Scary But True

A local photographer, Joanne Cousins of Living Soul Photography, is doing a project this month called "Operation Confidence".  This is what the project is about:

We all have something that has helped instill confidence within us. One simple word, object, person, experience - with a greater story behind it.

This Project (which will run through the month of February) is a way of bringing awareness to people - everyday people like you and I....that no matter what we have gone through, or are going through, or may possibly go through in the future - every single experience we have builds us into the people we are today. People who have true confidence in themselves and love themselves for who they are and what they stand for. No matter what it is that has helped you gain your confidence, it is a beautiful story - one that just might open the eyes of someone else who may be struggling to find it within themselves; and we'd love for you to share it with us!

No story is too big or too small - just be honest with yourself, and think about what it is that has given you the confidence in who you are today.

There are some gorgeous images and some truly inspiring stories (click on the images to see the stories) in this project.

My life has been pretty good. There is no denying it.  Whether that is from circumstances, luck, the decisions I've made, or a combination of all three, I'll never know, but when it came time to write up a story for this project I didn't know where to start. When I contacted Joanne for some help, she suggest writing about someone or some thing that has influenced my life.

I of course, instantly thought of Coulee.

It is scary when I think of the impact Coulee has had on my life.  Her wild, crazy youth was the driving force behind me quitting my job and starting up my own business.  Who knew a dog could turn your life upside down so dramatically?  I honestly believe that if we had adopted a mellower dog, my confidence in my business plan wouldn't have been there and I probably never would have even considered creating such a business in the first place.

Here is my image and story.

'Friendship'

"This is probably going to sound silly and frivolous, but I wouldn’t be who I am today or doing what I do, if it wasn’t for my dog Coulee.

She has taught me all those things dogs usually teach you. Things like:

• It is important to greet everyone with love, each and every time they come home, even if they have only been gone for 10 minutes.
• It is important to eat first thing in the morning.
• Experiment with your food and don’t be afraid to try something new.
• Exercise can be fun if you do it with a friend.
• Afternoon naps are a necessity.
• Enjoy the simple things in life.

She also taught me that life should be fun and that if you aren’t having fun, do something different. It was because of her that I made a drastic career change. It is because of her that I now make much less money, but have a much richer life. It is because of her, I no longer sit at a desk surrounded by paper, but instead am surrounded by dogs and covered in fur and slobber.

It is because of her, that I laugh a lot more during the day. If she hadn’t come into my life, I have no idea what I’d be doing today, but I do know, it would be nothing like this."

Happy Valentine's Day

May your dogs give you lots of kisses today.... before they eat poop.  ;)

Speechless

I don't even know what to say about this photo.  It just cracks me up.

Wave

Coulee hates it when I ask her to wave.  I have no idea why, but she resists it doing it, even though she'll do a "high 5" just fine.  She not only resists it, but she voices her displeasure over the fact that I even asked.  She will bark, and bark, and bark while I patiently wait to get a word in edgewise to ask her again.  She will eventually do it, but never without complaint.

Pig Pen

Park Lake Adventures

I wanted to go somewhere different on our walk today.  I'm tired of the same old, same old.  I had an extra long break between my shifts, so it was the perfect day to head out to Park Lake. While it is busy out there in the summers, it is pretty much deserted all winter long.

To say the girls got a little dusty, would be an understatement.

Apparently the stick was a little heavy!

Oh so excited to have the stick.

Speaking of excited to have the stick... Can you see Lacey's little nose just poking into the shot?  LOL

Coulee was the most graceful thing on the ice.  She was also the only thing on the ice.  I was worried she was going to pull something!

Sometimes a friend makes a heavy load just a little lighter. Sometimes they are just trying to steal your toy.

Happy Coulee.

This just made me laugh.  I have no idea what Lacey is doing in the background other than stirring up a lot of dust.

I swear the stick is getting heavier and heavier with every throw.

Lacey was a rolling machine.

Coulee showed off her mad jumping skills.  Lacey refused to go over and kept running under.  It brought back memories of agility.  :)

This just might become a Wednesday ritual!

Open the Flood Gates

We have been looking after my sister's family's dog Micah for about a week now.  We fostered her last year when she was in rescue and Coulee and Lacey loved her.  This summer however, Lacey went after Micah once while on vacation and it really surprised and worried me.  We haven't let Lacey around strange dogs ever since (she had 2 prior incidents at the dog park and this was the final straw).

So while I was pretty sure we could manage all the dogs together, I wasn't sure if they would actually rekindle their friendship.  It took a few days but they are now best buds again.

In fact, I can't seem to get them to stop playing.  It is great, but the problem is Coulee.  She always wants to get in on the action as a third wheel which means Lacey gets the crap beat out of her.  So to keep Coulee occupied while the other ones are playing, I'm forced to either put her in a stay (which is no fun for her or me as I have to be constantly reinforcing it) or play fetch.

I think it is Coulee's plan - get them to wrestle, so I'm forced to play fetch.  I gotta hand it to her, it's working.

And Lacey and Micah are having the time of their lives.

Coulee of course, is shocked at my allegations.