Thursday, October 08, 2009

I left my heart

in Surrey.

(in Hilary's kitchen)

ZOMG! It's 7 week old Linus! Who has been adopted - not by me, sad to say.

(insert pouty face)

Aren't they humungoid now? Puppies grow obscenely fast.

Charlie, the heartbreaker

Lucy, Diva in a puppy suit!

The coveted, but adopted, Patty

Her mother's daughter, Sally.

"Eff-You Camera" Schroeder.

And the irrepressible Spike AKA Mr Personality!

For some reason, I completely forgot to take photos of Franklin (adopted), so I'll give you a second helping of Spike.

Gah. The cute. It's too much!!

But I guess it's a good thing I left my heart in Surrey, cuz that's where I'm moving at the end of the month!

This is my new home, dubbed "The Little House On The Prairie" by my (mean) friends.

That's my backyard, with an apple orchard and a fire spit for rowdy barbeques.

And this is TLHOTP viewed from the other end of the 10 (count 'em, TEN) acres my wee house sits on.

I'm officially movin' to the stix. Commence mockery .... now.

What do you think of that Rivet?

Meh. I can cover my nose with my tongue.

Miss Maeven was a little more excited for me, at least. Of course, Maeve is excited about *everything*

But I don't think Maeve will be coming with us. For this, you can blame Linda, mostly because it makes her feel guilty ;-)

As much as I adore her sunny personality and enthusiasm, and her simply adorable face, Maeve is built like a tube with 4 ramrod pistons for legs. She is a lovely dog, but she's not put together for the rigours of agility. Ten acres doesn't equal ten dogs, and my 4th and last addition has got to be able to play with me for a long time. It breaks my heart - I mean, it shatters it in a million pieces, you've no idea how much - but I just don't think I can keep her. She deserves someone who won't be disappointed that she can't be a sporty partner.

OTOH, today I hate agility so much that I might be inclined to change my mind. Again.

I guess every dog comes into your life for a reason. Perhaps Maeve came into mine so that I learn the valuable lesson of letting go of what I think I want, and holding out for what I know I want. Either that, or the universe is a big mean bastard with a sick sense of humour.

*grumble*

Fortunately, I have Tweed to lighten my pissy mood.

Oh hai, I'm in your lens, stealing your perspectives.

I'm going to go drown my sorrows in research on chicken ... brands? Breeds? Whatever, I'm gonna get me some chickens when I move!

Get off my land, city slicker

They don't even grow horses properly out in the sticks! Yeesh.


29 comments:

Arwen said...

Chickens? I would have thought you'd be getting some Indian Runner ducks..

Awesome little house! Wow, what an other-end-of-the-extreme change. Congratulations. I hope you and the woofits will be very happy there.

I'm sad that you're not keeping Maeve, but mostly because I'm selfish and hoped to see tons of photos of her - I'm sure she will find somebody who will be completely thrilled with a sweet little non-bouncy dog with a heart on her forehead.

Tristan and Braun said...

Congratz on da stix and the house on the Prairie! coming from a citygal, zomg! 10acres!!! it's awesome!!! Wish i had that choice...

*gasp!* Linus wasn't adopted by you?!?!?! {insert pouty face} was hoping to see the little boy growing up on this blog. Oh well,like you said, every dog come to our lives for a reason. Guess Mr Linus just ain't to be for now.

Pity on Maeve, but I so know what you mean. If i could, I would stop at 2, but a 3rd is tempting (though that will be my legal limit) purely because the 1st has too many demons in his head and not a good candidate for the sport. *sigh*

Oh well, hope springs alive. We'll see. And best luck of getting the agile dog of your dreams. He/she will come. In time. :)

MalaysianFan said...

That's a horse?! Geez, I took it for an overweight, badly clipped Sussex Spaniel.

But congratulations on your new country estate! Horses, hounds... Now you only need a title. (No, not an agility title, the other kind.)

Deb said...

I think you're so lucky! It's always been my dream to move to the sticks, have acreage and have chickens!! Maybe you will discover Maeve is a good chicken herder or chick babysitter! Can't wait to read all about your adventures "in the sticks"!!

On Cue Aussies said...

Yay! Lots of room to play and run (and set up an agility course). Sorry about Ms. Maeve, but you're making the right choice.

Now for chickens: we ordered an "assortment" so we got lots of different kinds. So far, the absolute best layer is the Red Sex Link (they come in various names, but they are red sex links). Then there are the fun ones like the Easter Eggers (Ameracaunas/Aracaunas) that lay colored eggs, and the Cuckoo Marans which lay "chocolate" eggs (dark, dark, brown).

We adore our Speckled Sussex hen - she is just so sweet and beautiful. And Buff Orpingtons are just sweet, sweet, gentle chickens.

So many choices! Have fun!

Emma Rose said...

Congrats!!! You and the dogs will LOVE it. That's A LOT of room to play. Enjoy.

Michelle said...

TEN ACRES??? I'm turning shades of green here, because in addition to my one Aussie dog, we have FOUR horses and EIGHT sheep and only FIVE acres! I want your acres!!!

Anonymous said...

Dogs could heard ducks...just a suggestion.

The Border Collies said...

Chickens? I would have thought you'd be getting some Indian Runner ducks.

I'd really like some of those too, but as it stands, none of my dogs will work anything other than sheep, so IRD might be superfluous. I do want eggs though, which is the primary reason for chickens :)

BCxFour said...

I see pens there that could be used for sheep...are sheep in your future too?

Congrats on TLHOTP!

StefRobrts said...

Congrats, that looks like an awesome little place! We never run out of things to do on three acres, I can't imagine having ten! Then again, I wouldn't want to mow ten - three takes too long already!

We have buff orpington chickens. They are mellow and friendly, and lay right through the winter. We had 8 hens and were giving away eggs as fast as we could all winter. Fun!

Unknown said...

After growing up in the valley, I promptly moved to the city and never looked back... and now after 10+ years I've moved back out to farm land, on two acres.. there are cows, horses, sheep around me, I've had the neighbors donkey and goats escape into my yard, horses from up the street. One day someone came looking for their lost peacock... I love it... and now I have the dog I always wanted (crazy little aussie who herds cows through the fence)

There is a lot to be said for country life... the only thing is, it's ruined me for buying a place.. who can afford to buy an acreage?

Joe said...

Hey, you'll be in our neck of the woods! When can Bandit and Cassie come play with the gang?

The Border Collies said...

Hey, you'll be in our neck of the woods! When can Bandit and Cassie come play with the gang?

Oh my, whenever you like! I move in at the end of the month :) How exciting!!!

Arwen said...

I'd really like some of those too, but as it stands, none of my dogs will work anything other than sheep, so IRD might be superfluous. I do want eggs though, which is the primary reason for chickens :)

Well, considering you'll either mow grass until you fall over or live in a jungle, maybe a couple of sheep aren't such a bad idea...

(oh my but I'm envious. Land is so expensive here that you'd need serious money to have that amount of space.)

Rossie said...

aw, look at your little housey!!!
congrats.

I'm sorry that Maeve won't jump, but I know you will find the best place for her!

nickelsmum said...

Awesome. I'll be right there.

Two French Bulldogs said...

You guys are adorable. Lily's nose was pink with spots when she was a baby too. Is that a horsey or a big doggy?
Benny & Lily

Companion Animal Solutions said...

Congratulations on your change in lifestyle! I know you'll you'll have a blast in the sticks and we all look forward to posts from your new country estate.

Conner and Flynn want to know if they can come up and play on all your new acreage! Conner sez "yummy, chickens, they taste like chicken"!

Unknown said...

Such a pity about Maeve - but you are right of course to hold out for the dog you really want - and you have the last say in finding Maeve the home of her dreams.
Put me on the Egg List & Avis will stop by for some chicken;-)Ryder would like to come by & do what comes 'instinctively'
and 'run about in the open'.

s said...

And sometimes the universe sends us things which IT KNOWS we need but we haven't figured that out yet.
My dogs and I are tres jealous of your acerage!

tualizzy said...

LOVE your wee house! Congratulations.
Thanks for adopting Franklin to my neck of the woods...I'm going to LOVE watching the little guy grow up.
Sorry about Maeve not wanting to jump... Jak turned out not wanting to jump either, but has become the most awesome mountain biking and back country skiing dog. OMG, he loves nothing more than zipping along the trails or crashing through the snow. Maybe Maeve would like that too??? hmmmmmm.... maybe Jak would like a buddy??? hmmmmmm.....

riosmom said...

Congratulations! Is there a stream or pond for the dogs on your 10 acres? Or are you near the coast or a lake? Would miss seeing pictures of the dogs playing in water and Woo leaping into water.

Your new place looks wonderful and it will be interesting to see if or how it affects you, your life, and your photography.

Carol said...

Cue the music...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mbk81X

Green acres is the place to be.
Farm livin' is the life for me.
Land spreadin' out so far and wide.
Keep Manhattan(er, *Vancouver*), just give me that countryside.

Congrats! From those more in the know than I, it sounds like you either need a couple of sheep or to get to know someone with a tractor and LARGE mower. Or maybe Eddie Albert himself will come over and mow ;)

Tracy said...

30 minutes! Woot!

Anonymous said...

Congrats on your Estate. Your family will love it, and pretty soon you will not want to return to the city even to work. Tweed will love the orchard and the delish snacks.

There are basically 2 kinds of chicken - fresh or frozen. Hope that helps.

For protection of house and the 10 you will need security. Consider a Llama to look after the sheep you gonna get, or an Ostrich (bigger than a chix but still does the egg thing). I'm serious about the Ostrich.

One more thing, you need to chew on a piece of straw that sticks out of your mouth.

Awesome news.

Anonymous said...

OMG - I want Lucy.

Katharine Swan said...

I'm begging you -- please, if you insist on not keeping Maeve, find her a home with someone you know and see frequently so that I can continue seeing pictures of her beautiful, happy face.

amyinbc said...

New reader who is completely envious of your new property. Sigh. What I would do with some acreage.

Chickens for sure!