A slower pace of life

Devon was lush, green and beautiful ... we loved it! Our holiday home was a 250 year old Devon longhouse, renovated to provide a most welcoming family home and the garden ... oh my, that garden! It wrapped around the house with sheep and cows greeting us over the fence each day. Polly and Betty had so much fun out there!

After behaving perfectly in the car throughout the long drive to Devon (six hours on the rear seat with brief pit-stops to stretch their legs) my accommodating pair made themselves right at home as soon as we arrived. From then on, we all had heaps of fun together, playing games, visiting beautiful beaches and making the most of the wide open spaces whilst generally making the most of a slower pace of life.

Betty visited her very first beach on holiday and after a moment of wide eyed wonderment, dipped her paw in the sea and was soon rock pooling excitedly with Polly. I was delighted after three solid years of dog obedience training, to be able to allow my girls to run free on the dog friendly beaches, safe in the knowledge they would return at the beep of a whistle. They were so well exercised and entertained each day, they slept peacefully in our holiday home, from the very first night.

After our much needed break, it's back to real life and of course, back to work on my bears. Devon in June was a perfect relaxing break for us but now I'm refreshed and raring to get started on the mohair again!

:-)

Here comes Summer!

Polly and Betty are enjoying their Summer walks, bouncing through as much long grass as they can find and generally making the most of outdoors now the warmer, drier (yay!) weather has at last arrived.  Betty's obedience training is coming along well and her tendency to pull is on the decline (hallelujah!) She's loving her 'Real Life' training classes (as is Polly) and I must admit to a sneaking pride whenever I take her out and about, because she is so eager to show off how well behaved she can be (as you can imagine, this is owner heaven)!  Just in case I am in danger of sounding a little too pleased with myself though, you may be delighted to hear my clever little girl has recently also learnt how to roll in fox poo .... urgh!

As for big sis Polly, she's now three and a half and has settled beautifully.  For a while last year, she went through a phase of being a bit grumpy with other dogs if she was lead walking with little sis (I think she thought she needed to guard me and Betty) but with plenty of consistent training around other lots of different dogs (our Real Life training classes have been a terrific help in this respect) she's much improved and now able to say hello to oncoming dogs in a calm and friendly manner again. She's also much calmer with other dogs generally when she plays off lead now. I can't recommend consistent, targeted training highly enough, as it really can pay dividends when you stick with it and make an effort to look at life through your dog's eyes.

We'll be heading off to Devon for a holiday with our girls this Summer to explore some sandy beaches, green fields, leafy lanes, woodland pathways, maybe an ancient castle or two and of course, a few of those yummy Devonshire cream teas ... can't wait!

Elizabeth Rose

So, while I was waiting for fabric to arrive from Germany and enjoying my roses, I decided to finish work on a Summer bear I started a little while ago and as I pondered what to call her, it dawned on me our amazing Queen has been celebrating her 90th birthday this weekend, so my pretty pink girl teddy bear has been named 'Elizabeth Rose' in her honour ... wishing you a very Happy Birthday Ma'am!

20" Elizabeth Rose is now available for adoption from my website.  If she tugs at your heartstrings, please pop over to:

www.allbearbypaula.com 

Thank you!

Update: Elizabeth Rose has been adopted!

Time to smell the roses..

I have been knocked sideways by a nasty tummy bug for a few days, so not much of anything to report this week I'm afraid, as it's been rather a wobbly one.  The weather has been beautiful though, so once the worst passed, I parked myself in the garden among my roses, to gather strength and take my mind off the churning within. Urgh.

I'm back on form today though and eager to tackle the jobs left undone while I was indisposed.  First up this afternoon will be a beautiful pink mohair bear I began work on last week.  She is definitely in need of a rose related name - must put my thinking cap on. I also have a magnificent commission bear to work on requiring some handmade buttons, which should be fun (buttons made by me by the way. I've never made clay buttons before, so more news of that project soon!) Oh and if you are interested, I have a couple of simply gorgeous pieces of kid mohair in line for traditional teddies. I know I am going to love creating all these bears, the fabrics for them are a complete joy.

I've probably mentioned this before, but roses are my favourite plants in the garden, I absolutely love them and they never fail to inspire my creativity ... they are such a tonic!

:-)