A Visit to St. Nick

Last Sunday, we ventured to Lenox Square Mall in ATL for Santa Photos. This Santa is normally for humans only, but they let pets join the fun for two Sunday evenings in December.As you can see by the photos, Di and Norm were excellent Cardigan ambassadors...one lady even knew what breed they were because she had owned a Pem! A Christmas Miracle! The only bummer was that Frank had his iphone stolen. Tis the season, I guess. 

Win Pic

Here is Diamond's win pic from Priceville. Cheryl always makes her look so pretty. Hopefully, we will go this weekend to see Santa at Lenox Sq. Mall in Atl. They let the official Macy's Santa do pet photos a couple of hours on two Sundays in Dec. It should be fun. Oh yeah... and the girls can have their picture made with Santa too :).

We have ribbons....

Diamond was WB and BOW Sunday in Priceville AL. Only one point (I think), but a good finish for her final entry in the 6-9mo puppy class. (She will be 9 months on the 20th). Now she will come home and have fun till next year. I am sure she will especially enjoy watching the Macy's Parade this year as Neil Diamond will be riding  and singing on the South Dakota Mt. Rushmore float this year! Then, of course we can watch the Philly Dog Show...We will be glad to have her home! I will post the win photo later when we get it, but here is a pic Cheryl snapped of Di 'laxin' in her crate:

Halloween Fun, Dog Shows, and Deer

Ready for Halloween...Sarah is Marvin the Martian, and Norm is Marvin's dog, Commander K9

 Emily and me are in our Star Trek Uniforms!

Costume parade at Kennesaw Show was led by Emily and Diamond!

Marvin the Martian and Commander K9!

Happy Diamond at the ATL Show a week b4 the Halloween Shows.

This was a pretty appropriate response to this judge for sure.

We have two young yard deer. They are so pretty and my cat stalks them.

Is it coming a flood soon, or what??

   
Hello, this is Norman and they made me model this orange jacket. I do not know why but they said they were selling some of these Fido Floats on ebay and needed a model. The one I am wearing was too small. I think it would fit Diamond better,but she is with The Boss. She used to be my boss.

    I am also supposed to tell you that Diamond was RWB Friday at the MD shows, whatever that means! Oh yeah...and I think I am going to try Lure Coursing in a couple of weeks if the weather will cooperate. I am going to be Commander Canine for Halloween (that's marvin the martian's dog). Mom will have to make the costume, though. Maybe it won't be too scratchy! I will post a picture of that!

The Remnants of a Good Time

This is the look of satisfaction after shredding the pillow on the sofa. She was only by herself for a few minutes. Norm says he had nothing to do with it!

Baby Steps and Norm's Visit to Grandpa!

Diamond participated in her first cluster of shows this past weekend... We came home with a couple of blue ribbons, and lots of new experiences for a barely 6 month old puppy. She had fun and is starting to learn how to be a show dog. Right now she is at Camp Cheryl  and she is entered a couple of days at Lexington this weekend. Super-congrats to Norm's sis Rosie for her 4pt major on Sunday, and to Tommy (ScoutxChase pup) for back to back majors in the ATL this weekend. It was all quite exciting to watch!

Here is Emily, Frank, Norman, and my dad in his room in rehab. Norman did well for his first experience in such a place. He got to meet some of the other patients/residents too!

 Norman is going to get to play therapy dog tomorrow (though he isn't yet certified or anything)...my dad is in rehab after a nasty blood infection and they told us that it was OK to bring our doggies. I am sure this will be a good thing for man and beast alike. Norm is so sad and lost without his little Di-Di!! I will have to post pics of this visit to the rehab/nursing facility too! I have since added the photo above! Norm and my daddy were very happy to see each other!

Resistance is futile...

"

"We are Cardigan...you will be assimilated....resistance is futile..."
They are definitely in charge. Happy 6 month Birthday Diamond!

Not Much Happening Here...

Hello, this is Diamond! I am trying to keep this big stick I found in the yard away from Norman....I also ate a book today, and threw up in the Element like three times! Like I said, not much happening here!

 BUT ...I hope to meet some new friends in Atlanta at the shows in a couple of weeks. We all think Norman needs to enter the weight pull 'cause he's so big and strong.... I will just be out in the ring looking cute and wagging my tail, I think. I will try to be a good girl!

Did I do that???

Hello, it's Diamond. They say I was bad and ate the purple Ikea bench. Was I really bad??

And they Call it Puppy Love...

Miss Diamond practices...Norman Barks

Our club had a match yesterday so Frank took Diamond out in the ring for some fun and Norman got to stay in his crate and...BARK. A good time was had by all!

I Am Cardigan, Hear Me Roar

Hello, this is Diamond. I got my Cardigan ears yesterday.  Everybody says they make me look very cute now that both of them are standing up.I also had to go see people who poked me with needles and things, and that microchip thing really HURT!!. The Dr. gave me a yogurt treat to make me feel better. Please look at the video below if you want to see what me and Uncle Norman do all day (when someone is around to watch us, that is...otherwise I have to stay in my "bullpen"). It sure is fun being a Cardigan! PS: You need to look at Emily's blog about me at diamondiscute.blogspot.com .

There's a New Kid in Town...

We were thrilled to go to Tennessee on Friday to pick up the newest member of our family, Grangefield Lyberty Cracklin' Rosie Make Me a Smile , "Diamond". She is Ch Winbucks Mosaic Wheel D'Fortune CDX HT (ferris) x Ch Grangefield Lyberty Savannah (jill). Norman is a very happy uncle, although I have to admit that Diamond will certainly be ruling the roost before many days pass. She is a fearless little spitfire, and we love it!

 She was born Feb. 20, which is also the same day Norm finished his championship. Diamond will be old enough to debut in the ring at our Club's practice B Match in June. Also... my 5yr old Emily has started her own blog about Diamond : www.diamondiscute.blogspot.com . There are some other photos on her blog from our trip to TN. Special thanks to Laura Prosser and Shirley Hobbs for entrusting us with this beautiful and SMART girl. I will co-own her with Laura.

Winner of the Silly Cardi Award....

Here are a couple more shots of Norman from Nationals. It is possible that he could have won the silly Cardigan in the ring award, if such an award existed! Please note in the first picture that he spotted me and became a total ham! We had a good time, and it was a great experience for all of us. I have about 2000 photos from Nationals (conformation movement and candids) that can be viewed and/or purchased at www.ashotinthebark.net/cwcca2011 . I have prints, digital downloads, and other merchandise (like mousepads) available. Even if you were not there, please just enjoy taking a look at all the dogs.

There will be a new and exciting announcement coming in the next couple of days! Stay tuned!

A Fun Day at the CWCCA Nationals

Sarah and Emily got to take Norman around the ring today at Nationals in the Parade of Titleholders. It was fun for the three of us, and it made everybody smile! Check out my photos of Nationals on my website at www.aShotintheBark.net. You can view and purchase photos, file downloads,  and all sorts of other neat stuff like tees and mugs and other cool stuff. I am uploading as fast as I can....if you order prints they will be color corrected in the pro lab. Enter code CWCCA for a 25 percent discount on any order. I will be blogging a little more about our trip next week!

A visit to the relatives'

Hello, this is Norman. We went to Tennessee to see puppies on Wednesday. They belong to my half-sister Jill and some dog names Ferris. Nobody paid much attention to me, but I got to see the puppies, my mom Katie (who growled at me when I got too close to her bone) and several more of my relatives. The puppies are really cute. My little girls were really fond of them! I hope to see all of you in Houston. Stop by and pet me and I will give you a big kiss...

My mom made some pictures of the puppies and she also has a new website for her photography: www.aShotintheBark.net. Maybe you would like to look at her website and all the puppy pictures HERE. And if you scroll down to the bottom of this page there is a youtube video (it WILL view in HD if you select it) of our visit too. I make several very brief appearances.

Please don't eat the scissors.

Dear Norman,

Please don't eat the scissors.

thanks,

the management

Mail call again...

The Saturday Bath and the $600 Cat

Well it's Saturday, so I told Norman he needed a Saturday Bath. He was not impressed, but relatively compliant. It's not such a bad deal Norman...you haven't had a bath in about three weeks.

Now to the topic of the cat. The cat pictured above (Smokey) that I found in the woods this past summer (feral) wound up with a $600 vet bill. We had just had him neutered and microchipped and all that jazz when he disappeared on Valentine's Day (or if you prefer...the last day of Westminster...) He was gone for about a week, then he reappeared and it became evident something was wrong. Terribly wrong. He spent about 6 days in kitty ICU at the vet getting pumped with steroids and IVs. The vet determined that he had suffered a very serious head injury that caused his brain to swell. At one point he was totally blind. The photo above was taken today and it was his first adventure into the great outdoors in about 3 weeks. Smokey is really a sweet kitty. They told us he is a Maine Coon mix...which means he will probably be HUGE! He is doing great and we are thankful.

The mailman brought something today...

That was really fast. It's only been a week. And thanks to the photog for letting me pay online. I rarely write checks anymore!

Meet CH Lyberty D-Day at Normandy!

Norman finished his Championship today in Greenville going WD for a 3pt major. We are thrilled! And he brought home a very pretty ribbon too! Since we didn't get to go, the girls got out their drawing equipment and provided some artistic renditions. Emily told Sarah that her drawings of the Judge (Duerksen) and Ms. Cheryl made them look like vampires. lol. We have been battling the stomach bug since Wed. here....both girls have had it and they are WIPED OUT. I fear I may fall victim within the next few hours...ug.

Norm won't get to rest on his laurels much as tomorrow night is obedience class at the Atlanta Obedience Club. (Provided someone in the family is well-enough to get him there!)

We extend a BIG BIG thanks to Norm's handler Cheryl Mika and to his breeder and co-owner Laura Prosser for letting us enjoy this sweet boy!!

Everybody Have Fun Tonight (Everybody Wang Chung Tonight)

We had a super time at Janet's puppy party Saturday just over the state line in TN! We all enjoyed playing with and admiring Scout and Chase's beautiful babies. Here is a video of Norman and Scout playing a little in the front yard at Janet's. Scout was such a good sport to the intruder (Norman) don't you think? For puppy pictures, visit Janet's page HERE. Daddy Chase's website can be found HERE. Oh yeah...forgot to say I got me an iphone 4. Super-awesome. This video was shot with the phone and edited in-phone with a free app. Pretty cool.

Back in the Saddle Again.

 Feb. Atlanta Shows...2 RWD, 1 Dump....lots of silliness. On to Greenville, where hopefully everyone shows  to maintain majors in dogs all 3 days. I did not even get to go to the shows till Sunday due to sick young'uns. Thankfully Sarah only has an ear infection (bad enough) but at least it's not strep or flu!  I made some good photography contacts on Sunday. That was encouraging, since I would love to actually get paid for this dog/pet photography thing at some point. It is much more fun than weddings. If you have a Facebook Account, you can view pictures of the Cardigans on Sunday in Atlanta here.

Norman is always happy to play with Sarah and Emily after he is done showing!