Oscar
16th Oct 2013 - 27th Nov 2014
Sunday 30 November 2014
Friday 1 August 2014
The life and adventures of Ollie & Oscar (aka spoiled rotten dog and pampered kitty)
Last time I gave you an update, Oscar had just joined us and was still a young kitten. Now Oscar is 9 months old and pretty much full grown. So here's the stories you have missed:
- Oscar is the strangest cat ever - he has definite cat-itude and likes to get up to all kinds of mischief. This includes following the humans into the garage, and cupboards and regularly getting shut in that space when they haven't noticed. At least every week he is rescued from a space he has snuck into - and he never seems to learn a lesson about it. He also just sits and silently waits to be discovered some time later, usually when we say to each other 'where's Oscar I haven't seen him for awhile'. Why waste important energy meowing?
- At 4 months a certain kitten decided to try life on the streets. His big break happened when a certain doggie dug a kitten-sized escape hole for him to exit our yard and enter our neighbours yard - from there Oscar had a clear exit plan through the iron wrought bars and to freedom! In the meantime we worried like crazy about him and plastered the neighbourhood with missing posters. After 2 nights on the streets he returned one morning as if nothing had ever happened. Since that day the great outdoors hasn't had the same appeal. I think he went 'I've seen the world and it was overrated' and suddenly the giant dog and humans didn't look so bad.
- Meanwhile Ollie has been continuing at dog obedience school and passed Bronze! He is now onto Silver classes. If it was a real school, I think Ollie would be the class clown of his grade.
- David and I have been determined to keep our dog out of my vegie patch and it has proven to be a challenge. Time and time again Ollie has proven that he is smarter than his own good and won the battle. Oscar is partly to blame here since Ollie thinks Oscar's poop is the tastiest treat in the history of the world, and Oscar thinks the garden beds are the best place to go toilet. Ollie's favourite vegies and fruits to dig up are potatoes and strawberries and sadly these are my favourites to eat. Bizarrely I can feed Ollie practically every fruit and veg except the strawberry fruit. He thinks it is awful - but apparently the leaves and roots of the plant are the best thing ever! After months of trying multiple different fence configurations we have finally got him out.
- I get asked quite a bit about how Ollie and Oscar are getting on. Since a picture is worth a 1000 words I'm going to leave you with this answer
Tuesday 29 July 2014
Pet Mania
I am completely hooked on the sad cat and sad dog diary, and these are heavily quoted at home now. If you haven't already seen them you should:
The sad dog diary isn't as clever as the sad cat diary but worth it just for the description of a cat. I laughed so hard I cried:
Ollie may be going through dog school but we are clearly not teaching him the right things. Maybe we should be working on this:
The sad dog diary isn't as clever as the sad cat diary but worth it just for the description of a cat. I laughed so hard I cried:
Ollie may be going through dog school but we are clearly not teaching him the right things. Maybe we should be working on this:
Saturday 26 July 2014
Part One: We Got Married!
It's become a bit of a clichė to say that your wedding day is the happiest day of your life, but honestly that is exactly how we both felt.
Just 2 hours before the ceremony a storm cell came over and it rained and hailed but by the afternoon it had mostly dried out and the sky came out beautifully for our photos.
We said our vows under the gazebo at Algona in Bathurst, with the beautiful backdrop of the vines in the background and stunning views of Bathurst in the far distance.
My bridesmaids and I arrived in the 1925 Austin that my dad had restored years ago. I was a teenager when he embarked on this project and I remember seeing the pile of metal that had been a car and thinking he was very ambitious. It's amazing to see what he has done. The Austin was my great-grandfather's car, and it was so special to be able to use this for my own wedding.
Our ceremony had a couple of glitches. David's uncle and aunt locked themselves out of the farm so David's dad Paul had to go back home to let them back into the house and as a result I had to delay arriving. In the meantime David was trying to sort out our music for the cermony, which wasn't working the way we expected it to. By the time I was able to arrive (40 mins later - I hate being late so you can probably imagine how much I hated being late on my wedding day) everything was working smoothly.
The entire way through the ceremony rain clouds hovered in the background and threatened to start falling at any moment, but it eventually skirted around us and the clouds made the colours look so much brighter.
Before we knew it the ceremony was over and we were husband and wife. Next came the photos around the vineyard:
All up, our wedding went exactly as we wanted and we wouldn't change a thing. It was 18 months in the making but worth every moment.
Just for the ladies - check out my awesome wedding shoes. I was determined to have sky blue wedding shoes but they were tricky to find. I really loved these and I found them online here
Stay tuned for Part 2 the honeymoon.
Just 2 hours before the ceremony a storm cell came over and it rained and hailed but by the afternoon it had mostly dried out and the sky came out beautifully for our photos.
We said our vows under the gazebo at Algona in Bathurst, with the beautiful backdrop of the vines in the background and stunning views of Bathurst in the far distance.
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| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
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| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
Our ceremony had a couple of glitches. David's uncle and aunt locked themselves out of the farm so David's dad Paul had to go back home to let them back into the house and as a result I had to delay arriving. In the meantime David was trying to sort out our music for the cermony, which wasn't working the way we expected it to. By the time I was able to arrive (40 mins later - I hate being late so you can probably imagine how much I hated being late on my wedding day) everything was working smoothly.
 |
| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
 |
| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
 |
| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
Before we knew it the ceremony was over and we were husband and wife. Next came the photos around the vineyard:
 |
| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
 |
| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
 |
| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
 |
| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
 |
| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
 |
| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
 |
| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
Just for the ladies - check out my awesome wedding shoes. I was determined to have sky blue wedding shoes but they were tricky to find. I really loved these and I found them online here
 |
| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
 |
| Photography by Emma at Emmerge Photography |
Stay tuned for Part 2 the honeymoon.
Tuesday 25 March 2014
Some Changes
So it's been awhile since I have blogged - it's a combination of changing things in our new home, adding to our fur family and the sheer amount of time wedding planning takes.
I'll start with the new fur family addition:
We got a rescue kitten! He was found at a university campus at 3 weeks of age and his mum had died. Despite being allergic to cats, his rescuer took him home and the family feed him through the night to keep him alive. At 6 weeks he was more prepared to go to his forever home and when we heard about him through the grapevine we decided to adopt him.
He got his name from Oscar Wilde - because he was wild! Also we have a literary theme going on - Ollie got his name from Oliver Twist because Springers love their food.
He is now 5 months old and full of life. Nothing scares this cat and he has already gone missing for a few days only to turn up later oblivious to all the fuss he caused. While Ollie was scared of, and actually ran from the vacuum when he was older and much bigger; Oscar started it down, hissed and held his ground - all at the age of 7 weeks and while the size of my hand!
After a short time, Ollie and Oscar have become good friends. They sleep together and play together. Ollie is generally very good at being gentle and Oscar sure knows how to tease the dog!
Oscar has grown considerably in the last little while and now looks like this (but it could change in a week):
They did require a lot of supervision at first - Ollie wanted to play the chasing game relentlessly and Oscar would be trying to say that's enough but Ollie didn't pick up on it. We had to intervene and rescue Oscar from corners. Then one day while we were out Ollie freed Oscar from his spacious compound we had set up with child gates. Oscar walked straight through the child gate bars and I don't know what happened after that (probably wouldn't want to know) but that day they sorted out their differences. I haven't had to intervene anywhere near as much since.
Oscar emerged as the manipulator of the two within a very short space of time. He worked out when he was still very small that dog door leads to an outdoor world. Problem was he was too little to open the dog door on his own so he began manipulating Ollie into assisting. He would stand at the dog door until Ollie came to investigate and in the process Ollie would open the dog door by shoving Oscar through.
I'll start with the new fur family addition:
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| Oscar at 6 weeks old - his first day at home |
We got a rescue kitten! He was found at a university campus at 3 weeks of age and his mum had died. Despite being allergic to cats, his rescuer took him home and the family feed him through the night to keep him alive. At 6 weeks he was more prepared to go to his forever home and when we heard about him through the grapevine we decided to adopt him.
He got his name from Oscar Wilde - because he was wild! Also we have a literary theme going on - Ollie got his name from Oliver Twist because Springers love their food.
He is now 5 months old and full of life. Nothing scares this cat and he has already gone missing for a few days only to turn up later oblivious to all the fuss he caused. While Ollie was scared of, and actually ran from the vacuum when he was older and much bigger; Oscar started it down, hissed and held his ground - all at the age of 7 weeks and while the size of my hand!
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| Oscar during a growth spurt |
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| Waiting for breakfast |
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| Biting Game - Oscar's favourite. It usually results in Oscar stretching out Ollie's jowls. |
They did require a lot of supervision at first - Ollie wanted to play the chasing game relentlessly and Oscar would be trying to say that's enough but Ollie didn't pick up on it. We had to intervene and rescue Oscar from corners. Then one day while we were out Ollie freed Oscar from his spacious compound we had set up with child gates. Oscar walked straight through the child gate bars and I don't know what happened after that (probably wouldn't want to know) but that day they sorted out their differences. I haven't had to intervene anywhere near as much since.
Oscar emerged as the manipulator of the two within a very short space of time. He worked out when he was still very small that dog door leads to an outdoor world. Problem was he was too little to open the dog door on his own so he began manipulating Ollie into assisting. He would stand at the dog door until Ollie came to investigate and in the process Ollie would open the dog door by shoving Oscar through.
Saturday 7 September 2013
Sharing a Favourite Memory
I've traveled pretty extensively over the last few years, and as a result I have made wonderful friends, shared lots of adventures and made happy memories.
One of my favourite memories took place in the USA a few years ago while I was embarking on a 3 month overseas trip. My dad and I spent weeks driving around Canada and the USA, including a 2 week tour. The tour group was one of the best I have ever traveled with. There was none of the normal squabbling and cattiness that can occur when you put that many people together in a confined bus. During the tour, my Dad and I became close to a couple called Bernie and Judy.
Dad and Bernie began telling jokes and bouncing off each other which made them hilarious. Judy spoke about her grandchildren and showed me lots of adorable pictures. In return I showed Judy and Bernie pictures I had brought with me, and when I got to the last picture that contained an image of my grandmother and myself Judy and Bernie stopped in surprise. They knew my grandmother from a walking group in Sydney! It was the strangest thing to meet people who knew my family whilst halfway across the world!
By the time we got to Yellowstone we had joked about coming across a bear quite often. So one night after walking to dinner at Yellowstone, we came across this sign:
Of course this was very helpfully placed at the end of the path that we had just walked on. It made my dad start bragging though. He was all 'I'm a cattle man, I can handle an elk" "I'll be the matador". Of course we didn't see a single creature on the way back.
A day after seeing that sign at Yellowstone my dad, Bernie and I went for a walk to explore the area. All was going fine until we came across an elk on one of the paths. She was clearly a little distressed and kept looking over he shoulder which indicated she had a calf hiding in the bushes. Fortunately she was alert but not alarmed and we walked past.
Since it was the only way back to our accommodation, we had no choice but to return the same way and that is when things got interesting. The elk went from being just aware of us, to wanting to get us out of there ASAP and started moving her foot like she was going to charge. Guess who was the first to bolt for the cover of the trees? That's right, Mr big shot matador. Bernie and I turned around and he was gone, leaving us to fend for ourselves.
After that my Dad was named 'The Elk Whisperer' and he will never live it down.
Sadly Bernie passed away last month, after a long battle with cancer. He will be greatly missed.
One of my favourite memories took place in the USA a few years ago while I was embarking on a 3 month overseas trip. My dad and I spent weeks driving around Canada and the USA, including a 2 week tour. The tour group was one of the best I have ever traveled with. There was none of the normal squabbling and cattiness that can occur when you put that many people together in a confined bus. During the tour, my Dad and I became close to a couple called Bernie and Judy.
Dad and Bernie began telling jokes and bouncing off each other which made them hilarious. Judy spoke about her grandchildren and showed me lots of adorable pictures. In return I showed Judy and Bernie pictures I had brought with me, and when I got to the last picture that contained an image of my grandmother and myself Judy and Bernie stopped in surprise. They knew my grandmother from a walking group in Sydney! It was the strangest thing to meet people who knew my family whilst halfway across the world!
By the time we got to Yellowstone we had joked about coming across a bear quite often. So one night after walking to dinner at Yellowstone, we came across this sign:
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| This sign did say bear at one stage but as you can see the elk are the bigger threat |
A day after seeing that sign at Yellowstone my dad, Bernie and I went for a walk to explore the area. All was going fine until we came across an elk on one of the paths. She was clearly a little distressed and kept looking over he shoulder which indicated she had a calf hiding in the bushes. Fortunately she was alert but not alarmed and we walked past.
Since it was the only way back to our accommodation, we had no choice but to return the same way and that is when things got interesting. The elk went from being just aware of us, to wanting to get us out of there ASAP and started moving her foot like she was going to charge. Guess who was the first to bolt for the cover of the trees? That's right, Mr big shot matador. Bernie and I turned around and he was gone, leaving us to fend for ourselves.
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| Who would run from this cute elk? |
Sadly Bernie passed away last month, after a long battle with cancer. He will be greatly missed.
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| Even his illness couldn't keep Bernie from attending our engagement party. |
Saturday 3 August 2013
Things That Change With a Puppy - Part 2
One
Weekends are dedicated to how to help tire out a puppy with seemly boundless energy. This usually involves a long walk and throwing around a ball. It can have the adverse effect of tiring out the humans as well.
Two
You never know when you are going to put your slipper on and step on something inside.
Three
There's a lot of sleeping in awkward looking positions. He's always watching, even when he is sleeping
Four
As a lover and expert of sticks, Ollie always has a ready supply on hand and it is nothing for him to bring these inside through the doggy door.
Five
He is growing up too fast. One day he fit on my lap and the next he is huge. He is now able to reach the kitchen bench and on his last trip to the vet he weighed close to 15kg. None of this can stop him from getting cuddles on demand
Weekends are dedicated to how to help tire out a puppy with seemly boundless energy. This usually involves a long walk and throwing around a ball. It can have the adverse effect of tiring out the humans as well.
You never know when you are going to put your slipper on and step on something inside.
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| For those keeping score - yes that is a tooth. We have found 4 so far and still counting... |
Three
There's a lot of sleeping in awkward looking positions. He's always watching, even when he is sleeping
 |
As a lover and expert of sticks, Ollie always has a ready supply on hand and it is nothing for him to bring these inside through the doggy door.
Five
He is growing up too fast. One day he fit on my lap and the next he is huge. He is now able to reach the kitchen bench and on his last trip to the vet he weighed close to 15kg. None of this can stop him from getting cuddles on demand
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