A JUMPING BEAN IMPRESSION
THIS IS NOT OUR TEETER PERFORMANCE. Cricket actually has an awesome teeter now. Cricket learned the teeter following the directions on the Wendy Pape Teeter DVD which I highly recommend and really liked....something we did must have worked because Cricket has NO FEAR, LOL. ANYWAY, one of the games was jumping into the end position on a LOWEREDteeter, Cricket really likes that game, so now when ever we walk past the teeter she tries to jump onto the end, even with full height teeters, what a little nut ;-). This is not her best effort but I just happened to catch it on video.
ITS A BIRTHDAY DAY!
Guess who is FIVE YEARS OLD today? Yep it is a huge milestone bday for the little red Lizard-Lizzie!
It was freezing and really windy but I took Lizzie out in the big agility yard today for a run, she was so cute she ran around and did all the equipment and just looked so happy. Her and I have a little trip scheduled in a few hours to Petsmart to pick out a birthday toy.
I will never forget the day Lizzie came into my life. I saw an ad with a picture of a cute little red/white split face border collie a few hours away. I figured it was probably a picture of past puppies, but I called and she was a girl, and she was available. Yep, I fell in love with Lizzie's looks! Never a good criteria to use when picking a dog....but she was too cute for words.
The whole family got into the car and drove down to the ranch where she was at in Temecula, CA. When we got there there was a huge pack of dogs, all running loose and getting along-hey I thought that was a good sign that she came from stock that all got along with other dogs and were nice --even to strangers driving up that they did not know. I happen to like that!
Lizzie's mom was a working girl and worked full time herding cattle and had gone back up to her job in Northern CA before I met Lizzie, so I have no clue what her mom looks like (yep, this was a spur of the moment decision and I sure did not go down my check list of what I would look for when I decided to get the little Lizard). Her dad was a red/white sweet heart of a dog-he was there.
We went to where the pups were kept, and there were three sisters. A black/white split face girl, a white face girl and Lizzie. Lizzie was the one that choose me, she wanted to play with me with the toys I had brought, she kept crawling up in my lap and she made me feel very loved ;-). I loved her split face too. The curly hair was a special surprise that I did not know about until long after I had her, LOL.
The lady must have thought I was CRAZY taking so much time to decide which girl I wanted, I dropped pans to look for noise sensitivity, played lots of games with the pups and just sat in the pen checking out how the girls were playing and reacting.
Of course Lizzie went home with us. My older daughter held her on her lap and a few miles from the ranch she got her name-Leapin' Lizzie just came to me, I am not sure why. The next afternoon I set Lizzie up in an xpen and went to agility class with Chloe, I came home to the cute little split face peering out the window. You guessed it she had leaped over the tallest xpen they make. Yep, I had chosen her name well, and she fit it to a tee.
Lizzie was the most challenging youngster, and I learned so much from her and everyone loved her. I will never love a dog like I love her, I love all my dogs but Lizzie will always hold a special place. I had to go on a lot of faith with Liz, faith that she would turn out ok, and that is a hard thing for me to do, relax and have faith. I worked hard but mostly she just grew up. Now at five she is pretty laid back, she is mostly just sweet and I miss some of her wildness and naughtiness. Who knew I would be able to say that when we started this journey, BUT it is true!
HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR LIZZIE, THIS HAS BEEN A REALLY FANTASTIC FIVE YEARS! Who knows who I would be today if I had not found her? I am sure i would not be the same person.....that is how I know she was truly meant to be in my life and I am so grateful we happened upon each other all those years ago!
Life a series of COMINGS, and GOINGS!
FIRST FOR THE GOINGS:
Well, I am no fan of change lately, LOL, but life keeps changing no matter what I say. When our neighbors moved in MANY years ago we met Arie. Arie is the neighbors' daughter and a few years older then my girls, but she has almost seemed like my daughter. I truly love Arie and almost every morning started with my dogs going wild and waking us up as Arie came over to see what was going on for the day. On Sundays my husband almost always took all three girls to the movies, or out hiking followed by some shopping. My girls are homeschooled and so they don't have as many friends as some kids but they have some really, really close friends.
So.....the time had come that Arie headed off to the Navy. Wow, that was so hard to see her go. I feel like one of my own has left, it was so hard to watch her walk off for the last time, I am sure she will be a lot different person by the time we see her again. Arie is a bit young for her age, so terribly sweet and just the nicest person anyone could know, not a bad or mean bone in that girls body.
Of course going into the service at this time in history, I am worried about her safety and it sure made me think of all the young men and women that have chosen to enlist and protect our country, and all that they must put aside for the moment to protect our interests in the world. It is so strange because with how long this war has raged .....I do not think about it, or hear much about it now days, and sadly because until now I have not had people close to me in the armed services I have not thought a lot about the people that are making that sacrifice-I have a fleeting though about it but not as much as I should be aware.
I hope anyone who reads this will stop for a second and think of all the brave men and women-maybe include them in their prayers, and remember how many young people are serving, people that hardly seem old enough to drive (guess I am showing my age -) ). The house feels so empty knowing she is not going to be coming over, and I really miss her, I miss what she meant to my daughters, I will definiely pray for her safety and pray this will be a terrific stepping stone and positive experience in her life!
My older daughter Abby, then Arie, and my youngest daughter Emma-this was taken right before Arie had her hair cut short in preparation for leaving for the navy, she donated her locks to Locks for Love. Arie has always loved her hair ;-).
Post hair cut:
NOW FOR THE COMINGS!
The kittens are sooooo cute,... and two kitties together are REALLY cute. It is so sweet to watch, they are a blast to watch them play and they LOVE each other so much, but they are still more then willing to interact with us. Both kitties are staying healthy so far..knock on wood...but they are still in isolation in my bathroom.
ASH
ASH
SISTER POWER
WORKING TOGETHER
PIXEL being held
THEY LOVE EACH OTHER ;-)
Well, I am no fan of change lately, LOL, but life keeps changing no matter what I say. When our neighbors moved in MANY years ago we met Arie. Arie is the neighbors' daughter and a few years older then my girls, but she has almost seemed like my daughter. I truly love Arie and almost every morning started with my dogs going wild and waking us up as Arie came over to see what was going on for the day. On Sundays my husband almost always took all three girls to the movies, or out hiking followed by some shopping. My girls are homeschooled and so they don't have as many friends as some kids but they have some really, really close friends.
So.....the time had come that Arie headed off to the Navy. Wow, that was so hard to see her go. I feel like one of my own has left, it was so hard to watch her walk off for the last time, I am sure she will be a lot different person by the time we see her again. Arie is a bit young for her age, so terribly sweet and just the nicest person anyone could know, not a bad or mean bone in that girls body.
Of course going into the service at this time in history, I am worried about her safety and it sure made me think of all the young men and women that have chosen to enlist and protect our country, and all that they must put aside for the moment to protect our interests in the world. It is so strange because with how long this war has raged .....I do not think about it, or hear much about it now days, and sadly because until now I have not had people close to me in the armed services I have not thought a lot about the people that are making that sacrifice-I have a fleeting though about it but not as much as I should be aware.
I hope anyone who reads this will stop for a second and think of all the brave men and women-maybe include them in their prayers, and remember how many young people are serving, people that hardly seem old enough to drive (guess I am showing my age -) ). The house feels so empty knowing she is not going to be coming over, and I really miss her, I miss what she meant to my daughters, I will definiely pray for her safety and pray this will be a terrific stepping stone and positive experience in her life!
My older daughter Abby, then Arie, and my youngest daughter Emma-this was taken right before Arie had her hair cut short in preparation for leaving for the navy, she donated her locks to Locks for Love. Arie has always loved her hair ;-).
Post hair cut:
NOW FOR THE COMINGS!
The kittens are sooooo cute,... and two kitties together are REALLY cute. It is so sweet to watch, they are a blast to watch them play and they LOVE each other so much, but they are still more then willing to interact with us. Both kitties are staying healthy so far..knock on wood...but they are still in isolation in my bathroom.
ASH
ASH
SISTER POWER
WORKING TOGETHER
PIXEL being held
THEY LOVE EACH OTHER ;-)
What did we pick up at Petsmart today????
One thing that has dominated our life the last few weeks is the kitten search. It is not kitten season, and my kids were just determined to get a cat. My older daughter Abby wanted a grown cat, a siamese, or a white cat or a calico with a lot of white. My younger daughter just wanted one that would like to be held and actually any cat we could get TODAY and was breathing pretty much fit her bill. I wanted a cat that was going to be a little outgoing and confident so that they could handle living with three border collies, two girls, two adults, two shelties and a cat that is almost seven and has been an only cat her whole life.
It has been hard, my daughter Abby picked a pretty, sweet calico cat that was a few years old at Petsmart. The cat was sick and got sent back to the shelter for treatment....;-) she came back to Petsmart all better. We were excited, she seemed sooo sweet, very pretty and it would have been nice to help out an adult kitty, and it might have been easier for Kimmie to handle a grown cat. We cleaned my bathroom and got the room all ready for this little girl, got a new litterbox all ready, st out pretty food and water dishes, and headed to Petsmart with our carrier. We brought Chloe because she is our most cat friendly dog-sort of as a last minute thought thinking it would be good to reassure us she would do ok with the dogs...after an adjutment time of course. Well, sadly the cat had a pretty bad reaction to Chloe who was just trying to hide because the cat was scaring her. My daughter was heart broken and still wanted to get this sweetie, but as an adult cat I just felt really unsure she would feel happy and safe...esp knowing the border collies could really mess with a cat that did not like dogs. We talked to a lot of people who said that we were better off getting a kitty younger then six months unless we really knew a cat was used to dogs and other cats.
Next we saw a cute little siamese mix kitten at the shelter that had been part of a seizure. Not sure what the deal was but the kitten was not going to be available for two weeks nad it was a really fluffy kitten. My only criteria for a cat was it be a short hair cat. Kimmie is long hair and no one really combs her on a regular basis but me and I just would really rather have a short hair cat. The girls were really upset.....
So the girls have been on the net and looking everywhere for cats...there are not a lot of kittens available here right now. I kept assuring them that unfortunately kitten season is just around the corner....and unfortunately there will be way too many kittens in need of homes. After the Calico incident I really felt a kitten would be the best bet unless we could find a cat we could test out with dogs or we knew they were comfortable with dogs.
Well, we stopped at an out of town Petsmart today, late in the afternoon -and guess what we saw. A rescue group with 2- 14 week old female siamese mix kittens. OOOH dear. We looked and the girls were determined we would get one. Getting a new kitty is a little stressful for me thinking of all the years ahead and hoping that if we got a kitty it would be one that would fit for everyone. The age was great because I knew these kitties had been with their littermates until today -so they got more then twelve weeks with their families (I have been reading on the net that is good for their social development and learning things like all about litter boxes, and for their confidence), but they were still really kittenish looking and young enough to hopefully easily adjust to all the other animals.
As we looked at the kittens, the rescue people really were pushing for us to get two kitties. Emma my youngest loved the lighter white kitty, and Abby loved the darker marked cat. I had read a lot about how it would be easier on an older cat if there were two kittens to sort of take the brunt of kittens energy, and that if you get litter mates they will generally always stay close. I watched the kitties curled up and grooming each other, they were a little stressed since it was the end of a very long day for them I am sure-but you could tell they were really comforting each other. The rescue people persisted telling me they would give a GREAT discount for a second cat adoption.
Ahhhhhhhh.....I gave up and two kitties were coming home with us. Boy I was sweating bullets and I kept imagining all the animals in our house and I was feeling the weight on my shoulders of making such a HUGE decision. I had to go to Jack in the Box and get a diet Dr. Pepper and a shot of greasy comfort food (a mini funnel cake) on the way home to try to calm my nerves! There were calls to my mom and my friend to help me calm down and not panic about what I had done, hahahahaha, (it was a scary decision, because we have so many animals, and I dont think I have ever had more then one cat at a time). One thing that sort off worried me was the kitties had not purred and were a little reserved, but I was really hoping that it was because they had a long day and were stressed. I had already deceided though that the cat selection was for the girls and they should get what they wanted, and these were the kitties they wanted.
Both girls picked names, although who knows there might be changes as the kitties settle in and we see their personalities. Both girls had just the right collars in mind, LOL, we had a crate in the car.....things just flowed after signing a million papers, going through the applications, etc.
SOOOOOOO Without further ADO....here are the girls (I had wanted a boy kittie and got two girls...hummm HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?....I am just a girl magnet-all our animals are girls except poor Skyler):
PIXEL-Pixie for short-so far she seems a little quieter, and a little more confident and stable, a little more playful-but that could be because she was a little more relaxed. She is almost a white girl with little patches of really light tan, light blue eyes, and gets the pink cupcake collar. That is Emmas kittie.
SISTER TWO-ASHE-So far she seems like the first cat to purr but also the first kittie to hiss at the dogs, a little more high strung. In person she is a very striking girl way prettier in person then I was able to catch on film...with light blue eyes and she gets a dark blue collar. Her fur is a little darker tannish color.
Ashe and Pixel are set up in my bathroom for the first few days where we can make sure they are healthy and give all the doggies and kitties a chance to sort of get used to each others smells and to seeing each other. Lizzie and Cricket have been glued to the bathroom door and won't move....they are pretty happy we got new kitties, it will make herding easier ;-(, and Kimmie the cat and Ashe have already hissed at each other, but after an hour or two where everyone was able to settle down the kitties seemed to relax and were just sort of looking at Cricket and Lizzie when I opened the door to go in....and I was able to relax and not feel so panicked with worry about whether I had made a really bad decision when both kitties started purring when I walked in and jumped into my lap.....that sort of made it easier to RELAX and just trust that it was all meant to be.
It has been hard, my daughter Abby picked a pretty, sweet calico cat that was a few years old at Petsmart. The cat was sick and got sent back to the shelter for treatment....;-) she came back to Petsmart all better. We were excited, she seemed sooo sweet, very pretty and it would have been nice to help out an adult kitty, and it might have been easier for Kimmie to handle a grown cat. We cleaned my bathroom and got the room all ready for this little girl, got a new litterbox all ready, st out pretty food and water dishes, and headed to Petsmart with our carrier. We brought Chloe because she is our most cat friendly dog-sort of as a last minute thought thinking it would be good to reassure us she would do ok with the dogs...after an adjutment time of course. Well, sadly the cat had a pretty bad reaction to Chloe who was just trying to hide because the cat was scaring her. My daughter was heart broken and still wanted to get this sweetie, but as an adult cat I just felt really unsure she would feel happy and safe...esp knowing the border collies could really mess with a cat that did not like dogs. We talked to a lot of people who said that we were better off getting a kitty younger then six months unless we really knew a cat was used to dogs and other cats.
Next we saw a cute little siamese mix kitten at the shelter that had been part of a seizure. Not sure what the deal was but the kitten was not going to be available for two weeks nad it was a really fluffy kitten. My only criteria for a cat was it be a short hair cat. Kimmie is long hair and no one really combs her on a regular basis but me and I just would really rather have a short hair cat. The girls were really upset.....
So the girls have been on the net and looking everywhere for cats...there are not a lot of kittens available here right now. I kept assuring them that unfortunately kitten season is just around the corner....and unfortunately there will be way too many kittens in need of homes. After the Calico incident I really felt a kitten would be the best bet unless we could find a cat we could test out with dogs or we knew they were comfortable with dogs.
Well, we stopped at an out of town Petsmart today, late in the afternoon -and guess what we saw. A rescue group with 2- 14 week old female siamese mix kittens. OOOH dear. We looked and the girls were determined we would get one. Getting a new kitty is a little stressful for me thinking of all the years ahead and hoping that if we got a kitty it would be one that would fit for everyone. The age was great because I knew these kitties had been with their littermates until today -so they got more then twelve weeks with their families (I have been reading on the net that is good for their social development and learning things like all about litter boxes, and for their confidence), but they were still really kittenish looking and young enough to hopefully easily adjust to all the other animals.
As we looked at the kittens, the rescue people really were pushing for us to get two kitties. Emma my youngest loved the lighter white kitty, and Abby loved the darker marked cat. I had read a lot about how it would be easier on an older cat if there were two kittens to sort of take the brunt of kittens energy, and that if you get litter mates they will generally always stay close. I watched the kitties curled up and grooming each other, they were a little stressed since it was the end of a very long day for them I am sure-but you could tell they were really comforting each other. The rescue people persisted telling me they would give a GREAT discount for a second cat adoption.
Ahhhhhhhh.....I gave up and two kitties were coming home with us. Boy I was sweating bullets and I kept imagining all the animals in our house and I was feeling the weight on my shoulders of making such a HUGE decision. I had to go to Jack in the Box and get a diet Dr. Pepper and a shot of greasy comfort food (a mini funnel cake) on the way home to try to calm my nerves! There were calls to my mom and my friend to help me calm down and not panic about what I had done, hahahahaha, (it was a scary decision, because we have so many animals, and I dont think I have ever had more then one cat at a time). One thing that sort off worried me was the kitties had not purred and were a little reserved, but I was really hoping that it was because they had a long day and were stressed. I had already deceided though that the cat selection was for the girls and they should get what they wanted, and these were the kitties they wanted.
Both girls picked names, although who knows there might be changes as the kitties settle in and we see their personalities. Both girls had just the right collars in mind, LOL, we had a crate in the car.....things just flowed after signing a million papers, going through the applications, etc.
SOOOOOOO Without further ADO....here are the girls (I had wanted a boy kittie and got two girls...hummm HOW DID THAT HAPPEN?....I am just a girl magnet-all our animals are girls except poor Skyler):
PIXEL-Pixie for short-so far she seems a little quieter, and a little more confident and stable, a little more playful-but that could be because she was a little more relaxed. She is almost a white girl with little patches of really light tan, light blue eyes, and gets the pink cupcake collar. That is Emmas kittie.
SISTER TWO-ASHE-So far she seems like the first cat to purr but also the first kittie to hiss at the dogs, a little more high strung. In person she is a very striking girl way prettier in person then I was able to catch on film...with light blue eyes and she gets a dark blue collar. Her fur is a little darker tannish color.
Ashe and Pixel are set up in my bathroom for the first few days where we can make sure they are healthy and give all the doggies and kitties a chance to sort of get used to each others smells and to seeing each other. Lizzie and Cricket have been glued to the bathroom door and won't move....they are pretty happy we got new kitties, it will make herding easier ;-(, and Kimmie the cat and Ashe have already hissed at each other, but after an hour or two where everyone was able to settle down the kitties seemed to relax and were just sort of looking at Cricket and Lizzie when I opened the door to go in....and I was able to relax and not feel so panicked with worry about whether I had made a really bad decision when both kitties started purring when I walked in and jumped into my lap.....that sort of made it easier to RELAX and just trust that it was all meant to be.
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