MERRY CHRISTMAS (and all that!)

This year I made the decision to spend Christmas and New Year's with my mother rather than at home. It was about time for me to spend a Christmas with Mom as I have not spent a Christmas with my parents since 1982 when we all travelled to my brother and sister-in-law's home in the Vancouver area - my parents flying out from Ontario and me travelling by bus from Jasper. Since then I spent Christmases either with my ex-husband's family or post-divorce with friends close to wherever I was living. With my Mom now living alone as Dad is in a home, I felt it was time for me to spend the holiday season with her.

We've had a nice visit and I have been able to reconnect with some good friends who still live in the area. Last week my friends Helen and Pat and I took in "Unsilent Night" where one walked through a portion of town where several installations were set up and various sonic themes were played through whatever personal music players people brought along with them. Quite an interesting experience and one I would definitely do again.


Yesterday Mom and I had a quiet but very lovely Christmas. I'd cooked a boneless turkey the evening before (the turkey turned out great after much hand wringing but I finally dove in - good thing I'd just rewatched "Julie and Julia" and had Mrs. Child's instructions of "no fear" wringing in my ears!) and the home was gorgeous thanks to my Mom's holiday decorating. And as usual, she set a lovely table for Christmas dinner too!

One of Mom's younger sisters spent a good part of the day with us and I must say some of the conversation was quite entertaining. (Who knew a Christmas with one's 80-something Mom and Aunt would involve a conversation including sex toys!! I'm still trying to pick myself up off the floor!)


Being away from home over the holiday season means I am missing Marc, his girls, our friends and especially my two whippets. It didn't help that yesterday I received a best holiday wishes e-mail from an amazing canine artist whose e-mail included a photo of her with her lovely blue brindle girlie. Her little whippet so reminds me of my Becca. Once I get home I don't think I'll leave the dogs alone for about a week solid!

At least I have another Christmas to look forward to as I travel home on Ukrainian Christmas Eve and perhaps can persuade Marc to stay home from work the next day!

Decorating the Nest

I've previously mentioned that I've been working on getting a few spaces in the house finished up in an effort to really make me feel that my house is more me rather than still looking like the previous owners live there. Gradually over the past few years I've come up with more ideas of how I'd like the place to look and so far 3 spaces in the house have been substantially changed from when I first moved in.

The ensuite bathroom is lovely thanks to Marc's hard work gutting the entire space and starting over. A few little touches are still needed but we're getting there.

The kitchen/family room/office is now looking really great. Still more to do, especially in the family room/office but at least the walls are painted and everything else that is still to be done seems relatively insignificant to me. Sure the fireplace needs "something" done to it, a light of sorts needs to be installed to highlight the fireplace area, and the tv currently in the living room needs to be moved back into the family room and mounted on the wall, but at least all of those jobs can be done without total disruption to Becca and Tazio. Of course their needs are the most important in the house!!

Next week will see additional painting done in the bedrooms and I've been trying and trying to get enough time to check out carpeting possibilities for the areas where a certain awful green carpeting needs to be obliterated! (If I didn't like the idea of toxic smoke I'd do a primitive dance around the burning green rug!)

I originally thought everything might be done by Christmas but since I won't be here for Christmas perhaps the end of January is a more likey completion date.

Then there's the main bathroom and small powder room that will need to be redone. Oh, yes and the landscaping at the front of the house just has to go.

And in the midst of all this I'm trying to finalize the choice of a husband for Becca (yes, puppies in 2010!). And I really need to keep up with my work!

A Lovely Sunday Walk

Yes, we should have gone lure coursing today but I have so much work to get organized before Tuesday that late last night I decided I just had to stay home and get more work done.

That said it was a lovely day and I wanted to make it up to the dogs so we headed off for a nice walk at a local park with two friends. Tazio stayed up front with Philip and Becca walked behind with Susan and I.

Gorgeous day out and I'm so glad I took my camera. Autumn is definitely here and while we don't have the gorgeous maples of my native Ontario the local trees still provide some lovely yellows, pinks and oranges.

The start












Fast moving walkers and whippets
















The bridge













Back to the parking lot











And now back to work!!

A week and weekend with human and whippet visitors!

This past week I was able to spend some time with two good friends - one that I haven't seen in years and another that I see several times a year, always during dog events.

A good friend who I was able to get back in touch with via Facebook is Maria. Maria was on her way to a new adventure in a more eastern area in Canada whose name strikes a chord of fear in many a Canadian's heart but which shall remain nameless. I don't want to offend anyone and frankly I see the attractions of the place, never mind the cold!

Maria came through town, spent the first night of her adventure here in our humble abode and set off early the next morning driving east.

Then, this past weekend saw a first in our household - whippet visitors that numbered more than one! (And of course my good friend Jenn who accompanied said whippet visitors)

Jenn came up to Canada to show our mutual friend Beth's girl Lark in this past weekend's dog shows held in Cloverdale. Lark is one of my favourite whippets and just needed one more Winner's Bitch award to earn her Canadian championship. Jenn also brought along her girl Tara who we puppysat last December and who fit in quite well with my two dogs.

Now the only proviso for any additional whippets staying here is that they all be girls as my boy Tazio gets a bit put out when he's around boys. I think it was due to the time he spent as number 2 boy to my first whippet Senna, Tazio's half brother.

We had a lovely weekend, visiting, going to the dog shows (Lark took Winner's Bitch on Sunday and is now Can CH Serendipity Skylark FCH, FCH, SR, OTR, TRPX, DPC!!), talking a lot about life, relationships, dreams, dogs, travel and just generally enjoying each other's company.

Love being able to host good friends!!

Dispensation Of The Cheese!

Flowers Of The Week

Another weekend, another lure coursing trial

This weekend found my youngest whippet and I travelling over to Vancouver Island for two days of lure coursing in the area between Nanaimo and Ladysmith. Earlier this year Becca and I travelled to the same area for a very successful weekend of lure coursing where Becca completed her Field Championship and became the first of my three whippets to achieve this title. This weekend was another awesome weekend. Becca finished 2nd in the trial on the first day and while she didn't place on Sunday we had a great time.

Becca has really been my dog of many firsts - first girlie dog, first Canadian show champion, first Canadian field champion, first CWA Dual Purpose Champion and also has her Title of Racing Proficiency (and one ARX point!), first whippet that I've taken to obedience and that has both charmed and enthralled the instructor, first whippet to take swimming, and now it's looking likely for Becca to become my first whippet to have babies!

When I first got into whippets many moons ago I never ever considered having anything to do with having a litter - unless one of my boys (as I only ever wanted boys) proved to be simply amazing and someone wanted to use him as a sire. And now I'm suddenly in the midst of health testing to ensure Becca's got the right stuff to become a mommy.

Very scary!!

A Picture Speaks A Thousand Words!