Puzzling.

We are always in such a rush, always on our way to the next thing with somewhere to be. We never slow down for anyone or anything, I  guess that's just another reason why we are the human race.

I feel as though we spend so much time looking forward, at what's next, that sometimes we over look what we are working on today. Now, I'm always for looking at the "big picture", but part of that is understanding how each day of the journey comes together. You can't put a puzzle together by simply staring at the finished product on the box, you have to examine each piece and discover the unique connection it shares with the others. All the progress and all the mistakes are part of building the future we want ourselves to live into. More than ever I feel as though each dog I encounter is simply another puzzle to be pieced together. It takes time, patience, and a solid view of the "big picture" to try and figure out how all those strange shapes can come together to form something so beautiful. 

Whimzy's Journey

I am simply beyond in love with this creature. 

I spent a long time wondering about our future together when she was younger, wondering where we would go, how we would evolve as a team...but I've found over the past year that with Whimzy, it isn't about planning out a big complicated path to success. With her everything just falls into place when it needs to, we can take it one course at a time. No matter how many faults we earn on any given course it never impacts how we do on the next course. Every step we take together I'm thrilled to spend with such a special little girl, I'm not sure where we are going or how fast we will get there...but this is a journey worth taking. 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GAlabB5OjvM&feature=youtu.be

European Open: Finals

Such an unforgettable day. Got to watch several amazing USA Teams run their asses off pushing in finals, and with smooth runs and great results! Simply amazing to watch our teammate Roseanne smoke Large dog individual Finals with Strafe and win a silver medal. Also the USA Midi Team that made finals (Britain and Jen Pinder, John Nys and Rush, Diane Goodspeed and Demon, Maureen Waldron and Mickle) finished 5th in finals with several amazing runs on a wicked hard 4 section Team Finals course!! 

As for miss turtle, she amazed me once again. We made finals as top pointed USA dog along with our small dog teammates, Laura Dolan and Race and Heidi Vania with Ice (who both won their spot in finals in the individual jumpers round). 5 small faults, but the run felt fantastic. I can never complain about a run where my handling comes together with Jenna so well. She was a superstar, finishing 27th overall and as the top USA individual mini dog. 

Honestly this year with her has simply left me speechless... She has come so far and taken me place I only dreamed of being a reality the very distant future. We may not be the fastest, and we may not be the cleanest. Sure we make mistakes, some our hers and most (okay almost all) are mine. But at the end of the day I always feel like we've given it all we've got. We might not be the best, but we will always strive to be the best that we can be, and that's all I really want in the end :) 

(Photo By: Carrie Deyoung, Jenna and I during our individual standard run from Saturday)

European Open Day 1

Wow. Wow. Wow. What an incredible day, despite some challenging courses the USA Teams really held their own and put down some fantastic runs. 

As for Jenna and Demon, they both had great runs today. Jenna went clean in the team agility (standard) round with a decent time and got an E in the morning in Team Jumpers, to no fault of her own. Bad bad handler decided to go to the back side of #19 instead of taking it the right direction. Small oops, but I was still thrilled with Jenna's performance today. She was flawless :) Mr. Demon picked up the same backside off course in jumpers that I sent Jenna too, but came back for a great standard run posting the 3rd clean time of his USA Midi Team in the afternoon. 

Honestly I am thrilled with today, it was so much fun. So excited to run again tomorrow and then cheer on all my fellow teammates in Finals on Sunday! Most importantly though, I have a new wonderful list of skills to train on both Jenna and Whimzy for next years Tryouts and *hopefully* International competition(s). Just another step in the journey, but this weekend will be one of the most unforgettable.    

Two of my USA Teammates and I before opening ceremony yesterday. (me, Kimberly Line-Berget, and Denise Kilpatrick) Photo by: Anne Stocum, our fourth team member :) 

Belgium: Day 1

Landed this morning, around 7 Brussels time, easy flight. Once again I'm amazed at how well Jenna handles long distance travel. She is becoming a pro at getting through airports and dealing with all the people. Although it is definitely a tiring experience for her (she's currently passed out and snoring at the edge of my bed, happy to be in air conditioning). Some rest these next few days will do her and Demon well. Surprisingly enough Demon traveled just as well and is perky eyed and happy to be walking around. Quite impressive for an eleven year old. It's sad to think that this will be his last trip overseas, his last time representing the United States, and perhaps even some of his last runs ever. He certainly is incredible though, no one believes me anymore when I tell them about how he used to walk in the ring. Or how he refused to weave all through open, and when electronic timers were first used he was terrified of them. I remember running him at the Junior Incredible Dog Challenge back in 2004(?). I was about 7 and he was just over 2, he spent the entire morning hiding under Diane's chair because the loud speakers freaked him out. Back then I could have never imagined that little dog running his heart out with hundreds of people screaming, music playing, air horns blaring without even twitching an ear. 

It'll be sad to see him retire, but at least for now he gets to enjoy traveling around Northern Europe once again. Currently we are in Waterloo, headed over to the site tomorrow afternoon. Excited to see the battlefield here tomorrow though, put some of the AP European History knowledge to use. 

Belgium Bound

It's not where you place, it's how hard you worked to get there.

With only a few days left till take off, there isn't much left to do but pack. The planning, the preparation, the training is all over now. This is the stage where it becomes do or die. Either you win or you lose. It's that simple. As a team we go to make our country proud, but as individuals we all step to the line with our own goals. The true test isn't whether we can hold our own, but whether we can hold our heads high knowing we gave it our all. If we missed our goals it wasn't because we gave up. It's knowing that regardless of the bars, the missed contacts, the off courses, that we have succeeded in taking something away from this experience... because as with any competition true success is simply learning something new. 

As an individual embarking on another leg of the journey I share with Jenna, my only goal is to remember why I walk to the line. I walk to the line to once again play with my little girl, the dog who has been with me through so much, who has taken me to far away places that I never imagined possible. And then we run to be the best that we can be.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8dZUEASgSg

Thank you.

Dear Whimzy,

Thank you for always putting up with my shenanigans. Thank you for challenging me in new ways. Thank you for not always being “easy”. Thank you for keeping me on my toes. Thank you for giving me all your sheltie-tude sass when I need a laugh. Thank you for letting me try new things. Thank you for embracing my weirdness. Thank you for always sticking around, even when the going gets tough. Thank you for taking off courses. Thank you for knocking bars. Thank you for spinning, jumping off the table, creeping on the start line, and breaking your contacts. Thank you for showing me when I’ve made a mistake. Thank you for showing me how to be better at what I love. Thank you for cuddling. Thank you for being my running partner. Thank you for always being you. Thank you for all the things you’ve taught me. Thank you, in advanced, for the things you still have to show me. Thank you for giving me new opportunities. Thank you for always smiling. Thank you for the QQs and the NQs. Thank you for embarrassing me. Thank you for teaching me to be a good sport. Thank you for understanding me. Thank you for your unconditional love. Thank you for making agility fun no matter what.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart, from head to toe, I don’t know what I would do without you, darling.  

Sincerely,

Kathleen.