It's that time of year

Mum's been busy filling in all the important days in her new diary - important days being birthdays which always come with cake or home made biscuits.

She's also said I have to make a new year revolution, you know about being good or doing something that you don't really like doing.  So, I've decided for next year I will:

1. be good when being groomed (it sometimes takes ages and I fidget a bit)

2. try not to bark too much (and avoid that smelly collar)

3. be good when we go out for walks and back to training, listen when I'm being called and respond accordingly (i.e. come back when Mum whistles)

and my favourite

4. continue to be a loveable, cuddly rogue and enjoy my life with Murphy, Mum and Dad.


Ahhh, I can be so cute sometimes

Happy New Year to all my friends, I look forward to seeing you soon and having some fun in 2013!

A day of firsts

... for Mum.

Today she went out of the house for the first time in a week!  She was so excited to be coming on our walk with us and really enjoyed herself.  We liked it too because we had 'breakfast on the go' as she puts it which really pleased Murphy as he's not too good at eating breakfast from a bowl all the time.
Mum has also managed to drink her first full cup of coffee for a week without feeling queasy afterwards, which is a real bonus for her as she is usually a 6 to 8 cups a day girl!

All of our attention is now focused on Dad as he is sneezing all over the place.

We like to share in our house.

That's it then

It's all over and we had a very nice, if quiet Christmas.

Me having a quiet moment!

 Mum was feeling very poorly all this week and hasn't been able to go out with us at all - Dad's been a hero and taken us out for a walk every day whatever the weather, and we've needed it eating all that turkey that Mum couldn't manage!

Dad took these photos of us with some of our presents..

 

I heard a little story yesterday that my cousin Tigger, not happy with stealing my dinner last Saturday also stole a WHOLE turkey leg from the cooked bird BEFORE any of the humans had even sat down to their dinner.  Apparently he just nicked it off the table.  Mum said he was a 'cheeky monkey' .  I think she might have said something else if it had been me wot done it!

 
Just before Christmas we brought home some more new fish.  These new guys (6 of them) are called Harlequin Rasbora and are very small and very fast, hence the not so good photo of them.

We now have eleven fish and loads of room in the tank for more.  Not sure what's coming next, something a bit easier to spot hopefully.

 
So we are having a few more quiet days and then Dad says it will be time for new ear?  I thought we had one of those a while ago, but it seems they come around every year.

Two sleeps

Only two sleeps to go and it's Christmas!!  I'm SO excited and can't wait to get my paws around all those presents under the tree!

Yesterday we went to see my doggy cousin Tigger.  We were able to get out into the garden and have a play which was great fun.  We bounced and played chase - he's very fast because he's a greyhound.  I quickly realised that he prefers to run around the garden  anti-clockwise  ....
 ... how sneaky am I for running the other way which really threw him!

We got on really well, until it came to dinner time.  Mum gave Murphy and I our dinner at the same as Tigger had his, but there was so much going on (other humans had arrived and they were all sitting down to eat) that I didn't eat mine and Murphy left half of his.  Mum picked up our bowls and said we could have dinner when we got home.  She put them in her back on a chair in the kitchen.
A little while later we realised that Tigger had been very quiet and found that he had pulled Mum's bag off the kitchen chair, emptied all of the contents across the floor and into the hall, taken the covers off our dinner bowls and EATEN THE LOT! 

Mum said we couldn't tell him off because we hadn't seen him do it.  I know exactly who ate my dinner and it WASN'T ME.   

It's gone again!

Look what we found when  we went for a very wet walk today ... the beck has broken it's banks again!

Decorating

We've been busy today supervising the decoration of our Christmas tree which was delivered yesterday. All was going very well, until Mum decided Murphy and I needed a bit of sparkle ...

Murphy doesn't look too bothered ... I on the other hand was not impressed!

New arrivals

Yesterday there was great excitement in the house when Dad brought home the first fish for his new aquarium.  He has to add the fish in stages, so this was stage one and we now we have 5 Cherry Barbs (2 girls and 3 boys apparently). 
They are quite small and very fast, so Mum has only managed to catch a couple of them in a photo

I'm not sure what's coming next, but I hope they're a bit bigger so we can spot them easily.

Busy few days

We've been busy since I last posted .. last Friday we met up with Milly, Duggie, Fergus and Dougal along with Max and Inca (Labradors who think they are Welshies) for a big pre-Christmas walk.  It was really nice - cold but quite dry and sunny, so we had a big run around.  Mum let me off my lead for a big part of the walk, so I was shattered by the time we went home.  Afterwards, we dogs all got cheese and garlic biscuits that Mum had made and the humans went for Christmas lunch, which they seemed to enjoy very much.

On Saturday we went to choose our Christmas tree.  Actually we had already picked it out with Mum earlier in the week, but we wanted to let Dad have a final choice.  He was happy with what we had picked, so the nice man at the nursery is going to deliver it to us this Friday.  So, after that it was home to locate all of the decorations (Dad missed a box in the attic and has to go back up there) so we could make the house look pretty through the week.

We've also been out for some great walks in the fields at Clumber and do the final bots of shopping for presents - the Christmas draw is looking quite full now although we still have loads of sleeps to go before Murphy and I can have a good look at what Mum has put in our stockings.

Whilst I am beginning to get quite excited, I must share with you a photo of my good friend Percy which has been sent to us by his Mum Fi today.  Now Percy is usually a very happy little Cocker spaniel, always with a big wag and a happy smile when we meet.  Not so much in this photo ...

Sorry Perce, I couldn't resist posting this! 

Can you see me?

I am in there, busy rooting around

but what with wearing my camouflage and having had a big session with the scissors yesterday, it may be difficult to spot me.

Here's a funny photo of Murphy.

He's not behind bars for being naughty, he's just sitting with his head through the stairs waiting for Mum to tell him dinner is ready!

Break through

Mum says we've had one of these this morning, but all I've had is my breakfast.

I think what she means is that she's managed to hoover the lounge, yes already and it's not 9am - that's what comes of Dad leaving very early to go to work and everyone else being up and awake!

Where was I?  Oh yes, Mum's hoovered the lounge and I didn't bark once.

I don't like the hoover, so I usually bark like crazy and try to bite it as Mum's using it.  A few days ago she put one of those spray collar thingys on me when she hoovered and I got a blast of something not very nice up my nose when I barked.  The next time she put it on me she didn't turn it on and I only barked once.  Today I didn't wear it at all and opted to sit on the stairs watching quietly.

I got a big cuddle for being a very good boy.  Rather have some chocolate.

Where is Murphy in all of this?  He had gone back upstairs to bed straight after finishing his breakfast!

That time of year

It's that special time of year again when Murphy and I get chocolate every morning for a month!  Yes, on Saturday Mum opened our very own Advent Calendar!

We're looking a bit low on biscuits there Mum - isn't it about time you did some baking?


Yesterday we went for a very wintery walk at Clumber ...

ok, so it doesn't look particularly wintery in this photo, but believe me it was cold on the old paws.

Still watching

Murphy writes ....

Yesterday we had a nice dry and clean walk around town which we haven't done for ages.  We also had a first .. Merlin's tailed wagged for most of the walk which is something that has NEVER happened before when we are in town.
So, I hear you ask, what was it that made him so happy?  Well, it's not 'what' but 'who' - Auntie Debbie, Duggie, Dougal and Fergus all joined us!  It was great to see them all.

Today we have been to Clumber and had another sunny, dry and clean walk, if a little cold.  In fact it was so cold Mum made us 'pick up the pace' as she puts it and allowed no dawdling.

I've had my photo taken since we got home - Mum calls me the Keeper of the Desk!

Weather Watch

We're on a weather watch this week.  It's not because we are under threat of being flooded at home (for which we are very lucky and very grateful) but because heavy rain and flooded fields means an abrupt change of plan in the walk department, i.e. where we go, as you can see from yesterday's post.

Mum went out first thing this morning to see if she could take some photos of the fields but came back with just one that shows a real change in the level of our beck.

Sunday 25th November ..

Monday 26th November ..

Same tree taken from the same spot on the bridge, but what a difference a day makes!

What I want to know is ... where did all the water go to overnight?

Walk or Swim ?

We went out for our Sunday walk today and the fields where we normally walk were gone ! We now have huge lakes in all the fields around us. We wanted to have a big swim instead of our normal run around, but Dad wouldn't let us. Instead he took some photos and drove us to Clumber Park instead. It was much drier there ... but I still would have preferred a swim.

A big woof to all my followers. Stay safe when you are out walkies.

Tired out

What more could a boy ask for at the end of a long week? 

A walk with Mum, Dad and Murphy, a nice dinner (turkey sausage and AG biscuit - yummy) and a comfy armchair to snooze away the evening.....

What a lucky boy I am!

Family Walk

This morning we all went out for a walk together and Mum and Dad had a big surprise for us ..... we went back to Clumber for our first walk there since the summer. 
It was great to be back in the old place again.  It was lovely and sunny, if a little chilly.  Everything seemed to be where we left it, even our favourite tree stump where we posed for Mum, although this picture looks like we are more interested in something across the field (which is quite right as there were two dogs charging about!).

Hibernation

Today we have out our kennel on wheels to bed for the winter.  Dad had bought a cover for it which the instruction book said was easy for two people to put on.  Unfortunately for Dad, he only had Mum to help as she isn't that tall, he had quite a job on his hands!

Murphy and I had good seats in the back of the car to watch, and I have to say the finished job looks quite professional.

Mum did say after they had finished that she's glad they will only have to do this one a year!

Drama at the car wash

We've just got back from an afternoon out and about with Mum - all the usual stuff ..  a bit of shopping, a walk etc.  Whilst we were out, Mum decided to put the car through the car wash because Dad's borrowing it next week and it's really dirty (and he hates that).
So there we were all paid for, code entered and sitting nicely waiting for the brushes to start.  They started, we were spayed with water, the brushes went to the back of the car and then .... nothing.  The machine thingy had broken down!

Mum got out of the car - very brave or silly?  If the machine had started up again she would have been soaked!  She checked if any of the brushes were touching the car - they weren't, so we were able to drive out of the machine safely.  Thank goodness we could drive away or we could have been stuck there for hours.

I can't cope with all the excitement, I'm off for a lie down!

Meet with friends

Yesterday we met up with Auntie Debbie and some of her boys for a walk before she and Mum went for a belated birthday lunch.  Fergus and Duggie had come along for the walk as well as another dog that at first I didn't recognise ... then I realised it was my mate Max.

I should explain why I didn't recognise Max .... the poor boy had an accident last week when he was out working and cut his front leg very badly.  He had to have a visit to the vet followed by some stitches, and because of all that, he had to wear one of those bucket collar thingys.  Luckily for him, he didn't have to wear one of those nasty rigid ones that make a big noise every time you bang into something - his was nice and soft and squidgy, but it still looked a bit strange at first sight! 
He does very well with it on (although he has to turn his whole body if he wants to look sideways which is quite funny) and only has to wear it for a few more days as he had his stitches out yesterday morning.  I bet he's looking forward to going back to work!

Weekly catch-up

Murphy and I were quite busy last week as our Nana came to stay for a few days and we looked after her when Mum went to work and also when Mum and Dad went to do some shopping on Saturday.  They said they had gone to do Christmas shopping, but they didn't come back with many parcels ... and anyway I thought they had bought some presents for us already.  Who else is here to buy for??
Yesterday we took Nana home.  I like going to her house because you get a good view of her neighbour's gardens from her front window, so there is always lots to watch, and if I'm lucky the odd cat to bark at.

The honour of having the most exciting experience of the week went to Dad.  He went off to work on Wednesday and was stopped at the airport by a very nice policeman who had a very nice dog with him (Dad thinks he was some kind of spaniel) and they asked if they could check his bag.  Now this dog (we don't know his name because Dad didn't ask!) was specially trained to sniff for money - a bit like Murphy can sniff out polo mints at about 1/2 a mile I should imagine - and he decided that Dad's bag was very smelly indeed ... and he was right because Dad did have some money in his bag!
Dad was allowed to carry on to go to work and he said later that it was all very interesting, but something he could do without at 7 o'clock in the morning! 

Cancelled birthday

Today we were planning to meet up with Auntie Debbie to go for a walk (followed by the inevitable lunch for the humans) to help celebrate her birthday.

Sadly we have had to cancel as Auntie Debbie is poorly, which is a bad thing for her in two ways.  Firstly,   she isn't feeling well on her special day and secondly she doesn't get to see Murphy and Me!

We hope she feels better soon and wish her a very happy birthday anyway.

Lots of cousins!

Yesterday Murphy and I met up with our cousins - both human and doggy - when we spent the afternoon with our Nana as it was her birthday.

It was the first time we have visited our newest cousin Tigger at home and he was a little bit nervous of us as we charged into the house to say hello to everyone else.  It didn't take him long though to make friends and I think he would have liked a bounce or two, but there were some men building an extension to the patio in the garden (perhaps because Tigger has been digging where he shouldn't be digging?) and it was raining so we had to stay in the house and not bounce.

We did manage to go out for a walk with Tigger and Victoria later in the day which was fun as it was all new to us and lots of great smells.  After that we had an early dinner before Hannah and Chris arrived (they had been to work poor things!) as the humans were all going out for dinner. 

After dinner we went to see Hannah and Chris' new house which was really nice with very steep stairs.  The humans all then had some birthday cake (note: non for us doggies) and we drove home to a very belated biscuit before heading off to bed.

Foggy walk

We set off this morning to meet friends for a walk in thick fog - and we came home this evening still in fog but not quite as bad.

In between the foggy journeys (and Mum getting lost, although in her defense we were going somewhere completely new) we had a lovely day out with Jennifer and Sue and their girls.  We did get a photo - well done Jennifer as it wasn't easy to get us all to sit still (this was the best shot of the lot!).  I should also point out that none of us look our best - wet and muddy was the fashion for the day.

Left to right: Murphy, Me, Milly and her sister Poppy with Google front and center

Grassmoor Country Park leads onto the Five Pit Trail which we've done a little bit of when we stayed at Teversal last year.  I'm looking forward to when we can go back on a nicer day and do the full 5 miles.

We all send get well wishes to Harris who lives with my sister Plover and her Mum.  Sadly they weren't able to join us today as Harris is quite poorly, so we hope he gets well soon.

Update

Dad's been away all week, so Murphy and I have been kept very busy looking after Mum.  We've taken her for some nice walks, went to work with her on Friday morning and on Saturday went Christmas shopping! And the good news there is that the things she bought were for us!!  I know that for a fact because I got a good sniff of the carrier bag as she hid it in what she thinks is a secret Christmas draw under the spare bed.

Tomorrow we are going out for the day to somewhere we've never been before - Grassmoor Country Park.  I think it's near where Google lives (that's Google the Welshie and her Mum Jennifer not any other Google you may have heard of) and we are meeting her along with, hopefully, my sister and some of her gang and Milly with her sister.  It should be a good day out, so watch this space for all the news.

Sadly Auntie Debbie and all of her boys and girls can't come tomorrow as they are now a working pack and are too busy.  I'm sure we'll get to see them when they have a day off soon.

Rain

We've had lots of rain lately, so when we went for our walk around the village today, the fields and lanes were really wet and muddy.  We have a little beck that runs through the fields that usually has a low level and runs quite slowly - it's lovely to have a cooling paddle in it on a hot summer day.

Today, the beck looks really angry - it is very high and running very fast.  We even have our very own rapids!

A day out .. and an exciting evening

Yesterday, Mum took Murphy and I out for the day to meet Auntie Debbie and all her boys and girls for a walk near where they live.  It was great fun running around in the woods  with Fergus and Dougal ... until I was a bit naughty and didn't come back to Mum when she called me.  I had gone into some trees to have an investigate and she couldn't see me, so I think she was a bit worried what I might be up to.  Cheek!
Anyway, I had to go back on my flexi lead for the rest of the walk which wasn't too bad as I was quite puffed out by that point.

Later on after dinner we all settled down to watch the GB Bake Off final.  I wanted the nice man from Scotland with the two big dogs to win - Murphy just wanted to see all the cake!  He is a bit of a 'cake fiend', so when he realised there was none coming his way he wandered out to the kitchen and alerted us all to a stranger in the garden - it was another hedgehog!  We've had three now in the last few weeks, and this one was the largest.

Murphy and I both woofed through the window and Mr Hedgehog hid behind the water butt.

Once again, Dad came to the rescue, put on some big gloves, rolled him into a bucket and took him down to the churchyard to be released.  It was only at this point that I was allowed out of the house to inspect the garden for anymore, but found none. 

Coffee and ice cream for the humans and our nightly biscuit chew helped us all to calm down after the excitement whilst we watched the end of the competition on the telly.  (Mum was pleased as her favourite chap won!).

A day out with friends

On Saturday, Mum had another day out on her own WITHOUT ME!!  She went to see some more of those archive thingys - though why she needed too, I don't know.  I would have thought when you've seen one ....
Anyway, Murphy and I had a boys day with Dad which was great.

On Sunday, Mum made up for going out on Saturday and took us to meet up with Holly, Milly and Percy along with Kim and Fi.  It was lovely to see them all.   have missed the last couple of training lessons as we have been on holiday, so I hadn't seen them for ages.  It was also nice to see Milly restate her affection for Murphy b giving him lots of kisses.  Sadly, he wasn't too impressed with that!

We had a great walk through the woods and across the fields.  It was actually quite eventful - we started to cross one field which we thought was empty and suddenly a herd of rather large (and rather handsome) bullocks appeared out of nowhere.  They seemed very interested in us, trotting behind us across the field for ages.  Unfortunately, the humans amongst us were busy concentrating on reaching the stile at the far side of the field and so we didn't get any nice photos of our new friends!

We did get this photo of us all together though .. 

We all look a bit dirty, so I should add here that this was taken before we went for a swim, although Mum said the swim didn't really make me look any cleaner!

Murphy and I had a lovely day, even if it did end with us having a bath when we got home!

Visitors

What a lovely surprise Murphy and I had yesterday. 

About mid morning, just when I was beginning to wonder when we would be going out for our walk, Auntie Debbie arrived at the front door.  We hadn't seen her for ages, so gave her a big and noisy welcome and got lots of fuss in return.  After she had a cup of tea we got an even bigger surprise when we went outside and out of her car popped Fergus, Duggie and Dougal!  They had all come to go for a walk with us.

We took them on the walk we did on Saturday across the fields which they all seemed to enjoy.  Dougal flushed a bird and did some hunting in the hedges - he'll be going to his first proper shooting day soon, so it was all good experience for him.

At the end of our walk we headed home back through the village for a big drink, a biscuit and a lie down.  Never ones to miss an opportunity for lunch and an ice cream, Mum and Auntie Debbie then headed off to a favourite place near us to satisfy their appetites!

We had a lovely day - sunshine and the best of friends for company.  What more could I ask for??

Wildlife walks

I know we live in the country and not in town, but goodness the amount of wildlife we have seen over the last couple of days has surprised me.
Last week when we were out for a walk with Dad after work, we had a great view of an owl sweeping over the field in front of us - Dad said he was looking for his dinner.  Then to top off the evening, we had another hedgehog in the garden.  This one was much smaller than the one we had a few weeks ago.  Dad managed to catch him and took him down to the field in the village to let him go.

Yesterday we all went out together for a big walk which took us along the road than runs behind our village for a bit and then across the fields to walk a big circle.  As we were walking along the road, what we think were two weasels (they moved so quickly it was hard to tell) appeared in front of us.  One ran right across our path to the other side of the road!  Both Murphy and I were very excited by all this and spent quite a while hunting for the second one which had ducked back into the hedge when it saw us.

Later when we were in the field Dad let me off my lead for a run around.

I found a hare which took off across the field with me in hot pursuit.  OK, so I know I was a bit naughty and didn't stop when I was called, but it was so exciting!

I followed him into a field of sweetcorn ...

 .. which as you can see was really dense.  Mum stood at the edge of the field calling and whistling me to come back.  And, after a few minutes, I did!

I think she must have thought she had lost me because she was really pleased to see me and gave me a big hug.  Actually, I was quite pleased she kept calling me because I couldn't see very much in there, so she helped me find my way out!

Mum's day out

Mum had a day out without us yesterday.  Dad said it was as a reward for having done all the washing from our holiday, but I think she had it planned for a while.

She went to London to visit the Parliamentary Archives which all live in Victoria Tower (I have a human cousin called Victoria, but I don't think this is anything to do with her!).  It all looks very impressive

and even more so from the inside

This is the view from an 8th floor window which is at the top of the second set of windows in the photo above.  Not sure how Mum managed to take this as she is a bit scared of heights, but I think she did quite well.

As well as the view, she saw lots of old documents and went into a big room with loads of rolls of paper called the Act Room - just think of the fun a puppy could have in here ... you could make quite a mess.

Of course, never one to miss a touristy opportunity, she managed to get this photo on her way back to the station

How boring must that job be .. just standing there looking smart all day!

I should also add that Murphy and I had a very nice 'boys day' at home with Dad.  We had a trip into town at lunch time and a nice walk across the fields when he finished work. 

New Trick

Am I a clever boy or am I a cheeky boy?  That's the dilemma Mum has and she can't make up her mind, but I think she'll decide that I'm a bit of both!

What have I done?  Well, I've taught myself how to lift the lid on the bin that holds our biscuit and when it's really full (like now) I can help myself!  How clever is that??

Thief!

One thing I'm not so sure about though. Mum said I stole so much biscuit today when she was busy drying Murphy after our very wet walk, that I won't be getting hardly any dinner tonight.  I'll have to be sneakier in the future and not let her catch me in the act!

Home

We had a lovely two weeks away on holiday, but yesterday we had to pack up the caravan and head home, but not before Murphy and I had made sure any remaining biscuits and treats were packed well before we left.

After we got home, I was kept very busy checking out the garden and the house to be sure everything was where I left it.  I had a great holiday, but I have to admit it is nice to have a house and garden to charge about in again, and Murphy certainly seemed to enjoy his big roll and whisker scratch in the hall after dinner!

The Cotswolds

So, we moved from Devon on Tuesday morning (Mum wasn't sad to see the back of the really narrow roads) and arrived at our new site near Burford later in the day.  We have been here before - we stayed here last year for a full week, but this time it was just for a few days.  I remember being here because the site is across the road from the Cotswold Wildlife Park and you can hear the lions and monkeys making loads of noise in a morning.

On Wednesday we went for a lovely walk on the Sherborne Estate which is just a few miles away from the site. 

Catching a quick rest mid walk

In the afternoon we went to Minster Lovell which is a ruin of a house built alongside the river Windrush.  It was all very pretty.

On Thursday morning Mum and Dad went to a falconry centre and watched some of the birds flying.

Thumper is an Eagle Owl - here he is sitting on the end of bench quite close to Mum.

Gina is a Tawny Eagle and still learning her flying routine

Scruffy is a Gyr Falcon

In the afternoon we went for a walk around the Batsford Arboretum which was next door to the falconry centre and a lovely peaceful place for a stroll.



Murphy enjoying himself at Batsford - what a big grin!

 

        My final pose of the holiday







And finally dear reader, this is what a very happy and tired Welshie looks like at the end of his holiday ...

Beach & Dartmoor

We had a really good day today. We went back to my favourite beach here in Devon for another play and a big swim. We met lots of other dogs out doing the same.

We were exploring down by the rock pools when we spotted the heron fishing again. We got up really close and I was just about to say hello when woosh he took off.

In the afternoon we headed off to Dartmoor National Park. I thought that Clumber Park was a big place to run around and have fun, but Dartmoor is much much bigger. We went for a long walk on the moor.  There were ponies and cheeky sheep everywhere so Mum said that I had to stay on a long lead so that they wouldn't get scared by me.

There was loads to see and some great rocks to climb on for a better view of the moors.

Tomorrow we are heading away from Devon and back to somewhere called Oxfordshire. I think that we have been there before, but I'll check it out before blogging again.

Murphy & me on Dartmoor