Midsummer dreams – of winter?

The other day, a text from my husband read, “Man, I miss winter.” Funny – most people live here for Minnesota summers! But, this phenomenon has entered our lives; sled dog ownership. We were warned about how it could take over – but we never thought. Never thought we’d become so attached, never thought we’d really get to “know” the dogs, and really never thought that we’d be longing for winter in the middle of July. The silent trail calls out to us – to all of us. It’s the craziest thing! As a family, we look forward to running the dogs – for us and for them. But for now, as the harnesses hang nice and dry, we wait… brush, feed, play – and enjoy the time to know the team more each day.

And as we wait… BIG things are unfolding – like IDITAROD big! More details to come!

 

Balancing the Act of Childhood

Finding balance. We hear adults say it all the time; but what about children? How do kids find their equilibrium in this e-world? Electronics, as positive as they can be, can also be destructive to developing minds. We all know this. Children have an innate urge to experience the abundance of life. To run, climb, swim, smell, catch; experience. But the pull of technology can cause a synapsis firing in the brain that tricks them into thinking they’re satisfied by media. Do I have proof of this? Yes, I’m a parent. When my kids are outdoors (or practicing gymnastics on top of dog houses), they’re more content, peaceful, and do better with their studies. And perhaps because I’m still somewhat of a child at heart – continuing to love the experience of life, it’s important for me to see my children live and love life. And guess what – it’s not hard to do! The inquisitive wiring is already there! Sometimes it just needs a little sparking. Spending some active time in nature, observing creation, breathing in fresh air… floods the soul with nutrients to be craved. And more than that; releases the tractor beam of those electronic toxins!

Go. Experience. Live. Mush!!!

Daily Life in the Dog Yard

It’s been six months now and we’re finding some unexpected surprises from owning sled dogs. We knew we’d love the dogs, but we had no idea how much they’d love us! All of the dogs get so excited when they see us and absolutely crave our attention. Well… with the exception of Jackson – who’d probably rather be left alone. We think he eats his own feces just so we won’t have to come into his space to clean 😉 Still, every dog has a special personality of their own which makes them all lovable. We also didn’t expect that we’d feel so natural on the farm! Farm chores, feeding time, and even barn cleaning have actually been fun! Call us crazy, we’re used to it. All in all, we’re enjoying every bit of the daily mushing life, and now that we know our dogs even better, we look so forward to hitting the trials with them this winter!

Daily meals of cubed steak/dog food stew.

Brushing the pack!

Weed whipping the dog yard.

Brushing time usually turns into playtime!

When it gets hot out, we put the dogs in the cool barn. Yesterday, the girls cleaned all of the stalls with wood cleaner – and they had fun doing it!

Beautifully clean barn!

Prophet, our oldest, is also the biggest attention hog.

And there’s always time for a treat. Jackson enjoying a bone.

Uh oh -Junior Iditarod Dreams!

On our recent trip to Alaska, we visited the Iditarod Museum – where the twins discovered that there’s a JUNIOR IDITAROD! The 150 mile race takes place every year at the end of February, beginning on Lake Knik in Wasilla near the home of famous musher and Iditarod creator, Joe Redington. We’re going to let the twins enter a few races this winter and if they do well… who knows…maybe we’ll be heading back to AK in Feb!