it's a dog's life

One spring day in March, 2001, Mark and Jennifer (who were 19 and 21 at the time) asked us if they could get a dog.  A dog?, we said.  We'll think about it.  We'll take care of it, walk it, feed it, they said.  You'll do all that?, we said.  On March 31 the kids brought home a puppy from the SPCA ~ with our permission ~ they were going to be responsible for it after all. :-)

Here is our son Mark with Marshall on the day he came to live with us

March 31, 2001  They both look so young!

The puppy had been named Hobo by the pound puppy people because he was found wandering on a country road.  The kids decided to name him Marshall after Marshall amplifiers  ~ if you don't look at musicians and their amps you may not  know what a Marshall is :-)  

So, Marshall comes in the front door all puppy excited, fluffy white fur everywhere except his back and tail.  He's part Husky, part Lab and/or Shepherd.  It's the Husky part that's cute with his curly tail however, since they are a 'cold weather' dog, they have lots of extra fur to keep them warm.  Fur that seems comes out everytime he moves.  Fur that needs to have a major shed at least twice a year!!  I could have knit several sweaters from his 'sheds' by now!

Marshall's fluff!

First thing I said was "He's not allowed upstairs!  Take him down stairs.  He can sleep in the unfinished part of the basement".  We all go down to the family room where Marshall jumps up on the couch and pees!!  Yup.  Just marking his territory.  He was just a bit excited about meeting his new humans and maybe afraid they wouldn't like him and would send him packing on the road again.

Santa Marshall 2006

To make a long story short ~ Marshall quickly won our  my heart and within 3 days was allowed upstairs and eventually could sleep on the loveseat and sometimes, even on our bed.  Mark moved out a few years later and he took Marshall too.  Did we ever miss him.  (I did just say that didn't I?) 

One day in Feb., 3 years ago, Mark decided Marshall should have a playmate so he adopted another dog.  This sweetie is a border collie/black Lab cross which he named Buckley (not sure if it's after the cough syrup).  Needless to say, Marshall, like any child dog, had his nose 'out of joint' and got jealous and decided to take long walks down the road (ie. running away from home).  So, after having hardwood floors installed in our home, Marshall had to come back to live with us.  Yes, dog hair and toenails on our new hardwood!!!  Let's just say it lends character to the whole decor.

Marshall and baby Buckley March 2007

Now that both dogs have matured they get along very well and it is great that our son lives nearby so he can dogsit when we want to go away for a day or a week or longer!

Marshall loves the snow, carrots, treats, howling like a coyote, chasing squirrels, long walks and humans.  He's very smart and can sit pretty, shake both paws, give high fives, roll over and speak.  Yes, he's very vocal and can almost say carrots :-D  Really!

August 2008

Dec. 2009 Jennifer photographing Marshall.

I love the kids my dog.  Even though he sheds, and barks at vehicles passing and is always on the wrong side of the door, he's a good companion.  And, he gets me out walking (except when it's really cold, windy, raining or stormy ~ let's face it, I'm a fair weather walker).  Unfortunately, that's been neglected for the past while few months due to the not-so-nice winter weather.  We have been getting out a bit more lately. 

January 2010 - digging in the snow

December 1, 2010 Buckley's 3rd birthday.

January 2010 ~ Me and Marshall - we did get for a walk in the snow on a very

nice day :-)

That's the story of Marshall.  He's a 10 year old - which is 70 in human years -

so is in the senior category now.  I don't know how long we'll have him,

 but I won't go there...not yet.  He has an eye disease that will eventually lead

to blindness but he has no trouble hearing! 

He's still a puppy at heart and and pretty well keeps up with his

'brother' Buckley.  I grew to love this dog and he loves me back - unconditionally.

I hope I haven't bored you with my story of Marshall.  I just felt

like sharing his 'dog's life' with you.

Happy '10 years with us' anniversary Marshall!

Have a blessed day and if you have a beloved pet tell them Marshall says WOOF ~ Hi!

Pamela

Parting shot ~

a tale of two seasons

I had the opportunity to go to Kings Landing Historical Settlement this past summer and this past weekend.  It was beautiful both times with 2 temperature extremes.  In August it was 33 celsius with high humidity and in March it was 0 celsius with a biting wind.  The scenery was spectacular and I am going to show similiar scenes for each season taken from different vantage points.

The Joslin Farm

The saw mill.

The Kings Head Inn.

Isn't it a beautiful place?

If you would like more information on Kings Landing please

visit their website at

http://www.kingslanding.nb.ca/

I am joining Susan for Outdoor Wednesday at

http://asoutherndaydreamer.blogspot.com/

Enjoy!

Blessings,

Pamela

vintage tea party

Growing up in the 1950's we didn't get big fancy gifts for Christmas and our birthdays.  There were 4 of us kids and 3 of us were born within 4 years.  My baby sister who is three years younger than I, received a "Corning Ware" style tea set for a gift ~ either for her birthday or for Christmas.  I found it the other day and thought ~ this would make a different post for Tea Time Tuesday! 

Since my baby sister lives out west and doesn't have any girls, I have had her tea set  and dolls 'in storage' in my home.  When I was growing up I gave my dolls away to the church rummage sale.  I don't have even 1 of my own dolls!  I remember two of them were made of rubber which eventually cracked and had to be disposed of and I had a Betsy Wetsy doll.  Did any one else have one of these?  Then when Barbie came along I didn't get a real Barbie but a Mitzi doll.  That was my last doll ~ long gone now.

Here is the Corning Ware dish set.  The plate and tray are metal and

starting to rust.  The cups, casseroles, stands, teapot and cutlery are plastic.

The company stamp on the back says ~ Eagle Toys Limited

Made in Canada.  No doubt this set came from the Eaton's Catalogue.

The T. Eaton Company was a major department store and catalogue

in Canada for a good part of the last century.  I even worked for them

for several years!

The coffee pot even has a stand.  There are a few pieces missing

and I think there was a tea pot at one time.

Margaret's dolly.

Dolly is having a tea party, won't you join her?

I am going to join Sandi at Rose Chintz Cottage for

Tea Time Tuesday.

Come along to:

http://sandimyyellowdoor.blogspot.com/

and join in on the tea parties there!

Have a blessed day,

Pamela

march days

"It was one of those March days

when the sun shines hot

and the wind blows cold;

when it is summer in the light,

and winter in the shade"

~ Charles Dickens ~

This is the fourth 'March day' in a row here with

strong northwesterly winds and bright sunshine.

And cold temperatures 0 C or 32 F.

The March wind reminds me of an old song we sang in elementary

school assemblies from The Silver Book of Songs

called Old March Wind by Maude M. Grant ~

Blow, old March wind, blow, blow, blow!

Make the arms of the windmill go,

Flutter the clothes on the clothes-line high,

Blow our kites to the far blue sky.

Push the sail boats over the deep,

And waken the buds from their winter sleep.

I don't know if any of my Canadian readers remember this song book

which was published in the 1930's but used in the schools

in New Brunswick through the 50's.  We always looked

forward to assembly, usually on Friday morning, when all the

classes gathered in the auditorium for music, readings, awards, etc.

Good memories.

We are going to be getting warmer temperatures as the week progresses.

I hope your week has some sunny, warm days too!

Blessings,

Pamela 

sugarbush weekend part 2

Here are some more pictures I took at Kings Landing Historical Settlement during their Sugarbush Weekend.

The Hagerman house.  Most of the homes in this village were moved

from along the St. John River in the 1960's prior to the Mactaquac Dam

being built.  The dam made the river fill up into a large lake and thankfully

the government at the time had the foresight to preserve some of these

beautiful homes.  The village is located along the same river where

most of the homes came from (a few homes were from Fredericton).

It is a beautiful trip back in time and draws hundreds of visitors

every year from all over the world.

The building through the window is one of the old one-room school

houses that used to be very common in rural New Brunswick.

Some of the work horses in the village.  That is the river (headpond) still covered

with ice and snow in the background.

The Joslin farm parlour.

Mrs. Joslin, entering her front door.

A visitor learns how to spin wool.

Tools for carding wool and winding on a bobbin.

A gaggle of geese getting a drink.

An old gate ~ note the horse shoes for hinges.

Some very wooly sheep.  One of them is even named 'Pam'!!

These are oxen.

This is the saw mill.  There is a small dam in the center with ice on it

but we could hear the water spilling over it today from the spring melt.

The Kings Head Inn.

The village church.

Maple syrup and other products available for sale at the main store.

I hope you enjoyed my visit to Kings Landing.  I hope to return again

this summer for another trip into the past.

If you would like more information on Kings Landing go here:

www.kingslanding.nb.ca

Thanks for dropping by today.

Blessings,

Pamela

Parting shot

sugarbush weekend at kings landing

Do you love maple syrup?  On pancakes? biscuits? ice cream?  I do!  Today we went to the Sugarbush Weekend at Kings Landing Historical Settlement which is located just west of Fredericton along the St. John River.  Kings Landing is a living history museum from the 19th century and is open from late spring through fall and for special events at Halloween, Christmas and Sugarbush weekends in spring.

There were two homes open today ~ the Hagerman house and the Joslin farm house.  The farm was active with many animals to see.  And, of course, they were boiling sap to make maple syrup the old fashioned way.

An oak bucket to collect sap as they did in the 1800's.

This is a bit more modern way to collect sap in these galvanized

buckets.  A lot of operators now use plastic pipes or hose which they

run from tree to tree straight to the large vats in the sugar shacks.

The sap is being boiled in these old iron kettles over open fires.

Costumed staff roll maple syrup onto sticks to make maple candy on the snow.

A deliciously sticky treat.  ;-) 

the wood for the fires

This sled and barrel would have been used to collect the sap

from the buckets on the trees in the maple grove.

a cedar rail fence

the Hagerman house

As you can see it was a beautiful sunny day but that northwest wind

was strong and cold.  The settlement was very busy with a lot of visitors

taking in the sights.  The children really enjoyed the animals.

One could travel on the sloven wagon pulled by a team of horses

if you got too tired.

Mrs. Hagerman was explaining the merits of her 'new' cook stove.

It was good and hot but I think I prefer my electric stove, thank you!

Since I have a lot more pictures of this visit I will leave them for another post.

Can you wait that long?  I hope you'll come back to see the rest!

I have done two previous posts on Kings Landing last year - Aug. 19 and Sept 2.

I love to visit there because of the history but I am really thankful to be living in

the 21st Century with all it's modern conveniences!

Come back and see me again with Part II of my trip to the Sugarbush.

Blessings,

Pamela