We come home from the dogpark. mum says: look there! That’s incredible. Where is Incredible? New dog in the neighbourhood? I stop and look around but I see no dog. No mum or dad neither. It’s one of these days,… mum is speaking in puzzles. I don’t like that!

It really is incredible she says again when we are inside. She opens the window and says again: this is incredible! My goodness, can someone tell me who is this mister or misses incredible? Mum gets the blinking thing? Fototoot of Incredible?

Mum, listen, I’m here! What does she do now? She makes pictures of the flowers. She really is mistaken: these flowers are geraniums, not Incredible. ???

Now the black box is singing. She says hello. I listen. Must be the human pup, I hear it. Mum tells it’s incredible that in the middle of january the geraniums start flowering again. Human pup says Incredible too… Crazy human family! I see no Incredible! 😦 I only see geraniums outside… but they have flowers, that’s not normal, it’s not summer now! Unbelievable! 😉

Mum, look! Holidaymum is in the dogpark! And two doggies are there with her. The cocker is Lokum, but who is the other one?
Holidaymum, can I have my treat? Yes, I will sit!

Okay, that little lady is Mirabel? Hello Mirabel! I’m Kita and yes, I’m pretty and not small at all, so keep your manners! Do not sniff my butt all the time, will you?!!!

What is holidaymum telling at my mum? Mirabel is almost 14 years old? A little grandma! She is not too social and rather bossy? She does not like Lokum?

Mum, holidaymum!!! Look, they are fighting! Oh no, don’t do that when holidaymum is near! Oh no!! When holidaymum shouts and lets you know she is the alpha, even my mum steps aside.
Ohoh, Lokum and surely little grandma, who started the fight, seem not to pleased wit the new orders of holidaymum… I must tell this at my grandpa Lennox!

And my mum? She forgot to make pics of the fight! 😦 but she has a few of little grandma Mirabel. 🙂

Yes, he did it again! He scared us! Only two days after mum was filming his morning walk, well, on tuesday afternoon, it happened. He could not get up, my grandpa Lennox! When dad helped him, he could stand and then, there he did lie down again!
I was in a little panic! How is that possible??? My grandpa could not walk anymore! 😦

Mum and dad called the people in the green clothes and grandpa could go and see them immediatly! Returning, he said something about a fototoot. Oh, my dogness, and he does not like fototoots! What? Pictures on a light? More Osteoarthritis? No cancer? What’s that all about?? He also explained that he got two injections! One for feeling better and one for feeling stronger, he says he got anabolic steroids. I don’t understand a word of what he says, grandpa. Think something went wrong with his head too at the green clothes’s clinic… 😦

Listen, girl, you will not be the only famous one! I’m going to be invited by Oprah Winfrey. 

Opera? Singing dogs? And you will be invited? You don’t like noise!

Silly Kita! These are stupid questions. You really know nothing of the real world, don’t you? The green clothes – by the way: the vet, my dear – well she gave me an injection with “doping”. And then you are invited by a very famous tv-journalist, she is called Oprah Winfrey!

Oh, is it only that… Pfff! And when can you walk again? I think that is more important…

???

Next day mum went to the pharmacist, the nice and very smart guy! He is Kyra’s dad! Anyway, mum had a paper to get pills, expensive pills, she said! Kyra’s dad called them golden pills. Yesterday, at noon, grandpa ate a golden pill! It was just white!! Crazy things, they are talking about here, these days!

And then, the miracle happened! Three hours after the golden (white) pill, my grandpa was walking again, on his own! He was even hungry! After dinner he went out with dad, as usual… not as far as usual and not to the dogpark, but he walks again!

Already told you, little one! Need a tornado to blow me off to the Bridge!!! 😉

Within 2 weeks it’s my birthday! I will be three years old! Exactly 4 months later – that’s every year like that, he says – it’s my grandpa Lennox’s birthday! He will be 15 years old then! Yes, you read it very good! 15 years old!

He says he’s old now… there’s a lot he can not do anymore… he does not go up or down the stairs, he does not climb trees (never did that – haha!), he does not jump in and out the car anymore, he does not jump on and off the couch, he does not surf on the counter (never did, he says!), he does not play roughly anymore, he does not run fast anymore (and he was a great runner!!)… he sleeps a lot…

BUT he makes four walks everyday, his tail always wagging (and breaking glasses sometimes at home)! And I learned a lot of him! I learned to read the daily newspaper and be informed about the actuality in the dogpark and the neighbourhood. I learned how to smell and know danger. He thought me where to find moles! I learned how to pee like a guy – still do it sometimes altough it is not lady-like. He thought me how to ask for a treat, and that’s his best “art”. He thought me  to respect mum and dad and to listen to them… (what I do, at least most of the time). I learned not to touch his food, he is a labrador, you know! I learned to guard the house and bark when someone’s at the door (he does not do that anymore). I learned that I can play with him untill he’s tired and then I have to stop teasing him…

He learned me to be happy with and thankful  for all the good things that come my way… just like he is, still is, despite his age, despite his hyp displasia, despite his osteoarthritis and despite his kidneyproblems… He says he is thankfull he has no pain. Although he sees and hears less then before, he is still curious and interested in everything.

I asked mum to make a film of his morning walk, so you can see my grandpa Lennox!! Of course I am in it too, could not be without me of course! 😉 🙂

This was really an exciting evening! Why? Me and mum, we went to a fire and to fireworks! Dad and grandpa Lennox did not come with us, because… now you will laugh as I did… well because my big grandpa Lennox, a real macho in his younger years (that’s what he always says), well my grandpa is afraid of fireworks! Can you believe that? 😉

Mum says I don’t have to laugh, that I have enough overseas and Belgian doggiefriends who are afraid of fireworks! She says: I told you about Gus, didn’t I? You did send him lots of goods on FaceBook, lady! Ohoh, I forgot… 😦

Anyway we saw the fireworks, lots of colours in the dark sky. They appeared and then disappeared again. Why do they disappear if it’s that nice? Sometimes the world has those silly things… And of course there was the noise… Lots of doggies were barking… This lady did not! Many, many people came to see it.
After the fireworks, there was that real fire! Mum, look at that! Hundreds of christmas trees on a pile, they are burning! Call the firefighters! What do you say? They are already here? And they start the big fire?? See what I mean: silly world we live in!
Can tell you that this fire was big and warm!!! Mum explained this is a very old Pagan tradition to say hello to the New Year. Looked it up, it’s quit a story! Ans in these days it’s not good for the environment, it’s not ecological… Maybe that’s true but I like this Pagan way of doing… 😉 Maybe because I’m an airedale lady? 😉

Mum made pics… very difficult in the dark… :-(, but I wanted to prove my scared macho grandpa it is safe, all this fire-things, Pagan or not! 😉

In Dutch:

http://nl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kerstboomverbranding

In English:

http://historymedren.about.com/od/dailylifesociety/a/xmas_traditions.htm

So we are back to normal life and I go to the dogpark every day. But sometimes there are no doggiefriends to play with because we go early! Mum has to go to work, you see!

Then I look for other activities, of course. I’m not of the inactive type of dog, as you already might know… So, I thought I could concentrate on refining my climbing skills. Every aire-lady can always be better in things, can’t she?

Near my tree in the dogpark there is another tree. Branches are more narrow then those of my tree. But I’m good in climbing, so I can go up there! 

Yes, I can! 🙂

But I have a worried mum, she worries too much. When I’m too far away, she whistles…When I climb too high… well, I have to come down! To narrow, she says, you cannot turn back on that tree. (She knows I’m not the jumping type… 😦 ). For once, I listened and tried to turn before to go higher.
I don’t like to admit, just like that, but… she was right: difficult to turn on that branch… so I walked back to my old tree. Grandpa Lennox said: you see, sometimes it’s better to listen! Ggggrrrrrr, he too?!!!!

Mum thought she was filming! Hahahahahaha… Oh no, she only has pics! Hahahahahaha!

Last part of the holiday-stories!

By daylight, I was not UFO-ing of course! But I was running a lot! I like the beach and that big space and the water and the sand and the running! One morning, mum was filming to show the friends I run very far away! She says that I’m a mini-Kita for her when I’m that far away!

But I think sometimes mum is a little bit worried that I forget her when I’m too far away! And then she uses the whistle-language! That’s something I know very, very well – although I say it myself! – When I her the whistle: short, short, long… then I should hurry to mum, as fast as I can. Playing with other dogs? Stop it! Sniffing something interesting? Stop it! Eating something? Stop it! And: RUN! And that’s what I do then! I’m a lady!!! And… I always get a very good treat!!!

Little detail: mum should use that short, short, long-whistle more often! 😉 That would mean: more treats! 😉

Mum’s holidays are over! She goes back to work tomorrow! That’s allright, I need some rest and… then I can use the tv-typing-machine to tell the holiday stories! 🙂

We did really fun things. We were at the seaside and these days it’s getting dark real early! But when the sea is very far away…

At low tide, Kita, at low tide!

So when the sea is not near the dike and the houses, the beach is not big, the beach is enormously big! I like to run there and I love running far away from mum till I feel the sea at my paws, then I run back to mum and again and again while mum comes to the water too! She says she loves it when I’m enjoying myself, running like that. So I please her and … I run! 🙂

But these days it’s dark early! And mum wants to see where I am, always, when I’m off the leash… Me, I don’t think that is necessary, but mum… she is stubborn! So, remember mum bought me a light-collar? A red one? An overseas friend said that I’m a real UFO then! So I went UFO-ing on the beach! Even when it was dark, I could run to the far-away-sea! I was so happy about that! I ran, and ran and ran!!! 😉

Mum filmed a bit, but in the dark that is very difficult, she says…