KCGRC weekend

First trial after making the announcement that I am preggers.  Lots of hugs and lots of confidence that I can keep up what I am doing and have a baby too.  Hoping I can stay healthy and active.  It was HARD getting up at 5:30 and getting in the car with the nausea and the dizziness.  Mom wanted me to have tony go with and I was hoping he would but he didn't.  I pretty much alternated between super tired and super pukey feeling all weekend but still managed to handle Deuce well.

We had three runs a day both days starting with T2B which I love having first as it is such a good warm up.  I think if I can remember right, he ran past a jump in the first T2B so no Q and then missed the weave poles (second obstacles, pointed him right at them and he acted like he couldn't see them) in the second T2B but the rest was awesome and he got a Q and 7 points (2nd place if you looked at the times). Not alot of people did T2B so no big win but it did feel nice to with two a-frames that he could have won first.  Did a blind off of the a-frame and it felt good and kept him moving with no creeping.  It is when I have to FC at the bottom of the a-frame that I now get the creeping so i try and keep those to a minimum.

Jumpers was great both days and both days missed weave poles entries, URGH!  The first course I think was on me, I did a pin wheel and before he took the third jump, he just ducked behind me (as i was saying go weave to collect him) and took the weaves.  Too bad it wasn't in the sequence that way because he would have had a clean entry but because i was still standing at the jump in disbelief, he stopped and looked back, like where are ya mom?  The rest of the course was WONDERFUL!  We haven't had an awesome run like that in so long so I was actually pretty happy even though I had opened my big fat mouth.  Jumpers was even better today but he went in the second pole even though I was pushing him out trying to shape the entry.  He just cut in and said got it and he didn't.  I was a little pissy about his one as again, beautiful run but he had no excuse to cut in and take the weaves with me trying to shape the line.

Standard was great today, our very first MX leg and 18 points.  Low YPS but I did hold his last contact a few extra seconds so I could make sure i was in position and I also decided to help him into the poles with a rear cross into them versus getting a front cross in with a tighter line.  He did not get his poles in standard on saturday which was the same entry as we had in T2B that he did get so not sure why he missed that time.  Both times it was a stop on the a-frame and then weaves.  I think he went in the second pole again but I did think he was collected enough.  We were on the other side of the poles in T2B so I am kind of puzzled as to why he missed this time.  Talked with alot of different people about his weaves.  We all think he does know the entry and it is a collection issues sometimes, but sometimes it is like he doesn't even try and of course when I take him back, he gets it but the angle and speed is all wrong.  So i think we are going to try taking him off. Hate doing this but he just isn't trying sometimes and he does get them most of the time in practice and at home in similar set ups.  I know the adrenaline adds an extra layer I don't get at home or practice but this is getting a little ridiculous.  Out of 6 attempts this weekend, we got 2:(  i could count the one in jww as he did get it and stopped because i was stopped.

Oh well, more training and the november WDTC trial in a couple of weeks! Overall ever single run was 100% much improved from the last show.  I think we are in that period of teetering between almost getting it and disaster but closer to almost getting it and getting it.  Baby dogs are so much fun to figure out!  Taking 7 days off to go to new orleans with the honey for a much needed dog free vacation.  Mom is staying with the dogs so say a little prayer for her LOL!!!!!!!

HUGE changes coming:)

I have a huge announcement.  I am pregnant.  I never thought I would be uttering those words but they they are.  They look so scary on paper.    I have always said that when the good Lord is ready for me to be a mom that it will happen and boom, it has happened.  Now to make this dog related.  I am really, really nervous about how this affects my goals with baby-D.  I was hoping to go to nationals and such next year with him (mainly USDAA since we aren't qualified for AKC and won't be by the cut off).   I was also hoping to be working on his MACH by next year.  In a way, we have plenty of time so I am not in a rush but I am super scared about how having a baby will affect my training and trialing time.  Money is so tight as it is and factor in having to pay for daycare and diapers and possibly a newer more dependable car scares me to death.  I also had big plans for Stella and tony .  Stella was to be trained running contacts (correctly, not the tony coleman method of letting the dog run and praying that they are in the yellow) and now I am just not sure how we are going to be able to devote the time needed to doing this.  He is very infrequent about his training now and i am sure with me having a baby, the excuses will mount up.  I am also very worried about teaching.  I just feel like I have built up the clientele needed to keep this going and now in less than a year, I will have to at least take a break, if not give it up for a while. And don't forget my running.  I have just now gotten to where 5 miles was a very comfortable distance for me to do daily and was working towards 6 and then a half marathon.  That will have to change for sure.  This is all quite a shock for me as I have been off of birth control for almost 6 years now and nothing has happened.  I guess when it is right, it is right!

I am still wrapping my brain around all this.  So much change so quickly.  Lori's building is a go and she will be moving very soon leaving us trainerless.  Stella is of course in her very naughty puppy stage right now.  Deuce is going through another hormone surge and peeing on things right now.  Then add in baby, YIKES!  I so wish my mom was here as I think between her and tony and i could still train and teach but I just don't know how it is going to happen otherwise  Oh well, fasten your seatbelts!

left behind

I knew this would happen.  I am sitting here, watching all my friends at USDAA nationals having great and not so great runs and I am sad.  I want to be there!!!!!  The courses look hard this year as compared to previous years I have gone and i want to run them!  Of course I do feel like Deuce needs to grow up a little before we can handle a lot of those challenges in those courses.  I went out and set up a few of the jump sequences since i don't have all the equipment and played how would i handle this or that.  I know our first year of going will just be a fun, learning experience with no expectations.  I am not sure how he will handle the whole getting there at 6 am and not running till 12 hours later.  It really bothered miller the last nationals when we were there at 7ish and he didn't run till 7ish that night.  Miller loves his crate but he flat out refused to go in it after we had walked for like the 100th time that day.  I think even if they had an rv to stretch out in that I would be worried about them sitting there all day.  Anyway, sacrificing several AKC shows this year to do USDAA so we can get qualified since it is in CO this coming year.  Had a great team lined up for the new years trail but it isn't going to be so still looking for a third.  I hate winter trials, especially those that we have to travel for because I won't go if it is snowing and that is money down the drain.  Why can't i live in CA!!!!  Wishing tony would have gotten that job offer after all now.  The good news is that we will hopefully next year, early rather than later, should have a new USDAA club in our area and a place where the old club can have trials regularly.  I will work my ass off to make sure it is successful for sure.  I have said it a million times but i will say it again, I could give up AKC and just do USDAA if we had more.

Stella update time!  Tony has done some training with her as we are going to do the CLASS program that APDT has.  We are going to take the BA level training hopefully soon.  She is doing better with duration on her stays so we just need to make sure that is more solid before we do take it.  I do make sure that she does some behavior for everything.  I see major impulse control issues with her so she has to sit before she is let out of the crate and wait to be released, she has to sit and wait for her food and when we are playing fetch, she has to do a behavior before I throw the toy.  Her newest behavior i am working on is back up and she has added that to her chain of offered behaviors.  In class the other night, tony wanted her to sit and she kept backing up instead of sitting.  Then she started barking at him like give me the damn treat, I am giving you a behavior!  The other day I was working on her toes behavior with a chunky plank and she just wasn't offering what I wanted so she squatted and peed on the board like, is that what you want?  Such a great sense of humor.  She really is perfect for tony, stubborn, hard headed and biddable at the same time.  We are regressing a little in our house breaking and i am blaming this on tony.  When she is alone with him and I am gone to a show, he just doesn't pay good enough attention to her and she sneaks off.  I am also not so sure she isn't having some accidents in her crate.  Her crate pad kind of had a urine odor on it so i washed it this morning.  She is in a size appropriate crate so not sure how to cure her of peeing in there as she is probably laying in it too.  The sleeping is good and bad.  Here the past two mornings she has decided to get up at 4 but I think it is the cat that is causing her to do so.   As it gets colder outside, the cat sleeps in more and more.  I just hope she is good for my mom when she is here in a couple of weeks and we are gone on vacation!

GLOC fall trial

Another trial in the books and another interesting yet good weekend.  Camped all weekend in my van at the camp away campsite and I will have to say, really like this campsite alot.  Dog park is way bigger  and the camp ground is really nice as compared to the KOA i camp at usually in omaha.  Slept in my van rather than bringing a tent and it worked out great.  Glad I brought my little generator as it got a little warmish in the van at night but other than a little rain, really enjoyed the relaxing weekend.  No qs this weekend but each run, even the hot mess run as we shall call it had good parts.

 Started off running standard on friday and a very nice, fast run with one bar.  I will take it, would rather have one bar than disaster.  Jumpers again was one bar but I also got lost after the bar so we missed two jumps as I forgot where in the hell to go.  Need to not get so flustered when he knocks bars.  Saturday standard again was little bobbles, was suppose to flip to a tunnel after the dog walk and he turned up the dog walk instead.  I guess I said something like uh oh or oh man as he was stressed from that point on and was a wild child.  Even released himself from the table into a two on two off to the delight of the crowd.  Never done that before so i guess there is a first time for everything.  Jumpers was a bit better, decided to do a lead out pivot at the beginning as it was jump and then weave.  He read it nicely but popped out around the third pole.  Guess he didn't collect enough.  Also had a wrong course but he stayed up and didn't stress so was glad for that.  Sunday was good and bad as well.  We had a flip back to the tunnel after a dog walk and he got it but I ellected to do a rear as he came out to turn him into a pin wheel as there was a dummy jump straight ahead calling their name.  The front cross was sending dogs straight to it so I thought the rear was a better option.  Well, it was but he didn't turn for whatever reason and almost was to the jump with me calling him off frantically.  Got him going again and the next troublesome part was the triple to a single bar jump back to a tunnel instead of the a-frame which was straight ahead.  Well, I did a big decel, which he hadn't been reading and he read it but only too much and didn't take the jump. I was probably not supporting it so my bad.  I would rather him read the decel too much and not take a jump versus going ahead of me when my body is saying don't.  Got him over the jump after a big fat R and got to the a-frame and the little butt head released off the a-frame and hit the weaves going 100 mph.  Of course he popped himself out again and I was still standing at the stupid a-frame trying to figure out what just happened.  So now this is a your done and out offense.  Jumpers was good until he came blasting out of the tunnel and didn't even try to collect for the weaves with me saying easy weave.  Oh well, we had good parts.

I was a teensy bit disappointed in 0 Qs in a whole weekend but I do think he is running better and is so close to doing some great stuff.  He had one standard run where he had one little wide turn and the fastest BC also had one little bobble and their times were identical.  OF course it was only one time but it made me smile.  She then beat him by like three seconds in the next JWW run but she is a tight little turning BC.    I think we are again gelling as a team and will get there very, very soon!

major runner's high!

Okay so I know it sounds silly but I am still on a major runner's high!  My first 10 K in the books and my time better than what I had planned YIPEEE!  It started out very cold, 41 degrees and dark as we left the house.  Luckily through years of running agility in horse barns and arenas, I have built up some cold weather gear that works perfectly for running.  As someone commented on my FB page on a pic tony took of me post race, "you look like a real runner".  Had to laugh at that one for sure!  The first 2 or so miles are nothing but hills and I had attempted to run this course before and it had defeated me for various reasons.  I had that little voice of self doubt in my head and it started screaming about 4 miles in, where i had to stop last time.  Well, I just told it to shut the hell up and kept running!  I had two friends who ran with me but they are super fast so they got way ahead of me around mile 2 and I just plugged in my head phones and jammed away.  I found a lady who had a similar pace and running style and we just hung out together.  Around mile 5.5, I could tell she was getting tired and felt the opportunity was there to pass, so I did.  My friends had finished in 53 so they came back to run with me to the finish line and make me sprint.  What was surprising was I actually had legs to do so!  I was so proud of myself for accomplishing my goal and look forward to my next race in November.  It gets a little challenging to schedule running with my dogs shows but I can usually find one a month that fits.  I am still waiting on the results but I think I crossed the finish line at 59:10 or something very close to that.  It was a very small race so not very technical in the scoring or timing so hoping they got it right. I had my watch going but didn't click it off till 59:33 and i had been standing there a few seconds.  I am very excited I met my goal and am really, really, really addicted now:)