An update

The last week has been quite crazy around here. April is a month for rain in this great state and this year we got slammed. Saturday night we got well over 6 inches just while I slept... and then it continue for the next 24 hours. The central part of this state is experiencing flooding like never before and I am thanking God that my family has remained unaffected by all of the craziness the weather has brought upon as of late.

Just a week ago we were slammed with tornadoes... the same line of storms that did so much devastation in AL did not leave this state unscathed before moving on. Thankfully the two that came through central AR went on either side of where I am and left my place alone.

Besides all the crazy and unpredictable weather that puppy that was supposed to go to live with my nephew.... well..... he isn't going anywhere.

Turns out the mostly Aussie mix is really a mostly Catahoula mix. If you, like me, are unfamiliar with a Catahoula let me educate you. A Catahoula is a stock dog... known around these parts as a Louisiana hog dog, they are primarily used to hunt... you guessed it.... hogs. Big, mean, wild hogs. They are known for not backing down in a fight and for being aggressive. They are also extremely dominate and tend to be a one-person dog. Not really a good first dog for a 4-yr old.

However.... he is really cute and really sweet and really smart soooo..... I decided to keep him.

And some days I ask myself why???

He is extremely energetic and tends to be a trouble maker :-/ but he has a strong desire to please and loves me to death. I can already see that one-person trait in him. As far as any aggression, only when food is involved and we work on that every day. I take him everywhere and socialize the mess out of him as I want to avoid any future problems concerning strangers. And I have even started to get up early and take him and my old lab for a walk :-o yes... i did just say get up early.... which for me means anything before 8 and I will say that I have been doing pretty well at that at least 4 days a week... Go me!!!!!

Here are a few pics of my new little guy.... Meet Bentley

You can be sure you will be seeing more of this cute little guy soon :-)

Weekend update

It's been a little while since I have done a random updating post and I figured that now would be a good time for one:-) It's spring here in Arkansas and since I now live on a 10 acre farm that means LOTS of work. My roomate/the farm owner does most of the work but I try to help where and when I can. This years spring task was to reseed 5 acres and split up the current pastures into smaller 1-horse paddocks. Not-so-easy of a task. All that to say there has been little time for riding.... which probably contributes to the downer attitude I have over the last few months. Maybe you have heard the old saying from Winston Churchill, "There is something about the outside of the horse that is good for the inside of a man." Let me tell..... man is that true. Thankfully most of the farm work is done and as long as the weather holds out riding can be the primary focus in the evenings after work. My soul is very thankful and is praying for good weather!!!

So other things going on besides farm work..... well..... not much, lol. Actually this week has been kinda quiet, although I forsee the next week to be extremely busy!!!

Well I'm a fantastic aunt.... really, I am:-) I just helped my sis find my nephew a puppy for his 4th birthday:-o Oh and he is a cutie!!! He is part aussie part who knows, a shelter find and sweet as they come. He is currently staying at the Flying Solo as we await the little guy's birthday.... the puppy is actually is a present from his grandparents but they are out of town so I stepped up, lol.

Reason #1 for a crazy week.... I now have a 5 month old puppy for a week to deal with. A puppy who is not housebroke and not crate trained:-/ I will say that the first day/night wasn't so bad. While he has no idea that he is supposed to pee outside, he does understand that peeing in the crate is a no-no, the bathroom floor is far more inviting!! Crate training isn't so bad. He only barked for a few minutes last nights and was quiet the rest of the night, and even went in quietly after our 2 am potty break (which after 10 min out in the windy cold air he still wouldn't go). Hopefully he will only get better!!

I will try and post some pics of the little guy... whose name is Bentley (it suited him  so we just left it) and show off all his cuteness!!! My dog strider doesn't really know what to think of this new puppy..... I think he will be glad to see him go, he gets a little jealous, lol.

Reason #2 for a crazy week..... I am, along with the bestie, taking 2 p girls to the Disney Princess on ice for their 5th and 11th birthday. Bestie and I are picking them up for a picnik then meeting their mom, other 2 sisters, and 3 friends for the show. It's going to be an awesome day but will kinda through the week off since I have to figure out how to get my Wed job done in the evenings after work and find time to ride as well, plus keep tabs on a puppy.

Hoepfully I will find some time to jump on here and post a few this week.... we will see!!! Hope your weekend has been fabulous and that your week will be quieter then mine will:-)

What a week

Well a quick side trip from Ann's book. This past week has been CRAZY!!! It actually sorta started a few weeks ago when my cat started showing some weird symptoms that I just wasn't sure if they were odd or just a phase she was going through, then she started having accidents and that is extremely odd for her so then I started to worry and scheduled a vet appointment. After doing some research I became very worried that she had some major disease that would require me to have to put her down. I can deal with many things but not accidents, especially not from a cat.

Well Sunday morning my dumb, er lovely dog darted out the door and into the sun. Something he does every other week or so and it really just makes me mad. He was running off almost every day so that caused him to have to be tied up instead of having his freedom to run around the farm. Dogs who don't stay on the farm on their own are confined to a rope.

So Sunday morning I'm tired, not yet awake and he takes advantage of the door opening, and away he goes. No big deal really, I'm already running late so whatever I'll deal with him later. After all the dog always comes back within 12 hours. Meanwhile I go about my Sunday as usual with a few moments spent worrying about tomorrows appointment for Pippin. She is after all my companion of 8 years and has moved everywhere with me and is very well behaved, she's my baby. The dog is NOT my baby, he is my dog, whom I love but he is not well behaved thus not as special as the cat (mind you this is being written shortly after he ran off so not many good thoughts about him right now, however I really do love him).

So I come home, late, no dog. Hmmmm.... ok whatever, I'm tired so I'm going to bed. So be it if he wants to sleep out in the cold and the rain. Monday morning and still.... no dog. At this point maybe I should of started to be worried. My roommate I think thought of him more then I did as she kept asking if he had come home, but not me, remember I'm worried about my baby. So cat is loaded in carrier, she's a nervous traveler so I'm not thrilled about having to do this but I need to know what if something is wrong so we are going.

We get to vet, spend an hour with the vet, and a huge vet bill later I walk out in a daze..... diabetes..... my cat has diabetes. Really??!!??? Oh and a bladder infection, with urinary problems that require a special diet.  Oh, and did I mention.... diabetes??? Yep, I am also leaving with a vial of insulin and a package of needles because my cat now needs a shot twice a day for the rest of her life.... and a special diet which is different then the urinary diet.

And then the roomie texts again about the dog.... ummmm, the dog?? What dog??? I can no longer afford a dog..... he better not come home!!!! That's how I felt about the dog at that moment.

Back to the diabetes, who has a cat that has diabetes???? What the heck??? I mean for real!!! So I decided that I was going to treat it for a month. See how it goes, see if I can find a way to pay for insulin, and see if Pip doesn't hate me after giving her a shot. Oh and did I mention she has to have shots. I mean with a real needle. Needles make me lightheaded, like I can't even watch the vet give my horses, my dog, my cat a shot.... and now I am going to be giving a shot twice a day!!!!

Meanwhile, someone else is texting me about the dog... grrrr, I really want at this moment to NOT own a dog.

Roommate comes home and comments, not on the cat's diabetes, but on how weird it is that Strider is still missing. I smile and say something polite.... really Strider.... I'm so not worried about you.

He apparently doesn't care that I'm not worried about him, after all he always has, and always will do whatever he wants to do, not what I want him to do. Because..... Monday night he appears..... and not in way that would at all improve upon my feelings towards him.

The cat and I, after a long stressful day, had gone to bed early, before midnight actually (never happens). But around midnight I am jolted awake by this horrendous noise..... after I register what is going on I realize exactly what that noise is..... my dog!!! Some siren is going off somewhere and it hurts his ears, so he howls. Not a pretty howl but a loud obnoxious howl that I would recognize anywhere. So like a good mom, I crawl out of bed and let him and pet him, and tell him I'm glad he is home, and even feed him dinner (ok, so maybe I was a little worried about him).

Thankfully although the week started out on a crazy note, it didn't continue like that. I have done an enormous amount of research on diabetes and have resolved to get over my fear of giving shots. The dog and I are trying to communicate better and hopefully he will lose his stubborn-I-don't-want-to-listen-to-you attitude someday before he dies (he is 7, and pretty stuck in ways but I remain hopeful!!!).