Cabin by Candlelight

So I leave for the cabin before Greg (he had to work later and pick up my stepson.) It's a gloomy day up north - it's been raining on and off. Perfect for some candles - right?!


So I set out some of my 4th of July decorations, light my lanterns....


Then I light candles around the cabin, turn on the fireplace, etc. Sounds pretty romantic - right?


Greg walks in and sees all my glowing candles and says "Oh, did we have a power outage?"

Geeez!!!!

P.S. Kohls has 40% off of all their 4th of July decor!

Scout

I went to visit Scout today! Gosh I had missed her! She weighs 7 lbs now and has gained confidence to defend herself against her larger littermates. (Scout is the runt of the group - but not by much.) Her one brother was being too rough so Scout gave him a chomp on the leg to let him know he had reached her limit - he yelped and left her alone. (Good girl!)

Here she is playing! She was giving the dog breeder's daughter a little nibble on the hand. Can you see the smile on her face?







And here Scout is posing very prettily with her new toy I dropped off for her. I will bring this toy back with me when I bring her home and that way she'll have a toy with the smell of her littermates to bring her comfort.








June 27th is the day she joins our family! I know Marvin the cat will love her - I'll just have to work extra hard with Scout to make sure she doesn't chomp him! I'm not too worried - the Bernese Mountain Dog is known for getting along with dogs and cats so I'm sure her and Marvin will be buddies in no time!




P.S. I'll try not to drive you too crazy with all these dog posts! I created a blog for Scout - but please know that you do not have to visit that blog. (Leedra & Betsy especially, I'm wearing them out with my 100 other blogs - lol!)

Summer Reading

I have noticed quite a few of my blogger friends (Penny, Busy Bee Suz just to name a few) are looking for some good summer reads. So am I! I love curling up in the log cabin with a good book, vanilla scented candle lit, my cat Marvin in my lap and some light jazz playing in the background. Also in this scenario Greg would be pouring me a glass of wine and feeding me dark chocolates - but he already told me I'm pushing it with the dog thing - ha!

What are your recommendations for some good summer reading?




One of my favorite books is "Reflections of a Life Up North" by Deborah Wyatt Fellows. This book features stunning photography of Nothern Michigan and a collection of articles, columns and letters that Deborah wrote about the joys of the seasons, a magical childhood, lakes, fishing,card games and all those things that make north country a great place to live and vacation at.



Some of my other summer choices:

• "Fowl Weather" or "Enslaved by Ducks" by Bob Tarte. Both true and funny stories - perfect for animal lovers.
• Interested in life in Alaska? Then try "If you lived here, I'd know your name" by Heather Lende. True story of a writer in Alaska - funny and sad.
• Staying in my Alaska theme - a great story about a self-sufficient man named Dick Proenneke - "One Man's Wilderness." I have read this book about 10 times. The documentary is great too!
• Feeling in the nature, reflective, deep thoughts mode? How about the classic "Walden" by Henry David Thoreau.

P.S. I was thinking about organizing a book swap between a group of us bloggers. Let me know if you're interested and if we get enough people, I will set it up!

Prayer of the Woods (and doggy name winners!)

I've posted the "Prayer of the Woods" before but wanted to share it again. This sign is at Tahquamenon Falls in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. If you haven't guessed by now, I'm a little bit of a tree hugger! Quick - everybody run before I start lecturing how we have to protect our our natural habitats!

Okay - you still here? Here are the winners of my doggy name contest! They will receive a little token from my nature store! Thank you everyone for entering! Please email your address to shelleyupnorth at gmail dot com.

1. Copenhagen by Loagan Ranch
2. Sniffles by Goat Creek Grandma
3. Annie Bo Bear by Dixie's Doodles

By the way - I had some bookmarks made the other day with one of my photos - so the first five people (U.S. or Canadian only) that make a comment on this post and write specifically that they would like a bookmark - I will send you one!