Meet Willa

After Tanner passed away almost exactly 2 years ago, I didn't think I ever wanted another dog.  Tanner was the only dog that has ever been mine and so much weighed on my heart and mind when it came to him.  I was always worried about him in bad weather, and always felt I needed to spend extra time with him.  However, we are a very active and outdoor family and a good dog was certainly needed.  We've had Rudy for 7+ years now, but she's a little...lazy for our liking.

Kaden was reading Where the Red Fern Grows in school and decided he wanted a coon dog.  We discussed options and decided maybe a bloodhound would be a good dog.  I've always loved them and they are good hunting dogs.  The more I read about them, though, I realized that they sniff about and sometimes travel far when smelling trails.  I was afraid we would encounter issues with this having our farm nearby, so we looked at alternate options.

A weimaraner was our next choice.  They are also good hunting dogs, but I think they stay put a little better, and they are easily maintained.  I started searching for them but they kept selling out quickly, especially the females, and they were pricey.  I finally was able to make contact with a breeder family in Illinois who let me claim a female from their next litter, and I talked them down $50.  We put our down payment in and waited for her to be born, and then get old enough to be separated from her momma.

Keane and Kaden made the 4 hour drive to pick up Willa - the name we decided on.  I made a list of many interesting town, county, street, and creek names on the map between home and where Willa was born.  One of them was Willow Creek.  When I read it aloud, Keane thought I said Willa, and we both instantly liked it.  Kaden's vote was Tia, and Kylie couldn't come up with a girl puppy name because she had her mind set on Copper if it was a boy.

I wasn't quite prepared for a puppy!  She was a bit of a pain to begin with.  The very first day, she jumped off our couch and hurt her front paw, but after an hour or so it seemed to get better.  On the third day, I was off to work and the kids to school, so Keane put Willa in the laundry room when he went down to the farm (that is where we kept her the previous two nights).  He decided to come home and check on her a couple hours later, and he couldn't find her anywhere.

There isn't a way to escape from our laundry room so he was very perplexed.  He hollered her name and heard nothing.  Finally, after quite some time he heard a small whimper.  He looked behind the washer and dryer and deep freeze, but saw no dog.  Out of desperation, he pulled out the deep freeze and noticed a hole in the back that leads to the compressor.  He found that Willa had crawled around and behind the deep freeze, into this hole, and was wedged around the compressor.  Keane couldn't grab her because the compressor that she was laying against was too hot for him to touch.  He found a panel on the side that he unscrewed and was able to get Willa out!  He immediately took her outside to see if she was able to walk, and he sighed a huge sigh of relief.

If she had been in there much longer, she wouldn't have made it.  She ended up with a small burn on her knee and cheek, but for the most part that was it.  Keane even found one of Lenox's old collars and name tags in that hole in the deep freeze, so I guess Willa wasn't the first to explore that area!

We let Willa inside quite a bit in the beginning, especially when the big kids were home to cuddle with her, but she soon began to poop and pee too often, even right after letting her out, and she was bothering Farrah a large amount, so we slowly started letting her stay outside while we were home.  When we are not home, we leave her in a pin that Keane built from wooden crates, or we tie her onto a chain.  At night, we put her in a kennel in the garage where we know she's safe!

She is growing quite a bit.  She absolutely loves Rudy and plays with her constantly.  Willa went fishing with us the other day and jumped right into the water when Keane caught a fish!  She jumped around and explored and rolled into the water, loving every bit of that adventure.

She seems to be a little scared of loud noises, so the boys are going to work with her on hunting and gun sounds.  I think she's a perfect fit for our family!

Tanner

It has been a few weeks since August 2, the day I said goodbye to one of my very best friends, my childhood and adulthood dog, Tanner.  It took me all of these passing days to be able to heal long enough to write a honorary post for him.

He was 14.5 years old, and as every bit as lively in his latter years as his puppy days. The last several days of his life, however, he was slowing down. I could tell. He always, always, joined for every 4-wheeler ride or trip to the lake, and in his last week, I ended up giving him a ride back home on the 4-wheeler due to his slow pace and seemingly difficult trek. And then the last trip I was taking to the lake, he didn't want to join. He remained under the deck and although I did go back to get him and made him come along, he partially followed and ended up going his own path much shorter and closer to home. 

Yet it was still hard to face his passing. My jovial four-legged buddy died in his sleep on the porch he loved to relax on. 

And rather than remembering his final days, what resenates in my memory is his long and wonderful life we shared. 

He loved running and exploring. He would yipe from excitement when he spotted a rabbit to chase back into he brush. He helped Keane locate a deer by quickly following the blood trail, making him a hero in Keane's eyes that day.

Although he was a pain some days when he brought trash out into the front yard time and time again, ate green tomatoes from our garden, followed us up and down the gravel, or on the mower or the tractor, jumped in our lawn chairs as soon as we got up, wanted any and all food he could get a whiff of, and dug holes in the yard...he will always be my beloved pet. 

He used to be snippy when he was a pup and especially when he was on a chain in town, but he mellowed out in his older years. I think Farrah sensed my care for him and favored him a bit herself too. She would hollar "Tanna" each time we would go to her swing in the backyard. One time she pointed to Rudy and then to Tanner. I named the dogs as she pointed and then she sped up her finger from one to the other, so I sped up my words, "TannerRudyTannerRudy..." and she laughed so hard, making me laugh. It became our new thing. 

The day he died, Keane and the bigger kids made a cross, and Farrah and I picked wild flowers for him. I told Farrah we were going to tell him goodbye and when I laid the flowers on his grave, she waved goodbye. 

I am happy to know he lived a happy, fulfilled life. He used to love to go for rides when he would go to the groomers. He used to act embarrassed right after his hair cuts because he felt so naked, but he was so adorable! 

He swam in our lake often and loved it. He used to swim the entire width of our 10-acre lake, and he swam out to retrieve a muscrat for Keane once. 

He came with us to the woods when we cut wood and he would run and sniff the entire time. Once he was running ahead of us and there was a big creek up ahead and we knew he reached it when we saw his body disappear and his long ears fly up in the air, only to see him scamper up the other side and take off again before long. 

He reminded me of Eeyore from Winnie the Pooh the way he held his head down when he walked and the way his puppy eyes looked upward. I loved when we would just collapse when Keane would point his finger at him to signify he needed to stay.

I don't know if there's room in my heart to love another dog like I do Tanner, and although I know there likely is, he will forever be the light brown cocker spaniel puppy I begged my parents for and finally received. He grew up with me and I miss him dearly.  I miss how he would always greet me when I stepped outside, and follow me every step of the way to and from the vehicle, or wherever it was that I was heading.  He would sneak into the garage to lay at my feet, even when Keane had told him to get out.  He was my buddy, and his loyalty to me never faltered.

I was uncertain if pets go to Heaven but my mom told me to believe that God loves our pets who we love enough to take care of him after their life here on Earth, so I do believe that Tanner is in Heaven swimming, chasing rabbits, wagging his little bobbed tail, chewing out the squeaky part of dog toys, eating delicious foods, and waiting patiently to see me again someday!

Lenox-Scape

Too lazy to play too hard

Lenox-Scape

I hide so you can't find me

Lenox-Scape

 

'Tis the Season

Summer Fun & Family Weekend

Last Friday, I picked Keane up from work a little earlier than usual...

We were able to pick the kids up from school, and this weekend, each of them invited a friend over.  I had gotten everything we needed to have a hotdog and brat roast with s'mores for dessert.  So as soon as we got home, we had the kids change into their swimming gear, and we headed down to the lake...

The kids all played in the water, and then the boys played some football with Keane.  We sat around the campfire and had supper and s'mores.  When the sun started to set, we headed to the house so the kids could clean up for the evening.  They continued to play until they settled down to watch TV.  The girls built a tent in Kylie's room, and the boys (including Keane) hit the punching bag downstairs.

On Saturday, the girls and I went to town to get Casey's breakfast pizza, while the boys and Keane fished, catching enough for lunch.  My sister and nephew had traveled home Friday evening, but due to traffic and a few stops, they didn't make it home until after 8:00 p.m.  Instead of seeing them late in the evening, they came over on Saturday to visit and have lunch, and they brought Kollin with them.

I took McCoy on two four wheeler rides, which was his very first request.  Him and I even picked his mommy flowers down at the lake.

After lunch, we left to take the kids' friends home, and Kimberly and Kollin went back to Mom and Dad's to give McCoy a nap and prepare for the evening plans.

When evening rolled around, we made our way to my parents' for my birthday dinner.  My mom had made a delicious meatloaf dinner with greenbeans from my aunt's garden, sweet corn from ours, cucumbers, and cheesy potatoes.  She had also beautifully decorated cookies that we enjoyed for dessert (and appetizers).  We played pin-the-tail-on-the-donkey.  I'm pretty sure McCoy won, but he wouldn't keep the face mask on, so I'm not sure that it counts.  We also had to pop 26 balloons because my parents had hidden $1 bills inside each balloon!

After the party and supper, we sat around and visited until McCoy went to bed.  Then, Keane played the guitar for the family.  Everyone loved it!  Kylie loved it so much that she fell asleep, but the rest of us enjoyed it while singing along.

Kollin is now officially taller than both of his older sisters!!

On Sunday, Keane, Kaden, and Kylie went for a walk to the woods to check our deer camera and do some squirrel hunting.  I headed back over to my parents' to visit with my sister and nephew before they left to go back to their home.

 

McCoy can say the whole alphabet, after Kimberly says each letter, of course.  McCoy wanted to plug my cell phone into the charger while Kimberly was asking him to say the alphabet.  I told McCoy a few times that he could have my phone after he said the alphabet.  He quickly turned around, and with a bobbing of his head, he quickly said the remaining letters that Kimberly rattled off, until he was done, then he quickly turned back around and, like I had promised, he was able to charge my phone.  At his age, it is unreal how much he can completely understand.  He can also count:

Kimberly: one
McCoy: two
Kimberly: two, three
McCoy: five
Kimberly: four, five, six
McCoy: six
Kimberly: seven
McCoy: eight
Kimberly: eight, nine
McCoy: ten!

 

 

 

After we said our goodbyes, I headed back to country-living where we sited in guns and shot at balloons from 130 yards away...

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

And then we went dove hunting.  Well, Keane and Kaden were dove hunting, while Kylie and I were supposed to be helping watch for doves.  Keane got one dove that we ended up grilling and eating for supper, and it tasted delicious.  Kaden didn't shoot in time when the first dove flew over him, and the second time he did shoot but missed, but he must have been close to it because the dove turned sharply in the air!

 

 

 

I am continually watering my mums.  I did get a few days off after a heavy rain pour Sunday morning which was much needed.  However, the same rain pour was brought in by strong winds that unfortunately blew down our last 9 rows of sweet corn that was at just the right age to eat.  We will be putting the rest of that corn up this weekend...

 

 

~~~~~~~~~~~

  Link Up

Lenox-Scape

 

 

High jumper.

Lenny Outdoors

Lenox ventured outdoor this past weekend.  Keane and I were working on the deck-in-progress and he was sitting at the screen door meowing, begging, to come outside and play.  I liked how low-to-the-ground he stayed.  When he started looking more comfortable and venturing further away, I put him back indoors.  Later, I tried walking him to the garden on a leash, but he fell to the ground trying to bite at the leash and had no interested in walking along.

 

 

Lenox-Scape

I watch and I wait.

A Glorious Life

Whoever goes hunting for what is right and kind finds life itself -- glorious life!  - Proverbs 21:21

My prayer lately has been for God to open my eyes to what he has planned for me in my life.  I have so much inspiration inside when I think of my possibilities, and I know it is because God has something special brewing for me.  I am praying that my eyes are opened to what He has planned for me.

I have so many dreams.  I believe God gives me these dreams because they are a vision of what He wants me to work towards.  I don't want to share all of these dreams yet, but believe me when I say that my mental notebook (and physical ones, too) of ideas, plans, goals, wishes, and future plans is continually filling up!

We cannot just sit back and wait for God to show us the way.  We cannot hope that someday we will just know what the right thing is to do.  Instead, we must go along our way, living, and God will lead us there before we even realize it. 

Go hunting for what is right and kind.  You will find life, and it will be a glorious one.

Lenox-Scape

Like a dog.

Weekend in Pics

 Four wheeler rides

 

Spending time at the lake

 

 

Kaden and his dog

 

 

Kylie wanting a picture with Rudy since Kaden did

 

Not really sure why he looks unhappy because I'm pretty sure he was happy

 

A much better smile

 

A little behind on putting away clean laundry

 

Lenox hiding in Keane's shorts

 

Kylie found this hat at Casey's and wanted a picture wearing it. 
She also decided she wanted Pepsi because I regretfully told her a saying that included,
"Girls are sexy, made out of Pepsi."

  

Enjoying my momma's sweet burgers for Father's Day (made out of brownies and cupcakes!)

Dog Spa Day

My dog got a hair cut!  His fur gets so long and shaggy by summer, and it's full of thorns, dirt, and whatever else he gets into living in the country. 

I have always loved taking him to get his hair cut.  He has a "spa" day, I consider it.  He, however, probably does not consider it very spa-ish, but he gets his nails clipped, hair cut, and to respect his privacy, I won't mention what else they do for him there.

This time, for the first time in his 11 years, I was a little sad to see him all shaved.  Why?  Because he looks his age, which I don't like being as old as it is.  I know he feels wonderful though, and he is still the cutest cocker spaniel ever.