Bath Time

Good  morning,

Each day Wendy and Catherine get home from Dock Diving (see yesterday's post), Wendy gets a bath with medicated shampoo. 

Look carefully to see Catherine's t-shirt.  It says "Diving Dock Dog" and that's a cartoon of Wendy doing a canon ball jump.  ;)

Catherine mixes the medicated dog shampoo in a water bottle for easy application.

Careful attention is paid to getting her feet and toes clean.

Wendy enjoys this and loves the rub down she gets, too.

 Since I was responsible for the towel rub drying, I didn't get a picture of that part of the process.

:),
Lois

Wendy the Dock Diver

Good morning,

I have quite a few pictures here today!  Our three-year-old Wendy is quite a canine athlete.  In addition to participating in Agility Trials with the American Kennel Club, she is actively involved in Dock Diving Competition. 

Be sure to scroll all the way down to see the results of the two-day competition!

These images were taken by a friend of Catherine's.  Catherine is our daughter and Wendy's trainer.

Here goes Wendy on the run to go after the "bumper" when it is thrown into the water. 

The dogs are competing to see who can jump the furthest.

Love those ears!

And, the splash!

Here goes another one!  Each one of the "jumps" is called a "splash."

Lift off!

Wendy can fly!

Wendy will do this as often as they'll let her have another turn.

 "I'll get it, Mom!"

 Wendy can walk on water!

 Got it!

 Here are the results of Wendy's six "splashes."  First Place! 

Wendy needs just a few more qualifying jumps to be invited to National Competition that will be held in September.  We're so excited!


We are so proud of Wendy and of Catherine!

Wendy got to pick out a new toy as a prize at the competition.  :)  She's so proud of it that she had to show it off to all of us as soon as she got home.  :)

This is such fun!

Lois

More Rose of Sharon

Good morning,

This is the time of the year when the Rose of Sharon (Hardy Hibiscus) is blooming profusely in our garden.

These plants were here when we arrived in 1979, but not all in the same places where they are growing today.  They spread easily and pop up in places where you may or may not want them to be, but generally I've encouraged them.  I've transplanted quite a few of them along the property line to provide flowering privacy shrubs.  Beautiful!

What is blooming where you live now?

Lois

Potting and Re-Potting

Good morning,

Our daughter, Catherine, owns a nearby office building where she has her CPA practice.  She has quite a few plants in the waiting area near the front door and those plants were in need of re-potting and grooming.

Catherine started by bringing home just a few of the plants so I could work on them for her.

I finished three of them and they are ready to go back to Catherine's office.

The two spider plants in this image are descendants of plants I had in our CPA practice when we had an office in downtown Cincinnati since 1975. 

I also re-potted a jade plant that I will keep here at home for awhile in my "plant hospital" before sending it back to the office.

There are more plants at the office waiting to come to my "plant spa" for a refreshing day of grooming and re-potting. 

;),
Lois

Ground Hog Just Passing Through

Good morning,

This critter made the mistake of passing through our back yard early one morning when I had the pups outside.  He paused just long enough for me to take these pictures with my phone camera.  Then he sprinted to the back corner of our property and jumped a four foot wall to escape.

He's a ground hog and surely a descendant of this one that was living under our front porch five years ago:  http://loishands.blogspot.com/2012/09/uninvited-guest.html.  Five years ago we tried to trap him and remove him to a lovely home in the country, but that didn't work.  After researching on the Internet for another solution, we managed to get that guy to move humanely by putting moth balls into one of the tunnel entrances which forces them to leave through another and dig a new home elsewhere.

These characters dig extensive tunnels that can destroy foundations of homes and make porches collapse.

Keep moving, Mr. Groundhog!

Lois

Linked to Camera Critters

Mid Summer Marigold Blossoms in the Morning Sun

Good morning,

As I was opening the drapes on the front of the house early in the morning, I saw the sun shining through the marigolds on the front porch.

Wow, what a beautiful way to greet a new day!

Enjoy,
Lois

Fruit Dessert

Good morning,

Sometimes you just have to have some fresh fruit. 

Then, while the door of the fridge is still open a can of real whipped cream falls into your hand and you become very artistic with it. 

Oh, yes, it was delicious!

;),
Lois

Comfort Food - Home Made Soup and Bread

Good morning,

Sometimes we just have to get back to basics. 

I made vegetable soup and bread one day and we enjoyed one of the best meals we had all week.

Yum!

What is your favorite comfort food?  ;)

Lois

Encore Band

Good morning,

I took today's image during a performance of the Encore Band.

We were visiting my brother in Delaware, Ohio, at The Inn at Olentangy Trail, the gorgeous new assisted living facility where he now lives. 

We were just lucky to be there at the right time to enjoy this group.  They say they'll be back in a few months for an encore performance of the Encore Band.  :) 

Great people, great music.

Lois

Rest Stop Lilies

Good morning,

I took today's images at an Ohio Rest Stop on our road trip to visit my brother in Delaware, Ohio.

I just love the beautiful flowers and landscaping of Ohio's rest stops. 

When I was a child I remember rest stops with only a place to pull off and use a rest room, often without a flushing toilet!  Now most rest stops are in a park-like setting and are a destination themselves as a beautiful place for a picnic.

When we drove back and forth to ports every ten weeks before retirement we found and enjoyed many beautiful rest stops in other states, too.

All the best,
Lois

Childhood Memories - Lightning Bugs

Good morning,

Does this critter remind you of your childhood? 

I took these images of a Lightning Bug (aka firefly, or more formally, Photuris lucicrescens), strolling across our grill one morning. 

As kids, as soon as we saw Lightning Bugs we ran inside, poked some holes in the lid of a jar, then ran outside to catch a few to watch them flash.  Sadly, this wasn't a good thing for the bugs.  :(

Now we don't save them in jars, we enjoy them outside in the evening.  Our dogs enjoy them, too, but they must not be as tasty as cicadas because Wendy isn't trying to eat them.  ;)

Ah, summer....

Lois

Graeter's Ice Cream Cake

Good morning,

If you're on a diet, this might not be for you.  But, then, there are exceptions, aren't there?  ;)

In that image above is a Graeter's Ice Cream Cake.  If you're from Cincinnati, you know about Graeter's Ice Cream.  There is just nothing like it.  Combine that ice cream into a cake and you've got the absolute BEST taste treat you'll ever find anywhere.

Note that the first ingredient is Black Raspberry Chocolate Chip Ice Cream.  ;)

Catherine had two assistants as she was preparing to cut the cake.  Those are our Lab Testers.

It's not easy to cut an ice cream cake because, of course, it is frozen.  We worked at it, though.  I think we need a few more of them to practice.  ;)

 Wow, pure heaven on a plate.  *sigh*

Yes, I think we should go buy another one so we can practice cutting it....  Yes, of course, that's a good reason to get another one.... 

Enjoy,
Lois