Sunday Stills Challenge - Wildflowers

Our little Flower Girl

With few wildflowers remaining,
I found a couple in my photo collection.

Next year ... I'm going to remember to carry my macro
and not just drive by and say ... ahhhh, how pretty!

Check out Sunday Stills

for some beautiful wildflower shots!

Love ... Named Kayla

We were reminded again last week
about the tough part of loving our animals.

It was only a short time ago that we noticed
things were not right with Kayla.

From the water intake and sleeping
I thought she might have diabetes.

However, the news from the vet was
that she had a tumor on the spleen
and had days to live.

Unbelievable to us!

The exact diagnosis was Hemangiosarcoma.
Surgery was not an option.

We were sent home to enjoy her final days
until she slept away from us.

~~~

Only a week ago we were in bliss
thinking all our animals were in such good health.

Kayla died about 1:15 last Saturday afternoon.

She had a wonderful morning that day
making her rounds checking on all the animals.

She was her usual happy self following us around
with her beautiful smile and her tail wagging.

We truly believed there must have been a mistake.
This girl was going to make it.

But it was not to be.

Kayla came in the house, collapsed on her favorite rug
in front of the fireplace ... and went to sleep.

We were with her.

If it is possible to think there is a perfect ending,
I suppose this would be it.

~~~

Now, we are left with tears and heavy hearts.
The price we pay to love them.

I'd like to share a little of our life with Kayla.
She loved the Animal Channel, even the scary stuff.

She loved music, especially the songs her dad sang to her,
like "Girl of My Dreams" or "Daddy's Little Girl".


She loved everyone ~ animals and people, alike.

She was always a hit at Home Depot where everyone
spoke to her by name and greeted her with pats.

She was Miss Popularity at the Equestrian Center
where she patiently waited under the
"No Dogs Allowed" sign.



She was a California beach girl
and had many miles on her odometer.

Wherever dad went ... Kayla was right there.
She was a daddy's girl.

Kayla was a gift.

This is the last photo taken of Kayla.
It is a treasure, as was she.

She was the sweetest dog in the world.
A beautiful golden retriever with soulful eyes,
a gentle spirit and the gift of love.

I would like to share with you
a few moments with Kayla.
Please click here.

Kayla ~ Daddy's Little Girl

You're the end of the rainbow, my pot of gold
You're daddy's little girl to have and hold
A precious gem is what you are
You are my bright, and shining star

~~~

You're the spirit of Christmas, my star on the tree
You're the Easter Bunny, to mommy and me
You're sugar, you're spice, you're everything nice
And you're daddy's little girl

Can I Come In, Yet?

As you may recall from an earlier story on MouseTrap, he arrived as a youngster late one stormy night. Since we already had two cats guarding their domain in the house, MouseTrap was offered the hay barn as his personal residence.

That worked out real well for quite a long time. Every corner of the barn was his from top to bottom ... and there was nary a mouse to be found.

MouseTrap became friends with the chickens, horses, ducks and geese. He was soon hanging out with Kayla, the Golden Retriever, almost acting like a dog as he followed us around the yard and horse corrals.

They were pals. The only difference was ... Kayla could come in the house.

Then it got cold.

That is when MouseTrap called for begging support.

"Hey, mom ... please let him come in"!

Amazingly ... that worked.

He had hardly arrived in the house
before he went to work.

There just had to be a mouse in here, somewhere!

Now, with two cats watching his every move,
MouseTrap knew he had to act really cool.

There could be none of the hissing, claws routine ...
or he'd be back in the barn.

C-o-l-d ... remember?

The chair with the blue towel worked for awhile.

But this cat is an adventurer.

Oh yah ... now this is great !

The sunny place by the window was pure heaven.

Well, for a little while.

Lalique found this completely unacceptable.

This was not her plan.
In fact, she considered a good swat appropriate.

It was time for some diversion.

Let's see, maybe a little cat-nap will help.

Oh yes, he's a clever, clever cat !

Without one fight, MouseTrap was part of the group.

Only, he had it even better.
He was an "inside-outside" cat.

MouseTrap was still in charge of the barn.

There was only one desired place left ...

... on dad's lap.

~~~

"... all is calm, all is bright ..."

FuzzBuzz ~ An Armload of Love

Fuzz Buzz was a chosen child.

She was only a baby when we heard that she needed a home,
a place where she would always be loved.

It's unbelievable to think that this beautiful bundle of fur
had been abandoned in an apartment.
Fortunately, the local rescue shelter had found her.

We heard about this beautiful kitten and rushed to see her.
One look and we knew she belonged with us.

We quickly filled out the papers promising that
we would keep her happy with us, forever.
Soon, she was on her way home.

Kayla and Fuzz-Buzz were constant pals.

They both liked doing the same thing ...
just lying around.

Life was cool around this place...
nothing to worry about.

A favorite place to be was sitting on mom's lap.

Fuzz-Buzz was a non-stop purr machine,
a love-bug all in one package.

Fuzz-Buzz was also an expert in keeping Lalique warm.
She was a personal thermo-blanket.

It was certain you would find them always together.

~~~

Yesterday, we had to say good-bye to Fuzz.
Cancer is a dreadful thing.

We're going to miss this big bundle of love.
Our home just isn't the same without her.

When we took her as a kitten,
we promised to keep her happy,
but she is the one that made this house
a warm and cuddly place.

How lucky we were to have had her.
How sadly she is missed.

~~~

So Many Blessings ...

A house full of creatures
and a home filled with love ...
so much to be grateful for this Thanksgiving!

A Little Outing ~ Balboa Island

Balboa Island

~~~

We decided it was time for a little adventure away from the farm. The hay barn was full, which means the truck from the local feed store had just delivered and stacked about 60 bales of hay.

You see, we don't exactly have a North 40 or even a South 40 around here. So, cultivating and cutting hay isn't something we can do or know how to do, even though we sometimes think that might be terrific, especially if we had two beautiful black Percherons to help us. (but you've already heard about that fantasy ... click here for a little reminder.)

So, with all the feeders, water bowls, cat dishes, dog bowls filled and the horses turned out ... we were on our way along the Pacific Coast Highway to one of our favorite places ... Balboa Island.

After the usual drive-around to see the old time cottages, we were off to the ferry dock. It's a tradition around here. It takes about ten minutes on the ferry boat to go to the "other side" ... where all the fun stuff is.

Along the way we can see the once endangered California Brown Pelicans, who fancy sitting on docks and taking delight in selecting the most expensive boats that are moored in the harbor for their sun bathing perches.

Even though the ride is a short one,
the views are wonderful and the sea breezes so refeshing.

Kayla, of course, knows the procedure very well.
She has become a regular passenger.

In the distance can be seen the Balboa Pavillion dating from 1903,
a landmark for the area.

At the turn of the century, it was the scene of dances, parties
and all kinds of hilarity for the Los Angeles bunch.

This was the place to be, and this was no small excursion.
There was no ferry boat to shorten their trip.
They took a trolley or other historic means of travel to arrive at
what really was a fancy structure built on a very large pile of sand.

However, today, at the end of the ten minute ferry boat ride,
is the well know "fun zone" with rides, cotton candy
and, of course, fine dining at the old Pavillion.

This was our day to spend wandering the familiar walkways
... and a day away from the horses.

However, it seems we always manage to find them.

Finally, it was off to the beach to watch the surfers ...

And then we were headed back home
along the beautiful sea coast drive.

It really was a wonderful day!

By the way ... did you know Lucy could read?

Would you turn the page, please?

Lucy much prefers history books. Certaily not historical novels, but books that are well documented and filled with ... foot notes. (mostly hers)

One of these days, Lucy could very well become a book, herself.

She grew up with Kayla and quite fancies herself to be a dog. It is rather ordinary to see her following the dog through the barn, into the horse corrals, up the hill and into the gardens.

When everyone has gone in the house she struts from one door to the other. Eventually, she settles down to just being a dedicated ... window peek-er.

Probably her greatest pleasure is being carried around the yard, next to reading history books, that is.

She's somethin'. There's even more about Lucy ... here.

Kayla on a dog day of summer

Kayla and Mouse-Trap

The Management

The Guard Dog

Kayla was a rescue dog. Our long time Irish Setter companion, Daisy, had just died and we were in dreadful shape ... we badly needed to be rescued. Then we found Kayla.

She came highly recommended with eight years proven history of making people happy. Her former parents were moving away and they were looking for the perfect place for Kayla to call home. We were the lucky people ... we were that place.

This sweet girl came with an impressive resume'. She had a background in social communications and even graduated magna cum laude from the School of Proper Dog Behavior.

She also had advanced degrees in both Patience and Obedience and had received honors in the areas of calmness, gentleness and happy disposition. She was a certified ... People Therapist.

Kayla is an adorable Golden Retriever that lives up to their wonderful reputation. How comforting it is to have this sweet girl to guard our farm and critters and most of all just being with us.

One of the first things Kayla did when she arrived at the farm was to check out the horses ... from the safe side of the fence. Even though this was new stuff for her, it became her regular spot for several mornings... carefully evaluating the big black occupants on the other side of the gate.

It wasn't long before Kayla was on the other side of the fence. The horses consider dogs to be old stuff around the barn, so after a sniff or two, Kayla decided that her favorite place to be was in the barn.

However, she hardly had time to stretch out before she was off to the dog show. And, sure enough, she won a ribbon. We had ourselves a real ... winner !

But more adventures awaited our new girl. It was time to check out the things at the nearby seashore. That was an adventure ! She was one wet pup when she finally arrived home. What a day!

I think she is going to like it here with us.