Weekend Plans

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie!  Cam and I are trying to make our weekend plans ...

"And then ... wait.  Is she still there?  I can't look."
"Yep.  Still there, Cam."

... but our meeting keeps getting interrupted!

Yours sincerely,
Margaret Thatcher

Keep Her Guessing

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie!  The other day, Cam and I were once again downstairs helping Mom in her Studio.  She had gone into the inner room, where she cuts and presses stuff, and Cam and I were enjoying a round of Crazed River Otter Games.  We might have been having quite the wild CROG session, as I remember Mom asking if we were OK out there, you aren't disturbing your dad (his office is downstairs, too) are you, and remarking, "You two are WILD today!"  So, as soon as she came back out into the outer part of the Studio, we did this:

"Hi, Mom.  Who were you talking about?"
"Just two sweet, innocent Siberians out here, Mom."
"Weren't you two ... didn't I hear ... ???"

"Ha roo roo roo!  That was great!"
"Nothing to see here, folks!"
"Oh ... good puppies!!!"

Always keep them guessing -- page 392 of the Siberian Husky Manual.

Have a great weekend!

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

New Bags!

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie!  Mom's been very busy in her Studio lately, as some of you know, and we've been very helpful!

"C'mon, Cam!  Let's get busy!"
"OK ..."

That's from the other day!  We had round after round of Crazed River Otter Games (CROG), then Cam said she was on base.

"I'm on base, Mags!  You can't BOOM me here!"
"Base-schmase!"

I mean, really!  Sometimes the rules must be broken!

"BOOM!"
"Maggie!  I'm on BASE!  Right, Mom?!?"
"Well, yeah ... "

Oh.  By the way, this is what "base" looked like after a bit:

"Sigh ..."

Yeah, whatever.  No one told Mom to wear black shorts!

Anyway - Mom was actually making something for us!  New poop bag holders to hook up to our leashes!  Here's Cam modeling hers out front:

"Look, Cam!  It sort of matches your leash and collar!"
"Sorry, Mom ... the neighbors are out!"

I have one, too.  No photos of me with mine, though.  Mom claims I was making funny faces the whole time.  Not true!  I spent a good deal of time staring at the neighbors, trying to catch cicadas, and seeing what all I could try to snarf.  Making funny faces ... PUH-LEASE!

Anyway - I'm sure you'll be seeing more of them soon anyway!  Have a great day, everyone!

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

Wordless Wednesday

Cam and Mags

The Après Walk

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  After our walk the other day, Maggie wanted to keep going and I wanted to walk around our backyard, enjoying the tranquility.  Dad continued on with Mags, and Mom and I hit the yard.

"How about I do some posing, Mom?"

I got called a "very good girl" for that, if I recall.

"Who's a good girl!?!"
"Who ... me?!?"

It was really peaceful and relatively cool out there!  We walked all over the yard and gardens, just taking it all in.

Mom didn't even have to worry about anyone jumping off the retaining walls! ... for the most part.

I hope you're having a wonderful day!

Cammie!

Hard At It

Greetings to all! It's me, Maggie. It's Monday, the start of another work week.

"Hey."

As you can see, I'm already hard at it! Don't worry - I'm a Working Breed. I'll try not to overdo!

Yours sincerely,
Margaret Thatcher

Serene Scenery Sunday

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  Today, we thought we'd share some garden posing photos with you!  Ready?

Our session started in the top tier.  Mom thought it would be nice to get a shot of Maggie and me sitting on the rock wall under the Amur Maples.  Let's take a look:

Me and Mags, both technically under the Amur Maples

That would be me up on the wall where Mom gave us the "sit" recommendation, and Maggie down on the brick path.

"Margaret Geronimo Thatcher!  Did you jump off that wall when my back was turned?!?"
"Hoo, boy ... here we go."
"Hey, is that Tao over in his yard?!?"

Mom decided we should move down a tier.  I mean, since Maggie  had jumped down there  was there already.

Here we are, in front of some Switch Grass and Lavender -- plus you can see our white Rose of Sharon and Crape Myrtles in the background:

"Oh, like it wasn't a great photo anyway, Mom!"
"I am so staying out of this one!"

We also struck a pose by the Purple Emperor Sedum -- I love those things!

"Cam, do your Serious Face!"
"Oh, come on!  How about some smiles, girls?"
"How's this, Mom?"

Someone was losing interest.

"Hey, what's this?!?"
"Next, please!"

We took our show up to the Friendship Garden after that.

"Yeah, whatever."
"I'm so happy!"

I know what you're thinking - maybe Maggie would have been more cooperative if Mom had treats.  She did have treats!  That's the only way she would have been able to break up any impromptu Crazed River Otter sessions that may or may not have broken out between photos.  What a great time we had!

I hope you enjoyed our time in the gardens as much as we did!  Have a serene Sunday!

Cammie! 

Still "Closed"

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  This morning it was nice and cool, so we all decided to do some exploring together.  We went down to where they closed our sidewalk, and ...

"Huh.  Still closed, Cam."
"Looks ready for business to me!"

Doesn't it look inviting?!?  So, being the adventurers that we are ...

"First Siberians EVER on the new sidewalk!"
"Oh, it's so nice and wide!"

We walked all the way to the top, then headed down Hudson Trail!

"No mud today, but plenty of overgrown stuff we can get into!"
"There's a cicada up there with my name on it!"

What a GREAT walk we had!  I love that we're having some cool mornings now!  And really ... define "closed".

Cammie!

New Job

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  I seem to have a new afternoon job these days.  You saw a hint of it on Sunday.  Can you guess what it is?

After lunch, if there is time for us to go down to the Studio, we have our Pickles down there, then a good, hearty round of Crazed River Otter Games (CROG).  It is my job, during CROG, to attempt to wear out a certain energetic member of the family so Mom can get some quilting done.

Mom hasn't been able to get any good footage of our rounds of CROG, but I'm sure you can picture it!  Round and around, up and down the steps, zoom, zoom, zoom!  Then before you know it ...

"Cam ... I think I'm about tapped out!"
"That ought to hold you!"

I know when the little one has had enough; she likes to retire to the cool tile floor of the Gallery.

"I'll be in here if anyone needs anything!"

"No need to thank me, Mom.  It's my job!"

Mom's been able to get a whole lot done lately.  I think it might be because of my job!  I'm a Working Breed and I love to work!

Cammie!

Vac Time!

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie.  As I told you a while back, we added a new vacuum to the line-up here at Ao4 Headquarters.  I just love vacuums -- not just helping Mom used them, but occasionally getting vacuumed.  It's very relaxing!  Sometimes, though, especially after a long walk, a CROG session, and hot weather, I just ... well, let me show you!

The other day, Cam and I were relaxing in the living room, when Mom came in with the vac.

"Zzz ..."
"Oh, wow!  Using the new vac, huh, Mom?!?"
"Yeah.  Um ... hey, girls?"

Cam and I fell back on the training we received back at Polargold HQs and ... let's roll the video:

To watch on YouTube, please click here

Yep. Nice and calm; nothing fazes us!

Well, sure. We COULD have moved, but then Mom COULD have vacuumed at another time -- right?

Yours sincerely,
Margaret Thatcher

Wordless Wednesday

Cammie!

Great Timing!

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie.  We walked nice and early yesterday morning to beat the heat (triple-digit heat indices this week), but by about 8:30 or so, Cam and I needed to use the front yard.  You know what I mean - right?

We turned to head back in, but I froze and wouldn't go.  Mom thought I was looking at the grass clippers - she and dad had started to do yard work - but no.  Guess who I saw a few houses down, coming our way?!?  My BFF, Chelsea the Border Collie!

Here we are, posing together:

"Hi, Chelsea's Mom!  Can I give you kisses?!?"
"Hi, Maggie's Mom!"

For reasons I won't disclose, I was more interested in Chelsea's mom than in her.  I can't explain it.  I just can't.  I think it's OK for BFFs to like different things, don't you?

"Hey, girls!  Look this way!"
"Yeah, whatever."
"How's this, Maggie's Mom?"

You know,  like posing for pictures ... or not.  It's a Border Collie thing -- you know, the whole "listening to the bipeds" routine.  I don't get it.  But I do love Chelsea - and am so glad I got to visit with her!!!  What great timing we had, coming outside when we did!

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

Construction Update

Greetings to all!  It's me, Maggie!  Cam and I have mentioned that they are ripping the daylights out of some of the roads very close to our house, so we thought we'd post an update today. Let's take a walk!

Here we are coming down Hudson -- not the trail, the road!

"This is nice, isn't it, Cam?"
"Yes!  It's nice and quiet and shady here!"

We were coming back toward Ao4 Headquarters there, toward the big road.  Here's the scene once we got there:

"Ah.  This is where the fun starts!"
"Or ends.  Depending on which way you're going."

On a positive note, with the road being blocked off, it makes it really easy to cross in the crosswalk!

Once we were on the other side, Cam checked the status of the sidewalk:

"Still a no-go, Mags!"

That's OK - as long as it's not muddy out, we can take Hudson Trail!  (Mom and Dad's rule, not ours -- we'd be happy to go down a muddy trail!)

"I love the trail anyway!"
"Me, too!  Ooh!  I see something up there!"

So ... they really are making progress.  They're supposed to have one lane open by football season - two weeks away.  Let's hope that's one lane AND the sidewalk!

Yours sincerely,

Margaret Thatcher

Serene Sunday

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  I thought I'd show you some inside serenity this Sunday, OK?

It starts in the Studio with Pickles ...

Pickle Time!

... followed by a round of Crazed River Otter Games (CROG):

"Round and around and around I go ... when I BOOM, nobody knows ..."
"Not if I BOOM you first!"

And then ...

"Whew, that was fun!"

You might wonder how this is leading into serenity, right? Take a look at Maggie after a few rounds of CROG:

"Zzz ..."

"OH, yeah!"

That's right -- CROG time leads to nap time, which leads to peace and quiet for a little while!  Ah, sweet serenity!!!

Have a wonderful Sunday!

Cammie!

Backyard Pose

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  We had another round of storms last night, but I thought I'd take a look around the backyard anyway.  The gardens took another hit, but ...

... at least the grass is looking good!

Cammie!

Photo Finish Friday

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  I was going to show you more of the garden today, but we had pretty raucous storms yesterday and the gardens took a beating.  Instead, Maggie suggested we do "Photo Finish Friday" like we used to.  Great idea!

Here's a shot of Maggie and me out front ...

Mags and me

... not looking at our mom. Pretty nice, don't you think?

Have a great weekend!

Cammie!

Quick Garden Tour

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie!  This morning, after our walk, Mom and I explored the gardens a bit together.  I thought I'd show you how things are going out there!

Let's start in the Friendship Garden!

"Hello, everyone!  Welcome to our garden!"

The ornamental grasses are HUGE this year, the sedums are doing well, and the coneflowers did well, but are almost done for the year.

"Can you see the sedum behind me?"

The blooms aren't pink and red yet; they're still in what Mom calls the "broccoli phase".  I wonder if I should give them a little nibble to see if they taste like broccoli?

If we go further down in the yard, you can see the Wildflower Garden:

"It's there behind me!"

Mom loves the Black-Eyed Susans!  And to the left of them, in the photo above, see the really tall plant?!?  That's our Maximillian Sunflowers!  They are probably 8 feet tall!  We can't wait for them to bloom!

Let's walk along the path a bit!

"I like these sedum best!"

The bright sedum right in front of me are the Dazzleberry Sedum - but I like to call them D'Azulberry, since I'm D'Azul's Girl From Ipanema!

That's the quick tour for now!  I hope you enjoyed your walk through the garden with me.  We'll try to get more photos soon!

Cammie!

Wordless Wednesday

Yours sincerely,
Margaret Thatcher

Scenery Shots

Hello, everyone!  It's me, Cammie, here with the "scenery shots" from our most recent trip to Cheyenne Bottoms and Quivira NWR, as promised!  These are the iPhone shots Mom took along the way.

We know we're starting to get close when our Flint Hills turn to more gentle, soft hills ...

South Central Kansas

... then the landscape flattens out altogether!

Cheyenne Bottoms Wildlife Area

On our way from Cheyenne Bottoms to Quivira, we saw lots of Sunflowers growing alongside the road!

Sunflowers!  ... and a dragonfly at about 11 o'clock!

And more inside Quivira itself:

Here is a shot of some of the marshland:

Quivira NWR

If you look closely, you can see American White Pelicans, Great Blue Herons, and assorted ducks!

On the way home, we stopped in Ellinwood to do a little walking:

I'm not really cranky; the sun was in my eyes!

We also had a snack and a water break:

"You get a drink, Cam.  I've got your six!"
"OK!"

"Don't worry; there is plenty for both of us!"
"Slurp, slurp ..."

After that, it was back through the hills and homeward!

Kansas!!

Thank you for letting us share the beauty of our state with you!  We ❤ Kansas!

Cammie!