A Wee Bit O' Irish in the Morn'

Friday was my last day of work before my week-long Spring break.  If only Mother Nature had gotten the memo - but I'm not one to complain; at least not for too long.  I'll take a week off even if it's going to be cold.  And snowy.  A week off is a week off after all.  Besides... this Spring break is going to be a lot of fun because we picked up our new puppy!
                                                          


Annie Oakley is her name and looking for trouble is her game!   


Saturday morning finally arrived.  Suzy and I got up early and went through our morning routine-breakfast and a quick trip outside for her, then coffee for me while we sit on the couch relaxing and enjoying each other's company.  Suzy had no idea she was soon to become a "big sister", but I knew and I decided I had to savor this one final morning that would be so peaceful.  Once Annie got here things were going to be different.  Puppies just don't understand that morning time is for sitting quietly and relaxing.  Since it is St. Patrick's Day weekend and we would be heading to a St. Patrick's Day party later in the evening what better way to enjoy my coffee than to make it an Irish Coffee?!
                                                       
I was making an Irish Lime Meringue Pie to take to the party so I even had Irish Whiskey. Just a small splash of that went into my coffee along with the Bailey's.  Redi-Whip sprayed on top with a sprinkling of nutmeg.  That was a coffee to enjoy!  I could feel my "Irish" coming out already!


The pie was a snap to make.  I cheated and bought a graham cracker pie crust to use.  The filling was a can of condensed milk, 3 egg yolks, a couple tablespoons of Irish Whiskey, and lime juice.  Then I whipped up my meringue and popped it into the oven for about 15 minutes.  I have to pat myself on the back here and brag about my meringue. It was the best attempt ever for me at making meringue!


                                                                
It was light, subtly sweet, stiff enough to stand up nice and straight, and best of all - it did not weep or pull away from the sides of the pie!  While we went to the party we left Annie with my mom and dad.  They had her littermate and brother, Chip, so what's one more puppy to rush outside for potty breaks, right?  Plus - my little sister had another brother, Hank, and she would be visiting with my parents.  A regular puppy party was going on.  It was cute to see the 3 pups wiggle with excitement when they saw each other after being separated for a day.  I hear Annie is the ornery one that instigates the "fights".  I believe it - she does the same thing with Suzy and Suzy doesn't seem to mind all that much. 


Suzy likes Annie.  When she came to live here there were new toys for both!  Annie eats more meals and that means Suzy is getting to have a few little bites in her dish, too.  There are lots of trips outside, too.


The party was fun and the food was fabulous!  I ate so much corned beef, shepherds pie and desserts I felt like I was going to burst.  We left early so we could get back to Annie.  I didn't want her to forget where she lives.       




This morning there was no time for coffee.  After a trip outside, breakfast, another trip outside, several games of chewing, discovering that cats live here, and much running, jumping, exploring, Annie finally wore out! 
   Her naps last just long enough for me to get comfortable.  Then we have to start the routine all over again:  Trip outside, play a while, eat, another trip outside, play, then another nap.  Yup - this week is gonna be a dog's life for me!  (And I couldn't be happier!)

Everything's Coming up Puppies!!!

Spring is just around the corner and this year in my family that means one thing:  Puppies!!   It's a sense of deja'vu of the best kind ever.  Fifteen years ago my parents had a Labrador retriever they bred and we got our Missy, who has been gone for 2 years now.  My parents had Missy's littermate and the two grew up playing with each other for just over 13 years.    Now here we are, 15 years later, and my sister has bred her lab (a "nephew" to Missy) and both us and my parents are getting a puppy!  Littermates once again; us a little girl, them a little boy.  Last time around we both had chocolates.  This time around we are both getting black.  I'm sure my blogs will be filled with stories of these two puppies!




    

 

Surprises!

We are a family full of dog lovers.  It's all my parents' fault!  We always had a dog growing up and were taught to love, respect, and care for that dog to the best of our abilities.  Because of that life-lesson taught all four of us kids, we all have dogs and our children are all dog lovers as well.  We've all had our share of dogs - both mutts and purebreds.  One is not better than the other - a dog knows no snobbery of being from "good bloodlines" or just a simple "dog" with many bloodlines.  Each and every dog has been a faithful and well-loved companion for many years.


My mom and dad had a black lab, Chief, that they trained and showed.  He quickly became a champion and then moved on to more important duties; he became a therapy dog touching the lives of many sick, elderly, and family members of the sick and elderly.  Arriving at the hospital or nursing home, Chief would be greeted by name by all who saw him.  My parents were usually simply known as "Chief's owners".   Their part in this endeavor was valuable for Chief couldn't be there without them, but clearly Chief was the star.  Chief also became a stud dog.  My dad would carefully screen who Chief would be bred with and many litters of great labs were born.  One of those litters contained two chocolate labs that became a very important part of our family's lives.  A little boy my parents had and a beautiful female that became our beloved Missy.  Prince and Missy lived a good long life, 13+ years in fact.  In March it will be two years since Missy crossed over the Rainbow Bridge, just one month after Prince had done the same.


Another off-spring of Chief was King, a yellow lab my parents also had for a good many years.  Prince and King not only were well-loved family members, but they also were therapy dogs and stud dogs.  My younger sister has a puppy of King.  Midas is his name and he recently became a father of a litter of 10 beautiful black labs!    Thus - this story begins!


January 25th was a much anticipated day in our family.  My sister had bred Midas with a dog belonging to the same woman that had the mother to our Missy.  Midas's "girlfriend", Abbi, was not related to Missy's mother, but Midas is Missy's nephew.  These puppies were going to be related to Missy and I wanted one in the worst way.  Ten beautiful, healthy puppies were born - eight boys and 2 girls.  I had convinced Jon we "needed" a puppy - even though our Suzy is only 5-1/2 years old.  Our labs are hunting companions for Jon.  Suzy had ligament repair surgery to her back left leg a few years ago and is showing signs of arthritis.  We fear her days out hunting in the marsh are numbered.

Jon called to see if we were high enough up on the list to get one of those little girls.  He came home that night only to tell me that there were several people in front of us on the list who wanted females.  Our chances were pretty much zero to get a puppy.  I resigned myself to the fact that we were not going to get a puppy from the same bloodlines as Missy.  My parents were getting a puppy and I figured I could spend a lot of time playing with their pup. 

Thursday while at work I got a call from Jon.  He starts the conversation out with "Don't be upset with me for lying... but.... we are getting a puppy.  I wanted to surprise you, but then I decided you needed to know so you could be in on the excitement of waiting and figuring out a name."  WooHoo!!  That was the best news!  And Saturday we went to take a look at our new baby!! 

She is beautiful.  And smart.  And very curious.  She was the first one to figure out how to crawl out of the box.  I think we have picked out a name - Annie Oakley; Annie for short.  I know she will fit right into our lives.  Suzy will love her.  The cats will hate her, but only for a week or so.  Once they figure out she's not going anywhere they'll welcome her into the fold. 

We get to bring her home on March 15th - the start of my Spring Break!  How perfect.  I get to stay home for a whole week with her!  She will be coming home one week shy of exactly two years since Missy left us.  I know that's a sign of some kind.  Now all I have to hope for is that winter leaves us by March 15th.  Going outside with a puppy every couple of hours in the snow and cold doesn't sound like a lot of fun to me.