Catching Up

Well shoot, I hadn't realized it had been so long since I had posted here. Guess its time to play a little catch up.
Been busy in some ways, and yet not so busy in others. kyle and I have started walking every other day over at Raven Rock Park. A large State Park the lies along the edges of the Cape Fear River. http://www.ncparks.gov/Visit/parks/raro/main.php
We have been taking 2 different dogs every trip, and each dog is enjoying it when it is their turn. Some are much more manageable to take than others I must say, but it is a good time to utilize for training as well. The trails are well marked and they each end at a scenic view, be it the Raven Rock itself, or a viewing area of the river, or the Fish Traps Trail where we went the other day. A series of large rock formations that the Indians used to catch fish in naturally, by allowing them to be caught in the shallow formations and tide pools around the large boulders at the waters edge. The drive to the park is less than 2 miles from where we live, so its a great outlet for us and the dogs to exercise and educate ourselves on the natural flora and fauna in this area of the state. So far we have seen a number of fishing birds, but because of the time of day that we go, usually around 7pm we have yet to see much else. but then, we have plenty of wild things that frequent our property here at home, such as racoon's that like to fish at either of the ponds, beavers, otters, a multitude of birds, land and water, bob cats, coyote's, bunnies, deer, and turtles and even a bald eagle landed here once. Granted, it stole a new born lamb, but it was still neat to see. We've had geese land in the pastures and stay and rest and graze a few days before they went on about their migration, which is both noisy and messy, and a few nasty scares because of the cotton mouth snakes down at the ponds. All the critters around here aren't so cute and furry. Some are dangerous and deadly. Makes me fear for Kyle and the dogs, but we cant stay indoors hiding from them. We just carry a big machete when we venture out into the tall grass and watch where we're walking when we go fishing. Kyle, since starting school last week has met a new friend, that shares his love of fishing, and they have been several times this past week, and its good to see them enjoying the camaraderie. Not many kids out here, so it was nice to see such a nice and well mannered young man move in down the street, that enjoys fishing as much as Kyle. Cant imagine where Kyle developed his love of fishing. You'd think as many times as Ive drug the child along with me on fishing trips and outings, throughout the years that he'd be sick of it by now, but he seems to enjoy fishing as much as I do. Though I don't get to fish half as much as Id like to anymore. Utah offered a much wider range of fishing in a closer proximity than Ive had the opportunity to do here in NC.
Surprisingly, my Dad called me the other day, and told me that indeed he was coming out in October from Luxembourg, Europe for a visit. He had told me he was coming in Oct. back earlier this spring, but since I hadn't heard much from him in awhile, I figured he had changed his mind. So we have little time to prepare, but I'm sure I can work out an itinerary and find plenty to keep him occupied during his 3 week visit. He is bringing his girlfriend Karin, and she has horses and enjoys riding, so I'm sure she and I will find time to get away for a bit and do a little riding and get to know each other. Ive never met Karin, and from what I understand, she doesn't speak very much English, so this should prove interesting. Im not very fluent in German. I was hoping Sam (my dad) could/would be able to bring Gyp, the pup thats coming here from Germany out with him when he came, to save some money on air fare for her travle. I talked to him about it back a few months ago and he seemed open to the idea, and asked me about her when he called. As she is only 9-10 months old and hasnt started to do any real training yet, Im not sure he will be able to bring her out, as she wont be where her breeder wants her to be training wise yet. Waaaaaaa! The waiting is hard, especially since Ive only got one dog in training right now, and am waiting for Hank to get some age on him before I can do much with him. I guess Chris will benifit from being the only one I have to work, as she will get all the time and work there is here to do. Stella is still on the back burner, and Im not sure what I'll be doing with her yet, and Lex has pretty much just slowed down so much that she has a hard time keeping up with the quickness of the hair sheep, and isnt able to cover them all anylonger when they try to split. Its kinda sad to see the ole gal try to maintain order, the look on her face when she see's things starting to go wrong is heartbreaking, its a look of panic and despair. She trys so hard, but the old body just isnt able to keep up with her mind. She has aged this last year a lot, with the spaying and gaining of the extra weight, (and she has always been a bit on the chubby side any way)hasnt done much to help matters
and it is sad to see her like this. Ive seen it coming for about a year now, but was loath to really have to think about it in these terms for either of us. She is only eight years old, but i reckon some dogs age faster than others. Though I do think that having pups has taken alot out of her over the years, and it has given me a whole new perspactive on breeding my good working dogs more than once or twice in thier life time, if ever at all. Course, she doesnt mind holding down the couch, so retiring her wont be so hard on her if she has the job of number 1 couch holder to do. Just getting her use to the idea may take some doing. She lives to work even if its hard on her.
Bobby has started back to school, and I didnt get half of what I had wanted him to get done even started. Its just been to hot out to do much. Of course, getting him out of the shop and getting a gun out of his hands and replacing it with the tractor steering wheel,....well, lets just say it doesnt seem to fit in his hands anymore. Come fall though, Im sure he will get to doing a bit of playing catch up himself. Theres lots to do to get ready for winter, and we will have fall lambs on the ground again here in a couple of months too.