White & White

The weather is warm (hot) and there doesn’t seem to be any wind so we decided to head up to White Sands National Monument. For those of you not familiar with White Sands it is out in the middle of the desert. You drive for miles and miles through the desert and suddenly come upon all this white sand – 250 square miles of white sand.



This was probably our most favorite stop of last year’s trip even though last year it was extremely windy and cold. Since it wasn’t windy when we got up we thought it would be a great place to go today as the sand would be very easy on Wazzu’s sore feet.

As it turns out, this area of New Mexico had record rainfalls this past summer. They got more rain this past summer than they normally get in five full years! Therefore, much of White Sands was flooded. The part we went to last year which was way out in the dunes is closed due to the flooding. So we had to stay closer to the front of the park.



It is Spring Break down here and there were hundreds of people and kids. They would rent these saucers from the park office and then slide down the dunes. We found it fascinating that there are literally miles of dunes yet all these people were playing on the dunes right next to the parking lot. So the kids would climb the dunes and slide down right into the parked cars. And of course they’d plow into other people as you can’t really steer those saucers to well. The dunes right next to the parking lot looked like they were covered with ants.

Needless to say, that didn’t look like our kind of fun. So we hiked out into the dunes away from all the people. We had miles of space all to ourselves.



Because of the rains there was still some minor flooding in the area we were allowed to be in. So if you were to look at our pictures from last year (where you could see only sand forever) and compare them to pictures this year you would see a huge difference as this year there is some vegetation and some water.



Due to the water in the low areas and the sky being cloudy there were a lot of mirages.



There were many times when we couldn’t tell if we were looking at sand or at water.



It is so weird – your mind goes back and forth from being sure it must be sand to thinking it may be water. There were times we had to walk right up and touch it before we were sure.





And, even more difficult, was when we got way out into the dunes we couldn’t see any levels. In other words, if we looked off into the distance we could clearly see the outlines of all the dunes and see which were tall, short, steep, gently sloped, etc. But if we were just looking where we were everything looked flat. So we would be walking along thinking we were on a flat area and suddenly we would fall right off the edge of a dune and be zooming down a steep cliff. The sand was very soft so we didn’t get hurt at all but it was such a weird sensation as we just couldn’t see any outlines at all.

In actuality in this picture there are MANY very high and low dunes - many different levels and shapes. And the closer we looked to us the less we could actually see.



We’re not sure if it was the water being around or what but in some of the areas it would sound as though we were walking (or in the dogs case, running) on big bass drums. At first we though maybe some of the dunes were hollow. But no one was falling through. I wish pictures had sounds so I could share that with you as it was unlike anything we’ve experienced before.

Okay, on to our fun. We had been at a trial the last two days and I don’t know about the others of you that do agility but we find our dogs have more energy on the Mondays after trials than any other day of the week. When you think about it, they only run 20-35 seconds per run and only get six runs a day. And where we were this weekend there was no place to really exercise the dogs between runs. So while the dogs may get a little mentally tired they certainly aren’t physically tired.

Normally when we drive, Sparkie rests until we get close to where we’re going then she sits up between the front seats and punches Mike. But today she started punching and whining from the minute we started the car. Finally Mike got stern with her and told her she had to go in back and lie down. She did but she cried the entire way there – which was a little over an hour. We knew this was a bad sign.

When we finally had hiked out far enough away from other people we let the girls off leash. I kid you not, Sparkie ran full out at top speed up and down the dunes and back and forth through the water for at least 20 minutes without ever slowing down.

Up she goes.



Look ma, no paws on the ground.



See ya later.



She would go many many dunes away from us in huge circles. All we would see is this little black dot zooming this way and that.

But no matter what, she would just keep going. Even when she stumbled in the water and did two complete summersaults she didn’t miss a step – she just kept on going. Here she is just getting ready to scoop up a mouthful of water.



Here is the extra water falling out of her mouth.



She just keeps going.....



.....and going.



She really acted like a dog that had been caged up for six months and this was their first taste of freedom. She didn’t stop after 20 minutes by any means but she did slow down to a fast run!



And probably just as surprising was that Wazzu was running around very fast as well. She was chasing Sparkie at times and running up and down the dunes and through the water having a great time.



This was a very steep dune but Wazzu chugged and chugged and made it.



For Mike and I this was a bit of a “hmmm” moment. It was really hot. We were just in t-shirts and we were sweating. And remember, Wazzu can’t do agility in the heat as she is just too hot. But she wasn’t having any trouble running now in the heat. Hmmmm….. I do know that the sand and mud did feel nice on her feet. However, she was really going. So I guess agility just isn’t as motivating as sand dunes! As you can see she had plenty of fun.



Meanwhile, Sparkie is still going!



We kept Slugger on leash most of the time.



Mike did let him off once when we were near one of the water holes. Problem was he just wanted to walk around in the middle of the water – he didn’t want to really follow us.



So as soon as the girls corralled him out of the water, Mike put him back on leash.
Finally at one other point when we weren’t near any water (or so we thought) Mike let Slugger loose so they could play a good game of smash puppy. For those of you that think Slugger would be the aggressor, I show you these pictures that reveal the truth. Poor Slugger has to run for his life as when the girls catch him he becomes a puppy wishbone. Wazzu will pull his back legs while Sparkie gets him around the neck.



Then he gets away, they catch him again but this time Sparkie takes the legs and Wazzu goes for the neck.



This repeats over and over until Slugger is tired of getting beat up. Then when he runs he’ll run straight into us (you have to think quickly when you have three dogs racing straight at you in full speed) wanting us to protect him. But he loves the game and is usually the one to start it when he gets off leash. However, after a while he says “I give!” and runs for the safety of “base.”

He has a little better chance when only one of the girls is after him so often times we’ll hold Wazzu and just let him play with Sparkie.



I took over 350 pictures at White Sands and I’d say Sparkie is running full speed in almost all of them. Mike says he truly can’t ever remember her running this fast for so long. Yup, you guessed it - still going.



And she always had a big smile on her face - even when going straight up a steep dune.



Much to her dismay it was time to leave. She was a filthy mess.



None of them wanted to leave but you could tell Sparkie was really disappointed. One last view of White Sands.



Little did they know they weren’t done for the day. Mike wanted to drive up into the mountains. So we drove up to an elevation of over 9,500 feet and took a hike along the ridge of a mountain.



We were so high up that there was still plenty of snow.



Now it was Wazzu’s turn to be the frisky dog.



She would zoom around in the snow and scoop up big mouthfuls of snow. She would dart this way and that. Now she was the one with the super big smile.



Slugger liked the snow too but found that it really hurt is injured pad.



The snow was hard, crusty, and icy so with each step he was in horrible pain. Poor Mike. The other day he had to carry Wazzu down the canyon and now today he was having to carry Slugger each time we came to the snow. Good thing these dogs have such a nice daddy.

When I say we were on the rim I truly mean it. This mountain was extremely steep and we were right on the very edge most of the time. At times there would be snow on the trail and it would be sloped so we’d have to try to walk on the very edge of the trail with only a few inches to step on. One misstep and it would have been a very long fall down a very steep mountain. Fortunately, we were all very sure footed in the necessary spots. It was a very pretty hike and off in the distance you could see White Sands where we had been earlier in the day.



There was no one up here at all. It was so peaceful, the air was so clean, and the girls were having a great time running and leaping about. More good ab work for Sparkie as she went up and down the very steep hills.

On the way home we went through this very cute little town. While we didn’t buy anything it was a bit out of the past so we took a couple pictures.





You’d think after doing all this Sparkie would be tired. But when we got home she was pestering Mike non-stop. So he took her for about an hour walk to old town Las Cruces. When they got back around 9:00pm she finally settled down. Like Mike said – he certainly didn’t get her tired by any means but at least she should feel exercised.

I think we’ve created a monster. Mike’s gotten her in such good shape that it is impossible to wear her out. And fortunately we seem to have gotten her health problems a little more under control. So she is actually much healthier at seven years old than she was at two or three years of age. In fact, you will be surprised to see that she is at her heaviest weight of her life.

Anyway, a good time was had by all today. We went from white sand to white snow and had great weather the whole day. This is one of those days you just want to bottle and save.

Debbie
3/19/07

Hotsy Totsy

Saturday morning we got up and Sparkie was jumping around all excited ready to do something. No sign of any problem with her leg! Wazzu wasn’t so peppy. It was a hot day – record setting for this time of year – just our luck. When we’re in cooler places I love unseasonably hot weather. But when we’re in hot places to begin with we don’t need record setting temps. Wazzu’s feet were still really sore. She walked very carefully on the dirt and when we got to the grass field with lots of dead grass which is prickly she didn’t want to walk on it at all. She tried to play but would just stop when she got to a more “stickery” area. So needless to say we were over time in all our runs….except one – Chances. You don’t have to be too speedy in Chances, which is a good thing since we had to stop and argue for a while. But finally she realized she had to go out as I wasn’t giving up. Phew, made it after a LONG Chances drought!

Somebody suggested to us that we soak Wazzu’s feet that night to help sooth them. So of course we did that. I don’t know if it really helped her any but she was a good girl for the soaking although it did make for a very sad and long face.

Little Slugger tried so hard. This was the first time we’ve ever entered him in three runs a day. He was hot, the place had lots of horse smells (more on that later), and as we wouldn’t find out until later he had tummy problems so he had trouble concentrating on agility. While he really did try hard in every run he had trouble staying focused and went to smell for horsy “stuff” during a couple runs. Then during one run, though we didn’t realize it at the time, he was looking for a place to go potty. Bottom line (no put intended), no Q’s but we were very impressed with his effort.

Sparkie was very focused on agility and totally forgot she had a sore leg yesterday. She ran great even though they had a few mix ups here and there. On every run that she Q’d she easily got 1st place. She ended up with two Regular Q’s and a Weavers Q.

We got done really early (about 2:00) so we decided to stop for ice cream on the way home. We got no arguments about that decision! Mmmm, it’s been a long time since we had ice cream. I had Key Lime Pie ice cream and it was super good! Just ask any of us as I shared it with Mike and all four dogs. Oh don’t worry, Mike had his own too. He got a double scoop of Vanilla Cherry. I hear it was good.

Sunday when we had just gotten to the trial, we noticed that Slugger was licking his foot. We checked on it and found that he had completely torn off half of the pad – the pad kind of up near his ankle – not on his foot. It was really sore (and looks horrible) and he kept hold his foot up. Lying down is really hard as that touches the ground (or pillow in this case) and hurts. But when he walks and runs he acts just fine.

Wouldn’t you know today (Sunday) is MUCH hotter than yesterday even. I found some stuff that is used for dogs pads when they are going to be doing really rough sports. So I put some of that on all her pads hoping it would help. But between the sore pads and the extreme heat, Wazzu wasn’t interested in running. After three obstacles we left the Jumpers course. I finally got her to at least trot in her Regular run and she made time only to find out they called her on the dogwalk. They were really far away and I was between them and the obstacle so I guess they couldn’t see. Oh well, you get some and you lose some. No biggy in the scheme of things. At least Wazzu ran a little. Next run we do a jump and then she gets on the dogwalk and stops. So I decide we are done and I leave. Probably 30 seconds later Wazzu finally makes it off the dog walk and over to me. It’s at that point I decided to pull her from all remaining runs except Chances as that is what we really need and you don’t really have to go too fast. The last run of the day in the heat of the day was Chances. I pulled out all the best goodies (bribes) I could find, watered Wazzu down so well she looked like a drowned rat, and went out for our turn. Surprisingly, Wazzu actually ran – okay trotted some, walked some, but ran in the important distance part and got her Chances Q!!!! So we only got two Q’s all weekend but they were both Chances. Works for me!! But her pads are definitely bothering her and even the judge mentioned that. But he said it’s good you gave her the opportunity to try as sometimes she seemed to forget about the sticky grass and run. We got done early so now she can rest in the RV and nap all afternoon and evening all the way until bedtime!

Slugger was the superstar today, sore paw and all. He went 100%!!! Can you believe it. He Q’d in Jumpers – he wasn’t speedy but he was deliberate and concentrated really hard the whole way around. How fun! Then for the very first time ever, we entered him in Regular since there is now no teeter. And believe it or not the little guy did the whole course – even the dogwalk and weaves – just perfectly. Again – not super speedy but very accurate. Then we tried Touch N Go. We were concerned about letting him do a third run as it was so hot and he’s not used to doing three runs but we finally decided at the last minute to let him try. He surprised us again by easily Q’ing! Wow, who is this little guy that never practices or takes lessons. How cool is that. He’s starting to figure out the game.

Sparkie was full of vinegar and didn’t see any problem with the heat. Unfortunately, they had a few miscommunications but Sparkie was running fast and furious. They had two absolutely beautiful Regular runs. Truly picture perfect perfection. They couldn’t have been any better – which showed as they easily got 1st place in both runs. So while their Q percentage wasn’t nearly what Mike had hoped for they did get four Regular Q’s this weekend which is what they had really been hoping for.

An interesting side note to the trial. They have a permanent agility field at this place. It’s totally fenced could almost fit four rings I’m guessing. Anyway, suffice it to say it is very large. Parking is in a very large dirt area beside the field. It’s normally a horse pasture except on trial weekends. Last year they had completely cleaned up the field and I think they may have even drug it as it was nice and smooth. But his year, the dirt was hard with lots of bumps and ditches – like there had been lots of hard pouring rain on it at some point. However, the biggest drawback was that they hadn’t cleaned the field at all. So there was straw and piles of horse “leftover” all over the field. Of course, Sparkie and Slugger thought this was just the perfect field. Last year we let the dogs loose often in the field and they would run and play. This year, even on leash all they wanted to do was walk around and have “snacks.” Disgusting!! Wazzu of course is much too sophisticated for that kind of activity.

When we got back to the RV we cleaned and wrapped Sluggers leg real well. Funny, now he thinks he can’t walk on that foot. He looks so funny – but of course we can’t laugh at him. Wazzu and Slugger wanted to nap but Sparkie still had lots of energy so they went out for a long walk. There is just no way to slow Sparkie down. She’s always ready to do something…..anything!

In the early evening we actually left the dogs alone to go out to dinner. There is a very popular Mexican restaurant in town that Mike had wanted to try last year while we were here but didn't didn't get the chance. Neither of us really like Mexican food but Mike thought that being down here we might get more authentic Mexcian food. The place was packed (good thing we had reservations). I didn't care for my dinner at all. Mike got some big platter with lots of different courses. The problem was he didn't know what any of them were so while he liked some and didn't like some others he doesn't know what it was he liked/disliked. They kept bringing him stuff and he had no idea what it was or how to eat it. So we had to keep asking questions - they must have thought we were kind of odd. It probably gave them all a good laugh.

Debbie
3/17-18/07

Full Circle

We've returned to the exact spot we were exactly one year ago. And we headed back to one of our favorite hikes - Soledad Canyon. So those of you that have been following our adventures for at least a year may recognize the area.

This morning we took a long three and a half hour hike. When we started the sun was just coming over the mountains. In person this looked really cool but it was extremely hard to get a picture as we were looking directly into the sun. But the dark cylindrical part of the mountain is actually a shadow.



The trail was rocky and the surrounding area was rocky and full of various stickers and cactus.



Slugger was on leash most of the time so he seemed fine.



Sparkie was being her normal self and running laps (zig zaggy laps) around us the whole time – you know the energizer bunny.

Wazzu and I were being slow pokes so while waiting for us to catch up, Mike and the two youngsters went off trail and climbed up the side of the mountain. You probably can't see them but they are up at the point of the rocks in the middle of the picture.



When we got to this small canyon area we let Slugger off leash as there was no where he could run away to. There is a nice waterfall here although there isn't much water this time of year. But it was enough that the dogs could like the rocks to get a drink. I was surprised they could figure that out but all thee of them got it right away.



Again it was rocky and since Slugger was happy and off leash he thought it would be fun to play his run from the girls game. They obliged of course. We tried to stop them as it really wasn’t safe to play smash puppy on these sharp rocks.

Once again, Mike and the youngsters decided to do a little off trail adventure and this time did some rock climbing.



Here is Slugger looking down and out at the scenery.



We got out of there and back to the normal hiking. When we were about 3/4 the way back Mike and I commented that Wazzu had really paced herself and hadn’t done any running around and just stayed on the trail walking and trotting near me the whole time. We were saying this was good as we didn’t want her too tired for the weekend. It truly wasn’t one minute after that conversation that Wazzu flushed out a bunny. Sparkie was off doing her thing and didn’t notice the bunny. Slugger was on leash and was going nuts! Wazzu chased the rabbit a long ways away when the rabbit turned around and was running back our way. The silly rabbit ran right toward us – including a screaming Slugger. The rabbit didn’t turn until it was literraly two feet in front of Mike, Slugger, and I. I’ll tell you I was looking for a place to hide as I was sure Wazzu and the rabbit were going to run right into me. I’m screaming for Sparkie to join the chase as I’d rather her get in a big run than Wazzu. But somehow she never saw Wazzu or the rabbit. Anyway, after the rabbit turned Wazzu chased it going full out speed probably about a half mile. Then she came running back. She was exhausted. So much for her pacing herself.



Then when we started up again, Wazzu held up her foot like there was a sticker. But before I could get to her she had held up each foot. Turned out she didn’t have stickers she had hurt two or three pads on each foot. But we still had quite a ways to go. So she just walked right beside me looking like an extremely old arthritic dog.

Meanwhile Sparkie is still zooming around when suddenly she holds up a paw. I go to get the sticker out (this happened at least 40 times) but this time I couldn’t see a sticker. Mike checked her too but we just couldn’t see anything. She continued on but with a slight limp. She was still running around flushing out birds but with a slight limp. When we were probably a quarter mile from the car Wazzu just couldn’t walk any more. So poor Mike had to pick her up and carry her to the car. That’s when he mentioned that this is why he wants a smaller dog. I guess he made his point!

By the time we got home at 12:30, Sparkie wouldn’t put any weight on her front left leg. It must have hurt all the time as she wouldn’t even get up at times she always gets up. And wouldn’t you know we have a trial the next morning. From the looks of it only Slugger will be running. How about that!! Even by the time we went to bed she still wouldn’t walk on that leg at all.

Well, we have a trial in the morning and as of now only one healthy dog. Let's hope we experience lots of healing overnight.

Debbie
3/16/07

Westward Ho

Today we spent the day driving west across the last 250 miles of Texas. We finally made it and arrived in Las Cruces late in the afternoon. Just like last year, we are staying at the upscale Hacienda RV Resort. Our last stay here we were here for a month. And the dogs definitely remember this place.

Last year, every afternoon Wazzu and I would walk up to the office. I would put Wazzu on a sit stay at the front door and I would go in to get one of their freshly baked chocolate chip cookies. Then I would share it with Wazzu on the way back to the RV. (I would eat all the chocolate chips of course!) Wazzu looked forward to our afternoon walk every day.

So after we got set up Wazzu let me know that she wanted to go out for a walk. She led me right over to the office. I must say we were both very disappointed to learn that they have chosen to forgo the afternoon cookies! I think I’ll have Mike make some cookies so I can still take Wazzu up there and pretend to get the cookie from the office.

It is really hot here. We tried to take the dogs on a very short hike but they thought it was way too hot. Oh well. At least they feel as though they had the opportunity to play even though they only lasted about 20 minutes.

Debbie
3/15/07

Big Change

This morning we woke up to a very soggy but at least not stormy day. Fortunately we leave here today! Originally we had thought we’d get an early start today but the dogs had been stuck in the RV almost the entire day yesterday and we have two long driving days ahead of us so we decided to take a nice walk around the property this morning.

Well that would have been a good idea had we had hip boots. The good thing about it being so wet and muddy was that there was no one else around. So the girls got to be off leash the entire time. And they both took advantage of it big time. We don’t know for sure what they thought they found (probably an Armadillo) but they seemed to have thought they had it “contained” to a half acre area. There was a large trail around that area and Sparkie must have circled the area at full speed at least 20 or 30 laps. Perfect – we needed her to get some of her energy out.

Later on Wazzu must have found a deer trail as she disappeared and didn’t return for quite some time. She must have run a long way as when she did come back she had a huge tongue. She never left my side the rest of the walk. Sparkie however got busy following her nose and lost track of where we were. A while later we saw her zooming back and forth way ahead of us. She was definitely looking for us. Since she couldn’t find us she went zooming back down the circular loop we were on at full out speed – but she went the opposite direction from us. It was a very large loop and even at full speed it took her three or four minutes to get back to us. Great! Another big run to help wear her out!

Even though Slugger was on leash the entire time his morning wasn’t without excitement. He came across a Crawdad. Turns out Crawdads don’t really like to be nose nudged by cute little doggies. Suddenly Slugger is jumping around with a Crawdad stuck to his nose. Slugger was more than happy to have Mike help him get free.



The river was anywhere from 10-40’ higher (depending on the spot) than it had been when we arrived. It had been a very calm river but now it was anything but calm. Here you can see the water rushing around a large tree.



This spot was only about 8-10’ wide the day we got here. As you can see it is MUCH winder now.



This next shot is the same spot I took a picture the first day we were here. The angle is a little different though as the first day I was standing to the left of the trees that you now see in the right side of the picture with water all the way around them.



After a very fun morning walk we got out of this very wet and stormy area. It rained on us all morning but by afternoon we hit the desert. What a change! It was now in the 90’s and as clear as could be. The road smoothed out and became almost completely straight. Not the most scenic drive for Mike but he is a happy little driver now that he has his Sirius Satellite Radio to keep him company – along with his little Navigator (aka Slugger), of course.

It is a long way across western Texas. We drove and drove and drove some more and are still out in the middle of nothing. There is only one RV campground in about a 400 mile stretch and everyone sure takes advantage of it. I’ve never seen such a thing. The people that own this campground must be rich! I’m sure land is very inexpensive out here – it’s just desert land with nothing around for pretty much ever!

Anyway, they have 80 sites. By about 8:00pm every spot was full. And from what we could tell, it doesn’t look like anyone stays more than one night. When we pulled in there was a line of about eight RV’s waiting to check in. It was a steady stream of RV’s all evening.

They had a trail, called Six Shooter Trail, that was listed as two and a half miles that goes around in the desert from the campground.



I don’t know that it was really that long but it was long enough that the dogs could stretch their legs a bit. Even though we were out in the desert we were next to the freeway so we didn’t want to chance letting the girls off leash in case they found a rabbit to chase.

As you can see, the trail just goes straight out into the desert.



And this is pretty much all you see in any direction with the exception of the freeway on one side.



Wazzu thinks it is way too hot here. She and my computer would both like to go live in Alaska. I just got my computer fixed three and a half months ago and it is already on the blink again. In cooler weather it will stay on about two to three hours. In hot weather I have about 10 minutes to try to read my email – certainly not enough time to do the blog or all the other tasks I have to do. So right now I can only be on my computer very very late at night or very early in the morning. Argg. Silly computers, they are nice when they work but so frustrating when they don’t.

Debbie
3/14/07

What A Night

In addition to a Tornado Watch last night there was also a Flash Flood Warning. We didn’t hear of any tornados touching down but we did experience the flash flood. From midnight until 2:00am we got almost six inches of rain! I have truly never imagined that much rain could fall from the sky in such a short amount of time. That much rain hitting an RV is LOUD! And if that wasn’t enough, there were very strong winds and definitely the loudest thunder we’ve ever heard. It truly was so loud that it literally shook the RV. None of us got much sleep last night. But fortunately we are located above the river so we didn’t have to worry about actually getting flooded.

When we (finally) got up it was a nice looking day. I think I told you that this place wasn’t much. We are really out in nothingness. No matter which way you look you just see empty fields.

Here is the entire RV parking area.



These are the only RV spots at this park. Needless to say, Mike really wasn’t impressed with my ability to find us a place to stay.

However, after we got up and around and he took the kids on their morning walk he changed his tune a bit. The property here is over a hundred acres and has a river running through it.



There is a very small dirt road that goes in and around the entire property.



There are lots of trees and maybe a hundred campsites. They are very spread out – each spot is probably at least a half acre.



They are just campsites – no water, electric, etc. Just for tents – which the dogs may be okay with but just not quite our style anymore. We did that a long time ago and it was great but not anymore.

Anyway, I guess it isn’t the season as there is no one down there at all. If there had been they would have been rained out for sure! It’s good for us as it is a great place for the girls to run around to their hearts content. Slugger could swim in the river if he wanted but for the very first time ever he is showing no interest in going in the water. Makes sense to me as the water just looks like mud. Mike says it’s just because of the all the rain.

After their morning hike, Mike took off to visit the Alamo. Remember The Alamo? I sure hope so as I've been trying for two days to get Mike to write a little something about it but he says everyone knows about the Alamo. So no write-up. Just some pictures.











While he was gone Wazzu and I took a nice little walk around the river. Okay, so Wazzu also took a walk in the river.



There was a very old bridge at the river that was not safe to even walk on and didn't even go all the way to other side. It really wasn't good for anything....except to take a picture of.



There was no one around so Wazzu was off leash the entire time. She might as well have been on leash as she never went more than five or ten feet away from me. She was really keeping an especially close eye on me. Other than hundreds of birds we heard everywhere, we were all alone. It was very pleasant and we really enjoyed the time to just be together all alone in the forest on a very nice day with no reason to rush. It was so peaceful.

Debbie
3/12/07

Alright Already!

The rain started again last night around 7:00pm. But this time it didn’t stop after a couple hours! It rained hard all night and finally let up about eight this morning. Mike took the dogs for a nice long hike around the property here as he wanted them good and tired as he had a special day planned for me.

We left the dogs all tucked safely in the RV and headed for downtown San Antonio. Unfortunately we couldn't find a parking spot. We drove around and around for a long time. Since we have the car top carrier on the car we don’t fit into any of the parking garages. While we were still looking for a spot it started pouring! Mike had planned on taking me to lunch at one of the many outdoor restaurants on the boardwalk and then doing a walking tour of the very busy downtown area.

But we still couldn’t find a spot and it starting raining harder and harder – and then the thunder and lightening started. So we gave up and went back home. Poor Mike was so disappointed as he thought he'd planned something really nice for me. After we got back, I really wanted to go for a walk and the rain doesn’t bother me. But the lightening was only about a half mile away from us so we decided it would be better to wait a while. It continued ALL day. At one point we thought we hadn’t heard the thunder for a couple minutes so we decided to try to take a short walk. It was short indeed. We only made it about 50’ when another flash of lightening occurred and the thunder clapped loudly only about two seconds later. So we high tailed it back to the RV.

By dinner time the storm was still going on so we broke all the rules and let the dogs eat their dinner inside! Fortunately tonight was canned salmon night so it wasn’t a messy meal.

This isn’t Pacific Northwest drizzle – it’s a continuous downpour. They said on the TV that we’re in a Severe Thunderstorm Warning and a Flash Flood Warning. I always thought “flash flood” meant a sudden flood. Shoot it’s been raining really hard for 40 of the last 48 hours – how is a flood going to take any of us by surprise!

Fortunately, none of our dogs are scared of thunder. But this is a little overboard and Slugger does get worried when it is so loud that it literally shakes the RV. So instead of lying on his pillow like usual, he is plastered right next to Mike on the couch. With each loud thunder clap his eyes get really big and he pushes even harder into Mike. The girls don’t even open their eyes. Hopefully, Mike and I will be able to sleep as well as the girls!

Debbie
3/13/07

Happy Anniversary - Sort Of

This weekend we were at a trial in San Marcos, TX. It was held indoors in at the county Civic Center. I don’t really know why it’s called a Civic Center. It is an old and extremely dirty horse barn. And from the looks of all the fresh piles around, both inside and outside the arena, there must have been a lot of horses here just a day or two ago. You’d think at a place like that they would be required to pick up the horse doo. After all, the dog people pick up after the dogs. Suffice it to say, that in addition to all that, the dirt was more like coarse sand and it was everywhere – including in the air. All you had to do was walk through there once and your clothes and hair would be covered with dirt. I never thought I’d say this but we found a place worse than Canby!

Friday evening when we arrived here, they had a fun run for a few hours. We entered both Slugger and Sparkie. We figured it would be a good chance for Sparkie to get some of her energy out and work on her contacts. And we were hoping it would help familiarize Slugger with the building so it wouldn’t be so overwhelming this weekend. It is a really noisy arena and the two rings butt right up next to each other so there is the potential for dogs to be running very close to each other at the same time. Both dogs had excellent practice sessions and it was well worth the $5.00 per dog for a minute and a half of course time.

Saturday was in the low 80’s although it seemed to stay much cooler in the arena. It was humid however. It really seems as though if there is much humidity at all it is much harder for Wazzu to breath. So she wasn’t real interested in expending much energy this weekend. But she wanted to play and tried to work through it. She did pretty well, getting both her Regulars and her Touch N Go. But as the day went on she wore down and we were just over time in both Jumpers and Weavers. Darn…so close! And, as has been our trend for quite some time now, we didn’t get our Chances. Super shucks.

Sparkie was running very nicely. As usual, everyone seemed to admire her. We had so many people come up to us saying they just loved her and loved watching her run. Both judges even went over to Mike and commented on what a great dog she is. They had a little miscommunication on a couple runs that cost them Q’s but they ended up 4/6 on the day and got 1st place in all four runs…..by a LOT. She thought that was great as at this trial if you get a Q AND 1st place then you got to choose a toy from a big bucket, a very nice dog bowl, or a large all natural dog bone from the winners table. As I’m sure all can guess, Sparkie choose the treat every time!

Winner's Table

Little Slugger was so cute today. We entered him in Chances and Weavers. Chances was first and it was very busy in the arena and he seemed a little overwhelmed with the atmosphere. He had trouble keeping his mind on his job. He did the first jump then wandered by the next few as he was busy surveying his surroundings. Finally Mike reached down, moved him over in front of a jump and gave him a little shove. That’s all it took to snap his brain into gear. He took off like a shot and did the rest of the course, including the distance challenge, just perfectly. It was so interesting that between the three dogs we went 0/3 in Chances and each one messed up in a different place. Back to Slugger! Then came Weavers. That little guy concentrated so hard in all his weaves that you could see the wheels turning. He was so determined and you could tell it took every bit of brain power he had to do that course. But he did it! He got his very first Weavers Q of his career. And to top it off, even with quite a bit of competition in his class, he got 1st place! He was so excited as that meant he got to go to the winners table. Not surprisingly, he chose the treat as well. We’re so proud of him – he never gets to practice or take lessons of course and he is really starting to enjoy agility.

We woke up a little late this morning as it was still dark! The time change made it so that we had to get started very early this morning. No time for breakfast for us or the dogs. And the day only got more hectic from there.

But first, the most important thing. Today is the eigth anniversary of Wazzu coming to live with us. Unfortunately, Wazzu doesn't feel well today. I guess this is a true anniversary as she was very ill the day we brought her home too.

I won’t give you the blow by blow but lets just say we had conflicts most of the day. In fact, right in the middle of one run I caught myself looking over into the other ring to see if Slugger was running. Then caught myself wondering who would be holding Sparkie if Slugger was running. Then I realized I’d better concentrate on poor Wazzu as we were in the middle of a course! We had so many conflicts and so much confusion that we almost missed two runs. Fortunately the judge was nice and held up the trial for us so we could run get our dogs and do the course. Unfortunately, in that rush rush kind of situation, the outcome isn’t good.

The highlight of Sunday was little Slugger. He was entered in Jumpers and Tunnelers. He got his very first Jumpers Q and came in 1st again thus earning another trip to the winners table! Then to top it all off he Q’d in his Elite Tunnelers run (2nd place) which earned him his Outstanding Elite Tunnelers Title! Who would have ever dreamed it!

So Slugger ended up 2/2 on the day, Sparkie went 3/6, and Wazzu went 5/6. The only run Wazzu missed was the one we really need. Oh well, not a big deal in the grand scheme of things.

Everyone seems more mentally tired than normal after the weekend and we’re all extremely dirty. Hopefully after some nice hot showers and a good meal (it’s very muggy and now rainy and wet) we’ll all feel a little better. They only had snacks for the workers so Mike only ate junk all day. They didn’t choose to accept my offer of help and didn’t put me on the schedule so I didn’t work all weekend. In hindsight that was probably good, as if I’d been allowed in the workers room I’d probably have eaten a bunch of junk as well. Instead I was good and just had an apple for lunch each day.

Little did we know the showers and the meals would have to wait a long time. It seems as though the Texans were busy not only driving around (roads were very crowded) but they were having a hard time driving as well. After a LONG time of sitting and creeping we finally made it up to the accident site. Thank God we were just stuck in the traffic jam and not involved. We don't know for sure exactly what caused the accident but what we do know for sure is that a car flew off a freeway overpass and landed upside down on the freeway. I don't see any way that the people in that car could have possibly survived. I've never seen a car that flat that wasn't already at the scrap lot. Those poor people. Fortunately, in time, we made it to our destination safely.

A few days ago when Mike was trying to find a place for us to stay here in San Antonio he was having no luck and was feeling frustrated. So I told him I would work on it for him. I too was having no luck. Turns out it is Spring Break so most places had no space. Then when I found a place with space they wouldn't take Slugger. I was just about to give up when I found a teeny tiny ad. They had space and would allow us.

After we arrived, Mike informed me that my services as an RV Park reservationist would no longer be needed. I now see why the ad was so small. The park only has seven spots - and I don't think anyone could fit in a couple of them. There are five of us here - so I guess it is full. For only four other RV's besides us there sure are a lot of kids here - guess that makes sense since it's Spring Break.

As soon as we got set up Wazzu immediately went back to bed. She has never gone to bed at 6:30pm. She is really hot and so looks like she doesn't feel well at all. Poor Wazzu. Not quite the anniversary we had hoped for. We'll just celebrate another day as we couldn't be happier that she joined our family.

Debbie
3/9-11/07