Mum, listen! Why is CopyJames in your bag?
He is leaving, he is going to travel!
Can I come too? No???? 😦 Why not? I like to travel. But okay, I’ll say goodbye to him. Oh yes, of course, a little fototoot too!
Travel safe, CopyJames! Will you write me to update me about your journey and your new friends? 😉
This afternoon we come home from the seaside! After all our traveling, this lady gets home and … is as surprised as she can be! Really, really, really!!!
Dad came in when he emptied the mailbox and said: Well, now we can see who is the most famous in this house! I did not even listen. Mostly it is my mum who gets the packages and the mail, for her library, you know!
But dad called me! 🙂
YES!!! A package for me! From very far away, mum said. Mum opened it for me… to be sure nothing would be damaged… 😉
Oh, my dogness! Oh, my dogness! This is great! Oh my dogness! Look at me now! With my new haircut and my new bandana! Oh, I’m so proud about this! ❤
Some guys really know how to conquer a lady’s heart! Thank you very, very much, Chef Mauricee and Dusty! It is so beautiful and fashionlike! Surely lady Endora whispered you some advice from the Bridge, being the fashion-expert! 🙂 ❤
And international! The whole world will know I have this famous Australian cook, Chef Maurice as a very good friend! My dogness, I’m so proud! Mum, listen, it is time for a very big fototoot! Is the blinking thing ready?
Mum, and I dictate what to type with the pics, can’t do that alone… 😉
And no, mum, there are not too many, put them all there! I can’t choose. We only have two bloopers! One is my fault, the other is yours!
Yesterday, it was free friday! We did a lot of things, me and my mum! In the morning, we went to the huge dogpark! There was a bit of a strange situation! Remember we saw a full moon on mum’s birthday? Moon did not leave Antwerp, as the king did, but still stayed a while! Full moon was in the dogpark in the morning! Quite amazing! I was running and said hello to the full moon and at the other side of the huge dogpark, I was saying hello to the rising sun! This lady never saw these two together! Mum did, she said. But she is older! Will ask grandpa when he is awake! 🙂
On the way home, we met Pepper. Six months old Pepper. I often play with him in my little dogpark. Then Filou is there too. That’s for next time!
In the afternoon, we walked to the Scheldt. there everything was back to normal… or not completely! Grass was funny but growing again. It was low tide. And there was a part where we now just can walk into the river… before there was reed. Mum said it is a little dangerous now. Mum made lot of pics for the foreign friends! One especially for Dusty! 😉
At the yacht club, we saw birds, making their little walk too. 😉 And then we were on the dike in the turn of the Scheldt. We saw the industry, far away, of the big harbour. We also saw the little bech where you can’t go for a swim! Me is happy about that! 🙂
When we came home, I saw this amazing and odd situation: a ship on wheels, a ship that was not in the water! My dogness!
Anyway: enjoy the pics and the walk in Antwerp, on the left bank of our Scheldt! 🙂 ❤
At noon, we went out for our walk. Mum said we were going to make a bit of a special walk! There are these festivities this weekend in remembrance of 100 years ago: the first big war: World War I.
First you have to know that in Antwerp there is NO bridge over the river Scheldt. There only are tunnels under the river: an old and small one, we call the rabbitpipe, a newer one for the highway, one for the metro and one for pedestrians only.
At the beginning of World War I when the Germans were attacking and crossing Belgium to conquer France, people of the city of Antwerp tried to escape and were running. To escape they had to cross the Scheldt… Big problem! The army made a pontoon bridge to help the people escape. For two months, Antwerp had a bridge! Width of the Scheldt here is about 400 meters. (= 0.248548477 miles)
This weekend we are celebrating that, as far as you can celebrate a war… 😦 The Belgian and Dutch army worked together and they install a pontoon bridge on the river Scheldt. If you bought a ticket in time you can cross it on saturday and sunday… All week long we could follow preperations because we live nearby on the left bank.
So, at noon, mum said we would go to get some pics for my story-page and look if the pontoon bridge was there… (They build it and take it away again after a few hours for boats to pass, they build it again etc…)
They were making the bridge when we arrived, so mum did make a lot of pics! Then a lady was talking to us, telling us she had an airedale too, and she was petting me. Then she told that when the bridge would be ready, the king and queen woul cross the Scheldt and come to the left bank. Already, at noon! It was said to happen this evening.
Mum always says that presidents and kings and queens are people like me and you, I mean jsut like you and mum and dad. She said she would proove that to me and make a pic of me with the king. We heard all the police-man and soldiers who were inspecting where he was going to walk. So the nice lady, me and mum… we looked for a good place!
Yes, she is right my mum! She really is! My dogness!!! King passed, shaked mum’s hand, the king talked to me and he said I am a very beautiful dog! He said: “Mooie hond”, everybody could hear that!!! And then mum said: Kita, we take a pic of you with the king and we did pose for the fototoot, me and the king! But a very quick one, so pics are not that super!
Little one! The king and you, not you and the king!! Impolite dog!
Yes, grandpa: me and the king, you say it!! He’s a nice guy! He is like you and mum and everyone. But of course he had to go on! Later we also saw the queen. 🙂 We did not talk to her, but we have a pic!
Historical day: Antwerp has a bridge for a few days and I met the king… 😉
Dear city-girl cousin Islay,
Becomig a city-aire-lady is not as easy as you might think! You have to learn and experience a lot more than running and socialising in a dogpark. Yes, that’s important too! So, dear Islay, I think this lady could give you some hints and advice. Today is about traveling by metro. I think you call it the subway! Read this carefully, my dear!
1. You may never take the escalator! That’s forbidden and dangerous. If there is no elevator, you take the stairs!
2. Going down the stairs you stay next to your mum, same step! Never pull on the leash or you and mum will fall and roll of the stairs! That is not the target! Nevertheless: be sure not to miss the interesting smells! Train your mum to patiently wait from time to time!
3. Arriving on the platforms always look around carefully: I remind you of this: you are your mum’s bodyguard! That permits you interesting sniffing at the same time! 😉
4. When entered in the tram, control the place carefully! Your mum’s safety is at stake! Than lay down for the lenght of the drive but be sure to take as much place as you can. Your mum will be gratefull, people won’t be able to bounce her! 😉
5. When getting out, be patient and let others go out first!
6. When going up the stairs you can stay one step ahead of your mum, to make place for her. This won’t lead to rolling down. 🙂
7. Bark or whine when necessary but please don’t overdo it! People will be mad at you! Aire-ladies don’t disturb people!
Well, dear Islay, to be sure you get the picture, we add a video with the instructions. Take the time to see it, although it is a bit long. And don’t get to dizzy or tired… 😉
Last Friday, me and mum, we made a fototoot! A real one, not for ourselves this time but for some very nice friends at the other side of the world! Australia, mum says! Is that another friend of them, mum?
No, Kita, it is where they live. You live in Belgium, remember?
Okay, I see, next walk, when we have time, we go there and we’ll play together?! Is that a promise? 🙂
Oh Kita! (sigh)
Anyway, on the tv-typing-machine, I saw sir Dusty likes sliding down, he always is up there! I asked mum if we have slides too! So mum took me to the park to show them. We were impressed by the slides but we were disappointed we could not go in the children’s park… Mum says it’s forbidden… for Kitas and other dogs. So we took all kinds of pics, from a nice distance.
There is a part for adults too. We went in, but I did not like it that much: no slides!!! 😦 Funny: adults need explanations how to use everything! Children are much smarter than adults, they need no explanations. I did not see explanations in the children’s part!
After that, we took a nap, me and mum, in the grass with the daisies! Lovely!
So, here you go: lots and lots of pics, especially for lady Endora, Chef Mauricee and sliding sir Dusty!
Dear Molly and Winnie, Taffy and Monty (ladies first! 😉 ) ,
What a surprise! You really did surprise me! This morning the postman brought a package. That’s not unusual these days, with mum’s friends all over the world, these days. But today, the package was adressed to me! To ME! Kita, that was on the box!
Speaking of a surprise, well, this was one! In my whole life, I never got a package with my name on it! Grandpa Lennox said those things happen only to ladies, he never got one, in 15 years! 😉
My mum gave it to me to unpack! Surprises got bigger and bigger!
Dear Molly and Winnie, you are such fashion ladies! You really have good taste! Did you remark on the pics I have a red leash? This collar fits exactly with the leash! My dogness, you are very fashion-talented! All my fashion-dreams came true: I have a red collar with air-ladies on it! Oh, I almost can’t believe this! Oooh!!! Thank you so very, very much. In Dutch I say: dank je wel! I’m very happy with it! 🙂
Dear Taffy and Monty, you guys, you know what a lady needs as a diversion in every day life! First of all you completed my ‘farm’. Now I have a cow and a doggie too! My chicken and pig will be happy! But then, you remembered I like to play with empty bottles! But the bottles were very well hidden, you guys have lots of humour, haven’t you! It took me almost 20 minutes to find the bottle that I heard but could not see! Finely I found it and almost unpacked it. Mum filmed it! Thank you so very, very much, you too! Dank je wel! With this I can play for hours, mum says. After an hour she put it away! 😦 She says I can play again tomorrow. Thanks a lot, guys!
Dear Molly, Winnie, Taffy and Monty, I thank you with all my lady-heart! I love you silent-wednesday-gang! 🙂 ❤
Mum made a long film (after the pics), especially for you, you can play with me in that way… Maybe others will be bored, but maybe you like it! Don’t mind my mum always saying I can not chew on it, I should “krak”=make noise with it! 😉 My apologies for her silly behaviour in the movie! 😦 😉
Thank you very much for all this!
Big hugs and ❤ from a Belgian aire-lady,
Kita
Mum says she is speechless! Surprise did work! Who could have thaught this? This is really unbelievable! 🙂
Here in Belgium, at midnight (summertime here), we did not break one record, we broke two! That’s the force of the aire-force, mum says… airedalefriends are very, very special… That’s what she learned in the three years I’m here… me of course, I already knew, i had not to learn that, being an airelady!
We want to thank you very, very, very, very much! We love you all! 🙂 ❤
And then, look at this! Not 1000 views, but almost 2000! Incredible! So that’s the first broken record! Second one: in less than 12 hours, 122 friends were visiting my story-telling-blog! As I say: mum is speechless… so i’m doing the talking here, as always… 😉
Thank you very much! Hope you had some fun, looking to the pics… That’s what it was about… 😉
My dogness, this is an exciting discovery! You won’t believe your eyes reading this! But it is the truth! I did some research… euh, well, euh… the human mum of my mum Funnygirl looked it up for me!
What? I tell you! I have family all over the world. Yes I know, the aire-doggies and aire-folks are one big family, they always say so!
But I have real relatives all over the world, with the same name! My first name is Kita, but my family name is ‘Van ’t Asbroek’. Well, I found out that other aire-girls and aire-gentlemen called ‘Van ’t Asbroek’ live in different countries.
There is my famous price-winning litter-sister Karolle Van ’t Asbroek in France! And there is my mum Funnygirl who lives in the Netherlands now.
And than there is Mr. Bean!! He lives in Norway! My dogness, he is a handsome sir! Ohlalalala! His official name is Iammrbean Van ’t Asbroek! His mum is a littersister of my grandpa! No, not my grandpa Lennox (he is a labrador!), my real grandpa: Desmond Van ’t Asbroek! So you see he is my cousin! Or almost! 🙂
And than there is the brother of Mr. Bean who is in Mexico! But mum can’t find him on the tv-typing-machine! But my mum knows the mum of Mr. Bean and his mum sent some pics! That’s how I know he is so handsome! 🙂
And you know what? All of us are born in Zoutleeuw, in Belgium! There live a wonderful human doggie-dad and doggie-mum! They really love their dales and know everything about them! I love going there… to be groomed! Aire-dad makes me a lovely and beautiful and real airedale-lady Van ’t Asbroek! I’m proud to be a Van ’t Asbroek-airedale-lady! I sure am! 🙂
Look at the pics of Mr. Bean. He is a beautiful Van ’t Asbroek-airedale-sir, who went abroad to Norway. You can see we are relatives, can’t you?!!!!
So today is Valentine Day… What on earth is that! I could look it up on mum’s tv-typing-machine… Got a lot of very clear explanations from my friends Tarquin and Tyee! Thanks guys! So it is all about love…
Well then… I will send special greetings today to a very special girl! I’ll explain! There are Sam and Ike in Wyoming and their mum! Wel the Hump Day-mum has a very lovely and special human sister! Why is she so special? She works in a library, just as my mum does! And she is always smiling, she loves the books very much and she reads a lot of books!
My mum says this smiling lady may come to Antwerp and make mum’s library a lot brighter and she will make all the visitors smile too!
Sam and Ike’s mum did send some pictures of this lovely smiling library-girl! And something else is special! She has airedale-friends! Look!
So I send her a very big and special, smiling Kita-aire-hug!
You want to read about this special library-lady? Just click!
http://www.marshallpl.org/indexGFX/2014%20February%20Legal_Layout%201-1.pdf
Every day an airedale: Kita 