Monday, April 13, 2009

Back from a long weekend!

Did you have a nice Easter? I certainly did in Chicago! One of the highlights was visiting this nature preserve by my aunt & uncle's house called Cuba Marsh. It is over 700 acres with many pretty walking trails. I saw so many Tree Swallows which were very hard to photograph. They move so darn fast!




Here's I finally managed to get a shot of 2 Tree Swallows on top of a nest box.



And finally - a shot of Dudley - my cousin's pitbull. I have to admit when I heard he had gotten one I was a little fearful of going to my aunt and uncles. I had preconceived notions of this dog (the media will do that to you.) Well this dog is well trained and a big lover boy! My aunt calls him the "pitiful pitbull" rightly so. The first night while I was watching t.v., he put his head in my lap and went to sleep. It was love!

28 comments:

The Retired One said...

Looks like a pretty place to get some nice photos! Did you get more to post later also?
The dog does look like a cutey, but I am like you...I have heard so many stories about them "turning on" even someone in their own home, I would be too fearful of him.

The Retirement Chronicles

Dawn Marie said...

Glad your weekend was nice! You know I was like you I had preconceived notions about pit bulls. One of my clients has one and when I went to the home the first time and saw it--I asked them to lock it up. They said ohhh he's a big spoiled baby...just try. So I thought Ok I'll try. Well this dog is so well trained and so sweet I dont have that notion at all anymore. If you say "give me a kiss" he will jump up and kiss you right on the lips. He knows me so well now--whenever I see him I say-Give Dawnie a kiss and he does. I've never seen such a well trained dog.

Dawn said...

our easter was very ice, too! thanks for asking :) i'm glad you had a chance to be away- and somewhere so pretty!

NCmountainwoman said...

Glad you had a wonderful getaway. Loved the swallows.

April said...

So glad you had a fun weekend, Shelley! It definitely looks like you were surrounded by some beautiful scenery...love those bird pics! I, too, have been fearful of pitbulls...they definitely have a bad reputation. But, I've been told they can be real sweethearts if they're raised properly.

reliv4life said...

Glad you had a good weekend! Good pics, he looks harmless and sweet...but I always feel leary of pitbulls. I think any dog can be a good dog, if they are handled right at a young age and on up. can't WAIT to bring my new baby home!!

Cedar ... said...

I think dogs, no matter the breed, are reflections of their owners and how they have been raised. I'm glad he's such a gentle one.

Pam B said...

What a nice weekend! Glad you had a fun trip.

George said...

It certainly looks as if you had a great weekend with your aunt and uncle in Chicago. The marsh looks like a great place to visit.
Can we look forward to a 'Dudley' at the cabin in the future?

Betsy Banks Adams said...

I'm glad you had a nice weekend in Chicago, Shelley... Glad you got to visit the nature preserve while you were there. The tree Swallows are cute.

Have a good day.
Hugs,
Betsy

Just a little something from Judy said...

I like that you finally captured those tree swallows. I think they are so good looking with their black and white coloring. As for the Pitbulls...well, my opinion did not come from the media, but from some personal stories. I'm sure it does have a lot to do with how they are raised. Maybe if I spent some time with a friendly one, like you did. The place looks like you had lots of photo opportunities.

Winifred said...

Pleased you had a good weekend. That place does look lovely.

I'm like you, a bit worried about those knids of dogs. Good that this one was a sweetie.

Unknown said...

Glad you had a nice time. Great photos, I'm a little nervous around larger dogs myself no matter the breed!

Deb said...

You had a wonderful Easter Shelley! 700 acres of walking trails sounds amazing. Dudley looks like a sweetie and sounds like you have made a new friend :-)

Ginger said...

Glad to hear you had a great weekend. Love your bird pictures and Dudley...what a cutie with that ball in his mouth. I have never been afraid of dogs of any breed, for some reason. We are on our 3rd Doberman, and they too get a bad rap. They are so loving but they are pretty intimidating to some people.
Ginger

Anonymous said...

LOL - I've never heard of Cuba Marsh in the Chicago area...where is it? We'll have to check it out some weekend. I would be petrified of the pit bull since we've had several pit pull tragedies in nearby suburbs. He looks cute, though.

Dawn Fine said...

Howdee Shelley,
Glad you had a great time and saw some good birdies.
My nephew has a pit bull ..he is the sweetest dog ever.

Shelley said...

Retired One - On this day I spent more time walking than snapping photos if you can believe that! LOL!

Dawnie - I really was surprised at this big sweetheart and believe now that it all depends on the owner.

Dawn - Glad to hear you had a nice easter too!

NC - There were over 50 swallows flying about - I wish I could've gotten more photos! I'm too slow!

April - My fear has diminished for this dog, but would probably be afraid if I ran into a stranger w/ one.

Michele - I can't wait to see your new baby!!!!

Cedar - I agree!

Pam - thank you!

George - hoping to have my Bernese Mountain Dog by August!! :-)

Betsy - those tree swallows were like little jet fighter airplanes flying around my head so fast!lol!

Judy - I'm a hard person to convince (I've been bitten by dogs three times in my life) - but I was nicely surprised at this one. But again - not sure if I would trust someone elses - I would need total reassurance from that person!

Winifred - I got so many doggy kisses from this one - it was a true sweetie!

Darla - As I've been bitten quite a few times - I get leery too!

Deb - the marsh was beautiful and we had the perfect day to walk around!

Ginger - I'm such a dog lover - I want to love them all!

JyLync - it is by Barrington (north west suburb). Well worth visiting!

Dawn - I know you must be seeing some fabulous birdies too!

grammy said...

Cute puppy. I guess it depends on how they are raised. Glad you had fun in The city.

Anonymous said...

It looks like you had a lovely Easter. It would be so much fun to walk those trails. It looks beautiful there.

Karen said...

What a nice weekend. Every once in a while it's nice to get away from IT ALL - including the log cain.
And the newfound love of a pitbull. Yes, the media will do that to you - and about LOTS of things, not just this.
As for cleaning closets - you go girl. But you must be brave and POST YOUR PURGE!!!! I wanna see!
Hugs! Karen

Anonymous said...

Sounds like you had a great time girl. Blog looks great!

Cassie said...

ONe more little nudge toward getting your own pooche?? Sounds like you had a wonderful Easter weekend.

Barbara said...

Shelly, Sounds like a wonderful place to go and relax, I am glad you got to spend Easter there. Now back to the old grind. I was a little worried about the pit bull. Glad he seemed friendly.

Denise said...

Dudley is adorable! I'm glad you had a good trip to Chicago. I love it there.

XXDenise

A. Joy said...

Fun trip! We have swallows just like those all over our place - we call them Barn Swallows. Are they the same thing? They can be so annoying and have several batches of babies each year and then do things like get stuck up in our garage, make a nest near our dog yard and then dive bomb the dogs for being too close. Love the pic of Dudley!!!

Tammy ~ Country Girl at Home ~ said...

That last photo is precious! Love it!

Sounds like a good weekend for you!
Tammy

Knatolee said...

Pitbulls do get a terrible rap but there are some very sweet ones out there. This guy looks like a real cutie!

I loooove swallows.