And it just got a whole lot worse. Yesterday, Paula asked Andrew to take her and Baloo (her second greyhound) to the vet, as she has been limping for a while and rest has not improved it. Andrew took them and the vet decided to do some exploratory X Rays. Paula and Andrew went back in the afternoon, and the news was what every greyhound owner dreads - bone cancer. Nobody is quite sure why these dogs are more prone. It is more common in greys and other large, long legged breeds like Great Danes. Some say that there is simply more leg to get cancer in, and others think there may be a link between the cancer and the fast growth rate in long leg bones in some of the hound species. Anyway, we know it is the worst pain, and there is almost never a good way back. The vet offered to put her to sleep straight away, but Paula decided to take her home, and allow the vet to come round today, to put her to sleep at home.

Andrew came home absolutely devestated, and we spent one of the most miserable evenings I can remember. Originally, Paula asked if Andrew would come round and be with her when the vet visited. Naturally Andrew agreed but it was with a very sad heart. Later in the evening, Paula said her daughter would be coming up so no need for Andrew to be there. This morning, we took ours to the park, and we saw Paula, walking Jim and Baloo near the lake. We were able to say goodbye to the beautiful girl, which was a small comfort. Things just carried on getting worse. Boola got his foot stuck in the footbridge near the lake (a sharply worded letter is now on its way to the park management) and then after pausing for a moment, I set off again and felt my calf muscle do a horrible crunching tear - both painful and deeply annoying. By the time I got back to the car, I was thinking "What's next?" although with considerably more swear words.

It 's been a quiet day - we've been doing some shopping and preparations for tomorrow's visit by Andrew's parents. Andy had to go to the vet this afternoon anyway - but fortunately he simply needs some anti-inflammatories to deal with a leg that he walloped when having a particularly eventful zoomie in the bedroom one day.

We spoke with Paula earlier this evening. Apparently, all went very peacefully and the dear girl is now at peace and free from pain, which is thankfully one of the great blessings of dog ownership, that we can take this hard decision for the creatures we love. I will be very pleased to see the back of the end of 2010.

Firstly, a very happy Christmas to all my readers. By Thursday of last week, the roads were just clear enough for us to go and pick up our turkey, and do the last shopping for fresh stuff. Christmas Eve was the traditional routine - a seafood feast with a celebratory viewing of Muppet Christmas Carol (with obligatory and tuneless singing along). However, I wasn't feeling too brilliant and Andrew was astonished when I voluntarily tucked myself into bed at about 11. By Christmas morning, I was in the full grip of a particularly nasty virus. Christmas Day and Boxing Day were just a blur. I was running a high temperature, feeling very light headed and the lurgy had thoughtfully settled on my chest and throat. Yesterday was a slight improvement but still pretty grim. We've still not had our Christmas dinner, as all I can manage is soup, smoothies and ice cream. I've lost the power of speech, so can't talk to anyone, unless sputtering croaking counts. I feel desperately sorry for Andrew, as it must be counting among the dullest Christmas EVER for him as I am terrible company. He is being his usual brilliant self, and is making me strange medicinal potions involving honey, whiskey and Lemsip that leave me feeling even more spaced out (in a good way). Occasionally he varies the medicine by administering doses of Navy Strength Plymouth Gin. One of the most horrible and painful effects of the virus has been the way it has made what's left of my lymph nodes turn into throbbing golf balls - my neck, armpits and other areas have been really sore.

I'm sorry this is not a more festive post - hopefully when I'm feeling a bit better we'll be able to enjoy our Christmas feast and start talking to people again. The main beneficiaries have been the dogs who have been enjoying a good deal of cold turkey.

Snow. Great white drifts of it. Harummph. Britain as a whole doesn't do snow. So, when it fell last week, everything ground to a halt. Fair play to the weather forecasters, by Wednesday they said it would be here overnight on Thursday and into Friday. So, on Wednesday evening, I went out and did a shop to stock up, to ensure we didn't run out of basics. I expected that on Thursday the supermarkets would be mad. I was also feeling quite frustrated, since on the weekend was the local greyhound charity dog show, and middle nephew was coming over for it. Moreover, I had made Boola a fancy dress costume to complement nephew and was looking forward to seeing them in the ring together. Sure enough, the snow fell on Thursday night and into Friday, and we were soon engulfed in it. Andrew managed to get home from Birmingham and miraculouosly was able to meet James on the platform at Bristol to travel back together. They got a taxi out to the house, and a journey that takes normally no more than 20 minutes took about an hour. Eventually, cold tired and hungry the weary travellers returned and we were all able to sit down and eat.

By Saturday it was apparent we would not be going to the dog show. We called Paula. the organiser (another Paula, not our close friend), and she couldn't even get out of her drive. Looking at the conditions, it would have been foolish and even dangerous to have tried to get there. However, two lovely costumes were waiting, so James and Boola got dressed up and we did a photoshoot out on the grassy area near the houses. James loved his elf costume so much he is now planning to wear it for Christmas visits to relatives, and was also very happy with Boola's appearance. On the bright side, Paula is organising another show at the venue in February, so James has already decided he will come back for that. Pics attached of Boola and James in costume and the snow locally. Of course, this will mean making another costume for Boola, but that could be fun.

James and Andrew then struggled through the snow round to our local shops for a paper and some other perishables, then returned home and took the dogs out to play in it for a bit. Then we had a quiet afternoon before having supper and watching "How to Tame Your Dragon" which was quite funny in places, and I was very struck by the resemblance between Toothless, the main dragon character and Andy our greyhound. Sunday morning, another quick outing in the snow for the dogs before an early lunch and back on to the train for Andrew and James. It was lovely to see James and he was able to email some nice pics of his costume to various friends and relations, and I've offered to get him some prints framed. These have been ordered and I received an email today from Photobox to say they've been dispatched, so I might be able to give them to James when we see his family over Christmas.

Seeing anyone else looks unlikely at the moment. Yesterday it snowed steadily all day and it is now thick outside. At the moment, the main worry is that we are due to collect our turkey on Thursday from Penarth and this will be difficult along with shopping for last minute fresh stuff for Christmas. I was very impressed though that the postman got through today, and we received an enormous backlog of cards - he hadn't been for a couple of days and there were masses. So, for the moment, I am hunkered down in the house with the dogs. Luckily, virtually our Christmas shopping had been done, and cards and parcels had all been posted in good time, so we are quite lucky in that respect. The weather has affected the delivery of many parcels and of course these days people also have home deliveries of groceries too. I will post more as this week unfolds.

Well, it's been very busy. After my last post, we spent the weekend indoors, and made the apple and rosemary jelly. It set beautifully and is the most glorious colour - a sort of pinky-gold. We tried some on Sunday evening with our roast pork and it was fabulous, so we're confident about giving it as part of Christmas gifts. This was followed by a week of pre-festivity bustle - peak card making season and I sent a box of hand made cards down to the GRW charity shop. Cards for overseas needed to get away early, and we had a few to go.

Last weekend, we went down to see our friend Rhian in Burry Port with the two hounds. Took a parcel of festive goodies, including some jelly, some biscuits for the dogs and some home made chocolate and cranberry bark. It was lovely to see Rhian and the dogs, and we went over to Pembrey Country Park for a walk, cold but not raining or too windy. Callie and Mic, Rhian's dogs are very settled and happy and it is still so lovely to see them looking so healthy and full of life, when I remember how they used to be. Callie was a bony hat rack when she first came to us for foster care - now she is a glossy, muscular dog, with a twinkle in her eye, bags of confidence and a sweet, trusting nature. Mic still bears physical scars from his past but now his coat is lustrous, his eyes shine and he is another love sponge - just demands cuddles. Seeing the two of them galloping about, sniffing, playing and cavorting is one of those Christmas gifts that is priceless. I attach some pics of all of us.

Since then, I'm beginning to feel like we are over the busiest part of the run up to Christmas. I've posted all our cards, and I only have to make one for Andrew. On Sunday, we got our tree and that is now up and decorated in the living room and looks (and smells) wonderful. We bought a plain wreath and decorated it with ribbon, baubles and orange slices that I'd dried in the oven, so it looks gorgeous on the front door. I love putting up and decorating the tree - it is one of the most deeply charged emotional moments of the year. Many of the baubles are very old and have a story to tell, and have been picked up on various travels. More importantly, the smell and the look of the tree, twinkling away in the house, immediately transports me to childhood Christmases and every one since. Even when I lived by myself in a flat, I would always have a real tree and it's a tradition that matters hugely to me. One of my favourite poems is "A Celebration of Christmas Trees" by TS Eliot and I love the way the poem captures the fact that what matters at Christmas is the repetition rather than novelty - rituals of any kind build their power as they are repeated, gathering layers of meaning and significance as they go. This is why I am always horrified when I read magazines or even see cookery programmes that gaily suggest novelty at Christmas - that seems to me to be entirely missing the point, of how it is celebrated. It is of course very powerful too to create your own traditions - something Andrew and I wanted to do as a couple, rather than simply replicate bits of our individual festive DNA.

Once the house was sorted, I could then move on to my other task this week, making a fancy dress costume for Boola, our greyhound. James, middle nephew is coming for the weekend, and is going to enter a junior handler class with Boola at a local greyhound charity show. Another of the classes is a Fancy Dress one and James said he would be up for it. So I ordered an elf costume for James over the net, and decided to make one for Boola. Essentially it is in two parts - I've made a green coat for him with felt triangles peeping out at the hem in red and green. It has a simple girth closure with a Velcro fastener. Above this, is a green collar, again adorned with many more felt triangles in two different lengths, but also with bells sewn on., and also fastened with Velcro. It's been a bit of a faff to make, but I am hugely pleased with it now I've done it and would now feel a lot more confident having a go at something like this again. The hardest part was trying to interrupt Boola's nap this afternoon to do some fittings - he was very unimpressed at having precious sofa time disrupted and made his views very clear.

Unfortunately, I caught the Welsh news tonight on TV and it seems we are in for some severe weather at the end of the week - fingers crossed that James can still come and the show goes ahead. Because of the weather, I nipped out this evening to stock up at the supermarket, thinking that tomorrow will be chaotic, as people often tend to panic buy and it's a busy time of year anyway. So, if nothing else we've got plenty of food and supplies in regardless of the snow.

Last Friday, we had a wonderful day. Hilary, my aunt who lives in Swansea came up for the day for us to go Christmas shopping in Cardiff. We met her at the train station and headed over to trhe new St Davids 2 development and John Lewis as she hadn't yet had a chance to have a look round it. We had a wonderful day shopping and I was delighted to see that Jo Malone have now opened a Cardiff branch. On the way back to meet Andrew, we found a little stall in the centre of the open space selling German sausages (bratwurst) like you see at German Christmas markets. I was delighted, and we stopped and enjoyed one. Just as we sat down on a bench to eat our sausages, it began to snow. It was a wonderful moment, sitting there in the gently falling snow, under twinkling lights and feeling very festive.

Later that night, we had a booking at Bully's restaurant - to finally and belatedly celebrate our anniversary. Between returning home from town after dropping off Hil at the railway station and getting ready to go out in the early evening, the snow fell heavily and by the time the taxi driver picked us up the world was white. Central Cardiff was deserted and when we got to the restaurant about half of the bookings had been cancelled - such a shame. Anyway, having got there, we had a wonderful evening and the food was as superb as ever, along with a sumptuous wine list. I finished the meal with a particularly delicious cherry parfait, a coffee and one of their selection of Armagnacs - lovely. Eventually meandered home (taxi driver found roads still passable).

By Saturday morning Cardiff was snowed in and most of the rest of the weekend and this week we, like most of the country, have been in the grip of very cold weather. Although we've had no more significant snow (yet - some is forecast for tonight) and most of the roads are passable, pavements have been transformed into sheet ice, since gritting is only applied to roads. Walking the dogs is difficult and they hate the stone hard surfaces and razor like grass under their paws. Night time temperatures have been low enough for us to have the heating on overnight to ensure pipes don't freeze, the garden pond is nearly frozen over and we've been putting out masses of bird food. To my astonishment and delight, we were visited by a snipe earlier in the week, while I was washing up. I watched it, entranced while it pecked at some meal worms I'd put out, before something disturbed it and it flew away. We live very close to the Severn estuary and have many lakes and rheens near us, so the area is good for water fowl, but it was still a huge surprise.

Yesterday was a painfully bittersweet day. Our dear friend Paula has terminal cancer and this year has been awful as we've watched its slow encroachment and her valiant resistance. She invited me over as she was going through her quilting stash and giving it to me. On the one hand, we had a great afternoon, sitting upstairs in her spare bedroom, playing with piles of fabric. On the other, I felt so sad and miserable, as this seemed to mark another milestone on her journey. I did feel immensely grateful and privileged though, and it's really rather nice in a way to think about how her fabrics will be a form of legacy. I'm not ashamed to say though I came home yesterday and just wept - and today has been hard too. In another development, her daughter has said she will give a home to Paula's two beloved dogs (also much loved greyhounds) when Paula is no longer able to care for them. This was something that Paula was worried about, and it will be an immense comfort to her to know this is taken care of. Although we love Jim and Blue, it would not have been feasible for us to have had them, much as I would have liked to, and Andrew and I did discuss this many times. When Andrew is away, it is a struggle to walk three dogs single handed, and walking five simply wouldn't be possible.

This weekend, we're mindful of the weather forecast and are planning to hibernate. In particular, we're going to make some apple and rosemary jelly (some to keep, and some to give for Christmas) - the apples are from Andrew's parents' garden and the rosemary from our garden.

Finally, I'd like to say that if you would like one of my hand made Christmas cards this year, and you're not already on our list, then please drop me an email with your address and I'll be delighted to send you one, or a festive ATC if you prefer/as well.

This post is all about Boola. Readers will recall that we've been doing our Kennel Club classes. After successfully doing our Bronze, Caroline our lovely tutor invited us back to do the Silver Award. The classes have been going very well, although we had to miss one when we were away in Cornwall. Anyway, last night was the moment of truth - the examination. I was nervous although Boola of course was his usual relaxed self and prepared by getting in some nap time after we came back from our morning walk. Unusually for a Tuesday night, Andrew was here so he waved us off when the time came. I hate being late for important appointments (well I just hate being late) so left in very good time. As is usually the way, this meant that every single traffic light was on green and we got there in record time! Of course, when time is against you, you can guarantee that's when the lights will all be on red and the traffic will be a nightmare.

As well as the examination, it was an opportunity for me to return a book to Caroline that she had lent me the previous week, a textbook on dog welfare that she had found useful and thought I would enjoy. I did, and am now ordering it from Amazon.

We went through the various elements of the test, starting with the two minute Stay. Boola of course always comes to class with his own sheepskin rug which makes this part of the test a dream once he is nicely settled. Like most greyhounds, he gets down on to his rug and stretches out and is then relaxed for ages. Several other people have found that a blanket or coat on the floor really helps with the Stay - I can't blame the dogs, it must be a lot more comfortable and inviting than a cold, hard church hall floor.

The hour simply flew by, especially as we had to do outside elements as well, including a demonstration of getting into a car and our road walk where dogs show that they can be walked in an urban environment full of interesting distractions. Suddenly it was over, and Caroline was dashing about with certificates and rosettes - Boola had passed. The hour had over-run slightly and another class (the Bronzes) were waiting to come in. So without further ado, it was time to go home, pausing only to give Caroline a thank you card and gift on the way out.

Home, and Andrew had baked a couple of pizzas I had made earlier in the day and opened a bottle of wine. Boola had some roast chicken and promptly fell asleep. I sat there contentedly munching my pizza and admiring his new rosette. The certificate will be framed and will join his Bronze one in the downstairs loo. Caroline will be running some Gold classes so I will have to decide if we want to do those - the syllabus looks pretty tough. She also mentioned training as an award assessor - something else to consider.

I was shattered last night and slept like a log. We woke early this morning and got the dogs over to Tredegar for a lovely early walk. The sun was rising as we were travelling over there and gave everything that wonderful rose gold glow you get at this time of the year - trees looked as though they were on fire. The park was quiet and Boola enjoyed running around sniffing everything although we didn't see any squirrels, much to Andy's disappointment. As a special treat for Boola, we served their favourite breakfast when we got home - I fried two packs of liver and served this with their kibble. After that the entire pack has spent the morning in a state of deep relaxation on various sofas - greyhound happiness exemplified.

An all too short weekend. We were supposed to be going to Bully's on Saturday night as an anniversary celebration but it seemed something went wrong with the Toptable booking and it was cancelled so we are trying again next weekend. Saturday was an enjoyable day though - we went out with Paula in the afternoon to the Yankee Candle shop to select some candles for Christmas. Had great fun sniffing everything in the shop and eventually came home with three gorgeous winter smells. Paula came back with us and we settled down to watch the last episode of "Downton Abbey" with a big pot of tea and lots of homemade chocolate cake - now that's an afternoon well spent. I did one of my reliable Mary Berry recipes with a chocolate ganache on the top - worked very well. The last episode of Downton Abbey was great - it took the characters right up to the beginning of the First World War. Can't wait for the second series next year. After that, Paula went home and we had a quiet evening. On Sunday, Andrew took Andy for the first run they've done together since Andy sprained his shoulder a while back. He's been missing it terribly but we wanted to make sure he was properly healed before starting back on the running. Andrew took him over to Tredegar House so they could run on grass which is much more forgiving than running on pavements or roads. Fortunately, they both had a great time and now Andrew can work on doing more and longer runs with him so he can get back up to his previous fitness level.

Today has been quiet - I've been working at home after taking Andrew to the station early this morning. The weather is getting colder, the forecast this morning on Farming Today was that it will get considerably colder as the week progresses. Our walk this morning was pretty chilly, but the dogs really enjoyed it.

In previous blog posts, I've been enthusiastic about a company called Photobox. I use them regularly for ordering digital prints and a variety of other photo gifts. With Christmas coming up, I wanted to order some presents, and one of the things I also like to do is to put a selection of photographs in with Christmas cards for people who we may not have seen much of during the year. I am almost tempted to do a "Round Robin" but am brought back to my senses by thinking about the ones that Rita and Roger receive (Andrew's parents). Every Christmas they show us the best ones and they are without exception, wince-making and unintentionally hilarious. Tarquin's record breaking ascent of K2 is casually mentioned along with the knighthood, the Nobel Prize and of course the tribe of lovely and over achieving children. Someone really ought to collect the best (worst) examples although knowing the internet someone probably already does. Anyway, what I do is pop in a few pics, with a printed label on the back, giving a few brief details - "Here is Andrew receiving his Nobel Prize" "Here is Kate ascending K2" etc etc. Hopefully the recipient can enjoy, keep the pics if they wish and dispose if they don't. In general too they tend to be sent to people who don't read the blog - if I know someone is a reader, then there's no point in sending pics since they will be overdosed on our doings anyway.

So this year, I ordered the usual set of prints for the Christmas cards, and now am pleased to say they arrived promptly, and I've affixed the labels and even made some pretty little folders for the snaps using some Christmas paper. Once the cards are done, all I need to do is pop these in - it's good to have that feeling of being organised. While I was at it, I also ordered a few other gifts. For a friend I ordered a mug and a collage calendar poster - plus some fridge magnets and some stickers. I uploaded the order on Monday night and everything arrived on Wednesday - Keith our postie was laden when I answered the door to him. Everything looked good until I came to check the photo mug. At first I could see something was wrong but couldn't quite work it out - then it dawned on me the design was upside down. I called the company directly on Wednesday lunchtime shortly after Keith's delivery - company immediately assured me a replacement would be rushed out and sure enough a perfect mug turned up with Keith on Thursday. Now that's what I call good service.

In a spookily similar example, I also used the Thorntons website this week to order various chocolate goodies including ones that can be iced free of charge with the recipient's name. Order placed on Monday - huge box arrived on Wednesday via our regular courier ( a really nice lady - we are very blessed by her and Keith). Unfortunately, despite very secure packing one of the chocolate figures was smashed - I calleed the helpline and a lovely lady immediately assured me that a replacement would be rushed out to me. I've heard several times that companies actually build stronger customer loyalty when they get it right correcting something that's gone wrong and I can see how this might be the case. In these circumstances, I am very happy to say that both Photobox and Thorntons have demonstrated exemplary customer service and I am happy to recommend them. Overall, I am making excellent headway with the Christmas shopping - it is nearly all done now. Next week my fave auntie comes up from Swansea and we are having a day together in Cardiff to enjoy some shopping - it will be a pleasure as I will have very few things on my list so will be able to relax and enjoy myself sauntering round John Lewis stroking fabric and sighing over the luscious collection of handbags. The next challenge is the wrapping - I am not so good at this. And it always amazes me how incredibly time consuming it can be.

Tonight has been an evening of relaxation. We're nearly at the end of Downton Abbey - I am going to be utterly bereft when it finishes as it has become strangely addictive. Like most women, I now have a crush on the adorable valet and there is something so amazingly sexy about both men and women when buttoned up in Edwardian costumes - the sexual appeal is subtle rather than overt and therefore much more powerful. It's also lovely to see women with beautiful pale faces rather than orange perma-tans - again, very classy and very, very sexy. One of the strange things is seeing some of the staff smoking indoors in the kitchen. It made me realise how quickly the smoking ban has settled into our consciousness - it just looks odd and unpleasant now to see a lighted cigarette indoors. Oddly, I probably wouldn't feel that way about a pipe - firstly, they don't seem to be smoked so much these days and secondly both Andrew and myself had grandfathers who were devoted pipe smokers. As a consequence, we both have very happy memories attached to them and in general, pipe tobacco is usually very fragrant and pleasant to be around - often it smells of fruit such as cherries For many years, Andrew had a pair of chairs inherited from his grandparents and the covers retained a very faint (but aromatic) aroma of pipe tobacco - there was something very reassuring and pleasant about the smell.

Since I last wrote, Andrew and I took the dogs and had a short break in Cornwall. We stayed in the Travelodge in Saltash, near Plymouth where we used to live. We chose the Travelodge as dogs are welcome and by booking well in advance were able to take advantage of their very cheap room deals.

It was great to be back in Plymouth and we managed to pack in a surprising amount in a few days. We saw lots of my dear friend Leila, which was great, and also managed to have a wonderful night at the gloriously named Finnygook Inn at Portwrinkle. If you are ever in SE Cornwall and want a good pub, this one ticks all the boxes. Great, friendly staff, really nice drinks, fabulous food, a beautiful real fire, spotless loos, everything you could want. In all, six of us got together and it was fabulous to catch up on the news, and just to enjoy a relaxed evening out. While we were in the pub, the woofs stayed in the car, and Andrew popped out regularly to check on them. Our table was cunningly located by the window so we could keep an eye on the car.

We had the obligatory stroll along the Hoe plus some really enjoyable walks over at Mount Edgecumbe Country Park and up on Bodmin Moor, to the Hurlers. The Hurlers are an ancient series of stone circles (subject of many myths and legends) and are one of my most favourite places in the world. The moor location is stunning, and you can see ruined tin mines in the distance. Nearby is the Cheesewring, a granite tor feature which is wonderful and offers glorious views over moorland and countryside. I also managed to do a surprise visit to the landfill site where I used to work, and gave my old boss a jolt as he was peacefully working to suddenly be faced with my smiling face!

Before we knew it, it was time for a last breakfast with Leila and then back home, via the South Devon coast road, which is a drive of astonishing beauty, stopping off at Slapton Sands to allow the dogs a quick stretch of the legs before the journey home. The dogs especially enjoyed their first taste of what a proper pasty is like (courtesy of Ivor Dewdney, a Plymouth institution) and it was great to go on the Torpoint ferry as well and enjoy the close up view of the river. Definately a trip we'd like to repeat.

Since returning, the days have flown by. Andrew went up to Chester on Friday for the funeral of his great uncle Bob, who had died at the age of 95. He had passed away peacefully after a long life, mostly very well, but marred by illness in the last few months. You can never be glad someone has died but this came close, in the sense of a long life peacefully enjoyed and a gentle passing - who could wish for more?

Over the weekend, I was making a quilt (will be doing a separate post on this over on my craft blog) and then on Sunday Andrew headed up to London early as he had a Monday morning meeting. Yesterday was our 13th wedding anniversary and it was sad to be spending it apart from him. I had tucked his anniversary card into his suitcase before he left, and Andrew had entrusted his card for me to Andy's care. The day passed peacefully and quietly - I finished my quilt (yay!!), and in the evening watched some of the Robert Plant programmes that have been aired lately which I had recorded. Yesterday is also special in that it marks the first anniversary of Boola's arrival with us (initially as a foster dog). A year is not a long time, yet I feel Boola has been with us for ages - he has settled in to become a much loved character and member of our family. On first joining us, he seemed stressed and nervous, and it's been a real joy watching him relax, settle in and unfurl his gorgeous personality. This is one party dog - he adores company, canine and human, is very laid back but will also not be backward in telling you if he wants some chicken or thinks it's time for a cuddle.

We're going to be having a joint celebration on the weekend - our dear friend Paula is coming round for a meal on Saturday night, and we'll probably make a special joint anniversary/Gotcha Day cake for us and for Boola. The following weekend, Andrew and I will probably go out for a meal, most likely back to Bully's which we enjoy so much.

First, more news about Boola. After my last post, Boola has been enjoying his new certificate (now framed and up on his brag wall in the downstairs loo) and his smart rosette. Over the weekend, I got an email from the tutor inviting us to come along and do the Silver award before Christmas with a small class of other dogs. It was a lovely suprise and apart from the fact I'll miss one week while we are away, is really something to look forward to doing. I'll write more about this as it unfolds. One of the nice things the tutor said is that Boola is a wonderful ambassador for greyhounds and the tutor particularly wanted him to be seen/met by a number of people so they can get used to retired greyhounds doing these types of activities.

Andrew reached 40 just after my last post. On the Saturday night we went out to a lovely Cardiff restaurant, called Bully's (where we went for my birthday, too). As before we had a wonderful time, superb wine, delicious food, excellent service - I really can't recommend it enough. Click here to visit their website. Not surprisingly, it is currently the highest scored Cardiff restaurant on Toptable (which we usually use for booking).

For the weekend just gone, we invited Andrew's parents over to stay, and his sister, her husband and three boys came over on the Sunday for a great squirrel themed feast (in honour of the shared birthday for Andrew and Booty). We had a very nice time with Andrew's parents, and Andrew cooked a delicious game pie - I was brave and did some goats cheese souffles which were delicious (followed a reliable Delia recipe). On the Sunday, there were 9 of us round the table (the most we've sat in one go) and we had a very nice meal. Home made sweet potato and chestnut soup with home made bread rolls to start. For mains, a big tray of roasted chicken portions, along with plenty of coleslaw and roasted cherry tomatoes. As well, a big dish of chickpea and spinach crumble. To finish, everyone (including woofs) had a piece of birthday cake (luridly iced by Andrew and with a squirrel topper) - some pics attached of cake eating! Also the home made place cards and a nice shot of Boola relaxing with his "grandparents". In the background in this picture, you can see the latest quilt I made, over the back of the sofa. Booty wore a special pink rosette in honour of the day and thoroughly enjoyed herself.

A lovely evening last night. It was the final session in the classes Boola and I have been attending for our Kennel Club Canine Good Citizen Award. I've written before about our lovely tutor who is so kind and patient with us all, and the wonderful variety of dogs, all shapes and sizes. Last night was our exam. I spent yesterday going over my notes (yes, I am a compulsive over-achiever) and making sure I had brought everything needed. I even had some special treats for Boola - some roast chicken which he is guaranteed to eat. As a typical greyhound, Boola comes to class every week with his own sheepskin rug, so that rather than lying on a cold, hard floor he can recline in comfort and watch the other dogs get excited. It's actually been quite handy, as it means Boola has a natural "anchor" for doing a stay, and once settled is very likely to remain stretched out and relaxed for a long time.

For the test, we had to answer questions about basic dog welfare and health, show our dog was wearing collar and tag, and that we knew how to take these off/put them on. We had to demonstrate grooming our dog, and show that we could examine our dog all over including their eyes, teeth and ears. Our dogs had to show that they could walk nicely on the lead, without pulling at other dogs and could wait while we went through a door or a gate. We needed to show that we understood our responsibilities for cleaning up after our dog, and that we were carrying poo bags. Our dogs had to come when called, when doing a simple recall exercise and they also had to do a "Stay" for one minute while we were away from them. With Boola settled on his snuggly rug, the Stay was great, and he thought the recall exercise was a fabulous game since he got to run around the hall between me and the tutor, wagging his tail. He was obviously saying in doggy terms "Hey, this is much more interesting and fun than all that boring stuff we were doing earlier on the lead. We should be doing more of this!"

Finally, we got the news that we had all passed. We all received a certificate and Boola got a beautiful green and white rosette. The scheme uses the wonderful Wallace and Gromit as symbols so they are in the centre of the rosette, and on the certificate as well as the literature for the scheme. Having got these home, he is now accumulating a respectable little collection of rosettes, what with this and his recent adventures at the dog show. We took some pics (one shown above) at the end, and I gave our tutor a thank you card that I had made for her, as I wanted to express my gratitude.

I've particularly enjoyed doing the classes for a number of reasons. It's been lovely to meet other dog owners, and Boola has been a wonderful ambassador for greyhounds as pets - there is still quite a bit of ignorance about what wonderful pets they can make once they have retired from racing. Having three dogs at home, means that one on one time with them can be quite limited. Doing the classes has been a lovely way to strengthen the bond between him and me and increase my confidence with him. The tutor, Caroline, has been brilliant and given us lots of good ideas and information about training and handling our dogs that is and will be useful in the future, not just with Boola but with our other two, Andy and Booty.

Also, on a broader level, I've been putting information about stray dogs and their management up on my other website over at Houndmistress (see link in sidebar). This of course deals with the fallout when dog ownership goes wrong - the strays, the dumping etc and sadly the numbers of dogs who are killed each year. As a part of the website, I also want to show the flipside - to encourage, promote and demonstrate the pleasures of responsible dog ownership. A course like this cannot guarantee that, but it certainly does demonstrate the care and commitment of a willing owner to do something very positive to ensure their dog is treated well and that the owner understands their wider responsibilities to society. Having done the course myself, I now feel able to talk about it, write about it and promote it wholeheartedly as part of the overall drive to improve standards of responsible dog ownership in Wales.

I'm not yet sure if I will want to do the silver award with Boola, but we've got plenty of time to have a think about it.

Monday morning, and unusually Andrew had to go up to London yesterday, Sunday afternoon. His client has scheduled a series of three meetings between now and Christmas that will involve doing this. Normally I don't mind him travelling him during the week but weekends are sacred - no working or travelling. In this case though the meeting start time was simply too early for a reasonable journey from here. So, very reluctantly, after a lot of discussion and weighing the pros and cons, he set off yesterday afternoon from the station. One bonus was taking advantage of the very cheap Weekend First prices so was able to have a lovely, comfy seat and have cups of tea brought to him on the journey up, which was probably just as well since it was delayed en route by nearly 40 minutes. Then travelling across to his hotel, so although I parted with him around 4, he didn't get into his hotel room until nearly 8.

As he was leaving from the station we decided to walk the dogs at Hamadryad Park before dropping him off, with the extra bonus that it is a nice short walk anyway and therefore good for Andy's convalescence. It was a beautiful, golden afternoon, like it belonged in a storybook, with hazy sunshine and a gentle breeze - bliss. Today has been lovely as well, although the wind has picked up quite strongly. The invalid is definately improving, although the short walks are driving us all nuts including the patient (never was the word less appropriate!) who has resorted to frustrated hole digging and zoomies in the house. Not sure this is what the vet had in mind but it's proving difficult to enforce.

On Saturday we went over to Penarth to one of our favourite butchers - normally we go to coincide with the farmers market that is held there, but we wanted to have a look at their game selection as Andrew liked the idea of making a game pie when his parents come to visit the weekend after next. Most of the game birds are in season and I am always surprised at how reasonable the prices are, especially for pheasant. As well as the whole birds, the butcher stocks packs of pheasant breast and ready prepared mixes for game pie, with birds and venison. We ended up with a mixer pack, some pheasant breasts and some pigeon breasts - we'll keep the pheasant back for a casserole on a separate occasion. While we were there we also ordered our Christmas turkey - the butcher has been dealing with the same poultry supplier for 25 years, has visited the farm regularly and is very pleased with the quality of the birds. It will be a Kelly bronze, free range, organic - it's important to us that we support farmers and meat producers who have high welfare standards, and generally this accompanies higher quality meat, with good flavour. Still not sure how many we will be for Christmas Day, but we generally get a medium sized bird, since both of us love leftovers, and we always make gallons of stock with the carcase.

This particular butcher, in a sign of the times I guess, also has a fresh fish counter. We tried out a fish I hadn't cooked before, which is a gurnard. The fish was prepped by taking off the head and skin, and then Andrew steamed it, rather as you would do monkfish - he then made a lovely sage and garlic butter sauce to go with it - it was delicious and for two fish, one each, only about £6 - very good value. Also picked up a fresh crab and Andrew made a crab pate as a starter - delicious.

It's great to be thinking about and ticking off some of these longer term preparations for Christmas. I love the run up to the season - and spreading things out seems to make it less hassle and more fun. Thinking also of the longer term, we've gone ahead and booked a holiday for next spring, down in Pembrokeshire at a place called Little Dumpledale - isn't that the most marvellous name? To me it sounds like something from Enid Blyton. The farm has a range of self catering apartments, converted barns and so on, but what makes it very special is that it is renowned among the sighthound community for being not just dog friendly but geared for large, agile sighthounds. Unlike our abortive attempt at a cottage holiday three years ago, where the supposedly dog proof fence was no barrier to the tempting field of sheep next door, Dumpledale has great big six foot high wooden stockades round the properties with lovely big gardens, ideal for greyhound zoomies. The place doesn't need to advertise since it is booked solid by happy sighthound owners, many of whom go more than once a year and often are repeat visitors. Also unlike the huge list of restrictions in self catering places when you have a dog, this place will gladly welcome as many as you can bring - apparently the record currently stands at 19!! The farm is also situated near some of the outstandingly lovely beaches of the Pembrokeshire Coast National Park - we are looking forward to happy days spent in long coastal and beach walks, and visiting the local hostelries for food and relaxation in the evenings. There is even a doggy creche so if we want to go out and leave the dogs, they can be looked after while we are doing human stuff - what a great idea. Fortunately we were lucky to be flexible about dates since when we reserved our week, much of the available accommodation was already booked solid. Clearly, this farm has found a wonderful niche in the market and is happy to fill it. Am looking forward to trying it down there immensely. The other nice thing is that if it is a complete disaster, we are not a million miles from home so can always bail if need be.

Much to write about. Last weekend, Hilary (fave auntie) came up for our annual sashay around a craft show. This year, the annual event at the CIA had been cancelled due to the Ryder Cup golf tournament, but we had found an alternative event over in Bristol. Hil came up on the Thursday afternoon train and I met her from the station, with woofs as I took them for a walk down at Hamadryad Park before collecting her. Then on the Friday it was over to Bristol in the most appalling weather - driving rain that fell heavily all day. The craft show was held at the University of the West of England campus, in one of their exhibition halls and was a good venue, being easy to reach, with plenty of parking. The show was good - not as extensive as the Cardiff one, but we were able to buy some lovely things, including some beautiful rubber stamps which I am looking forward to playing with. We came home, as usual, absolutely exhausted, but very happy, and then spread out our stash to re-examine and stroke it and plan our campaigns. We also do what we've done on previous years, if one of us buys a paper pack the other likes - we each take half the pack and split it then swap, giving more variety and fun in our papercrafting.

On Saturday we made a lengthy trip to Ikea as Hil wanted to test/look at/sit on a variety of items for her new kitchen and conservatory. This was great - I love any excuse to wander round there and they had lots of new room sets and had recently changed the layout of a number of departments so we had a great time. They had their Christmas shop open near the tills so I stocked up on paper and tags - I'm hoping to get a head start soon on Christmas gift wrapping as the rest of this month is going to fly by.

On Sunday we made a leisurely jaunt over to Hobbycraft near the new Cardiff Stadium. It's a very pleasant retail park and I really like the look of the new stadium, shared between the Bluebirds and Cardiff Blues rugby team. Back home for home made soup then off to the station so Hil could catch her train home - all in all, a busy and very successful weekend.

After Hil had gone, Andrew took Andy out for one of their usual runs together (which they both really love) and we think that it was during this that Andy pulled his shoulder. Anyway by Monday morning he was limping quite severely. I examined his paws and legs for any heat, blood, swelling or tenderness but nothing so we waited. If I took the dogs to the vet every time they had a little strain our vet would be a millionaire and we would be broke, so we just decided to give him a day off with plenty of rest and TLC. On Tuesday night Boola and I went to our Kennel Club class which was great. I really feel I am learning so much, and in particular am gaining confidence in my relationship with Boola, which is lovely. I find it particularly fascinating to see the huge variance in the other dogs in the class and their owners, and the particular variety in learning styles. Some are motivated by food, some by toys, some by affection seeking or play and our tutor is sufficiently flexible to encourage us to find the learning style that works for us.

By Wednesday the invalid had not improved and I was quite concerned about him, although he had taken pleasure in digging a hole in the garden when he and Boola had gone out there together on Boola's return from class, late on Tuesday evening. So it was off to the vet, his least favourite place. As usual, he tried to hide behind my leg and the vet diagnosed a poorly shoulder, probably likely to recover well in a few days. Some anti-inflammatories were prescribed and the wounded warrior was sent home with a strict limit on exercise and definately no running for a while. Unfortunately this has not been easy to enforce as although he has been walking on the lead, whenever he sees a squirrel he often does his vertical take off and attempts to climb a tree if he can see a squirrel in it. He is also doing his favourite zoomies in the house, when he rushes at very high speed between all the beds upstairs, bouncing on each one before leaping off and then skidding sideways on to the next one - one of his trademark pursuits.

Anyway, he is now recovering slowly and I'm hopeful that in another week or so he should be improved completely, fingers crossed.

Regular readers will know that Andrew is currently working up in a London borough, and travels up there several times a week, sometimes staying, sometimes coming home. When he stays, he usually has a room in a Travelodge or a Premier Travel Inn, and uses the ones near Tower Bridge, as these are handy for the offices he visits. Of course, this is a lovely part of London, and in the evening, he usually goes for a run, sometimes along the Thames pathway and sometimes down to Canary Wharf. I'm terribly jealous, as I love Canary Wharf - the Underground station is wonderful, and I adore the DLR, and the mall under the offices, and the whole environment is just very pleasant to wander about in. To remind me of London, he often sends me pics from his phone when he is out running, regular faves include the Gherkin and recently the elephant parade around City Hall. On one of his evening runs he came across this bar, and we were mightily impressed they named it after our much loved greyhound bitch.

Today he was heading off for a meeting in Dulwich and sent me this other one, of Dog Kennel Hill. Loved it.

Quite a bit to write about. On Thursday, I attended the first in a two class series over at Busy Bees, learning how to make an embroidered felt bag. I'll write more on the detail of this over on my craft blog, but it was a wonderful morning. Around a dozen ladies gathered together with a table each to work on, and when Sandra our tutor was demonstrating a stitch she called us into the middle to sit in a circle round her to watch, learn and practice. The room was filled with laughter and learning, a busy purposeful enjoyment and concentration. It was also an opportunity for Sandra our tutor who is a very gifted teacher, to share with us precious memories of how her grandmother had taught her to stitch, sitting on a log in the forest outside Cefn Mably nearly sixty years ago. I found this deeply moving, as Sandra obviously valued and cherished these wonderful memories and still used and enjoyed the skills her grandmother had taught her. Like most people my age, all my grandparents are now dead, but I am very lucky in that my great aunt (now in her nineties) is still alive and is a wonderful link to those childhood memories, as well as being a much loved and appreciated family member. One of the things that saddens me greatly is when I hear about family/marriage breakdowns that then results in grandparents as well as parents being estranged from young children. The relationship with a grandparent can be a very special thing for a child, a great gift and a wonderful opportunity for learning - how tragic if that is lost.

After a wonderful morning learning that seemed to fly by, it was time to come home. On Friday I had to drive down to Pontardawe to a wash-up meeting for the Welsh Festival of the Horse. I was armed with some chutney for Penny and a selection of herb cuttings for our mutual friend and greyhound activist Margaret. Taking the bag of cuttings into the meeting, the herbs kept wafting their fragrances up to us - mint and sage, clean and refreshing, it was lovely just to bury your nose in the bag. The meeting went well, and it is still undecided if there will be another festival in two years time.

Saturday and Sunday seem to have flown by. Andrew has been busy in Paula's garden, doing some work for her, laying some slabs and gravel so the dogs can go out without getting muddy. I've been doing my homework from the first class, which is to do the embroideriy on my felt bag, ready for it to be lined and sewn together in the second and final class. As a way of practicing, I used a template and cut out some Christmas ornament shapes from felt and then used my Crop a Dile to punch some holes in the top for a ribbon. I then embroidered across the ornament and finished up with some beading. I attach a couple of pics of them - I think the idea could be refined further but is basically a good one. Watch this space. As a kind thank you, Paula gave Andrew a bottle of port (he has loved port since I first met him) and we had a glass tonight after dinner with our blue cheese and crackers. Lovely. What a wonderful end to the weekend, and a really enjoyable couple of days.

To class tonight with Boola - the second in our Kennel Club Canine Good Citizen series. It's always a bit miserable when you've got three hounds, to take one out and leave behind two little faces, looking up at you with big brown eyes and a hopeful expression. I was just getting ready to go when I had a quick phone call from a friend in GRW - firstly, she's interested in coming to see Fidelio, being done by WNO later in their season, and secondly a suggestion for some contact on my dog microchipping work as detailed in my Houndmistress website (see link in sidebar).

I saw Fidelio many years ago, done by WNO at the Swansea Grand theatre, with my mum, and it was one of those performances that was memorable for all the wrong reasons. The music and singing were (as is usual for WNO) superb, but there were a few issues. Now, it's always vexed when an operatic heroine is meant to be doing something like dying of consumption and yet manages to sing well enough to fill a theatre and looks, hmmm, a bit well-nourished. Most opera goers are happy to suspend disbelief if the singing is good enough - myself included. Anyway at this particular performance, the singers playing the main two roles of the imprisoned husband and his wife who dresses as a man to get a job in the prison to be near him, were both generously proportioned, to put it mildly. Frankly, I do remember me and my mum sniggering when there was heartfelt singing about the diet of only bread and water for months.

At the end of the performance there is a stunning finale with the chorus and in this case, the designer and director had gone a bit mad. The chorus were dressed as "freedom fighters" through the ages, so there was everything from bare breasted maidens to geurilla fighters with machine guns, all on a kind of stepped arrrangement. This was meant to sweep forward but kept getting stuck, with disastrous wobbles (especially for the bare breasts) and at the end when various curtains fell, was knocking the freedom fighters. It was one of those (rare, thankfully) moments when a technological glitch completely subtracted from the glorious music, but it at least ensures the performance will stay in my memory. When we saw Meistersinger recently, they also had a stepped bank of seats for the chorus,and I took a sharp intake of breath, but fortunately it stayed still so perhaps WNO have learned from the previous experience.

I've just found out through a comment on the previous post that this blog has been longlisted for the Welsh Blog of the Year, much to my surprise. I'm delighted!

Well, my goodness, what a day it's been. This morning Andrew ran in the Cardiff 10K race. He's raced in this in previous years, although they tend to change the course around a bit each year. Last year, they finished outside the Millennium Stadium, this year the start and finish were outside the beautiful Edwardian City Hall. Weatherwise,the day was perfect. Sunny, with a slight breeze, but neither too hot nor too cold. After his traditional pre-race supper last night of pasta and no alcohol, followed by an early night, we left home this morning at around 9. We were soon in town and parked up for a cup of coffee from the thermos before making our way over to the start. I was given the drink and hoody to hold, took lots of pics at the start then they were off! At this point I then toddled back to the car to read for a while before returning to meet Andrew at the finish line, complete with medal, complimentary water bottle and goody bag. I attach some pics - Andrew didn't think it was his best time, but said it was an enjoyable race. In a couple of weeks, he's doing the Swansea Bay 10K, one of our joint favourites. As usual, I was filled with pride and admiration, not just for Andrew but for all the athletes taking part.

Then home, for Andrew to shower and have a bite to eat. Today, annoyingly, was also the Greyhound Rescue Wales Annual Show down at Pembrey, and Greyhound Welfare (another local greyhound charity) were also having their show in a Cardiff churchyard. In previous years, I've been heavily involved in the GRW show, usually taking entries and so on, so this year we were looking forward to going as participants/spectators. However, with Andrew running in the 10K, we decided against it, as travelling to Pembrey would have taken too long, after the race. So we decided to swing by the Greyhound Welfare event, held over in Llandaff, near the Cathedral.

We've been before to shows at this venue, and it's a lovely little churchyard, filled for the show with various stalls, selling bric-a-brac, plants, the local Dog Warden was there, a BBQ was grilling burgers, and there was a roaring trade in cups of tea from the back of the vestry. Around the ring were those lovely old church chairs with holders in the back for hymn books, and there was a tent for taking entries. We had a nice chat to Paula, the lady who runs GW, who we know quite well, as she often comes to GRW events, and vice versa - we try to work in co-operation as much as possible with other greyhound charities. The classes were divided into two groups - Kennel Club groups and the novelty (fun) classes. We decided to bring Boola along, as he is so mellow with other dogs, and left Andy and Booty at home. Wrangling three dogs in a confined space can be a bit hairy, so by bringing just one, everyone could relax a lot more. I entered Boola in the Hound group class in the KC classes, and Most Appealing Eyes, Best Veteran and Best Rescue Dog in the novelty classes. We enjoyed trotting round the ring, and Boola behaved impeccably, unlike some of the dogs! There was a terrific contrast in some of the classes with all sorts and sizes of dog - glad I wasn't the judge. To our absolute delight and amazement, Boola won the Best Veteran class - this is open for dogs over 7 years. For greyhounds, I think of that as being quite young, but of course for lots of breeds, their life expectancy is much shorter. We got awarded a magnificent rosette and I am not ashamed to say I was quite moist -eyed with pride at our wonderful dog. Boola had his rosette pinned to his collar and once out of the ring, in true greyhound style, promptly lay down for a nap, after all the excitement. Winners of all the novelty classes were called back in for a Champion rosette and trophy. We trotted round the ring, and then as if in a dream the judge awarded the prize to Boola. At this point, I was definately watery eyed - as we got presented with the most enormous rosette, a challenge trophy (which will have his name on it!), a massive bag of dog biscuits and he got to pose wearing a special winner's coat. The reserve went to a lovely little terrrier who had done well earlier in the show. At the moment, I feel as though I am in a most enjoyable dream - naturally, I'm biased and think Boola is the best thing since sliced bread, but it was so lovely to have someone else show their admiration for him. After the show, he trotted back to the car, and is now relaxing downstairs on the sofa. What a wonderful day it's been.

Autumn is charging ahead. One of the things that is very seasonal is the re-erection of rugby posts in the local parks. The trees are starting to turn brown, leaves are falling, and there are berries and haws everywhere. Another feature of this time of year is that "back to school" feeling. I've signed up with some courses at Busy Bees, one starting next week which is a two week one devoted to making an intricately embroidered little felt bag. After Christmas I'm doing a day course on Pineapple blocks (a variation on log cabins) and a log cabin course which is also a single day event. The pineapple course was cunningly designed to appeal to us quilters as not only will we be doing the block but Sue, the lovely lady who is teaching will be producing samples of her mum's pineapple cake and we'll be taking home the recipe! Who could resist?!

Andrew's week off flew by. We saw the solicitor on the Tuesday and on the Wednesday we went down to see my fave auntie and a visiting uncle, meeting up at the King's Head pub, Llangennith for lunch (link here). Llangennith is a beautiful spot, with lovely beaches (v popular with surfers) and a steep down behind the village topped with an Iron Age hill fort . As it was a long way, we took the dogs with us, and sat outside the pub for pre lunch drinks and coffee - this also allowed my uncle to have a cigarette. Fortunately it was sunny but cool so the dogs were fine in the car while we ate. Pic attached, of Hilary, Andrew and uncle Peter.

After a leisurely lunch (which I wasn't too impressed by - like the King Arthur, the King's Head trades on its location I think) we headed back to Hilary's house for a look at the new conservatory. Hil's house is long and thin with the main bathroom downstairs, so the building work had altered the layout. She's now got a new bathroom, a new utility room, back door and new conservatory which has been plastered and will soon be painted. We loved sitting out in the sunshine and Hil said how much she liked being out there in the sun, doing her morning crossword or listening to Radio 4. The dogs came in for a snooze - the pic shows Andy and Boola having a power nap on the rug.

Andrew also did some garden works for our friend Paula and it seemed that before we knew it, it was time to think about him going back to work.

This week, Boola and I started our Canine Good Citizen (CGC) course. You can see our teacher's web site here - www.cardiffcaninecitizens.com which tells you all about her and the various courses she offers. I had received a glowing commendation for her work from her boss, Rowan who is the chair of the all Wales Dog Warden Group (and a thoroughly nice person too). Our course had a very varied selection of hounds - everything from tiny little fluffballs to a huge 10 stone mastiff, that couldn't be walked by its female owner as it was so strong. Everyone seemed very nice, and Caroline our tutor was lovely, full of enthusiasm and very patient. She was also very familiar with "pointies", immediately laughing with me when thinking about doing a sit - greyhounds generally can't do this as it's very uncomfortable for them, and also have what might be described as a rather cat like approach to commands, treating them more as suggestions. In true greyhound style, Boola immediately lay down on the floor whenever our tutor was talking, in a full on stretch, only getting up when it was time for us to strut our stuff. This was in total contrast to many of the other dogs, with lots of them being quite "hyper", constantly bouncing, barking and jumping - it made me very glad that our greys are generally so mellow. We were working on "Heel" on the lead, something that Boola is already good at, so that was fairly straightforward although some dogs are real pullers and it was clear that the owners were wanting to work on this. The hour shot by, and since then we've been doing some homework. I'm liking the course, and it's great to work with an inspiring teacher, especially one who is committed to using sensible, humane methods of dog training - no forcing, no gadgets, no weird collars, no alpha rolls, just gentle, positive training. In a weird kind of way, it actually very much reminded me of being back in Pony Club, with doing the test at the end being like doing one of the Pony Club Certificates.

Since then, the week has shot by and we're looking forward to the weekend. Andrew is running in the Cardiff 10K on Sunday so we are hoping for some decent weather for him. As usual, I'll try and take some pics of the athlete.

It's been a Bank Holiday weekend and Andrew has this week off, which is great. We got things under way on Friday night by going to see Spamalot at the Millennium Centre, which is currently touring. For those who don't know, it's a musical version of Monty Python and The Holy Grail. The cast were excellent, though mostly unknown (to me, anyway), costumes were great and we had good seats right in the middle of the stalls. In all, we had an enjoyable evening, although to be honest, I was hoping for less music and more comedy, if you see what I mean, although they did include the classics, including the Black Knight, the knights who go Ni, the hunt for the shrubbery and the killer rabbit with a vicious streak a mile wide, not forgetting the Holy Hand Grenade of Antioch. Bizarrely, they also included "Always look on the Bright Side of Life" which of course is taken from "Life of Brian", and is now one of the most popular songs at British funerals. The souvenir stall downstairs was doing a roaring trade in Monty Python Tshirts and posters. Would I recommend? On balance, no, unless you were obsessive about musicals or the Pythons. Another thing which annoyed both of us was that during show, Lancelot goes on a quest to rescue what he thinks is going to be a princess, but finds that it is in fact a very camp prince who loves musicals, and one thing leads to another, and before you know it, Lancelot is in disco chain mail, camping it up like Village People. Yes, yes, funny, but not. I can't help but think it's such a lazy cliche - misunderstood gay likes musicals and is screamingly camp, complete with pink robes, limp wrist and long hair. Those sort of cliches were fine in the 1970s - well, on reflection, they weren't even then, but is it just me over thinking it? You could put the old line in of it being an affectionate parody but to me it just felt like lazy stereotyping and I didn't like it, or the treatment of women either now I come to think about it.

Had a peaceful weekend with not very much going on. We've been doing some gardening and a great deal of what I would call "pottering about", walking the dogs, relaxing and drinking wine. It's been great. Today has been a bit busier - off to the solicitors this morning to sort out some legal business (wills) and to the vets this afternoon for Booty and Andy to have their annual boosters and health checks. Poor Booty had the indignity of the latex glove which left her squeaking with indignation. We also had a discussion about her arthritis and the vet was positive about a physiotherapy assessment with possibly a hydrotherapy referral. We always knew this would be a possible option in managing her condition and I'm hopeful this will continue to support movement in her shoulder for as long as possible. Andy was a complete jessie when it was time for his checkup. Unlike Booty who sees the vet regularly for her medication reviews, Andy only goes once a year for his boosters. He cowered behind my leg, tail firmly between legs and took a very dim view when the vet was doing his examination. Once it was complete, he shot out of the door like a rocket, and once home, has been disgruntled all evening.

We've finally ordered Boola's coats for the winter, after looking at a bewildering variety of styles, fabrics and prices on the internet. Eventually we ended up going back to the supplier we used for Booty and Andy when we had them, which is actually in Maine, and supports greyhound adoption in that State. He'll be having three - a waterproof coat with fleece lining for cold wet days, a waterproof lightweight coat for wet, warmer days and a fleece coat for indoor nights during the winter. The ones we bought previously from the supplier have been excellent and wash brilliantly so we're happy to continue using them.

Boola and I will also be going back to school next week. We are going to be doing a class for six weeks - the Kennel Club Canine Good Citizen Bronze Award. Unlike straightforward obedience classes, the CGC class aims to promote responsible dog ownership, and the understanding of the dog in the wider social context. So for instance, candidates will be checked to ensure they "scoop the poop", their dog wears appropriate ID and other similar features. Of course, people who do obedience classes are generally very responsible, I'm sure, but I like that this class actively encourages the owner to think about the impact of their dog on wider society. If this goes well, I might consider doing it with Andy, but I'd be more cautious, as he still has a tendancy to view very small dogs such as Yorkies as a mobile snack, which may not be the most helpful characteristic in a class of this sort. Anyway I'm sure I'll be able to decide when I've done the class with Boola, and will update here regularly.

August is a strange month, and one that in its own way proves the theory that time is relative and moves at different speeds. At this time of the year, it slows right down and August seems to go on for ever. It even seems like that in the Church calendar with what feel like umpteen Sundays after Trinity. The weekend before last, we took advantage of the beautiful weather and went out and picked some blackberries. There are masses growing near us on a road with a wide verge adjacent to one of our local parks, and backing onto farmland. After an hour, we'd filled all our Tupperware boxes and came home with about 10 lb. I made a couple of nice crumbles and took one round to our friend Paula. There was still plenty left so we made lots of jam and I attach a picture of the pots all labelled up. During the year, we save our glass jars for things like coffee, sauces, honey and so on and store them in the utility room so we usually have a good supply ready for any forays into preserving. Picking blackberries and jam making are both activities which seem to stretch seamlessly back to childhood. Relaxing, pleasureable and full of the recognisable and familiar - the purple stained fingers, bramble scratches on the legs (no matter how thick your jeans!), careful avoidance of spiders, the stretching for the large berries JUST out of reach, the enjoyably carefree feeling of the sun on your back and the delicious earthy, sweet smell of the fruit. While we were out, we also spied some fine sloes, so may return for those to make some sloe gin, as we have done in previous years. Making the jam was great fun, filling the house with luscious, sweet smells, and then pouring the molten, glossy liquid into the waiting jars. There's something disproportionately satisfying about seeing the jars cooling and lined up, waiting for their labels.

This weekend just past, we saw my lovely great aunt down in Swansea on Saturday. As usual, we went for lunch to her favourite carvery, and caught up with all her news, of which there was plenty as she is a lady with a wide social circle and lots of (great)nieces and nephews. In fact, she even has a great-great niece. Anyway, she was full of holiday plans and her usual self, so the time flew by, before we had to leave to get back to the dogs. As it was a very wet, rainy day, (not very summery) she had on her raincap, to avoid her newly done hair getting wet and going frizzy. I sympathised, as although mine is manageably short at the moment, once it gets long, rain or high humidity seems to induce some sort of kink and it becomes a nightmare.

On Sunday, we decided to make a quick foray into Lakeland for a top-up of things like waxed discs for jam/chutney making, labels and so on. I bought a new jam funnel, as we were getting tired of juggling molten liquid into the pots, along with some cake cases and some silicon heart shaped muffin moulds. Up to now, the silicon revolution in bakeware has passed me by - I now see a lot of it in places like Lakeland but have not tried it and don't know anyone who has. If any of my readers are silicon converts I'd love to hear about its relative merits for ease of use, even baking and of course ease of cleaning. I will report back on the muffin tins when I have experimented. We also did a quick dive into Paperchase for me to have a stationery fix (yes, I am a notebook junkie!) and popped in to John Lewis as Andrew wanted to look at teapots. As usual, I never cease to marvel at the amazingly genuine and helpful assistants in there - they should be giving classes to so many other retailers on how to get this right.

Today has been a quiet and peaceful day, with a lot of heavy showers and a blustery west wind. I dropped off Andrew at the station first thing and we had our customary walk down at Hamadryad Park, admiring the most wonderful rainbow in the sky, that just glowed gorgeously and looked almost close enough to touch. I've made another batch today of spiced mango chutney in the slow cooker and there are now four lovely jars of it cooling in the kitchen. I'm hoping to do a few batches of chutney now and in September so they will be ready for eating/giving at Christmas. When we were making the blackberry and apple jam, I made two batches, one in the slow cooker and one on top of the stove. I wasn't so happy with the slow cooker for the jam, it seemed to give a softer, runnier consistency so will stick to the open pan for jams in future. However, the mango chutney has worked well in the enclosed cooker - it's interesting to experiment with these differing cooking methods. If the weather improves this week, Paula and I are thinking of going to pick some plums at our nearby fruit farm and then I will make some plum jam and possibly some plum chutney. Watch this space.