Life is Change

I find it interesting that people get so worried, concerned and stressed over change. If we just thought a moment about change and the meaning of the word: make or become different; take or use another instead of; the act or instance of making or becoming different. The seasons change, relationships change and we change. Change can be exciting or in some instances fearful, but change will happen. It isn’t something one can control.

Winterswind is going through change here. 2020 will begin one way and look different at the end. I have written before in my blog that I battled cancer a few times. Going through many rounds of chemo and radiation and even experimental procedures at the Mayo Clinic. Late last fall I had severe back and leg pain. I won’t go into detail but I went to the doctor and they did diagnostics. The bone cancer did a lot of damage and my spine from the T12 to S3 is compressed and pinching the sciatic nerves. The prognosis means change…..for me lifestyle changes of no more horseback riding, can’t run in the ring and grooming is very difficult.

Rob is also experiencing change in career. This means an out of state position. The big question looming is how will this change effect our life!

I am looking at downsizing the prairie poodles and rehoming my horses. THAT’s big change! The decisions are not easy but I feel positive about the new adventure that is being laid out in front of us. My body….not my mind…tells me the years are ticking by! A firm believer in “your only old as you feel”; there are days I feel my age and others where I feel 40 again! HaHa some of you aren’t even 40 yet, so you may think that’s old…..trust me it isn’t!

Winterswind will still be showing, using a handler, and there will still be litters. Just on a more elite and scaled back side. I have had people concerned that we won’t be breeding any more. So I wanted to put that to rest and reassure those who on my wait list that there will still be more Winterswind babies in the future.

My sister kennel is Croatia, Picasso Wind, is continuing my lines and a few breeder friends here will also be using our lines.

I am so proud that Winterswind produced our first home bred AKC Champion Winterswind Sir Winston of Chartwell Abby (out of AM CH UCHSterling Black Magic Woman At Winterswind and MBIS AM CH UCH Edivette Winterswind Black Temptation). He finished in 2 months under Team Swag and has 1 leg toward his grand champion. He finished with all majors!

Many of you have followed “Henry” Winterswind Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy, as small puppy. He leaves in a few weeks to start his AKC career with Team Swag.

We have high hopes for Zane, our silver boy from Italy and also our homebred girl “Vega” Winterswind Written In The Stars; who will all be going AKC. Vega is out of UCH MBIS Edivette Noir Mystic and UCH Winterswind Lord Darcy of Pemberly.

These changes are exciting and full of life and adventure for the Winterswind Family! We even changed our logo! So stay tuned as Change is in the Wind……Winterswind!

Below left to right is:

AM CH Winterswind Sir Winston of Chartwell Abby

Winston Holding his group 2 win ribbon.

Winterswind Boogie Woogie Bugle Boy “Henry” as a wee tike

Henry with his Best Male wins at Gateway Kennel Club Show

Zane Grey At Winterswind G Del Baccono, at play

Winterswind Written In The Stars “Vega” (9 weeks in this photo)

Falls blowing into the Prairie

October is almost half over and the harvest has begun out here on the prairie. The clapping of the dry corn leaves in the wind heralds in sweatshirt weather. The Poodles can tell the season has changed, they romp and run more, now that the humid heat of summer has been blown away by the north winds.

We have a new litter of 6 puppies that arrived October 4th. It was first time to whelp by myself! Usually Rob is ever present when the event happens. He is gone during the week now, working in Chicago and takes the train home on the weekends. Sounds like a scene from a 50’s TV sitcom! Mystic, Litter parents (BIS UCH Edivette Noir Mystic at Winterswind and UCH Lord Darcy of Pemberley), did a fabulous job and we worked in tandem to bring these lovely puppies into the world. Funny how I still get the anticipation of excitement with each litter. It never becomes whoa Hum. But like Christmas morning, I eagerly wait to see what color and sex the puppies are. My gift at each whelping, the wonder of life coming into this world is so precious.

We are headed into the showring at the months end! This is huge for us, as due to health issues the past year we haven’t been able to show. Rob is just as enthusiastic as I am when it comes to going to a show! Deciding who will be coming to show, getting the travel trailer ready and deciding what the humans will wear! :) Isn’t fun that anticipation is almost as fun as the actual event!

Winters Wind is so proud of our home breed boy, Winterswind Sir Winston Of Chartwell Abby, “Winston” (AM CH UKC CH Sterling Black Magic Woman at Winterswind and AM CH MBIS UCH Edivette Black Temptation at Winterswind) entered the AKC ring with handler team, Swag. His first show was in September and by the end of September he had 2 majors (winning BOB, BW and taking 2~group 2 wins over specials!). Winston turned 1 at the end of September, so he is growing hair to enter the ring at the end of October! He just shy a few points, so we hoping he can come home soon!

Around October 31 we will look forward to another litter and the last for 2019. Teagan was bred to Mr. Darcy and an ultrasound confirmed she is pregnant! Mr. Darcy is out of our MBIS GRCH Hi Hat’s Dark Side Of The Moon and GRCH Jacknic’s Rainy Day Champagne. Mr. Darcy has a quiet yet fun loving personality. He is loyal to his people and I expect that we will have lovely temperaments in this litter.

I look at the calendar and realize 2019 is slowly closing the door on this year. What will 2020 look like? This thought always dances across my mind as Thanksgiving approaches. Remembering our blessings of 2019 with thankfulness; not wanting to rush the new year but to savor what is left of this year. It’s like looking forward to dessert after a scrumptious meal.

Winters Wind will have some surprises I do believe for 2020. Just as I wrote at the beginning of this blog; anticipation is a joyful part of the waiting! So……be joyful as this year starts to close. Be thankful for all your blessings and for family and friends. Let the hurtful things of this year be a vapor that disappears into the air. Nothing good can come from remembering those kind of things. Forgive those who have wounded you either with words or physically. You will have a lighter spirit, your laughter will be genuine and your heart healthier!

So for the plans for 2020……………….anticipate!

Welcome to Life in 2019!

In the spirit of Dickens “A Christmas Carol” Scrooge is visited by 3 ghosts of present, past and future. I love this book and movie, it helps to set perspective on life. Like Scrooge we all have things in life we wish we could have changed, done differently or relationships we lost. As in Scrooge those things can not be changed, however like Mr. Scrooge we can choose to change who we are. He made his future better and those of others; by seeing his heart and that it needed repair. As we sit on the eve of a new year lets endeavour to be more loving, forgiving, restoring broken relationships, gossiping less, seeing the good and therefore improving the world the around us.

So as I sit on the eve of yet another year. Reflecting and make resolutions for a new year; at Winters Wind we have done our reflecting in the blog post “Seasons” and we have made new plans for 2019! I love casting vision and setting goals; to ever change is to grow.

Making the changes here also means heartache. My heart breaks at every leaving of each young adult poodle that I helped whelp and raise. My heart is invested in each one and to say goodbye brings much heart ache and tears. Though I know that each has a loving home, and families that love them and will invest in them. I see a bit of my past dreams leaving home, the hope that I placed on each one. I relate it to my children leaving for college. It is an end and a beginning. End of them as children (thought they are forever my kids) and striding off into a future that includes their own life choices.

I am looking forward to more time with all those in my life; human and animal ;) To going to more shows and performance events. Change can bring us into a place of fresh revelation and new perspective. I know for some people change is scary. I think of the Indian Jones movie where he is after the Holy Grail. He must step out over a canyon, he sees no path yet still steps out in blind faith. The path wasn’t seen but it was still there! Kind of like making life choices!

“Some changes look negative on the surface but you will soon realize that space is being created in your life for something new to emerge.” 
― Eckhart Tolle

So if you too are thinking about changes, whether large or small in 2019. Don’t let fear bind your heart. Set your sights on what you want to change and take that first step. You will find that the excitement and joy of exploring something new will have you wondering why you waited so long!

I look forward to seeing my latest puppies entering into the ring. I see great potential in our future and can’t wait to see what this year will bring and end with!

As Tevye sings from Fiddler on the Roof

“To life, to life, L'chai-im!
L'chai-im, l'chai-im, to life!
It gives you something to think about,
Something to drink about,
Drink l'chai-im, to life! l'chai-im ! “

Seasons

Do you have a favorite season? If you think about that season, what is it that draws you into the Spring Rain, the warm, humid breezes of Summer, that crisp, frosty air of Fall or the romantic snow fall and warm fire of Winter? Life is like the seasons. We have the Spring of youth, the Summer of Adulthood, the Fall of being an empty nester or retirement and then the Winter of memories. Memories of all the seasons that came before.

I don’t know if one Season is highlighted over another. Oh sure, most folks would want to be youthful once again~but would you really? All those hard knock of life and lessons to be learned. Why do I muse about Seasons? Life once again has pulled back the cover to another season for us, here at Winters Wind. I would not call it the season of discontent by any means. It just another shift as we maneuver life’s path. Rob, my love and hubby was laid off this past August. For him it was a big change, a major storm in his Season. Funny, how life can throw us this curve and it reveals who we are at the soul. Over these past months we discussed so many options, prayed a lot and held fast to the anchor of our faith. After oh so many interviews, he had 3 offers…..none of them here! He finally landed on a job that at least was close, Chicago. Now the logistics of this arrangement hits! He lives in Chicago now 5 days a week. It’s his dream job. The one we prayed for and given!

My parents are 94, saw the Great Depression and my Dad served in the 82nd Army Airborne and freed the first city in France on D-Day. If your a history buff, the movie “The Longest Day” my Dad is the guy that fell into the green house in Ste. Marie Englise. He was Knighted by the President of France and Yes, I am very proud of my folks~best people ever. Here’s a link to the one of the articles : https://qctimes.com/news/local/clinton-man-to-receive-france-s-highest-honor/article_132d35ef-3ac3-5465-bdcd-5f67f1265f59.html

So as you can see, moving isn’t an option. Given this fact we decided to take a hard look at our life and where we are headed; as in getting older…..no one, at least not me wants to think about that :) After much seeking advise from trusted family and friends we have made the hard decision to revamp Winters Wind over the next few years.

A new season will emerge after the dust settles. What does the new vision of Winters Wind look like? We will be getting out of Parti’s by the end of 2019. Our emphasis will be on Standard Poodles in White, Black and Silver. This has been a really tough and heart wrenching decision for us. We love all our colors of poodles and they all bring something wonderful to the breed.

The plan is to continue our work in the Service dog world, showing and doing performance. Our Retired guys will always be in our family; Roux, Indigo and Luna. The next Season will be moving forward with: Izabella, Dream, Teagan, Seville, Mystic, Sterling and Misty. We will use Aragon, Drakkar, Zane and Mr. Darcy as our sires in the next few years.

I do believe there is something about building memories and moments. I want to spend the few years I have with my parents, as focused moments. Those memories will be my treasure box in the years after they have gone. I want to enjoy my life with dogs as well and can never envision a life without them!

I so look forward to the new families that will join Winters Wind and the families that are currently in our hearts. Thank you for blessing me with your love of our dogs and won’t the future be bright!