Bye Bye Fisheye!

You were fun while you lasted.

^^^^ Swimming feets!

We Had A Breakthough!

Tell me what you seeThat's right! Two floating heads. It just so happens that one of those heads belongs to Bella. She is swimming! She must have read the blog and been offended by my making light of her aquatic deficiencies. She struggled a bit for the first few minutes then apparently decided she had enough of the sidelines gig and just went for it.Now, Bella is no match, on land or off, when it comes to Kate's speed. She did, however, figure out that she could beat Kate to the ball by doing this "trying to walk on water" thing.

I'm so excited for Bell, but I feel a little bad for Kate. I mean, swimming was the only activity that Kate got to play Batman instead of Robin, you know? She has now been demoted to sidekick status once again. She started getting this face when beaten to a ball.And finally resorted to the why-bother-I'll-just-wait-here thingOh come on, Kate. Shake it off.Your sister's still a water dork

And for no real reason, I give you...turtle!

How Dare It Rain?

When I only have a week to play with this lens? I'm tired of inside shots. Booo.

Some shots at our local park. Kind of neat to have this in the 10th largest city in the States.Now, I'm not sure who Steven is or what he needs to be freed from. Turkish prison? Desire? Societal constraints? Hmm. Maybe they were giving out free Stevens and I missed it.

A trail friend. This pic makes me kind of dizzy.Some California PoppiesSome California Puppies "Storms' abrewin', Maw"

Macro!...Polo!

So, I rented a fisheye lens. My thinking was...how many pics can one take with one of those, really? Apparently the answer is A LOT! Man, this thing is fun. If I'm not totally bored with it by the end of the week it's going on my list. The girls are going to have a long week, though. They are annoyed with me already.

Got camera? Check. Got chicken? Check. Let the dog torture begin!

OMG! Is that chicken?It is! Num. Num.

Chicken, please.

No, really, I'd like some chicken.CHICKEN!!PleeeheeeheeesseeePoor Kate, this is her goto trick. Waving, really? Yeah, that's all she's got.See? Still in the background with the waving.And finally, for today, the reason one of Bella's nicknames is Walrus Lips

Kate Can't Hold Her Licker

Rising temperatures makes Kate's tongue do weird things. It also makes her very pointy. VPD.It doesn't, however, help with her ball handling skills. Regardless of how long she has to calculate trajectory...Still, we get this....*sigh*...it's a good thing she's cute, huh?

Role Reversal

If my dogs were kids, Bella would be the popular one. The straight A student. The captain of the volleyball team. On the student council. A date for every dance. Kate, OTOH, would be the dorky little sister that follows her around.

That all changes, however, when water is involved. At least when the water goes above the knees. Poor Belly Boo can't swim. Kate is a swimming fool. If there is water...she's in it. Swimming is actually the only thing Kate has never questioned, never been nervous about.

Who's the cool one now?

That's a lot of splash for 31 pounds!

And then there's the annoying big sister who won't leave you and your floaty ball alone.

You know, the big sister that "dog paddles" with both front feet out of the water.

The one who "gophers" on the shore anxiously awaiting your return.The one who makes such a fuss that other dogs have to come stare at her in all her foolishness.

In Bella's defense, she did spend her formative years in Arizona. Not much swimming to be had in the desert. She does occasionally swim...by accident.

Then it's right back to the splish-splash

I do have to throw it in the shallows for her a few times. I mean, she is my puddin' and all.

Katezilla

Kate's genetics have always been in question. Is she a Border Collie? Is there something else in there? Where did her weird color come from? I think we figured out who her dad is.

See the resemblance?
Yes, apparently, Kate is a 'copter killing meanie. Who knew?

That hurths my wip

Hey, That's Not A Dog!

I know!

I went to agility class early last weekend to practice with the new lens on the class before us. As I was walking up the side of the field this guy landed in the pasture behind us.

Now, I know I said "this guy." I also know that Great Blue Herons are not sexually dimorphic. So, how do I know it's a guy? No self respecting woman would do this in public...while being photographed, no less.

Right, yeah, yeah, back to the dogs. The girls are thrilled that summer is here and the pool is out. I am not so thrilled because the iDirt, when mixed with water, produces yellow dogs. Booooo.

And this one, always with the tongue.

I am love, Love, LOVING the new lens. I wish, Wish, WISH it wasn't like toting around a grenade launcher.

And then there are these shots. The ones that break my heart. The ones that are sooooo close to being cool. Until I cut Bella's nose off. Hrmph.