OK, enough with the pot photos...but it was a spectacle and Stella kept us entertained as she dashed from one end of the yard to the other with this fractured plastic pot dangling from her mouth.  So much for expensive dog toys that sit in the toy basket unattended.  So far her favorite toys are things she finds herself like sticks, wood chips, dead beetles and flower pots. 
   I have not made any entries to this blog for the last several weeks because I am an avid gardener and have been putting bedding plants in my many flower gardens.  We have been blessed with pretty decent weather so  I took advantage of that and got everything into the ground.  Stella of course has been a constant "help"; digging holes in the warm moist soil, carrying off the little six-packs of plants and hiding them or trying to bury them, making off with my garden gloves when I'm not looking,  I could go on and on. She loves to be outside and there are times when she winds down and enjoys laying in the grass basking in the warm sunshine.
   She had her first walk into the real world on leash last weekend.  We live very close to a city park on the river and I took her there.  She was very excited and I had to do a lot of what we call "Start-Stop-Change Direction".  If she bolts ahead of me wanting to chose her path I just stop.  When she turns to me to find out why,  I call her to heel and head a different direction.  She must not get the idea that she is dictating where we are going or that it is her choice.  It can look a little silly to someone watching us but it really works in letting her know who makes the decisions.  She was experiencing many new sights, sounds and smells and if she would stop or "freeze" in response to them I would just let her.  I did not give her any sign that there was reason to be nervous and soon she would relax and continue on.   It wasn't a perfect "walk" with a relaxed dog walking quietly and calmly  at my heel, but it was a good start.  I took many deep breaths, stayed as calm and relaxed as I could and praised her when she got it right.  It's hard to know when the right time is to try the first walk out in public.  If it had started off as a complete disaster I would have turned around and headed home for more work in the yard.  But she has responded well to leash work at home and it was evident she knew what was expected of her.
   Yesterday she was spayed.  I have no intention of breeding her and believe that she will be happier not going through unnecessary heats  and we will be happier not worrying about her getting pregnant by accident.  She came through it just fine and I have to admit I enjoyed the peace and calm last night as she slept off the anesthesia.  Dr Boer says five days of keeping her quiet. I am going to call him today and ask if he put a turbo charged battery in her tummy while he was in there.  This morning she woke up full of vim and vigor as if nothing had happened.  Now, how to keep her "quiet"? 
   Our nice weather has turned to cold constant rain so I cannot be out working in the garden.  The rain is good for the plants so I will just let them soak it all in and grow.  The weeds like the rain too!