My last post was about Annie having a play date with a friend's dogs, and how much fun they had together.  That was on Friday afternoon.  The next day, Saturday afternoon our son had driven over to pick up a friend to come spend the night.  While he was gone to pick up his friend, a couple of family friends came over to go on a little hike with us.  


It was snowing pretty heavy when we left.  You can see some of the snowflakes falling around Annie.


We decided not to go too far, just out behind our house. Annie would have gone much farther, because she just loves this kind of weather - snow is her best friend!


What we didn't realize was just how difficult this snow was going to be to hike in. It was like walking in 4-6 inches of quick sand!  Every step was a huge effort as there was a icy crust on top of the snow, but then as you stepped through that layer, you sunk deep into the powdery snow underneath.  Talk about giving your calves a workout!


It was a rather overcast day and the snow was falling really heavily, even though you can't see it in the pictures.

We were hiking the area behind our house where our neighbors logged this past summer, and cleared this piece of land.


The snow was exhausting to walk in.  You had to crunch through the snow, with your foot falling deeply into the powder with each footstep.  Just imagine walking on a beach, sinking up to your mid calves in the sand... and perhaps you might get an idea of how this snow was to walk in!


Annie's paws are made for the snow, they kind of splay out, and she just tromps easily through the snow like it is nothing! I sure wish I could have walked on top of the snow, the way she was able to, after a few minutes of plogging along!


A picture of our barn as the snow was falling, and the afternoon sun's rays were lower in the sky.




When we got back to the house, we had just rested a bit when my son called.  He was on his way home from picking up his friend to spend the night, and saw a group of people out chasing a dog alongside the road.  He and his friend hopped out, and with all their youthful energy, were able to catch up to the dog, and capture her. Apparently people had been trying to get her for quite a while, and when our son and his friend showed up, she decided she would let the chase be over.  My son called me and asked if he could bring her home.  He said she was shivering, cold, and looked very hungry.  I told him we didn't need another dog right now, that I wanted to wait until spring, but that he would have to take her to the dog pound.  He could bring her home, but she couldn't stay.


Oh dear.  So when I first met this dog, my heart kind of melted.  She evidently has some pit bull in her, and I certainly have never wanted a pit bull.  But she has a mix of other dogs in her as well, possibly terrier? lab? We are just not sure what her mix is.


When I tried to take a picture of her, she would just lay on the floor like this, as if she was very scared of the camera.  She was found without any collar on, and we just happened to have a collar that fit her.


She was really hoping I would stop with the pictures already!


We found out immediately that she was very sweet, and that when I called her Missy she seemed to respond immediately to that name.  We tried other names and she didn't come, but when we called her Missy, she immediately responded.  So we decided to call her Missy... for now.


She was pretty excited to go on a walk with us the next morning.  My son and his friend came with me, as I wasn't sure how she would do on the walk with Annie.


Missy loved to walk.  She was so excited, just like Annie, sniffing and smelling, and having a grand time.

It turned out to be a beautiful morning for a walk.


The powdery snow that had fallen yesterday was sparkling and glittering as the sun's rays pushed through the clouds.


A large stump covered in snow.


Missy finally let me get a picture of her without crouching and burying her face.


She looks so sad in this picture, doesn't she!  What a face to melt your heart!


Annie wasn't so sure about having a new friend to walk with, and share smells with.


So we kept the two dogs separated so they could each walk at their own pace, and not have to share "smells".

We walked through this lovely archway of trees covered in the gentle blanket of snow.


A winter wonderland!



Our walk ended uneventfully, and we were all quite tired when it was over.  Crunching through the snow through the woods is exhilarating and exhausting all at the same time!

We are actively looking for Missy a home, since I am not ready yet to have another dog in the house. (I would like to wait until spring and get a puppy that we can train ourselves.)   However, Missy soon made herself quite at home, especially since there was food, water and warmth!  Unfortunately, we found that Missy and Mr. Simba do not get along.  Shortly after Missy arrived, she and Simba began a wild chase through the house.  I tried to stop them, and got knocked over by Missy as she was chasing the cat.  It was a rather wild moment.  Poor Simba.  He has not been happy since the arrival of Missy.

I talked to a couple of different shelters today, and have decided to try to find her owners first, and have put found ads in all the local newspapers, and will see what happens.  If no one claims her, then we will see if we can find her a good home.  I am hoping that her owners will see the ads and bring her home.  She seems very well mannered, and trained, and does like her creature comforts.  She has "stolen" Annie's bed, and Annie's sleeping place in my office.  Annie just looks at me with large sad eyes about it all, and I told her to be patient, for now, lol!

For now, Missy has wiggled her way into our hearts, and I certainly hope we can find her a wonderful loving home, or her owners before we get too attached!

Since our precious Cosmo died this past summer, we have noticed that Annie seems quite lonely.  We have talked about getting another dog companion for her, but I have not wanted to take on the responsibility of a new animal during the winter months.  So we are waiting until spring/summer comes before we find another dog to become part of our family.

Until that time though, Annie does need some good "romp" time with other dogs.  My dear friend GT who has two sweet energetic dogs in a fenced yard, invited Annie and I over for the afternoon.


It wasn't long, and we were off to the races!


The joy on Annie's face at being able to romp with two other dogs was quite obvious.



They jumped on every snowbank...


... nipped...

 ... nudged...


... and just generally in "dog language" let each other know they were having a grand time.


They say two is company and three is a crowd...


 Poor Tracker.  He wasn't sure what to make of the newcomer - Annie.


But Zeke was all smiles.  Annie had stayed with our friends some time before, and he and Annie were old buds. Tracker was new on the scene, and was still trying to figure Annie out.


Annie's favorite thing to do when she is playing in the snow is just to lie in it and roll around...


She has "snow" much fun romping in the snow.


 The other two were wondering why she was so excited about.... snow?  Really?


What are you doing Annie?  Very puzzled looks they were giving her!


Poof!  So - this is the new game "hide" in the snow, and then pounce...


 ... aha! Gotcha Annie - this might be fun after all!




Hey Annie - can you share with us what's so important down there?


 "Nope" See... it's just a game!  Come roll in the snow with me!


Zeke & Tracker hold a conference - their answer - No!  We like snow, but ....


We'd rather run in it than lie in it!


So the games continued with noses always at work...


More sniffing... do dogs ever tire of sniffing each other's 'you know what' ?  Sigh...


Oh what a happy face!




Tracker and Annie back to playing games.


Awww!  Tracker's sweet face - he was kind of bewildered with Annie's games!


He just couldn't understand her fascination with lying in the snow.


Hmm..... what's the next course of action?


Aha - chase the birds off.  Of course!



That wasn't much fun once the birds all left... so... back to the races we go!


chase...

dodge... pounce... run.. hide... seek... roll over... it was all happening!


Finally after we saw the dogs eating snow, we thought they might be thirsty.  So we brought them inside for a treat and some water.  The Three Stooges!


Annie enjoyed her outing tremendously, and I enjoyed the time I got to spend with my friend.  We have already made plans to do it again soon.  And I will have to work on finding Annie a friend soon.  I realized today just how lonely she is.  I know she needs another dog to romp with, and as much as she loves to hike with me, I know she needs more than a hike every day.  Come spring, we will see what we can do to change that.


And to end the lovely play date, we were treated to this view of the mountains as we headed for home. What a beautiful way to end a fun-filled afternoon!

The first day of the New Year brought a very scary event into our home!  Our daughter had to work in the afternoon, and was on her way to her job.  She hit a patch of ice, and the car spun out of control, and she ended up in the ditch.  Thankfully, a kind couple were just behind her in a 4x4 truck, and they stopped to help.  She had buried her car in the snow, and hit several trees.  The trees damaged the driver's side of her car pretty badly, knocking off her mirror, and her door was damaged, as well as some big scrapes and dents on the sides of the car.  The rear driver tire was also ruined, no doubt by a tree.   But we are so very thankful, and give God praise that she was completely unhurt!  It was a very scary call to receive.  But again, as we began to get the details from her, and the fact that two very kind people stopped to help her, this just reassured us once again of how comforting it is to know that the Lord is round about those who trust in Him!