About this Blog: Bread making recipes, knit and crochet projects, wood working, gardening, digital imaging, travel, cruise ships, Labrador Retrievers, and more....

About the Header Image: Idlebrook Wendy Darling Evensen "Wendy" one of our four Labrador Retrievers.

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Wednesday, May 31, 2023

Another Flash Back to Mother's Day

 Good morning,

While going through images I took in May, I came across this one and have to share.

Kjell made this coaster tile with his new laser for me for Mother's Day.  He's perfecting the process so that we will have similar coasters in the shop soon.  

This is fantastic!

Thanks, Sweetie.

Love,

Lois

Tuesday, May 30, 2023

Wind Chime Sail

 Good morning,

This is so lovely.  Kjell made a new sail for the wind chime he recently made for our back yard.  Above is one side of it...

 ...and the back side lists of all of our pups of more than twenty years.

So very lovely!

Thank you, Sweetheart,

Lois

Monday, May 29, 2023

Memorial Day - United States of America

 

Memorial Day - United States of America

Take time today to stop and thank all those who gave their lives to make this and every day a day of freedom possible for us.

Sunday, May 28, 2023

My Son Knows Me Well

 Good morning,

Flash back to Mother's Day.  

I received this from one of my sons for Mother's Day.  He knows me so well!  Ah, yes, chocolate, strawberries, cheesecake....

 My goodness, this was fabulous!

Thank you, Don!  

I love you!

:),

Mom

Saturday, May 27, 2023

Late Night Play

 Good morning,

We have "last call" for potty time for the pups before we go to bed each night. 

Of course, we get them outside and moving and they want to play.  

They are all such good pups.  It's not too often that one of them needs to go out in the middle of the night, but when they do, they always tell us.

Good dogs!

:),

Lois

Friday, May 26, 2023

Quick Summer Shrimp Dinner

 Good morning,

Summer meals can be very light around here. In fact, they sometimes just look like appetizers, but they are so very good!

A little shrimp, mayonnaise (a Norwegian thing with shrimp), a squirt of lemon, and some Ritz Crackers....

Great!

Lois

Thursday, May 25, 2023

Getting So Big!

 Good morning,

Lily is putting all that food she eats to good use!  She is getting so big!  Lily is on a raw diet that we prepare for her from people foods purchased at our grocery and butcher.  No doggie food for our pups.  They thrive on the raw diet and have long, healthy lives.  Win-win!

 A great way to see her growth is how she fits on the doggie deck chair.

Again, she is chewing on a stick.  Yum!  OK, ewwww, to me....

Puppies are so much fun!

:),

Lois

Wednesday, May 24, 2023

Decisions, Decisions.... Toy or Stick?

 Good morning,

So many things to try!  Lily has more soft and chewy doggie toys than she can possibly explore. In addition to the toys we pick up for them, every time our pups do a great job at the dog club, they are awarded a new toy.  That results in more toys than they can possibly play with in any one month, much less in years!  

But, here's our baby Lily.  She has access to all these great toys, but that stick just looks so much better!  Of course, she is teething so that stick feels pretty good.

The trick, though, is getting the pups to keep the sticks outside!  The shop vacuum works over time when they bring one inside.

We are so pleased to have our Lily.  She is a gem and a great addition to our "pack."

:),

Lois

Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Classic Iris

 Good morning,

We have two large clumps of these classic iris. 

 I planted these years ago and they seem to like it here as much as we love having them.

 What makes these so special is that they were also my Mom's favorites.  We had them growing along the side of our home where I grew up and often enjoyed bouquets of them on the dining room table.

So lovely and such great memories.

Lois

Monday, May 22, 2023

Mr. Groundhog

 Good morning,

I took these images through glass and a screen, but am still glad I have them.

A groundhog seems to like my bread that was knocked off of the bird feeder.

 He looks pretty mean here!

We had problems with them under our porch a couple of years ago.  Here's the whole story.

 The link explains why we can't let this character stick around.  And, so, Mr. Groundhog, if we find where you have dug in again, we'll have to help you move on.  We're glad you can enjoy a little bread until then.

Lois

Sunday, May 21, 2023

Las Vegas Marriott

 Good morning,

Isn't this lovely!  

Catherine and a friend took a very short trip to Las Vegas where her friend gave a speech and Catherine enjoyed an after-tax-season break.

While her friend was in meetings, Catherine had time to stroll around the property and relax.

A well-deserved trip!

:),

Lois

Saturday, May 20, 2023

Erik and Lily Strolling

 Good morning,

It is beautiful to see the relationship between our fourteen year old Erik and our three month old Lily.

Erik is a gentleman and very good with puppies.  He tolerates their antics and doesn't mind a soft cuddle with a playful puppy.  He's a little stiff with age, but still gets around quite well.

We cherish the time we have with them both.

Lois

Friday, May 19, 2023

Happy Birthday Number Nine to Our Wendy

   

 Good morning,

Happy Birthday number nine to our Dear Sweet Wendy!  

 Wendy's formal AKC name with titles:  Idlebrook Wendy Darling Evensen AX AXJ OF DS CGC

She also holds National Dock Diving titles:  DJ DM DSX2 

Above you see Wendy enjoying Disney's Lady and the Tramp from her comfy seat in Daddy's recliner.  She's loving the Disney Channel!

Update on the pack:  Wendy is doing a great job with our new baby. Wendy was sleeping, but awoke and moved over so that Lily could join her.  She may look a little put-off by baby Lily sharing her deck chair, but they are getting more and more friendly and happy to be together.  It's hard not to like baby Lily, that's for sure!

 It's party time for Wendy today!

:),

Lois

Thursday, May 18, 2023

Salt and Pepper Shakers?

 Good morning,

Salt and Pepper Shakers?  Vanilla and Licorice?  

Erik and Wendy are enjoying the warmth of Spring Sun.

My brother and sister-in-law gave us Labrador salt and pepper shakers many years ago.  Here they are in real life.

;),

Lois

Wednesday, May 17, 2023

Constitution Day - Kingdom of Norway

File:Flag of Norway.svg - Wikimedia Commons 

Constitution Day - Kingdom of Norway
Happy May 17 to all of our Norwegian Family and Friends!

 


Tuesday, May 16, 2023

Working on Friendships - Wendy and Lily

 

Good morning,

Here's a short video of our nine year old Wendy and baby Lily.

Wendy was the last of our pack to warm up to Lily.  In fact, I swear the looks I got from Wendy for the first week meant, "When are you taking her back?"

Finally, they are playing together as we knew they would eventually do.

It's all working out very well.

Sweet!

Lois

Monday, May 15, 2023

Steak Dinner

 Good morning,

Catherine has done it again! She makes sure we have some real treats and this is one of them!

That's a filet mignon she prepared to perfection on the grill, baked potato, fresh salad, and sauteed mushrooms.  

Oh, my, that was good....

Thank you, dear Catherine.

Love,

Mom and Dad

Sunday, May 14, 2023

Happy Mother's Day and Graduation

 Good morning,

Happy Mother's Day to all the mothers including surrogate mothers, pet mothers, and those who mother out of nothing but pure love.  We are fortunate to have a beautiful family of children, grandchildren, and now even a great grand child.

This weekend was a special time for our granddaughter, Sophie, who graduated from American University in Washington, DC. She was selected to be the undergraduate speaker and graduated with awards and honors. 

-------------------------------------

----------------------------------------

Sophie will intern through the summer, then continue her Masters Degree studies.

Congratulations, Sophie!  We are so very proud of you!

Love,

Grandma and Grandpa

Saturday, May 13, 2023

Club Visit

 Good morning,

Those are two of my best friends in that image above:  daughter Catherine and new baby Lily.

Lily is too young to train in Agility, but Catherine is taking her to the club to visit with other club members and to get used to being around the equipment.  As soon as her body matures, Lily will be ready to train.

Lily is enrolled in Puppy Classes at the club now, too.  We can't recommend AKC puppy classes highly enough.

 Lily says she is ready!  :)

Photo credit to Catherine and club friends.

So sweet,

Lois

Friday, May 12, 2023

Wall Walkers

 Good morning,

Since we cleared all of the bushes and most of the vines along the stone wall in the back yard the pups have had a good time "walking the wall" again.

Here are Erik and Lily doing just that.  We had three large compost bins behind those bushes since 1979, but they were destroyed when the last big tree fell in the back yard.  We finally got the bins cleared and all the "stuff" that was still in them has been spread along the top level.  The pups are finding all kinds of treasures in there!  Old toys and balls were swept up in leaves during the year and tossed into the bin.  Those things are great finds for the pups now.

Happy Spring!

Lois

Thursday, May 11, 2023

Wendy at Work

 Good morning,

Our pups go to work with our daughter, Catherine, regularly.  Catherine owns her own building for her CPA practice, so is happy to do this, especially on days when clients who love dogs have appointments. Until clients say they would like to meet our pups, Catherine has out of sight/out of mind places where the pups quietly wait for the next client who wants to meet them.  

Clients know the office is pet friendly, too, for those who bring their own pups.  It's much better for them to be in the air conditioned office than waiting in a car outside.

Anyway, here you see Wendy doing her office job in the conference room.  She gets paid in cookies, pets, love, and lots and lots of friendly visitors.  

Now, if only she had opposable thumbs so she could use the computer and handle file folders....

;),

Lois

Wednesday, May 10, 2023

Fish Dinner for the Doggies

 Good morning,

Every once in awhile Catherine purchases whole raw fish for each of our four pups to consume. 

 Of course, this is an outside activity and each pup gets his/her own fish.

 This is our puppy Lily's first fish dinner experience and she is loving it!

Is it a toy?

Is it food?
It's both!

Baby Lily did a great job consuming her fish, but made a mistake of walking away toward the end of the event when distracted by a blowing leaf.  

Lily found out very quickly that Wendy would swoop in and finish off the very end of her meal.  Lily ate all of her fish except the head.  Wendy ate all of her own fish and the head of Lily's fish.

Nutritious fun!

:),

Lois

Tuesday, May 9, 2023

Living Weighted Blanket

 Good morning,

Look carefully to see our daughter, Catherine, under her 130 pound heated weighted blanket. 

 Lap space is limited for Wendy and Elsa who just have to cuddle Catherine when she gets home.  

:),

Lois

Monday, May 8, 2023

It's a Cake!

 Good morning,

Catherine sent me this picture from our dog club.  It's a cake in celebration of an AKC Grand Agility Champion Title!

What artistry!  That's just too pretty to eat!

Beautiful!  Congratulations!

:),

Lois

Sunday, May 7, 2023

Lily the Social Butterfly

 Good morning,

Our new baby, Lily, is quite the social butterfly.  She's visiting with lots of friends and going to lots of places.

 The lady holding Lily in the image above is our friend Susan Ball.  Image credit goes to our daughter, Catherine.

Lily loves people and is so very happy meeting more and more of them.

Charlie Brown:  "Happiness is a warm puppy dog." 

Lois

Saturday, May 6, 2023

Sonic's New Title

 Good mornning,

Catherine helps train her friend's dogs at our dog club and also runs them in agility trials.  Here she's receiving a ribbon for a new title for Sonic.

Sonic belongs to Catherine's friend Linda Macke and Catherine just helped him complete his Open Jumpers With Weaves Title.  

That's our daughter, Catherine, on the left, and AKC Judge Jen Young on the right.

Congratulations to all!

:),

Lois

Friday, May 5, 2023

Visiting Robin

 Good morning,

Here's a switch from all of the puppy images I've been posting lately.  

We still have plenty of activity at our bird feeder outside our living room doors. 

 This pretty little robin was as interested to look at us as we were at her.

Sweet!

;),

Lois

Thursday, May 4, 2023

Best Friends

 Good morning,

We are carefully monitoring the socialization between our baby Lily and our older pups, Erik, Wendy, and Elsa.  

Fourteen year old Erik is good with pups, but he's slower to move and stiff so doesn't interact more than to watch and monitor activities.  Nine year old Wendy is still not sure about this puppy thing, but is becoming more involved with Lily.  On the other hand, four year old Elsa was thrilled with the new puppy and they are best friends already sharing toys, zoomies, and naps.  

Lily is fearless.  She was born to a breeder who socializes her pups with her older dogs and people at appropriate ages.  Our breeder, Alicia, also provides a large variety of toys, activities, and venues for the pups and even has them mostly potty trained before they go home to their furever homes. 

 It's not always easy to catch videos of these pups, but here are a couple of them.

 Enjoy!

Lois

Wednesday, May 3, 2023

Every Inch Must Be Explored

 Good morning,

Our inquisitive new puppy, Lily, must explore every inch of her surroundings. 

 She discovered a tiny ant walking across the patio...

 ...and carefully tracked it...

 ...until it was suddenly nap time.

;),

Lois