Christmas Morning!

Another Christmas has come and gone.
The day was quite uneventful with my husband working
all day from 7am to 11pm, leaving me and the dogs to entertain ourselves (which we do quite well)!
Here they are enjoying what Santa left for them!
Now to prepare for New Years Eve, although Hazel can't party too much as she has a Rally Obedience competition that weekend in Syracuse.
Check back to see how it goes!

Gosh darn, who wrapped this thing!

Wow!! A ball with pokey things!
This is cool!

Ahhhhhhhh, finally sweet success!
I think I can stay busy chewing on this
for at least........Hmmmmm.........five minutes!

Just like a kid,
Dutch has more fun ripping the package open
than playing with the actual prize that's inside!

Merry Christmas everyone!

Winter Solstice 2008 - Yuletide greetings

December 21, 2008

The dogs were having great fun playing in all the snow that has fallen this weekend (about 18 inches). It was a soft, light, fluffy snow that was "oh so fun" to tunnel in (if you're a dog), and thankfully easy to shovel/snow blow (if your my husband)! It was overcast and still snowy, so the picture taking was somewhat difficult though.
Besides being a great day for playing in the snow, today was also the Winter Solstice/Yule. This being the longest night of the year which marks the return of the Sun and the lengthening days. A time of introspection, and celebration of endurance and the powers of hope.

YIKES! An abominable snow dog!

Has anyone seen the frisbee?

Ugggghhhh.... she has it AGAIN!
Hazel loves playing "keep away" with Dutch

Hey, come back here with that!

To celebrate the passage of the longest night of the year
and the return of the Sun's power,
a bonfire is lit and enjoyed by all!

Where's the marshmallows?

While Dutch is staying cozy by the fire -
where is Hazel?????

Hunting for mice in the wood pile, of course!

Yuletide blessings to all, and to all a good night!

2008 ACC National - Fitchburg, MA

The American Chesapeake Club held their annual national show this year in Fitchburg, MA the week of October 9-12 .
The weather was absolutely beautiful every day, the food at the dinners was delicious, it was great seeing old friends and meeting new ones, and the dogs competing in the various classes were outstanding!
Sincere congratulations to all the winners in all the classes.

Hazel participated in the confirmation classes, rally obedience, regular obedience and the working certificate program. I didn't get any decent pictures of her in the confirmation classes and her behavior was nothing to write home about anyway. But then again I'm not much of a handler when it comes to the breed ring so I can't blame it all on her.
Posted below are some pictures of her in the performance events, along with her thoughts on each event! Enjoy!

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Hazel and I participated in the Novice B Rally Obedience
class,and although Hazel did great, I screwed up and missed a station causing us to NQ!
Yet Hazel, being the forgiving, happy go lucky soul that she is, couldn't have cared less!
She thought I did as great as she did!

Rally is fun 'cause Mom talks to me
and tells me how WONDERFUL I am!

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The National was Hazel's debut in the regular Obedience
(Novice B) Class. I was a bit jittery, but she seemed to be
having fun (perhaps a little too much fun at times).
After a few harrowing "attention deficit" moments, she
managed to hold it together and qualified with a score of
188 to earn her first leg!

Mom, why does this man keep following us around?

Don't I look calm and relaxed?
Actually I was about ready to jump out of my skin!
3 minutes is WAAAAY too long to lay still,
when there's so many other things to be doing!
(Not to mention that Mom kept STARING at me - creepy!)

Mom is really proud for some reason.
She says it's because I earned a "leg" towards my CD title, whatever that is.
I think it's actually because I'm so pretty in my festive Halloween party collar!

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The Working Dog (WD) tests were held on Sunday.
Again, the weather was absolutely beautiful and although I always get nervous about where the bird might land or what other unforeseen circumstances might arise, Hazel did wonderfully and earned her Chesapeake Club WD title.

This is WAY more fun than the obedience and confirmation stuff!

YaaHooooooooooooo!!!

I love this part!

Wish I had grabbed this thing by the body instead of just a wing!

I'm coming Mom!

Oh boy, water, I love water!

Got it!
But I think I swallowed some water

Hazel and her brother Hunter

One of the best parts of the national was that one of my brothers came to visit and cheer me on as I participated in the WD.
He lives in New Hampshire now and I miss him a little. I wanted to give him a kiss, but he wasn't into that mushy sister stuff!

Hazel's spring vacation - 2008

This past May 2008, I participated in an art show in Staunton, VA.
We decided to extend the journey down the Skyline Drive, Blue Ridge Parkway and into the Great Smoky Mountains in Tennessee for the opportunity to get some new photos.
Hazel had a great time vacationing, and the following pictures are some of her adventures!
Click on any picture to see it enlarged.

First stop on my adventure, Gettysburg PA

I think they went this way!

I don't see anything, do you?

Oh my goodness! I've found a camp!

Shhhhhh..........
I must hide so as not to be captured!

Gettysburg was fun!

Yeah! The mountains!
This is gonna be an adventure!

Mom says this area is called Big Meadows.
I wonder how long it would take me to run across it!

Look at me! I'm rock climbing in the mountains!
Well, kind of.

What a great name, but where's the ridge?

Mom, can we go for a walk!
Pretty please!

What a view!

Whew! All this adventuring is making me tired!

A new day and another adventure begins!

This is my new friend, park ranger "Steve"!

What pretty flowers.
Where are the Rocks?

Is it lunch time yet!

Do you see what I see!
A deer at Peaks of Otter in VA

I'm guessing this is why they're called the Blue Ridge Mountains!

Mabry Mills on the Blue Ridge Parkway.
I need to get a closer look at this working grist mill!

Hey, I think I see a duck!

Welcome to North Carolina!

What a pretty day. I think I just saw a butterfly!

Are you sure this is safe Mom?

OK, I will if you will Mom. Let's go!

WOW! That was actually quite fun!
(I'm glad Mom was with me though!)

Mmmmmm, don't forget to stop and smell the flowers!
(and eat a few when no ones looking!)

I think my ears just popped!

This is the last mile marker of the Blue Ridge Parkway!

Where's the smoke?

I can have one paw in Tennessee and one in North Carolina!
How Cool!

This was an awesome place to stay in Townsend, TN. Very cozy and rustic with a front door, a back door AND a creek to splash in!

I'm ready to hit the road again! Let's get going!

One of our last stops before heading back north to the art show in Staunton, VA was the Christy Mission in Del Rio, TN. It was very hot and I would have rather been swimming, but Mom and Dad wanted to see this place because there's a novel about it and the story used to be a TV series. I think it looked better on TV then it did in real life!
Where's the watering hole?

Hope you've enjoyed my adventures! I can't wait to have more!