Signs of Spring

We've had a couple of nice days that have given us faith that spring has finally arrived!

Indy and the daffodils

Jazz and the cherry blossoms

A Pair of ARCHs

This weekend, we were treated to a pair of ARCHs!

No, not the Golden Arches of McDonald's...

...and not this famous arch, either!

On Saturday, both Jazz and Indy earned their APDT Rally Champion (ARCH) titles in Latrobe!

Here's Annette, the judge under whom Jazz earned her title, Jazz, me, Indy, and the judge he earned his title under, Traci.  The Dals got beautiful title ribbons and neck ribbons from the trial host, B&D Creekside Activity Center.

In addition, Indy and Jazz also got their APDT Rally Level 1 Championship (RL1X) titles at this trial, earning the two rainbow-colored ribbons that I'm holding in the photo.

So, it was quite a rally weekend for us!  I'm especially proud of Indy, who earned his ARCH at just over 18 months of age.  Jazz added a few more perfect 210 scores to her record, and Indy earned his first perfect score at this trial.  As icing on the cake, our friend Kameron (Border Collie) also earned his ARCH!

Vacation Countdown

One month until our annual Outer Banks beach vacation, and we're counting down the days until we can feel the ocean breezes and the sand between our toes!  Jazz has her sunglasses, flip-flops, and beach ball all ready to go!

No Foolin'

 Every year, we celebrate a very special April Fool's prank...Tess' birthday!  Her Uncle Jim likes to say that Tess was born on April Fool's Day and has been fooling the world ever since!  Tess turned 8 today, but we celebrated with a group of our agility friends on Friday evening at B&D Creekside Activity Center.

Here's Tess as she approaches her birthday cake.

Mmmm, yummy peanut butter carrot cake!

Never one to stand on formality, Tess just digs right into that cake!  She did leave some for all her canine friends to enjoy.

In addition to visiting with friends and running agility, Tess also got to play with Blaze.  It was just a blur of black and white!

Here's a blast from the past...a photo of Tess napping when she was just about three months old in late June of 2005.

We're grateful every day for our little April Fool's girl and look forward to many more years together!

Easter 2013

 Happy Easter!  Here's a picture of Indy, Jazz, and Tess with their Easter basket. Unfortunately, no pretty outside pictures this year!  I should have taken a picture outside yesterday when it was nice, but I was too busy taking advantage of the good weather and riding Rocky!!

As you can see by the two pictures below, it's tough being a bunny in a house full of Dalmatians!

We're heading off to our Easter visits, first to Jim's family and then to my sister's, where the Dals will have some Easter fun with Dancer, the Golden Retriever.

Wishing you all an Easter filled with your favorite treats!

Indy Nationally Ranked

I was both surprised and thrilled when I received this certificate in the mail today indicating that Indy was the #8 puppy in the country in APDT Rally for 2012! Not bad for a little guy who only showed four times in the Puppy Level!

Indy had also been invited to the AKC Rally Nationals, but the event was held in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and the travel was a bit too much for us to undertake at this time of year.

Needless to say, we're very proud of Indy and all he has accomplished in his first 18 months!  He's a joy to train and equally as pleasant to live with.  The girls think he's the best toy we ever bought them!  Indy has also begun his pet therapy career, and he's made a good impression on those he met at UPMC Passavant, including at their Cancer Center.

We're looking forward to continuing Indy's training in agility, obedience, and rally and spending time with this sweet, sweet boy.

Lazy Day

Today is another in a string of cold, gray, ugly days we've had lately, and the dogs aren't mustering much enthusiasm!  We're all not-so-patiently waiting for spring and the arrival of some better weather.

Indy snoozing on the couch pillow.

Tess and Indy snuggled under their blankets.

Where's Waldo?...I mean Jazz!  She's so tucked into her blanket that she's almost camouflaged! 

When is it going to be spring so we can get out from under these blankets and go have some FUN??!!

Aside from the lazy day we're having today, the Dals have been keeping pretty busy, despite the weather.  We are attending our classes, both obedience and agility, and Indy was in his first two agility trials!  He did great and has earned his CPE Level 1 Standard and Level 1 Handler Games titles!  He's also qualified in a couple of Level 2 classes, so he's coming along nicely.  

We're looking forward to spring's arrival next week and are counting down the days to our Outer Banks beach vacation in early May!