It is hard to believe that summer is in the past and we are halfway through September! I live in Waytofarnorth Minnesota for the quality of life, the quality of men (I met my husband here) and the fact that after 15 years it has become home; but I do not live here because of the weather. Nope, summer is perfect but way too short as far as I am concerned and autumn, my favorite season by far, is often way too short or nonexistent as well. Let’s see, according to the photos on my Facebook page, snow flew on October 4th last year which is a mere two weeks away.
So as I bemoan the end of summer, the pups continue to enjoy each and every day and whatever the weather brings! Vivian and Ike do not share my former poodle Anna’s fear of storms, for which I am grateful. Loud, sudden noises for which they are unprepared scare the living daylights out of them but thunder or hail does not seem to faze them at all. And going out in the rain? No problem! Vivian probably thinks that rain is just a giant hose from above! Vivian continues, ate age 2, to enjoy a romp in the hose. Ike, being older and wiser enjoys watching Vivian romp from behind Greg’s perch on the porch swing. Ike is funny, he doesn’t like getting doused with a hose, but open up the shower door and invite him in and he is happy to take a refreshing shower in the house. He especially likes the massaging showerheads!
Both enjoy being out with Greg and helping with “stuff”. Early on with Vivian we worked and worked on recall because I wanted Viv to be able to go outside and hang out with Ike and Greg. All the work paid off and she is a rock star when it comes to sticking around and not going outside the confines of the yard. Interestingly, neither dog really wants to be out in the yard without me or Greg. If we go in the house, they are soon at the front door ready to come in as well. 
After work each night Greg changes clothes and asks the pups, “Who wants to go to Nana’s?” Nana, aka Mom, aka Donna lives next door, across a farm field. At Nana’s there are all sorts of fun things; a shed filled with critters, a garden to weed and trees to serpentine through. Not to mention Nana herself, who has a dedicated kitchen drawer for dog treats! This summer Vivian learned how to weed the garden and dig potatoes. Of course once the potato was dug she just ran around the yard with it in her mouth, but one lesson at a time, next year is soon enough to learn the next step in harvesting.
Vivian and I continued our volunteer work this summer. We had to work around fishing, so sometimes we went on Saturday mornings and other times later on Sunday afternoon, but pretty much weekly we made it to the Senior Living Facility. My favorite visit this summer was on the 4th of July. We decided to go in that morning, before the festivities began in town, not realizing that the 4th is a big time for family reunions and that the residents might have a lot of company that day. Sure enough the place was packed and as we headed around a corner I heard “It’s the Therapy Dog! There is Vivian!” Suddenly Vivian was surrounded and getting her picture taken with various people, both small and big. As I looked around I realized I didn’t know any of these people, yet they all knew about Vivian. It was then that I realized I had started something I could not quit, Vivian means something to the residents and therefore we are in this for the long haul!
puppyjackpot 