it's that time of year

it's that time of year

a middle tennessee garden blog


finding beauty in the natural things around us makes for one happy self and a lovely life. ~marmee

dash home farm, leiper's fork, tennessee

Thursday, April 9, 2009

bringer of joy

chien de montagne des pyrenees/ great pyrenees mountain dog
meet beatrice, our new puppy.
beatrice is a french name meaning happy, bringer of joy.
abbey is loving her.
soaking up the sun with jesse and abbey.
maggie and bronte' getting used to the new resident.
today was one of those beautifully perfect days.
the weather was the best. sunny, cool with the winds blowing.

we have been doing some research on these gentle giants.
they make great livestock guardians...for sheep, cattle, and fowl.
they are loyal and fiercely devoted to family.
they are great around children if raised with them from puppy hood.
they are quite serious dogs with an intelligent look in their expression.
she will be at least 80 lbs.
right now she resembles a bear.
most likely she will lose all her colouring and be pure white with a black nose.
bronte' jane and buster brown after chasing the frisbee.

we bought her from windy acres farm.
some farmers that are coming the leiper's fork farmers market.


this is the second time the market has been out in leiper's fork.
it's going to take people a while to find it.
baby herbs plants for sale.
there was a lovely harpist playing .
beautiful hand made baskets abounding...of course fresh produce, eggs, & bread.
...and then of course there were puppies.






we are hoping the market here will catch on so the farmers and artists will keep coming.

32 comments:

Unknown said...

Oh, I want to go there! The photos of your children with the dogs are frame worthy! It does look like it was a beautiful day there!

Meems said...

Oh.My.Gracious. She is one adorable puppy. I bet the big brown dogs are happy to have a new playmate. I know Abbey is thrilled being the animal lover she is... just like her mom.

So happy to hear the weather was calm after the storm. We had that kind of day yesterday, too.

It's nice you have the choice of Farmer's Markets now... one right down the street with different things than the one in Franklin.
Meems @ Hoe and Shovel

Roses and Lilacs said...

How darling. My neighbors about two miles down the county road have Great Pyrenees. Very protective, calm giants. Many, many years ago I found my most beloved collie Heather for sale at a farmer's market. Good luck with your new pup.
Marnie

Betsy Banks Adams said...

Oh My Goodness Marmee.... Beatrice is adorable. AND--she'll be 80 pounds???? WOW---a BIG one!!!!! But--right now, she's just a cute puppy...

Congrats.

Happy Easter!
Hugs,
Betsy

Cheryl said...

Dear Marmee....the photographs are pure joy......the two things I love more than anything are children and dogs......
Abbey looks so relaxed with the little one.....
I know this breed, they are beautiful dogs and as you so rightly say, very loyal to those it loves....you have made a wonderful choice for you and your family....I see wonderful times ahead and look forward to seeing the young pup grow......

I just love your market.....it so reminds me of home.....it is kind you share so much with us all....thank you......

Gail said...

Marmee, She's precious. Really adorable. Abbey and she will be bonded and best friends for life. I want to know more about the market...will it be this Saturday...If the weather is decent I will be there! gail

Susie said...

That looks like such a neat market. Love the harp music. That is such a nice touch!

Your new puppy is adorable. What a big ball of fur. I thought this was the dog breed that gets gigantic.

Loved the photos Marmee.

cherry said...

can I come play ???

beautiful market, beautiful day, beautiful children and a beautiful puppy ... Please
hugs, Cherry

Jayne said...

What a sweetie! She's adorable!

tina said...

She's SO pretty! A big ole fluff ball for sure.

Deb said...

Such beautiful photos. Beatrice is adorable! Happy Easter.

Lisa said...

These dogs are great. Our neighbor has one and he is so friendly. He is absolutely HUGE!

We are looking forward to our Farmer's Market starting up next month. We hope to have eggs to sell by then.

Lisa Q

Gail said...

Marmee, Just checking to see if all is well in your neighborhood? I saw that the storms passed over Leiper's Fork and I am hoping they just left rain. Gail

marmee said...

darla, anytime you are ever here come on over. thanks i will think about framing some. i have a floating gallery of family photos that i am always updating.
it was beautiful and now it is rainy and overcast.
have a wonderful easter.

marmee said...

yes meems another dog. i might just be a bit nuts. we plan on using her for protection for the sheep we are going to get. eventually we would like to have poultry too.
abbey is being a great little caretaker of this pup. she is sleeping on a makeshift bed on the floor to be next to her. i think they are bonding quite nicely.
this dog is very calm and passive.
we have had some rapid changes in our weather. spring is in full swing trying to flex her muscles.
it is great to have a choice but right now it is very small. dh is still going on saturdays to franklin f/m. he's there right now.
happy easter to you and all your family.
love and hugs.

marmee said...

marnie,

that is so cool you found your dog at a farmer's market.
i had being doing some research on what dogs were the best for keeping your farm animals safe yet got along with children, other pets, didn't want to chase cats, were very calm, and large. that's when all things pointed to the g/m/pyrenees. so dh came home and told me one of the farmer's at the market had a litter and they were ready to go home with families. the next week we went and picked our girl, beatrice out. so far everything is going great.
all the other dogs seem to have adjusted. of course abbey is loving having someone she can pay close attention to.
we will be having a large group for easter so let's see how she
will do with all the commotion.
hope you have a wonderful easter weekend.

marmee said...

besty, at least 80 lbs. but we like big dogs. she has to protect our future sheep from the bad guys so she has to be big.
happy easter to you and your family.

marmee said...

thank you dear cheryl,
that day was pure joy. i love that feeling of beauty, sun and having a wonderful family day.
we all just stayed outside for hours on a quilt talking and watching the puppy. it is priceless when those time happen.
we have seen this bred on other farms and after doing lots of research we were sure this was the one to add to our farm and family.
happy easter to you and your lovely family.

marmee said...

dear gail,
i am sorry i didn't get back here sooner to let you know the franklin market will be open this saturday but not the leiper's fork one. franklin is open every saturday from around 8 am to noon.
the leiper's fork market is every wednesday afternoon at 1 pm to 5 or 6 pm. i hope you are able to visit one or both.
abbey and beatrice are already becoming fast friends. the pup follows her everywhere.
hope you have a very happy easter.

marmee said...

susie,
you are right this breed is very large, 80 to over 100 lbs. but she has to be large to protect our future sheep and poultry. we need fencing to get the sheep and more info on raising our own chickens before we do those. this farm is a process and hopefully we won't get ahead of ourselves.
have a delightful easter.

marmee said...

cherry,

thank you so much it was all of that and more. it was a perfect day. thanks for visiting here at "things i love."
happy easter to you.

marmee said...

jayne,
we are falling for her hard, she is gentle and sweet.
have a wonderful easter holiday.

marmee said...

tina,
yes a fluffy ball of fur, indeed.
abbey and i bathed her and the hair is quite amazing. it dries quickly and is curly for a while. she looked a lot smaller while wet, that is for sure.
happy easter, tina.

marmee said...

deb,

happy easter to you. have a wonderful weekend.
thank you, beatrice is a great photography subject. especially when her and abbey are out there playing.

marmee said...

lisa,

hope to have eggs? are you living on a farm? we want to raise our own chics one day too.
we are really loving our new little (for a short while) puppy.
we know they get huge but they are protectors of the herds. so they have to be. next on our list is sheep.

marmee said...

gail,

thank you for checking on us here. we did weather the storm. it was pretty ify. abbey was a little frighten when the sirens just kept going off. but it was fairly rapid.
was all well with you?

arissamae said...

beatrice is lovely...makes me wanna hold her! so soft and cuddly looking...and sweet and smart too! i had heard you had a new pup - part of the easter talk yesterday - J&E have one too...i've missed checking out your blog, had to stop by and take a look, hope to be back more often! :o) happy easter! and may your spring be lovely!

joey said...

Beatrice is adorable, Marmee, and your photos ... wonderful!

CA Girl in 10-OC said...

OHHHH!!! You got one of those "Organic Puppies"! They were all sold by the time we got there. Did you get some of that honey? It is AMAZING! Our jar is almost gone already!!

marmee said...

arissamae,
i am so glad to hear from you. i thought you had fallen off the planet and couldn't get up. so glad you didn't. well at least my puppy made it's way into your hearts at the easter table. what kind is j & e new puppy>?
i hope you don't stay away so long. happy spring to you.

marmee said...

thank you joey, she is a wonderful puppy, calm and gentle.

marmee said...

ca girl,
oh i wish you had gotten one of the siblings...they could've played together. hope all is well in your corner of leiper's.
we will have to try the honey.