13 Weeks 1 Day (10/13/07)
I realize I haven't blogged in awhile, but according to some e-mails I have recieved, people are still checking it. I still have 1 puppy left - Boggart.

8 Weeks 1 Day (9/8/07)
We are down to 2 puppies!!! Caterpillar continues to climb out of the puppy pen. It is our cue that it's time to take everyone outside. She and Smuckers both whine to go outside. Since we now have 4 puppies in our care, we started the potty training process on everyone. Makes life much easier for us, sort of.

8 Weeks (9/7/07)
What a week! Sumcker's vest came in and so she has started gonig EVERYWHERE with me. This has been an experience, not because of her. Yesterday we went grocery shopping. The dirty looks I got from other customers!!! Clearly, the majority of people think that service dogs just magically appear is amazing. Today she goes to my Weight Watchers meeting with me. Bless her little heart. She is not a fan of parking lots. They are just too hot for her. But I made her walk most of the way to the car before I picked her up, clicking her the entire time she was walking! She has learned to ride in shopping carts and not fuss. I feel like I've had a baby without all the crabbyness. I have to carry a "puppy" bag with towels, cleaner, treats, poo bags, etc.

Yesterday, I took another tumble. James saw it happen and said my flip flop got caught on the pen and I fell head/face first into the crate! Nothing is broken, but MAN do I hurt! I have a bruised and swollen finger, knee, and ankle. I skinned 1 knee, both elbows, and got a HUGE bruise down the back of my arm. While I love these guys, I'm ready for the pen to go away. I will update the site later today with new pictures of puppies and their new families.

And then there were 5...Puppies are being kenneled tonight. My poor sweet innocent "sister" has no idea what she is in for. Caterpillar can jump over the 24" pen. She did it 4 times today!

7 Weeks and 3 Days (9/3/07)
It's 5 AM, the puppies escaped! We have had 9 puppies running free in the house for god knows how long! All that poo that you usually see in the kitchen is ALL OVER MY LIVING ROOM! I'm taking a picture for you to see. Willow didn't warn us! Rebel didn't warn us! Non of the three demonic cats in the second picture warned us! It was the sound of a stampede up the stairs that woke us.

FOR THE RECORD: this is James's fault. He clipped the pen closed with only 1 clip at the top!!!! So the puppies pushed through the bottom and away they went!

We have no idea how long they had been free to roam before we woke up. But it was clearly a LONG time. I won't even allow 1 puppy to roam free unattended much less 9!

It is 8:30pm and we are finally home and getting settled. The house smells AWFUL! I did manage to shampoo the carpet before we left for MD. It has been an extremely long day. The remaining puppies are Nargle, Boggart, and Plimpy.

7 Weeks and 2 Days (9/2/07)
It's a good thing I put newspaper down this morning. It should keep them entertained for awhile.

7 Weeks (8/31/07)
Sorry everyone. I've been crazy busy this week. I microchipped all the babies today. It was easier than I expected but very difficult to stab the babies with that HUGE needle! They puppies have been playing outside alot. Then they are so worn out they sleep the rest of the day.

I no longer need an alarm clock. They all start crying between 5:30 and 6:00 am for breakfast. We picked up the rest of the medicine for the babies yesterday. That combined with my cat's surgery made for a $700 vet bill - OUCH!

Monday we are taking the babies on a field trip to Maryland! There, 2 of the babies will leave me for their new homes. Hopefully all the picks will be made though. I am running another ad in the paper for the 3 remaining pups.

6 Weeks and 5 Days (8/28/07)
Everyone got their first shots today. We took an X-pen to the Vets office and set it up in the lobby. The puppies still have the coccidia and the diarrhea is starting up again. So they have all been put on a new medicine for that. Everyone checked out just fine. The vet and I both noticed a clicking in Tebo's rear legs. IT IS NOT HIS KNEE! She thinks it's just a tendon popping and once his joint is warmed up, it stops. She does not feel that it is any cause for alarm. I just wouldn't be the kind of breeder I care to be if I didn't share that info. If he is still with me in 2 weeks, I will have her check it again.

6 Weeks and 4 Days (8/27/07)
The photo shoot went well despite the uncooperative weather. We took Nargle and Kelpie to the beach with Willow. The puppies went swimming! I didn't capture any pictures of that, but I am going to post what I've got. Diane will send me a CD with the pictures she took on them. The puppies didn't want to cooperate last night with the photos. We would get them out of the playpen and they'd chase the cats or run around the living room, etc. We'll just have to see. I am covered in dirt, sand, and poo.

I didn't get a lot of sleep last night. I went to bed at 11:30 and puppies got me up at 12, 1, and 2. I believe there is a nap in my future.

6 Weeks and 2 Days (8/25/07)
You will all be happy to know, that Willow taught all the puppies how to dig this morning! They have all proudly displayed their talents in the digging approved area of my backyard. We have a new morning routine. The babies go on the porch for breakfast, then outside to play. Then we bring them back to the porch, hose them all off, and put them down for a nap :-)

Tomorrow, I call and get an appointment for their shots. I will also be microchipping the puppies next week. I will be using AVID and there will be a brochure in your puppy pack.

5 Weeks and 6 Days (8/23/07)
It's entirely too early. I have posted new pictures. I am very excited about the photo shoot this Sunday!

The puppies are on the porch this morning. The mess inside is insane. I was worried about that when I confined them. I am getting to the cleanup, but I'm moving slow. My leg felt pretty good until I wandered around feeding critters. Now I'm sore again.

Willow has lost her mind. The doc said to put her back on her maintenance diet and suck it up on the leaking milk. She is not allowed to nurse at all. But then last night she decided to get on the kitchen counter and pull over my slow cooker! I hope it still works. It's a shame really. I had made these really good herbed chicken & dumplings. We all got to eat some, but now there are no leftovers :-(

I'm off to clean the kitchen and the walls. The pictures really make the dirt pop out!

5 Weeks and 5 Days (8/22/07)
The antibiotics are working. There is a lot less diarrhea and a lot less smell. This is the point at which it becomes very hard to 9 puppies in the house. My house smells bad. Those of you who know me and have stayed with us know that there is a lot of traffic in and out of my house. Since we run a couple of businesses out of our home people come and go all day. Most of them know and expect the odor, but not all of them. Everyone is kind enough to lie and tell me it's not that bad. I just have to go outside and reset my nose to come in and smell the truth :-)

I am trying to picture of the cats perched on the various gates in the morning. They have all decided it's not safe in the kitchen anymore. Nimbus doesn't even come downstairs. Nine sets of teeth coming at you can be daunting.

Diane, the photographer, comes on Sunday evening! I am very excited about this. I can't wait to see really great pictures of my babies. Not to mention, her photos get published in things like Just Labs magazine :-)

You will notice that the puppies have been confined to an area of the kitchen, permanently. I have a cat or two or four protesting having to run the gauntlet by peeing on my sofa. So Today I am cleaning upholstery.

What a day! The puppies tried to break my leg today. I just got back from the Urgent Care Center. My leg is not borken but I am on crutches. I have a contusion (deep bruise). All I know is it hurts like the dickens! and I can't put weight on it. I also figured out that the wet spots on the couch are not cat pee. They are milk from Willow. She has refused to nurse them and is currently leaking milk everywhere!

5 Weeks and 4 Days (8/21/07)
I am working on videos now! I should be able to upload some today. Be aware they are large files and may take awhile to download. This year, they have sound! I have thoroughly confused Willow. She is trying to figure out why the babies are crying for food from the computer speakers. She's gone into the kitchen to count them and come back here looking for more babies.

The puppies have gotten to the point where I try to activities for them during their "awake" periods. This is usually before a meal. Today we have the tunnel and the trash can lid. I don't know why these items are fascinating but they are. It gives them more experiences. The got some really loud noises today. James set of the house alarm by removing a sensor from the sliding door. It's been so humid, you can't open the door. None of the puppies really enjoyed that. Then they had to listen to the electric sander and hammering. Today has been a learning experience for them.

Yesterday, I consulted with me vet and now everyone is on antibiotics. Nargle gets the liquid and everyone else gets pills in a little ball of cheese. This is a very common bacteria to be found in a kennel environment. I've gotten some cute pictures I'll post tomorrow. Enjoy the videos I posted.

5 Weeks and 3 Days (8/20/07)
New pictures are up! I'm going to bed. The little demons have been busy today. I had to mop twice.

5 Weeks and 2 Days (8/19/07)
It's 3am, I don't know why I'm awake, but I am. I am happy to announce that another puppy has been sold. A boy this time. I have decided that, this year, the girl with the prettiest face is Kelpie. Last year, it was Lil' Miss. Something about their faces is drop dead gorgeous. Don't get me wrong, the others are pretty too. There is just something different about hers.

The poo was not bad this morning. It helps that I now control when the eat. No more porch outings until I talk with my vet about this bacterial infection.

I plan to make a day trip to Maryland next weekend. I just have to figure out Sat/Sun. Once of us has the midnight to 8am shift at Cyberwocky on Sat, so I may lean toward Sunday so we both can go. But I await word from Jaz since I believe it is her house where we are stopping.

I'm headed back to bed to try and get back to sleep. I've got new batteries for my camera. I will put up some new pictures later today. Some people (ANDY) seem to think I have all the time in the world to keep pictures and blogs up to date. That's just silly.

Sorry about the puppycam. I don't know what has happened with it. It now uploads to my own server but that shouldn't be causing all that trouble. It possible that my internet bandwidth isn't big enough, but I find that hard to imagine.

I know what is wrong with the webcam! My server can't handle the load for all the hits *BIG CHEESY GRIN!* So I am moving the website back to Yahoo! hosting. I will upload last years videos last so everything should be up fairly quickly.

I added a Guestbook! You can access it here or on the homepage!

It is now 8:30 pm and James is bathing the puppies. I have finished mopping the floor and I'm just sitting down to dinner. The puppies are enjoying their snack for the evening before bed. I have no pictures to post. I'll try to put some up tomorrow.

5 Weeks 1 Day (8/18/07)
HAPPY BIRTHDAY ADAM!!!!!!!!! I promised him I'd do that. The puppies have learned their morning routine. When James comes downstairs they all run to the wall to be picked up to go on the porch. Then I come down and they all start crying because then they get fed. We've got the puppies on 3 meals a day. Willow has them almost completely weaned. For those of you who are wondering how much food to feed your puppy when they get home, I have know idea. I know how much it takes to fill 9 bellies not 1.

Today is another bath day. Those puppies stink! They are covered in poo, pee, and food. I don't know how some breeders never bathe their puppies. I can't do it. Besides, it gets them use to the process. Today will be a little different since they are too big for the kitchen sink. It's a bath outside with the hose!

Sorry about the webcam folks. It's been having trouble lately. I've got it on right now, but I'm updating the computer and then I'll reboot.

No bath yet on the pups. Been busy today.

Nargle has bloody loose poo, so we are off to the emergency clinic. I will let you all know the outcome.

We are back. He has a bacterial infection called coccidia. It is very contagious and he probably got it from Willow. The vet said the puppies will probably just recontaminate each other until they leave and it is very common. This explains why Willow's diarrhea returned so quickly after we got rid of it. She got reinfected. I have medicine for Nargle and on Monday I will go get meds for the others, if Dr. Dirmeyer deems it necessary. This is the drama of being a breeder!

5 Weeks (8/17/07)
These grow SO fast! 3 more weeks and they are all yours! Poor Willow...she waits until she can't stand it anymore, then jumps in to nurse them. Then the little monsters bite her. Her teats are bruised and bitten. I have a full day ahead of me, so I don't know how much I'll get to blog today. Adam's birthday party is today.

4 Weeks and 6 Days (8/16/07)
They are little monsters. There cute and fluffy and stinky and produce lots of poo. I love every single one of them. I know you all are chomping at the bit for new pictures. I have almost finished my new website and it will launch today, complete with new pictures!

Here it is!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Please let me know what you think. I'm going to try and add a guest book soon.

FYI - Diane Lewis, an outstanding photographer, is going to come and do a photo shoot of the babies!

4 Weeks and 5 Days (8/15/07)
It's is 2:05 AM, yes AM! and I just finished mopping the floor.

4 Weeks and 3 Days (8/13/07)
it is 7:21am and I am not awake yet. If you are looking at the puppycam you will see the mess I am faced with every morning. So please, if you are thinking of every breeding a dog - go look at the webcam. I am going to play a video game, drink my coffee, and have some breakfast before tackling this mess this morning. The babies are on the porch eating their breakfast.

That was a very bad floor - it took 2 buckets of water (1 Mr. Clean & 1 vinegar) and 2 mop heads. It is amazing what 20% more puppy and poo will do. I will bring the little monsters back inside shortly.

I think that today we will try out the swimming pool. I think I'll do it in the kitchen so you all can watch.

4 Weeks and 1 Day (8/11/07)
Can you believe the babies are a month old already?! They change so much and so fast! Moke appears to have emerged victorious as alpha puppy. She is clearly the head instigator. The babies can now run, albeit a little wobbly, but they run.

Yesterday was bath day. I know some people got to see it. My friends Gary and Elizabeth came over to help me. Bath time was a ittle tough since the puppies can now get out of the sink if you aren't holding them. Elizabeth got a kick out of seeing how Willow keeps watch to make sure that we get everyone, don't take any away, and she helps dry them off. Willow can count to 9 by the way.

Kelpie is little miss wiggle butt. She chased Turtle out of the kitchen and I asked her if she chased the kitty and she wagged so fast she fell over. Kelpie also smiles.

Jarvey does not like to be disturbed when he's sleeping. He's one of the top barkers in the little pack.

All of them play with toys much more than the last litter. I love it when they manage to pick up on those mini tennis balls.

We also did another collar exchange. Nargle and Plimpy had just about outgrown theirs.

Picks 1 and 2 are official!
Pick 1 - Willow's PB & J "Smuckers" (yellow)
Pick 2 - Willow's Beautiful Butterfly "Caterpillar" (purple)

Smuckers is already wearing her big girl collar. At Jackie's request I found a yellow collar and leash. So Amber, send Cat's collar whenever! Schuh Family - start thinking about who you want (Plimpy, Moke, Kelpie). Kelpie will be very loyal and happy. Moke will rule the house. Plimpy will be laid back and not care.

I'm posting pictures now. Got some very cute shots.

3 Weeks and 5 Days (8/8/07)
The little devils have discovered that they can bit now. Current Willow Creek owners know this doesn't fly with me. So the babies are getting their first taste of discipline now. I had to reboot the webcam. It's on a 5 second delay now. I can't remember what last year's was.

The puppies have been very entertaining this morning. Jarvey ran across the kitchen floor and tried to stop on the paper and surfed across the floor. It was only a matter of time. Now the paper will never be where I leave it. Jarvey also barked so loudly the backlash from it cause him to fall onto his back into the food bowl. Bog was playing with one of the stuffed toys and went to toss into the air but slipped and hit his head on the wall. He was so mortified, he crawled onto his towel and feigned sleep.

More to come. Picture updates definite.

5:20PM New Pictures are up! I'm glad everyone is enjoying the webcam. The babies got corralled for mopping and then I fell asleep on the couch. When I got up to answer the phone, one them stirred and barked to let me know to open it up for potty time. They are so good about not pottying where they sleep.

3 Weeks and 4 Days (8/7/07)
This is an active bunch of little dogs. The mess in the morning! I spend at least an hour in the morning doing puppy chores. As soon as I step into the kitchen, they start barking and growling at me, follow me around, and Tebo howls at me! waiting for me to clear a spot for the food bowl. This morning they ate every last bit. Willow sat on the other side of the wall and yipped. She hates that I won't let her into the kitchen in the morning. Oh....the little "darlings" are a great help when I'm trying to change the newspaper. They grab the corners and try to walk off with it, step on it, pee on it before it hits the ground, etc.

Right now, they are confined to a corner of the kitchen while the floor dries. I'm about to release the hounds.

Last night, Tebo followed Willow to the get across my office door. She jumped over to be with me and he sat there at the gate, put his nose up in the air and......HOWLED! A howl, quickly followed by a snort. The exact same thing Guinness did!

I want some down time and breakfast before I start working today! I'll put up new pictures later today. I might be able to James to update the weight chart too.

Well there it is folks, the puppycam is up and running. If you notice anything askew with it, shoot me an e-mail :-) It updates every 2 seconds. I can't handle a live feed on my internet connection so this is the best I can do. The activity will increase as they grow!

3 Weeks and 2 Days (8/5/07)
This morning, I stepped into the kitchen and slipped across a fresh pile of poo. I almost took a picture to put on the website. It was EVERYWHERE! My favorite is the little paw prints of poo tracked all over the kitchen. I must say this flooring is MUCH easier to clean. The puppies have many more moments of alertness and wrestling. Moke follows me around the kitchen barking at me to give her food. Tebo is a howler. He does the same snort that Guinness did last year! Daryl knows what I'm talking about!

The sad part of it is, that I know I have many more weeks of this left.

The puppies had their first trip to the great outdoors today. They didn't like it, it was hot and muggy. They had a nap on the porch while a mopped the floor and had a foray in the grass out front while I pulled weeds. Our back yard is disgusting! Willow has had the runs for 3 weeks now. We can't give her the typical medicine b/c of the babies. So we've had to try treating her to bland food and yogurt (which she hates). The flies LOVE her poo. Combined with the hot weather, you can imagine.

So James and I are batting around the idea of breeding Willow on her next heat cycle and moving our litters to winter. I'll have to talk to the people who have deposits on the next litter to see if they will be ready.

3 Weeks (8/3/07)
It has been a busy day! The puppies are all over the kitchen. They now wake up and play with each other. The teeth are breaking through all at once. I wish human babies did that. I went to the pet store and got bigger flying saucer bowls, little stuffed animals, and little tennis balls for everybody. No one has picked up a tennis ball yet, but the stuffed toys have been moved. I've got loads of new pictures to post.

Luke, the big black & white cat, has decided to introduce himself to the puppies. He goes in and lies down next to them. Then sits up when too many mob him at once. Willow doesn't mind him since he is just looking after them. Boggart has taken exception to the puppy mash. While everyone else has their faces buried in food he cries and howls! Why is it always the orange collared pups that howl? He is the only one unhappy about the change.

I have not weighed them yet today. I will do that soon. I thought you might want pictures first and this is the first chance I've had all day to sit down.

2 weeks 5 Days (8/1/07)
This morning, I stepped over the wall into the kitchen, and got MOBBED! I had to clean up lots of pee a little bit of poo and try not to punt the puppies across the kitchen as they ran all over my feet. The fun begins!

The vet visit went very well. No worms in puppies or mom, but the babies all got their first round of dewormer. Only 1 puppy had a slight heart murmur (this is completely normal at this age!) I have new pictures to put up. But I have some things to do first today.

As you can see from the pictures, Willow has moved onto the next step in feeding the puppies, sitting up. After this, comes standing up. Tebo decided to taste Mom's breakfast. She growled at him the entire time. The stunningly beautiful little girl in the pictures is Jackie. She is the recipient of the service dog. It seems Pick #1 is final and Snidget is it. She has been redubbed - Willow's PB & J "Smuckers".

They are growing fast. When they wake up from their naps, they all wiggle to under the table and pee.

2 Weeks 3 Days (7/30/07)
It's 4:24 AM, Willow has made me sleep on the couch. I've had about 4 hours of sleep. I was feeding a puppy at midnight. Willow seems to understand that she can't feed them all and I will pick up the slack. So she lays down to feed and I pick up whoever is last in the lunch line. The puppies are a hoot. They discovered that they have voices. Moke seems to be the little instigator. She wonders around barking and growling at everone and everything. Yesterday, Snidget got up and walked all around the kitchen looking for food. Willow did not appreciate it when she started checking out her Momma's food.

I've been trying to get some sleep since about 3:45. The puppies have been doing their little Mogwai trill and Moke tried to start something up. She got growled at by someone else and gave up. Willow laid down on the floor next to me and began trying to suffocate me. He gas has been unreal! The worst part is, she insists on having her tail end near my head and she farts really loudly! Then the smell hits and I my eyes start watering. I'm about to try lighting a candle. Tonight has been tough.

My next-door neighbor is beside herself with excitement. She has been trying to convince her husband to let her get a dog for over a year now. I think she finally did it. She's been coming over almost daily to sit with the puppies. I also got a call from a woman in NY looking for a pup. She had been told that if she wanted a chocolate lab for agility, our kennel was THE place to go! I'm very excited about that. I can't wait to see what happens in another year when the first litter of pups makes their agility debut!!! I just might have to make an appearance for that.

I took some pictures over the weekend. I need to start taking some video too. I finally found the cord to be able to sound to the video too. I'll try to capture the trilling. I'm going to try and get some sleep, then I'll post pictures. If I'm really motivated, you'll have some video too :-)

It is no 5:30 PM, I'm no more awake now, than I was before :-) I introduced the puppies to solid food today. It is dry puppy food soaked in formula until mushy. Then I heat it up and hand it out. Tebo immediately dove into it. Then the others followed suit. It came as no suprise that Jarvey spread out in the bowl. They are huddled up in the kitchen doing the Mogwai trill. I'll try to get that on video, but I guarantee they'll stop as soon as I grab the camera...Yup, they stopped. I may have gotten a couple of seconds of it, we'll find out.

2 Weeks (7/27/07)
The puppies are up and moving! Eyes are open and they have started to explore the kitchen a little bit. Willow wanted me downstairs last night. She seems to understand that I need to supplement with bottles, since the bigger pups suck her dry and there are still a couple of pups left to feed. There always seems to be 2 pups that need a bottle. I do rotate who those pups are so everyone gets a mix of Mom and formula. I'm trying to get the 2 week weights finished, but it's feeding time. I still haven't posted the 1 week weight yet. I need to get James to tell me what they are from his spreadsheet.

There was lots of growling and barking last night. The pups are just now starting to play together. The "No Cat Rule" is being eased up on, thank heavens. I got very little sleep last night between pups, Willow, and an obnoxious Siamese cat in heat. I can't wait to get her spayed. She has to have a liver biopsy first - yuck.

Apparently I should check the chart before I blog. James put the 1 week weights in there - LOL. BTW - I upgraded everyone's collars this morning to the next size up. I may have to another size up to accomodate these giants! We jinxed the size by tauting our petite labs - HA! Plimpy is going to be HUGE! If it weren't for the service dog I'm keeping, I would totally keep her.

So everyone knows - preliminary picks have been made for 1 and 2. So unless we end up having a puppy that is epilepsy sensitive (1 in 400 chance there): Snidget & Siren are spoken for. Snidget is my pick and Siren is Amber's pick. I'm going to start having little Jack-in-the Box make weekly visits to bond with the pups and see if there is a sensitive pup in the bunch. I'm not holding my breath.

1 Week 6 Days (7/26/07)
As of this morning, everyone is over 2 pounds and their eyes & ears have started to open - YEAH! They are also mobile. ALL the pups can get up on a wobbly all fours. No swimmers in this bunch (for more information read last years blog). They have also started to get teeth which Willow is OH SO excited about. I will start them on a little big of mash next week. Willow likes to start the weaning process at about 3 weeks. Its the teeth, she's not a fan.

Tuesday afternoon the babies have their first vet visit. This is just a standard 2 week mark checkup and I think Dr. D really wants to see them. Here is the link to the veterinary facility I use.

OH - and a HUGE CONGRATULATIONS! to Daddy Creek for achieving his Platinum Speed Star Award!This is an EXTREMELY pretigious award given to only the fastest NADAC dogs. There are only 2 labs(Creek and his sister Tasha) among the 11 dogs with this title, both of whom are owned by our very own Jaz Whittington. I am very excited about this, I have a special gift for Creek (will be mailed soon).

1 Week 5 Days (7/25/07)
It looks like the 2 bottle feedings did the trick. They both drained a second bottle late last night. Willow continues to be happy with the hidey hole in the kitchen. I have a busy day ahead of me. The government finally managed to get me a payment - YEAH! So now I must dash around submitting payments. I will post some new pictures this evening.

1 Week 4 Days (7/24/07)
Once I put a hidey hole for Willow over the puppies, she was happy. Now I have no kitchen table, but the puppies are hidden from view and Willow can see her family. The no cat rule has been put into effect for the entire downstairs - poor kitties. I am attempting to supplement Siren and Snidget with formula to bump their weight up a bit. Willow has exactly 9 nipples (yes, she is missing one) and the littlest pups have trouble. Siren ate 1 Tbsp from the bottle and Snidget DRAINED the rest, 2.5 Tbsp. She ate so much, so fast, she got a little up her nose and sneezed for a few minutes until I got it out. Those "nose suckers" as we call them, DO come in handy.

Last night, the puppies were trilling. They sounded like a bunch of Gizmo's (80's movie, Gremlins), it was SOOOo cute.

Since you all did not get a birth video (very sorry), I did make birth certificates, complete with pawprints. While they still had ink on their little tootsies, we did this...

1 Week 3 Days (7/23/07)
The puppies have been moved into the kitchen. The kitchen has been completely taken over. Jarvey is going to be our little escape artist.

1 Week 2 Days (7/22/07)
For those of you who are unhappy about the lack of updates this weekend, I have 2 words for you....Harry Potter! I got my book Saturday morning and didn't get to start reading it until after 1. I finished it this afternoon - cried throught the last 3 chapters. But you don't care about that, you want to hear about puppies!

The puppies are still adorable. They are getting more and more mobile. It has become very clear, that the puppy room will not large enough by about Wednesday. So James and I spent our spare time (post-Harry) readying the kitchen for chaos. Our biggest concern with the puppies in the kitchen is the havoc it wreaked on my tile floor last year. The poor grout still hasn't recovered. There are cracks everywhere! Today, James put down industrial garage flooring. We had a couple of rolls left over after the opening of Cyberwocky and it is perfect! It has treads so the puppies can get plenty of footing and it is really easy to clean. He even overlapped the seams so no pee pee will go underneath.

This evening I had signed up to lead of World of Warcraft Raid at the store, so we all went to that. James came home early to check on the pups and counted, recounted, and counted again! He only found 8. Then he called in Max who also counted 8. After a brief moment of panic, Willow got up and started nosing under the pile of laundry on the other side of the room! There was Jarvey, completely hidden from view, asleep under the pile of dirty towels. Willow knew where he was. We're not certain how he got there, but we are thinking he managed to wiggle his way there himself. Once I got home, I went to clean out the pen and I swear, he was on all four paws!

There will be new pictures tomorrow. I have to burn CDs for a client, move puppies, and that's about it. So I have no excuses for not putting up new pictures.

I expect the puppies to have eyes and ears open by the weekend and they should be far more mobile. It's amazing how fast they grow!

Week 1 (7/20/07)
My how time flies! Can you believe they are a week old already? This weekend I'll work on getting the webcam going again. If ti weren't for being in my house, I would put in a microphone too. You wouldn't believe the noise these guys make. Today is supposed to be my day off - tee hee. I'll get new pictures up too. I did a weigh in this morning. A few of these guys will hit 2 pounds today! Plimpy is going to be a BIG dog. She is the most wrinkly of the bunch. I'm going to try and get individual pics today so you all can see the differences I see.

Willow wanted to move the puppies again yesterday. We took that to mean that maybe it smelled too much like a den. So I cleaned it really well and she settled back in. Unfortunately, with the AC vents closed in there, there isn't a lot of air flow. I should be able to open 1 vent today :-)

Plimpy is alllmost 2 pounds, not quite. She will be by the morning. I swear I've had to adjust her collar twice a day. Thanks goodness for velcro. I got growled at today. Tebo growled at me when I picked him up to weigh him. The babies also got there first nail trim. It's amazing how much they hate it even at this age. Sorry I haven't updated the pictures yet. I got busy with non-puppy activities. Willow seems to have set aside feeding times and then when she is done, she gets up and wonders around the house looking for attention. She is much more laid back this time than last. Still SuperMom though!

Day 5 (7/18/07)
The kitchen area didn't work out. The puppies are back in the puppy room. Willow kept brining me puppies today. She wanted me to keep them under my desk. It's funny how dogs can make their intentions so VERY clear. Under my desk would be a good place for them, inconvenient for me, but a nice hidey hole for them. Willow is just going to have to accept the fact that if she wants to know what's going on with us, she will have to come out. I'm trying to get some work done today - ha ha.

Day 4 (7/17/07)
WOW! Didn't realize I didn't post anything yesterday - oops. It was mayhem here. Willow is being a royal pain in the butt! She has been spending more and more time away from the pups. We think she likes the hidey hole the pups are in, but doesn't like not being in the center of the family activity. So, we are moving the pups once again. Back to the kitchen! I off to the hardware store to purchase some supplies to alter a kennel for the babies.

- Part 2

All of the puppies now weigh over a pound! The move to the kitchen has been accomplished and we are waiting on Willow's response.

---That's the last time I let James blog. So far, Willow is satisfied with the kitchen. Rebel stuck his head in the kennel to sniff the puppies and then walked off. Amber thought for sure, that Willow would eat him.

She continues to be The Grand Diva of High Maintenance! I'm forcing her to eat dog food and she is not happy about it. I gave her a bath today which she really seemed to appreciate. We also noticed that the puppy area is starting to smell like puppy. It wasn't until I posted the pictures today, that I noticed all the poo smeared on the back wall.

This is the new puppy area. The kennel is between the pantry and the fridge. I've got much better surfaces for the kennel this year, no swimmers this time!

Day 2 (7/15/07)
Sorry for being so quiet folks. We really wanted to get out of the house today. Willow seems to be satisfied with the puppy room. She hasn't had any episodes like last year where she frantically carried puppies around to find a new den for them. So far the most stressful activity for her is the weigh in. Right now, we weigh the puppies 3 times a day. We do that for about 2 weeks, then drop down to twice a day and eventually just once. It becomes very clear when they are out of the woods.

Today, Willow got hungry again. She is still refusing puppy chow. We had an emergency bag of Beneful from James's return trip from Mississippi. She has decided that that will do.

This time around, Willow has been a little more relaxed about the babies. She still gets stressed if she thinks we are holding them too much. But, she has been more willing to leave them for short periods of time. She comes into the kitchen for food and to go outside and just to say "hi". I will post new pictures tomorrow.

Day 1 (7/14/07)
Everyone is here. Willow and the babies are doing very well. Hard labor began at 12:34pm, just as we were about to settle in for a nap - figures. Her water began a slow leak at about 3:30. Willow was in denial for awhile about the how process. You could see her gleeful about any distraction that offered itself from delivery. I do apologize for not having real-time udpates to the website. Last year we had a group of 10 people to assist with the birth and this time we had only 3. So we did not get a video tape of the birth :-( Puppy #6 came out without a birthing sac, but we got all of the gunk out of her lungs and she is doing great! She is the runt of the litter.

In honor of the end of the Harry Patter series, we took the names for the puppies from the Harry Potter Beastiary. If you are a fan of HP, you should recognize most of the names. If you are a true HP geek, you will recognize ALL of the names and what book they are in :-)

Pictures are coming. I need some coffee. James will post the weight graph later. For those who are new to us, my husband James, is a data analysis geek. He loves to play with numbers. That said, we weigh the puppies 3 times a day and chart their progress graphically. This allows us to very quickly see who needs a little extra attention and who is hogging all the milk. Once the pups get a little bigger, we weigh them twice a day. You will be amazed at how much they change in a single day!

Also, it looks like we got several with a little patch of white on the chest. I'm going to give everyone a thorough inspection at the morning weigh in and I will post everyone's markings is any on this blog.

9 puppies are here! Let the fun begin!

Schuh Family! I can't send you e-mail, it keeps bouncing back to me, even if I reply to yours. So if you read this, call me!

Mommy and babies are still doing fine. I really have to coax her out to go outside. I put water and kibble in the pen with her, but she doesn't want it. Rebel is here for the whole thing and sticks his nose in to see what the commotion is all about. The cats have been made aware of the "No Cat" rule, enforced by Willow. She allows them to enter the room for water, food, and to pass through the cat door to the garage. All other actions are considered to be in violation of the "No Cat" rule. We will do another weigh in after we get the human children off to bed. Amber and I got a nice 3 hour nap in this afternoon - ahhhhhhhhhhhhh.

Pre-Puppy Day 61 (Friday the 13th)
Wolf - we are the girls who cried Wolf. This is going to be an even longer day. Willow labored all night long. We got Mommy sleep - a little here, a little there. Willow's nesting is even more frantic. She refuses to leave her whelping area. I really hope there are puppies today.

8:30AM we are on our way to the vet to see if everything is going as expected and we are just wiped out or if there is a problem.

Everything is fine. This is just taking longer than I expected. Willow is resting in her whelping box. Amber and I are trying to get sleep in when we can. The vet expects puppies tonight or in the wee hours of morning. We are just exhausted. I can only imagine what Willow is feeling. Labor with just 1 baby was tough enough.

4:19 pm Still no puppies. Willow's water has broke some and we are waiting. She has had some pretty strong contractions and she is restless. We will keep you posted as the first puppy arrives.

We have Puppies. Times and Weights to be posted later. Puppies are dropping too fast and we are short staffed! More to come. Three so far. (6:10pm)

First Puppy: Born at 5:39 pm 15.5oz (Male)

Second Puppy: Born at 5:52 pm 13.7oz (Female)

Third Puppy: Born at 6:01 pm 11.2oz (Female)

Fourth Puppy: Born at 6:15 pm 13.2oz (Male)

Fifth Puppy: Born at 6:44 pm 14.6oz (Male)

Sixth Puppy: Born at 6:52 pm 10.6oz (Female)

Seventh Puppy: Born at 7:51 pm 12.8oz (Female)

Eighth Puppy: Born at 9:14 pm 15.5oz (Female)

Nineth Puppy: Born at 10:01 pm 14.2oz (Male)

It's now 10:44 pm. Mommy and puppies are resting well. We are headed to bed - whew. We will update the puppy gallery tomorrow, after a good nights rest. Everyone has names.

Day 60 (7/12/07)
Still nothing. We started the night a little rough, then Willow settled down. She's still in the 1st stage of labor. Her temperature is dropping but if we know Willow, the puppies won't come until early morning. To keep our sanity we are taking the kids out to lunch and the park. They have been couped up for days.

OMG - sorry folks, it has been an exhausting day. Amberand I got very little sleep last night and took a nap this afternoon. Willow's temp is down to 97.9 - YIPPEEEEEEE! The vet is on call. If she doesn't deliver tonight or doesn't look like she will deliver tonight, we will probably do a C-section tomorrow. So far, things look good for tonight.

James's theory is that we stressed her by making her be down in the puppy room instead of her bedroom. So I've decided to sacrifice my carpeting and let her have them in my bedroom. I want a bamboo floor anyway. We will keep the updates coming as well as we can!

Amber here, still no puppies. Willow is still laboring and trying to get some rest. This is going to be a really L O N G night.

Pre-Puppy Day 59 (7/11/07)
Nothing has changed. Her temperature has not dropped and she is still eating.

It is 5:47 and we have puppy night!!!!! Her temperature has dropped down to 99.3 from 99.5 earlier today. Now, before you all bother stay up and watch the blog, we still can have 24 hours before active labor really starts. I will keep you all posted, of course.

It's 10:53pm and labor has begun. We are in for a long night. I've got her in the puppy room and Amber and I have a pallet on the floor next to her.

Pre-Puppy Day 58 (7/10/07)
Nothing yet. Her temp is bouncing between 99.6 and 100.0. Last night, she did try to build a nest under the deck. Of course, I wouldn't let her. I will check her temperature again tonight and post again. This is the part I don't like....the waiting at the end.

Wispen is in heat. How does anyone manage to breed cats? She is SOOOOOOO obnoxious! She caterwauls and rolls around on the floor 24-7/ I hope her bloodwork comes back normal so we can finally have her spayed.

Pre-Puppy Day 57 (7/9/07)
Now the fun begins! I have been taking Willow's temperature twice a day all weekend. She has been staying between 99.9 and 100.3. We are looking for a big drop to say 98/97. If she does what she did last year, she will let me know it's time before the temp drops. As of this morning, her back end had not become flacid. So she may go past day 59. Several people are hoping that is what she does, since Harry Potter comes out at midnight tomorrow.

As some of you know, I took Willow down to North Carolina to visit some friends for the weekend. We all knew the trip would be iffy this late in her pregnancy. We came home Saturday night, because she got grumpy with the other kids and refused to eat. As soon as we got home, she crashed on the floor and slept! Yesterday she slept all day! Willow has also gotten her appetite back.

Amber is on her way here - YEAH!!!!!!!! I'll be happy to have the help with the babies. There are definitely 9 puppies. The doctor said there could be a 10th hidden but she really didn't think so. She also admitted that Willow has fooled her before.

Willow is shadowing me today. She did not wake me up in the middle of the night. Adam did, wanting to watch cartoons at midnight - sheesh. I made him go back to bed and then I had to really coax Willow out of her den. She has been hanging out in the same spot she delivered last year. This is not were I want her to be, but I may not get the choice. I will probably write more later as we are getting so close to puppy time!

AM: 100.0

Willow has been very droopy today. Everywhere I go, she follows and lays on the floor. She doesn't want to stand or sit, she has to be flat on the floor. He appetite has been good. She hasn't begged for food, but she eats when I feed her. I'm about to give her a little bit more food. He back end is finally starting to droop a bit. Her temperature is lowest so far - 99.6! I will take it again in a few hours and see if it goes back up or keeps going down.

PM: 99.6

Tonight I am having a girls night in. Amber is here and my friend Hillary is coming over for. We've got martini's and board games and someone to watch the kids. Not to worry...if her temperature continues to drop I will remain sober :-)

Woot! The new critter collars arrived today! Someone does make collars for marking the little ones.

Pre-Puppy Day 53 (7/5/07)
There are 9!

Pre-Puppy Day Day 48 (6/30/07)
Willow had an X-Ray done yesterday. The puppies are not all quite developed enough yet to get a count. So we go again on Thursday. Willow now weighs in at 74 pounds! She began this process at 57 pounds. Poor baby! She's just enormous! I starte to shave down her belly a little too short, hence the bald spots - oops :-) This morning, we really noticed her teats hanging. When she walks, the poor thing just waddles and looks a lot like a sow.
I looked at my records from last year and saw that Willow gave birth on day 59. Dogs can deliver anywhere from 59-65, so keep your fingers crossed. It could be as early as July 11!

Pre-Puppy Day 39 (6/21/07)
Willow's belly is 32" around! Last night about 1 hours after eating the quart of dog food, she was begging for more. So I gave her our leftover casserole. She ate ALL of it! James gave her about half which she devoured and then asked for more. I'm going to take her by the vet's office today to weigh her. Keep in mind she started at 60lbs.

Pre-Puppy Day 38 (6/20/07)
OMW (oh my word) - Willow just devoured 1 QUART of dog food! The poor baby! I've got her on a mult-vitamin from the vet to make sure she is getting everything she needs. I broke down and bought the expensive "raw diet" from the market for her. She LOVES it. I think it smells awful. The puppie's bones are almost done ossifying. So next Friday morning, we are getting an X-Ray done for our "count". Normally, I would have an ultrasound done, but the Internist in the area has moved away and the closest place is over an hour away. They are also considerably more expensive. We will just have to be satsified with the X-Ray.

I am still working on the new puppy room. I'm hoping to finish it up this weekend. I'm still worried that no matter what I do, she's gonna want to whelp in my room. Cross your fingers it's not on my bed. I just got a new matress.

Pre-Puppy Day 35 (6/17/07)
Willow has already got a swollen belly. That started a couple of weeks ago. She has managed to reach new heights of high-maintenance as well. Willow has sworn off dog food and demanding "real" food. So everyday I make her meals. They are usually stews of meat, veggies (carrots, broccoli, greens, etc.), and a starch (rice, pasta, potatoes). This has been popular until I tried to mix kibble into it. Not a hit. I've tried giving her eggs both raw and cooked - no go. I have even tried to give her cottage cheese which she loathes.

Last night I felt the first puppy movement. THe babies are small enough that the movement is fleeting, but it's there. Poor Willow just pants all the time. If you read last year's blog, you'll know how needy "her majesty" can get. We're there in a big way!

Pre-Puppy Day 5 (5/18/07)
We have returned from a successful trip to Maryland! I decided Monday morning to go ahead and head up to Maryland to start the breeding process. I was glad I did, because not 5 minutes passed after arriving and Willow and Creek tied. They tied 2 more times that day and 2 times on Wednesday. So the process begins. Puppies are expected around July 17th!