Why “NorseGaels”??

… NorseGaels?

The name was chosen for our kennel because of both myself, my husband, and our children.

The name NorseGaels is actually a group of people that were Gaelic with new heavy Norse settlements. So much so that they became both Nordic and Gaelic people.

I come from recent immigrants from Norway and Sweden (hence the Norse) and my husband’s ancestry is predominantly Scottish and Irish (who were Gaelic, hence the Gaels in our name).

In this name the geek level is intense because our children are blended from our two heritages just as the people on the Isles who are Norse-Gaels. Even though neither of us have stepped foot on the homelands, the homelands are carried in us, our children, and now in our kennel name.

As I’m sure you all have gathered by now, I am a big time nerd… in a lot of things, not just Newfies. :)

Heritage is a part of who we are, its our genetics, and I LOVE to see people embracing true heritage and sharing it with all around them.

I love that there are so many different cultures here in the US!

It’s like walking through a meadow of wildflowers and the flowers in full bloom have embraced their heritage and are shining for all to see and bloom with them.

I love the most to hear music from all cultures, especially ancient music! It pierces the soul and lights an old forgotten part deep inside.

Most stories told are full of heartache, but I still want to listen to stories from people who were always here and those who are here from all over the earth. Stories hold a fascination, a way to see all the many paths that were taken to get us to this same place.

Listening to others is like gaining a new pair of eyes. You get to see what others see and how they see it. It is truly beautiful to step out of your own life and listen and see how the world sings and looks through the eyes of another human being.

I hope you all can gather from this my true love of genuine people and how I want to dance and sing in my heritage along side all others in their beautiful heritages too.

I love this meadow of wildflowers, beautifully swaying in wind blown by the singing of ancient songs that have always filled the air with their beauty.

Three weeks old now…

The puppies are growing really well and are SOOOO cute!!

Everyone who sees them HAS to hold them and snuggle them!

Their eyes are open now and they are walking all over the place!

There is nothing cuter than little chubby puppies waddling around as they learn how to use those little stubby legs!

They are all so chill and cuddly! Real snuggle bugs! Every one of them will just sit with you and snuggle for as long as you let them.

I cant wait to see how they turn out as they grow up!!

Puppies are here!!

Meija had her puppies early! The kids and I came home (we ran out real quick for 20 mins) to find that Meija had had her first puppy under our giant Spanish Broom bush!!

Meija dug out a huge space underneath the bush for the “perfect” whelping pen and she was laying in it with her first puppy laying right there along side her!! She wasn’t due for two more days so the watch was on but not 24/7 yet.

We moved her to the whelping pen with her puppy and over the next few hours she delivered her seven puppies.

She had one Landseer colored male, one black female with white, and the rest are perfectly jet black!

Summer is best spent at the lake…

We had a blast swimming in the lake over the weekend!

Fergus and Laijla were swimming all over which was impressive because the edge of this lake wasn’t sand it was rocks, some zero entrance spots but then also drop offs close to the waters edge. That can be really scary for a dog to be running in the water and then just drop below the water and have to bob back up and swim! These two didn’t miss a beat and swam their hearts out! I’m SO proud of them!! Laijla went out first and dropped off the water’s edge, disappeared under water, bobbed back up, and swam to me. She then ran off it again. :D She clearly loved this plummeting feeling and swam all over! Fergus was playing with the kids and didn’t see her discovery but handled the drop off and dunk very calmly and swam and ran around the rocky edge for hours till they both finally were too tired to swim and slept on the rocks while we humans cliff dived into the lake water.

Being puppies still their recall wasn’t 100% in the slightest but they did really try their best to listen… its just so hard when other people are playing in the water too, Newfies HAVE to always go over and say hi to the smallest humans first and then the adults too.

Laijla was also coming into heat for her first time and was much harder to convince to not go see all the other male dogs around.

But no adventure is without it’s stubbed toe. :)

This really was a memorable day that I hope to have many many more like it.

(We didn’t take Meija since she is due any day now. Fergus and Laijla are 6 months old now!)

Into the forest…

It was a nice day so we decided to drive a few minutes to hike in the mountains. 

Walking two puppies and an adult Meija who were all WAY too excited to get off the homestead and go on an adventure was no small feat! 

(As we go more often they will settle into the routine) 

Being in nature is so peaceful for the soul.

I took my children on a trail we really like.  My oldest managed Laijla and I managed Fergus and Meija. It is so helpful to have kids that are big enough they can help out. The trail started out nice with a lot of patchy snow but quickly turned into a bunch of snow and ice packed pathway. 

The dogs were in Heaven! They love the snow and forest trails. It is just as much of an adventure to them as it is for us. Our Newfoundlands love to go exploring with the kids and smell the forest floor and climb in the snow piled up off trail. Nature is a place they truly love as well. I also love to send dogs with my kids as they go off to explore. Mainly for two reasons… One, I love that our dogs are concerned for our children’s well being (not getting lost) and want to tag along to watch over them as they play, but they also are just as big of adventure buddies that they want to see what’s behind those boulders and trees just as much as anyone else does! Second, I send the children off with dogs because a forest is the home for many wildlife. I want to know my children are in safe hands as they run through the meadows and climb up to the mountainside. Newfoundlands give me the peace of mind that my children are safe and having fun without them being wild dogs just waiting to ditch the kids.

Slipping and sliding all the way back down the trail we went. This trail has huge rock formations in the forest and they are one of my kids favorite things to climb.  I love the rock formations because they remind me of Scandinavia and that makes me smile.  I can breathe deep and calmly in these forests.  The thick forests have always been a magical place for my soul for as long as I can remember I have always had a deep connection to them.  Nature is the deepest part of me and it always touches my heart in the way I need it to most.  The forest is the only place I have ever felt at home.  I love that it is constantly changing yet still somehow the same.  There is a peace there walking under those trees that you don’t find anywhere else.

These trips are ones our family and loves to take.  We all love to stretch our legs and explore the forests.  I can't wait for the spring runoff!  When the rivers run full and we can play in the pools of water they make as the air warms again.  The dogs will have SO much fun when everything melts and the water is back to swim in. Till then they are enjoying their favorite season of the year and romping around in the snow like kids with pockets of change in the candy store.

Happy New Year!

I think a few of us may have partied a little too hard last night…

The puppies are growing up so fast! I love how they are basically living rugs!

Newfoundlands are a low energy breed, they are up for adventures but in the meantime they are most often little fluffy rugs… even at this age!

They love to play in spurts and are amazing camping/hiking/adventure buddies for the average person’s lifestyle. Our dogs are very smart and quick to train.

I personally love that Newfoundlands are usually sleeping some place in my house and/or snuggled up with my kids rather than running tirelessly around destroying everything looking for mental/physical stimulation that many other breeds of dogs do.

Merry Christmas!

Some homes have perfectly placed and wrapped presents…

…we have Newfie puppies!

They LOVE the Christmas tree!

The puppies climb under the Christmas tree, drink the water, and sleep soundly tucked under it’s branches.

I don’t know why they love this SO much but they do. Its super adorable to watch them all pile up together under the tree and nap.

They have managed to topple the tree so its rather tattered now and all the ordainments are down, but that’s ok… If we were too house proud we would not have these wonderful dogs in our lives!

The tree is just a tree.

Their cuteness is the stuff true memories are made of.

Set up for success

We as a kennel do our best to set up each puppy to succeed in life and will work with each one to fit the specific needs each owner has for them.

This litter we have puppies going to homes where a few will be potential show dogs, a service dog, and a water rescue career.

I am SO excited for these puppies futures!

This week we will be starting the first steps in early training of the puppies.

Four puppies will be learning a few first steps in “stacking” for show ring prep.

The service puppy is wearing a harness now and we will help him get use to how that feels to walk and sleep in.

All of the puppies will continue water exposure to insure the foundation of confidence in swimming.

Basic obedience won’t start yet, but we are starting to work on the idea of come.

*** We do not guarantee that any of these puppies will be fully trained. Instead we are laying the ground work for you to build on for greatest success with your puppies.

Forts, Blankets, and Puppies

Our kids have just finished school for the semester and we all decided a “party” was in order.

This time I’m playing too and as The Norsk Queen of the Land I have instigated a siege on my lowly peasants.

Puppies are fed, washed, and dry. The kids have cleaned up and constructed their mighty fortresses. Many blankets and pillows were sacrificed in this mighty war between kingdoms. Armies fought bravely, those who fell did so with honor and their stories will be sung and names will be immortalized in ancient sagas. Today they have made our ancestors proud. Even Fenrir would have not conquered in this war.

:D

Most people would call what we did an at home pizza party with a pillow fight, blanket forts, and puppies … but to us it was much more of a mythical/magical adventure.

When your mother is Norsk descent and your father is Scottish descent your child-play is far more Viking-like than the averaged child’s imagination.

Puppies start solid food

Here’s what's new...

Puppies started solid (more like mushy) foods! We also have added a tote lid with dirt on it into the whelping pen. These are our first steps towards potty training. The dirt has wet paper towels from their pee and that helps them smell where to pee and poop and start learning that dirt=potty and soft=sleep. Newfoundlands are very clean when it comes to potty. They love to be "earth dirty", like mud, sand, water but they hate to be potty dirty. They are old enough now that they are trying to poop where they don't sleep, so this dirt method is helping them to understand where poop goes.

The level of potty training our puppies will have varies by just how much each pup wants to poop in the dirt and not his bed space. Our pups will never be 100% potty trained but each will at least understand this concept of no poop on blankets. :)

Potty training will still take time and patience, but why not start it a soon as possible right?

Water exposure exercises

All the puppies did some swimming (in our warm tub) today for water exposure exercises! I love water and love how these pups take to it as if they have always been swimming. Meija’s pups are SUPER comfortable in the water! I’m so glad! Makes me proud! We let them wander around the tub till they start to look board and then pull them out. Getting pulled out of the tub some of them will actually cry. They cry a few times and then get over it. They also enjoy the post bath tub snuggling on the couch while we dry them off. This is the part my kids LOVE. We start a movie and each child will hold puppies on their laps and dry them up. Once pups are dry the kids ditch the towels and snuggle in. The puppies love to be snuggled up and cuddled with kids is perfect for them! I love the little blanket forts and hiding spots the kids make and bring the puppies into to snuggle with them while they watch a movie. It warms my heart to see and is great learning experiences for little puppies.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CI4fVHdhraZ/?utm_source=ig_webcopylink <- click here to see a puppy swimming video

Puppies are here!

Meija had a litter of 7 puppies this morning!! I’m really glad I slept the night by her whelping box because her first puppy was born at 4 am!

She has six males and one female! So many boys. Two of the boys are a lovely Landseer pattern. Meija has been really attentive to her puppies.

Now comes the next two weeks of sleepless nights… Someone will be awake with Meija and her puppies 24/7 till the pups are roughly two weeks old. Until then the puppies are at risk of getting stepped on. Meija is a careful mama and is extremely aware of where she puts her body. My kids and myself will be taking shifts so we don’t all go crazy with lack of sleep.

:D Wish us luck! Ønsk meg lykke til! Det går så bra, skal du se!

Our homestead runs as an “all hands on deck” and so does our kennel. Our children are seriously living the best childhood! Who wouldn’t want the job title of “full time puppy snuggler”, I mean, right?!