Paws it Forward.

Wow! Kathy Miller, Sage, Denali, and Elbee sent the "terror trio" some wonderful Paws it Forward goodies. Watson, Fig, and Duncan received treats, a "crazy" squirrel, squeaky toys, and my all-time favorite, the ever-popular Babble Ball. The dogs love the Babble Ball, especially at 5:30am. Note to self: Turn it off before bedtime.

While the dogs played with all their new toys, I marveled at the "treats" that were included for the humans. There was a wonderfully soft, snuggly blanket covered with dog paws (no, Teddy, you may not take it to college with you). Then there was "The Mug." "The Mug" is perhaps one of the neatest presents I have received in years. On its front is a picture of puppies Watson and brother Holmes sitting next to daddy Chase. It is truly a lifetime keepsake. Sadly, my pictures don't do it justice.

Thank you, Kathy, thank you!

So, to continue with Paws it Forward, the first two people to comment on this post with your email address, will get goodies (I can't promise custom mugs).

More Tahoe Pictures

Filling up in Napa. Watson is shocked at the price of gas!

Watching the in-car DVD. Watson loved "The South Park Movie." "You killed Kenny....."

Fig has seen the movie a few (hundred) times. He was bored.

My human boys ate this for lunch before we went home. It was a long, smelly drive back to Napa.

Fig makes the best pillow.

Good-bye, lake, see you in three weeks!

Life's A Beach....

Only in California can you spend the morning on the slopes, and the afternoon on the beach, all in one idyllic location: Lake Tahoe.

While the three older kids skied, Nelson and I went exploring. I tried to get some pictures of Fig and Watson "on the slopes," but with the record snowfall this year, they pretty much sank. So, we hit the beach instead.

While on King's Beach, I had one of the funniest conversations about Corgis that I have ever had. A man walked up to me and asked the inevitable, "What kind of dogs are those?" To which I replied, "Cardigan Welsh Corgis."

" My sister's got one of those, though hers is a Welsh one," says he.

"Oh, she must have a Pembroke Corgi," says I. He scratched his jaw for a moment and said, "Nope, hers is Welsh."

"Well, there are two types of Corgis, but they both originated in Wales."

I will never forget his reply, " Must be a different dog, I'm pretty sure hers came from Fresno."

I LOVE people!

Note: Duncan prefers warm weather, and warm beds. He stayed "back on the ranch," where, according to my mother, he was hand-fed raw chicken breasts, and watched lots of PBS TV.




After a long day on the slopes, Ian relaxes at The Bridge Tender in Tahoe City.


Only 5 more years Maddie, and you too can be sitting at the bar.

Kings's Beach. March, 2010. Can you spot the BADDOGS in the FAR distance?

The lake and surrounding mountains.

Ditto.

Another day in paradise.

Nelson takes Watson and Fig for a run.

Fabulous Fig.

What a handsome boy! (Notice how Watson always has his nose to the ground. Good dog!)

BFF's There was a very strict leash law ($250.00 fine) but nowhere was it written that the leash had to be attached to a human.

Gotcha!

I love this place.

A nap after a long day of fun.

Weekend Plans

I have four children. My eldest and my youngest were born in March. Therefore, March is a busy month for me. If you do the math, you'll realize that 18, and 13 years ago, June was a busy month for me as well. ;-)

Alas, I digress (what's new?). My son Nelson turned 13 on March 4th, my daughter Teddy will be 18 on March 28th. And! Watson will be six-months-old tomorrow. So to celebrate these milestones, we're going to Tahoe for a long weekend. Sleds, skis, snow, kids, and Corgis.

We have two cameras, new memory cards, and jackets with lots of zippered pockets. Check for photos tomorrow.

Guess Who's Coming to Dinner, and Spending the W'end?

Yup, Captain and Malibu! Trenton and Denise had a funeral to attend in Los Angeles, and asked me to look after Cappy and Mally (my son Nelson's name for Malibu). They're here until Sunday. I'm sorry that a tragedy in Trenton's family necessitated the slumber party, but we're having a blast.

Today was Nelson's 13th birthday, and we had a small party at the ranch to celebrate. I took all five dogs, Captain, Fig, Watson, Mailbu, and Duncan. Poor Duncan thinks he has sunk past Dante's 7th Circle. He is not amused by the chaos that surrounds him.

Here are some quick pictures.

Off we go to the ranch. Fig, Ian, Malibu, and Captain.

Malibu says, "This is my good side. Wait! I don't have a bad side." BTW, she is the most well-behaved, sweetest Corgi girl out there. We had a long talk about tracking. Ahemm, Denise. ;-)

"Well, come on, let's go. I heard there was going to be a party. Girls just want to have fun!"

Party time! "I love the ranch...dogs ARE people here. See my good manners, my elbows are not on the table, but I miss you mom and dad."

Ian and Captain.

Now we get into "BADDOG" territory....

" Hmm, is that cake I smell?"

"Being the good tracking dog that I am, I must investigate this delicious aroma."

"Damn, no cake, but there ARE chips, and an iPhone. Perhaps I can call and order cake?"

Thank you, Trenton and Denise for entrusting me with your wonderful dogs. We're back on the ranch tomorrow. Hope you're doing OK in L.A.

Fig and Watson

The evening began with a pre-dinner "ferocious" frap.... And ended with a cuddly after-dinner nap.(Ian was worried that Fig looked cold, so he wrapped him in my daughter's bathrobe.)

Track Laying Through Watson's Eyes

No comment necessary....

Tracking + Seminar=FUN!

Today, Watson, Ian and I went to an intro to tracking seminar. It was VERY informative, and between classroom-type lectures, we got to work our dogs on actual tracks. All the dogs were beginner trackers, so the tracks were quite straight forward, but last one included an obtuse turn.

Watson was the youngest dog there by several years, remember he's only 5-months-old, and he was spectacular! Our instructor, Kyla Smay kept saying what a "lovely dog" he was. I guess you don't need a "fancy" dog for tracking. :-)

Here are some pictures:
Getting ready for our 3rd track. Harness on, and leash ready to be snapped in place.

Waiting my turn to track is B-O-R-I-N-G.

Watson waiting while Ian and I sign in.

Whoa! There are new dogs here. I think I look a bit like dad in this picture.

Kyla fits me for my harness. Mom's going to order my own on Monday.

Ready to go!

The end of the day. Tracking is hard work.

Road Trip!

Please Note: Ian was taking pictures of Fig and Watson at a tubing park on Mt. Hood. My camera was in his pants pocket. My camera may eventually be found during the spring thaw on Mt. Hood (if there is one). It wasn't an expensive camera, but the pictures in it were priceless.

I downloaded the following pictures from the Internet. Use your imaginations to visualize two happy Cardis in each photo. :-(

A few months ago, my son, Ian, and four other classmates were chosen to represent their school (St. John's Lutheran) in a Knowledge Bowl competition. It's like Jeopardy! in a team format, and was held in Portland, Oregon.

I decided a drive to Portland was in order. It's been years since I've been north of Grant's Pass, OR, and I LOVE to drive. We packed up "the beast," our Ford Excursion, with two dogs, Fig and Watson. (Duncan stayed home to be grossly spoiled by my parents) Ian's "coach" and best friend, Landen Douglas came along for the journey.

We left on Tuesday, Feb. 9th, spent the night at my aunt and uncle's ranch near Medford,and arrived in Portland at noon on Wednesday.

Happily, the Knowledge Bowl competition was held from 3-7:30 pm on Thursday. There were 22 teams, and our team won! It was very exciting, and I was thrilled for the boys. It was a LONG 4.5 hours, and I still don't know how they answered some of the questions asked. I was a nervous wreck.

We then had two FULL days to investigate the area.....I fell in LOVE with Portland, and have already planned a trip back (including Washington, and B.C) for the summer. Hopefully, next time we'll be able to meet Emily and Megan.

Anyway, here are the photos I wished I'd taken:

Ian studying before the competition. This photo was snagged from his FB page.

I copied the following description of "Stonehenge" from its website:

The Maryhill Stonehenge War Memorial can be seen from a great vantage point on the Washington hillsides above the Columbia River Gorge. This full size replica of Stonehenge was built by a pacifist Quaker from 1912 - 1930 at the site of the original Maryhill community, which since burned to the ground. He was mistakenly informed that the original Stonehenge was a place for human sacrifices, so his goal with this concrete replica was to remind people that "humanity is still being sacrificed to the god of war" and a memorial to soldiers who died in World War I was also included. Since then, memorials have been added to the site for the wars of World War II, Korea, and Vietnam.

We had a great lunch at the Timberline Lodge. It is spectacular, and was used for some of the scenes from "The Shining. " Redrum!

The Lodge in summer.

I didn't see this actual barn, but I really liked this picture. Can you see why I want to move?

This is the Maryhill Art Museum. It was very close to the "Stonehenge" monument, and breathtakingly beautiful. Sadly, it was closed for the winter, but we'll be back in the summer. I'm told that it houses all sorts of treasures, including many personal items from Queen Marie of Romania.

This is the Hood River. It was gorgeous, and is infamous for great windsurfing. I now know why, the winds are tremendous. The dogs waded here.

Mt. Hood. They have year-round skiing here, and my camera.

Columbia River Gorge. The dogs waded in it from a state park on the Oregon side.

From The Dalles we tried to get to Mt. Hood. My GPS took us on a very interesting route which ended at Hwy 35; unplowed, and CLOSED UNTIL SPRING. Naturally, the boys wanted me to drive it. I told them that if we got stranded,they'd have to eat the dogs. We turned around. Very quickly.

This is the town we went through on the wild goose chase to Mt. Hood. It's tiny, but the countryside is unbelievably beautiful. I learned a few days ago that Wolfrun Cardis is near here.

The countryside around Dufur.

The Bridge of the Gods. We drove across it twice. Don't ask.

We HAD to stop in Boring!

This is Horsetail Falls, and the site of one the most memorable moments of the trip, and trust me, there were many memorable moments.

We had previously stopped at Multnomah Falls. It was raining, and yet we hiked a short way up a hill to cross a bridge that gave us a lovely view of the falls. When we, boys, and dogs, got back to the car, we were WET, and cold. The drive between the two falls is less than half a mile. I decided to leave the dogs in the car, and take a quick picture of the boys next to Horsetail Falls. Bad mistake. Fig saw us walk AWAY from "his" car, and jumped into the front seat. He then jumped onto the armrest where the electronic door locks are. Yup. There was an audible "click." Oh crap!

My purse, car keys, and phone were now tightly locked up. Thank God Landen had his phone. The poor dispatcher at AAA thought I was mad. My conversation was something like this, " Hello, I'm by a waterfall in Portland,OR, and my dog has locked me out of the car. That's right, my dog."

While I was on the phone, Landen and Ian had picked up some leaves, and were trying to convince Fig and Watson that leaves were food. Really good food. They stood by the driver's side window, and cajoled Watson to try to get the "food" outside the window. PRESTO! Watson jumped on the door lock and we were back in! Watson carried the name,"Corgi Hero" for the duration of the trip.

Multnomah falls. I "had" a great picture of all of us on this bridge.

We'll be baaaaack!