Truck Ride

Posted on January 17, 2012 by tellingfamilytales

Last Saturday we bought an old pick-up truck from my niece. Bill has always wanted a pick-up and the price was right and having a second vehicle will be very nice. On Sunday I had Bill go out with me in the truck to make sure I could deal with driving and parking the beast. It has an extended cab and a full length bed which make it very long. It is also wider than I’m use to and the turning radius isn’t very good. I did ok with everything but parking. I’ll just have to park out in the boondocks and then I’ll be fine.

Well today it was my turn to drive the truck and I had some errands to run so Yakira got her first time riding in the truck. With the cold we haven’t gotten the time to really clean the pick-up out. So I put a blanket down on the floor to help keep her from finding goodies on the floor. We had a little trouble at the first with her wanting to lean on my while I was driving but she improved quickly. I think she really like being up front with me and it was convenient to have her get in and out of the same door that I used. I’ll have to get a photo of the old grey truck and post it here later.

New Rug

Posted on January 14, 2012 by tellingfamilytales

Yesterday I spotted a 8’x11′ area rug in greens while at a furniture store with my sister. It was only $300 and I thought it might work really well in our living room. After checking out the size for the room and showing Bill a photo we decided to go back and buy it. It was a great deal because the regular price was $1200! It took several hours of work to clear out the living room, give it a good vacuuming and then decide just how to place the rug. We ended up rearranging the furniture a bit to work better with the rug. Well about an hour after we got the room all back together I realized that I didn’t know where Yakira was. So I went to find her and there she was chewing on the new rug! She succeeded in pulling out about 1/2″ section of yarns on the edge of the rug. I can’t believe I wasn’t more careful. I knew thing in the room and a curious puppy are a bad combination. Just because she didn’t mess with the old rug didn’t mean the knew one would be the same. The spot doesn’t stand out too much but I’m really glad that it wasn’t a $1200 rug.

Note: Our cat loves the rug too. During the night he likes to pick a spot and knead it with his claws. In the process he snags little pieces of yarn and pulls them out. Not at all sure how long this rug is going to last with this kind of abuse.

50 for 50 #2 – Tarantula

Posted on January 10, 2012 by tellingfamilytales

Today I did my second thing to celebrate my 50th year. I didn’t have a clear idea of what I was going to choose to do this week but as I looked at my idea list, the second thing I had listed way sugar cane fields and cane spiders. Behind our house in Hawaii was a big sugar cane field. And before they could harvest the sugar cane they have to burn the fields. And when they burn the field these big hairy spiders come out and would get in our yard and in our play house. I had a vague idea of trying to find some actual sugar cane to eat but then I got some inspiration. How about finding a tarantula and hold it!
I don’t have an actual phobia of spiders but I do have some fear issues with them. If I’m alone I can deal with a spider in the house but it is hard. If Bill is home I always have him come and take care of a spider. The worst though is my spider dreams. From time to time I have a very vivid dream of a spider in my bed with me. I wake up (sort of) and have to turn on the lights and pull back all the covers and make sure their is no spider. I can’t see at all well without glasses or contacts and so I usually in list Bill to help me, tell him to check very carefully. About this time I finish waking up and realize it was just a dream and there is no spider or spiders to be found. Finally the light goes back out and we drift back to sleep.
So this afternoon Bill wanted to run an errand and we used his phone to see if there was a pet store in the area. We found one just three miles down the road that sounded like a possibility. We found Living Safari to be a very interesting pet store. They have lots of lizards, snakes and other reptiles. Eventually we were directed to their tarantulas and I explained to a very helpful employee what I wanted to do. She pick their most docile variety, a rose-hair from South America. She said that it was important to not move while I was hold the tarantula and if she (the tarantula) moved quickly not to panic and drop her or she might be killed by the impact. But she was a perfect tarantula and she hardly moved around at all which I really appreciated. Bill to photos and I’ll get them posted very soon. While I chatted with the employee learning lots of things about tarantulas.
I don’t know if the experience will change my feelings about spiders but I’m glad I did it. It wasn’t too scary and It was fun to do something very different to celebrate my 50th year.

I need to pee!

Posted on January 2, 2012 by tellingfamilytales

close-up of Yakira

Today was the first time out on a walk that Yakira gave me that look. The look that means, “I need to pee, can I please pee.” It was a breakthrough because in the past she would just squat and take a pee. Oh what joy puppy raisers get from some of the simplest things. But now that I know she needs to pee or poop, I can help her through it by having her sit and pull herself together and then head back home. Once home to the relieving area, I can give her the command and after she relieves we head back out on our walk. Yeah!

First Sleepover

Posted on December 4, 2011 by tellingfamilytales

Yakira went on her first sleepover this weekend. Lisa has been wanting to take her and show her off at church so she took her for a few days. She was a good girl on Friday and on Sunday but Saturday she was a real challenge to handle. Now Lisa knows some of the challenges we are facing with the spunky little girl. It was good for Yakira to have her first sleepover. We went to Lisa’s tonight to pick her up. Lisa kind of wanted to have her stay another night but I just wanted her to come home. It is so good to have our little black monster back home.

Casey’s First Outing

Posted on August 14, 2010 by tellingfamilytales

Today we had an extended family photo for my family so of course our two girl pups were included. We did it at my sisters house so Casey had her first car ride since she got home from the puppy truck. She was not happy about riding in the car. We put her in her kennel in the back and she was fine until we started moving. She didn’t complain the whole way there and on the way home she quieted down sooner. I’m sure that a few more trips in the car and she will be doing just fine.

Casey enjoyed exploring my sister’s yard and Banta was excited to see the family faces of my family. She especially likes my dad as he usually plays tug with her. We also did a few photos with just Bill and I and our two girls. I’m looking forward to seeing the photos and I’ll post at least one here after we get to see them.

Casey was ready for a nap after we were and she curled up in Bill’s lap. In the afternoon we drove to Provo to help my niece move. We use to live in the same house so it was fun to see old neighbors and introduce Casey to them. We brought two kennels for the girls to relax in while we were busy and they were both little angels. It has been a busy day for her but she handled everything just fine.