dogs – Page 6 – Karla's Cottage

Painting a cement floor entryway

cottage, dogs, Dorkies (Yorkshire Terrriers), how-to projects, Kitchen remodel, paintings

By Karla Nathan / June 2, 2021

Years ago, I covered my steps in mosaic, on a whim. Not much planning went into it, and very little skill. My dad was ill, I was waiting to hear his diagnosis, and needed a big project where my fingers were busy, but my mind could wander. I didn’t have a design or the right supplies on hand, I just used what I had, and then had to make runs for more marbles and squares to complete what I’d started.

My dad was a lifelong gardener, and I think the abstract vine pattern just sorta formed itself while thinking of him.

Luckily, it hasn’t fallen apart, at least not too much. Even though it wasn’t done correctly. There are a few tiny cracks in some tiles, and a couple marbles popped out, and were glued back in.
The 100+ year old cement floor by it also had some issues. The paint on it had started to peel.

So I thoroughly scrubbed the floor and while I was at it, I went after the steps with a brush and vinegar and got the tiles to sparkle again. Then, I added a big scoop of plaster of Paris into some exterior latex paint and repainted the floor.

That gives the paint some “tooth” help it adhere to the cement.

I hope that it works, because I got carried away and started to paint vines on the floor to coordinate with the steps. That won’t be an easy patch job if the paint wears off, it will need a total redo.

We are not able to use rugs on the floor here because of this critter, Dorothy happily tinkles on any rug she sees, thinking I generously supplied her with a pee pad.

My design makes this into kind of a painted, pee proof rug.

Yep, I know it’s pretty busy. Especially when you add in the hand painted roses on the wall. But it is a very small space and not visible from the rest of the house.

(by the way, there is only a small window of time when the hooks are not layered four deep in jackets, backpacks, hats, leashes and more, I just did spring cleaning and the re-piling up has not yet begun)

After the vines dried, I brushed on a brown glaze and wiped it off, let that dry and coated the floor with semi gloss Polycrylic. I’d rather have used a stronger topcoat but I was worried about the odor and my baby puppies. So, I stayed with water based.

Fingers crossed that the paint lasts a few years!

Puppy Portraits

dogs, Goldendoodle Puppies, paintings

By Karla Nathan / May 30, 2021

Last year, when Honey had 8, look-a-like pups, I did diagrams of them so I could learn their markings and try to figure out how to tell them apart.
The diagrams were used for watercolor paintings and I ended up putting them into their puppy books. I didn’t have time to do Sugar’s litter then because, well, 16 pups kept me hopping.

All 16 got baby books, and I am doing that again for the latest litter. I also thought it would be nice to paint the little guys, but 9 pups is still quite a few to do, so I found a shortcut, with my friend, Beth’s help.

When I did the previous paintings, I’d posted a picture of one of the drawings on Instagram. Beth saved the photo and printed multiples for me on watercolor paper. Ta-dah! What a great shortcut! I was able to start painting the drawings with help from photos I’d taken of the dog’s markings.

I used acrylics instead of watercolor, so I could make adjustments and cover up lines when needed to change the pup’s appearance a bit. Basically, they look a lot as tiny babies, but there are more differences than just color and markings. This little black one has a more narrow face and was thinner.

Four done, five to go. It is nice to have the drawings on my art table, ready to work on when I get a chance. It’s a slight cheat, but hey, it’s a copy of my own drawing, so not a big cheat, right?

I’ll leave you with some of the latest pictures of my babies. We still have four boys available if you are looking for a new family member.

I ❤️ Puppies

dogs, Goldendoodle Puppies

By Karla Nathan / May 15, 2021

Ta-dah! A puppy heart!

And a puppy Oreo?

We got carried away.

Beth, Karla, and I started out with line ups, trying to pet sleepy puppies into oblivion so they could be placed in a row and not wriggle around waking each other up and messing with our design.

First was just the girls.

Then the boys.

And then, ALL of the babies were put in a row. That is an accomplishment.

I was pretty pleased with the heart, too.

Afterwards, we tucked them back into their nest and left them to snuggle up on their own.

Karla looked over and noticed they had formed a heart all by themselves!

I said that they are very smart dogs and learned tricks quickly. Plus, they had excellent trainers.

The importance of finding time to create and just enjoy yourself

Corona virus, dogs, Goldendoodle Puppies, paintings

By Karla Nathan / May 12, 2021

Sugar’s puppies have been so easy to are for, that apart from keeping Shuggie fed and getting some cuddle time with the babies, I have been pretty much free.

They don’t keep me up at night, she keeps them perfectly cared for.

There has even been time to get the baby books done and completely updated. One litter at a time, is certainly the way to go! I was frazzled and exhausted last fall with two at once.

Plus, Honey tends to lay on or step on her babies and I was constantly responding to terrified squeaks from puppies in danger. Sugar is very gentle and these little sweeties have been a pure joy to have around.

In addition to the last round of pups needing more care, it was in the middle of a major puppy shortage and I was getting dozens of applications for a baby every day. I was overwhelmed and not ready for such a huge response.

That made me decide to slow things down with these guys. I haven’t actively marketed them yet. I wanted a week of enjoying them as newborns and learning to tell them apart from each other before FaceTiming so many people a day, it is nice just to be with them, not try to sell them.

It has been an ideal interlude, a time to relax and just be happy to have these new, little lives to love.

And I have had time to host some paint pour parties. The paintings above are all done by the participants.

This is one of mine.

So is this one. Acrylic pouring is such a relaxing craft.

Typically, when I paint, I get too detailed, like in the rose behind these landscapes. I decided to try pours to loosen up and get more abstract. It’s not only been good for my style, it has been good for my soul.

Following the paint as it swirls and glides around the canvas can be rewarding and zen like.

Watching family and friends create is every bit as refreshing as doing it myself. I love sharing the technique and watching their colors slide around to form arty creations. Fin and I did this one together.

My friend, Shanna did these two.

Friends are coming by today to see the pups and have a craft date. Soon the puppies will become more demanding, I’ll be training and caring for them more each day. I’ll be finding their new homes, interviewing families too. And I love doing that.

But this last week, when they are all still just mine, not anyone else’s? It has been just what I needed. And thank you to everyone who came for a craft day or to paint with me in the last couple of weeks, I sure have enjoyed it.

There is more to Florida than beaches, seafood, and amusement parks?

dogs, flowers, Travel

By Karla Nathan / April 14, 2021

Usually, when I go to Florida, it’s either beaches, Harry Potterworld, or Disney. And I go to lots of seafood restaurants. On this visit, I saw more of the inner parts of the state, but I did make drives to the beaches on most days, and still ate more than my fair share of seafood.

Our plans changed and our trip was delayed because we got our Covid vaccines, a happy reason to reschedule. But because of that, I couldn’t book the best camp spots we wanted and had to make the best of it since the reservations were last minute.

We accidentally stayed AN HOUR from the beach in Bradenton. It was a great KOA, but much further away from the water than I wanted to be.

We were in the heartland, and the campground felt almost like we were back home in Kansas. I guess I didn’t realize just how large Bradenton was, and only thought of it as a gulf town. (Maybe I should’ve looked at the map, huh?)

Hunsader Farms had a lot to offer, even if it wasn’t what I had thought I was getting.

I have to admit, that I was a tad bit cranky when I realized exactly how isolated the place was when we arrived. But after hanging out, it grew on me.

There was a U Pick Em zinnia field and strawberry patch, and I not only got to eat juicy berries to my hearts content, and fill the camper with fresh flowers, I was able to walk the dogs to the colorful field and get some portraits of them.

It really was pretty there. Once I let myself enjoy it and stop being resentful about my booking mistake, I was glad to be there.

We even found a seafood tiki bar nearby on the water.

It was a lake, not my beloved ocean, but the place was delicious and fun.

Plus an hour to get to Point of Rocks at Siesta Key is much better than 20 hours from Kansas.

And we weren’t any further from one of the best off leash dog beaches I’d ever been to.

We all loved that leg of our journey.

Family photos with dogs

dogs, family, Travel

By Karla Nathan / April 8, 2021

On the way back from Florida, we made multiple stops to see family. One was in Indiana and I got to see not only my own fam, but Sugar’s baby too. She lives with my niece, JoRenda.

At first, I tried to get a selfie with her.

This is about the best one, it was windy, she was wiggly.

So, I handed my camera over to someone else, and kinda got a pic of us together, but that girl was curious about her doggie family and they were all ready to play, so we let them run together.

After they tired themselves out, we tried again.

It took a few snaps…

Then, ta-dah! All mostly posed. But all were very pretty, even though it’s hard to get a picture of a black dog in a shadow.

Lighter ones are easier. Which is too bad, because I think it hurts the sales of the black pups, even though in person, they are gorgeous dogs and people stop me on the street to tell me how striking Shuggie is.

Sometimes, when the lighting is right, you can see her pretty face in a photo.

Mostly, she just seems to be a black blob.

Her daughter, Ryder, is a pretty girl too. She still has her fluffy, puppy hair, and it was as soft as it was when she was tiny. And she is every bit as sweet as she was then.
At just a few weeks old, she was a dog who didn’t care for humans much. But when you get one like that, you need to reassure them that human touch means LOVE. I gave her so much extra attention, and carried her in a sling with me as I swept floors. It seems to have paid off, she is a cuddler, and a very loving girl.

While the dogs over took most of our vacation, it wasn’t 100% about them, like they thought it was. Having sister time was sooo nice.

Farewell, Florida! Seashells at St Augustine Beaches

dogs, fairies, sea shell fairies, Travel

By Karla Nathan / March 30, 2021

We sure enjoyed the St Augustine beaches!

We were able to drive on the sand, and could haul a day’s worth of tents, dog kennels, chairs, etc. so we had everything we needed with us.

With three dogs, we couldn’t have carried it all and managed them too. At other beaches we chose to take the pups for long walks then leave. Being able to have a vehicle near where we wanted to hang for the day completely changed how we could spend the days.

Oh, those dogs still got plenty of walking, too. And we had all the comforts and shade we needed to enjoy our books in the sea air. We had lots of time for relaxing and making seashell fairies!

Is it the dogs’ vacation or mine?

dogs, Goldendoodle Puppies, Travel

By Karla Nathan / March 25, 2021

My girls love the dog beaches.

Especially the puppy.

The off leash parks are the faves of all of us.

Of course I have never met a beach I didn’t like. But I have to admit that Jupiter’s off leash beach is ranked up there with Siesta Key as a perfect destination.

The seashell fairy ingredients are abundant!

Rockin rocks

dogs, family, sea shell fairies

By Karla Nathan / March 17, 2021

A bird shaped rock! Isn’t it cool? Well, the front is head, back and wing shaped, the tail part is a second rock and they just kind of slid together perfectly to create a bird.

I was so excited to see it on the shore of our lake.

Then I found a dinner plate sized heart rock with a hag stone hole in it. This was my lucky day.

And a beautiful day at that.

A great afternoon for the trails around the lake.

The dogs thought it was their lucky day too.

A little cabin in the woods

Corona virus, cottage, Current Affairs, dogs, family

By Karla Nathan / February 21, 2021

It has been a long, cold week here in Kansas, as it has been in a large part of the country. We were only without power for a few hours, and our pipes froze up until we (meaning Rich) tucked a tarp around the bushes in front of where the pump goes into the basement.

My heart goes out to the Texans who went through much worse.

We built a big fire, piled our dogs and blankets on our laps and were just fine. When we heard the weather forecast of bone chilling cold and about the possibility of rolling black outs to protect the grid, we did what we could to protect ourselves and pets.

I charged all of our devices and extra power packs, filled the bath tubs with water to use for flushing, and Rich brought some five gallon water bottles in from the garage. We had plans in place if things got worse, but never needed to start hanging tarps up in the hearth room or lighting candles in terra cotta pots for extra warmth.

Our dogs were very excited to see that the hens came to live in the basement for about a week or so during the coldest stretch. And the cats were happy to be tucked into the hen house with all of the warmers and heated water out there, plus a cozy, insulated little box full of cushions to snuggle up in. While I was not quite as happy about chickens as house pets with hay tracked all over the kitchen from Rich’s boots and the dog’s feet, I was glad to know they were safe.

And that they didn’t really smell that bad. Just a tad of a whiff now and then.

But I did enjoy hearing their chatter and singing coming up through the vents.

We did just fine, and I hope you are okay too? Days like that can sure make you appreciate what you have, huh? And remind me that I am blessed.

That we have a cute long cabin just for fun, and not as our actual shelter.

Well, it is fun to have it now. It was not an easy thing to build. Maybe emotionally as much as physically for Rich.

Chopping, hauling, and stacking the logs, coming up with the design and crafting the building throughout a long, hot summer was his way of working through the pain of losing our son. I think a lot of tears mixed with the sweat of the hard work.

The project was mostly completed before winter came. He still needs to gather fieldstone to enclose the chimney and is waiting for the logs to settle before chinking between them.
The fireplace is functional, but not usable yet because of all the gaps between logs, the draft pulls too much smoke through the interior.

See what I mean about drafts?

For now, it is a little garage for our mower. Later on, he will build a table from some wood leftover out of our grandfather tree (a special oak that he used to tell stories to the grandfairies beneath. It fell over and was used to make our dining room table and dog crate) and add a hammock too.