taming the rambling rose

I apologise if the blog is a tad flowery at the moment, but hey!  it is June after all, and Normandy is at its most fragrant time of year.

Our climbing rose in the middle of the garden has exploded this week, and although I know it is difficult to use the flowers in an arrangement, I thought I'd have a go ...

I placed one large and two smaller vases on my mantelpiece, and cut branches of various lengths from the fragrant rose.

This exercise could be more accurately described as a balancing act than as a flower arrangement.  Those rose branches have a will of their own, and persuading them to face the right way required .... patience!

The dogs, in the meantime, feigned indifference to the rose bush lighting up the garden behind them, and faced with my resistance to their pleas to go for a walk, they lost the will to protest and fell asleep on the terrace!

ghetto - the fetishist revealed

Ghetto has  an unsavoury characteristic that needs to be revealed.  You all think he is so cute, and funny and playful, but actually - as well as being a chicken assassin - he is also a fetishist.

yes, my friends,

Ghetto likes girls underwear .......

He covets lace lingerie, and in this house a girl has to be careful.

A door left ajar while in the shower, and a little black nose will soon peak through, about 12 " from the ground.  This is called 'reconnaissance'.  A quick glance towards the shower to make sure the enemy isn't about to emerge, and he darts in, grabs the underwear and is gone!

Failing the carelessness of a girl taking a shower, he will resort to tipping over the laundry basket and choosing a favourite piece of lace.

If the front door is open he'll dash down the garden, panties brandished proudly like some beribboned trophy, and if he can't get outside he'll retreat beneath a chair to gloat over his illegal possession in peace.

So far we have avoided any real embarrassment, but I dread the day when a guest to the cottage finds him burying my underwear among the roses ...

oh, the trials of living with a Ghetto!

an outraged ghetto - the before and after ....

Outraged!  That is the word that nails it today!   Ghetto is reeling in shock, still unwilling to believe that we took him to that woman with the scissors and the shampoo and the combs.

Our day got off to a less than ideal start when I took the dogs for a quick walk around the forest with their friend Rupert.  The idea was that Ghetto would  run off his excess energy and would be quiet and compliant with the beautician .... hmmm....

What I hadn't planned for, was that he would throw himself into every available mud hole and then go AWOL, making us late, and leaving me little time to hose him down before setting off to his appointment.

Words cannot describe the looks we got as we entered the dog beauty parlour.  There were four other dogs there already.  Nice, clean, well behaved pups with ribbons in their hair and pretty collars around their necks.

Clients and beauticians took one look at the still slightly grimy Ghetto, then looked at me "Really?!"

I tried to laugh it off, muttering something about country dogs, and the joys of the forest, and the benefits of fresh air and exercise, but I don't think I made much of an impression.

Still looking aghast that such an unkempt mutt could be on her premises, the nice lady with long manicured nails, impeccable make up and a dog salon full of chic French dogs took Ghetto's lead from me between the tips of her fingers and suggested I came back later ... much later!   "It will take time to fix this!"

An hour and a half later I collected an outraged pup.  Shocked that strange women had thought it appropriate to  inspect every nook and crevice on his tiny canine body.   

I loved his shaggy look, but  I have to say that the beauty parlour did a very good job (although Ghetto would beg to differ).  For a while at least, our French country mutt could walk down the most chic street in Paris and not look out of place.

And Gibson in all of this ... well he just wondered why nobody wanted to take pictures of him too!

It is indeed a dog's life!

lost and found ...

 Oh my goodness!  You very nearly didn't get a blog post today, nor any other day for a while.

These two monster pups went missing early yesterday, and I think we lived the most horrible 24 hours we have experienced as  a family.

Posters were photocopied and distributed around the valley; local radio stations ran alerts; the postman and the policemen had pictures of them in their vans; the butchers and the bakers had pictures of them in their store ....even my hairdressers had their picture up on the wall!

Dinner last night was a lifeless affair, nobody chatting, nobody even eating that much...

What made it worse for me was that I was the one who left the gate open.  Oh the incriminating looks that earned me!  Guilt lay heavily on me all night, and at five this morning I was out looking for them again. 

How much we attach ourselves to these fur balls!  It is quite incredible.  How much love and affection we pour on them; how we love their funny ways.  Today they are home and I'd forgive them anything - even if they dig holes in the lawn again!

If you don't have any animals I'm sure that you are rolling your eyes to the ceiling right now in utter disbelief at this blogger's foolishness.  But if you have a cat or a dog or horse that you care for, I hope you'll understand how we felt.

And where were they found in the end?  In the next village along the valley, they had managed to get into the garden of an uninhabited house, and then couldn't find their way back out.  Luckily someone saw our poster and recognised their little mutt faces.

...the weekend can start now ...

dogs in trouble

Several readers were worried about the absence of 

Ghetto in Sunday's loot shoot ....

he's been in a little trouble ... again ...

with work continuing in our garden, yesterday saw us 
with wet cement ...

you can see where this is going ...

yup!  only one dog managed to get too near

 walk right through the wet grey stuff ...

at least I get to show you  a before and after.... 

 how that pup hates to bath!

A busy week here with two bank holidays and some guests coming to shop at the holiday fairs.  My blogging maybe episodic this week, or mostly pictures of our days out and about...

thank you for reading me,
take care.

the french country dog

Isn't it strange how it's always the same one 

that gets into the most trouble

even if he doesn't know how it happens

nor how it doesn't happen to his pal  

some pictures don't really need a caption

the joys of a French country Sunday afternoon ...

a dog's life ....

The week has been a shocker for these pups.   

They've had to amuse our house guests; chase the neighbour's cat; get lost in the forest; empty the dirty laundry basket; bark at the postman;  roll  in foul smelling mud; dig holes in the lawn   ....

 ...  it's easy to lose sight of just how tiring a dog's life can be.

Then of course there are all those silly house rules to respect:  don't run out the gate, don't jump up to greet people, don't beg at the table,  don't rummage in the bin, don't bark at the horses, don't come upstairs and,  oh yes ... 

....definitely don't ever, ever get on the sofas .... 

Score: One - Nil ...  to them .....

 I think we may need to go back to school!

seven days to spring ??!!

It snowed all day yesterday   ... wait a minute!

we are seven days from spring and 

it SNOWED ALL DAY yesterday  !!!  

Aaarrgh!  my poor daffodils, all ready to bloom, my poor magnolia, in bud and just waiting at the starting line ,  that's it - I have had enough of snow, I want the spring  ..  NOW!!

Trying to look on the bright side, I suggested to the dogs that 

at least the snow provided a good photo opp  .... ahem!

Gibson, aka the angel, lay down and posed for the lens.  It is uncanny how he recognises the camera!

Ghetto, aka the .... well, it's best if I don't say it here .... just did not

 understand  why Gibson was being so boring and obedient. 

 He jumped around, pulled Gibson's ears; tried to throw snow at him; pretended

 to find something really interesting; pretended to run away even; 

but Gibson was not having it. 

I'm telling you, that dear  Gibson deserves a special BLOG DOG award!

   " are we done now?"

images from a sunday in Normandy .. and a modest loot shoot

 Well yesterday I saw the sun rise and I saw it set and the hours in between just flew by!

First fair of the season, modest but still enjoyable , a cold cold start, but I came home with a few nice things to make me happy.

Would love to show you the chippy stools I nearly bought, and the black desk I hankered after but left behind ... but when the weather is that cold I'm afraid the camera is left in the bottom of my basket.  Next week I'll do better, promise! 

Here are a few of the things I found; including a beautiful sheet, some ticking, a yellow jug then a roll of yellow ribbon just for fun .... a quirky painting that I love and some - more! - oval ironstone plates (don't know why I like these so much!)  some pretty volumes of Victor Hugo, including les Mis!

First horse jumping competition of the season too, and we went along to support some friends taking part.  So many memories of the years when my girls competed, how many Sundays were spent this way ... grooming, warming up, holding my breath as one jump followed another, un-plaiting manes, and returning home weary but happy.

 There seemed to be as many dogs as horses at the show, and that sort of added to the charm - I really should have taken Ghetto and Gibson too.  An afternoon outside, with horses all around, and the added interest of a competition - good country fun!

All of that under a bright crisp sky, with birds singing loudly to encourage the arrival of the spring that we so long to see.

Hope you had a peaceful weekend too. 

 Thank you to the lovely readers who sent me some 

very special emails this weekend, answers are on their way.

If you are interested in anything from the loot shoot just drop me a mail.