A big catch up!

Hi All!!!

We finally have broadband, I have so much to tell you. I know it's only been since August that the Suffolk adventure began, but a lot has happened since then.

It all started when Chris's job was transferred to Suffolk, shortly followed by muumy (who said she woudn't leave Sropshire unless she had a job to go to). As you know, she started work as a Graphic Designer not far from the office where Chris works.

As mummys job was just part time at first, we commuted back and to from Shropshire and stayed in Kings Forest in a caravan.
Mouse and I particularly liked this arangement although Lordy found it all a bit strange. At bed time, mummy and Chris would turn the whole living space upside down to make up a bed, what started as one bed ended up as two as mummy was finding it impossible to sleep on the sections of foam which made up the double bed. After several trials and diferent arrangements, a new pillow, new douvet, some cussing and grumbling, they decided on a bed each. Best bit about this was that Mouse and I slept with mummy! Most nights were quiet although there were several occasions where a Muntjac would bark very close to the caravan - or 'Sharabang' as mummy calls it (because it is a sh1t caravan). As the barking was quite loud, I would bark back, waking Mouse who in turn would wake up mummy by leaping up off the bed and onto Lordy on the floor below. This would be met by labrador grumbles and quicky followed by several expletives from Chris' end of the 'Sharabang' which went something like 'shut up you little brown wotsit or you'll sleep in the car with an elastic band roud your 'beak'...nice!. It would appear the ear plugs don't actually work then!
In the morning all would be back to normal and it would be as if nothing had ever happened! I am such a loved dog!!!

Mornings in the Sharabang were eventful, never so much as a lie in. Unfortunately, Kings Forest is very popular with dog walkers. Noisy ones who like to walk their dogs very early. I will give a very brief description of some of the early morning visitors, all of whom I needed to bark at!
1. Mr yappy, this one would arrive around 6 am a couple of times a week, from the moment he arrived, to the moment he was put back in the car, this spaniel would yap continuously. I did hear Chris say that he would shoot me if I ever did that!
2. The elderly gentleman who would arrive around seven in a 4x4 with two very distinguished elderly labradors. One yellow and one black, after several meetings (too many for Chris's liking) I stopped barking at this pair, they were far too well mannered and the owner was terribly nice!
3. Mira the very beautiful smooth coated pointer, she arrived with either a man or a woman who ran. They took up running to excersise her. In many way she looked like Mouse, just minus the 'whiskery' beak!
4. The creaky old cross bred and equally creaky owner. This slow old boy looked like every walk was going to be his last but sure enough, every morning he was back. Even he ignored my barking till I gave up!
5. The collies, what can I say, sneaky wily and scary the way they creep up! I don't have much to do with this type of dog, the only ones I met in Shropshire were always snarling in the back of the shepheards truck.
6. The terriers! My favourites, a good roll round and a chase and several attampts to separate us to the point that when they arrived, I wasn't allowed out! Poo.
 There were many more other dogs and owners but I would be here forever, we even had a stray one for a bit, until he was reunited with a tearful owner who arrived in the dark to collect him.

After several weeks which to mummy, were slowly becoming agonising, we dicided to stay in the house in the wood. There were no carpets in the rooms downstairs and the ones upstairs were taken out to treat the floor boards for wood worm. The place was riddled with it and stank for days after the treament. Mummy and Chris slept outside under a tarpaulin over the washing line for a couple of nights, it was fantastic as we all slept together. I seem to remember being old to shut up a few times during the night again!

The house in the wood was fantastic, no neighbours for two miles! We still had the occasional dog walker and passing horse (mummy gave carrots to) but all in all, just us and the wild deer which populated the forest and came out at night. For some reason mummy and Chris never moved their stuff in, they seemed to live out of bags sleeping on just a mattress with a couple of camping chairs to sit on. They used to call it 'squatting' to me it was like living in an empty drafty house with creaks and echoes. Just as the sofa's arrived to add a little comfort, we had to leave, something to do with the house not being safe after Chris went through the floorboards upstairs and the landlord never finishing the work that had been promised. Shame really, they loved being there and even rode the horses to the house from time to time.

So this brings us to the midddle of November Chris & mummy are still not sure where they are going to end u living and the stress is immense! I am getting worried as I am learning to bury my bones, if we move again, I will have to dig them all up again! Mouse said she would help me but she'll eat them if I tell her where they are!

Finally, by chance, Mummy managed to get a house through her job which came just in time for us. We were at a point where we had no where to go and mummy was so fed up she wanted to go back to Shropshire where it always rains. The timing was spot on and with no messing, we moved in to a 3 bed semi detatched cottage with only two neghbours, an enclosed garden and a sofa which the previous tenant had left behind.

This became the 'dog sofa' it was fantastic, our very own sofa complete with douvet! We enjoyed the luxury of this fantastic arrangement right up until Christmas when visitors started to arrive. Sadly the 'dog sofa' became 'dog cushions' on the floor next to the radiator. Equally as comfy, but not as good for viewing out of the window and barking at the neighbours visitors ( I wonder whether this is why the sofa was removed?). We are also banned from the 'posh' leather sofa in the lounge, that was Mouse's fault! she decided to make a nest and put scratches all over one of the seats. Mummy and Chris were really upset and although they didn't take it out on Mouse, she knew she had blown it. We now have a 'furry' on the floor in he lounge and are not allowed in there on our own. If only Mouse had been more careful, we used to lie on one sofa each, there were even 'snuggly' sheep skins on there. (Yep one of the ones Mouse had re-modeled in an earlier blog, mummy & Chris are so quick to forget these things!). A week has gone by and we are still made to lie on the floor, I think they are serious this time, Mouse is really sorry.

A lot has happened with the horses too! First they were moved to a field near Chris's office, there was a really big dog there called Lily, she was a Great Dane. I really liked her and would visit her in her huge run when we went to do the horses. Lily wasn't very clever but was quite funny, watching her run was even funnier! All legs and droopy lips which slopped up and down with her ears in the wind.

During our time at this field, Wizz punctured her foot and needed to be stabled elsewhere, Spiderman after being completely unsettled and upset was later moved to where Wizz was recovering, this made things easier for mummy as she was no longer trying to be in two places at once. The new yard is cool, loads of interesting sheds and stables to mooch about in, there is a big stack of hay in one of the old barns too, Mouse is showing me how to hunt for mice!

Just as things were looking up for the horses getting fit enough to hunt, Spider punctured his sole with a nail, Mummy has been bandaging his foot and putting funny hot pads on it for two weeks, the farrier came and cut bits off his foot (Mouse and I ate those bits) then when it was safe enough to put Spider out in the field he was very carefully turned out. It has been nearly four weeks and he is still not right. As mummy says 'as lame a cat', at least she can ride Wizz.

The horse box has also been moved, we traveled up in it with mummy. We ate Macdonnalds chips on the way over, our special treat for waiting so patiently while mummy made a stop. Macdonnalds are referred to a 'filthies' in our house, something to do with them being a bad thing to eat. Humans are so weird, I thought it was just us dogs that ate filthy things!

Oh on the subject of filthy, last week we went to the yard to excersise Wizz first thing (we go with mummy to the yard every day), on this occasion, Mouse and I found some fox poo which being my favourite fragrance gave me the oppourtunity to cover myself ready for hunting fo rabbits in the fields while mummy rode.

I thought I had got away with my new smell until I walked in through the front door on our return home. More expletives from Chris and a free lift to the bath tub followed by a shower using Aran aromatics bath foam. Personally, I preferred L'eau de Fox but as guests were coming for dinner later on, I was persuaded that the new smell would be the difference between a night in the dog kennel outside or a night being cosseted and adored by visitors in the house. I chose the latter.

Anyway, I have crammed in much and there is more to come. Watch this space as we are online!!!!

Pop's. xx