A German German Shepherd

My husband and I have always talked about getting a dog. Now that we live out in the country, we were thinking about getting a big one, like maybe a German Shepherd or something.

Maybe not a puppy though, we said. Too much work training and housebreaking a puppy.

Wouldn't it be neat, we said, if we could find a dog that was already trained, was great with kids, and just needed a new home.

Yeah, that'd be neat. We'll start looking soon, we said.

Instead, he found us.

Ruger is a three-year-old German Shepherd imported from Germany. He showed up at our house on Sunday afternoon, and after many phone calls I finally got ahold of his owner, who lives on a road not too far from our house.

His owner is currently traveling and the neighbor who was taking care of him had forgotten to secure him before she left the property, so he went exploring. His owner apologized for the hassle and gave me directions on how to find her house so we could take him back.

And then she mentioned that she was trying to find a new home for him because she travels so much and can't give him the attention he needs.

Um, yeah. He's getting lots of that at our house. Maybe instead of taking him back to an empty house, we could just keep him for her until she gets home. And then if everything works out, maybe not give him back at all.

Everyone thought that sounded like a great plan.

So Ruger is ours for the next few weeks...and could become ours to keep!

Log Houses

You know what I think is especially cool about these log houses?

They were built inside THIS log house:

which has this barn, round pen, and chicken coop next to it:

and this creek running behind it:

in the middle of 6+ acres of land:

and they're all ours!

Things I've Learned in the Past Three Days

• I can easily drink 2-3 pots of tea daily.
• If you want to reduce the noise levels in your home, speak very softly. Everyone else will speak very softly too.
• The world will not stop if all my self-assigned tasks do not get completed.
• However, dishes and laundry do not take care of themselves.
• It is very hard to make important phone calls when you have no voice.
• It is also very hard to whine.

Just Call Him Peter...

Peter Tchaikovsky, that is!

Gray Skies, Bright Flowers, and Rainbows!

When the sky looks like this in the middle of the day,

you just have to bring Spring inside for a while!

***

Or, you could just wait a few hours, and get this!

^{Genesis 9:14-15}

It shall be, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the rainbow shall be seen in the cloud; and I will remember My covenant which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; the waters shall never again become a flood to destroy all flesh.

Happy Spring!

Heard Around Here Lately

(Names have been changed to protect the innocent...)

The Boy, pressing his face into the "window" of the front loading washing machine: "Mommy, when I put my head in here and it bangs around, my eyes go up and down!"

The Boy, running around in circles in the family room: "Mommy, when I run around like this I am getting my energy! Does it look like my feet will fall off?"

The biggest sister: "Hold on a minute. I need to catch my breath from talking!"

My littlest girl, getting ready for soccer practice: "Mommy, when we're getting ready to go somewhere, I just get happy and sad at the same time, and it makes a blob in my heart."

The Boy, in the bathtub: "Mommy, did you hear that noise?!? My bottom burped!"

To Be Continued...