Ally VK

First Snow of Winter

2008-11-24T09:39:00.000-08:00

Fall Fun - Apple Picking and More!

2008-10-15T13:48:00.000-07:00

Okay, so I have been a little bit of a procrastinator. I have heard numerous times from a certain family member (you know who you are!) that I need to post more on my blog and now that I am jobless I should be posting everyday. The only problem that I have with posting everyday is that my life is somewhat boring. The three main things that occupy my time are: the endless search for a job, spending time with my animals (horse and two dogs), and doing various things at home. So you see that it would make no sense for me to blog everyday, but I will try harder at blogging at least once a week.

Alright enough whining, here are my two stories for the week:

1) Sleep Walking at the barn

Now I know what some of you are thinking, "Did she sleep in a stall?". The answer to that question is no. Most of the horses and people at the barn have been at the Quarter Horse Congress for almost a week and I have been staying in the apartment above the barn. My dog Dozer and I had been watching the barn for a couple of days, when my klutzy side showed up. I was going down to do a last check on the horses at around 11pm on Monday night, when I completely missed the bottom three stairs leading from the apartment to the barn. Needless to say I fell and managed to skin up my left knee, shin, and my right toes. Thinking back to the incident, I can honestly say that I didn't even attempt to walk down the last three stairs. I am sure that this story will come back to haunt me when everybody gets back this Friday.

2) Apple Picking at Klackle Orchards

I have wanted to go apple picking up at Klackle's ever since the temperature started to drop. Since I don't have a job anymore (kind of a mixed blessing) my mom and I went to Klackle's this past Monday to pick our own apples and get some huge pumpkins for carving. We first wandered through the market, bought some stuff, and found 6 large pumpkins at a decent price. Then we drove out to the designated "Pick your own" apple orchards to get our half bushel of apples. We were both disappointed when we first got to the orchard because it looked like most of the good apples were already picked and that the only ones left were the ones on the ground. My mom was ready to go back to the market and demand a refund, until I pointed out that there were still really good apples on the trees - the only problem being that they were all at the top of the trees that were at least 10+ feet tall. Because I know how klutzy I can be, I was not about to volunteer to climb up the twisted trees to get some dang apples. Thankfully my mom shimmied up the tree without being asked, due to the fact that she had many tree climbing adventures when she was young. We managed to get our half bushel of apples, along with a ton of laughs and some photos.

Sharon in the apple tree!

Filling the bag to capacity

Me hiding from my apple throwing mother!

On our way home with the loot
(we sure filled that bag full!)

Labradoodles and Water

2008-08-03T14:26:00.000-07:00

As you all may know by now, the VandeKopple clan owns two furry friends named Bailey and Dozer. Both are Labradoodles (lab father, poodle mother) who share the same parents. Even though they are two years apart in age, as Dozer (4 months old) continues to grow (like a weed) and mature (yeah we are still working on that part). My parents, brother, brother's girlfriend and I went up to the cottage in Newaygo this weekend & needless to say we brought Bailey and Dozer along for the fun in the sun.

For those of you who don't know, Bailey is the epitome of a water dog. If there is water around, he is most likely to be the first one in, no matter what the temp is like. So naturally when I got Dozer as a graduation present, my expectations were high that he would like to swim as much as Bailey. Dozer started off slow in the beginning, but I can now proudly say that he loves the water as much as Bailey. Both dogs were in the lake numerous times this weekend and Dozer even jumped off the end of the dock for the first time. Mind you he did sink a little, but continued to jump off the end of the dock like he owned the place. I have attached several pictures and a video from this weekend. I guess water attracts Labradoodles of all ages!

The Joys of Being an Adult

2008-08-01T13:32:00.001-07:00

I can remember when I was in high school thinking, "I can't wait to be an adult! I will make my own rules and do my own thing! I can do whatever I want!" Boy, was I sure wrong.

Now 5 years later, I am 23 and I have to admit that I really wouldn't mind going back to high school. I now realize that all I had to worry about was what to wear that day, getting my lazy sister out of bed so that we wouldn't be late to school (yes Lauren I am talking about you), and getting my homework done. Sure I also had a job, but I mainly worked on weekends cleaning stalls at the barn where I boarded my horse at.

It is amazing how fast life can change in 5 years. I am currently working full time and I just completed 3 gruling semesters of college in order to finish up my bachelor's degree in marketing. I also have a 4 month old puppy who is busy all the time, not that I don't enjoy him, but he is hard work too. On top of all this I have a horse that I ride and compete at horse shows with on the weekends. Thankfully for me, Justin (name of my horse) is really well trained so all I have to is exercise him and give him a refresher course every now and then. Oh, I almost forgot to mention that I am looking for a job, which is not fun but a necessity none the less.

On a closing note, my sister has reminded me that I have not posted any current pictures of either Justin or Dozer. Well this should satisfy her! :)

Justin and I at the Carousel EWHA show.

Bailey and Dozer wrestling in the backyard
(Dozer is 40lbs at 4 months old and Bailey is 65lbs at 2 years old. I think Dozer will be bigger!)

Woman's Best Friend

2008-07-20T13:44:00.000-07:00

Back in May, I recieved my college graduation present a little early and little did I know what a profound affect it would have on my life. My graduation present was a 7 week old Labradoodle puppy that is a full brother to our family Labradoodle, Bailey.

On the way to Greenville to pick him up, I was so excited and could not wait to have a puppy in the house again. My family had helped me get a living area ready for him in our tiled (easier to clean) mudroom by the garage door. We had a bed, bowls, and toys (way too many) - basically everything that I thought a puppy could ever want. Boy was I wrong! The first night my puppy was home was a very long night. He was whining all night long and of course it broke my heart to hear him so upset! I think that I got about 2 hours of sleep that night and about 3 the next night. Needless to say I felt very crabby and wondered if I had made a mistake. Then there was the issue of picking out a name for him. My dad suggested Tayshaun (Detroit Pistons player) and Pudge (Detroit Tigers catcher), but needless to say that neither of these names was ever going to happen. We also tried out Riley, Tank (he was the biggest pup in the litter), Hunter, Barnum (as in Barnum and Bailey), and many others but nothing seemed to fit. Two days later, I finally ended up naming him Dozer (as in Bull Dozer) after my brother suggested it. I didn't really like it at first, but it really suits him. He plows through his food as soon as it is in the dish and tackles Bailey with the same method. Below is a picture of Dozer and me after his first night home. Needless to say I look a little tired.

Dozer at 7 Weeks

Now Dozer is 4 months old and a joy to be around. Bailey and Dozer play together all the time and it is very entertaining to watch. Dozer will sit on top of Bailey and nibble on his ears. Also after a ton of exposure Dozer is now a great swimmer in our pool and at the lake. Our other favorite thing to do together with Bailey is to take walks in the woods. Bailey and Dozer love to run through the woods and to sniff out who else has been there. I also took him to the barn for the first time a couple of weeks ago to meet the horse and he was so scared that he peed on my shirt! We will be working on getting used to the horse later. Dozer has had his first haircut and is now looking like an adult dog with a puppy's exhuberance. I truly enjoy Dozer and can't wait for more fun.

Dozer at 4 Months
First Haircut