Sneaking through the Snowdrops

I know time goes faster as you get older, but how are we mid-February already?

Long time readers will know that Valentine's is not the most special part of February; Missy's adoptiversary is the most important day of the month! This year marks 11 years that Missy has been part of the family and that number does not fail to shock me every time I see it. She's 12 now, how did that happen?

We celebrated early this year owing to schedules. Like the queen, Missy had two events, one as a photoshoot in her new jumper with the most delightful "cake" (sugar and dairy free waffles with dog friendly chocolates on it) and then again last weekend where we did a nice walk and she was spoiled with her favourite "dead things".

The cake did not last long.

The weekend before last, we managed a trip to the circus with my mum (always a good day out) followed by a really chill Sunday with lots of snuggles for Missy.

And this weekend we managed a quick trip up north to the in laws for a quiet recharge and a play in their campervan - after many years, they have decided we can be trusted to take it for a wee holiday. First of all though we had to camp on the drive, just to be shown everything, all the buttons and dials and trays and hidden compartments (I did not appreciate how much storage their actually was!) Next step is for us to join them at a site (we'll camp) but to be shown how it's set up and how to cook etc in it. 

I feel some of these steps are to encourage us to see them more, but it's always a really chill visit seeing them, so I don't mind!

 

Missy has been removed from the set up team though, after this attempt of tidying up! I think she's best lounging about as foreman and queen than continuing to "help".

One can't forget Ruby who, after her initial excitement, proved she remembered her manners and was very well behaved. Missy has a sore ear at the moment, and her dislike of the winter cold has made her less willing to put up with nonsense from other dogs than usual! We are all very eagerly awaiting spring.

Perhaps we will see a mythical "doggit"!

We have some exciting things lined up for the next update, will see you then!

Powering Through the Weekend

This weekend had an unexpected bonus adventure - the Castle Fraser Steam and Vintage Fair!

So let's rewind a bit. A few months ago, hubby's Dad finally went to a doctor about his bellybutton which had popped out into a little bump (I am positive that this is where hubby has this bad habit from, his arm could be hanging on by a thread and he'd insist he was fine). Of course, to no one's surprise, FIL had an umbilical hernia and he went on a waiting list to get it sorted.

Fast forward to about 10 days, and he was in surgery and successfully had it fixed. Which meant he had to basically be on bed rest for the foreseeable. Which would be fine, if thier dog Ruby, wasn't at least 50% Tigger.

Y'all, this dog has springs for paws. Nonetheless, MIL (who has a gammy knee) stepped up and has done all of the dog walks as well as looking after her husband. We had said since we knew an operation was going to happen that we would come up and help out with Ruby. We knew that it was the best place to help out so that MIL could have a break and get on with some well deserved reading or a nap or two. 

So we arrived and got to work by handing over a get well soon crumble. Saturday we had planned a succession of walks. The Moss. Castle Fraser. BA Field. Maybe the Estate for an evening walk too. 

Also like his father, this is where hubby, and subsequently myself, gets naming walking routes from. 

The Moss, check. A spot of brunch (aka the get well soon crumble which sadly went all too soon). Now onto Castle Fraser. 

We got the dogs in the car and pottered down the road. 

At the entrance was a big sign that said "Steam and Vintage Fair". 

"Oh", I said to hubby, "We must tell your dad they're having an event soon."

We pulled in and were met by dozens of men in bright coats waving us into the overflow caepaek.

"Oh", I said to the car in general, "it's today!" 

We rang MIL whilst we got expertly taken to out parking space. 

"Oh!" FIL could be heard in the background, "I'd forgotten that was on!". 

No, no, there was to be no adventure. We would stick to the plan and be in hand at the house. 

So. Um. Yeah. 

Really, it was an elaborate excuse to work on Ruby's posing. 

Realistically, we did the 30 minute yellow walk and caved. What better way to wear a dog out than new sights, sounds and experiences? Missy is an old hand at this, she'd keep Ruby right and show her there was nothing to be worried about. And, apart from deciding that she deserved a biscuit every time Missy did, regardless of whether she posed it not, Ruby did brilliantly. She was definitely unsure at the start - this is the second event she's done (last year's DogFest being the first), but between hubby's calm demeanour and Missys laid back attitude to the noise and smells, Ruby quickly settled in for it.

We really tried hard with the posing. And she was starting to get the hang if it at the end (although hubby is politely out if shot for them all!) 

We were spoilt for choice. Vintage cars and tractors. Tiny steam engines to giant steam traction engines and rollers. Motorbikes, fire trucks and military vehicles. Honestly, there was something for everyone. 

A very unexpected and delightful adventure. 

We sheepishly returned to the in laws and handed over the exhausted dog. They were delighted we had decided to stay and have a nice day, MIL was pleased to have got the hoovering done and also catch up on her book and emails whilst FIL had a good nap. 

A good day all round then! 

And yes, Ruby did wake up an hour or two later and we took her out again, but she was definitely more chilled out after an adventure of her own. 

Mission accomplished. 

We gave both dogs a good walk this morning before setting off. FIL is now at the point of his recovery where he is to start walking about, so will be able to start on some of the smaller dog walks, so our visit was perfectly timed in thar Ruby will be calmer for them moving into the routine. 

Not a bad little weekend! There is something to be said for a spontaneous adventure!

Accidents in Aberdeen

Well, plans have rather gone awry this weekend. We'd decided to have a wee trip up to Aberdeen to see the in-laws before hubby started his new job on Monday, there was talk on playing with resin (MIL is very into crafts like myself), walks at some nice castles and generally eating far too much food and drinking more tea than is really good for you. Well, that last part is just a natural state of being for me these days! 

*sips tea*

So we arrived Thursday, a bit later than usual as I was working during the day, and we decided that, after a quick cup of tea, we'd take the dogs to the playing field and let Ruby burn off some steam.

That was fine. She was charging after her Frisbee, having fun, Missy was just chilling out and watching and all was going well. Then hubby decided to play piggy in the middle with Ruby, his dad threw the Frisbee, hubby (miraculously, I won't lie) caught it a microsecond before he was ploughed into by Ruby.

And he went down like a sack of potatoes.

There was beat of laughter and then a beat of silence before we realised he wasn't getting up again. Less than an hour into our mini break and my hubby had managed to break himself.

Got him to limp back, elevated it, got the ice out and the painkillers. Fingers crossed he'd wake up bruised but fine in the morning. 

Nope. Still sore. Hobbling badly. Got him to stay in bed whilst I did the dog walk and then played with the resin. After lunch, still no improvement.

He insisted it was fine. 

After dinner, he conceded defeat and let me ring NHS24. After a phone consultation there was a video consultation. Then he was booked into the minor injuries clinic for an in person appointment the next day.

In the end it was an overstretched ligament. So he's to rest it for 3 days and should be fine for a work (which is going to be all induction stuff and paperwork).

We decided just to head back home and take today as an easy day about the house, you heal better in your own space. Hubby already feels much better, so thankfully he's on the mend. 

So much for our quiet weekend away! 

A Quick Catch Up

It's been a busy couple of weeks! So, as mentioned in me last post, hubby has fractured his toe so I've ended up taking on all the dog walking chores although this last week he's managed to slowly make their way around the park for the morning walk.

After a long week, we had the in laws through with Ruby Havok last weekend. My hubby's Aunt (MILs sister) also came for a visit with the intention of us all getting in the Christmas mood. 

Ruby is doing very well, she's only 7 months old but is now an equal weight to Missy, so they got along very well now they can actually play on equal ground. As you can see from the photo though, she's still getting the hang of having her picture taken! It took almost a whole day to puppy proof the house and we did OK, the only casualty being some air hardening clay (which she ate, threw up and then ate some more of... Clearly not the sharpest tack in the box!) 

We were supposed to be doing the lights at the castle, but they were cancelled last minute due to high winds. Then the Sunday was a wash out with some pretty horrendous rain. Sunday had always been planned as the dogs day, and Aunt had asked to see the Kelpies. Despite the shock of my sister who lives nearby (and rang me 3 times to say it was terrible weather and I was mad to go out) but as I said, dogs need walking and so we went anyway. 

Yes. It was very wet. But not so bad that it put Ruby off trying to swim in the canal! Both dogs were quickly snuggled up in dressing gowns (MIL has commissioned one for Ruby) and we all had a well deserved cup of tea when we got in. 

Monday was much more successful. We had booked the lanterns at the zoo and woke up to a hard frost and bright blue skies. I'm happy to do the cold, it's the wet that I hate. I made pancakes for us all much to the Aunts amusement - it had been years, she said, since she had pancakes for breakfast! 

The in laws went to visit BIL and the hubby and I had a quiet morning with the dogs. He hobbled around a nice slow dog walk (linhouse loop, it was the flattest I could think of with something resembling a pavement) and we enjoyed some time to ourselves. 

The lanterns were spectacular. My inner six year old nearly died in joy at the life size triceratops and smilodon. I wasn't sure about the theme originally as I feel dinosaurs are a bit over done these days - and as someone who wanted to be a palaeontologist as a kid, that's saying something. However, I absolutely loved it. The lanterns translated really well into the dinosaurs and, with a pause for a hot chocolate and toasted marshmallows, it took us 2 hours to get round them all. 

Tuesday was back to normal and by the time I was home from work the house was empty again. A lovely visit and finally starting to feel a bit christmassy. 

I didn't get a lot of time for craft, but I was very pleased with this quick project. This is Ruby's first Christmas and I felt she needed a stocking. It had to be girly and sparkly and full of fun treats. I just hope she likes it as much as the rest of us do! 

A Ruby in the Castle

As its the birthday run, the hubby and I took some time off work to go up and visit his parents in Aberdeenshire. We had originally planned on a sneaky trip to the borders, or maybe Oban, but with the stress of the bathroom and that going over budget, we decided that sneaking away to the countryside and being fed cake sounded like a very good plan.

We also got to meet Ruby properly, their now 16 week old puppy Visla. And she is gorgeous, and she knows it!

The weather was too kind. It was bright and sunny the whole visit. We started our trip with us all going to Crathes Castle where Ruby showed off her recall and we got her into the water for the first time. I had to take my socks and shoes off and wade in the river to encourage her to do so, and we had good results. Missy joined in for a paddle too, clearly taking the opportunity to cool off.

We stopped in at the cafe which was very busy and bought drinks and cake and dog-friendly ice cream for the dogs. Missy loves ice cream and, not being allowed dairy, it is a huge treat for her to get anything akin to it. Then we finished the walk and it was good to see them both interacting with one another - Ruby has mostly grown out of the typical bad puppy habits; she isn't jumping on other dogs faces and understands a growl means that the other dog wants space, so the visit in general was much easier than I expected!

The next day we decided to let the puppy rest and the hubby and I took Missy to Dunnattor Castle which has been on the to-do list for a while. Its a half hour drive to Stonehaven where the castle is situated and its impressive from the onset. You have quite a walk to get to the actual castle from the car park, but it does give plenty of opportunity to get some really nice photos!

It was a fairly intact ruin with some fun tid-bits of history. It held off Cromwell and had its fair share of scandals - including the "Whigs Vault" where 167 Covenanters were imprisoned for three months in a tiny vault. Some died whilst others attempted escape or where tortured. Its last Earl was also convicted of treason for supporting the Jacobite rising and the castle was subsequently seized by government. 

It was another glorious day and, whilst at first it was very pleasant, after a few hours it was unfortunately getting too hot. Missy does not do well in the heat despite her short coat and she started to hobble a little so we decided to see if she wanted to cool down by the sea. She dipped a paw in but wasn't interested so we called it quits and headed back so that she could cool down properly and have some sleep.

We finished the evening with a puppy walk at Castle Fraser and, as it had cooled considerably, it was much more enjoyable for everyone! Missy chased rabbits and Ruby delighted us all with some sprinting, although she really does need to grow into her ears! Shes at that really funny stage where she's starting to look like a dog, but isn't quite there. Her legs are too long and gangly and her ears are hysterically too large on her. She takes it all in her stride though and clearly doesn't care what we think.

On our way home, we all stopped at Stonehaven. The hubbys parents had decided to try Ruby in the motorhome (latest update is that she hasn't chewed it to bits yet, but has figured out that its tremendous fun to jump between the seats) and they decided to go with Stonehaven as, if it was a disaster, they could easily get home. We joined them for a walk on the beach and some ice cream before deciding to head home ourselves. Lovely as the visit was, its always nice to go home and sleep in your own bed.

This weekend has been a busy one and I'm aware this post has rambled on long enough, I'll update you all on this weekends adventures later!