Adventures about pet therapy, dog rescue and urban life in the 'Burbs
Welcome to Monday. Can’t believe the weekend is already over. There has been way too much to do lately with an ever increasing list of things to take care of, including servicing of the car with hours of waiting. While the following “model” will be serviced next week, I couldn’t resist turning him into today’s groan pun. Hope you enjoy a wonderful Monday.
Live, love, bark! 🐾
Welcome to Nature Friday where we join those lovable pups from Adventures of the LLB Gang. Don’t forget to click on the link to see what others have shared. Wilson here. We have a few odds and ends of nature from around our barn. Mum’s had a busy week, but I convinced her to take a few photos in between. Nature is still doing the slow roll to changes leaves but we managed to see some sumac trees surrounding one of the anti-flood retention ponds that were beginning to turn to bright orange.
While striking in color, Mum is not a fan of this shrub. It tends to be invasive but in a landscape with not a lot of autumnal color yet, it’s fairly attractive.
Wilson: It was actually an accident that Mum found those trees. She’s still learning the neighborhood and was on an errand and encountered one of the scariest Halloween decorations she’s ever seen. She had not walked along this street before and this caught her by surprised. She scurried around the first corner to get away from it as fast as she could and found those trees which helped her get over the heebie jeebies that thing gave her.
The Mum: Creepy, right? Now you know why I couldn’t get away quick enough from it. That shock of orange sufficiently distracted me while I caught my breath.
Wilson: Catch your breath or begin to breathe again?
The Mum: Umm, most likely the later. Clowns are scary on general principles but this one…nope, nada, not going there again any time soon.
Wilson: I don’t blame you, Mum. Halloween decorations are beginning to pop up, and truth be told, are appearing a bit more than the changing leaves. With all the cottonwood trees along the creek trail we walk every day, I know you were expecting a whole lot more of those bright, golden heart-shaped leaves but with the ongoing drought, I think their appearance has been delayed.
The Mum: Mostly likely. I’m not sure there’ll be a great show this year because of the drought. Many of the leaves are starting to fall and they’re frequently brown and the trees only have small little patches of yellow. There doesn’t seem to be as many maples and ash trees in the neighborhood like our old one. It’s been an adjustment for sure, much like the Halloween decor. I miss the gigantic skeletons that were posed in different scenes. I may have to swing by the old neighborhood just to see them. Luckily most of the decorations in our neighborhood (other than that terrifying clown) are far more benign. I saw our friend, Giddy Goose just down the street dressed up as a cute ghost…something more in line with my sensitivities. Pretty cute, huh?
Wilson: I dunno, Mum…color me dubious. That goose seems a bit sketchy to me.
The Mum: Don’t be ridiculous. Giddy Goose is friendly and just because a slight breeze kicked up its sheet, it would never hurt you.
Wilson: I’m still skeptical and plant to stay way clear of it. I’d rather focus on some of the pumpkins that are showing up although I’m not sure I’m very inclined to taste test that middle one…it seems to have a few barnacles on its skin.
The Mum: You’re too funny…always thinking of your stomach. That’s an ornamental pumpkin, not one you’d want to eat. Rabbits might, but you definitely shouldn’t.
Wilson: For the record Mum, there’s absolutely nothing wrong with wanting to make sure that anything that crosses my lips is healthy and tasty. I have discriminating tastes and won’t just eat anything.
The Mum: Ha…that’ll be the day! You have the appetite of a starving refugee which is why I have to watch you like a hawk so you don’t ingest something that isn’t good for you.
Wilson: {gasp} You cut me to the quick, Mum. Being a growing boy, I’ll admit I’m a bit hungry most of the time.
The Mum: A bit? Hahahahaha. I think your legs are hollow. And you’re not a growing boy. You’re fully formed. You slay me sometimes. What else have you got.
Wilson: I’m slighted by that observation, Mum but I’m not going to stoop so low as to respond. Instead I’m going to share this sunrise from the other morning. Early mornings the sun is late appearing and it delays our walks. It’s probably just as well-we can let the wildlife sleep in a few extra minutes before we hit the trail although I’m sure we’ll be adjusting our schedule to go later after the temps aren’t quite as crisp and we’ll wait until the sun comes up a bit to warm things up. Although I must say I’m enjoying these crisp mornings. It leaves me quite frisky.
The Mum: It was a pretty sunrise and it did make for a lovely early morning walk. The weather has been quite pleasant although it’s been unseasonably warm. Warm enough to see multiple heat records this week but I heard a rumor that maybe by next weekend, we may have our first frost with a bit of white stuff. We’ll see though…the forecasts for the Super El Niño have not panned out the way they’ve been telling us they would.
Wilson: Yeah, I’ll believe it when it happens. In the meantime, I’ll enjoy what Nature is dishing out. That’s it from us. We hope you have a terrific weekend enjoying autumn and preparing for Halloween. Have any special plans? Whatever you do, we hope you are able to enjoy a fabulous weekend.
Live, love, bark! 🐾
Welcome to the last Friday of September and the first Friday of autumn. Hallelujah…our favorite season is here. Woof, woof. Today is notable in that there are a couple of other celebrations. Blogville’s very own Mum to Teddy and Angel Sammy from Two Spoiled Cats is celebrating a birthday today and today is also Dolly Parton Day (9 to 5-get it…9/25). We’re jointly honoring the legendary entertainer and philanthropist and well as Teddy’s Mum. As we do on Friday’s, we are joining our pals from the Adventures of the LLB Gang. Be sure to click on the link to see what slices of nature other have shared as well as leave birthday wishes for Teddy’s Mum.
Wilson: Good morning, mates. Welcome. Will you take a look at that gigantic pink-spotted hawk moth. That’s a large but gentle sphinx moth, also known as the sweet potato hornworm. Those moths range in size from 9.5 to 12 cm (3.7 to 4.7 inches) and feature a grayish-brown body with wavy dark lines on the forewings with some pink bands on the sides of the abdomen and at the base of the hind wings, which are usually hidden when the moth is resting. We almost missed it on the trail pathway and Mum took me back to check it out closely on our way back home from our morning walk a few days ago. Sure, I wanted to taste him but you can imagine that didn’t exactly fly with Mum’s agenda. Sheesh, sometimes, she treats me like a toddler as if I’m going to put everything in my mouth. Oh wait, I probably would, given half a chance. My bad. Moving along.
The Mum: Yes, I have to watch you like a hawk so make sure you don’t eat critters and plants that aren’t good for you. You act like you’re starving all the time and I don’t want you eating something that’s not good for you.
Wilson: Oh Mum…you get so carried away sometimes. My soft tongue would have gently caressed that moth…initially.
The Mum: I’m sure he wouldn’t have enjoyed a bath from you. While the pink-spotted hornworm moths are not poisonous to dogs, there’s no reason for you to lick one to death.
Wilson: Sometimes you take all the joy out of life, Mum. I thought I’d pose at the butterfly mural in its honor. Mum didn’t quite get the angle lined up on the wings but I think I make a nice looking and colorful butterfly.
The Mum: Yeah, I misjudged photographing you but needed to quickly snap a photo before a bicyclist came around the corner. Didn’t want you to be startled.
Wilson: It’s ok, Mum. I’m mostly grateful you were once again closely hovering over me looking out for my best interests. You do know I’m pretty good with a sit-stay pose, right? Just a reminder for you. So can I share some good news here?’
The Mum: Of course. What would you like to share?
Wilson: Well as everyone knows, Colorado has been suffering from a severe drought and our neighborhood in particular has been repeatedly shortchanged by Mother Nature on the moisture front. We were able to measure the rain in inches instead of droplets. Well, Wednesday we received a lovely shower that last for over 30 minutes and likely received over three fourth’s of an inch. It was fantastic. We can still use more but that made for a lovely evening. Just check out how much water remained in one of the water retention ponds in the neighborhood the next morning. We sure hope that tree didn’t mind being in the standing water and hope it doesn’t negatively impact it.
The Mum: It was so welcomed, I kept think it was going to end and went out on the porch several times to check it out and was thrilled it lasted for a long time.
Wilson: Finally, we noticed a volunteer cherry tomato plant popped up in a planter box. We hadn’t given it much thought but I know you smiled when you first spotted it a couple of weeks ago. This week, you saw that it was flowering. Thinking it probably wouldn’t have enough time to produce any tomatoes, imagine our surprise when we found little baby tomatoes on it! With warm days and cool night, it just might make a couple tasty ‘maters before the first frost.
The Mum: It really did bring a smile to my face and was the last thing I expected in a planter that was planted with lettuce. The lettuce sprouted from seeds that were planted in the spring which was a good thing too with all the news about Cyclospora of bagged lettuce. While I wasn’t overly excited about that variety of leaf lettuce, the two volunteer tomato plants made me almost giddy. We’ll see what happens. But I’m always excited when volunteers sprout. Those little cherry tomatoes are always so tasty. Those seedlings came from a tomato plant from our old house last year so it just seemed like quite a miracle.
Wilson: Glad it brought you some joy, Mum. It’s not been an overly great year with our potted veggies but this kind of makes up for it.Well that’s it from us this week. We hope everyone has a terrific autumn weekend. Are the trees in your neighborhood turning yet. Things have been a bit slow here but Mum noticed they are slowly starting around our house. Enjoy the weekend!
Live, love, bark! 🐾
Welcome to the last official day of the 2026 summer. Tomorrow begins astronomical autumn although I will note meteorological autumn began September 1, 2026. Either way, at the time of writing, it’s a delightful 52F (11.1C) at the beginning our early morning walk. It’s paradise in our books.
One of the breed traits for sheepdogs is they love staying close to their humans. Wilson maintains a heavy paw on that characteristic. Nothing like moving his largess at certain times. Guess I should be grateful, but at least he’s not on top of me.
Here’s hoping you enjoy a wonderful Monday and life this week isn’t overly crowded.
Live, love, bark! 🐾
Welcome to Labor Day 2026 edition, where throughout the US and its territories we will celebrate and acknowledge the contributions of workers. Every first Monday of September we honor the labor and union movements (if you work 40 hours or less a week, you can thank unions) and the role all workers have made to the strength and well-being of the nation. For those who still work, we usually have the day off and usher in the new school year (though most schools have been in session for at least a week, many longer). Many consider Labor Day as the unofficial last weekend of summer with BBQ get-togethers often being a frequent pastime as well as any number of retail sales events.
A brief history of Labor Day indicates that as the trade and labor movements began to grow, calls for a day commemorating workers’ contributions were proposed. As a long time progressive state on social issues like this, Colorado was one of the first five states to enact legislation recognizing Labor Day (Oregon was the first) to officially make it a public holiday back in 1887. Labor Day became an official national holiday in 1894. Our friends in Canada also celebrate “Labour Day” on the first Monday in September.
Following the deaths of workers during the Pullman Strike of 1894, Congress unanimously approved legislation making Labor Day a national holiday and it was signed into law by Grover Cleveland shortly after the end of the strike.
Yesterday I provided some help to a friend moving into her new townhome (talk about irony) so today I plan to take it easy today. Wilson has gotten a head start on relaxation and rejuvenation. We both wish you a safe and lovely holiday. Do you have any special plans for today?
Live, love, bark! 🐾
Extra, extra…read all about it…did you know there’s only 25 days until Autumn arrives? Can I just say…whoopee. Welcome to this week’s episode of Nature Friday were we join our pals from Adventures of the LLB Gang. Don’t forget to check out what bits of Nature have been shared by others.
Wilson here. Today’s a bit of odds and ends with a splash of hope mixed in. While the time when the days until autumn begins to grow shorter, the weather hasn’t abated much. We were gifted a lovely shower on Wednesday evening and while it was brief, it was very welcomed. With daily alerts of air quality warnings popping up on Mum’s phone every day, it was a joy that the air at least felt clean, even if it wasn’t totally clean air. Early morning hours are the best to get out and get our walks in before it heats up.
The Mum: Hey there House Pony, so what have you got for us this week? I read something about odds and ends. Are you saying I’m not holding up my end on the photography?
Wilson: No, Mum. It’s just that we’ve been busy and photographic opportunities have been fairly plain and I know you like to find the unusual.
The Mum: That’s true, I think the landscape is starting to wane a little. But we did manage to find a few sights that give us a teensy tiny bit of hope that the landscape is getting ready to do its thing for our favorite season. I mean, just look at these Symphyotrichum, otherwise known as asters.
Wilson: Hmmm, those are kind of pretty. Endemic to North America (though there are some in the West Indies and Central America), asters have been introduced in Europe too. For all species, the ray florets can be white, pink, blue, or purple. When asters start blooming, it’s definitely a signal that Mother Nature is preparing it’s autumn line up of flowers. Big box stores are putting out buckets of Chrysanthemums, aka ‘mums’ for inclusion in urban gardens.
The Mum: I for one am welcoming asters and mums to the landscape. But I noticed this glorious Hibiscus is still going gangbusters along our daily walks. the flowers are gigantic!
Wilson: Is it just me or have we started to see some changes to the leaves in a few trees?
The Mum: I’ve done a double take along our walks at more than one tree that was ever so slightly starting to look a bit autumnal. I think I squealed when I saw this maple starting to turn red.
Wilson: In all fairness though, the changing colors could be due to stress from the relentless 90+F degree days (32.2C).
The Mum: You’re right, but I have noticed tiny spots on trees that are beginning. It’s still early on but at least it provides us weary peeps some hope that soon this summer of hell will be in the history books.
Wilson: I’ve begun to notice small spots of the cottonwood trees beginning to change. It’s kind of exciting to see them changing, though I know you’ll be picking up the leaves from now to forever.
The Mum: I noticed yesterday that even the thistle weeds are looking a bit bedraggled from the heat and lack of moisture. We are more than 5″ down on moisture according to one local TV station when reporting on the drought though as I noted above, we received part of the isolated showers that fell a couple of days ago. But overall, we’re still in a very severe drought.
Wilson: All we can do it hope and pray. In the meantime, we’ll look at the landscape and marvel at those hardy souls that can survive these conditions. Well that’s about it for us. Like everyone else this week, we were shocked and heartbroken that Dolly Parton earned her heavenly wings. Dolly was well known as a prolific songwriter, an award winning singer, actor and philanthropist. She was very committed to promoting literacy and the environment. Little Halia is a recipient of books from Dolly’s Imagination Library. Did you know that Dolly was a major contributor to wildlife conservation, local ecosystem protection, and climate-driven natural disaster relief as well as animal rescue directing her foundation’s efforts toward actionable, community-based environmental stewardship rather than through political lobbying efforts. She will always be loved by the world.
The Mum: We hope everyone has a lovely weekend and take time out to enjoy Mother Nature first hand.
Live, love, bark! 🐾
Welcome to another Nature Friday where we connect with those cute pups from Adventures of the LLB Gang where folks share slices of nature in their neighborhoods. Wilson here. Although I’m getting groomed later this morning…much to my chagrin, I told Mum I still wanted to narrate today’s post. So let’s get started, shall we? There’ll be a ton of photos for you to wade through.
Wilson: Ok, everyone, let’s go back to the museum, shall we? Here’s another view of the downtown skyline featuring the water feature/splash pad. And for the record, not a box cutter in sight, only folks enjoying being cooled off. Those jets were super powerful and you needed to make sure to not look directly in the jets to protect your eyeballs.
Wilson: After touring the World’s Largest Dinosaur exhibit, it was time to mosey down to the second level to check out the various exhibits in the North American, Edge of the Wild and Australia halls.
This 502 year old Ponderosa tree ring from the Colorado’s White River National Forest greeted visitors as they entered the exhibit hall. We all were fascinated how the way climate change was displayed over the years and how they lined up with the various historical events that took place during that tree’s life.
Wilson: Mum thoroughly enjoyed reading ‘how to make a diorama’ exhibit. She loves seeing how all those fascinating sights were created. The artistry of the various dioramas was so impressive, from the making of casts to the painting by with muralists of the backgrounds.
The Mum: Muralists painstakingly create/paint the backgrounds to make the taxidermy look realistic and each rock, blade of grass, tree branch and leaves are meticulously put into place, one at a time. It’s quite astounding.
Wilson: There was such a variety of animals to see but I think this one was likely your favorite, wasn’t it Mum?
The Mum: Oh yes, I’ve always been intrigued with bats so this very cool diorama of them hanging from a rock wall really piqued my interest. It was incredibly realistic.
Wilson: {shudder} Not sure I would want to be around those squeaky things but you do you, Mum. Critters like these are probably more my style.
The Mum: It was so much fun walking through all the isles. It was almost unbelievable how truly lifelike various exhibits were.
Wilson: You managed to see quite a lot of animals. I’ll bet little Halia had a good time.
The Mum: She really did enjoy herself. She wasn’t quite sure what to make of that lion but she told me, “He’s pretty big” very nonchalantly. You gotta love how kids view the world around them.
Wilson: We all look at nature in our own ways. Well that’s it from us. I gotta get ready for a grooming and bath {ugh}. I still don’t understand why I get tortured like this every six weeks.
The Mum: It’s not that bad, Miss Sydney is super kind, you’ll get lots of praise and attention, you’ll smell great and be pristine clean. Besides, even though we’re technically past the “Dog Days of Summer” you’ll feel better with less hair insulating your body. It’s still very warm and I’m just trying to keep you comfortable.
Wilson: Trust me Mum, I’m comfortable just the way I am. I really don’t need your ‘help.’
The Mum: Sorry bud, we all have to do things we don’t like. But if you cooperate nicely, you’ll get through it quicker and can resume life as a lounge lizard in a few hours. Just focus on all the treat you’ll be receiving.
Wilson: Oh yeah, treats. Well at least I will be compensated for this abuse. Whatever you do, we hope you have a great weekend and are able get out and enjoy all the amazing sights nature provides us.
Live, love, bark! 🐾
Rise and shine, campers. Welcome back to Monday. We hope you had a nice weekend. Wilson is patiently waiting for the day to begin. Be sure to have your volume turned on. He’s now ‘talking’ to his breakfast until he receives the all clear release. It always cracks me up to watch his little tail wiggling in anticipation and now he’s beginning to softly ‘talk’ to his bowl more frequently. This dog is hilarious.
It’s harvest time in Colorado and the Palisade peaches are arriving in grocery stores, farmer’s markets and fruit stands along roadways. It’s the best time of the year. Those juicy delicious fruit has me drooling just thinking about them. Which leads me to share another smile from our friend, Vince, the Sign Guy. Have a fantastic Monday and week!
Live, love, bark! 🐾
Ceud mìle fàilte…everyone. If I’m not mistaken and please correct me if I’m wrong, I believe that means a hundred thousand welcomes. Before I get to our featured post, I just want to thank everyone for all the wonderful birthday wishes. I had a great day and Mum agreed with me that the celebration should continue through the end of the month. We both feel like celebrating a birthday shouldn’t be limited to just one day. Still wondering why we didn’t start at the beginning of the month, but glad for the 11 days of additional merrymaking and treats.
Wilson: Why, you ask, did I open with a Scottish expression? Well this last weekend, the sheepdog rescue participated at a local Celtic Festival and today’s pics are all from that festival. It was a hot day in Elizabeth, Colorado (approximately 60 miles southeast from our house) but Mum was up for helping out with other volunteers for our first Celtic Festival participation and what a fun one it was. But as we typically do, we are joining those pups from Adventures of the LLB Gang for their weekly blog hop.
Wilson: While I didn’t attend in person, my breed heritage was with everyone in spirit. We had a couple of Old English Sheepdog ambassadors who attracted a steady stream of visitors who stopped by our tent.
The Mum: It was a fun event and while it was hot, we had a nice tented area providing shade which made it seem cooler. When I arrived for my shift, I was greeted by a bag pipe and drum parade. It was such fun to hear and watch them perform. My latent Scottish DNA smiled at their precision and enthusiasm. Young and old all looked like they were having a great time displaying clan banners and marching to the pipes.
Wilson: Bet you’d never seen so many kilts, have you Mum?
The Mum: Nope, sure hadn’t but everyone seemed to enjoy it and everyone was very friendly. One visitor told me this Celtic Festival has been going on for the past 20 years! I could only wonder how I’d missed it? I knew about the big one in Estes Park that will happen in September but had never heard about this one.
Wilson: Are you planning on attending that one since the rescue has signed up to participate?
The Mum: Not sure yet. It’s a bit of a drive and I’m not sure I want you to be left alone all day. We’ll see.
Wilson: I know you spent some time checking out some of the 4-legged attendees while you were there. Just look at this array of Scottish Highland cows.
The Mum: Those cows were huge and the owner told me their meat is renowned for being exceptionally lean (around 90%), quite tender, and very flavorful, often boasting lower fat and cholesterol levels—and higher protein—than many conventional commercial beef breeds. They are a hearty breed as well.
Wilson: What’s with these creatures?
The Mum: You know me…I just love taking photos of critters. It was great fun seeing all these guys at the festival. It was such fun hearing the Llamas making their humming sounds–they’re so cute. I even saw a Scottish Deerhound but that fellow never did get up from his nap and I checked on him a few times. I think he was just a bit overwhelmed since his tent as on the end where all the rescues were located and right next to some noisy St. Bernards. This fella knew just how to deal with the heat. Deerhounds are similarly sized to Greyhounds, but are larger and more heavily boned, with a rough coat. They were bred to hunt deer and are similar to but a bit smaller than Irish Wolfhounds and are a majestic breed.
Wilson: Say didn’t your daughter consider getting one of those guys before settling on Irish Wolfhounds?
The Mum: Yes, I think they did consider them but ended up with the Wolfhound and have raised several Wolfhounds since seeing them at the Estes Park Celtic Festival many years ago.
Wilson: Sounds like quite the day enjoying all things Celtic. Glad it was a fun event, Mum. Also I’m grateful I didn’t have to go. Not sure I’d be all that keen listening to bagpipes and dealing with all the rescue dogs near the tent. But you guys deserve kudos for getting the word out about the sheepdog rescue and for selling a few things to benefit the rescue. You met a lot of people who were interested in the two dogs in foster care so that’s a good thing. All and all, great job, Mum. And what fun animal pics you managed to capture. Well that’s it from us. Stay cool if you can but keep your eyes open for opportunities to check out slices of nature. We hope you have a wonderful weekend. Slán (goodbye).
Live, love, bark! 🐾
Welcome to Monday…and a big Monday it is. Eight years ago this fluffy boy entered the world to create good old fashioned chaos and cuddles. Happy Barkday, House Pony! How about a photo to comemerate the occasion?
Ok, let’s try this again, knucklehead. Let’s shoot for more of a “All right, Mr. DeMille, I’m ready for my closeup” kind of photo, okay?
Ahhh, that’s better. Hope you have a fantastic day, sweet boy.
Even though it’s Wilson’s birthday, we still need to start the week out with a smile. We hope your Monday is totally wonderful.
Here’s to doing diddly-squat.
Live, love, bark! 🐾