Dogs of Our Lives: Pepper & Her Frisbee

First Post of the Day

Taken from another blog of mine that consists of letters from Pepper to Sarah, the woman she guided. Knowing how hard it was for Sarah to part with Pepper, I began writing these letters shortly after Pepper retired and came to live with us. Nacho is Tate's predecessor and guided Kathy.

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Dear Mom,

Oh, boy, just wait until you hear about this! I have a new toy and I am so excited because I absolutely love it. Can you guess what it is? Here are some hints for you.

First hint: It's round. 

I'll bet you guessed a tennis ball. Nope! It's not a tennis ball. They're fun, but this is funner. (Lynn says that "funner" isn't a word, but I had her look it up and she discovered that by normal rules of adjective formation, it is a word. She says she still won't use it herself but agreed to type it in for me.)

Okay, here is another hint. My new toy is round and flat.

I can hear you now - you think I got donut #5368, right? It isn't a donut! (Although I love, love, love all my donut toys. Lynn says the food donuts are even better, but she won't share with me when she eats one. She said that if I want to stay svelte for my sweet Nacho, then edible donuts aren't for me. Hmmmm...)

One last hint. My new toy can fly! Well, it can fly IF the person playing with me has a good arm. ::cough cough:: (Lynn needs practice; a lot of it. Just sayin'!)

It's a frisbee! Did you guess? (Photo of Pepper lying in the grass, green frisbee beside her.)

Lynn and I have been going down to the park every day to play with it. (Picture of me loping after a green frisbee. Lynn would like to point out that it IS FLYING despite what I said about her ability to throw. I say that she got lucky.) 

When Lynn pulls my frisbee out of the cabinet by the front door, I grab it in my mouth and carry it all the way to the park. (Photo of me carrying the frisbee in my mouth.)

I don't mind that I can't sniff at all the trees and things to see who has visited the park before me. It's more fun to carry my frisbee. (Another photo of me carrying my treasure.)

Lynn has promised to practice throwing it, and she said that, in the meantime, I should be glad that she hasn't (yet) thrown it into the lake or someone's back yard by mistake. (Picture of me lying in the shady grass with my frisbee between my front paws.)

Call me one happy dog!

Flying high into the sky I remain,

Your Pepper

Christmas 2025: Tuesday Fun

Second Post of the Day

(I did it! LOL)

We are so happy that Kyle was able to come to Indiana and celebrate Christmas with us. He is a lot like his dog, Tammo - tall, gentle, kind, and loved by all. Having him here for a visit is always a blessing.

Of course, one of the first things we did together was take the dogs to the park for their morning game of frisbee.

With three adults playing, we could throw the frisbees back and forth and let those dogs really run!

They each have their own frisbee, but neither dog ever chases the other dog's frisbee, although Tammo likes to romp alongside Pepper as she chases hers.

There are some pretty happy doggos and humans in this picture!

Kyle is tall and can reach things that I can't so he helped me put up one of my favorite decorations - the evergreens and beads in the dining room chandelier.

As I get older, I put out fewer decorations, but this one is a must-have for me. Having said that, it has become a struggle to put it up. I thought I would be skipping it this year as a result, and am so thankful that Kyle did it for me.

He also helped me go through my antique ornaments that are from my mom and Grandma Honeywell and arrange some of them on the tabletop ornament tree. 

We added in the vintage ones from my own childhood that the kids got me for this past Mother's Day and I love, love, love the result.

Craig was needed at our volunteer place in Indianapolis that evening so Kyle, Lisa and I went out to dinner.

We went to Bru Burger, a local restaurant where everything is homemade and the food is outstanding.  

Bru Burger is in the center of downtown and next to the bus terminal and train station.

When we finished our dinner, we checked out the lights by the train station

and took a photo or twenty together

with the holiday lights behind us.

I realized that, if we all turned around and took another photo, we'd have the courthouse behind us.

It was changing red to green to red over and over, and wouldn't you know it, our picture caught it mid-change. It looks sort of orangish! LOL

So, here is what we were trying to capture (taken from the Christmas parade earlier this month.) 

Red,

and green!

It was a fun evening, although we missed Craig, but he was home early enough for us to hang out and visit some more. 

More Christmas fun to come. Stay 'tooned!

End of September Mish Mosh

Second Post of the Day

It's time for another mish mosh post, but first, a word about yesterday's blog entry.

I'm regaining my equilibrium now - thanks for the messages of kindness and caring. Those mean a lot and are helpful.

Across the country, people are reaching out in love and support. A friend of mine from our Illinois days sent me this photo of flowers that were left on our Illinois church's doors by an unknown community member. 

From what I am hearing, the Grand Blanc community is wrapping their arms around those who were affected with an incredible outpouring of kindness, help, and love. Thank you, Gran Blanc, and thank you to others who have been reaching out.

Overcoming Health Issues

I've had a couple of procedures done during the past few days. One was an injection in the sacrum to stop pain and hopefully allow me to stand for longer periods of time. It seems to have been successful and should last up to three months. With the Feast coming up, I am very hopeful (and grateful) about that.

I had mixed emotions about this, though:

My temporary disability parking pass was changed to a permanent one. Disability parking has been so helpful, but when your tag says "temporary," your mindset is that you are going to regain the abilities that you are losing.

A permanent parking pass shifted that mindset and cemented the fact that where I am is the new normal. I was feeling a little unsettled about that until Craig started making jokes about how it was me that was never going to expire. Maybe you had to be there, but he and I thought that was hilarious, and his joking made me feel much better.

Molly

Mama is having her own health struggles. She is sporadically stiff and painful, and not wanting to move much. (Although that tail wags, wags, wags!)

In the process of nesting, she combined her bed with Pepper's. (Sweet girl, you may have as many beds as you want!)

Mama is going to be twelve in December. Lisa has had her to the vet and, beyond the issues we already know about, her vet has been unable to find a cause for the off and on body pain. It may just be the process of aging. 

We are keeping Molly comfortable and she is in good spirits (and eating well, just as a good Lab would. LOL) And, as I said, this is very sporadic; there are far more good, comfortable days than there are ouchy ones. But, good thoughts, karma, and prayers for Mama are welcome. Thank you.

Craig's Clown Cousin

I've mentioned before that Craig is a relative of P.T. Barnum and that he has another relative, a high school classmate of mine, who was a clown in Ringling Brothers/Barnum and Bailey Circus.

Joe was in town recently for our class reunion and made quite a splash.

He brought some literature from his circus days to share. (Yes, his last name really is Strange.) 

Joe puts paid to the myth that all clowns are creepy. He's a super nice guy.

It Wasn't Me! (Er, This Time)

For the first time ever, this happened - Craig threw Tammo's frisbee onto the roof of our park's pavilion!

Not gonna lie, but I laughed. A lot. Craig has the best aim and arm - he can throw a frisbee and have it drop exactly where he wants. His frisbees don't go on roofs. Until this one time.

We offered Tammo a tennis ball but he refused to chase it and just stood under his frisbee for quite a while. Poor guy!

We did get the frisbee down the next day and all is right in Tammo's world again.

Feast Sewing NOT Done

I thought I was done with my Feast sewing and could do some other sewing for myself. Nope! Ian came over to try on the Feast shirt I'd made him, and it's a good thing that he did. It was too small.

That boy young man has graduated into men's sized shirts! I had two men's small trade shirts on the rack for the Feast, so he chose one of them to wear. 

I am happy for him, but now I need to sew up a shirt to replace the one he will be wearing. I've got time, but we are getting close to the point where I won't be able to make anything else.

Then, a long time customer contacted me and asked if I had any aprons and pockets available. His girlfriend is going to be dressing in period clothing for the first time and needed some items to complete her persona's look.

I set aside an apron and a pocket for him and I'm glad I did. While I have five more aprons, I only have one, ONE!! more pocket. How did I miss that?

Luckily I can make a pocket in half an hour, so after I make the replacement men's shirt, I'll make some pockets.

Sleeve Buttons 

My order of 45 cards of buttons arrived, and Monday I sat down, paired them up, and turned them into sleeve buttons.

But first, I made a satin slipcover for the display case I am borrowing from Rick.

Rick is a silversmith and has several jewelry display cases that he uses for his items.  He's loaned me this one for sleeve buttons, but the foam cushion inside it was starting to deteriorate. Hence, the black satin slipcover.

Citrine "paste" and rhinestones.

Large pearl and rhinestones.

Medium pearl and squared rhinestones.

Small brass domes.

Pewter and silver.

Pewter and silver.

Celtic design. (Kyle loves these and has a pair.)

Pewter and silver. (I love these!)

I have a lot on hand, enough that I think I can offer a good variety throughout the Feast. I may even have a good head start on Kalamazoo, 2026!

 

Well, two doggos are lying next to me, imploring looks in their eyes. I know what they want - it's time to go play a little frisbee in the park! I'll wrap this up but I did want to thank you all again for your caring and concern. I appreciate the love that's been sent my way.

xo,

Lynn

A New Mish Mosh Post!

It's been another busy week, much of it spent either at the sewing table or at various appointments. Time for a new mish mosh post as a result!

Doggy Fun

Ever tried to go to bed only to find your dog has already claimed your spot?

Try this to get them to move:

And the bed is already toasty warm, too. Win-win!

Poor Pepper! Yep, I did it AGAIN.

Smart girl that she is, she knew where her frisbee had landed and ran around underneath it for a while hoping it would slide down, but it didn't. I had to buy her a new one. Sorry, girl!

Sewing Surprise

I don't do alterations or sew things to order for folks - it is just too stressful. But once in a while I make an exception, and this week I was asked to hem some pants that were too long.

I'll say they were too long! I ended up cutting twelve inches off each leg and then put in a 1 3/4 inch hem!

On another note, there is always a learning curve with a new sewing tool. I've used rotary cutters for years, but the angle on my new one is different and I had a little mishap.

Finally! I Found It!

Model horse collectors know the thrill of hunting for that one special piece or variation. And when you find it, it's a sweet feeling.

Well, I finally found the elusive 1985 Feast of the Hunters' Moon button! 

My goal had been twofold - to find all the buttons that my mother had drawn (done!) and then to have one for each of my kids' birth years.

Local Son Curt's button proved to be highly elusive despite many checks of eBay and other sources. Other buttons were plentiful, but not the 1985. I've been looking for several years and finally Leslie surprised me by giving me the 1985 button from her own collection. (Thanks, Les!)

Miscellaneous Mish Mosh (M^3, Right?)

I found this surprise a few hours after Ian, Mila, and Lukie went home after a visit.

A rubber chicken sitting on my Russian egg and leaning against my Dad's old clock!

The story behind it? The chicken is from a lawn game called "Flickin' Chicken" where you try to thrown rubber chickens into a hoop on the ground. (The grands were throwing them into the trees instead. Um, yeah.) When they put the game away, someone decided one of the chickens needed to "incubate" the Russian egg. 

It made me laugh when I found it and I've left that chicken out on my buffet and on the egg because it still makes me smile every time I walk past it.

The Flickin' Chicken game was a gift from Moutain Mama Jessica. Speaking of her, here is one last photo of Jess as Mama Bear with two other cast members from Shrek the Musical.

I mentioned that I've had a lot of appointments recently. What a lovely surprise when, at one of them, the doctor's nurse walked in and it was the parent of one of my former students!

Her daughter Hannah had invited me come to her Senior Night as her most influential teacher last January. I wrote about that in a blog post titled, "Flying High," which now is true in more than one way.

This is Hannah skydiving last week to celebrate her 18th birthday! Flying high indeed!

On a sadder note, a teacher I taught with in Illinois passed away a few weeks ago.

Vickie and I taught on the same team at when we lived in Illinois.

There were four of us on our teaching team. (Left to right: Pam Green, Vickie Cromwell, Nancy Blanford, and me.)

Rest in peace, Vickie. Your beautiful smile and quick sense of humor will be missed.

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