Isabel has her Puppies!

Isabel's puppies were born during the night of April 26th, 2010!For more info please check out her blog!

Reading Rally!!

Each month our home school group has a "Reading Rally", which is a time for the kids to share projects they have been working on, scripture memorization, speeches, etc. This was Isaac's first time speaking to a group, so I helped him out. He shared a book about Johnny Appleseed. Although he was nervous, he did a great job!

Elise did a persuasive and informational speech about Canine Companions for Independence.
Isabel joined Elise for the speech.

Elise did a really great job and Isabel was very well behaved!

(The bones in the background are the backdrop for a series on what the Bible says about Creation!)

Our Trip to Apple Hill!

On Wednesday, we decided to brave the weather and go to Apple Hill. It rained on us most of the way up the hill, but once we got there the rain cleared up and we had a nice day! We stopped at High Hill Ranch for lunch and to look at crafts. While we were waiting for our lunch, Camille helped put High Hill labels on the bags for their apple pies. She was very careful, putting the labels exactly where she was told. It was really nice of the lady who was working to let Camille help. Camille felt like such a big girl, too!
Here are the rest of the kids waiting for their lunch!

We also watched as the apples were cored, peeled and sliced by a machine that is over a hundred years old! (I didn't notice the extra kid until after I took the picture!)

Even Joseph had a great time!!

We also went to a U-pick pumpkin patch to get pumpkins!

This is always an adventure!

Everyone found a pumpkin, but Joseph wasn't too sure about his!

Isabel also had fun at the pumpkin patch!

Have I said how great it is to have the "best dog in the world!"?

Isaac was the last to find his pumpkin!

Isaac loves to walk Isabel! (We all do!)

Isabel, otherwise known as, "The best dog in the world!"

CCI Breeder: Isabel

Here she is! What a beautiful dog!

These pictures were taken when we went to the Canine Companions for Independence campus in Santa Rosa to pick her up.
After meeting Isabel, we took her to the dog park at the CCI campus and watched as she played with some other dogs. Then we got a few training tips from the director of the breeding program(I think we looked like we needed it!) After that, we were able to walk her alone for a few minutes to get a feel for her personality and snap a few pictures.




Charles Shulz, a Santa Rosa native, was a great contributor to CCI!
The kids had to pose with Snoopy! Even Isabel was happy to get her picture taken with such a famous dog!

After we left CCI, we headed out to Bodega Bay for lunch. Isabel relaxed next to our table while we ate. She is very easy going and mild mannered.

At home, we all had fun getting to know her and spending some time on the floor petting her!

We bought her a new dog bed and a rawhide bone.

She was happy with both! She also jumped on the couch as soon as she walked in the door and later into our bed, so we will have to work on her not doing that!

Isabel looks very much like a yellow lab, but she has the reddish tones of a golden retriever on her ears and on her back(like highlights!) She is a really beautiful girl!

This evening we went to a local park and took a picnic dinner. The weather was really nice, so there were a lot of other families with the same idea. Isabel was very well behaved. She just waited while we ate, and then was ready to go exploring!

Although she does fetch, she is easily distracted (so the little kids fetched quite a few balls!)

When I first handed Camille the leash, Isabel thought she was free and headed toward the lake! So I corrected her and helped Camille get her walking in the right direction, and they walked nicely together! This is what I really wanted, a dog the kids could walk! We are all so excited!

We will keep up Isabel's blog with news about her adventures and, of course, her puppies!