Carol and Mardie

When we were moving out of our house, on the last day it got really crazy. We were nearing the end and my mother and I were cleaning and clearing out my bedroom. In the closet, I found the boxes that I stored old cards, letters, school papers, etc. in. I started sifting through a bit but realized I didn't have time to sort stuff at that point. So I gathered it all up and stuck it in a small suitcase. As I was taking a final look around, I noticed a card laying on the carpet. We'd been working in there for a while at that point, and I hadn't seen it before. I picked it up and realized it was a Thank You card from my dear friend Carol, who passed away from cancer in 2006. There had been a divorce that tore a group of friends apart, and a remarriage that brought her great joy. We tried our best to stay friends with both and were there when Carol remarried. When she became ill, she kept it a secret. I never got to visit her and say good-bye. That has bothered me so much. The card was thanking us for our wedding gift and friendship. I don't remember getting it and was struck by the fact it was the only card left out. I silently thanked Carol for the support and took it as a sign that everything is alright with her and I knew we'd make it through the move after that. This adventure was something that would have delighted her!

When I worked at the YMCA, I met a woman named Mardie. She was in her 70's at that time, and swimming competitively in the Senior Olympics, travelling the world to go to different meets. She had had a very interesting life, her parents were ex-patriots living in France and hanging out with names like F. Scott Fitzgerald for a time. They then lived on the Pacific coast where she could hear the surf pounding on the shore. As an adult, she lived in Europe with her husband who was an educator in schools there. Then they moved to Maine. I was always fascinated by her past and the things she was still doing. I lost touch with her after leaving the Y, but had heard through mutual friends that her health had deteriorated and she no longer recognized people. While moving, we had found the old leather hat she had given Alan, we still wear it when its raining and we need to feed the horses. She got a kick out of how he looked in it, a bit like a hobo, LOL! I had meant to ask a mutual friend how Mardie was doing when I visited with her just after the move, but had forgotten.

Anyways, a few weeks after moving, we decided we needed more glasses from the storage trailer. People had given me newspapers to wrap stuff in since I don't read them. So as I was pulling glasses from the box and unwrapping the newspaper, I noticed on the ground below the trailer was an uncrumpled, perfectly folded piece of newspaper. I asked Alan to pick it up and asked him where it came from. He didn't know but when he turned it over, there was a picture of Mardie. She had died in June. I had not heard that and was sad to learn the news. It was the oddest thing as all the other newspaper was crumpled and in the box of glasses. Even Alan was a little taken aback. I'm glad Mardie is at peace now, and cherish the memory of her.

Some days I feel like such a PIG!

Wilbur

Okay, so we take the girls and my niece, Shiann, to the Union Fair in our little green Buick. The girls decide they want to put their names in the lottery for the pig scramble. We say Okay, that should be fun to watch. Now I thought 12 kids would be chasing 2-3 pigs, and what were they odds they'd get picked anyway? Well, ALL of them were chosen, Amber first. She was especially happy since she'd decided she didn't want to do it afterall, LOL!

Well, when they unloaded the piglets, I realized there were enough for everyone to get one, and everyone did! Shiann was the first of our girls to nab a piggie!

So all three girls ended up with piglets. Shiann sold hers to a little girl and we sent Alan home to get the truck and a crate to transport them in. None of us were too thrilled with the idea of the girls trying to hold the piglets in the backseat while we drove home!

So what happens when you're living in a camper, your dog has died, the kids are back in school and you have no TV or internet?! That's right, you spend way too much time with the piglets and discover how easy they are to train!

Wilbur and Petunia

Wilbur is a castrated male, shy and sensitive little guy. Petunia is bold and independent, and very smart. I taught Wilbur to sit using their favorite treats, grapes. It was easy. I didn't work with Petunia at all, but the next day when I went down and asked Wilbur to sit, Petunia sat too!

Wilbur

Wilbur loves his belly scratched and will lay down for you to do it. He loves being petted and paid attention to. He has now learned to get down on his little piggy knees for treats, and I'm working on getting him to lay down and play dead with verbal cues.

Petunia must have been a horse in a former life. She LOVES the horses. I can see her being a "pig-eyed, pig headed" Appy mare or something, she does have spots on the top of her neck, LOL! She heads straight for the horses when I let them out and "talks" to each one. They have taught her horsey language, which she caught onto quicker than I have! Molly has learned to ignore her, since its not worth the effort to try and chase, bite or kick her and she'll come right back. Angel has gotten her point across, she HATES pigs and will put in the effort to chase her if she gets too close. Maya is the same way. FlyAway doesn't care, she gets along with everyone! So Petunia has made it her mission to win over Angel and Maya. The other day, Maya was walking down the pasture and Petunia was walking beside her all the way, oinking away "Why don't you like me, huh, huh?!" Petunia not only sits, she smiles too. She's learning to hop up on a hay bale and sit for a treat.

Petunia smiling

The horses have gotten used to the pigs and they mostly get along. The pigs are pretty big now and know to stay away from teeth and hooves. I try to let them out to play once a day, they just love to run around, and they can run FAST. They always come when called and have no problem going back into the pen.












PIG PILE!!!!!!

New Puppies

We have two new family members! Chance and Tucker are now 10 weeks old. They are Corgi Poodle mixes. We don't know exactly what they'll look like when they grow up, but they sure are cute now! We got them when they were 8 weeks old. They easily transitioned onto raw food diet, and I found a shop that sells everything you need right in Farmingdale called "Naturally Good Pets". They have much better prices than the other big box pet stores around. I even put the cat on raw. They can't wait to eat, and can barely bring themselves to eat the dry food I leave out for snacking. They are eating a prepared ground diet from Bravo, but will go onto whole bones when they can chew them up. I found out about a butcher not too far away, from a lady in my Dave Ramsey Financial Freedom class no less!

Chance is the straight haired pup. He looks mostly Corgi and has that personality too I believe. He is very sturdy and solid. Chance is quiet, calm, loving, intelligent, bold and curious. He's harder to house train because he just goes when he needs to, no big deal! I picked him out when he was just a few days old. Chance loves to eat and savors his food. Pig ears are his favorite chewing toy. He also likes cat toys best.

Tucker is curly and has hair so will probably need grooming. I didn't think of that when I got him. They have the same markings, but look so different. Tucker has longer legs and is slimmer in body and bone. He is very intelligent but not quiet. He whines quite a bit. He whines when he needs to pee or poop or Chance has something he doesn't or Chance is picking on him, or he wants to be carried or he doesn't want to ride in the kennel in the car! It actually makes him easier to house-train because you know when he has to go. When he has to go #2, he chases his butt like "Oh no! Its coming out, I can't hold it, oh no!" or he drags his butt on the ground like the dog Toby in the steam cleaning commerical, LOL! When we brought them home, they took naps and then Chance got up and explored and Tucker stayed on the bed and didn't want to move. He likes to be held and "tucks" into your neck. He also gets "tuckered" out faster than Chance. Tucker INHALES his food, never seen a pup eat that fast!

You can see the girls and Alan are having a hard time bonding with them! I had never used the kennel to train pups, but its working out really well. They are sleeping through the night. I had forgotten, though, how labor intensive new pups are! I took them for a walk on the river walk in Gardiner yesterday and they trotted along like little men. They have been easy to leash train so far. Mittens the cat is getting used to them, they were raised with kittens, one used to stay with them all the time, so they are very comfortable with cats.