Say hello to Lilliy

The next morning we set out to a nearby farm to meet the newest member of our family. Much as we love and play with our baby boy, it was quite clear to us that Captain wanted some canine company. So as good parents, we went to get him one. After months of searching, we had finally come upon a litter of Westie pups in Scotland. Although Westies are common souvenirs in Scotland, its quite difficult to find them in locally. Most of the breeders are located in England so we were very happy when we found a KC registered breeder nearby. It was hard choosing a pup, but finally we did. Welcome to the family Lilly.

  

Quick weekend trip - Dunblane

Room with a view

A few weeks back we decided to cash in on their hotel points and take a trip down South to visit a very important potential family member. Our hotel of choice was the Hilton One tree Lodge in Dunblane. A far as views go, this one was a killer. Situated on a hilltop, this yellow stone building looked majestic. There was a wedding going on but we still found the service to be quite good. I am generally a bit iffy about pet friendly hotels because they have a very suspicious view about your pets. But this one was not so bad. there were enough grounds for Captain to stretch his legs. Of course there was one moment of fraught tension when my husband decided to use the front entrance instead of the rear with Captain in tow. The bride wearing a confection in white was guzzling away on champagne in a corner while a couple of kilted best men were blocking our way into the corridor. Captain tired of waiting decided to give a tiny piss of joy. It was pure reflex action on my part which saved the brides train from smelling of dog pee the whole night. Phew.

Blue for the boy

My baby is a well travelled pup and has a bit of a fetish for campy travelling bags. His tote of choice is the navy blue Panam bag, big enough for his toys, leashes, food bowls and meals; strong enough to withstand the rough and tumble of airport security.

Cuddle sesh with mommy

Captain approved bedding

If you have a pet with you the hotel always gives you rooms on the ground floor so that its easy to take your pets out for walks without disturbing the other guests. This is very effective if your dog has a leaky bladder but Captain takes after his mom. Both of us are not early morning risers and we take solid food only after 10 o'clock in the morning. I mean in a pinch we can be up at crack of dawn, but its not worth doing it unless you need to catch a train/plane right. After exploring the hotel grounds, our family of three settled down for some room service and TV watching. We caught up with The Big Bang and a late night movie, Tokyo Drift to be exact. Was it only me or were there others who grooved to the annoying TD soundtrack in clubs a couple of years back?

Yup, the kids a couch potato all right

Room service was very good, and along with a very tasty burger and choice of glossies, you also get warm chocolate cookies when you check in. Perfect for a night in.

The hotel also has a very good spa and a swimming pool if you feel like taking a quick dip. Other amenities include breakfast buffet (okaish, for me nothing beats the American breakfast buffet in Hilton Orlando), bar and a cozy siting area out front, a hybrid of Scottish/country. Very comfortable though with an amazing view down the grounds. All in all, very enjoyable.

beach day

For some a day on the beach translates into sun, sea and sunscreen lotion. With cocktails. For me its warm waterproof jacket, wellies, hand gloves, wollen scarf and doggie stuff which ranges form poo bags and poo scooper to extendable leash and harness.

Newburgh or Forvie beach as its locally known is a popular place for seal spotting. During low tide, on a clear day you could see hundreds of seals sunning themselves in the warm sunlight. Of course the wind is at xtimes mph, but if you are bundled up enough and a dog person then maybe just maybe you would be willing to rough it up once in a while. 

In the beginning I used to feel a bit ambivalent about spending weekends on what I saw as natures pursuits. Ideally for me a weekend signalled brunch, followed by a movie. Or a good mall trawl followed by coffee. The idea is to sit smug, gloat at your purchases and secretly congratulate self on managing the whole time on most uncomfortable pair of heels. But I think I am slowly warming up to this new kind of weekend outings. Albeit with a bit of red lipstick. I mean you can't get a girl to let go her heels and makeup at the same time do you?   

The pooch cut

After my less than stellar experience with my hair cut I was quite apprehensive about any kind of grooming with scissors. Especially if they were to get near my canine son, Captain. At eight months old, my little bundle was all about the au natural look. But as he started growing up, his body hair became more dense and it was quite a task to give him his daily brushing. Very soon it came to our attention that the boy was having a major Beiber problem, too much hair action, which I suspected, obstructed his black and white vision considerably.

Plus his vet informed me, that trapped moisture in his shaggy coat could lead to infection and skin problems. And so the search began to find a good dog groomer. And let me tell you one thing, they are in short supply. Another thing that I would have considered as a profession had I known how much in demand it is. Even in a sluggish economy like the Brits. Finally cornered down one who came highly recommended and called to fix an appointment for the weekend. Got an appointment for a month later, on a working day at 9.30 in the morning, in a town 20 miles away. Turns out come Spring, all doggy owners get their pooches shampooed, trimmed and cologned for Spring. As a new mama, I was way behind schedule.

Finally the D day arrived, office leaves arranged, alarms set, doggy walks taken to prevent pooping pasties at the groomers and we were off. Once we reached V.I.P. which stands for Very.Important.Pooches. run by a lovely lady with whom I have chatted endlessly, who knows my name but I don’t know hers, I was asked about what cut I wanted.  Out came the google image of a cute dog with what I considered the best cut. Fluffy enough to look like a teddy bear with no vision compromise. But it turns out that Captain’s reluctance to get brushed coupled with my scissor happy fingers had made him patchy in some places along with the problem of his severely matted undercoat. With the male partner completely at sea with all this hair talk, it was up to the lady to take a call. And take a call I did. Off went the coat with all the matted bits and in came a dapper new young fellow with a spring in his steps. And with his scarf he looks like Dev Anand circa Guide. No?