Vortex Shmortex

The Polar Vortex is back.

It feels like the cold we used to get when I was a child in Montreal.
So cold that your nose hairs freeze.  So cold that it hurts to breathe in too deeply.

Walking on snow at this cold temperature creates a wonderful squeaky noise.  Like plastic on plastic. I love the sound. Walking the dog tonight made that sound.  Of course she hates it.  She rushes out to

 her spot, does her business and then rushes back to the house usually with one leg in the air. Actually she alternates the legs. raising the coldest paw or the one with salt in the pad.    Today she wore her sweater and got lovely paw cream on her pads when we got in.  Wish I had a photo of it.

What is to do on a Polar Vortex night?
Cocoon beside the fireplace and watch Rick Mercer.

Vortex Shmortex!

 

The End of February

Yesterday we had a beautiful late winter snowfall. The weather was warmish so the snow was heavy and clung to all the trees in a very marshmallow way.

I enjoyed my walk with my wee Kessie. Yet didn't enjoy the filth that gathered on her underside! The dirty dog days are upon us I fear.

Ah well....I am needing Spring weather so much it is not much of a hardship!

I spent some of the weekend working on my Cloisonne sweater. I may add another layer of lace at the bottom in the brown because I think I want it to be a bit longer. Loving it though. Love love love knitting with Berocco Ultra Alpaca! It is difficult to resist burying my face in the softness on a regular basis.

If I get it done before summer (here's hoping)....(My heart skipped a beat with the idea of summer!)...it will be my Spring sweater.

Enjoy your last day of February and, if you live in the north, start taking stock of your spring clothes.

Oscar watched last night...... Colin Firth is a funny man! Yea for The Kings Speech!

Caution: Honking Dog

Sleep eluded us on Monday evening this week.

Why?

Kessie was honking. Yes she sounded like a Canada Goose. It was almost non-stop.
It felt like we were parents of a baby again.

I woke up (after, what, 15 minutes sleep) on Tuesday morning with that fuzzy, not quite sure, but still have to carry on, tiredness that parents of little ones so often have. How the heck do we ever manage?
Jim, of course, managed to roll over and get a bit more sleep than me. Huh....

Luckily, I had already scheduled a vet appt. It was supposed to be for shots but turned into an appt. for getting antibiotics and instructions on how much Benelyn-C to give her a day. Shots to take place in 2 weeks time.

So, that started the 3X daily administering of drugs. It is not easy to give drugs to a dog. Especially a wiggly dog like Kessie. It is a 2 person operation. One to hold her in place and one to try and get all the med. in the mouth and swallowed.
Jim and Patrick had the first shot at the cough syrup. (I happened to be at the shop). From what I understand she foamed it all over her face...
Then it was my turn. Being the expert (ahem) that I am I managed only a slight mess. After 4 days of it I am now able to get it all in and swallowed without the need for a face wash afterwards. I have impressed Pat.
The pill is another matter.
First one was wrapped in cheese and went down without hesitation.
Second one was eyed suspiciously but still went down.
Third...she has learned to lick the cheese off and spit out the pill. So....a combo of peanut butter and cheese is used.
Fourth....Cheese only ( because she should just damned well take the effin pill because I want her to ) and holding the mouth closed and rubbing her neck to make sure it goes down while holding another piece of cheese in front of her.
Fifth...Cheese...Ram to back of throat, hold mouth closed, rub neck, do not let go until swallowing action is observed.
Only 6 more pills to go....I am sure I will be standing on my head and spinning her around to make centrifugal force to force it into her tummy.
And then there is the yogourt which is supposed to coat her tummy to reduce stomach irritation. She ate it with gusto the first day. Now refuses to even go near the bowl it is in.

The good news. She is no longer honking. No more cough syrup unless she coughs again.

I am worn out. She is probably loving the attention.

Grooming Day

Today Kessie got groomed. She is not a fan of the grooming but she loves

Lindsay from Furr n Purr!

Here she is before her grooming.

And
One and Half hours afterwards she is back with bows on!

Kessie is a high maintenance gal. It takes the bulk of the time to groom her head while she wiggles all over the place! Having Lindsay come to us is so much better for Kessie. Hardly any stress at all! No crating or spending hours listening to other stressed dogs bark. She calms down almost as soon as she is in the door.

While she was being groomed today I groomed as well. Not an unusual occurance for me. I actually need to groom more frequently than Kessie. I know you thought I woke up naurally beautiful!!

Before

After

I am a low maintenance gal. Wash and go sort. But I do need my mascara!

Happy Easter

What a beautiful weekend it has been this Easter weekend.

It really seems to be that winter has left us and summer is on its way.

Both of the walks today were strolls of enjoyment for both Kessie and me. This evening's was filled with the scents of barbeques and the sound of birds. Kessie for sure is enjoying all the smells that she is encountering . Even if I wanted to take a brisk walk I probably wouldn't be able to without dragging the girl behind.

So between the sniffing and the peeing on every other blade of grass (yes there is some grass now too) my walk around the block is taking twice as long as normal.

But she is just so damned cute that I bear her no grudge!

We wish you all the best weekend!

Fall is Here

As I was sitting at the computer this early this morning the sun was coming up. The early morning light was glowing on the trees in the front of our house and that was filling the room with a golden hue. It was a magical moment that I was completely unable to capture in these pictures.

But I wanted to share it anyways. There is something so wonderful about the way fall makes me feel. I love the colours, I love the crispness in the air. I love the apples and pumpkins. I love the crunching sound the leaves make as I take Kessie for a walk. I love how some leaves freak Kessie out so much she cautiously approaches them and then seems let down that it is only a drying leaf!

I also love that we start to wear our sweaters and scarves and mitts.

I started Tudora from Knitty yesterday and got done today. Ahhh.. a sense of accopmlishment.

Now I am going to have some lovely lunch and then go out into the golden wonderfulness.

Looking Good!

I just had my hair done! Don't I look good?

Kessie