Summer Rental

Rustic cottage for rent - short or long term.  Located in close proximity to excellent dining and a local pub.  Views of an English-style garden, good school system.  Landlords provide mealworm buffets and organically grown livestock.  Fenced to keep the predatory element away.  Reasonable rent - apply now!

When I went out this morning, I spotted a male bluebird perched just about 10 feet from this nest box, which has always been a big favorite for the spring brood of bluebirds.  He was singing his lovely song while a female waited up in the trees.  Last spring was the first time in 6 years we've not had bluebird tenants in this box, so I am hopeful that this early visit signals a good omen for this year's nesting season.  

The weather was gorgeous today so after a nice long FT chat with my parents, I loaded the boy into the car and we headed to the park for a nice walk.  I totally forgot that today is a Federal Holiday so it was very busy with a bazillion distractions for a puppy - lots of people, kids and dogs.  He did surprisingly well, although he did attempt to become airborne several times in response to seeing other dogs.  By the time we headed back, he'd blown off a lot of energy and was much better.  I did let him greet a couple of the dogs we saw, but made him stay with me for the others.  Same with people.  He is learning, but it's slow going.

When we were headed back, I met up with two people walking a very well behaved golden retriever and we got to talking.  Their dog is 2.5 years and is a licensed therapy dog now so we talked about that.  The dog's mom said that she thought Jax would be a good candidate for being a therapy dog because of how friendly and non-reactive he is with people and other animals.  It's something to think about, although nothing he's going to be ready for in the near future - not until he is much better trained.  The golden's owners were really so encouraging and remarked that Jax was well behaved for being a puppy.  Made me feel good.  Sometimes I feel like he should be further along or that I'm not doing the right things, so it was nice to get some positive feedback.

Hubs is going into the office tomorrow so Jax and I will be on our own.  I think it will rain in the afternoon but if the weather is decent in the morning we will probably head to the park again.  

A brownie today - the last one.

xo
Debbi