Spirit Rider Golden Retrievers!

This is a recent picture of our Golden Retriever Gang taken in the beautiful mountains west of us.
Faith,Ember,Beamer,Kona,Kiss,Loma and Isla in the front.

Yellow Ducky!

Caught this pic of this little one from a recent litter napping with her favorite cuddle toy "Ducky Dude" !

Isla's First Win!

Our new little girl Isla won the Best Baby Puppy Class at the Alberta Kennel Club show held at Spruce Meadows (Calgary) on the August long weekend! She has a very promising show career ahead as she took it all in stride and loved all the attention!

Curly Baby!

This is our first Bashkir Curly foal for 2011! He is strong and enjoying the sunshine!

Copperluna Three Cheers

We are thrilled to welcome Isla (Copperluna Three Cheers) to our home today! Pictured is co-owner, Shannon Flynn who is her breeder and brought her all the way from Scotland to live with us.She is absolutely beautiful and we can hardly to show her off in the ring!This afternoon, she settled in for a nice nap with her duck, wolf toy and our bichon, Baron. Quite comfortable and settling well already!

Buffle Head Ducks

This spring I was thrilled to see a male Buffle Head duck return to our pond for a few days visit but with a female as well! The morning mist was calm and promising of the weather finally shaking off the winter blues.

Digging up Spring!

"Keep digging! Green grass must be here somewhere!"

Well! I've never experienced a year like this. Not only is spring delayed, but there is also a delay in my golden girls coming into season. So many people waiting too for their new fuzzy family members to join their family, and I'm at a loss as to what to say...Mother Nature has her own schedule this year...there must be a reason not apparent yet. However, the right pup always seems worth waiting for in the end and the patience of good family homes proves worthwhile too.
I did make a vow going into this winter that I would not complain about the winter and try and find the beauty around me...I made it till February...then I just lost it!! Really! seriously! I can rant on the weather as good as Rick Mercer can rant on the government and I no longer make excuses for my temperment. I'm fed up and there isn't enough vitamin D in the world to make up for the lack of sunshine lately! Ok going to go put another log on the fire and pout.

Glass Event

Delightful Dinner and a Dish Event!
Last night I hosted 8 women who first sat down to a dinner that included Wild Mushroom Soup with Sherry, Gingered Grapes, Stuffed Tomatoes with Spinach & Artichokes and many other items and finished with a fresh fruit Pavlova!
Then the glass fun began as each participant created their own memorable glass dish that I will fuse and slump for them. It was fun to see the pieces in creation and the variety of styles! I will post some more pictures once they are finished.

Blue Heron Gallery

I am pleased to announce the opening of The Blue Heron Gallery. It is in the great little village at Pigeon Lake. Several pieces of my glass work are now available through this gallery. You will also find a wonderful variety of paintings, pottery, sculpture etc. There will be an opening evening on Tuesday March 22 from 6-8 pm if you are out in that area.
PS If you get a chance to have a bite to eat at the village I would recommend the ECO Cafe. Great Food!

Stone Cold

One of my smaller lambs was unfortunately tramped yesterday afternoon in the sheep pen. When I found him he was stiffened,stone cold and frozen into the ground. With all the signs of a dying animal, I brought him in the house to pass on peacefully. A very faint flair of the nostrils alerted me there was still a flicker of hope. So after spending the night nursing him, I was amazed to see this little guy awake and hungry this morning and with a little help walking again by this afternoon. He beat the odds. Our girl Ember has claimed this lamb as her own by cleaning it,sleeping with it and depending it from the other goldens.Sometimes hope is all we have, but sometimes that is enough...

My Mom..things left unsaid

Yesterday was a day that everyone dreads. The day they must lay a parent to rest and go through the preceedings of the day, the buriel, the memorial, the gathering reception.With great pain in my heart I gathered with family and friends to pay tribute to my Mom. This photo captures one Christmas when I sewed her a coat with the skills she taught me. She said she felt like a queen in her coat of many colours.I love the joyful look on her face.
I am truly blessed. I grew up in a "functional" family that is a tribute to my Mom and Dad's love for us all. I am the person I am because of them, and I am proud and blessed to have two sons who are a reflection of that devotion to family as well.
My Mom taught me so many skills that have helped my on my journey. Sewing, cooking, knitting, gardening, preserving, collecting. The list goes on... but she also taught me the other skills needed in life...love, forgiveness, compassion, devotion and generousity.
She took the time to appreciate the world in which she lived. A Sunday drive was common as she drank in the wonders of nature and the country life she loved. She would tear up easily. Wether it was watching a sad news story, or holding a young animal or laughing till she was crying at Carol Burnett or Lucille Ball, but she always had a tissue at the ready, tucked into her waistband. This was part of her tenderness that I loved about her. She cared. She also always had her camera ready when she came to visit anyone. She loved having photos to share with anyone of how all her children and grandchildren were doing and I am so very grateful for all those photos she took when I was to too "busy" to capture life with my own camera.Those photos are vital to history and to capturing life as we knew it.
We were her life...she was a mother at heart. Yesterday the pastor talked of leading a life that was significant, which is different than having a successful life. Mom's life was successful too though, because she was so significant to my siblings, our spouses, her granchildren and friends throughout her life.
Growing up, we all seem to want to stand alone and struggle with our parents to assert our independence. Despite my age and my ability to stand alone, I can't help but feeling my net has been pulled out from under me and now I must truly fly by myself. But I do so now with the skills she provided me with as a loving mother.
I thank her ...and I miss her with all my heart...