Wednesday 28 May 2008

Remembering Oscar

Today would have been dear Oscar's 2nd birthday, so we are feeling a little down here. Ma is not sure if she ever showed his pals these beautiful paintings. The one on the left was painted by Asta's mum Ami. The one on the right was painted by Barbara Keigher at the request of Sunshade & Jaffa, Maggie & Mitch, Bogart, Stanley, Lele & Tris (The Airechicks), Liberty, Lillie Valentine, Putter & sweet Faya his sweetheart. They are both very treasured and hang in the upstairs hall with all his certificates. They are the first thing ma and pa see when they get out of bed in the morning.

We are each wearing one of Oscar's bandanna's as you can see, and we have been to his beloved Seven Fields for a walk even though the rain is pouring down. Cassidy went with a to see her & Oscar's breeders this morning.

Happy 2nd birthday to you Oscar. We dearly wish we could spend it with you.

Mummy, Daddy, Harry & Cassidy xxxx

Friday 23 May 2008

Sunflowers

Hello old chaps, happy weekend to you all!

Now, a few weeks ago, E & J decided to grow some sunflowers. Of course, being the helpful (nosey) Airedales that we are, we had to help them out!

Here's J checking out the flowerpots with Cassidy keeping an eye on things.



And E clowning around for the camera too.


They are such silly billies! Look at Cassidy watching, wondering what on earth they are doing, har har!


And of course if one does it, the other has to try it out too.

I thought I ought to get involved to try and get them to concentrate on the job in hand. Didn't really work though.



And then I got a bit distracted because I spotted my Kong on the table.


Anyway, soon everyone settled down and the pots were filled with soil.


They made holes for the seeds with their fingers, then planted a few in each pot.


Here they are all planted. If you look, you can see that Princess Cassidy has now retired to her throne to watch over proceedings.

Watering time. Yes, Miss Nosey Parker just had to get of her bed to check what was happening.

As the girls are only here at weekends, we promised them we'd keep the sunflowers watered and generally take good care of them.


And here they were after a week! All but one pot sprouted.


As you can see, Cassidy made a thorough job of inspecting the seedlings.



A very thorough job! She had lots of mud in her beard after this. She tried to tell mummy a mud pack would be good for her beard!

And this weekend when the girls came, the seedlings were big enough to be planted outside. As usual, little sis had to be in the thick of it.


Here her & J are deciding which are the strongest seedlings. We only planted the biggest and healthiest looking sunflowers.


The little pots were actually made of something biodegradable, so they could be planted too, nice and easy!

After all the bossing everyone about, Cassidy needed a little rest.



The seedlings seem to be doing well. We have both promised not to eat them, and hopefully by the height of summer we'll have some lovely jolly sunflowers growing along the back fence.

Toodle pip

Harry x

Saturday 17 May 2008

Birdies, Birdies, Birdies

Hi hi everybody. We have been lazy this week not updating our bloggy. Me seems to spend half my life on the grooming table now, boring!

Anyway, this morning we wented to a very fun place. It be called Birdland, but it not really be a land, just a place with lots of birds.

It be really exciting. The first thing we seed was some King Penguins having their dinner. They eats big fishies and they just swallow them down in one gulp! That one that has all the feathers on his back be a baby and that be his baby feathers that he be losing.


The lady be telling us all about the penguins, them laying their eggs, where they live in the world (other King Penguins, cos obviously these ones live here, tee hee!).



Me loved watching them. Me beed very well behaved, no barking or anything, me just be transfixed by them (and me was hoping the lady might throw me a fishy!).


The wall beed a perfect height for resting your paws on! Mummy asked the ladies either side if they minded me being there, but they were fine.

E & J beed watching from the top of the rockies. Big Harry tried to climb up but daddy said noooo, you'll fall off.



There beed windows in the wall so you could watch the penguins swimming past and diving for the fishies that the lady throwed in the water.


They be very good swimmers, very graceful.


Me and Big Harry kept being very confused as to where they went after they'd swum past the viewing window!



Big Harry be watching the penguins eating the rest of the fishies. He didn't get one either, boo.

After we had watched the penguins, we looked around the rest of the park. Now me no can remember the names of all the birds, but me will try. Maybe you will know some of them anyway. With thinks this one be a Cockatoo. It said on a sign it may bite, so we didn't get too close!


See these ones be quite boring apart from their blue and red beaks.


This birdie no liked us at all. He was screeching at us to get away from his cage even though we only be looking at him.


See there be two interesting things - pretty birdies to look at, and lots of flowers to try and munch on, tee hee!



Now this one be a hornbill, look at his huge big beak. Me thinks he be a little bit ugly.


There beed lots of weird sculptures like this one all around the park. Me be glad real insects no be this big.


Big Harry & J be saying hello to this birdie, but he no seems very interested in them.


Me beed very good at spotting the birds in all the cages - or aviaries cos daddy telled me that's the proper name.


These be mummy's favourites, the flamingos. They be very pretty pink and orange colour. The stand on one leg lots, and they eats shellfish like prawns.



Don't they look nice and graceful? Like the ballet dancers of the bird world.


This be a Toucan. He got a huge beak, or maybe it be a bill, me no be sure.



Mummy beed whistling at him and he kept cocking his head to one side like me and Big Harry do when we hear a noise!


These be owls. They be wise birds and they can turn their heads right round!


And this be called a Rhea. It be the biggest bird we seed today. It no be as big as an Ostrich daddy said, but it be lots bigger than me!



One of the park workers beed getting their dinner ready, a biog bucket of seed. It no looked too tasty, but maybe if you be a bird it be OK.

See, they even be bigger than Big Harry!!



Here be some Pelicans. Daddy said they have soft bits on the bottom of their beaks to hold fish and stuff in.


I think these be Macaw's. They made lots of screeching noises. Don't they be pretty colours. They live in jungles normally.


And this poor bird wins my award for ugliest bird in the park. Aw, poor birdie. Daddy said he has a face only his mummy could love.



It be a fun trip. Now we be off to Australia for Willow & Putter's birthday pawty, whee! Me gets to see my BabyStan again, and Big Harry can smoochies with Maggie, tee hee!

Nibbles

Cassidy x

Monday 12 May 2008

Cassidy & BabyStan's Day Out

Hello there chaps and chapesses, hope you're all well. Well, we're still basking in sunshine here in the south of England and it's rather lovely. I think I am in need of another Airecut though as I am getting a tad warm.

I hope those of you who attended Snowball & Blue's birthday bash enjoyed yourselves. I had a jolly nice time, and very much enjoyed spending some time with the lovely Maggie.

After the party, young Cassidy, and BabyStan (who was celebrating his 1st birthday) sloped off together, though under the watchful eye of young Asta who I hear did a very good job of chaperoning the young lovebirds.

They headed here, to Fistrall beach in Cornwall. Look at that sea! I'm not a water lover, but even I fancy dipping my big fuzzy feet in that!



Looks like Asta had her work cut out keeping an eye on those scallywags. BabyStan and I had a gentleman's agreement that there'd be no hanky panky, so I trust him at his word.


I think they were probably far too busy chasing each other around and playing bitey face like a couple of loonies to get up to any smooching anyway! Poor little Asta looks like she's having a job to keep up with those Airedale long legs!



Aw, I do have to admit that they make a darling couple. And they even saved a slice of cake for me so you can't way fairer than that!


All photos courtesy of Asta.

Toodle pip

Harry x