Early Spring - the MUD Season

This is the worst time of year to be a corgi. No, actually I'll re-phrase that. This is the worst time of year to be a corgi owner - particularly if you're a person who likes a clean house like I do. The snow melts, and on the flat land of the northern plains, it has nowhere to run off to, so it just pools and creates giant mud puddles that last for weeks. We've had a pretty cold winter, but not an excessive amount of snow - until this past Friday, when we got 9 inches of wet, slushy snow. We had been well on our way through the mud season, but now we get to start melting snow all over again ... and another extended period of mud. When your legs are only 4-5 inches long, that means that you carry mud into the house not only on your feet but on your tummy as well. It's a season that tests my patience every year, and this one is no exception. Hard as I try to take walks on paved roads and trails, the girls still seem to pick up a lot of ice and dirt on their bellies and bring it into the house.

Oh well. It's only a few weeks and I keep telling myself that you have to endure this season before we get to the good stuff .... the green lawns, flowers and rivers that stay within their banks. Spring will come and it will be worth the wait. It always is.

Happy Birthday Princess Isabella!

Nine years ago today, in Sarasota Flordia, there was a litter of puppies born that would change my life. I didn't meet my sweet Princess Isabella for over a year, and by that time she had moved north with Susan and spent most of her life in another home just a few blocks away. The twists and turns that brought us together are kind of interesting. Princess' parents are Burt and Babe, and she has a brother named Einstein. Susan bred Einstein with Panda (another corgi in our neighborhood) and they had a litter of puppies that included Dee Dee, Elvis and Cracker Jack. Susan and I both frequented a little store called Stampin' Etc. in Fargo, ND. Bonnie, the owner, had two little girls who had recently lost their dog in a traffic accident and Susan decided to give them one of her puppies (Cracker Jack). Elvis stayed with Susan, and Nicole, the little girl who owned Princess, decided that she wanted one of the puppies too (turned out to be Dee Dee!) But first, she needed to find a new home for Princess. I had been thinking about getting a dog for quite a while. One day I was shopping for stamps and admiring Bonnie's new puppy and she mentioned that there was a 1 year old corgi named Princess that needed a new home. I invited Princess (and her owner) over for a visit, and the rest, as they say, is history. It was a beautiful Fall day when I brought her home and I remember going to bed that night, thinking that it had been one of the best days of my life. Princess was - and still is - a very easy dog. She has never chewed, never had an accident and she barks only at the vacuum cleaner (haven't been able to break her of that habit in 8 years!) Anyway - it's all very interesting to me now, as I look back and I'm so thankful to all the people (Susan, Bonnie, Nicole) who helped bring Princess Isabella into my life.

Dee Dee - the Conniver

Dee Dee is the more 'high maintenance' of my dogs, which means that Princess often gets the short end of the stick. So I try to be intentional about giving her some individual time. This morning she was lying on the sofa, so I sat down on the floor beside her and started rubbing her tummy. She loved it .... but Dee Dee couldn't stand it. She came over and nudged me to pet her too,  and I pretty much ignored her. So then ..... she poked her nose at Princess to say, "Let's Play" and waited for Princess to jump off the sofa and chase her. The instant that Princess jumped off, Dee Dee skidded around behind me, jumped up on the sofa and assumed the 'tummy rub' position! She is a conniver!! I could tell lots of stories of plots she has hatched to get something she wants. She's so devious ... but I can't help but laugh at her antics. She is too smart for her own good sometimes!

 

 

 

 

Hmmm - doesn't seem to fit ....