25th October
On the 28th October, it will be Jenna and her sibling’s 5th birthday so we organised a meet up at Runmoor dog park followed by lunch at the Post Inn at Whiddon down. They all had a lovely time playing with each other and it was ages since some of them had seen the others – Finn in particular.
In the last picture – from left to right are: Nellie, Gladys (Auntie), Morwenna (Auntie), Jenna, Iona, Harry, Finn.
20th September
This week we made another visit to the Canine dip and dive at Plympton with Kim and Talisa and Kyra. Morwenna was much braver this time and after some encouragement was jumping in of her own accord.
12th September
It’s been a busy couple of months – not so much for the girls as for us. Chris had 2 spells in hospital related to his stroke, including an operation, and although he is fine he is struggling more and definitely can’t walk both dogs – so we have managed to find a lovely dog walker to take the girls out if I am away.
The girls are still loving Exmouth – in particular the beach which they never seem to tire off. Jenna will swim while Morwenna will only paddle but I did manage to take Jenna into the water with me with the help of my friend Pip.
For Chris’ birthday we did a trip to Dartmouth using a GWR train to Paignton, the steam train to Kingswear and the ferry to Dartmouth. We had a lovely day, the weather was beautiful and the girls were very well behaved.
13th June
We went with Kim, Talisa and Kyra to the Canine dip and dive at Plympton to celebrate Talisa’s 13th birthday. The girls had a great time and we even persuaded Morwenna to go in.
2nd – 5th June
A slightly different week to what we planned but still an enjoyable time. Monday we travelled to Cornwall, stopping for a walk and coffee at Cardinham Woods near Bodmin. We stayed the night at the Old Success Inn at Sennen cove – one of our favourite pubs and beaches and then in a really nice flat in Penzance. A dead battery and a migraine meant we didn’t do the things we had planned but we still had a lovely time and as the flat was next to Penlee park we enjoyed pottering around there with the girls and stopping for coffee. On Thursday we went to Falmouth and had coffee in Fuel – another of our favourite dog friendly cafes where the girls got a whole bonio each.
April and May
On the 18th April we took Jenna and Morwenna to a Pop and Bark Golden Retriever cafe in Plymouth. We went to one in Taunton last year and they are always great fun. You pay for yourselves (and you can come even if you don’t have a dog but just want to spend time with them) and after the safety briefing, they secure the doors and the dogs are all let off the lead. Puppuchinos are provided and this time we had the Easter bunny. The company do them for all different breeds in different places. We met up with Kim (with Kyra and Talisa) and Judy (with Lily and Leo).
For Easter, Jenna and Morwenna suffered the indignity of rabbit ears and were rewarded with an Easter egg each.
1st – 3rd May we were away visiting friends in West Sussex and then family in Southampton. We couldn’t take the girls with us so Tracey from Paws and small claws came to live in and look after the girls. They had a wonderful time with her as always.
8th – 11th May we were away at a beautiful barn at Hartland, North Devon with Kim (plus Kyra and Talisa) and Jen and Pete (with Albert). The dogs had a run on Saunton Sands on the Thursday, then on Friday we went to Clovelly (a bit of a mistake there – I had forgotten how difficult it is to get down the cobbles – but we made it), then shopping at Affinity shopping centre near Bideford. On Saturday we went to Barnstaple while the others tried to find a waterfall – they didn’t get to it but did find a lovely tea room.
And finally (proud mum moment here) I went to London for Jack’s 3rd graduation – this time a Masters in Law and legal practice. We had a lovely time while Chris stayed at home to look after the girls.
April 5th
Not really much to report. Since we moved to Exmouth our daily walk is normally the beach (either by Orcome point or Sideshore) or across The Maer. We are travelling much shorter distances – mainly because we used to have to travel at least 10 miles to find somewhere we could let the dogs of the lead, so often went even further to try somewhere new. Also, because we have to go up to the M5 junction at Exeter to go most places, somehow that makes it seem like a longer journey, even though it isn’t.
The beach at Exmouth is such a delight that we haven’t yet tired of it and really, there is nothing to beat sitting having coffee overlooking the beach after the girls have played in and out of the water, and met lots of other dogs and people. There are quite a few dog walkers we see most days and that’s a real difference to where we used to walk when we lived in North Tawton. Morwenna never used to take much notice of other dogs but has become much more sociable since we moved.
7 – 9th February
This weekend we had our rescheduled New Year weekend (Kim was ill at Christmas so we postponed it) and, as usual, had a fabulous time. Sophie joined us this time so we were 6 people and 5 Golden Retrievers. Friday we walked the dogs in Phear park and on Saturday we walked to Exmouth, did some shopping and had lunch at Sea Dog art cafe. In the evening we had our gift exchange and doggy pass the parcel. We each buy everyone a present from a charity shop with a maximum price of £10 – £15 and you would be amazed what bargains there are. After opening the presents it was time for doggy pass the parcel which is always pure chaos because the dogs know that there are treats and toys inside.
January
I am currently updating the website to make it easier to navigate – for example by grouping walks and attractions; beaches; accommodation; pubs and cafes; and dog fields; by area so that for example you will be able to find all the information for East Devon under one heading. In the meantime, although we have tried some new walks and cafes I won’t be updating the current pages but the information will be on the new pages once they go live.
Despite the changeable weather we have had some good walks and some beautiful sunrises. We have tried a couple of new walks – Four Firs at Woodley Common and the Maer and more details on these will be on the East Devon walks and attractions page. We have also been quite a few times to Hangtime cafe which has outside benches and is popular with dog walkers and swimmers in the morning.
And on the 22nd, we met up with the girls: Talisa and Kyra (Kim’s), Gladys and Nellie (Sarah’s) and Iona (Patsy’s) for a run in two different fields at Charwell Dog adventures followed by lunch at the Manor House in Rilla Mill.
Goldies on tour 