Big, Big News...

I've kept quiet about this, despite how utterly consuming the process has been the past few weeks. But I was afraid to jinx it.

The first time Sandy and I saw this unique house on such a special piece of property, we couldn't believe how perfectly it suited us. Small, comfortable, beautiful house. Four-stall barn with paddocks for horses. A lighted riding ring. And an elevated view of the Potomac River, with 700 feet of river access. That means access to some of the best smallmouth bass fishing around, literally right in our back yard. Not to mention some nice kayaking right there as well.

Well after a whole lot of anxiety, stress and diligence, today we closed on our new Dream House. It'll be about a month before we move in, but as of today, this house is OURS!!

Sunset

I don't really have anything today, but we were enjoying the extended daylight hours in the yard this evening just chasing toys and doing a little obedience work, and I liked how the light was hitting her so I grabbed the camera.

Is it just me or is her facial hair just out of control?!?

One other note I may have mentioned before, but that training tab, the nylon rope clipped to her collar, is worth talking about. I've never used one on a dog before but it's been a permanent fixture for Winnie. Long enough for me to grab, yet too short for her to chew, it's an incredibly useful 'handle' to just gain control around the house when I need her to move or stay or follow any given command without having to grab her collar or find a leash. If you've never tried one, even if you think you don't need it, give it a shot. I bet you'll find it as useful as I do!

Princess.

Winnie received a gift today. A gift from two dear friends of mine. The friends in question (come to think of it, they indeed *are* in question right about now) are bird hunters, outdoorsmen and fishermen. And they are bird dog people.

Well they were so proud of little Winnie's success in the show ring, that they sent us this lovely gift. A pink 'Princess' basket containing a glittery pink collar and a series of matching pink grapefruit grooming products: shampoo, a leave-in detangler and a freshen-up spritz. That's right, a pink grapefruit freshen-up spritz for dogs.

The motivation behind this not-so-subtle hint that Winnie get up to speed on the more manly pursuits - pointing birds, water retrieving, sleeping outside - is most likely jealousy. I think my buddies are afraid that, should we all be together on a hunting trip some day, Winnie will talk to their dogs. That she will tell them how she gets to hunt and swim and play, but also gets to get groomed nice and pretty and shown off to an appreciative audience. That she gets treats and ribbons and praise and to be called a Champion.

So, tease all you want. But when she points a bird for you, please admire her physique and coat. And as you pull the trigger and drop the bird, and she runs past you to retrieve your quarry, I hope you notice - mixed in with the smell of fresh gunpowder - just a hint of pink grapefruit.

Point, Swim, Fish, Hike

It was near 70 degrees today, and I was lucky enough to be able to bring Winnie to my friend's farm where we got into many different kinds of fun!

I brought a couple chukar with me and planted them for her to point. I don't know if she's good at finding birds or is watching where I plant them, but she found them both quickly, held a point for a nice, extended time, then flushed them before I got there for the photo op. I was going to do more with the check cord, try to hold her till I flushed the bird myself. But it was really warm, so I just let her find, flush and chase 'em. Of course she instantly got about fifty burrs in her coat which took a while to deal with.

I took advantage of the heat - and the fact that Winnie was very warm from chasing the chukar - and tried to get her to swim. This pond had a really nice shallow entry so I threw the dummy just a few feet in and got her excited about retrieving it. She didn't mind that, but definitely got to a point where she wasn't comfortable going deeper. Several times I had to wait for the wind to push the dummy close enough where one of us could reach it. I didn't push the issue though, and thought it was a great start toward getting her comfortable in water. Next time the water will be warmer and I'll find a strong swimming dog to help encourage her.

After some painstaking burr removal we shared a sandwich and a cold beer on the dock before we started our next first together: Fishing!

I hope in the future Winnie will be a regular fishing buddy. This largemouth bass is the first fish she's ever seen. Her reaction ranged from mildly amused at it splashing in the water, to utterly unimpressed at seeing it up close. Come on, Winnie, that's a pretty decent fish! What do you want from me??

Then we went a few miles up the road to the Shenandoah National Park for a brief hike and another opportunity for her to cool off in some more water. Geez, from the looks of this picture she's really let herself go since the show last weekend!

It was a most enjoyable day sharing the outdoors with my best buddy.

Champion.

Four shows. Two days. One new champion.

I want to share more details of this incredible weekend a little later, but wanted to post the news and the pictures as soon as I could...