Skiing with a Puppy

Our old dog was a ski patrol flunky.  The good thing about her was she was around skis from the get go.  She knew the command 'Out front' so she wouldn't get run over.  She could ride a chair lift and she could find us (no one else) if we ever got caught in a slide.
So the new dog, Lolly, was introduced to the sport last Saturday and this is how it went.

Lolly. . .Go!

First she sat on the skis.  Now this is a sign of how smart she is.  If you sit on the skis, you don't sink into the snow.  When you are this small, even a 6" storm is significant.
But then when we were skiing on the road she ate the skis.

This is not a sign of intelligence buy rather, an indication she is a puppy.
Just one more reminder, I have a puppy on my hands, not a well trained ski dog.
Little does she know, the best is yet to come. . . POWDER!

Lolly Pup Is Home!

What an adventure it is to fly all day on four different flights and end up at the exact place you started.  Yes I am crazy, yes I flew from Montana to Missouri and back in one day just for this:

Apple Man and his new helper!

I have friends who are commercial pilots and they wouldn't put their dogs in cargo so by God, neither would I.  I have a friend with a search dog who pretends to be blind, used the dog's search vest, and flies with the dog on the plane with him.  But I digress.
So puppyville, which is what our house has become, includes lots of laughter

Um. . I don't think this is a real dog.

lots of sleep deprivation (forgot about this part but at least sleeping through the night will be quicker than with the kids), and lots of ACTION!  If this dog is not asleep, she is full tilt.

Good Puppy

The thing I love most about this dog is she is everybody's friend.  Our last dog never met a person she liked.  I also love how smart, cute and sweet she is.  She's a keeper.
Welcome home Lolly, may the adventure begin!

Halloween For Kids and Adults

Halloween in a resort town is a bit different than regular suburbia.  First of all everyone from the whole town descends on 2 streets.  So those poor suckers have 200 trick or treaters and the rest of us dirtbags don't have to buy a single bag of candy.
They take it in stride though and even help a mom or dad out.  One house had hot hard mulled cider, one house had orange jello shots and most had coolers of beer. 
Me?  Well I had 3 little goblins er rather:

Dorothy, Rapunzel and Killer Klowns From Outerspace, to herd up and down said 2 streets.  Luckily my friends had a pre-trick or treat party with food for the kids and Chili for the grown ups.  This helped with the sugar high of the children and the er. . . buzz for the grown ups.
Not to be a total dirtbag, I too had treats for others, hence the beer wagon, I mean child hauler:

Notice the cup holder, no sippy cup here!

Hidden under the pom poms are the goods, don't want people to think I'm a lush.
Good times had by all, kids got lots of candy, mom got to be social and my friend finally made it out of his costume with a little help from his wife:

The robot costume seemed like a good idea at the time.

So next year, ditch the suburban drudgery and join the party in Big Sky!
Oh and me?  Well most who know me wouldn't believe it but I wore my high school cheerleader uniform and it still sort of fits.

Hope you had a good Halloween.
Picking up the puppy on Saturday, I'll keep you posted!

A New Beginning

So, in one week our lives will change for the better.  We will be adding this

to our lives.
So let me explain, we are a 'big' family, me, apple man (my husband), space boy (my oldest child), the normal one (my oldest daughter) and little critter (my youngest daughter). 

I say big because having more than 2 children is the tipping point at which there are more children than adults (I think they are old enough to have figured this out and use it to their advantage). 
It's crazy around here but I wouldn't have it any other way.
So back to the pup, she is a rare breed called an English Shepherd.  We lost our mixed breed lab rescue and are pretty sure she was an English Shepherd.  So this time I am getting a real English Shepherd.
We have a 50 acre apple orchard in Eastern Montana

as well as our 1+ acre home near Bozeman Montana.  We need a dog, there are bears and critters at all times of the day.  I miss my warning alarm.  These dogs are smart and in tune to the land and protectors of all.  Now we just need some sheep so she has something to do and to get the grass mowed around the apple trees.
This is where I begin.