It's Christmas

Oh wow were we ever excited to have Christmas --- Mom put the agility ribbons back on the tree 'cause she could't bear to go through that mess in the basement this year. Between that tree and the pre-lit rosemary tree it wasn't so bad.



We spent some time getting pics taken and laying around the place -- here are Clancy and Josie acting casual.



Clancy and Emmy --



I'm watching the fireplace in case Santa shows up...



But look what Josie got -- a new crate just for her! It was from our breeder Linda:


She tries it out for size. Perfect fit! Love that pink camo theme! So tough yet so feminine.



We got the usual doggie treats and jingle-bell collars, but I got an agility calendar from Mom so I can see where we're going to go and when. But it has Border Collies on it! Is that a hint? Mom says it's for inspiration... what I'm not running fast enough?



Mom got a cool present from one of her horsie friends -- 3 soap figurines! I LOVE the one in the middle, as you can see:



So that was last night, and today, Christmas Day, Mom and Dennis went off to her parents' house for more presents and food. There wasn't room for us to go so we all had to stay home by ourselves all day. I was bored...

I got in a bit of trouble though. I had a little accident.. see the spot on the floor to the right. I'm wondering now if have to return all the cookies and the agility calendar. Mom wasn't happy!!! She spent a lot of time working that spot on the carpet... I better hide!



Love,
Rudy (hiding)

Gettin' Ready for Santa Claus...

Hi all!

We're counting down the days 'til Santa gets here. Of course to Mom that means the "B" word... dare I say it... here goes ... BATH! Not that we don't get them throughout the year, but especially around Christmas we get bathed for Santa. He doesn't like dirty matted Bedlingtons!

Another reason we got bathed, at least Josie and I did, was that Mom found THIS on the floor when we came in the house from outside:



It's good old red mud from the back yard. It's been raining all week and that means muddy paws and dirty kitchen floor. Finally she was so tired of cleaning up after us she got out the stuff to get us clean:



It takes a lot of stuff to clean us up juuuust right! Good thing Mom couldn't find he camera in time to take pics of us in the laundry tub. Instead she made us pose after the fact on the grooming table after we got all clean and blow-dried:



I look like a cotton ball! I'm not that big, that's mostly hair. I've almost got enough hair to go to the show ring, we Bedlies show with lots of hair. Mom prefers my hair shorter so I'm lean and mean for agility!

Here's Josie, she's all cleaned up too:



Should've had a 'before' picture of her. She wasn't so cute! The kitchen is still all torn up so it's a mess. SOME day it will be all done but don't hold your breath!
Then we weren't allowed back out in the back yard, we had to put on leashes and walk out front along the street! That's not as much fun as finding where the chipmunks live under the deck, not by a long shot...

We went upstairs to put these pics on my blog. I like to yell at my favorite rat Tweak who lives in the PC room:



Tweak needs to get ready for Santa too. His cage smells!

The other rat, Little Man (who isn't so little) lives upstairs from Tweak so I don't get to see him much. Mom brings him out for Earthdog training in the back yard so I get to say hi to him then. He's a lot calmer than Tweak but I enjoy yelling at either one of them, I'm not picky!



This weekend Mom and Dennis went out to walk around behind those bassets again. They chase bunnies --- Ohhhhhh I want to go! Those dogs have a great life!



They had a little something to warm 'em up before they went --- man was it ever cold on Sunday out there. hmmm wonder what it was?? (hint: it wasn't hot chocolate!)



And who WAS this character here? That's not Santa Claus, that's Dennis wearing his British military coat he bought online and a Chinese hat! A friend of theirs was in China recently and brought back a hat for Dennis to wear. With that red star nobody could mistake him for Santa Claus! (he's standing behind a post holding a ski pole they use for walking through the fields)



I just hope Santa's got something special in his sack for us -- I've suffered enough getting that bath and blow-dry...

Love,
Rudy

Six Folder Tag

Hi all!

I think I'll play along with Six Folder Tag, too. We're not doing anything exciting this weekend, just watching Mom and Dennis leave the house and come home repeatedly. This Christmas thing makes 'em go a lot!

Finally figured out the thing with the strange Christmas tree we got. First of all, it's a rosemary tree with lights on it (that's why it smells odd for a tree), second, Mom's brother's family sent it, and third, someone messed up at FTD but who knows what really happened. And the other funny thing was, Mom's sister in NJ also got a tree from my brother at the same time, ALSO with a different card! This one said "To Grandpa Don". I sure hope "Grandpa Don" and "Daddy" got whatever they were supposed to get, too! How funny...

So here goes -- here's my sixth pic:



No really it IS my 6th picture in this folder! It's from last year when Dennis was told to put our big Christmas tree together. I sneaked into the living room to see what in the world was going on. Not much! Plastic Santa was in there supervising the whole thing so I knew everything was under control. You can't tell by this pic but the needles this old thing dropped was one of the reasons Mom decided to leave this tree in the box this year. It's older than my mom Clancy, it was new when my grandpa Joey and cousin Nathan were much younger, maybe 17 years ago!

So Plastic Santa refuses to come up from the basement, seein' as he has nothing to do this year. If Mom decides ever to decorate this little tree we have on the end table he MIGHT come up for that... she took all my nice agility ribbons off the tree, she wants 'real' decorations. Aw man... I hope she changes her mind, that was nice!

Love,
Rudy

Pee Ess --- hey check out my Bedly pal Baarney's blog. He's in a photo contest and he needs some votes! http://readmypaws.blogspot.com/

The I Don't Know Tree

I've been relaxing at home after a great weekend with Mom doing agility up around Baltimore. She's learning to be a better handler, but I'm helping her along by being a good boy for her. She was SO PROUD of me! We got a ribbon (and second place) two days in a row over all those big ol' obstacles like the A-frame and the dog walk and teeter, but on the Jumpers courses I had to show her who was boss and run faster than her!
She says I got a title on Saturday, an AX (Agility Excellent), so she was happy (MOM: VERY happy!). I was happy running! She bought some video of our runs so maybe by Christmas she can show everyone our running style...

Here I am with my pal Snoopy and my ribbons hung up by the fireplace... we need stockings to hang this time of year, Mom!



Mom was looking around the house for something so she was poking around some stuff and found my birthday present from her. She lost it last month --- a new blue jacket! Wow -- I'm so cool in my new duds ---



She was trying to figure out what to do with that Christmas tree on the table in the den and thought she found the answer....agility ribbons!



Well, maybe not.. she needs to go through all our ornaments and find some smaller ones to put on it. She's got a lot to look through!!

Today we got another little Christmas tree in a box by the front door (grrr -- I barked when I heard the man come and deliver it -- that's my job when my people are away). It's too little for the table so it's going in the kitchen and it already has lights on it. Mom says she's got no idea who sent it. It was from the big florist people (FTD), addressed to her, but the note on it said "To Daddy" and something about hoping he recovers soon, Love Courtney and Brice, somebody like that. Hmmmm! Maybe "Daddy" is wondering who Mom is on the note he got in his box!!
I hope he wasn't supposed to get a Christmas tree!!! It's cute though -- Josie and I are posing on the floor with it 'cause we can't find the extension cords right now.



Mom calls it our "I-don't-know-tree" 'cause we don't know who sent it. As in the song 'O Christmas Tree' (Oh I-don't-know-tree, Oh I-don't-know-tree, I don't know if you belong to me!). Ha ha, Mom!

Love,
Rudy

Leftover Turkey

Hi all,

We sure did get some turkey this week -- some in our bowls, some as treats. Josie even got a bit as training treats in her agility class Monday night! I'd jump a mile for some turkey... we also got a couple of dehydrated chicken feet as a special treat! Mom thinks it's pretty disgusting but we LOVE it.

Clancy wasn't feeling well this week and wouldn't eat much of her dinner, but as she got better she got some turkey even when she wouldn't eat anything else. She's better now, hungry and eating, so Mom says it must have been something she ate in the yard. Clancy does that a LOT.

We got to finish up what was left of a container of turkey and a little STUFFING. It's a good thing we all get along. I can't see the container!
(Clancy is in the stripey sweater. She's old and cold.)



Mom's gotten lazy this Christmas season. She usually gets out this huge tall tree to put together in the living room and look what she brought home this year! She's so cheap -- got it from a friend at work who was cleaning out her dad's home in New York. It's in great shape! I hope Mom gets some energy to put decorations on it before Christmas. (MOM: only if you guys promise to leave it alone...)



It all depends on how much company we get for Christmas...

Anyway, we're going up near Baltimore this weekend for the last agility trials for us this year, just Mom and me. It's going to be a cold weekend, so I promise to run extra fast to stay warm. Mom better drink some Red Bull or something to keep up!
hahahahahaha...

Love,
Rudy