Looking for new family member

Well, I don't know what the appropriate time to wait is, but I think we've waited long enough while grieving for Banshee. Although it's strange to grieve for her not knowing for sure that she is gone. But I have accepted that she is not coming home to us. I got to looking and she was 12 and a half. She lived a great life here with us and we miss her terribly. I especially miss her sweet face looking up from under the pine trees when I come home. She would also greet me at my car door, her soft muzzle gently bumping my hand wanting and getting love in return. I'm getting a little misty eyed just thinking of that sweet face I'll never touch again. I was her main care giver and I think her loss has affected me the most.

We are not replacing her, but bringing in a new family member to add joy and laughter to our lives that we miss with Banshee being gone. I have a bit of a struggle on my hands, unfortunately though. My husband was raised on a small farm and animals were kept outside. So of course he wants an outside dog. Asher and I do not, we want an inside one that we can snuggle and love all the time, no matter how hot or cold outside.

Banshee was an outside dog, which I hated but had to go along with. She was destructive as a puppy and while we were both at work, she got bored. She also hated her crate and howled... well like a banshee all through the night. She had the coat for winter and I groomed her to thin it out for summer and later in her life I started to shave her for summer, which she hated... ha ha. I've looked for the photos of the first time I did it and she looked like a cartoon character. She was mad at me for a few days with that one.

This disagreement has been a source of trouble for my husband and me, but I'm sure once he gets used to it, he'll love having an inside dog, too. Growing up, we always had an inside dog, they were part of the family. I want that for Asher... and myself again. Besides, he is not home (awake) for many hours during the day and we are here all the time.

I've done my secret search with petfinder.com and have come to find two little girls that I think will make a great match for Asher and myself. I want to share them with you. I have contacted both the foster owners and am anxiously awaiting for their replies. I keep checking my email, since that's how they want it, over and over! I want to go look right now!!! Asher has surprisingly understood the secrecy. I've showed him the pictures and he is excited. So here they are:

This is Zoey

And this is Shena

Oh my goodness, if they are still available... how will I ever decide???? Both of those faces just make me melt. Asher says lets get both!! Well, that might push my husband over the edge, so we better not.

Shena is a puppy and I have to admit I am leaning towards her. She is an American Staffordshire Terrier Boxer mix. Which really doesn't matter too much to me just that she loves us and we love her is all that matters.

Zoey, is a Spaniel Engish Setter mix, which again doesn't matter. She is 2-3 years old and past the puppy stage (seductively!) She is well mannered and already accustomed to a 3 year old child.

So an upcoming post will either be about the girls or a pending divorce... haha just kidding. I think I will win this one. Wish me luck ladies!

Happy Independence Day everyone!!!

Happy Memorial Day

I want to thank all the service people who are or have served for our great country. God Bless America and God Bless you.


I haven't posted a new blog post lately. I have been distraught and Banshee has not returned home and I cannot find her. I am just sick. I feel almost like I'm betraying her by posting again, without talking about her and I also feel people are sick of hearing the story. I look everyday, I've spent countless hours driving around slowly extending my perimeter if she's gone further. 


Strangely enough the other day I drove into the driveway only to have a black and white husky looking at me. At first glance I thought Banshee? Some one has found her and even groomed her, since this dogs fur was nice and groomed and clean and short. But within seconds I realized that the bounce in this dogs step and whining for me was not my Baby Girls. Almost cruel I thought. Is this the heavens sending me a new dog? This was clearly a very young dog. It's manners were not very good yet, it jumped all over me and it took me a while to decide to let my boy out of the car. It immediately jumped on him. But once we paid attention to it, it calmed somewhat. I found a note on my door telling me that she thought she had found my dog and to call her if this was not her. What a coincidence, huh? I fed the cute little guy and then I called the lady and she came back to get the dog.


So I can only deduct that the people that told me they had seen Banshee, had probably seen this young husky instead. I thought about taking a picture of it to post, but time slipped away quickly and the lady came promptly to get him. They could easily be confused from afar.


In happier news, we took our boat out for the first time this year. We hadn't taken Asher in the boat yet, but he loved it. We went to Kentucky Lake and Barkley Lake the next day. My mother in law just lives about 25 minutes from them so we had a place to stay overnight and a built in baby sitter for a late night steak dinner from our favorite Texas Roadhouse on Saturday night. We did have a good time, even though I was sad from Banshee missing and the fact that another holiday has come and gone without my mother. I miss her terribly still and now worry for my dad. He is in a depression and I don't know what to do for him.


Well, I didn't mean for this post to be so long, so if you're still with me, thank you! I'll be visiting everyones blog soon. Hope you all had a great long weekend.

Glimmer of hope

I just got back from another 1 hour drive around the area in my car. I took Asher out in his jammies because at 8:42 this evening I got a call from a nice lady who saw one of my signs that I have out for Banshee Missing and she told me she saw Banshee walking on a gravel road not far from my place at all last night. I was so excited, I stopped making us dinner (I know, a late dinner) and we jumped in the car to look again with this new found hope.

She was scared of Banshee and didn't stop to check her tags, which I'm not sure if they are even on her. Banshee is ominous looking.. much like a wolf but she is harmless unless you try to grab her collar, she doesn't like that. She is really friendly actually.

It's a stormy evening and I know she is freaked out with the thunder and the lightening. I couldn't find her, but at least I didn't find her on the side of the road, hit by a car... thank God. Asher asked why are you in such a hurry? I said, I don't know but I just feel the urgency. I have hope again!!

I'm on the look out again come tomorrow. Your prayers must be working... keep them up!

Banshee update

Sadly, my Banshee is still not home. I think there is only one answer at this point, that she has run off to die somewhere. I don't understand why she wouldn't want to stay home to do this, but I feel she will not return. I look for her all the time. When I get within miles of my home, I practically run off the road searching. Asher asked me yesterday after getting groceries and coming home, why are you driving so slow? I'm looking for Banshee.


I can't believe that she wouldn't be able to find her way back home, do you? It is always sad to lose my animals. I have lost quite a few during the last 8 years or so. It's like part of my heart being wrenched away from me. 


Banshee got her name the first night we had her. We had her in a kennel right beside our bedroom door and she howled and screamed all night long like a banshee! Her name was sealed. She entered our hearts before we even got to bring her home. We went to the breeder and picked her out and couldn't bring her home yet because she was too young. Having a husky is a little different than having other types of dogs we found out. They are solitary animals and they rarely bark. She was also very headstrong. She was insistent that she was to be an outside dog. I wanted her in, but she loved it outside and with her heavy fur coat, the winter was nothing to her. She laid out in the snow, it was the summer that I had to endlessly rake and groom her to try to get that heavy fur thinned. I would comb bags of fur out of her. I recently the last few years would shave her in the summer months... which she hated.

She could run like the wind and could perform tricks like sit, shake, lay down, roll over speak all for a treat or two of course. She loved to go for rides in the car and would get in anyones car if the door was left open. I miss her terribly, but I am comforted to know she had to be the happiest dog on Earth because the last 7 years she's had our 10 acres to run on and not be in a kennel or on a trolley line like she was at our other house. Plus, she was loved beyond compare by me and Daryl and Asher. She will live in my heart forever. What a sweet, sweet girl.

No Banshee

Banshee still hasn't showed up. Asher and I drove all around on the four wheeler yesterday and came up with nothing. I stopped and talked to a farmer and hopefully he's on the lookout for her. I saw a buzzard circling a field and I tried to find the spot, but still came up with nothing. I thought I saw her laying in a bean field, but it was too far away to know for sure, so we walked up close enough to see and it turned out to just be plastic... thankfully.

I've been preparing Asher for her not coming back home but I think I'm more tore up about it than anyone. I don't think he understands the finality of it all. I've told him it's like Ma-maw going to heaven and not coming back. I was so upset and tearful yesterday and unable to hide it and Asher asks if I'm sad about Banshee and I said yes, so maybe he understands more than I realize. It's not looking like she's coming home. With this heat, I don't know how she could survive without water unless she's found a creek. I hate not knowing. I miss my Baby Girl.

Heavy Heart

I'm just sick today. Banshee has taken off again and I cannot find her anywhere. I looked everywhere I could yesterday, even in my car. 

As some of you know, we live out in the country and there are lots of places for her to be hidden from view in. In a final attempt before bed last night, I whistled with all my might and listened intently. I thought that I heard her, it was hard to tell because of all the bull frogs, but I dragged my husband out of bed and we grabbed our flashlights and headed into the woods. It was horribly humid and I ended up with nothing but cob webs in my face and itchy sweaty body. I guess it really was a frog.

It has been very hot the last 2 days and I just have horrible visions of her laying in the hot sun, no water and she hasn't had her pain pill since Saturday morning. I called the county animal control and left a message and I guess I've done all I can. I'm just so worried. I can't help but think this may be it, but the worst part is just not knowing, and to think she may be hurt and needing help. Please, send good thoughts and prayers my way.

These pictures were just taken May 19th. We were having a cool snap and Banshee loves that kind of weather.

What the?

I caught this just in time. Something must have buzzed by Banshee's head just as I snapped the picture. The look on her face is hilarious. For those of you not familiar with her normal looks, see here.

As you might be able to tell, the shaving is not going so well. I got a new blade for my clippers that is supposed to be for matted dogs and let me tell you, I have a new appreciation for dog groomers out there. I don't remember having this hard of a time with her before. I guess I usually rake her first (that is getting the undercoat removed by this rake looking brush) and that must make the difference. I do a little at a time, as it thoroughly ticks her off. She is getting pretty grumpy in her old age. She used to just roll over and take it, not now. She snapped and bit quite a lot today. I told her that we needed to come to an understanding. She's not buying it.

Not to be outdone, here is Asher dancing in the sand :)

Ah well it's Monday

So... to pick up my Banshee story, Saturday night we had even more storms and they scared my poor baby girl outta her wits but she would not come in the house, silly girl. She was gone again Saturday night which bothered me to no end knowing what had happened to her in the wheat field. I whistled and called and whistled some more, and I've got a good whistler, believe me! No Banshee. Storming and dark, there was nothing I could do but hope she had nestled herself down somewhere dry.

Morning came and I was looking for her now by daylight... much easier. I held my breath as I looked out into the lake... my biggest fear for my son and now my nearly blind, arthritic, geriatric, stubborn sweet Siberian Husky. There she was!!! My poor girl, I nearly swallowed my tongue as I gasped and screamed her name. She was on the edge thank God because our lake is deep and steep and goes down quickly to 25 feet. I ran out to her with Asher on my heels. I tried to get her in and she must've been hurting and scared, she snapped and bit me on the hand. No bother. I tried again. No luck. I had to run in and wake my tired husband to retrieve her. He got her out and we wheeled her up the hill in Asher's wagon.

I'm beginning to think she is part cat with the 9 lives and all. She was tired and hungry (a good sign). I gave her more asprin and she sprang back to life within an hour! Almost trotting along side the car as I attended an art show called Arts in Harmony to see all the work and visit some friends who were selling there. More on that later.

Today (Monday) I took her to the vet, got her looked at and her heart is fine and we are trying her out on Rimadyl once a day. I hope it works for her. The asprin has done wonders actually and I hope this will do even better. I was told though and almost scolded by my vet about her coat. He told me my first priority is to get her shaved. Ugh. She is an outside dog and absolutely has to be the happiest dog on Earth because she has the fields beside us to run and the woods and our large expanse of yard and has she got the cockoburls, sticks and clumps and pine needles, sap and you name it, it's in there. Every year I get out my trimmers and scissors and rake and try to cut that stuff down. I do try to maintain it year round to no avail. She can be brushed and then run into the field and you would never know that I just spent 2 hours trimming, combing and brushing and fussin' and cussin'. Not to mention how much she detests it. I did send her to be groomed (shaved) one year and it was $65 (not bad) but came back with cuts all over her! That's when I bought the heavy duty trimmers.

So today for about 3 hours after the vet I trimmed and cut and fussed and cussed and tried to do the best I could and only got about a quarter of her done. I'm after new blades Tuesday, maybe that will make it easier. She is not appreciating this act of love in the least. Testy and old and probably sore she growled, nipped and then licked me with her ears down being submissive and fussed and probably cussed at me in doggy talk. It's on again Wednesday, Banshee... look out.

This video was just taken this past March 10th, 2010! See her running and bouncing! She has a great spirit. Just the sweetest baby girl.

Check back for more drama.

Crisp Autumn Day

I went to a craft show today and saw a lot of Halloween crafts being bought. But I also saw a lot of stuff that looked like it was just "assembled" and called a craft. By the size of the show, which was way down from what I remember it being, I'm guessing they are allowing just about anybody in that has their $35 or whatever it costs for a booth there. I'm not sure that some of the stuff I saw would be considered "hand crafted", it looked like it belonged more in a flea market. But I did see a lot of great hand made items. There are so many creative people in this world it just surprises me that we buy junk mass marketed to us and made in China. I wish more people would support these crafters, artists and dreamers (including me!). We offer a much more personal product than anything made in China.

Enjoy the pictures of my little "girl" Banshee Wayne, a Siberian Husky. A real sweetie. She is 10 and a half years old and is the happiest dog in the world since we moved out in the country 5 years ago and she has free reign to run anywhere she pleases. That's why she looks a little less than show quality :) she makes use of the fields and woods. haha