Group

Since I have been having such a tough time with the death of my mom I have decided to join a bereavement group.  We meet on Tuesday nights and it goes for 2 hours.  Last night was my second class and I find it very helpful to be able to talk about mom and get what I need by having people listen and validate my feelings. 
I can cry if needed, and it doesn't feel dumb, or like I'm being foolish. 
I can't talk about who is in the group but it is a nice small group of just the 4 of us.  I can tell you I am not the oldest which really surprised me! 
The room is cozy with comfy chairs and nice smells from oils they have going in an infuser.  There are 2 instructors, I guess that's what they are called, they help keep the flow going so there is always something to discuss.  I wouldn't think I was the kind of person that would get something out of the group but I am and I'm glad I signed up for it . I am already looking forward to my next session.

Tracking videos

Got my camcorder working finally so have a couple of tracking videos to post

This is Kort, he had 2 turns and is defiantly ready for longer tracks with more turns.....


This is Lync, he is doing awesome for just starting his tracking career.....
 I am so proud of both of them and I am sooo loving tracking again!

Tracking

I've been tracking with Kort for a month, and just started Lync, going out this morning , there is a light frost on the ground which is perfect for laying a track, video to follow :)

Wouldnt you know it but my video camera had issues yesterday, I was so disappointed as I had someone willing to video for me to, we used her i phone but I was unable to download all of the track :(

For Kort I did a track with 3 corners, I used food on the corner and he nailed each one, then I use food drops of about every 10 steps otherwise.  I am thinking of stopping the food but using more articles as his tracking is stop and start and circling for the food, not just straight ahead pulling, I'm ready to roll for next time and hopefully the camera issues will be resolved.  Korts track aged for an hour before I actually ran it so he was a good boy!

For Lync I just did a straight track with food in every step for about the first 10 , then after that about every 3rd, this is his 2nd ever track only and his tail wagged the entire time, I think he enjoys this !! Lyncs track was 50 steps and aged for 40 minutes so I was very pleased with how he handled his too!

Ash at 9 months

pictured at 8.5 months

Ash is quickly maturing into a nice boy.  He has a gorgeous head and muzzle, his ears are doing well but I still keep them glued to insure they stay that way.  He has a solid topline, a lovely long neck, and is balanced in front and rear.  I am taking him to two shows the beginning of November, one being our local show that we have just once a year.  It is also a Collie/Sheltie booster so that will be extra fun.!  He has a solid temperament but this will be the first time I have showed him indoors, I am expecting him to be quite excited so I better get to the shows early so he has time to settle down and relax.  It is so much fun having a puppy to show again! 

Home

I arrived home from Edmonton at 5 pm last night, I have 3 huge boxes of stuff from my mom's house sitting here, I dont wasnt to go through them yet,  It is just so painful, my heart hurts so bad.  Everything I get smells like her, I hope we are doing the right thing, selling her house I mean, but what else were we to do? It make me think of one day when I pass away, people going through my things, giving them away, dividing everything up, it makes me ill to think about it. I try to keep as little as possible so it wont be the job that we are having to go through with moms things.
I know mom is in a better place free from pain, but I am selfish and want her back, I want to call her up and say Happy Thanksgiving.

My grief counseling starts on Oct 20th, to my surprise it is a group of all older people, I thought I would be the oldest, apparently not.  I guess you are never too old to grieve for your mom :(

Day 9

Dianne and the boys

Tonight Debra comes home from Thunder Bay, the dogs and I are ready to go home, we leave in the morning !! I will have company on the way home , Michelle who lives in Edmonton is going to visit Liz so she is catching a ride with me.  That will be great to have someone to talk to on the ride back. 

On Day 7 I went to Edmonton to pick up Dianne and together we went out to her farm to walk the boys.  It was so beautiful out there, and open land as far as you could see, absolutely beautiful, plus the weather has been so nice, we were able to walk with no jackets and the dogs just ran and ran!  After we went and watched Dianne's husband help with farm chores and drive a great big truck :)

We took lots of pictures which I have here.  On the way back I stopped in to see Duffy who is Korts litter brother!  They look and sound so much alike!  Dianne sent me home with a care package of yummy homemade jams, tomato sauce and fresh garden tomatoes!

It was such a great day and I hope to visit back soon!!  thanks for a great day Dianne!!!

Run!!!!!

me and the boys

Day 5

Today is Day 5 caring for my sisters pets and home as she takes care of moms personal belongings back in Thunder Bay.  I am a bit homesick and ready to go home but still have 4 more days here.  While I love her dogs I still miss my own house and my social life, as small as it was, I still miss it .  At least at home I could go out and do classes with my dogs , or training, club meetings etc.  Plus it is hard to not have anyone to talk to for days and days, it makes for very long boring days.

Today I went out walking with the dogs, even though I wasn't going to walk all 3 together, the walk I take is almost an hour and I am not doing that twice, I just lack the energy to do it,  Today I made sure I had Lync harnessed up pretty well so there was less pulling.  I didn't let any of them go off the sidewalk and sniff, they had one pee and that was it, I was lucky today that I only passed one person walking a dog.  I went waaaaay off the walking path and that did the trick, no crazy barking dogs.  When I get home it will be a different story, I will do 2 walks , or if I am not able I will have someone come to walk Lync.  I am sure I can manage though.  Lync is much better walking on his own without the other dogs so I will do that, take him alone and then the 2 collies together.

If my knees werent so bad I could get my bike out but soon it will be snowing and that will be impossible too.

Anyway tomorrow I might go out to a couple of pet shops in the area , that should be fun.  Well that's about it for now!

Day Two

Well I arrived in Edmonton at supper time last night, Debras dogs & cats were very happy to see me and mine were happy to get out of the van, they really are great travelers though.  I got the 6 dogs and 3 cats calmed down the got them all fed, and put outside, then it was time for me to have a glass of wine! 
Unfortunately it was pouring rain and super windy and cold when I arrived so I didn't walk my dogs. Today is better, its cold and windy but its not raining.

I woke up super early this morning , like 5:45, so I will hopefully go to bed  bit earlier tonight.  I am still trying to get a routine for myself as well as for feeding everyone, and where to feed everyone!  By the time we are all settled in it and have it all figured out it will probably be time to come home lol

At any rate I am enjoying the dogs and the change of scenery and we are having a good time.

I'm Offf!

This morning the dogs and I are off to Sherwood Park to look after my sisters house as well as her pets, 3 dogs and 3 cats! I will have my hands full!
Debra and Gene are driving to Thunder Bay to help with the packing of my moms estate and ready it for selling.  I just couldn't do it.  The house has been in the family for 60 years, first my Baba, then my uncle John, then my mom.  It has seen alot of history this house but it is time to let it go now and carry on with our lives.
I hope Debra takes lots of pictures as I will at least want those for my memories.