Saturday, February 20, 2016

Fearless and Fun Daisy Mae

I still have catching up to do but I wanted to post something recent and close to my heart. Our sweet Boston Terrier, Daisy Mae passed away the end of January. 


This post is a tribute to Daisy Mae.
January, 2003 ~ January 2016
Rest in peace Miss Daisy Mae.

Daisy Mae was originally my Mom's dog. We adopted her about 5-1/2 years ago. She was quite a wild woman when she first arrived at our house, and definitely a country gal! At Mom's, she had a doggy door that allowed her to roam the vast countryside all day long. As a result, she was one tough cookie!

Daisy was always on high alert, 
searching for varmints at every turn. 
She looked in holes.


And wooden structures.

Even in the snow.

The air.

And through fences.
Just to name a few.

When she came to live with us, 
she had to learn to live with our
other gal pals, Sally & Mitzi Mae.
In the beginning, when she wasn't fussing with
one of them, she was fussing with the other 
or maybe they were fussing with her.

It was not long before the 
three girls were BFFs though.

They even kept watch over 
the neighborhood together.

All three girls loved to chase rabbits. One time, when Daisy was running after a rabbit, it escaped under the wooden privacy fence. Running at full speed, she tried to stop as she approached the fence. She skidded and her head hit the bottom edge of the fence and the ground. Upon impact, her back legs flew up over her butt and the entire back of her body hit the fence. It was like something out of a cartoon. While it was funny, it was alarming at the same time. Nevertheless, it didn't seem to phase her one bit. She jumped up and continued about her day!

In the evenings, I would take the dogs out back on a leash to do their business. Mainly because I didn't want them running off into the dark while chasing something. (We have a large, fenced yard with trees in the back part. There's no telling what critters they could run into up there!) 

Before opening the door each night, Predator Daisy would peer through the glass with the hopes that something was worth attacking!   

Her motto was:  
ATTACK FIRST, 
ASK QUESTIONS LATER!

Practically pulling me out the door, she'd quickly lunge at a dark spot on the patio and fiercely snatch it up in her mouth. In a half second, she'd tell herself "Oh, it's a leaf! Drop it!"  Then, with the same speed, she'd immediately charge at another dark spot on the ground grab it up, "Oh, it's a stone! Drop it!" She was a hoot! 

Daisy successfully attacked a few frogs on the patio. It only took her one chomp to quickly drop them though. Frogs release some sort of a poison which resulted in her mouth foaming up and then swelling up. You'd think she'd learn but no! I tried to keep her from the frogs but I didn't always see them. Fortunately, we only had frogs for a couple of years. 

Little by little, she mellowed out of being so frisky. Even so, she never passed up the opportunity to chase rabbits, frogs or any other critters. 
She was ALWAYS a sweetie pie!

We ignored her burning desire to drive the RV.

So she enjoyed looking out the windows instead.


This was a few hours before she passed.

Daisy in the sunny spotlight.


Sally and Mitzi Mae passed away before she did. 
Oh, what I wouldn't give 
to have those days back.
  
Life with the three of them was a blast! 

BUT life goes on.

This loving little guy is named Chewy.
He came to live with us in June 2014.
He's about 10 years old and adorable!
Chewy gets all of our love and attention now!
If we decide he needs a friend in the future, 
he'll have to share though.

 Sending Smiles,
D~~~~


Tuesday, February 9, 2016

Catching Up~TN~Smoky Mountains, Part 4

During our time in the Gatlinburg/Pigeon Forge area, we spent two days in the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, a place that makes my heart go pitter patter! 

The first day, we took a 
picnic lunch and the dogs.  

Our picnic area was near a beautiful stream.



More delightful views from our picnic table.





We stopped to take in the view of 
Gatlinburg on our way out of the Park.


Another day, we drove to Cades Cove, a completely different area in the Park. We even saw a couple of black bear cubs on the way into Cades Cove. They were headed out of a meadow and into the woods. I wasn't fast enough to get a good photo before they disappeared into the tall trees! Darn it!

We toured neat old cabins.


and churches



and the cemeteries behind the churches.

We explored a cantilever barn.

Walked in fields.


And savored the breathtaking views.




I was able to slowly walk up to 
this deer and take her photo.
Can you see her in the midst of the trees?
I got very close!

After the Smokies 
(and throughout the trip), 
we discovered neat little stores 
on quaint country roads.
I'm sharing random pics from various stores.

These doors are too cool!
I didn't get the name of this store.

As I said in a previous post, 
every day was a perfect weather day, 
and it was the end of October!

This Moonshine Ridge Country Store and Cafe 

was one of the fun places we browsed.


Wonderful Geo.

Autumn festive!


Christmas festive!

Yummy goods!

Peaceful porches.

Birdhouses and other outdoor wares
for sale on the porch.

As well as comfy, cozy chairs for porch sitting.

We saw lots of cute doggies on our trip.
Here are two favorites.


If you missed the previous posts of our 
Tennessee trip, here are the links:


I hope you enjoyed the trip!

I have plenty more catching up 
to do so there's more to come.

Smiles,
D~~~~