Dear Sweet Darwin, or should I say,
Rumour Rio Blue,
My Big Bear,
Oh you Big Stinky!
My Mud Puppy,
My little Prince,
My Dancer,
Mon chou-chou
Mijn Poempeloentje......

There are no words.
Farewell, my beautiful, beautiful friend...

some sun and sea air...

No stitching or quilting today, just a day filled with sun and sea air....

Hope you enjoyed your weekend...

not much stitching goin' on...

on a lovely sunny Sunday, the last of August.

First, a walk in the park with Ro and Darwin. Ro is now allowed to stretch his legs and walk a little with help of his crutches.

Football season has begun and there they were, warming up for the first game of the season.

The new artificial field has just been put down and hasn't been used yet - just had to sneak up and feel it. Ro had told me that although it looks pretty, it's no fun to play on. It's hurts and burns when you make a slider, and for the goal keepers and the gymnastics they have to sometimes perform (or forget to perform) to keep the ball out of of the goal, they end up with some admirable bumps and bruises.

What literally caught my eye was the incredible glare that bounced off the field. That didn't seem very practical either. Still looked tight though - as new fields do....

Here's what it looks like close up:

Hey! wait up for us!

After a settling Ro back for lunch and a rest, it was time to go back out again, this time with my friend Chantal to take Darwin out for a swim. After taking a wrong exit and heading towards The Hague (north) instead of Zeeland (south), we finally arrived at the Grevelingen Meer.



The sun shone, the water was perfect, and Darwin was in his element.



It was a fine feeling to walk kneed deep along the shore in water of perfect temperature and play with him. He loved that we were with him in the water, and so we walked along the beach, tossing his dummy for him to catch.

Good boy!

It is so wonderful to watch him happy and in his element!
I told Chantal that I would really consider getting one of those high-waisted pants that fishermen wear, just so that I could wade in the water with him during the colder season.

So, that's why there's no guilt this weekend for done not a thing as far as handwork is concerned. I figure there'll be plenty of grey and rainy days to play catch up, no?

while waiting...

I'm about to go and visit my friend Mieke and give her the two quilts for her birthday.  Another quilting friend An, is joining me, so while I was waiting, I decided to try something new and play a bit with a new program another friend in Paris told me about.  Fun, playing with my computer!  So much to learn!

This is a thank you to my friend Chantal who loves Darwin and took me and him to a new park this past weekend.  She took all the photos while we were there using my camera, so I made this as a "thank you".

It was really a great day - I just can't get enough of those beautiful Rembrandt clouds.....

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Edit: Just wanted to let you know that "Winter Garden", the baby-rib quilt and the Knuffel Quilt (cuddle quilt) are with their new owner who burst into tears when I gave them to her.  It feels really good that she's happy with them...

saturday before breakfast

A nice walk early morning yesterday with Ro and Darwin.

everything is so lush and thick..

Our furry fish!

Darwin: "aww, do I have to get out already?"

Me: "yes, before you turn in to a furry prune..."

Love walking in these cool woods

Makes for a great start to the day!

Happy Birthday Darwin!!

Two years old today!
He used to be like this:




I didn't manage to get a proper photo of him today: Darwin did what he always loves to do most, lots of swimming and rolling in the mud!
Can't even imagine life without him! Our big bear....

My Fun Loving Criminal

Our Darwin. 13 months young.
A great shot taken by our neighbor, and local canine papparzzo, Piet.
Note his date of arrest...

Happy Birthday Darwin!

7 weeks


12 months

He's a year old today - I can't believe it's almost been a year since we received our little white bundle who's now grown into a fun-loving bear.

Dogs are fun, dogs are fun, dogs are fun...

How does a dog that is supposed to look like this:




End up looking like this?




Sigh.....
This is the third time I'm changing my clothes today...

I love my dog, I love my dog, I love my dog........

Darwin

Darwin, originally uploaded by Monkicat.

This shot was taken and kindly given to me by my neighbor, Piet.

8 months and although it doesn't look like it, he's still a pup!
Our Darwin is in full puberty and trying to extend his boundaries. That includes, not coming when called (unless we hide behind trees and he thinks he's lost!) or running way out ahead of us! Commands, well, he does them, but now you'll have to wait half a minute before he does!
The dog owners I come across in the park all assure me this phase will pass...hmmm,...at the moment it's hard to imagine.





Soon we'll be starting the second half of hunting training ( no, we're not going to hunt with this ball of love, just love to see him do what he was bred to do, plus he loves it! ) so hopefully he'll be better behaved. Besides, there's nothing Darwin loves more than chase hares & rabbits (who laugh and even slow down for him to catch up!) falling leaves and carrying around fallen branches. The dirtier he can get, the worse the weather is, the more fun! Not for us of course....

Still, he's beautiful, loving, affectionate, funny, and a wonderful companion and I can't imagine how life would be without him! He's lying at, no, on my feet now, snoozing away after sharing an apple. The sun has finally come out, so soon we'll be out in the park sharing new adventures large and small...

hand-d-wrapped!

Joy. For the past two days my left pinky and ring finger have been bound together. Why? Well, my over enthousiastic Golden Retriever pup Darwin made a dash for the garden gate (eager to join his walking buddy Sjaan a female Wheaton terrier) while I tried to close the kitchen door and my pink was stuck in the middle of the tug. He may be almost six months old, and weigh in at about 55 Lbs, but when he pulls...!....I should have called him BamBam! My poor pink got a good yank and after a day of being swollen, very sore and a strange shade not matching my skin color, it was time to go to the hospital and check it out. Three hours and three x-rays later, the doctor reported there were no breaks, but a very serious twisting of the joint.

Okay it's not the end of the world, but why did it have to happen when I have to baste the linen in preparation of my first ever Cross-stitch sampler Round Robin? When I wanted to begin making templates and cutting fabrics for my first ever Dear Jane block? When.....well, you get the idea. I shouldn't fuss so, nothing broke, and it was my left hand, yet I really miss the fine motor movents necessary to do the things I love. There's nothing for it than to putter about the sewing room and continue getting it organized. It's the perfect day to do it - strong storm-level winds are pounding against the house and sheets of rain are streaming down the windows. Think I"ll get myself another cup of tea....

sunday at the beach

It was a beautiful crisp, cold but sunny day, so we decided to take Darwin to the beach on Sunday. A few days past there had been a very bad storm, so when we arrived more than half the beach had gone! Still, the kite surfers, and dog walkers had enough coastline to enjoy the salty air. It's three days later, and I still have sand in my hair!



Along the way we met a very nice couple with two New Foundlands. I've always loved those dogs - those big fluffy bears....Darwin had a ball playing with them! Here's a shot of (r.to l.) Melvin, Darwin, and Ishka begging for some doggie treats...

strange snack....

Just cleaned up a most unpleasant mess: a pair of black socks covered in bits of grass and muck that Darwin decided he just couldn't digest. Lord only knows when he managed to eat these 2 socks, I mean, he usually just carries them around, but I never thought he'd actually eat them! No wonder he didn't even come near his breakfast this morning, and yesterday, he wasn't enthousiastic about eating at all! We thought it was because of the new teeth that are breaking through, and so softened his food, but with 2 socks in the tummy, heck, I wouldn't feel hungry.....

playing in the park

playing in the park, originally uploaded by Monkicat.

Darwin watches soccer

Darwin watches soccer, originally uploaded by Monkicat.

Up until today it's been beautiful Fall weather and it's been a joy taking walks with Darwin in the Park! The air is crisp, and smells like earth and leaves. Darwin is happy to gallop through piles of leaves, or run through them when I kick a pile into the air.
On this day, when the photo was taken, we decided to watch Ro play football (aka soccer). Darwin loves to watch the game and we always have to take a stop if we walk past a field where there a game on.
There's something special about walking with your dog on a beautiful day...

Today it's grey and gloomy, and the rain has started pouring down. In a little while Darwin and I will go out again, brave the weather, but when we come back we'll be happy to have had our "moment" together......

A new thing every day...

Would you believe I finally figured out how to make a signature? In my email?
Slap your hand against your forehead - roll your eyes, but hey, I'm better at some things than others....

Besides, I couldn't go anywhere, Darwin's fast asleep on my foot here under my chair and he's so tired, I don't dare wake him!
He was on a platform and saw trains for the first time today. The only thing that startled him a bit was the "wooosh!" of the pressed air coming out from the trains as they passed by.
After a few passed, he didn't even react. He did want to follow Ro onto the train, and was sad when we had to return back to the car. It seems every time he experiences something new, he comes home exhausted. Sort of felt like walking out of Chem. 101..... So he flip flops about, dreaming, and in the meantime I'm losing feeling in my foot.......