In order to guiltlessly stuff ourselves on Thanksgiving Day, Jenny and I got up that morning and did the Turkey Trot 5K with 10,000 of our friends.  There was a 1 Mile Race, a 5K walk, and an 8K race.  We did the walk.  Here we are standing in the crowd waiting for the 5K to begin:

We did get a little bit wet!

Here we are at the START:

I should have taken a picture of some of the many people dressed up as turkeys.  I even saw a few pilgrims and I also saw one of the runners dressed up as spiderman.  If you don't believe that we did the 5K, here we are crossing mile #2.

To my surprise, we saw a lady walking a Great Pyrenees down the sidewalk!

A little wet and a lot hungry, we crossed the finish line:

Here's our time:

I was very impressed, inspired and frankly a little depressed by all of the very young children that actually ran the 8K.  Who knows, maybe next year we will run the 8K. 

After I got home I had to hurry and shower so that I could go celebrate Thanksgiving in Shelby with some of Scott's family.  We had a wonderful time.  Scott's family is so very nice.  And....I was able to stuff myself - guilt free!  Happy Thanksgiving to all! 

We actually went out and bought our Christmas tree today.  Time to go decorate! 

Dog Show

This is my Jenny.

Jenny and I have been friends ever since high school.  You know, a couple of decades years.  Anyway, last week at the sheep dog trials, Jenny suggested that we go to a dog show this weekend.  We had a blast!  Don't tell Scott but I met a boy named Tony with beautiful brown eyes.  It was love at first sight. 

 

Isn't he dreamy?  I think he felt the same way about me....

Tony looks just like our Sadie did...well, just like our Sadie did right after I picked her up from the groomer.  Check Tony out in the "ring". 

The other breed I was most excited to see was the Newfoundland breed.  I've hearted Newfies for a long time even though I haven't had one...yet.  The Newfies were "shown" at 8:00 am so we missed their group but I did get to see about 10 of them backstage.  Here's a picture of one of the Newfies.

I wish I had gotten a better picture but there you have it.  While we were in the Newfoundland section,  I overheard a very young boy tell his mother to "Look at the bears!"  I just love gentle giant dog breeds.
There were hundreds of dogs and many different show rings busy all at the same time.  Here is a picture of some Pointers being judged.

Also, in the arena area there were two different agility competitions going on.  Here is a picture of one of the agility courses:

We had a lot of fun watching both of the agility competitions...it was very interesting.  We just barely made it back in time to see the Herding group competition:

Check out the Old English SheepDog.

Other than finding my true love...the highlight of the dog show for me was to get to meet a Komondor in person.  Check him out....I bet you can't tell which end his head is on.

It's actually right behind the blue water bottle.  Check out our Komondor "Charlie" as he struts his stuff in the Best of Show competition:

Charlie didn't win Best In Show but he had a very successful day.  Here he is at quitting time:

By the way, his handler told me that he weighs 140 pounds.  I was actually surprised that it wasn't more.  The winner of this dog show was a standard Poodle named....?  I can't remember his name.  :-)  As soon as they announced the winner, Jenny said, "Of course".  That's when I was reminded that poodles seem to dominate dog shows.  Jenny has a poodle herself - along with several other dogs & cats.  She also has a beautiful Black & Tan Coonhound named Annie. Years ago we were at a dog event with Annie.  When Annie started baying....it got EVERYBODY'S attention.  I don't think city folk are used to that sound!  It was AWESOME!

Family Love

Today, we are traveling back in time to my wedding so that I can share a couple of pictures of some of the best Aunts & Uncles in the world.  "H" family - this is for you!  I love you! 

Very important note:  Not all of my "H" Aunts & Uncles were able to make it to the wedding.  You were greatly missed!  I love and miss all of you very much! 

Sheep Dog Trials #2

There was so much happening at the Sheep Dog Trials/Dog Fest yesterday that I couldn't put it all into one post.  I would have loved to been able to go to the 2nd day of competition today but Sunday is generally a very busy day for me.

Here were some of the activities that were held at the Sheep Dog Trials:

Dog Agility
Flyball (my favorite!)
Frisbee demonstrations (dog)
Pumpkin Chunkin
Hayrides
Corn maze
Tractor club
Historic demonstrations
And of course, inflatable bouncey houses for the kids!

Here's a picture of me in front of the dog agility course:

Don't I look great?  I took a picture of Jenny in that same spot but I forgot to ask her for permission to post it.  Here are a few pictures of dogs on the agility course:

We even got to see my most favorite dog sport of all....Flyball!  My favorite thing about watching flyball is seeing how excited the dogs are to participate.  The owners literally have to hold them back at the starting line until it is their turn to run.

This picture is too small (and too far away) for you to really see them but can you see the dogs running through the flyball course?  Here is a better picture:

No, I didn't take this picture (I borrowed it), but I wanted you to get a feel for the speed and concentration that these dogs have. 

For those of you who know me....you know that I like cows!  At Rural Hill Farm they celebrate Scots-Irish history and in keeping with that tradition...they have Scottish Highland Cows.  Isn't this calf just the cutest? 

I didn't get a good picture of the Bull but he was AWESOME!  Check out the hair on this cow...

It was a wonderful day at Rural Hill Farm and I look forward to going again next year.  I will leave you with a picture that I took of a man who brought his Great Pyrenees.  It reminded me of the time I brought Sadie to the Sheep Dog Trials.  She kept barking at the sheep.  I informed her that her breed was supposed to guard sheep not bark at them!  

Have a great day!

Sheep Dog Trials

Today I went to the 16th Annual Sheep Dog Trials and Dog Fest at Rural Hill Farms.  This was my 3rd visit and the first time I had been in quite a few years.  This year I was finally able to go with my friend Jenny.  We had a WONDERFUL time.  Border Collies are one of my very favorite dog breeds however, I am smart enough to know that I should never "own" one.  Border Collies were bred to work and they need constant stimulation.

The sheepdog trials take 2 days to complete with over 95 dogs competing this year.  Here's a picture of a cowboy taking the sheep back to the holding pen. (Actually, they said he is a professional bull rider!)  If you look to the right of the sheep you will see a Border Collie helping him out. 

Once all of the sheep have arrived in the holding pen, the cowboy releases four sheep.  Those 4 sheep unsuspectingly graze in a group at the top of the hill.  Meanwhile, way on the other side of the field, the shepherd releases his/her collie.  And they're off....

Look at him go...this dog is flying!  He/She will run wide around until he gets behind the sheep and the next thing they know...they're moving wherever he tells them.  The shepherd calls the dog by a series whistles and commands such as:

Come Bye = circle in a clockwise direction
Away to Me = circle counterclockwise
Stand = Stop
Lie Down = stop or lay down.   A good dog knows which by the tone of their handler's voice.
That'll Do = come back to the handler
Get Out = go wide
Those are the most common commands that you hear at the sheep dog trials. 

Here are some more pictures from today's competition:

The dog has to herd all 4 sheep through the gate.  (There are 3 gates)

It was such a beautiful day for the trials.  The temperature was in the mid-70's and it was actually rather hot!  Here our collie has been told to "lie down"...

Now the shepherd has to separate two sheep from the group

After the sheep are separated, the collie will herd all four of them into a small pen.

Great job!  That'll do boy, that'll do.

Tomorrow I will tell you about the rest of the festival.  The sheepdog trials were only part of the festivities going on at the farm.  In the meantime...here's a picture of some sheep that had completed their portion of this round.  :-)

Wordless Wednesday

It's A Doggy Dog World

Scott & I are always excited to visit with our friends Michael, Jill and their 3 dogs Steely Dan, Bailey & Saraya.  Two weeks ago, the whole gang was in town staying with Uncle Ken and he invited us over for some good food and good fun. Here are some pictures that Jill sent me from our visit.  Next time, I'll be sure that we get some pictures of her and Michael too. 

 

Aren't those dogs just the cutest?  Saraya (pictured with me) is a Great Pyrenees just like our Sadie was.  She is such a sweet dog.  Steely Dan and Bailey are Golden Retrievers....they don't come much better than a Retriever.  

Well, it's 1:30 am and I suppose I better go set my clock back an hour.  I guess if you don't like how you spent this hour you actually get a "do-over".   Scott is busy fighting with our smoke detectors.  Apparently, they have all decided to start chirping again this week.  On this week's episode of Modern Family, one of the characters was having the exact same problem.  He said that every time it chirped he felt like it was saying that he wasn't a man.  I'm pretty sure that is what our detectors are saying to Scott.