11.30

Just planted the banana tree in the courtyard much to the dismay of at least one resident.

Sent from my Treo Smartphone.

8.30

Just picked some strawberries for the dowager house which I will now take round.

Sent from my Treo Smartphone.

Back on form.

First of all I would like to thank Emily for giving me an award, if you want to visit her blog click on the 'Friendship' button in my sidebar. I personally find her writing a great insight in to the life of a younger person living in another country.

Today has been a holiday here in the UK so no work for me. There wasn't chance to do much of anything as it's rained all day but I'm not complaining as it's the first real rain we've had for sveral months now so everywhere was in need of it. So to pass the time me and Vicki hit the garden centre trail and visited a couple of local garden centres at one of which we had dinner which was a nice.

Tess has been a bit off colour these past couple of days with an upset tummy but she seems pretty much recovered today and has been back up to full energy. There was a bit of an incident tonight when she jumped at Tommy's face one time to many and he gave her a nip back which I think probably shocked her more than hurt her and hopefully taught her a lesson but even so I made it clear to Tom that I wasn't best pleased at him taking things in to his own hands. I think he was quite upset himself and did it without thinking. Anyway I will try and watch them more closely for a while as I don't want anything developing along those lines.

I took this short video just a few minutes ago, seems like she found herself a nice place to go to sleep.

Back on form.

First of all I would like to thank Emily for giving me an award, if you want to visit her blog click on the 'Friendship' button in my sidebar. I personally find her writing a great insight in to the life of a younger person living in another country.

Today has been a holiday here in the UK so no work for me. There wasn't chance to do much of anything as it's rained all day but I'm not complaining as it's the first real rain we've had for sveral months now so everywhere was in need of it. So to pass the time me and Vicki hit the garden centre trail and visited a couple of local garden centres at one of which we had dinner which was a nice.

Tess has been a bit off colour these past couple of days with an upset tummy but she seems pretty much recovered today and has been back up to full energy. There was a bit of an incident tonight when she jumped at Tommy's face one time to many and he gave her a nip back which I think probably shocked her more than hurt her and hopefully taught her a lesson but even so I made it clear to Tom that I wasn't best pleased at him taking things in to his own hands. I think he was quite upset himself and did it without thinking. Anyway I will try and watch them more closely for a while as I don't want anything developing along those lines.

I took this short video just a few minutes ago, seems like she found herself a nice place to go to sleep.

I must be doing something right!

Hello everyone, I haven't done a post for a while due mainly to me playing with dogs and resting when they decided to let me.

Things are going well with Tess, as I say there has been lots of fun and games, that seems to be what a puppies life is all about, play hard, sleep and eat - oh yes, and grow. She is shooting up just in the short time that we've had her.

During the past week she has been practicing tug with Tommy who thinks it's  great fun, and one game can last for quite some time before Tess gets fed up and lets go. She is going after the ball whenever someone throws it and will sometimes fetch it back but that part is probably more luck than anything at the moment.

Today she watch a whole session of Formula One qualifying without being a fidget bum which is quite something, we left getting the beer in to Tommy just for now though.

Also this week I have been getting her used to the harness and lead, she can't go for proper walks yet so we have just been taking a little walk on the grass at the back of the house. It's just to get her used to walking and things around her. I don't find the harness very good for controlling her but the vet said to use it rather than the collar for the time being as it won't hurt her neck with her being so small. She goes okay with the harness as long as she is leading but when I want her to go where I want to go she just lays down, but it's early days so it's okay.

She has also learned to come down the stairs this week which is a bit scary to watch. She also whines in the night, which I take as meaning she wants to go outside. I don't know if that is what she wants by whining but it seems to work so far because we've only had a couple of little accidents at night since we had her. This usually happens around 3 am.

Tess at the top of the stairs.

Two tired doggies - I must be doing something right!

I must be doing something right!

Hello everyone, I haven't done a post for a while due mainly to me playing with dogs and resting when they decided to let me.

Things are going well with Tess, as I say there has been lots of fun and games, that seems to be what a puppies life is all about, play hard, sleep and eat - oh yes, and grow. She is shooting up just in the short time that we've had her.

During the past week she has been practicing tug with Tommy who thinks it's  great fun, and one game can last for quite some time before Tess gets fed up and lets go. She is going after the ball whenever someone throws it and will sometimes fetch it back but that part is probably more luck than anything at the moment.

Today she watch a whole session of Formula One qualifying without being a fidget bum which is quite something, we left getting the beer in to Tommy just for now though.

Also this week I have been getting her used to the harness and lead, she can't go for proper walks yet so we have just been taking a little walk on the grass at the back of the house. It's just to get her used to walking and things around her. I don't find the harness very good for controlling her but the vet said to use it rather than the collar for the time being as it won't hurt her neck with her being so small. She goes okay with the harness as long as she is leading but when I want her to go where I want to go she just lays down, but it's early days so it's okay.

She has also learned to come down the stairs this week which is a bit scary to watch. She also whines in the night, which I take as meaning she wants to go outside. I don't know if that is what she wants by whining but it seems to work so far because we've only had a couple of little accidents at night since we had her. This usually happens around 3 am.

Tess at the top of the stairs.

Two tired doggies - I must be doing something right!

Learning to come and sit.

I'm pleased to report that everything went okay with the visit to my parents house on Saturday, and of course Tess was very popular with everyone and I think it was quite an adventure for her.

Since we've had Tess we have been teaching her to come to us by calling her name and also getting her to sit, below is a short video of progress so far.



I'm sorry if my posts are short of late and I haven't been getting around to you as much as I would like but puppy watching is very time consuming not to mention tiring so the time is just flying by at the moment but I do try and visit you as often as I can.

Learning to come and sit.

I'm pleased to report that everything went okay with the visit to my parents house on Saturday, and of course Tess was very popular with everyone and I think it was quite an adventure for her.

Since we've had Tess we have been teaching her to come to us by calling her name and also getting her to sit, below is a short video of progress so far.



I'm sorry if my posts are short of late and I haven't been getting around to you as much as I would like but puppy watching is very time consuming not to mention tiring so the time is just flying by at the moment but I do try and visit you as often as I can.

Faces

Tess and Tommy.

Playing tug with uncle Tommy.

This past week Tess has kept herself amused by swinging on Tommy's tail and using him as a bouncy castle, not always to Tommy's amusement, but last night she found a game much more to Tommy's liking, below is a short video of one of their tug of war games.



It was nice to see Tommy played nicely and gave her a chance because he is quite capable of just picking her up and walking off if he wanted to.

Yesterday Vicki had her sister and niece with their little girl here for the day so there was lots going off but Tess took it in her stride although she was quite tired by it all but I always think seeing a tired Border Collie is a good sight - seeing any puppy tired is a good sight, it means you can take a rest yourself.

Today Tess is going on her first road trip - well, apart from the one she took getting here. We are off to see my parents who live about an hours drive away, I think she is in for another big day, I will let you know how it goes.

Playing tug with uncle Tommy.

This past week Tess has kept herself amused by swinging on Tommy's tail and using him as a bouncy castle, not always to Tommy's amusement, but last night she found a game much more to Tommy's liking, below is a short video of one of their tug of war games.



It was nice to see Tommy played nicely and gave her a chance because he is quite capable of just picking her up and walking off if he wanted to.

Yesterday Vicki had her sister and niece with their little girl here for the day so there was lots going off but Tess took it in her stride although she was quite tired by it all but I always think seeing a tired Border Collie is a good sight - seeing any puppy tired is a good sight, it means you can take a rest yourself.

Today Tess is going on her first road trip - well, apart from the one she took getting here. We are off to see my parents who live about an hours drive away, I think she is in for another big day, I will let you know how it goes.

Some answers about Tess

I've been asked a few questions about Tess that I haven't answered yet, mostly because I'm spending lots of time with her and I still have all the normal stuff to do like take Tommy for a walk. Anyway I will answer them now. Someone asked me what the storry is behind getting Tess. Well basically it's down to the fact that Tommy has got to take it easy on account of his bad joints so there is no more long walks for him so because Vicki doesn't want me and tom sitting around watching motor racing and getting fat she found Tess for me, well it's worked because there is no way anyone can get fat running around after her all the time! So we really we got her to save Tommy's legs.


 Sara commented on the size of Tess so below is a picture of her against my size 10 foot so that should give you some idea of her size. She was born on the 30th March so that makes her around 7 weeks old.

 Kimmie asked how does she gets on with Tommy, well as you can see below they get on well most of the time, he gets a bit grumpy when she jumps at his face but he just tells her to get off. You can also see from those picture what size she is in relation to Tommy. Scampi doesn't get on  so well with her yet, Tess seems to think she is a sheep and keeps trying to herd her but Scampi doesn't want to play so ends up running off and of course this just means Tess has to do more herding!!

Tess with her uncle Tommy.

I just put this picture on because I like it.

Some answers about Tess

I've been asked a few questions about Tess that I haven't answered yet, mostly because I'm spending lots of time with her and I still have all the normal stuff to do like take Tommy for a walk. Anyway I will answer them now. Someone asked me what the storry is behind getting Tess. Well basically it's down to the fact that Tommy has got to take it easy on account of his bad joints so there is no more long walks for him so because Vicki doesn't want me and tom sitting around watching motor racing and getting fat she found Tess for me, well it's worked because there is no way anyone can get fat running around after her all the time! So we really we got her to save Tommy's legs.


 Sara commented on the size of Tess so below is a picture of her against my size 10 foot so that should give you some idea of her size. She was born on the 30th March so that makes her around 7 weeks old.

 Kimmie asked how does she gets on with Tommy, well as you can see below they get on well most of the time, he gets a bit grumpy when she jumps at his face but he just tells her to get off. You can also see from those picture what size she is in relation to Tommy. Scampi doesn't get on  so well with her yet, Tess seems to think she is a sheep and keeps trying to herd her but Scampi doesn't want to play so ends up running off and of course this just means Tess has to do more herding!!

Tess with her uncle Tommy.

I just put this picture on because I like it.

A visit from the warderobe inspector.

Tonight me and Tommy have been making part of the garden puppy proof. It already is dog proof but a certain determined puppy has managed to wriggle it's way through the wire on a couple of occasions so we have put up a temporary fence inside the garden and put some smaller netting on part of the outside so hopefully that will keep her in until she is to big to fit through the holes in the boundary fence.

Also tonight we had the wardrobe inspector come to pay us a visit, I think she was checking for woodworm or maybe a poor unsuspecting spider that might have set up home in some far flung corner of the wardrobes in the spare room.

It was quite an extensive inspection, leaving one feeling quite exhausted.

When you feel like that there is only one thing to do - take a nap.

A visit from the warderobe inspector.

Tonight me and Tommy have been making part of the garden puppy proof. It already is dog proof but a certain determined puppy has managed to wriggle it's way through the wire on a couple of occasions so we have put up a temporary fence inside the garden and put some smaller netting on part of the outside so hopefully that will keep her in until she is to big to fit through the holes in the boundary fence.

Also tonight we had the wardrobe inspector come to pay us a visit, I think she was checking for woodworm or maybe a poor unsuspecting spider that might have set up home in some far flung corner of the wardrobes in the spare room.

It was quite an extensive inspection, leaving one feeling quite exhausted.

When you feel like that there is only one thing to do - take a nap.

As recommended by the head gardener.

Today I have been planting Dahlia's in the long border, I would normally wait another week or so but because of the good weather we had this past few months they have shot up and I can't hold off planting them any longer. I of course had to enlist the help of the head gardener for this job. During one of our trips to the potting shed I asked him to show me the bones, he's a great believer in bonemeal as a plant fertilizer and whenever I use it I always have a bit of fun with him but even so I was still surprised when I asked him, 'where's the bones' and he went over to the bucket of bonemeal under the bench. So I thought it was worth trying to capture on video, the light wasn't good and I only had my phone so the quality is poor but you will see what I'm talking about. I'm saying, 'where's the bones' and if you look close you will see him run over and keep poking the bonemeal bucket with his nose. I think that anyone who thinks that dogs don't understand some language should watch this.



As recommended by the head gardener.

Today I have been planting Dahlia's in the long border, I would normally wait another week or so but because of the good weather we had this past few months they have shot up and I can't hold off planting them any longer. I of course had to enlist the help of the head gardener for this job. During one of our trips to the potting shed I asked him to show me the bones, he's a great believer in bonemeal as a plant fertilizer and whenever I use it I always have a bit of fun with him but even so I was still surprised when I asked him, 'where's the bones' and he went over to the bucket of bonemeal under the bench. So I thought it was worth trying to capture on video, the light wasn't good and I only had my phone so the quality is poor but you will see what I'm talking about. I'm saying, 'where's the bones' and if you look close you will see him run over and keep poking the bonemeal bucket with his nose. I think that anyone who thinks that dogs don't understand some language should watch this.



A short video of Tess.

Today I managed to take a little video of Tess for you, it's only a short one as she is hard to keep up with for any length of time, or I end up throwing the camera down because she is up to something she shouldn't be. Anyway it will give you some idea of what she is like and I will try and get some better ones sometime.

Tonight we went in to town to get her a crate, we haven't had one for any of the other dogs but we thought we would try her with one just so the others get a break from her. She does have a pen in the spare room but it's not mobile and is to far off if we are downstairs. We bought a new dog bed yesteday but when we got home we went and found one that Tippy used to have so we swapped the new bed for the crate, we also had to swap the harness because we under estimated how big she is. We can't take her out for walks for a while yet but I want to get her used to the harness and lead as soon as possible.

A short video of Tess.

Today I managed to take a little video of Tess for you, it's only a short one as she is hard to keep up with for any length of time, or I end up throwing the camera down because she is up to something she shouldn't be. Anyway it will give you some idea of what she is like and I will try and get some better ones sometime.

Tonight we went in to town to get her a crate, we haven't had one for any of the other dogs but we thought we would try her with one just so the others get a break from her. She does have a pen in the spare room but it's not mobile and is to far off if we are downstairs. We bought a new dog bed yesteday but when we got home we went and found one that Tippy used to have so we swapped the new bed for the crate, we also had to swap the harness because we under estimated how big she is. We can't take her out for walks for a while yet but I want to get her used to the harness and lead as soon as possible.

Another good night.

Things went well with the puppy again last night, only way it could have been better was if she let me lay in bed half an how longer.

Sent from my Treo Smartphone.

Tess's first night.

Yesterday we came over all rash and went out and got a Border Collie puppy who we have named Tess. When I say we came over all rash don't think we just did it on the spur of the moment, we have thought long and hard about it and now that Tommy is being forced to take things a little easier due to his legs we thought this might be a good time to get something with a bit more energy for those more active moments in our lives. So when I say rash I just mean that when we woke up yesterday we never imagined that when we went to bed we would have a new member of our family.

She is full of life and no doubt driving the other dogs mad, Scampi keeps out of the way and Tommy grumbles from time to time but he isn't nasty with it and they are both curled up together under my desk fast asleep as I write this so I'm sure there will be no problems once they settled in together.

I've made a little place in the spare room for her where she stayed all night. There was a bit of crying for the first five minutes but heard nothing from her until 7:45 this morning. There was no mess of any kind so when i got up I took her straight out in to the garden where she did a wee which I thought was good.

She has learned to climb the stairs already although once up them can't get back down but I'm sure it won't be long before she figured that out.

Well I'm sure to be taking loads and loads of pictures for you so if you're interested in seeing her develop please call back.

Tess

Tess's first night.

Yesterday we came over all rash and went out and got a Border Collie puppy who we have named Tess. When I say we came over all rash don't think we just did it on the spur of the moment, we have thought long and hard about it and now that Tommy is being forced to take things a little easier due to his legs we thought this might be a good time to get something with a bit more energy for those more active moments in our lives. So when I say rash I just mean that when we woke up yesterday we never imagined that when we went to bed we would have a new member of our family.

She is full of life and no doubt driving the other dogs mad, Scampi keeps out of the way and Tommy grumbles from time to time but he isn't nasty with it and they are both curled up together under my desk fast asleep as I write this so I'm sure there will be no problems once they settled in together.

I've made a little place in the spare room for her where she stayed all night. There was a bit of crying for the first five minutes but heard nothing from her until 7:45 this morning. There was no mess of any kind so when i got up I took her straight out in to the garden where she did a wee which I thought was good.

She has learned to climb the stairs already although once up them can't get back down but I'm sure it won't be long before she figured that out.

Well I'm sure to be taking loads and loads of pictures for you so if you're interested in seeing her develop please call back.

Tess

Tess

Look what we've got! She has been have a good explore round the house ever since got back.

Tess

Look what we've got! She has been have a good explore round the house ever since got back.

Puppy hunt.

We're of the Bradford to look at puppes!

Sent from my Treo Smartphone.

Screen shopping.

This morning we've been looking online at puppies, we saw one that we really liked the look of but it turned out to be a boy and we want a girl so not sure if to go and look at the others or not.

Sent from my Treo Smartphone.

What happened to Tommy and the BIG black dragon.

Hello everyone, I hope you're all okay and looking forward to the weekend.

Did anyone see the post I did on Tommy and the big black dragon? The thing is it seems to have disappeared so now I'm wondering if I dreamt it or something - very strange.

Vicki got a visit from the woman at the flower shop that she used to work at up until Christmas last year and she has asked her to go back and work there so now we are in a real dilemma because she all set to become a care worker and so now she doesn't know what to do for the best.

Someone asked me the other day to show pictures of the houses we visited last weekend so below are some pictures of the house that we took a fancy too. We won't be bothering with the first house we went to see but if the one you see below is still on the market when ours is sold then I think we would make an offer on it as it's in a nice village surrounded by lovely countryside.

Things with our own property are getting started, we have to get it energy checked to get a rating as to how energy efficient it is - another job for the boys but you have to do it before the agent will advertise it, the annoying thing is we have to pay for it.

What happened to Tommy and the BIG black dragon.

Hello everyone, I hope you're all okay and looking forward to the weekend.

Did anyone see the post I did on Tommy and the big black dragon? The thing is it seems to have disappeared so now I'm wondering if I dreamt it or something - very strange.

Vicki got a visit from the woman at the flower shop that she used to work at up until Christmas last year and she has asked her to go back and work there so now we are in a real dilemma because she all set to become a care worker and so now she doesn't know what to do for the best.

Someone asked me the other day to show pictures of the houses we visited last weekend so below are some pictures of the house that we took a fancy too. We won't be bothering with the first house we went to see but if the one you see below is still on the market when ours is sold then I think we would make an offer on it as it's in a nice village surrounded by lovely countryside.

Things with our own property are getting started, we have to get it energy checked to get a rating as to how energy efficient it is - another job for the boys but you have to do it before the agent will advertise it, the annoying thing is we have to pay for it.

Tommy and the BIG black dragon.

Last Saturday my family took me with them on a house hunting trip, apart from my mum and dad there was my grandma and granddad. Mum and dad are selling the house they own in Derbyshire as it needs quite a lot of work doing to it also they want to go in to the holiday letting business which would cost a lot of money to bring that house up to standard so they are looking to sell it and buy one more suitable somewhere in Yorkshire so that when the property is empty we can take a break there ourselves. So on Saturday I could see they were getting ready to go on an adventure so I stuck very close to my dad and made every wish that I could think of so that they would take me with them and it worked. They loaded me in the back of the car where I was given the job of guarding the packed lunches and then we were soon speeding up the motorway. We called in at two houses but I wasn't allowed to look at them even though I did bark to remind them that I was there. I thought it was a bit mean them leaving me in the car while they went sniffing at all those new places but I soon forgave them because after visiting the houses we spent the rest of the day exploring nearby towns. I love walking round town with my dad, there are so many wonderful and interesting things that I've never seen before.

Me with dad and grandma.

There was one thing that I don't want to see again though and that is the big black dragon at Pickering. It was lying at the entrance to it's kennel when dad said we must get a closer look. I wasn't sure it was a good idea but it didn't seem to bother when we went closer, all it was doing was huffing and puffing.

But then without any warning it made an loud hissing noise and blew clouds of smoke from its nostrels. Well it made me jump right out of my skin, everyone thought it was funny but not me. Thankfully dad was understanding and took me away, we went and stood outside a bakers shop as he knows they are my favourite shops and soon all those wonderful smells made me forget the scary dragon.

After Pickering we went to Scarborough which is a town at the seaside. Here we watched boats and people and went for a walk near to the sands and then before leaving we had some fish and chips and everyone saved some to share with me which I really enjoyed, its very hungry work exploring all these new places and fighting off dragons and ignoring other dogs and being nice to strangers when they pat me on the head. Before leaving for home they took me to the sea for a paddle. I'm not allowed to go in very deep anymore on account of my legs, the cold water isn't good for them but I didn't mind too much as I had loads of fun anyway.

Tommy and the BIG black dragon.

Last Saturday my family took me with them on a house hunting trip, apart from my mum and dad there was my grandma and granddad. Mum and dad are selling the house they own in Derbyshire as it needs quite a lot of work doing to it also they want to go in to the holiday letting business which would cost a lot of money to bring that house up to standard so they are looking to sell it and buy one more suitable somewhere in Yorkshire so that when the property is empty we can take a break there ourselves. So on Saturday I could see they were getting ready to go on an adventure so I stuck very close to my dad and made every wish that I could think of so that they would take me with them and it worked. They loaded me in the back of the car where I was given the job of guarding the packed lunches and then we were soon speeding up the motorway. We called in at two houses but I wasn't allowed to look at them even though I did bark to remind them that I was there. I thought it was a bit mean them leaving me in the car while they went sniffing at all those new places but I soon forgave them because after visiting the houses we spent the rest of the day exploring nearby towns. I love walking round town with my dad, there are so many wonderful and interesting things that I've never seen before.

Me with dad and grandma.

There was one thing that I don't want to see again though and that is the big black dragon at Pickering. It was lying at the entrance to it's kennel when dad said we must get a closer look. I wasn't sure it was a good idea but it didn't seem to bother when we went closer, all it was doing was huffing and puffing.

But then without any warning it made an loud hissing noise and blew clouds of smoke from its nostrels. Well it made me jump right out of my skin, everyone thought it was funny but not me. Thankfully dad was understanding and took me away, we went and stood outside a bakers shop as he knows they are my favourite shops and soon all those wonderful smells made me forget the scary dragon.

After Pickering we went to Scarborough which is a town at the seaside. Here we watched boats and people and went for a walk near to the sands and then before leaving we had some fish and chips and everyone saved some to share with me which I really enjoyed, its very hungry work exploring all these new places and fighting off dragons and ignoring other dogs and being nice to strangers when they pat me on the head. Before leaving for home they took me to the sea for a paddle. I'm not allowed to go in very deep anymore on account of my legs, the cold water isn't good for them but I didn't mind too much as I had loads of fun anyway.

Best way.

The best way to start the day is with a good squirrel chase - according to Tommy.

Sent from my Treo Smartphone.

A nice one.

we are safely back home after a good day out.

We saw one property that we really liked but need to sell our own house first.

Sent from my Treo Smartphone.

Pickering.

We have checked out a couple of houses so now we are having a bit of a tour round the area. At the moment we are having a walk round the market town of Pickering.

House hunt.

Today we are going house hunting in North Yorkshire.

Last night Vicki got the results of the tests she had done the other week and they were not the best, she has skin cancer and needs to have work done to remove it. So because of this its hard to be as enthusiastic about today.

Sent from my Treo Smartphone.

First Strawberries.

For those of you who followed my lead and grew some indoor strawberry plants you will no doubt be looking to harvest your first berries this weekend or very soon after, maybe you already did.

For those who didn't grow any indoor plants you will have to make do with the flowers for a little while longer which I think are just as pretty as the berries are tasty.

Vicki went for an interview for a job today and everything seems positive so we are hopeful that if she gets it things will turn out better than the last one did.

I will leave you with a couple more pictures from my walk last weekend, these are taken whlst walking through the Bluebell woods on the way to Hassop village.

First Strawberries.

For those of you who followed my lead and grew some indoor strawberry plants you will no doubt be looking to harvest your first berries this weekend or very soon after, maybe you already did.

For those who didn't grow any indoor plants you will have to make do with the flowers for a little while longer which I think are just as pretty as the berries are tasty.

Vicki went for an interview for a job today and everything seems positive so we are hopeful that if she gets it things will turn out better than the last one did.

I will leave you with a couple more pictures from my walk last weekend, these are taken whlst walking through the Bluebell woods on the way to Hassop village.