Lake Walk - By Hailey

Last week we shared that Lady lost her mind got brave and took us for a walk on the lake. Lady mentioned she freaked because it was a little slushy, but it was only slushy on top, it was still a good 6-8 inches thick. Don't worry, it has been a bit mild so Lady won't be going out anytime soon.

While we were down there we ran into our neighbour Callie. She wanted to play. I told her it was against Covid rules to have close contact with anyone outside your household (if you live alone you can join one other household). She said people rules are stupid and we had a bit of a play! 

I have to agree with her in some ways. Yes, Covid is very serious and we need to be careful, but it is probably a very low risk activity to say hi to your neighbour from a healthy distance. It is probably good to have those brief check ins with people because this is hard, especially in the winter which is hard for everyone.

This is Man telling Callie she can't come on our walk with us. 

This is looking back at the skating rink the neighbours dug out. Bertie asked if we skate and the answer is no, neither Lady nor Man skate. Lady's mom tried to get her to learn as a child but Lady just sat and cried. Snowshoeing is Lady's only winter sport. 

This year has been hard, but we have been blessed with a mild winter that allows us to get out and enjoy!

 

Mischief Monday - Cone and Covid

First, Phod would like to report mistreatment because he has had to have some cone time over the past few days. Seems his ears are bugging him and he won't stop scratching them (which is making them worse). So for periods of the day he is having cone time.

Second, we thought we would give a little Covid update. We live in the province of Quebec. The numbers here are not good. We are in a lockdown. This means only essential businesses (gas, pharmacy, food) will allow you in the store. Other businesses can do curbside pick up. Everything but gas and pharmacy have to be closed by 7:30. It is now illegal to be outside your house (with some exceptions) from 8pm to 5 am. You are allowed to take your dog for a walk, but not your husband pretending to be a dog (click HERE if you haven't heard this story). The children are still going to school.  

Now I, the Lady, work in our neighbouring province Ontario. They have no curfew, but non-essential businesses are only doing curbside pick up as well. The kids are all doing online learning (no going to school). In March of 2020 when we had the first lockdown, my work was not deemed essential. However, it has since been made essential, so she can see her clients. While part of Lady would like to have a vacation, it is in the best interest of her clients to continue to access services. Autism treatment is really healthcare. So approximately 2 days a week I go and see people (I am doing a combination of telehealth and in person).

As for the vaccine, the roll out is going slow here in Canada. The belle province of Quebec is giving the 2 doses 90 days apart (which goes against all the science and has me frustrated). I expect I will have access to it maybe by the summer. I suspect the Man, given that he can work from home forever, will be one of the last people eligible. We will both go when it is our turn. 

It occurred to me this morning that the worldwide deaths of about 2 million so far, would be like 2 of Ottawa (our nearest city) disappearing. It made me sad. Stay safe and healthy dear friends!

Nature Friday - A Contrast - Summer vs Winter

 Thanks to Rosy for hosting Nature Friday.

In the summer our lake looks like this:

In the winter it looks like this:

We only learned this, this year. This is our 8th winter at the lake and the first time Lady has braved going on it when it is frozen. She really wishes she had the camera the first time we went so she could show you how confused Phod was. He kept looking for the water! Anyway, we have enjoyed our 2 walks on the lake, even if Lady freaked out time two due to a little slush in one spot (the ice is very thick, you can see the snowmobile tracks on it). We will see if she will ever take us again!

Thankful Thursday - Birthday Presents - by Lee

Today I am thankful for birthday presents, even if Phod did not just let me have all the things.

See two crazy birds arrives and I really wanted the puffin but

Phod gabbed it.

So I settled for the parrot.

Phod was then jealous I had my birthday toy, so when I took a break he took the parrot too!

No worries because later I started taking the birds apart. 

Lady also made me cheesy bake-a-bone.

 
So even if I had to share and had to tolerate a hat, turning 11 was still a good day. 

Wordless Wednesday - Happy 11th Birthday Hailey

 

Getting Ready For The Big Day Tomorrow

There has been a lot going on in the world, including a new lockdown for us. Our peeps can only leave the house between 8pm and 5am for an emergency, work, or to take us out. So I think I will just nap and get ready for my big day tomorrow! 

Mischief Monday - The Long Leash - by Hailey

Now that the snow has returned the peeps have decided that sometimes I can be on my tie out, not attached to anything and wander in the yard, under their very close supervision. The reason they are allowing this is because the snow makes it harder for me to run too fast and the tie out has knots and gets easily caught if I get into the bush. It is not ideal as it does slow me down and is hard to drag around. But it does give me more freedom than when I have to be attached to a person.

You can see how closely I am supervised at times

My peeps encourage me to stay in the yard (meaning the open area that would have grass if there wasn't so much snow).

Lady thought it was funny that I had so much snow on my nose. 

Technically, I am still in the yard, but my peeps don't like me to be this far into the bush

So I humoured them and came back out. 

Overall, I give this way of spending lunch a B! 

Now, if I can just figure out how to convince them to let me in the bush more!

Nature Friday - Our Cats

Thanks to Rosy for hosting this hop!

If you don't follow KB Bear's blog, I highly recommend it for the dogs of course, but for her amazing wildlife pictures. It was this blog that inspired me to get our trail cam. KB has shared some amazing cat pictures and videos, Bob Cats and Mountain Lions (which are one of my very favourite animals in the world). 

Not to be left out, we are going to share the cats our trail cam captured recently. 

Our cats are not nearly as amazing, but they have been very helpful. When we first moved here, there were not many outdoor cats around, but in the last year, the numbers have grown. We think someone from a few streets over may have 'dumped' some here and the neighbour up the road keeps her garage door partly open for all of them. The byproduct of this for us has been a significant decrease in mice in the house.  So far we have not had a mouse since October (we had 4 then - our record is 32 known mice removed from the house). 

Thankful Thursday - Thanks Aunt K!

Today I am thankful for our dear friend Aunt K, who is one of the most thoughtful gift givers I know. This year she gave me some cool new dog related things.

First up is the daily calendar.  I am going to get a dog lesson every day! 

Next is this lovely book. I have started reading it and it has some very inspirational stories.

Thank you Aunt K for the wonderful dog themed gifts! 

Wordless Wednesday - Winter Disc

 

This and That Tuesday - Your Questions Answered

 Last week we shared this picture on the trail cam:

People asked what that 'sword of light' was. That is snow falling in front of a flash!

We were also asked about the most interesting animal we have caught on the camera. So far we have pictures of us, birds, cats and deer. We have not captured any other wildlife around here. We could see fox, porcupines, raccoons, skunks, ground hogs, coyotes and wolves (although we rarely see their tracks so close to the house). There have also been bear and moose spotted around us, but we haven't seen signs of either. Talking ti the neighbour on New Year's Day, he confirmed seeing a wolf not far from our house. We will have to be caredul on our walks. 

The camera is currently sitting in the house. Lady is going to take it out with her when she goes snowshoeing soon, so she can see the deer tracks and set it up accordingly.  Who knows what we may capture next!

Now here is a new picture of Phod - taken after the second big snowfall of the year and the first in winter (all the snow melted with all the rain and warm temperatures on Christmas). 

Mischief Monday - Tummy Troubles - by Lee

 

Dear pals,

I have a slightly embarrassing story to tell. On New Year's Day, the peeps stepped out without me for a bit. While they were out, I got really sick. I will spare you the details but imagine a lot of sick looking poop. Phod was sure we were going to be in trouble and tried to hide. When Lady and Man returned they assured us that no one was in trouble and Lady dutifully cleaned the floors.

For about the next 24 hours my tummy was not ok. I had a lot of poop (if you can call it that).  At first, and through the night I had to go every 2-3 hours, but as daylight came I got up to every 4 or 5.

It is a good thing I will pretty much eat anything because all I got to eat was rice.

We have no idea what caused this. I had my tick meds in the morning but they have never done that. Was I too stressed being alone? Did I get into something? It is a mystery. I would like to assure you all that other than being a little tired because my nap kept getting interrupted, I was totally myself. There was nothing different about my behaviour. I quite enjoyed how quickly my requests to go out, at all hours, were answered.

My tummy seems to be getting better. Fingers crossed.

It was an exciting way to start the new year! 

Lee

Happy New Year!

 

Wishing you all a happy, healthy, vaccine filled, may things be more normal, 2021.