Is it really April?

...and have I really not blogged since FEBRUARY?!?! Jeez, I'm such a slacker! Thank you Pony Girl for reaching out and giving me a little cyber tap on the shoulder..."Hello....you out there??" ;)

Yep, I'm still around! So many times I've gone to do a blog post, but have then gotten wrapped up in other things...sometimes it's really hard to find the time, huh? But I've been missin' y'all so HI!!

One of the things that has had me SUPER busy lately is that I've started a flower farm...can't remember if I mentioned that before. I'm totally excited about it, but it has been taking a ton of my energy lately! Not just the manual labor (I'm sitting here with SORE muscles), but also a lot of computer time has been devoted to it. I started a blog for it back in October and recently I've been working on a regular website and facebook page for it. Busy, busy! But fun! It anyone out there is interested in flower farming info, feel free to hop on over to my flower farm blog! :)

So...here's a quick post to update y'all on the latest goings on...

My new favorite piece of decor in my house...a "twig" wall sconce from Partylite! It's supposed to be for candles of course, but what kind of flower farmer would I be if I didn't put flowers in it?! ;)

Spring is finally here! I just love when tulips start showing their colors!

Caspian's doing well, but gave me a bit of a scare last week when I discovered this horrible looking scrape on his back leg! I was absolutely baffled as to how he would have done it...I really try to keep his pasture/shelter area free from any possible hazards. But you know horses! I finally had a lightbulb moment and realized that he must have scraped it on the farrier's hoof stand when he got his pedicure. He was really full of it that day and was being a bit of a pill. How I didn't notice it right away is beyond me, but it's healing up well and I've been giving it lots of TLC. I can hardly stand to look at this picture. My poor baby. It's looking so much better now, thank goodness.

The Wacky Weimies are crazy as always and are really enjoying the nicer weather and longer days. We've gotten back in the routine of our daily walks and all of us are loving it. I live for those walks. Lately, I've even been incorporating some skipping into the routine...'cause it's really fun and helps get my heart rate up! I loathe jogging, but I could skip a mile any day of the week! I have to admit that I go back to walking if I hear a car coming though. I feel like Phoebe from Friends on the episode where she runs with her arms circling like wind turbines through Central Park. And I'm not sure that I want to be known in my 'hood as the girl who "skips" her dogs... ;)
Okey dokey, think that's it for now! But here's a little cyber flower arrangement for you guys...happy spring! I'll try to be back soon! :)

Wacky Weimy Wednesday: Horse Dogs

I've often said that my crazy dogs remind me of horses. Caleb especially. He loves to eat grass and runs around here floating on air and with extension that any dressage horse would be envious of. ;) He reminds me of a little gray warmblood.

Having said that, allow me now to present a little more evidence of my theory.

Exhibit A:

I think we have a bit of an identity crisis going on around here.

A Very Weimy Christmas! And other miscellaneous goings on...

Hi everybody! It's me! Kuntry Girl!! I'm still around! Like many of you I've been sooo crazy busy with all things holiday. :) What a great time of year this is. Stressful at times, sure...especially so for a lot of people this year in particular. Kuntry Boy and I work in the construction industry, so suffice it to say...not a lot going on here on the work front! But I'm confident that brighter days are ahead and I'm trying to keep in mind the "reason for the season" and really focus on all the things I'm so thankful for.

Things like this for instance:

And this too...

These two are always there to bring a huge smile to my face. Here they are waiting for me to split a mini candy cane between the two of them...it's the only way I got any kind of cooperation for those antler shots. ;)In addition to torturing my dogs, I've also been busy, busy with crafts galore!! I've been making swags...
orange and clove pomander balls (accompanied by spiced cider of course)...
fingerless gloves...
and I even trimmed my Charlie Brown tree last weekend!

All kinds of fun stuff! I'm thankful to have a warm, cozy house to hunker down and get crafty in, crazy dogs to curl up with, a nice shelter for my pony and wonderful friends and family to share this season with.

I wish you all a very Merry Christmas!!!!

For the love of your dog...

Okay...I don't do this often, but I'm going to clamber up onto my soap box for a minute. Those of you who don't like soapbox climbers...better not keep reading.

Tonight I had a scary thing happen on the way home...I came very close to hitting one of our neighbor's dogs. Who also happens to be a Weimaraner, so I have an extra soft spot in my heart for him. Not that I don't love ALL dogs. ;)

Anyway, it was about 4:50-5:00ish, definitely dusk. Now, we may live out in the sticks, but our road is a county road and does serve quite a few houses. And unfortunately, a lot of people go WAY too fast on it. Fortunately, though, I was tooling along pretty slowly...I especially always try to slow down a bit when I'm passing in front of people's houses. As I was passing this little guy's house all of a sudden I saw a blur of grey streak out in front of my car and jump around by my left front tire. He was close. It totally startled me...I jumped in my seat and my heart started pounding furiously. I always try to keep my eyes peeled in this area, but with this guy's coloring (he's the same color as Caleb) he was very hard to see at dusk! I'm still trying to figure out where he came from. I think he might have been on the other side of the road and decided to dart out in front of me. Holy cow. Scared the crap out of me. And pissed me off too. I collected myself and pulled to the side...thought I might just mention to his owner that we had a close call. I got out and approached their driveway...finally the ding-dong comes out and feebly starts calling for him. Meanwhile, another neighbor is drives by and the dog is still running around.

Still shaken, I politely said to him, "you might want to keep him in when it's dark like this. I almost hit him." I promise, I was polite. Didn't yell or anything. Well, the creep doesn't even respond. No acknowldegement whatsoever. Hoping for some kind of response I said "that was really scary". Still nothing. What a butt. Just turns around and heads back for the garage. I was still shaking for about a half hour after this. One, because of the close call, and two, because of his rudeness!

Now, I realize it's really none of my business what people do with their animals. But I do think that we all have a responsiblity to look out for animals' safety. And especially when there's an incident that directly affects me, it becomes my business. That was a very close call and if I would have hit that little guy, my life would have been turned upside down in an instant. I was shaken enough just from the near miss.

It's not hard to be responsible. When you're not, it's not only unfair to your animal, but it's unfair for others who may have to suffer from the reprocutions of your irresponsibility.

Having said that, I will confess...I am a bit of a crazy dog lady. I know it and I embrace it. Maybe I'm a little over the top...by someone's standards anyway. But if there are moving vehicles around my dogs are either on a leash or in their kennel. When it's potty time, they're on their leashes and I'm out there in the rain with them. Even if it's at 2am. It's what I signed up for. Our property is not fully fenced yet and what fencing we do have is defininitely not Weimy proof.

If my dogs are ever off leash on our property playing, I'm with them watching. If Cabela gets a wild hair up her butt to go taking off over to the neighbor's I'm chasing after her and apologizing to the neighbors for the intrusion. Not acting like it's no big deal. And trust me, if we were near the main road where that other little guy lives there is NO WAY in H-E-double hockey sticks that they'd be allowed to run free and cross the road. Accidents can happen anytime and it usually happens in a split second.

Sometimes people (especially those who don't have dogs) look at me like I'm nuts. But I don't care. Being a dog owner is not always an easy (or fun) job. But again, it's what we sign up for. We are responsible for ensuring their well-being. And personally, I'd rather be known as a crazy dog lady and keep these knuckleheads around for as long as possible than have to deal with the unthinkable alternative.

Okay, stepping down now. Sorry for the bitch-fest. But thanks for listening. ;) I feel a little better now.

Wacky Weimy Wednesday: Window Art

So, I think it's probably pretty safe to say that most people with dogs at home knew exactly what this post was referring to without even scrolling through these pics...

That's right. I'm talkin' about those unmistakable "brush marks" left by the noses of our canine co-habitators.

In my world run by Weimaraners, all efforts to keep windows clean are completely futile. Not that they would be spic and span without the Weimies. But they DEFINITELY aren't with these two around.

And don't even get me started on my car windows. It's not pretty. ;)

Wacky Weimy Wednesday: Soakin' it up!

Sooo...have y'all noticed? That crisp little chill in the air? The way the sun is sitting a little lower in the sky? The unmistakable golden haze as it's setting? Yep, Autumn is definitely knockin' on our door! I know that technically we still have a few more weeks of summer. And I'm certain there will be many more beautiful days to come. But it's only a matter of time before we have to bid summer adieu...and as for me and the weimies...we're making the most of it while we've still got it!

We've been spending lots and lots of time outside, going for our daily walks, picking berries, playing in the garden...just soakin' it up!

One of their favorite things to do outside is play in the tall grass. And this is one of my favorite things to let them do. I don't often let them run off-leash because we don't have all of our fencing up yet, but this is the one area where they will actually stay put (relatively speaking). I still keep a watch on them, but rather than run like crazy, they're usually content to chase things around and use their little sniffers.
One of my greatest joys is watching them "be dogs" with smiles on their faces. :)

Wacky Weimy Wednesday: Gone pickin'

Hi everyone! It's Caleb and Cabela! Our mom has been super duper busy lately! So much so that she even missed posting Wacky Weimy Wednesday last week! So, this week we decided to hijack her computer and say hi to everyone ourselves! She promises that she will be back very soon with lots of updates. She's been putting in our lawn, getting ready for a horse show this coming weekend, and spending lots of time with our dad who has been home for the last week or so. We've really been enjoying this time with him too!

Anyway, even though mom's been so busy, she still makes time to play with us and even takes us berry picking! This is one of our absolute most FAVORITE things. We're really good at it, 'cause we can use our sniffers to pick only the ripest berries. Mom usually gets up on a ladder to get the high ones, and leaves the low ones for us. She's gathering hers to make jam, but we just eat ours right away. Here we are! :P

Wacky Weimy Wednesday: HOT dogs!

Whew. It is H.O.T. Flamin' hot. Remember when I said I was lovin' this heat wave? Well, Mother Nature must have taken note 'cause she is ba-ringin' the heat right now. I passed a bank sign on my way home that read 109 degrees. Holy cow. I kinda don't really mind it though, especially since we so seldom get weather like this. Actually, I can't really remember any summers in the past that had gotten quite this hot. In the hundreds, yes. But I don't think this high in the hundreds. At work today, our parking lot was literally melting. Where I pull into my spot, my tires left tread marks in the asphalt. Wow. Hot.

My canine co-habitators are most likely not lovin' this heat wave. Instead of hanging out in a cool, air conditioned office, they are trying to keep cool in their dog run. I feel like we have a pretty good set up for them; it's indoor/outdoor, with shade on the outside, but I've definitely been concerned about them these last few days.

Yesterday I took a long lunch to come home and check on them and today I left a little early, because I was starting to freak out a little. Thankfully, it was a few degrees cooler at our house than most of the area (gotta love mountain air). Also, both times I have come home, the garage has been substantially cooler than the outside, thank goodness. We insulated the heck out of it, which really helps keep it cool(ish) in the summer and warm(ish) in the winter.

One thing that my wackies love when it's hot out is ice treats. We play a little game of "catch it" with them and they absoutely love crunching on the cubes after catching them. I also put a big bowl of ice cubes in their kennel for them each morning. I wish I could leave them in our house during the day, but something tells me I wouldn't have much house to come home to if I did that. Those of you who have been tuning in to WWW for awhile know exactly what I mean. ;)

Anyway, here are some pics of today's ice cube catch it game.

Can you see the cube flying through the air? She's all over it!

Got it!
Watching intently...

Got it!

For my fellow Northwesterners...stay cool...we're gonna make it!! :) And drink lots of water!! (Do I sound like your mom?) ;)

FOOTNOTE: Our breeder just did a post here where they discuss good ways to keep doggies cool in this heat. They have some really good suggestions, including avoiding ice cold water/lots of ice. Glad I read this! I think a couple of ice cubes here and there are probably ok, but I probably won't put a bowl of ice in their kennel anymore. Instead, sounds like it's better to just make sure they have access to lots and lots of fresh cool-ish water and good shelter. Sure is a tricky balance!

Wacky Weimy Wednesday: Yogurt Babies

My little Wacky Weimies sure do go crazy for yogurt! They each get a spoonful every night & then since I'm a big pushover, I also let them lick my bowl after I finish mine. Sorry to those of you who are shuddering right now at the idea of dog slobber on people dishes! I guess you could call Caleb and Cabela my "pre-rinse" cycle. ;) I figure these new age, fancy schmancy dishwashers of ours get hot enough to take care of the germs. Plus, since Caleb insists on tongue kissing me on a regular basis (he always gets me when I'm not paying attention!) and it hasn't killed me yet, I figure I'm good. :)

Anyway, our breeder starts giving yogurt to their dogs when they're just little pups. Just like for us, yogurt is really good for doggies...especially for their guts. Also, with floppy eared dogs, infection can be fairly common and the yogurt helps to keep their ears clear.

As you can see here, they really enjoy this treat...keep your eyes peeled starting around 22 seconds. This is where Caleb starts being a yogurt hog & Cabela starts getting a little ticked. I can't help but giggle when she does this. I should probably be admonishing her, but she cracks me up. Plus, there's never any malice behind it...she just needs to make it clear that she's not happy. ;)

P.S. Please excuse the clunking dryer noise in the background. That would be the sound of my "Kuntry Chic" overalls...I always forget to fasten the straps before throwing 'em in! So annoying!

I love it! *20 Kuntry Girl favorites*

Gosh, time sure is flying by this summer! I've been a little absent from blogging lately, because I've been super busy with all sorts of fun shenanigans. :) Like so many of you, I'm sure, I have this huge backlog of blog posts I've been meaning to write but haven't quite been able to find the time for. So, I figured why not just get them all out in one post?

So, I would like to share with you the top twenty things (in no particular order) that I'm lovin' right now, figuring that this should pretty much cover most of my backlogged blog post ideas. Then, the slate will be clean, my mind will be clear and I will be at peace again. For now. ;)

20. I'm lovin' this heat wave we're having in Washington!! I know, I know...it's a little much for us Washington folk who are used to being spoiled by a very temperate summer climate. However, as you're wiping the sweat from your brow walking to your mailbox, I challenge you to remember that our six month winter will be here before we know it and we will be longing for these hot summer days! I know I will be!

19. I'm lovin' the evening breezes that lightly blow past me as I'm outside taking care of my last few chores. They carry on them the scent of horse poo and sweet peas and they are a welcome friend at the end of a sweltering day.

18. I'm lovin' fresh strawberries from the garden and I'm looking forward to the ripening of our blueberries and blackberries.

17. I'm loving' the fact that I got to enjoy some quality summer time with Kuntry Boy at the beach last week! Even if it was just one day, this type of trip is usually not possible 'till Octoberish.

Not that the time of year makes much difference when you're talking Washington beaches! July or October, it's probably gonna be grey, maybe a little drizzly, and a lot chilly! :) But we did get some sun too! I'm lovin' the fact that I got to cruise around on the back of a moped with him and momentarily forget about the fact that there's still another month or so before he's home again!

I love that we got to have a campfire on the beach and that he seemed to really enjoy being able to kick back and relax on a fun summer day. This time of year, he usually only gets one day off about every thirty or forty days.

I loved taking these pictures of him and his friend (he and his friend?) that we went with...his friend's wife & I were cracking up...don't these pictures look so romantic?!

The mopeds parked side by side, the dudes gazing over the water contemplating life...so picturesque. He'd kick my butt if he knew I was posting these, so let's just keep this between us, shall we? ;)

16. I'm lovin' that my garden is starting to take off after a late, late planting this year. I love cutting fresh snapdragons and herbs to bring inside.

I'm looking forward to blooming sunflowers and zinnias. I love my little garden kitty that accompanies (and sometimes annoys) me as I'm watering and weeding. Why do cats always have to park themselves in the middle of what you're doing?!

15. I'm lovin' that my grass experiment is actually working and I'm starting to get a (somewhat) lush front lawn! I've been installing it one wheelbarrow at a time, mixing topsoil, coconut fiber, organic compost, dolomite lime, grass seed, and water then spreading it out, molding the edge to the contours of our flower gardens. I still have lots of work to do, but it's coming along!

14. I'm lovin' my two new "summer bags". I got the green one at the Gap on a super sale and it worked great as a beach bag! The bright one I got from a very good friend who unfortunately lives way too far away from me. She sent this to me on my birthday and I absolutely love it. It's called a Bagolita...I love the uniqueness of these bags!

13. I'm lovin' easy, light summer meals. I love snipping fresh dill from the garden and broiling up some salmon. I love cheese tortellinis with basil, garlic, EVOO, lemon juice, and cheese. Sometimes I top 'em with fresh shrimp or scallops. P.S. Yes, Patches, that is bag cheese. I'm so ashamed. I love my staple summer dinner of an "avocado omelet taco". Using eggs in a carton (Best of the Egg by Lucerne), I fry myself up an "egg tortilla", sprinkle on some salt and pepper, top with Italian cheese (again, from a bag) and then fold over a mix of cubed avocado and chopped onion and tomato. Super quick and good for me! Love it! I also love my summer dessert of plain yogurt topped with honey from my mom's beehives. So good!

12. I'm lovin' grooming my smooth summer horsey. I'm especially lovin' a new skin treatment I got for him called Calm Coat. This stuff smells SO good and has all sorts of healing benefits. I recently read about mixing it with Vaseline and Campo Phenique for a bug bite salve/repellent. Perfect to rub on Caspian's belly with a sponge, since he's a buger about fly spray. Although, I'd prefer not to use petroleum, so I'm trying to think of something else similar that I can mix it with. Any suggestions? Lanolin? Five O'Clock Somewhere? Any expert advice?

11. I'm lovin' the surcingle and long lines I got for training. Speaking of training, I'm really lovin' our trainer. She's so patient, knowledgeable, and easy to work with. She's super helpful and above everything, she's extremely generous. One session, she brought out a bunch of her saddles to help me determine what type of saddle will be the best fit for Caspian. Last session, she brought me five of her own books to read to reinforce what we've been learning.

10. I'm lovin' Dover's Summer Sale catalog, from which I just ordered two new pairs of breeches and a pair of super cool boot socks. I swear I did need these, 'cause I only had one pair of junky consignment breeches. I need to stop looking at the catalog now, though, because I probably don't need a pair in every color (including plaid). Nor do I need a pair of half-chaps, a new helmet, and multiple pairs of gloves. Yet. ;)

9. I'm lovin' the sweet smell of sun baked local hay permeating the still summer air. I love driving down our highway with my windows down and filling my lungs with it. If I could bottle that smell, I'd put it in one of those reed diffusers! :)

8. I'm lovin' the fact that local farmland that two years ago would have been snatched up by a developer is now being farmed again. There's a new farm that's started right down the road from me that's growing organic produce. I love passing by the workers each morning and I'm keeping my fingers crossed that their venture will be successful.

7. I'm lovin' living in a small town. I've really come alive living in the country again. It suits me perfectly. I love all the work that goes with it, even if it can be overwhelming at times. I love that I'm on a first name basis at the hardware store and the post office. I love that I have awesome neighbors that watch over me and our house and whom I can trust to take excellent care of my horse when I'm out of town.

6. I'm lovin' Pioneer Woman's new Tasty Kitchen website. She's really outdone herself now!

5. I'm lovin' my new pair of gardening clogs. They're SUPER dorky, but I don't get a funky sock line when I wear them. Plus, they match the tank top that I wear under my denim shorts overalls. Now is this Kuntry Chic or what?!

4. I'm lovin' the snakes that slither through the tall grass as I walk up our hill to water our trees. Seriously. I've made my peace with them. Only because they're not poisonous. ;)

3. I'm lovin' the fact that the Jenny Doe has been getting a lot of rest lately. I don't love that it's because my pastures are fried, but I'm not a huge fan of mowing. Well, I actually don't really mind it, it's pretty relaxing (unless I'm getting stuck traversing our hills) but it takes up SO MUCH TIME!

2. I'm lovin' waking up early on Sunday mornings so that I have a little time to be lazy with my crazies. They seriously know when it's the weekend and they love to lounge around with me before starting our day.

Dogs are so smart. It's crazy how they have their little internal clocks.

1. Last, but not least, I'm LOVIN' all my blogging buddies! You all provide me with great daily entertainment, not to mention lots of wonderful information and insights. I might not always get a chance to comment, especially if I'm doing a quick read, but I really appreciate everyone's stories and helpful tips!

Some of my most recent favorite informative posts have been:

**Kacy with her post on hoof boots. I've been contemplating what type to get Caspian and can use all the info. possible.

**One Red Horse with tips for helping to strengthen a horse's back. I've recently started some exercises with Caspian that our trainer showed me so this post was very timely! It was amazing to see her before & afters!

**Five O'Clock Somewhere with her healing salve post. Quite impressive!

Okey dokey, I think that's it! What are some of your favorite things right now? :)