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.