonderful card & a much needed hug from Amanda, thanks Amanda, that's 2 hugs this year already !!
I had agility last night & my agility group made me feel so special with all the birthday wishes. They even tried to give me the birthday bumps, with no success I might add LOL!! I even got slobbery birthday kisses from Kaleb, Sarah's flatcoat :)
The picture below is of the wine from Wendy, & wallet with a hand drawn picture of Tate on it, from Amanda. I also got coconut cupcakes, but I can't show those as they are in our bellies :)
This will be a birthday I will remember for sure thanks to my friends :)

September 20, 1960

The day I was born :) Happy Birthday to me, Queen for the Day as I like to say.
I've always loved my birthday, it's a day that is just mine, a day I can feel special. It doesn't matter how old I am, I don't care, I act how I feel, about 13 LOL!
I am 51 today, wow, time goes by fast. I don't remember every birthday I've ever had, but a few stand out, so I thought I'd post them, just for the lack of anything else to post :) :)
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1) 1968, 8 yrs old, mom decided to combine my birthday party with my brothers seeing as his was on the 12th, we each got to invite 5 friends :) I remember the cake & how each slice had a quarter wrapped in. A lot of money for a kid in the 60's!

2) 1969, 9 yrs old, the first year mom didn't let us have a party, bummer! I got a pink stuffed poodle I named Pinky, original I know:)

3) 1990, 30 yrs old, I hated turning 30 for some reason, I liked my 20's... mom, my sister Joanne & I went to Duluth MN, we had a blast, went to a bunch of bars & my mom got asked for ID, awesome !

4) 1993, 33 yrs old, my first birthday with Brad as my boyfriend ♥, we went out fishing to Silver Islet in Thunder Bay, it was really hot that day, we sat on the shoreline with my collie Drake, threw the lines in the water, drank a few beers, & I had a few puffs on a cigar :)

5) 1996, 36 yrs old, my very close cousin Judy died of a brain aneurysm, I spent the day & evening gathered with family, the only unhappy birthday I've ever had, later Judy's sister would tell me the last person she had called that day was me , the line must have been busy, I will always think of that & wish I was available to answer the phone, I could have talked with her one more time :(

6) 2010, 50 yrs old !!, my mom, & 2 sisters fly up to spend the weekend with me, it was the best birthday ever!!!

7) 2011, 51 yrs old, the first birthday I have ever worked!!, seriously, I have always taken holidays the week of my birthday, this year I decided to take them a week later so Brad & I could go away for our Anniversary, which is on the 29th. It feels weird going in to work, but ok as I enjoy my job & the people I work with. Tonight I have agility with Kort so that is fun as well :)

Here's to many more birthdays !

Kort's Kimberley Video

Kort tried very hard but couldn't seem to pull it all together in any of the runs for a Q.
Next time :)

Kimberley Video

I finally have Tate's videos from last weeknds trial ready, enjoy :)

Warning!

This video may not be suitable for all ages, it may contain some extreme close ups of a sweaty half crazed woman.
View at your own risk, you've been warned......

Off to Kimberley!

Bright and early tomorrow morning I am leaving for Kimberly BC and an agility trial :)
This is a huge deal as I didn't think I would ever be in an agility trial with Tate, or for a long time with Kort.
I had Tate in a trial in May & he was sick , which I didn't know, the poor guy tried his best but just shut down in the ring. Many tests later we discovered he had an enlarged prostate surrounded by cysts, as well as an infected anal gland. He has since been neutered & has gained back most of the weight he had lost. I put him in a demo a few weeks back & he was fast fast & back to his old self, enjoying agility the same way he always has.
I don't care if he Q's, but just to be in the ring with him again will be awesome :) :)
As for Kort, he was suffering from the mystery pain that caused him to scream out in total panic, he was put on 4 weeks of rest, he wasn't able to do anything at all, even play, this meant we couldn't even train for our weaves. In AAC agility there are weaves even in the starters class, in CKC there are weaves in the Intermediate class, so he needed to know how to weave. He finally had his light bulb moment 2 days ago, he gets it, he can weave!!! I have started him learning 12 weaves as well. I am not sure he can do 12 weaves in a trial but that is ok, again it is not about the Q, but the fact that we are even in the ring is reward in itself :)

Woody

Woody had his photo shoot with Wendy last night. The pictures will go up on the Windy City Canine Rescue page in hopes someone out there will be interested in this wonderful boy :)
He is slowly becoming more himself, this morning he ran around the house with a milk carton that I had given Kort, much to Kort's displeasure :)
Except for the barking when he wants something, he is a very well behaved dog. He never gets up on the furniture & he walks perfectly on leash.
You can see in the following pictures that his previous "owner" cut off all of his tummy & rear end hair, jerk....it will grow back but still.
I think he is pretty special :)
Woody......

Hey Amanda!!

Kort can weave!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Best Day :)

Brad & I had the best time today, we got up early & drove out to Waterton National Park. I am glad we got there early to beat the crowds! It was so packed later in the day you could barely move. We checked out all the gift shops & got some great bargins on jackets & sweaters. Brad got a suede leather jacket for $20, regular $90!! Things are winding down in Waterton & they are getting rid of as much inventory as possible. We will be back there in 3 weeks to spend our anniversary. At that time it is virtually deserted, just the way we like it :) This year Brad is driving up on his motorcycle while I drive, then when we get there I am renting a moped for the day & we are going site seeing, should be interesting, hopefully I won't crash the bike :) :)
Some pictures from today......
My honey & I :) Sorry for the squinty eyes, the sun was very bright !

Me with the waterfall behind me

Brad with the waterfall behind him

I couldn't believe my luck, 2 of my favourite things rolled into one, a birdhouse & chimes!!!!

Some of the wonderful scenery, these pictures do not do the water justice, it was so blue it was like looking at the ocean, gorgeous!!


I can't wait to go back!

Happy Birthday !

Happy Birthday to my wonderful mom who turns 80 today !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
She is spending it in Vegas!!!
PS. sorry for the VERY old picture :)
I still haven't gotten all my pictures downloaded into my new computer :) :)