Family & Friends – Page 15 – The Dackel Princess

Friends & Puppies!

Saturday was the first day that Greta actually allowed me to easily pick up the pups. Oh, she lets me take them to weigh them in each day, but she doesn’t like to have me holding them for too long. That was, until today.

Interestingly enough, Anneliese never minded my touching the babies or holding them from day one. Perhaps it is because she has only known me as her Mama, and has known my hands since the very moment she was born. However with Greta, it is quite different.

My day started as usual. Greta got me up to go and commune with nature early on, I drank coffee and soon made breakfast for Hubby and myself. In the late morning I got a call. It was my dear Emily, who asked if I would be home for a few hours because a surprise was on it’s way for me.

An hour later, Emily was on my steps! She’d been gone all summer visiting her grandparents and today came to visit me and the pups. We immediately got out our cameras and started snapping pictures.

Emily and Claus.

Me with Curt, who was trying to nurse my hand!

Me with Calvin.

Me with Christel.

And the adorable Caspar.

I also got the two boys together who will be going to Tony and Cheryl. They are just so sweet! Claus and Caspar.

It is amazing to me how quickly the pups grow at this point. Both Curt and Calvin are 1 pound each. Christel is 15 ounces and the two boys, Claus and Caspar are 14 ounces and gaining fast!

The pups do two things quite well. They eat and they sleep. They are becoming a bit more mobile ,in that they will crawl towards their mother, drawn by the scent of her milk. They will climb over each other to reach a teat and two of them show signs of enjoying sleeping on their backs. Yes, Calvin and Claus both have been spotted sound asleep on their backs with their chubby bellies sticking out for all to see.

It’s a peaceful time too. I mean, we can sit and watch and enjoy their infancy now before they open their eyes and begin to awaken to the world around them.

Makenna and the little family!

When Blog Friends Get Together

Monday afternoon I met up with Robin and her son up town. Robin’s parents live in the same town that I do, and she has been visiting with them this summer. Today we got together for a little shopping and talking. Robin’s handsome and truly adorable son, Itai came with her and what a true gentleman he is!

We walked along the docks and enjoyed the sunshine and warmth of the afternoon. Itai was hungry so we sat while he had a hot-dog and chatted while he ate.

It’s always wonderful when you get to see your blog friends. We all know each other in a way that is a little different than people you meet in other ways. And there is always something to talk about.

Itai took this picture of Robin and me. I think he did a great job. He centered it and didn’t cut off our feet or anything! All I did was re-size it for the blog. Good job Itai!

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And lastly, Greta just gets bigger and bigger!

I just can’t believe how large she is. I hope she has those babies by the weekend or she just may pop!

Five, More or Less

On Friday, Greta went to see our Veterinarian. It was finally time for her to have her x-ray! I have been anxiously awaiting this!

I left the house a little early so I could stop and get the mail on the way over. Down town was a crazy mess, as some person had parked a car about 4 feet from the side of the curb which essentially means that they parked their car in the road. I had just managed to drive my station wagon by when the police arrived.

Greta accompanied me into the Post Office and was her usual sweet and bubbly self, especially when a woman stopped to ask what sort of dog she was. I wanted to tease Greta and say, “Oh, this is a pot bellied pig”, but I knew I was the only one who would get the joke, so I just laughed to myself and told the woman that Greta was a wire-haired dachshund.

Traffic was heavy, but I got to the Vet’s office in plenty of time and they weighed Greta. Twenty-five and a half pounds! Wow! That is nearly 6 pounds more than she weighed pre-pregnancy!

Suddenly the National Weather Service announcer came on the radio to declare a weather warning for our area, and at that exact moment I could hear thunder boom in the distance! Dr. N. came in and took Greta quickly for her x-ray. She was worried that a thunder storm was going to force them to shut their equipment down. Lucky for us we did not get any more of the thunder, just torrential rain!

Soon Dr. N. brought Greta back and she showed me the x-ray. She asked me how many puppies I saw.

“One, two, three, four, five, six!” I said with glee!

How Many Babies
You can click on this and look at the larger detailed picture if you would like.

Dr. N. was not as convinced about puppy #6. There are definitely 5 puppies (red arrows) in there, but the sixth one (which is where the purple arrow is) could be a combination of a shadow and the ribs of the pup next to it.

Excitement is now building as Greta’s due date nears. Sometime in about 8-9 days, Greta will become a Mommy again. I pray for healthy and happy and beautiful puppies and for Greta’s safe delivery. She sure has quite a load in her belly! No wonder she waddles and falls over!

Family, Friends,…… What A Weekend!

You will, perhaps notice the lateness that I am posting my Sunday entry on Dackel Princess. Why, you might ask, is this happening? Well, after two fabulous days of family and friend parties, I’m afraid that when I settled in for the night last night, I just felt like doing nothing but sleeping! So, no column was written. In fact I was nearly asleep in my bed, when suddenly I remembered this fact. I thought about going out and writing it then, but the dackels talked me out of it!

On Friday night, Mandy and M. came for a cookout. I made grilled chicken, and potato salad and fresh from our garden green beans. All I can say is YUMMY!

It was wonderful to see them, as it has been a while since we got together. I think it was Mother’s Day, and that was back in May. I am determined to get down to see Mandy for a lunch date once Greta has calved. (You should see her today! I swear she has baby cows in there, and not dackels!)

In any case, Mandy and M. took a bunch of pictures while here, and so you get to see us in all our summer happiness!

Me and my girl! I do not think it is possible to ever explain how much you love your kids. Mandy is just the light of my life and I adore her. Not just because I gave birth to this beauty, but because I love who she has become over the years. She works hard and she is such a nice and kind person.

This is M. and Mandy. Someday he will be less shy and allow me to publish his name. Let’s just say it’s Biblical.

I finally got a picture of M. Laughing! I love it!

Mandy was eating, when suddenly Fritz just helped himself. Totally unlike him!

And lastly, here is another shot of Mandy and me.

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Saturday, we were invited to a Lobster Fest. Now I am smart enough to RSVP quickly to such an event. It was so much fun, very laid back, the food was great (how can lobster not be?) and the company was a mix of people both warm and interesting.

The day was perfect except for the slightly high temperatures. But as you can see, we live near a lake, so once people got hot, they disappeared and went swimming.

We did have one scare. A beautiful Sheltie, who was a guest, took off toward the road and just barely got missed! Oh I wanted to die, and so did his owner, who was sitting next to me! Fortunately the car stopped and all was well!

Makenna with the Sheltie.

Soon the cooking started and lobster after lobster was fed into the pot!

Before you knew it, the salads, corn, prime rib and lobsters were laid out on the table!

Everyone immediately sat down and began to crack shells and go to town on their meal!

Our host was wearing a T-shirt that summed it all up! I am all for helping the farmers!

Our host, enjoying his birthday meal!

The lovely Makenna, whose parents hosted the event!

Soon the sun set and the bats came out, but even they could not handle the multitude of mosquito’s. It was getting late, so we said our good-byes and came back home, walking very carefully on the small path through the woods to our house.

What a great weekend!

Busy-Ness

The day dawned bright, but quickly I found the clouds moving in. The weather held off long enough to have a nice barbecue out on the patio, and actually we were able to spend quite a bit of time there before coming in to escape the darkening skies and brief showers.

Steve, Vicky and Shirley.

Jim, Steve and Vicky.

These are our friends from Florida with their son and daughter in-law. So nice to have them with us for the night.

As we sat talking I looked down and saw Greta. My Lord, she is getting so big!

Three weeks left until she has her babies! I can hardly wait!

The Adventure

Thursday we decided to go out for an adventure. I was a bit reluctant because it was pouring rain and as dark as it is at dusk, but what the heck, we had nothing else to do so….

We hopped into our Jeep. Hubby was driving, Gail sitting in the passenger seat and me in the back. After all, I’d seen this route over the mountains before.

We drove along and all was well. We talked and joked and life was good.

But the rain kept coming down. Hard. We watched the streams rising and the road become flooded with water.

We reached the first wonderful waterfall, and found it gushing with the overflow from the days rain. In the last 8 days we have had 6 inches of rain!

As pretty as it was, it was doing bad things to the road and Hubby had to zigzag down the road to keep away from the giant puddles! Hubby and Gail were fine, but in the back seat I started to feel bad. In fact I grabbed a dog walking (poop) bag and held it, ready to get physically ill at any moment.

We reached the next waterfall and it really was beautiful, but I was dying in the back. I prayed to be released from this torture!

As we got to the end of the mountain pass, we noticed something was wrong with our old Jeep. The temperature gauge went sky high. So Hubby pulled into the first gas station, and as he carefully lifted off the cap to the radiator, out bubbled the scalding water!

Hubby filled it with cold water hoping it was just a leak or something but it turned out that when the water pump failed it ultimately froze up and threw the belt for the power steering and fan, thus making the Jeep un-drivable! We were stuck at the gas station!!!

We called AAA and requested a tow. They told us it would be 30-45 minutes before a tow truck could come and take Hubby and the Jeep to our home. We looked around and saw a pizza restaurant! Eureka!

So we went over, carrying our umbrellas and ordered lunch. I ordered 1/2 an eggplant pizza, Gail got a half a vegetarian pizza and Hubby got a meatball sub.

We no sooner sat down than the tow truck driver arrived and Hubby left to work with him. I got Hubby’s sub, and ran out, carrying my umbrella, and took it to him. Then I returned to have my pizza with Gail.

Oh it was so good!!!

Now once we ate the pizza we needed to fill time. We shopped at a local store, and then did what every other sane individual does, we went for a Latte at Dunkin’ Donuts!

I have to tell you that in the rain, and the cold the hot Lattes were so delicious! We sat talking and sipping until my cell phone rang and it was Hubby. Where were we now? We told him, and before we knew it, he was driving into the parking lot to pick us up.

Dunkin’ Donuts has saved me more than once when I found myself in need of a hot cup of something wonderful!

Once he picked us up, we stopped to buy important things…..Dog Food! Then we drove home and rescued our little lovelies!

Hubby will need to replace the water pump, fan belt and who knows what else. Hopefully, he can get it done soon as this is his off road vehicle, and my winter car.

The day ended with a steak meal, complete with baked potatoes and fresh green beans from our garden. All and all a good meal and a great way to end an adventurous day!

Wonderful

Today Gail and I drive to Maine to visit her friend, American Artist Jack Lewis. I ask that you go to this web site and learn a little more about this incredible man. I didn’t know anything about him, until Gail introduced me to his work. Today she wanted to go to Maine to present him with an award and I was the chauffeur.

I wasn’t sure what to expect, but I have to tell you. Today I met a truly magical man. Yes, I am now not only a fan, but a friend. Jack is 97 years old. He has seen, and recorded so much of the world with his art, and is Delawares native son.

He has a gleam in his eye and a warm and wonderful personality. His daughter, Heather, joined us and she is a delight as well. In many ways, she reminded me of her Dad.

We went to The Stage Neck Inn for our lunch. It is a wonderful spot right on the ocean. In fact when I stepped from my car, I inhaled and the smell of the ocean brought me right back to my childhood on Cape Cod. Salt, the sea, simply wonderful!

I took this picture with my cell phone.

We ate and we talked and shared and I felt as though I had known Jack and Heather all of my life. They were both so warm and gracious!

Even though we spent several hours with them, the time simply flew by! Before we knew it, it was time to leave to go back to New Hampshire and Hubby and the pups.

It wasn’t that I didn’t want to go, but I was so torn. Today I met two people I now consider friends. I hope my next visit will not be too far off.

Puppies, Movies & Pregnant Dogs

Today I received updates and pictures of my two boys, Bogart and Baron. They are both doing well, and changing each and every day. Bogey looks so much like his Uncle Arnie. Quite a handsome fellow. His mom, Alexandra Daley-Clark sent me these pictures of her boy.

Bogart 13 weeks

He is a cutie and Alex is a terrific photographer! Thanks for the great shots.

Then I heard from Baron’s new family. I looked at the pictures and thought, “Wow! He looks a lot like his Mom!”

He is happy with his new family and having a great time. He even went swimming the other day!

It make me smile and feel so great to see these guys doing so well. Thanks for the pictures and keep them coming!

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Gail and I went to see Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. Wow was that good. I am so glad that we had our Harry Potter film festival over the weekend, so we knew everything up to the start of the movie.

I suggest if you haven’t seen the movies in a while, watch them before you go. It really helps to make sense of it all.

After all, we are just mere “muggles”! Ha!

Tuesday morning at 11:30 we take Greta to the Vet’s for her pre-natal exam. I have my fingers crossed that she is, in fact, pregnant.

Friday Happenings

Today, the first post puppy day, we did something wonderful. We made cherry jelly! About 10 days ago we picked the ripe cherries from our trees. We’d eaten a bunch, sold a bunch and had saved a gallon to do something with. Two days ago I cooked the cherries down and made the cherry juice, and today I took the juice, some sugar and pectin and made the jelly. Would it be good? I wasn’t sure.

I followed the recipe in the post below and crossed my fingers.

I needn’t have worried. It turned out really well. We had enough left over to pour into a little dish and set aside for breakfast tomorrow, but we all tasted today and WOW it was awesome.

I heard news that Baerbel had landed at LAX and was now a California girl! I got the cutest picture via my cell phone of Baerbel standing in front of the LAX Welcome sign! Too cute!

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My best friend from childhood, Gail is here visiting. She helped me with the jelly and the dogs also find it quite wonderful that their Auntie Gail is here visiting them. They don’t seem to understand that Auntie Gail is actually here to see me!

Saturday is the local Greekl Festival that I always work at. My neighbor is a member of the church and I like to volunteer and work with her. I’ll take some pictures and post them on Sunday!

Happy Saturday everyone!!!

Happy Birthday, Mel!

Today is my sister’s birthday!!! Happy birthday, dear Melodie!!!

Love you!!!