Life Adventures

The Winchester area has always been one we've struggled to enjoy as a destination.  It's a great venue for agility, but the lodging has been lackluster.  Normally we stay at Candy Hill with the RV, but we don't enjoy it.  The campground is an easy-in, easy-out, right off the interstate. That is the only positive.  Forget about late check-out - they nickel and dime you for every minute.  Once we left 15 minutes late, but didn't worry about it until a young kid started chasing our RV on foot to retrieve the $2.00 owed for being late.   As far as the campground amenities and aesthetics, there isn't much to speak of. This trip, we decided to try somewhere different - Skyline Ranch Resort.  It was a significant improvement in primarily location.  The views of the skyline are breathtaking.  We stayed in site 132 (the row 130-132 is easy to get set up and rather level, but there isn't any shade).  There is another row on the other si...

Gracie seems confident in new places and quickly warms up to other dogs and people.  She’s not as confident as Braddock but she gets better after a slow warmup period. Here are some pics of her at 5 months old: And a video of he exuberant self

Gracie has learned obstacle performance of the tunnel, table, plank, tire, and jumps.  Surprisingly, the table appears to be her favorite. We’ve done a modified speed circle starting with the crate on one end, the tunnel on the other end, and two jumps side-by-side in between so that she runs from the crate, over one jump, through the tunnel, and back over the other jump to crate.  We make sure to work both sides. I started the dogwalk ramp but she had some nervousness at times so we’ve gone back to the plank. However she seems to love to work, tries to get it right, pays attention, and likes the game.

We’ve been walking the woods on the property instead of heading to Poor Farm.  Cadia has been quite the mentor for Gracie.  She’s also been extremely tolerant of Grace’s jumping and biting at the ears and tail. Grace carries sticks in hopes that Cadia will chase her around.  Sometimes Cadia engages and other times she wants her space.  Gracie appears to respect the difference. Gracie shouting "Catch me Cadia"

Visited Cape Charles Va for the first time, well, at least for an extended stay. It wasn’t until we got on the bike path at the Visitor Center for the Eastern Shore that we realized we had stopped here once before on a trip somewhere.  Back then, we were looking to get the dogs out for a break from the drive and lucked into finding a nice bike path to walk. We had heard that Kiptopeke State Park is a nice destination, but because we had a coupon we stayed in the KOA 3 miles away.  My initial assessment is that this destination is average. Mostly because while it offers hiking, water views, and biking paths, neither of these options are anywhere close to the best we’ve experienced.  The water view is less than the beach, the hiking is lackluster, and the bike path is limited. We can walk dogs, but the trails at Kiptopeke thus far don’t measure up to First Landing State Park for example. I did enjoy sitting on the deck and having morning tea and lunch at Jackspot....

In my last blog, I touched on the feelings of guilt I have writing that Logan is still with us while others have recently lost a beloved family member.  Even since my last post, 2 additional dogs that I saw compete in agility have now passed on.  Yet Logan remains.  I harbor the unwelcome anticipation of when it will be my turn. In the meantime, I continue to write what I am learning, as perhaps this is the point of Logan’s long last chapter.  I call it the “teach Stephanie and pay it forward chapter.” Last blog I touched on physical symptom awareness.  This entry is about the nutritional component. There are so many opinions out there, often diverse, and it will send your head spinning.  Just like treating a dog with allergies, there is trial and error.  The “error” part of this equation is what makes me crazy.  I put a lot of expectation on myself not to make any mistakes. But for this liver failure issue (due to the cancer), here is what...