Amazing News

Yesterday I took Zoey back to the shelter to get a shot she needed. We got her from the same shelter as Mollie. I was feeling a little bit anxious about going because I didn't want Mollie to see me, though in all honesty I wanted to see her very much. However, it wouldn't be a good idea. Chances were small this would happen, but still, being one of those worrier type people, it was on my mind.

Thankfully, when I arrived there was no sign of her outside. So I took Zoey in, introducing her to a few people who were outside as I went (socializing is important). My niece was working the front desk. I introduced her to Zoey and told her what I was there for. She handed me a form to fill out, and another gal took Zoey in the back to give her the shot. That's when my niece said "I need to tell you what happened to Mollie."

I instantly went on alert. Did something bad happen? My niece told me that 2 Saturdays ago, which is the day we adopted Zoey, Mollie's original owner showed up looking for Mollie. He was out of prison and wanted her back. My niece said the reunion was wonderful. Mollie recognized him and was so excited and happy. They both were. My niece said she actually cried it was so amazing.

I could not believe my ears. The news lifted a HUGE weight off me that I hadn't even realized was there. I started to cry myself. I've been feeling so guilty about having to take Mollie back. I felt like I failed her. I made a big mistake, and she had to suffer for it. As it turns out, taking her back ended up being the very best thing that could have happened. When Zoey and I got back out to the car, I started crying with joy. I cried all the way home. Then I danced in the garage for a bit to the happy music in my head. I'm sure Zoey thinks I've lost my mind. I bet, though, that Mollie is the happiest of the two of us.

Speaking of Zoey. Pics!

She watches tv, intently.

And snoozing in my lap while I 'tried' to crochet the edging on a baby blanket.

Live long and prosper. \\//

Some Bad News, Some Good News

This is a long post because it's been crazy around here the last two weeks. I am going to start with the bad news. I took Mollie back to the shelter where we got her last Monday. We'd had a very bad 2 weeks with her and we realized we could not live with a dog that has the aggression problems that she has.

You see, the builders have been working on the garage/shop and she would not stop barking at them. I could not even put her on a leash and approach them to introduce them to her. She snarled and lunged and pretty much acted like she wanted to take a huge chunk out of them with her very powerful jaws. It's been very frustrating.

Then, there was a big family wedding. My nephew Daniel and his fiance Jordan tied the knot on Saturday the 23rd. Family came from all over the country to attend the wedding including my daughter Sarah and son-in-law Frank. We had family coming and going all weekend and during that time Mollie was frighteningly aggressive. She even attacked my daughter and her husband in the house right in front of me. Fortunately, they know how to react in a situation like that. She didn't bite them, but she definitely pinned them in place with ferocious barking, lunging, growling, and teeth baring. I was so afraid she was going to bite them. She was being a very aggressive guard dog and it was terrifying. We weren't able to introduce her to any of the rest of the family because she just wouldn't let them get near. We had to keep her away from everyone. That is not the kind of dog I want.

We came to realize that the shelter had been lied to about her. They were told she loved people and other dogs. No, she doesn't. They were told she's good around kids. She is definitely not! They were told she rides good in cars. No, she doesn't. She was fine at home with just my husband, me, and daughter Ruth, and was the sweetest most loving thing you could ever meet, but she became dangerous if anyone or anything else came around. Now, initially, I thought I could train her away from this kind of behavior, and even considered hiring a professional trainer to help me, but  I was lying to myself. I can't. I am not physically strong enough to handle her and I can not live with a dog that dangerous. So we made the painful decision to take her back.

The shelter was very understanding and kind about it. They said we did the right thing. They will find her a home that will be much more appropriate for her temperament. Someone strong, who wants a guard dog.

So now we are dogless. I cried for 2 days. I've let Mollie down horribly. I love her very much, but she scares the shit out of me. We will look for another dog with a much gentler personality, but for now, I'm just going to remain dogless for a while.

Now I'm moving on to the good news. They started building the garage. HOORAY. I've got pictures.

On Friday, the 15th, the building crew showed up and started digging holes for the garage poles. They finished them on the 19th.

On the 20th they started installing the poles in the holes.  We have a 4 man crew. They braced each pole in the holes. They couldn't fill the holes with concrete until they'd been inspected.

It was fascinating to watch how they did it. All the poles went up very fast using the little machine they had.

On the morning of the 21st an inspector arrived to look at the holes. He had them dig one just a little deeper, then declared them good. Then three concrete trucks arrived to fill in the holes with concrete.

On Friday, the 22nd, they installed the first roof truss, which is basically a facade on the front of the building. The day ended with it looking like this. They let the concrete cure over the weekend and we had the wedding going on. Lots of family came by the house  to see the progress on our garage. This building is much larger than I was able to picture in my mind. It's pretty impressive to stand in.

On Monday, the 25th they installed about half the roof trusses. It was interesting to watch these 4 guys lift them very high and manipulate them with their two machines and get them installed. I am very impressed with their skills.

They finished installing the trusses the next day. Then they started working on the boards that connect between the trusses. If you click on the pic below to embiggen it, you'll see one young man standing on a truss way up high to nail one end of the boards in. You couldn't pay me to do that.

On Thursday they worked on the sophets and got them installed.

On Friday they installed the roof insulation and metal. I told them to smile for Facebook.

We can stand inside and stay dry now. Or shaded, as the case may be. It was over 90F degrees that day.

I went grocery shopping after they quit for the day and could not resist parking in the garage when I got home.

That's it's status at the moment. Tomorrow the builders will arrive and get busy with the next step. However, I will be missing it. In fact, we'll be away until Friday. It's the annual Park family camping trip up on Priest Lake. I'm kind of sad that I'll be missing the progress and won't be able to take pics of it, but I am so looking forward to camping. We didn't get to go last year and I really felt bad about it.

I should mention the wedding was wonderful. It was fun seeing so much family and the venue was fantastic. It was held at Riverview Mill Ranch in Post Falls. I enjoyed it very much.

Through all of the last two weeks I've been knitting like crazy. I've been feeling so stressed and anxious so I turned to knitting to relax. I've made 2 layette sets (# 14 and 15), except the blankets. I hadn't cut and prepared the fleece fabric for them until today. So I will be taking that along with me to crochet the edgings so the sets will be complete. I've started the cardigan for layette set #16. No pics until after I get back.

My daughter, Ruth, has been home from college and was bitten by the layette bug a couple weeks ago. She is helping me knit them for KnitWits. We're having a blast doing them. She's made 3 sets so far.

We'll be coming home on Friday. My husband is participating in Ride Idaho this year and needs to be home so he can get ready and head south to Ketchum, ID for that. Otherwise, we'd stay until next Sunday. I'm taking my camera, and maybe a couple of my dolls too.

Until then...

Live long and prosper. \\//

Layette Set #11 for KnitWits

I've finished Layette set number 11. I wasn't real sure about using this weird shade of green, but I really like it now that it's done.

The blanket.

Pattern: Scallop edging from Lots of Knots blog

Yarn: Cascade Yarns Pacific

Content: 60% Acrylic/40% Superwash Merino Wool, Worsted weight
Color: 11 Celery (discontinued)

Yarn: Red Heart Super Saver
Content: 100% Acrylic, Worsted weight
Color: Lemon

Yarn: Red Heart With Love
Content: 100% Acrylic, Worsted weight
Color: Peacock

Hook: Size H

Started: May 19, 2016
Finished: May 29, 2016
Close up of edging.

The cardigan.

Pattern: Super Natural Stripes by Fawn Pea
Size: 6 months

Yarn: Cascade Yarns Pacific

Content: 60% Acrylic/40% Superwash Merino Wool, Worsted weight
Color: 11 Celery (discontinued)

Yarn: Red Heart Super Saver
Content: 100% Acrylic, Worsted weight
Color: Lemon

Yarn: Red Heart With Love
Content: 100% Acrylic, Worsted weight
Color: Peacock

Needle size: Size 6 and 8

Started: April 26, 2016
Finished: May 10, 2016

The hat.

Pattern: Jacky's Hat by Courtney Kelley
Size: 3-9 months

Yarn: Cascade Yarns Pacific

Content: 60% Acrylic/40% Superwash Merino Wool, Worsted weight
Color: 11 Celery (discontinued)

Yarn: Red Heart Super Saver
Content: 100% Acrylic, Worsted weight
Color: Lemon

Yarn: Red Heart With Love
Content: 100% Acrylic, Worsted weight
Color: Peacock

Needles: Circular size 8

Started: May 10, 2016
Finished: May 12, 2016

The booties.

Pattern: Seamless Garter Tassel Booties by Karen Strauss
Size: 6 months
Yarn: Cascade Yarns Pacific

Content: 60% Acrylic/40% Superwash Merino Wool, Worsted weight
Color: 11 Celery (discontinued)

Yarn: Red Heart Super Saver
Content: 100% Acrylic, Worsted weight
Color: Lemon

Yarn: Red Heart With Love
Content: 100% Acrylic, Worsted weight
Color: Peacock

Needles: Circular size 8

Started: May 16, 2016
Finished: May 19, 2016

So, it's been awhile since my last post. May was a highly stressful month and I did not feel like blogging at all. Getting the lot line adjustment for our property was a difficult task. Way more difficult than it should have been, but last Friday the papers were finally signed. Now we wait for the county to approve it, and the building permits to be issued. The builders are scheduled to deliver the building materials on Monday. I am relieved to finally be moving forward on this, and I'm looking forward to watching the whole building process for this garage/shop.

Besides the above layette set, I've finished a few Ellowyne outfits for my Etsy shop. I need to make the time to photograph them and get them in the shop. I'm having a hard time with motivation.

Weather-wise, we had quite a bit of rain last week, but now the sun has returned and predictions are for temps in the 90's in the next couple days. 90 is rather warm for June. I'm glad we have our air conditioning.

Mollie is doing fine. We took her on a little road trip on Mothers Day to Moscow, Idaho to visit Ruth. (If you'll remember, she went back to school and is now attending the University of Idaho.)

Mollie traveled fairly well, though she barked so much at everything we ended up stopping at a store so I could purchase a spray bottle, which I filled with water. Every time she barked, I squirt her. Eventually she got the message and stopped barking so much.

I had a very nice Mothers Day. The weather was gorgeous. We took Ruth out to lunch, and then we walked through the University's arboretum which was filled with beautiful blooming trees, and lilacs. The air smelled so good. I'd been wanting to see the arboretum for quite some time. I'm glad I finally got to do it.

After that we headed home. We took a scenic route, rather than hwy 95, that went through fields and pastures loaded with wild flowers. Some of the fields had so many Delphiniums they looked blue. I enjoyed the drive very much.

Ruth has been home the last 2 weeks. School is done for the summer. She did well for her first semester back at school. She made the deans list! I am so very proud of her. She's enjoying school too, which I'm glad to hear. She's majoring in Computer Science.

We have a broken toilet. It croaked yesterday. I'm calling a plumber for the first time ever because Doug doesn't want to deal with it. A seal needs to be replaced, and the valve that turns the water on and off is now leaking. Said plumber will be here in about an hour. I better get dressed. I'm still in my jammies.

Almost forgot, Layette set number 12 is underway.

Live long and prosper. \\//

It's Begun

Life has been rather hectic around here lately. Mostly with getting ready for the construction of our new garage building. Last weekend we moved the building we call the shop cuz that's what it is. Sweet Hubby's little work shop. He and his brother moved it with their two tractors.

Doug pulled and Dan pushed. It was not easy to move, but they managed it. They wanted to turn it so the door faced the house after this but it couldn't be done without serious damage. So it's been left where it is. We also had to take down quite a few trees and whatnot. We had to have it done by Monday for certain cuz Tuesday the guys doing the prep work of the ground were scheduled to come. This is how it looked after we got both buildings out of the way, and the trees taken down. The front steps to the house are on the right.

Tuesday the excavators showed up on time and got to work.

They removed the top soil and leveled the ground. Today they are returning to lay gravel on the area.

Molly is having a bit of difficulty dealing with the chaos, but I'm using it as a training opportunity. I really am so happy with this dog, despite her problems. She is responding to training so very well. A week ago I couldn't go out any door without her trying to bolt out it. Within just a couple days she learned to stay back and sit until I go out the door. No more bolting. And the staying! I've never had a dog learn to stay as quickly as she has. She is so very smart.

She has an excessive barking problem, which I knew when I took her home. I did some research on the internet and learned how to teach her to stop that. I started two days ago. She's already improved quite a bit. Having men coming and going while they work on the garage is providing a wonderful opportunity to help her learn to not bark uncontrollably any more.

One thing Mollie has that had me completely overwhelmed for a few days is what is called leash aggression. She hates being on the leash. She can get very frustrated with it, especially if she wants to take off, and starts barking and growling like she's gonna attack. I've learned how to deal with it, though. I've been putting her in situations where she'll get that way and teaching her to calm down. I think we'll have this licked in no time. She's responding very well to the training.

Speaking of training, you may be wondering how the dog obedience class went. Well, it didn't. We got kicked out before class even got started. Mollie was fine with the other dogs, and the people, but she did not want to be on the leash, got frustrated, and threw quite a fit about it-getting very loud and was lunging trying to get off. We were unceremoniously rejected.

Actually, the trainer was extremely rude about it. She totally humiliated me in front of everyone. Without any warning she appeared shouting at me "NO! Not happening!", grabbed Mollies leash and dragged us outside. She then demanded to know if Mollie had ever been around humans. Of course she has. She loves people. She said my dog was too aggressive and can not take the class. I said "But that's why we're here! She needs training." She them demanded "Where did you get her?" I explained I got her from the humane society. She then asked me if I could still take the dog back. That's when I started to get angry. She saw Mollie all of 30 seconds and had the gall to say that to me! She offered me private lessons at $115 a pop. I went home in a rage.

After some discussion, we've decided to learn how to deal with Mollie's issued ourselves. I've been reading and watching videos on the internet, and I've bought a book and a dvd that should teach me a lot. I've already learned a lot as it is. Dogs are quite remarkable creatures.

Last Saturday the family had a little party at my nieces house. We took Mollie with us to introduce her to everyone. She did fairly well. Still exhibited some leash aggression and barked way too much. But she loved everyone and enjoyed the attention. She got along with my nieces old Labrador, Gracie, wonderfully.

While all this training is happening, Mollie has bonded to me. I realized it a week or so ago when I woke up in the middle of the night to find her head on my chest. She was sound asleep. I started crying with joy. I love this girl so much.

I have been knitting quite a bit. I've got the layette cardigan and hat knit, but not blocked yet. I put the project aside for a few days cuz I got an order for 4 doll sweaters.

The customer supplied 3 skeins of Angora yarn and I used my own mohair for the white one. It's been years since I've knit with Angora. I'd forgotten how much it sheds. I am very excited about this order. I'm starting to get a good reputation among the doll people. I will finish up the sweaters today.

The weather has been awesome the last few days. Sunshine and warmth. It actually got up to 81F degrees here yesterday, in April! All the flowering trees are in bloom in the area. My flowering plum blossoms opened up yesterday and the air smells so wonderful. I shall be doing some deck knitting today.

Live long and prosper. \\//

Stressful Morning

Monday has started out as rather stressful. First of all, I woke up to an inch of new snow outside. Bleck. I took Mollie out for her morning business and she pulled all over. The scent of deer was thick in the air. I would stop as soon as she started pulling, but she'd just pull me along cuz my feet were sliding on top of the snow. Basically, it was like water skiing on the lawn. I didn't have much fun.

Running with her toy.

Later, as hubby was getting ready to head for work, I took her outside again to run in the garden area-which is now the exercise pen. Mollie loves to run. I had a physical therapy appointment this morning and I wanted to get some of her pent up energy out before I left, so we were in the pen when hubby left. She freaked out when she saw him drive away.  I kept her running and chasing her toy for a good while, until I thought she'd calmed down and moved on with life. I hooked up her leash and took her out of the pen. As soon as we stepped out she yanked hard pulling the leash right out of my hand and took off. She was looking for hubby. She ran on down the driveway and out into the street at full speed, leash bouncing behind her.

Now I was the one to freak out. Traffic was heavy, being morning rush hour, plus I had no idea if I would even find her. As far as I was concerned, she was probably gone. I had a panic attack. Fortunately, when I got to the end of the driveway I saw her just down the road. She was actually heading toward home. But when she saw me calling her, she thought she'd play a game of "keep away from mom" by running past me, rather than stopping. Meantime, cars are buzzing past at 50 mph. How she didn't get hit I will never know. After a few passes speeding by me she finally realized Mom wasn't playing and came to me. Whew!

One happy dog.

I was still shaking when I got to my therapy appointment. I am relieved, though, that she was actually coming back to the house. That is a good sign. She thinks of it as home. Also, the fact that she finally came to me is a HUGE relief. We are making progress. It's not as fast as I'd like, but it is happening. The training is having an effect. This is gonna be a really good dog in the future.

Forgive me mom?

I noticed I've got a few more grey hairs on my head.

Now for some exciting news. We have an appointment for tomorrow morning with a rep from the company who's going to build our new garage. YAY!! Finally, getting it started. The faster we can get that done, the faster we can get a fence built.

My next post will be about my latest finished layette set. Finished it last night.

Live long and prosper. \\//

Here's Mollie!

Just a few pics of Mollie today.

In this one she is laying on the couch with daddy, holding her ducky.

She loves the couch and has taken over from the  cats.

Aaah, this is the life.

She watches out the window for daddy to come home in the late afternoon/evening.

I'm working on her training. She knows 'back' now, which means to back away from the door, or whatever, so I can get in front of her. So that's progress. She also pretty much has stopped pulling on the leash walking in the yard. But when we go away from the yard, that's a whole 'nuther story. So it's taking some time for her to learn that one.

She's learning what go to bed means too. Last night I had no problems getting her to bed and settled down.

This morning I took her to my vet for her wellness check. Geez, what an experience! As soon as I let her out of the car she went nuts. It was all I could do to hold on to the leash. I wrestled her in where she barked her head off at the people and other dogs in the waiting area. They got us into an exam room right away so she'd quiet down. She whined the whole time until the doctor came in. She was great for the doctor and the technician. Then I had to wrestle with her to get her back out to the car again. Good grief! I was exhausted by the time I got her home.

Dog Obedience class can't get here soon enough!

Live long and prosper. \\//

More Luna

Today, I'm doing the post I'd planned for yesterday. More Luna. This time she's wearing an outfit I won from Liz Frost. She held a contest on her Facebook page a few weeks ago or so and I won it. She sent the outfit with my doll.

I love her slightly pointed ears. I've ordered a short black wig so she can be my Vulcan doll on occasion.

Looking for moose in the back yard.

Still looking.

She didn't see any.

Feeling disappointed.

Maybe next time Luna.

Mollie is making herself at home. She loves the couch.

The cats do not like Mollie. The boys have been hidden ever since I conned them into coming back in the house last night. I haven't seen a hair of them, though I know they're still alive cuz they're using the litter box. I hope they come out and adapt soon. Mollie wants to play with them so badly. I don't think that will ever happen. I'm hoping they just start tolerating the situation. Chenille is adapting. She hid the first day, but she'd out and letting Mollie know who's boss now.

I took Mollie for a long walk yesterday. She pulled on the leash almost the whole way. By the time we got back to the house both of my shoulders hurt quite a bit and I was exhausted. So now I'm working on training her not to do that. It's one of the harder things to teach a dog.

I've also registered for a dog obedience class for the two of us that starts the first week of April. I'm going to need some help with the not pulling.

I woke up to snow this morning. It snowed for several hours. Now it's melting just as fast as it fell.

Doug and I are doing something new tonight. We're going to the Idaho Democrat Caucus and voting. It should be an interesting evening. To be honest, I'd rather have a primary type vote like they used to do here. It would just be easier for all involved. But there are people in politics trying to make things more difficult and inconvenient for certain voters. So we will persevere.

I am taking my knitting with me to the caucus. I expect there will be a lot of sitting and waiting involved.

Live long and prosper. \\//

Introducing Mollie Park

I was going to post another series of pics of Luna today, but something happened yesterday that is more important to post. I got a new dog.

This is Mollie.

While on the way home from Coeur d'Alene, I decided to stop in to the Kootenai County Humane Society to see what they had in dogs and met Mollie.

Mollie is a 2 year old Catahoula Leopard dog/Australian Shepherd mix. She'd been at the shelter for about a month.

I decided to take her for a walk. She was pretty stressed out in her cage and was barking a lot. On our walk, though, she calmed down some and was quite sweet. She even gave Ruth kisses. She pulled on the leash quite a bit at first, but eventually even stopped doing that.

There was one incident that was rather bothersome. One of the employees took her in to a smaller fenced in area with a tree in the corner to show us something. Upon being taken off the leash, she immediately attacked the tree. I mean, really attacked it, biting chunks off. I'd never seen a dog do that before. They didn't know why, but speculated maybe she'd been tied to a tree for long periods of time or something. When we took her out of the enclosure, she calmed down. I walked her around and she never even batted an eye at the other trees around.

When we went back in the building she got really anxious again, so I figured she really didn't like it there. It was noisy with dogs barking and lots of people coming and going, plus it's across the road from an airport. Her paperwork said she was good with other dogs, cats, and people, which is a good thing. We were told she's very potty trained. Never once went in her cage. And though the shelter folks kept telling me she's really high strung, I decided to adopt her. I'm really glad I did.

She calmed down just as soon as we got her in the car. So much so that when we went to Petco to get her a collar and harness, we took her in the store with us. (The shelter gave us a temporary leash) She did very well in the store. I was kind of surprised how well she did. She even stood still while a sales clerk showed me how to put the harness on her.

On the way home she was extremely good in the car. After getting home I leashed her up and walked her around the yard. Not one tree bothered her. I'm wondering if she was, indeed, tied to a tree that was in the corner of a small yard some time in her young life. I guess we'll never know.

I would not call this dog high strung at all. She's a completely different girl here at home. She settled in and made herself at home and has hardly barked much. She wants desperately to play and make friends with the cats, but they are not the least bit interested. I'm hoping the boys will warm up to her in time.

She took to Sweet Hubby right away. She adores Ruth, which is great!

I took this pic with my phone when she was eating her dinner. She's just a tad taller than Cable was. The interesting eyes are from her Catahoula Leopard dog side. You'll notice she has no tail. It's been lopped off, a practice I detest.

In the evening she hopped up into my lap. After snuggling a bit, she turned around and sat on me.

I'm taking that as a good sign.

Live long and prosper. \\//