Black eyes and bruises and everything else inbetween.

“Keep moving forward because action creates momentum, which in turn creates unanticipated opportunities.”

~ Nick Vujicic - a preacher and motivational speaker who created the non-profit organisation Life without Limbs. You’ve probably seen his video but if you haven’t, here it is ... he is INSPIRATIONAL.

Sometimes I need to be reminded of all the good I have in my life. 
Sometimes I forget and allow the difficulties to overwhelm me.

Enough!   I believe in me.

.... and so does the hound!

“Anywhere you go, let me go too. That’s all I ask of you.”

~ from Phantom of the Opera
Thanks Anthony - it's such an appropriate quote!

That could be my hound’s mantra .... or the mantra of any of the hounds that I ramble with. It IS all they want from us .... just to be with us, to partake in our lives - every little bit of our lives.

Carol arrived at the Co-op this morning with a black eye and bruises too numerous to mention .... I KNOW the culprit. I’ve SEEN him in action. 

He's wanting to be a Black Labrador today!

He has a head as hard as a bullet, doesn’t know his own strength and LEAPS like a kangaroo ... it’s all that Aussie blood in him! Carol was the loser in their wrestling match this morning. I didn’t think wrestling matches were supposed to leave bruises. 

Ebony with a tennis ball she retrieved off the bottom of the Dog Pond this morning .... clever hound!

Sam’s definitely growing into himself. No more does he allow every other hound to pinch his ball and NOT give it back. Now when another hound takes his ball, he’s quite confident about dashing over and grabbing it back. Ebony’s getting used to being mugged!

Ebony loves rugby balls too and joins in the chase whenever she can, regardless of which ball it is. 

A trio of chocolate mousse .... but only TWO rugby balls! Where's yours Ebony?

My hound’s quite the opposite and won’t chase a ball unless it’s the one she WANTS to carry. More often than not, she chooses to take Sam’s Chiefs ball but, just recently, she’s been taking the ball that Anthony brings for Ebony. She walks contentedly around the reserve between water holes and rivers with the ball in her mouth, just waiting for it to be kicked in the water.

They know the route so well and wait patiently, most of the time, for us to join them.

Shadow’s another story altogether. He wants the other hounds to chase him and believes that if he takes their rugby ball, they’ll chase him to get it back. It doesn’t quite work like that though and he can’t understand why. He sits down with the ball in his mouth looking at them. He’s all eagerness .... CHASE ME ... CHASE ME!!

What a puddle of personalities!

First it was a PAW!

I’m sitting here writing my blog after a really productive day completing an order, when a fur-ball’s head appears at the top of my lap-top screen. She’s climbed UP the Lap top lid and, as she tries to balance on the top, the lid slowly descends on to the desk with the fur-ball clinging to it!

... then the whole head appeared ...

Cute kitten OVERLOAD!!  

Clinging on for dear life as the lid descends.

Even Shadow's retrieving the ball from the pond .... we'll make a Labrador of him yet!