Blessed rain...

We have been blessed with incessant amounts of rain this year.  I'm trying to be as indifferent to the cold and rainy days as Sawyer appears to be.  It's really just another day for our canine companions (as it should be for us) and life goes on.

When the Bruce Trail is terribly muddy, we resort to neighbourhood and beach walks. Again Sawyer is fortunate to have such varied of terrain close to home.  Recently, we walked on the Hamilton side of the beach.  It's lovely if you can ignore the hydro towers and the Skyway traffic noise.  However, none of these bothered our boy.  We enjoyed a peaceful walk alone on the beach, listening to the waves crashing.  Unfortunately most of the beach was under water and the sandy banks were quickly being eroded by the waves, leaving a trail of debris and driftwood.  All the more fun for Sawyer as he chased sticks in the water and sniffed his way amongst the native beach grasses.  We found an unusual amount of whole coconuts amongst the debris and Sawyer enjoyed chasing them or chewing on the shell.

 

Near the end of our walk, Sawyer laid down and busily gnawed on a coconut, while I paused to thank my lucky stars for the magnificent surrounding and for our precious boy, Sawyer.

Backyard Entertainment

Sawyer was not interested in our campfire so he chose to amuse himself in other ways...

Campfire...shhhhh

I've been told by MJ a new blog was long overdue.  This one is dedicated to you, honey.

Sawyer is one month shy of his 1st birthday.  He continues to grow, mature and test our patience.  We regularly expose him to new experiences, each one having various results.  Last night, W built an inviting little backyard fire (shhhhhh....), using the Sawyer's branch stockpile collected on his daily walks. In fact we had so many sticks, had we the talent & imagination, we could have constructed a lovely canine log cabin!

In no time, a roaring hot fire was warming us, perfect for roasting marshmallows or a good Angus-quality steak, both of which Sawyer would have keenly indulged in.  MJ and our "second daughter", K, joined us for a chilled glass of Gewurzt and Pinot Grigio, chatting around the campfire... thankfully no one broke into a chorus of campfire songs.  Sawyer cautiously pranced around the fire pit,  only once getting close enough to singe his whiskers, but didn't.   He chose to distance himself from the fire & smoke, choosing to roll in the grass, snuggle up to the girls, steal W's firewood and attempt to sneak a sip of wine (not to mention indulge in a marshmallow or two when MJ thought I wasn't looking *wink*).

Eventually the girls abandoned us for the night-life in the burbs, leaving W, Sawyer & I to relax, chat and allow the flames to entrance us.  Not sure Sawyer would classify last night's campfire as his #1 activity, nonetheless, we all enjoyed a quiet evening outdoors.

(Sawyer attentive to K's instructions)

(Sawyer with Mom & Dad)

(MJ and I enjoyed the wine while Sawyer & K abstained!)

(the log thief)

(enough of the outdoor experience)