The Dackel Princess

The Weekend Wrap ~ November 29th

My weekend was actually four days long. It started last Tuesday with me starting the prep work for Thanksgiving and ended with me cooking the last of the leftovers on Sunday.

I did all my prep work early so that on Thursday I just needed to cook things. But still, I must tell you, in the end, I was exhausted!

For whatever reason, our 11-pound turkey had very little meat on it. This surprised me as I had hoped to have turkey leftovers to keep me satisfied for a while. Instead, it was gone quickly, leaving me wanting more. Jack is thrilled as he is not a turkey lover.

I did make turkey soup, but even that has gone quickly giving us one more meal if we’re lucky.

So what does this mean? It means I must start cooking dinner again after getting off easily the last few nights.

I hear from the breeder how Heidi is doing. Apparently, she is a little spitfire! I’ve seen her in videos and pictures and she is just adorable. I’m counting the days!

My little Christmas Tree is up, and a few decorations. I have started to write Christmas Cards and will be mailing my Australia cards tomorrow. So my dear Aussie friends, let me know when you get yours.

Well, it’s back to normal life again. This is a quiet week. Starting in the middle of December my life will get busy.

Have a great week!

Thursday Thirteen ~ Happy Thanksgiving!

Today is Thanksgiving Day here in the USA. A day where we stop to give thanks for all that we have. Like the Pilgrims before us, our country continues to face many challenges, but I think many of my fellow Americans would agree, we are thankful for the love of our God, our family, and our friends. So, here is a random list of 13 things I am thinking about this Thanksgiving.

1. Before I sit down to breakfast I need to bake an apple pie. Why so early? Well, I like freshly baked apple pie and the turkey we got will take about three and a half hours to cook! With one oven I am stuck baking the pie early.

2. I made the dressing yesterday, and have it chilling down. I will stuff Mr. Tom Turkey this morning and roast him slowly until he is perfectly cooked!

3. I peeled and diced the Yukon Gold Potatoes yesterday and they are soaking in a pot. Yukon Gold Potatoes make the best-mashed potatoes!

4. I also peeled and chopped up the butternut squash. And I also snapped the green beans. All is prepped.

5. I roasted the chestnuts and then shelled them. I am so happy that Julia Child wrote about the easy way to shell a chestnut. In the past, I did it all wrong and ended up with sliced-up fingers. This is easily the way, soaking them in boiling water for 20 minutes, putting a large X in the rounded part, and then placing them on a roasting pan in a 400 (F) degree oven for 25 minutes. Cool, place all the chestnuts in a dishcloth and then crunch on the kitchen shelf. They almost peel themselves! Makes a great addition to the dressing.

6. I peeled 2 dozen pearl onions. Ugh! Those will be first sauteed and then I will finish cooling them in Stock.

7. Then after I did all that preparation work for today’s dinner, I started to make dinner for last night.

8. Lili began to demand to be fed, so I broke down and fed her 10 minutes early.

9. Just about the time dinner was ready, I kind of lost my appetite. All the preparation of food, just made the food look unappealing.

10. Finally I finished all the cooking and cleaned up and got to sit down in my recliner at 7:15 last night.

11. After three such busy days, I felt exhausted! Humble as our Thanksgiving will be, we will have turkey and all the fixings.

12. It will be an early bedtime tonight!

13. To all my family and friends, here and abroad. May you enjoy the blessings of Thanksgiving. I know it is not a holiday for everyone, but I believe that the feeling of thankfulness that I feel in my heart and mind, for the ones that I love, is something shared universally.

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

The Weekend Wrap ~ November 22nd

The weekend seemed to fly by and on Sunday night I realized I needed another weekend day to accomplish everything I’d wanted to get done. I did, however, get a lot done and will finish up things on Monday and Tuesday.

My little Christmas tree is now up and I love the glow of lights from the kitchen where I have it set up. Since we have an open concept home, we can see the tree from both the family room and the kitchen. There is just something about Christmas lights that make me feel peaceful.

I will tell you that each day little Heidi is growing and becoming a propper puppy running around and getting into everything! When her name is called, she recognizes it and comes to the breeder.

I can’t begin to tell you how excited I am that little Heidi will be coming home in just about 40 days! Then a new chapter of my life will begin.

All my reservations are made, and I can hardly wait for the adventure to begin!

I hope you all had a wonderful weekend and that you found a little happiness, laughter, and joy.

The Friday Five ~ November 19th

This week did slip by. Mostly because I slept through it. Here is what the last week saw, and why I was so sleepy.

On Tuesday I delivered all my Christmas gifts to my daughter’s house. I’ve been shopping online since the summer, and I spent all of Sunday wrapping, and then put all the gifts in two large boxes and tucked them into my Highlander. Although I am really happy that the kids will have presents from me, I will miss them like crazy on Christmas Day.
After doing that on Tuesday I drove over to the VA to get my Moderna Booster Shot. The nurse, who I already know, was so gentle that I did not feel a thing.
But an hour later, I started to feel unwell. I was due to have physical therapy, but I had to leave and get home.
Wednesday I felt a bit better and I went about a Zoom call and a few other things. It was my Birthday and I planned a nice Charcuterie Board, Champagne, and Baked French Onion Soup. But by the time we sat down to eat I had a fever of 102° (F). I had no appetite and so the champagne was not popped, and I didn’t even have my soup! I simply did the dishes and then went to bed at 7 PM. I proceeded to sleep 13 hours.
Thursday found me still a bit under the weather. The fever was down, but I was so tired. My arm is swollen, red, and sore. I’ve been told it is a positive reaction. So it is done and over with. Now I can travel to get Heidi and not worry too much. I will still wear a mask and sanitize my hands as much as I can.

So that was the week that was. I lived to tell the tale and I know that by the time the weekend is over I will be fine and back to my old self.

I wish you all a wonderful weekend and a happy week ahead!

Thank You!

I want to take this time to thank everyone for the warm and loving Birthday wishes, yesterday!

One of my favorite sayings is this, from “It’s a Wonderful Life”.

Dear George,
Remember no man is a failure who has friends.
Thanks for the wings!
Love, Clarence.”

So, I thank you all and as I begin my 64th year, I truly feel like the luckiest woman in the world.

Birthday Girl ~ That’s Me!

Today is my 63rd birthday. Odd. How did that happen? I do not feel that old. Officially, according to Social Security, I am not old. In order to get my full retirement, I have to wait until I am 67 and a half, so you see, I am still very young!

I was born and raised on Cape Cod, in Massachusetts. I still feel that the Cape will always be my home, even if I don’t get down there too often.

I was the youngest child of three, and I guess a bit of a tom-boy. I loved playing trucks and riding my bicycle all over town. I did like Barbie Dolls and played them with my sister and cousin. But I was equally happy climbing trees and going on adventures along creeks and swamps.

I did many things alone. I would ride down to the beach and climb the jetties. I would sit and dream and lose myself in thought.

I also tried to make people laugh. At times life was hard, and I could joke around and get people smiling.

Yet, as a young woman, I seemed to lose that child-like confidence. Although many would say I was outgoing, not many knew how I worried I was inside of falling on my face and failing.

Now I am sixty-three. Golly, I have learned so much along the way. But, oh, that insecure woman still resides within, and occasionally rears her ugly head.

I find my peace with my pups. Walking them or holding them or waking to their morning face licks. Unconditional love. Given freely, by my fur babies meant so much.

Having a grown-up daughter is amazing, and watching the wonderful mother she is with her children, makes me proud. She is a self-made woman. What an amazing person she is!

My grandchildren are everything. Savannah tells me her secrets and stories, and Quinn is coming into his own. He always checks to see if I remembered his Bai water when I come down, and recently my Kindergartener made me a card all by himself. To Oma, Love, Quinn. Why? Just because.

The hugs, their smiles, watching them grow puts a smile on me like you cannot believe. How grateful I am.

So life at 63 isn’t too bad. It’s not quite what I thought it would be, but it is a good life nonetheless.

So, Happy Birthday to me!

Introducing Heidi!!

Heidi is nearly four weeks old now. Technically I guess, she is three and a half. But I like to think more about 4 weeks because then it is only six weeks until I bring her home.

I thought today I would introduce you to the newest member of our dackel family.

Here she is on the 22nd of October. She is the very smallest one with the red collar.

I remember seeing her the first few days, and feeling like I already knew this pup. I know that sounds strange, but it’s like my soul knew hers.

She is the very smallest in her litter, but she has been mighty and brave as she would fight for a nipple. Little pups are born with their eyes sealed closed and their ears too. What they do in those first couple of weeks is all instinct.

After their eyes opened and they began to hear, they would eat their fill and then settle into pig piles to sleep. Heidi is the one with the smallest head.

I’ve joked with her breeder that “She be small, but she be mighty!” Yes, that’s my girl!

Heidi November 14th. 2jpg This photo was taken on Sunday morning.

She is now up on her legs and starting to really move around. Apparently, she is a little growler!

Her beard and hairy paws are beginning to show and in another week she will start to look like a true Wire-haired Dackel!

I will keep you all posted as to how my little darling is doing. Six weeks can’t go by fast enough for me!

I want to thank Gail, the breeder of this beautiful litter of pups, for allowing me to use these pictures.

The Friday Five ~ November 12th

Another week has flown by. I was busy getting things done, as well as thinking and daydreaming about Heidi. So, here goes my list for this week.

I made all my reservations for my trip. Including a rental car. I feel good about all that I have accomplished.
Heidi’s new dog carrier arrived and it is perfect. I also sent a soft blanket to the breeder to use over the next few weeks. That way, when I bring Heidi home, she will have something that smells like home to her!
I have several larger crates that I will clean and one I will set up before I leave. The other will be for later when she’s a bit bigger.
The time change is kicking my butt! I am finding that I just cannot get used to the change. By 8 PM I am wiped out and ready for bed.
This weekend I will wrap all the presents for Mandy, Matt, and the kids. Then I will be dropping them off next week when I am at Physical Therapy. Unfortunately, I will miss seeing everyone at Christmas this year, but I simply have to take precautions. I do not want to get Covid or bring Covid with me. So I am living in a slightly tighter bubble these days.

So that’s it for this week. Stay healthy, stay safe, and enjoy the weekend!

TBT: The Original Shubi & Me!

Thirty-three years ago I had never seen a wire-haired Dackel. I knew long-haired dackels and short-haired dackels, but I had never really seen a wire until my first trip to Germany to meet Jack’s friends, Otto and Lucie.

My German was really limited then and I spent a lot of the time feeling somewhat like I was deaf and unable to speak. And then I saw him Their standard wire-haired dackel. The original Shubi.

Shubi spoke no English and I did not speak any doggy German, but it was love at first sight. He made me fall head over heels in love with this marvelous breed of dog!

Each time we visited, Shubi was by my side. He was simply amazing! Lucie said he even changed into a different dog when I was around. I know I became a different person when I found him.

In 1996 we brought our own wire-haired dackel home from Bavaria. We named her Shubi after my beloved friend, who had passed away. And Shubi brought to me, so much joy.

In 51 days I leave to go and bring Heidi home. I am so excited about this. Her arrival means that I can continue to be “The Crazy Dackel Princess”. And my dog life, with this amazing breed, will go on.

Plans

I’ve been busy the last few days. Busy doing what you might ask? well, it is now 52 days until I depart Boston to fly to meet and bring home my new Dackel-Baby, Heidi!

When all of the Covid lockdowns began I switched all my bills to my Delta Skymiles Card. I also bought my groceries with the same card. I’ve been racking up the miles and so I wanted to see what I could do with my flight plans.

Well, I will be flying First Class with my new Puppy Baby when I bring her home. Using my Skymiles, my round trip will cost me $11.20. The cash amount is for taxes, which cannot be paid with Skymiles!

Once I had my flights, I set about getting a motel room in Boston, with Park, Stay and Fly, and then set about to rent a car in Nashville, to drive to the breeders home and pick up Heidi. I also needed a hotel in Nashville for the night.

I will admit the excitement is wonderful, but a certain amount of nervousness goes along with that. This is my first ever, completely solo trip. At nearly 63 years old (next week), I have always traveled with someone, be they parents, first husband, second husband, kids, cousins, sister, or friends. But this is me. Just me. And it is both scary and exhilarating!

So yes, the reservations are made and in 52 days the adventure begins!

Dear George, Remember no man is a failure who has friends. Thanks for the wings! Love, Clarence.”

Dear George,
Remember no man is a failure who has friends.
Thanks for the wings!
Love, Clarence.”