Dogs of Our Lives: Pepper Shares on Retirement

Hi, folks. It's me, Pepper. Lynn's beloved dog and partner.

Lynn's home is the old folks' home for me - I'm retired from being a working dog.

My Seeing Eye partner was named Sarah. She and her husband Kevin are both blind, but I only guided Sarah. Kevin uses a cane to get around.

Sarah (with her mom and me) taught me to "Greet" - to jump up to say hello.

The Seeing Eye taught me to never jump up, but they also taught me to do as my partner asked me to do. Lynn and Craig have told me that they'd rather I not Greet them or other people and I respect that. (Although when I am feeling insecure, I will do it to Lynn or Craig. Lynn says she understands and I can do it then because it tells her how I am feeling.)

Tate and Nacho's mom, Kathy, is a friend of Sarah's and when I got really sick with Addison's Disease and needed to retire, Kathy recommended Lynn and Craig to Sarah as a great retirement home. Sarah interviewed four couples and chose Lynn and Craig.

It was the right decision as far as I am concerned!

I love them both so much, but I consider Lynn my partner and I look out for her. She is retired like me and sometimes I need to remind her that the road isn't safe to cross or that a blaring fire alarm means she MUST leave the house with me.

I keep a REALLY good eye on her at all times. She is my responsibility and I take that seriously.

I am a very good Seeing Eye Dog, but retirement was a bit of a learning curve when I came home with Lynn and Craig. I am very careful with my tail now. (Lynn was really nice about this "domino effect," as she called it.)

While I do miss guiding and all the interesting places I got to go when I was in harness, I must say how nice retirement is.

I get lots and lots of naps.

My favorite place to sleep is in Lynn's lap. She says she especially appreciates that in the winter when she is chilly. (She also says that I get a bit in the way of her book or Kindle, though.)

Service dog that I am, I do my best to make sure she is warm all over. (She laughed and said I needed Bloodhound ears, but she also said thank you to me for trying to keep her feet warm.)

Sometimes she returns the favor when my feet are cold.

I have four feet to squeeze into two shoes, but I've learned to do two feet per shoe!

I have some really good friends who are like family to me.

Although they do tend to hog the bed at times.

And sometimes I have to share when I'd really rather not. Tammo climbed into MY bed with me in Lynn's office. Uninvited!

I ended up leaving when he did that - he's a nice boy but I could not stretch out with him crowding me like that!

Outdoor naps in the summer are really nice - can't do that when I am in harness!

I keep my eye on Lynn constantly and she does the same for me. 

Lynn and I make a really good team in our joint retirement and feel blessed to have each other.

Addison's Disease may have derailed my career as a Seeing Eye Dog, but I have found happiness and usefulness in this stage of my life, too.

How Now, Brown Cow??

Cambria and Titan may have finished performing in Shrek the Musical, but they are still busy with other performing groups. Last week they went up into the mountains onto government owned land where cattle roam freely, and well...

This happened.

No big deal, just hauling a white baby grand piano up into the high country and out into an open area, asking the kids to coordinate outfits in hot temperatures, and having the videographer ready to go.

You are being watched kids... (Titan on far right; Cambria on far left.)

Can you feel that hot breath and hear those snorts and snuffles, kids? They are right behind you! 

To (mis)quote Dory, "Just keep singing! Just keep singing!"

The recording has been completed, but I am wondering what on earth they are going to do about the cows when they edit the film! 

(Honestly, I hope they leave them in.)

If I can get it finished, there will be another blog post today and will post it before 11:00 AM EDT. If not, I'll post it another time.

Stay 'tooned!

Aha! I Thought So!

When I checked on the horses yesterday, I also went into the new barn to be sure lights were off, doors closed, and that all was as it should be. As I opened the tack room door and flipped on the light, this was what I saw:

Three new saddles!

The very ones I'd seen at Saturday's garage sale at my neighbor's home!

Honestly, I wasn't surprised. Tim loves to buy saddles and other tack, and these three were in great shape and reasonable priced. In yesterday's "the horses are fine" text, I teased him a little, saying I'd done a barn check and that I really liked his new saddles.

We are still under a heat advisory so I was not surprised to find the horses were staying cool in the old barn. I called to them like I used to call Abby, and all three came trooping out! (Eazy and Sultanna on the left; Hokey still inside and in the door of the barn.) Made my heart leap a little bit when they did!

No more pics but the horses were fine and happy and, despite the heat, Sultanna and Eazy stayed outside to graze for a while.

For today's barn check, I have a note to myself to remember those treats. And I have to say that heading out to the barn daily feels normal and right, just like it used to. 

I'm so  grateful that Tim asked for my help. 

A Real Horsey Weekend

It's been a while since I've had a real, live, horsey weekend but I just did. And it was wonderful.

It began with a text from Tim asking me if I would be able to watch the barn and horses while he and Loni were visiting family.

Are you kidding me? I was delighted to horse sit! 

While I waited for Tim to text me details, I got another text from a neighbor asking me if I ever went to garage sales. When I confirmed that I did occasionally, she told me of one around the corner from me that had "horsey stuff."

"I think you might be interested in it, but I haven't seen it. My friend, Bill, called me and asked me to tell you. But he didn't say what kind of horsey stuff there was."

Thinking I'd find mostly toy horses if anything, I hopped in the car and headed over.

Not a toy horse (or Breyer; I asked) in sight, but there were three western saddles!

This one made me misty-eyed. It is very similar to my own western saddle that I earned with babysitting money back when I was twelve.

The owner was asking only $150 per saddle, and while I did not need any of them, Tim is always in the market for a saddle.

I explained to the owner that I was sending him pictures and asked if I could have her contact info in case he was interested. We exchanged numbers and I headed back to my car.

(It would not surprise me to see at least one of those saddles in the tack room next time I am there!)

Soon after that I got that text from Tim outlining their travel plans and when they'd be home, which pastures the horses were in, and the names of the usual folks he puts on as back up if there are problems when he is out of town.

I drove out to the barn right after church Sunday. A dress and sandals are not conducive to wading through fields, but with the heat and all (we are under yet another heat advisory) I figured the herd would be close to either the water trough or the old barn.

I was right - in fact, I saw them as I was driving up and snapped this picture as I drove by them. (Isn't Eazy pretty?)

I pulled into the driveway from the old farmhouse and parked by the gate that Tim has put across it.

So much has changed over the past year - I felt a little melancholy and even disconnected from the horses. No surprise and it's not their fault; I haven't felt well enough to go health-wise or, when I did, emotionally it hurt too much to walk out and not see my girl.

But I have changed during that time, too. I am healing from Abby's death and no longer cry when I am there. I was thrilled that Tim asked me to monitor them and very, very excited to be with these three. 

Tomorrow I will wear better clothes for walking through fields and bring some carrots. It's time to re-establish some old and very meaningful bonds with Sultanna and Hokey, and make new ones with Eazy.

I'm thinking that it's going to be a good week.

Stay 'tooned.

More from Shrek the Musical

Shrek the Musical wrapped yesterday after a very successful series of shows - at last count, it was the second highest attended show in Spanish Fork Community Theater's history. 

Baby Bear Titan and Goldilocks Cambria carrying the show's banner in the Spanish Fork Pioneer Day parade.

As always, official photos are taken of cast members.

Goldilocks with Papa, Mama, and Baby Bear.

Andrew in full-on Papa Bear mode.

A very demure Mama Bear Jessica. (Don't ever mess with a Mama Bear, even if she looks demure like this one!)

Baby Bear Titan - loving and happy.

And Goldilocks Cambria with her newly gilded locks. (Which her Grammy likes a lot.)

A screen shot from the show's program with the family's bios.

So many friends and family came to see Mountain Mama Jessica and her family perform.

Of course, Uncle Kyle came to watch - several times. He also volunteered as an usher and helped strike the set when the production was over. 

I was puzzled over this photo of Jessie and Kyle in the photo booth - what was up with the FIIZ cup?

Turns out FIIZ is the family's favorite place to pick up a drink and they always stopped there as they headed to rehearsals and performances. They've become friends with the staff as a result and that photo was a fun shot taken for them!

Andrew's parents, Laurie and Tom, came several times as did his grandmother.

Vanessa's sister, Carly, lives in Utah and came, too. The very next day she flew out here to Indiana for a visit with Vanessa and Curt. 

It was so good to see all our family and friends who came out to support Jessie and her family in the show. Thanks, all!

I'll share some more pics tomorrow.

Stay 'tooned!

July Give Away Winner & More

Here is the July Spin to Win!

Congratulations! Let me know which show apron you want and please confirm your current mailing address. I will pop your apron into the mail for you on Monday or Tuesday.

Not only am I working on show aprons, (and teaching tiny tailors) but I am beefing up my stash of haversacks. Here are a few more that I've recently completed.

(Some of the photos are a bit skewed - my back was hurting and so I took the pics while sitting down. Not the best, but it is what it is.)

Southwest Sunset, small Classic size.

This one fits several Traditional foals, too.

Bay Horse & Saluki, Classic size.

Scale is such a tricky thing - many of Breyer's models vary in size within a scale.

When it comes to fitting a model to a haversack, the scale is a beginning point, but I always show my sewing mat grid so that customers can figure out the actual size of the haversack when determining if it will fit their model.

In 2023 I wrote a short series called "Scales within Scales" discussing this issue and the problems I run into when I sew and then classify pouches by scale.

Foals & Flowers, Classic size.

Again we have the "what fits" juggle - a Classic model,

a Traditional foal,

and a Traditional pony, all of whom will fit in this particular haversack!

Oh, before I forget - my extra Totilas/Surprise Horse has sold so it is no longer available. Thanks for the interest.

Looks like the rain has stopped for a bit, so I am off to the frisbee field with Pepper and Tammo. Wish us luck as we dodge the raindrops!