The end of 2011

This year is ending quiet but busy with 5 five week old puppies in the house. The past couple of months I have had lots of time to look at my goals for 2011 and how many of them I accomplished or came close to accomplishing and why, and setting new ones for 2012! I have enjoyed looking back over my blog and seeing all the good times and bad!! I did a lot of agility and started working dogs on stock again; I spent great times with the dogs, friends, and family; I became a judge without supervision; Kant and I got NATCH2 and V-NATCH2; I started Volkswalking again; and I said Good Bye to Slick! I have the greatest daughter in the world who is doing incredible in Bend and we had some awesome visits. All my dogs ROCK and Echo blessed me with 5 of the most amazing puppies and one who became the newest Sheltie in our family. Breeding Echo consumed most of 2011. I have no regrets about breeding Echo and am very glad I did it and am loving the puppies but I am also looking forward to concentrating on Echo’s training in 2012 and helping her become the best agility and herding dog she can be!

I can already tell 2012 is going to be a great year filled with fun, struggles, accomplishments, and hopefully very little sorrow! So many puppy firsts and learning; preparing for NADAC Championships in October at South Jordan, Utah; and planning for the Sheltie Nationals in Albany, Oregon, Spring 2013. Bring it on, I am ready to challenge myself to become the best I can for my daughter, my dogs, my family, and my friends but always being true to myself! Thanks to Jordana and my parents I have a fun 5 year plan that starts this year.

May you live every day like it is a holiday, being thankful and spending time with friends and family, and looking hopefully to the future!

Happy New Year!! May 2012 be the best year!!

Echo and Piper's puppies are 5 weeks old!!!!!

How could another week go by so fast?

This is the cutest group of shelties ever; I am not biased or anything!

This week they have been eating real food.  They do not push or shove but just chow down.

They are still too cute when they sleep!

Echo continues to be an incredible mom!!

Friends and family keep coming over for puppy play, puppy snuggling, and puppy breathe.

And Lindsey and Tammy brought the favorite toy!

This week the puppies also had their first Christmas!

ALL I WANT FOR CHRISTMAS IS...

a puppy,

and a puppy,

and a puppy,

and a puppy,

and a puppy!

Happy 5 Week Birthday!!!!!

I cannot believe how fast you grow!

Blaze

Blue

Heart

Charlie

I am looking forward to seeing how you grow this week but please do not grow too fast!



Merry Christmas!!

Merry Christmas from our family to yours!!

Kant, Echo, and Hershey with Santa!

The puppies with Santa!

PITA and Oakley with Santa!

A wish for you at Christmas -

May your home be blessed with love and laughter!

May all your Christmas wishes come true!!

Echo and Piper's puppies are 4 weeks old!!!!

Wow!  4 weeks old!

I cannot believe how fast they are growing!

Echo has been spending more time with them.  They want to play with their mom.

And sleep with her.

The puppies now have teeth and they play more

but they are still too cute when they sleep.

They continued to meet people

and had their first "Puppy Party"!

This weekend they got play time in the kitchen with toys and got to meet the big dogs.

For their 4 week birthday they got their second nail trimming thanks to Carol

and got to eat their first real meal!!

Happy 4 Week Birthday -

Blaze!

Blue!

Heart!

Charlie!

Star!

Let the fun begin!!

Echo and Piper's puppies are 3 weeks old!!!

I cannot believe that another week has gone by!

We have had another great week of growing!

Echo has started hiding under the bed. but she still comes out to take great care of her puppies!

The puppies are getting stronger, standing better,

and are sitting up.

Some of them think life is better on the other side of the whelping box!

I still love to watch them sleep and see all the different positions they get in!

I'm not heavy; I'm your brother!

Carol came over tonight and brought the puppies

their first lamb.

Blaze and Blue liked chewing on the lamb, what does that mean for their herding future?

Jordana came over to see the puppies and help me with this picture...

our first picture with Santa.

The girls are in Santa's hat while Santa holds the boy.

Jordana also brought each of them their own toy!

Blaze with her hedgehog.

Blue with her snowman.

Heart with her sock monkey.

Charlie with his penguin.

And Star with her sock bear.

I also weighed them today which they may be close to outgrowing my Weight Watchers scale.

Blaze 28.60 oz.

Blue 29.80 oz. - still the biggest.

Heart 20.50 oz.

Charlie 27.60 oz.

Star 19.10 oz. - still the smallest.

Happy 3 Week Birthday!

Looking forward to another wonderful week!