Metamorphosis

The weather has been great recently and except for a bit of rain we have been enjoying bright sunny autumn days. Both the dogs and the turtles are catching all the rays they can at various sun spots around the house. I sometimes wonder if Jazz and Dixie haven't turned into lizards who are very content to lounge around in the sun for most of the day. In our previous apartment there was only one spot where they could enjoy the direct sunlight and for only a short time.

Daddy's taking us to the zoo today, zoo today...

Jazz was very curious about all the animals she saw especially this mass of guinea pigs!

Dixie was more interested in the smells coming from the animals especially the mountain goats! And if there had have been poop on the outside of the cages she would have rolled in it for sure!

Today was Culture day here in Japan and therefor a national holiday. Shin had the day off and as it was such a bright sunny day autumn day we decided to take the girls out somewhere. Shin found a small zoo not far from here that is free and allows dogs to enter. There was a mix of domestic and wild animals and birds but all seemed very used to people and even dogs. Jazz was very curious and more scared of some of the animals than they were of her. She looked intently at all the animals and chatted with a few. Dixie on the other hand was more interested in the smells coming from the different animals and had her nose stuck to the ground and hardly realised the animals producing those smells! The quality of these few pics is not that good as they were taken on my mobile, I left the camera in the car!!

Our Very Own Backyard

Jazz and Dixie have never had the luxary of their own backyard as up until now we have lived in apartments here in Tokyo but our recent move has changed all that. We have a back yard!!! At home in Australia its not unusual to have one but we have been extremely lucky to find a place here with such a big back yard. The grass needs to be replaced, which I intend to do in the spring but it is a nice open space for Jazz and Dixie to run around in. Usually when we come back from our morning walk we spend some time out there playing around. As you can see in the video here Jazz loves to play cat and mouse with Dixie. If Dixie didn't stop and let Jazz catch her there would be no way that Jazz could get her! There are also several spots now for Jazz to lie in the sun in the garden, on the balcony and by the sliding doors in all the rooms facing onto the backyard. Dixie is still too busy exploring and catching grasshoppers to crunch!! to take the time out to lie in the sun.

We are Back!!

WOW its been such a long time since I blogged I almost forgot my password and how to blog!! In that time away we moved to our new place which is fantastic as it big and has a huge back garden by Japan standards. Coming from a small one bedroom apartment to this house is taking us some time to get used to! We've been here about three weeks now and finally Dixie is starting to settle down and realise this is her new home. She was very nervous at first and was always on high alert but now we are starting to see some of the old Dixie. It was a much easier move for easy going Jazz who now has so many places to lie in the autumn sun that she is in paradise. About 10 minutes from our new place by car there is a forest park that is quite large and that has a great grassed picnic area. The weather on Sunday was wonderful so we made sandwiches and took them and the girls to the park. We are really enjoyiing these warm autumn days before the cold winter sets in. I still have stuff to unpack but think that can wait as I really want to be outside in the garden or out and about with the girls.

Jazz goes Fishing!

The last post I did about a month ago was about a new toy that Jazz (and Dixie) got. Well Jazz has learnt how to pull the string by herself to make the fish move. She just kept on pulling it until we took it away from her after having a good laugh. We are in the process of moving so I haven't really had that much time to post but just had to post this one!

A New Toy!

Yesterday we headed out to discover another of Tokyo's parks but when we got there we found that it had all been roped off in preparation for last night's fire works display. As we neared the park in the car they were doing a few practice runs with the fireworks and even from in the car Dixie freaked out so we drove a little further down the road and stopped in at Lala Port which is a shopping mall that has a part where dogs are allowed and also a small dog run. After a bit of a play around in the dog run Jazz and Dixie were more interested to check out the pet shop. There I found another cooling T-shirt for Jazz which matches Dixie's and also a new toy for the girls. It is a red sea bream (Tai in Japanese) and when you pull a string it vibrates. Well Jazz just loved it. Dixie might have too but Jazz was just not sharing! When she gets something she likes it is very hard for us to get it back from her and Dixie rarely challenges Jazz for it. Dixie usually just has to wait until Jazz has had enough. There are some toys at home that are predominantly Dixie's and Jazz doesn't show much interest in them so Dixie has her share of toys to play with, but as yet she hasn't had an opportunity to play with the Tai.

Koganei Park

Mmm that hamburger smells good Dad!

Please can we have some?

Today was another hot sunny day but luckily the wind was blowing. We set out to discover another of Tokyo's parks - Koganei Park - about 20kms from our house. It was another well established park with lots of big trees for shade and open spaces of green grass. They also had several dog runs but in this heat not many pups were there. Jazz and Dixie wore their cooling t-shirts and got wet down a few times so as to stay cool and enjoyed checking out the new park.

Tambara Lavendar Park

From left to right, Chura, Dixie, Jazz, Bell, Carla, Cookie,Chamame,Piero, Viola, Naki and Mimi.

On Saturday night we got a call from some friends of the beagle reunioun group that we got together with back in May asking us if we'd like to join them for a day outing to a lavendar park. We had nothing on for Sunday so we agreed that it sounded like a fun outing and set off quite early the next morning for a 160km trip out of Tokyo to Gunma prefecture. There was quite a bit of traffic and we needed to do a few stops along the way so we ended up getting to the lavendar park at 10.30ish. In winter this area is a ski resort but transfers to this wonderful colourful flower park in the summer. The lift up the ski slope was operating but we thought we wouldn't be able to take the girls on it so proceeded to walk up the steep slope with Jazz and Dixie out in front! Most of our beagle friends were already at the top so we ate brunch and then let all 11 beagles and one toy poodle out in the dog run there. What fun they had and what a spectacle for all the visitors to the park to see so many cute beagles out together. Dixie ran about like crazy with the cool green grass beneath her little feet and Jazz played ball with any ball that people were throwing around. Jazz also did a bit of jumping but try as we may we couldn't get Dixie to go over, just around! It started to rain a bit so we headed back down the slope with Dixie still right in front urging me on faster and faster till I thought I would fall and roll down behing them! At the bottom we assembled for some group photos in front of the flowerbeds but Jazz and Dixie unlike all the other beagles were not cooperating at all and in most of the pics they had their butts to the camera! Shin and I swapped positions and I was able to snap a couple were they were at least facing the camera. After that we drove on a further 23km to a dog cafe with beautifully manicured dog run. By now it was quite hot so I sprayed the girls down with water and we sat beneath sunumbrellas drinking iced drinks and eating cakes. We arrived home early evening and everyone was exhausted after a great day out.

Misumoto Park

I finished up summer school on Friday so after a week of not being able to spend that much time with the girls we decided to take them out this weekend. Yesterday we went to a great park on the other side of Tokyo. It was another huge park with lots of open green space and water with a dog run. However the grass in the dog run was knee high so we decided instead to walk around the park which was quite cool on a 30 degree day. A lot of children were playing in the water ways trying to catch tadpoles and small fish. Jazz and Dixie of course did not step foot in the water. We had lunch there and while throwing away our trash we noticed that one of the bins was for "pet" (actually in japanese it said PET bottles but they shortened it in English). We had another great day discovering one of the many parks around Tokyo.

Showa Memorial Park

Wow its been more than a month since I last blogged. A lot happened in that time with school ending, a trip home and Jazz being in season so we didn't go anywhere with the girls. Yesterday Shin drove us to a great huge park, Showa Memorial Park. We had to pay to enter but inside they had a great series of dog runs, beautiful gardens and lots of green grass!! Yes that's one thing I miss living in Tokyo - big open grassy spaces. The girls had a great time and made a few new friends in the dog run. We then sat out on one of the lawns for lunch and meet another couple with two beagles. We were lucky to beat the rain which set in just as we were leaving. It was nice to be back out exploring new places with the girls again.

Fun at Sakura Dog Run

Today Shin took the car in for its 6 month service and then drove us to Sakura Dog Run in Chiba. Jazz and Dixie really enjoy themselves at this dog run and today was no exception. It was a bit hot today so I soaked their cooling t-shirts in cool water and that made a big difference. There weren't many people there today so we basically had the back dog run to ourselves to play ball and sit in the shade with the girls.

We have been tagged by our beagle buddies over at Dughallmor Beagles so we thought we'd join in. We still have another tag to play about our sleeping positions and will post once we work out how to make a collage for the sleeping pics we have.

Here are the rules:

1. Link to the person who tagged you.

2. Copy the image, rules and questionnaire.

3. Post in your blog.

4. Answer the four questions.

5. Pick 7 friends to share with.

6. Come back to BLoGGiSTaiNFoCoRNeR and leave the URL of your post in order for your blog to be added to the master list.

7. Have fun.

Questions and answers:

1. The person who tagged you? Dughallmor Beagles

2. His or her site title and URL? Dughallmor Beagles

3. Date you were tagged? May 21, 2009

4. Persons you tagged? Cinnamon&Cookie, Noah, River, AO4 and Kess.

Happy 6th Birthday Jazz

Today Jazz celebrated her 6th birthday. I can't believe that its five and half years ago that we brought her home as a cute little puppy to our old apartment that did not allow pets! We moved shortly after getting Jazz and have been happily living with her and Dixie in our current apartment across from the park. The weather wasn't very good today so between rain showers I took the girls for a walk over to Jiyugaoka to the Three Dogs Bakery to buy Jazz a Birthday cake. They told me that the cake I wanted would take about 6 hours to thaw so I decided to go for chicken meat loaf and a smaller fresh cake instead. So for dinner Jazz and Dixie scoffed meat loaf and birthday cake!

Last Weekend

Yes a whole week has past since I meant to post these pictures! This week was super busy with report writing and parent teacher conferences but now that its all over for the year and there are only 3.5 weeks to go I can see the light at the end of the tunnel and can look forward to summer holidays! Anyway last weekend Shin found a new dog run about 2 hours out of Tokyo in a beautiful part of Nikko. This place is a Pet Resort where "animals always come first" and is set in a forest. Some parts have been cleared to make several dog runs. The grass was in need of a mow but we had the whole place to ourselves and the weather was beautiful (29 degrees). We had a picnic lunch and lay in the shade of some big trees. What a great discovery!

Family Reunion Third Day

The 5th of May was Children's Day in Japan, Dixie's Birthday and our last day of our great little weekend reunion! We had a great time catching up with everyone as we missed last year's reunion.

Carp windsocks are flown for Children's day.

Nana at breakfast in the pension.

Jazz and Dixie at breakfast in the pension.

Momo dressed as a bear.

All the beagles at Akarenga Pension from left to right; Poki, Beat, Momo, Momo, Bel, Piero, Veronique ,Cookie, Milk, Dixie (pink) Jazz (blue), Gonta and Nana.

Family Reunion Second Day

After breakfast the second morning we set out early to another nearby dairy farm so as beat the crowds lining up for icecreams. At 10am in the morning we were able to secure a delicious soft serve ice cream each. Jazz and Dixie also enjoyed a taste. Jazz and Dixie enjoyed running around like crazy with me in tow through the lush green grass. As last time Jazz freaked out when she saw the cows. She is so curious but can't bring herself to go near them and starts to spin around in circles!

Shin and I both nearly lost our whole icecreams to Jazz whose favourite food in the whole world is icecream!

It was safe to hand my icecream over to Dixie who just licked her share nicely.

Jazz's uncle Gonta and aunty Momo.

Momo, Milk and Cookie all waiting patiently for their icecream.


Jazz and Beat

For lunch we went to a soba noodle cafe with outdoor seating just perfect for our doggy companions. We were joined by two more beagles here, Piero and his new sister, Veronique.

Jazz eyeing the soba noodles

Jazz and Dixie sharing a soba noodle.

Piero

Piero's little sister Veronique and Bel

Jazz and Dixie looking not too pleased with all the posing for photos.

After lunch we drove to a near by lake and walked all around it with all 13 beagles! There were many "how cute" comments and many people asking if they were family etc. The beagles enjoyed all the attention and the good smells around the lake. After that we drove up into the mountains hoping to catch a glimpse of a still snow covered Mt Fuji but it was too cloudy! We stopped in a a souvenir place and bought some fresh milk for the girls. Then we headed down the mountain and back to the pension were after dinner we celebrated Dixie's 3rd Birthday and Poki and his sister Cookie's 2nd Birthday.

Trying to get a group shot with Dixie not really cooperating!
View across the lake to the mountains in the distance.

A beagle walk along the board walk.

Family Reunion First Day

Wow already a week has gone by and I am just now posting the pics from Jazz and Dixie's family reunion. Last Sunday we set out to early as we knew there would be a lot of holiday traffic. Surprisingly we made good time and arrived in time to have lunch with Beat (Jazz's brother), Momo and Poki, Bel, Momo and Milk and Cookie. After lunch we visited a local farm hoping to have an icecream made from farm fresh milk. Well everyone else had the same idea so we decided not to wait in the long long line but went to buy some other farm produce. After that we went for coffee at a cafe by a local lake before heading on to the pension we were staying at. They have a dog run out the back so Jazz and Dixie could play with some of their beagle relatives in there. We all rested before dinner in the pension dining room complete with all the beagles!

Momo, Beat and Poki

Momo, Bel, Dixie, Jazz, Momo, Beat and Poki.
Jazz and her brother Beat.

Poki and Beat at lake side cafe

Happy Birthday Dixie!

We just got back from a great weekend away for our Beagle Family Reunion and I have many photos to sort through before writing about what a great time we had and all the things we did. But I just had to do this post quickly as it is a very special day today - our little Dixie turned 3 today! We celebrated her birthday at the restaurant in our pension with 11 other beagles, a black lab and a papillion. Beat, Jazz's brother's mum ordered a cake for Dixie, her youngest beagle, Poki and his sister Cookie. We sang happy birthday and then the cake was cut and shared amongst all the guests. Being beagles the cake was gone in seconds!

Heiwa no Mori Park

Yesterday it poured with rain all day so we couldn't really take Jazz and Dixie anywhere. We decided we would take them to a pet shop and then Costco but everyone else in Tokyo had the same idea and the line to get into the car park at Costco was too long to wait in. This morning we decided to try again and this time there wasn't a line up. After getting a few things we headed to Heiwa no mori Park as it was close by and one our way home. We have never been there before and found that it was in fact a lovely green park that joined onto a water front park and man made beach. The dogs were not allowed on the beach but we enjoyed a walk in the lush, cool clover and had an icecream so the girls were very happy. Next weekend is a long weekend and we are going on a reunion trip to meet up with Jazz' litter brother, Beat and many other beagles some of which are related to both Jazz and Dixie. I am really looking forward to the break.

Prime Land Dog Run

Its been another busy week as I am rewriting our cirriculum at school and I had a friends wedding to attend on Sunday. We did however manage to get out to enjoy this great sping weather with the girls on Saturday. Shin found a new dog run about 55km out of Tokyo. It was made up of three small dog runs and a pool area. Jazz and Dixie were the only two in the main run but the neighbouring dog run was playing host to a Newfoundland meet with 11 big black pups! I thought Dixie would freak out especially when all the neighbours were barking but Jazz and Dixie remained very quiet and stuck right by me when we were near the fence. We didn't use the pool area as you had to pay extra and Jazz and Dixie would not have stepped one foot in the water! We played around with the ball for a while until I cleverly threw it over the fence and down into some farmers garden! It was non retrievable much to Jazz's disappointment. After that the girls didn't run about much so I used the opportunity to get some close ups and posing shots. It is very easy to take pictures of Jazz but a little more tricky with the ever moving Dixie!

A Fantastic Weekend!

Today we went in search of a small pond for my turtles. The first pet shop we went to didn't sell them so we headed off to another pet shop near Senzoku Pond. They didn't sell them either but we did end up buying new harnesses for the girls. Then we started to walk to the pond and found that they were still having a Hanami Matsuri (Spring Cherry Blossom Festival) and had all the usual festival food vendors set up all around the pond. We stopped and ate yakitori (skewered BBQ chicken) and yakisoba (noodles with cabbage, shrimp, ginger and seeweed) for lunch. The girls were very happy with the things they scored from the lunch table! While walking around Jazz and Dixie caught sight of the turtles and koi in the pond and were very curious! A typical festival game here is catching goldfish with a small scoop and being able to keep the fish you catch - well Jazz and Dixie thought they would really like a turn at that game. The woman in charge didn't look so happy when Dixie jumped up for a closer look! We didn't end up finding a pond for my turtles but we certainly had a nice time at Senzoku Pond. In the days before Shin and the girls I used to live near this oasis in the surburbs and walked around the pond every morning before going to work. Its a little far to walk there from where we live now so it was nice to drop in by car today.

On Saturday the weather was fantastic so we decided to head down towards the Shonan Peninsula to Dog Garden Resort in Fujisawa. The "resort" has a cafe terrace, dog run with fake grass and swimming pool and a pet shop. It was quite funny to see Jazz and Dixie jump up and into the pool as it was empty. Obviously they could smell there wasn't any water in it or they certainly would not have jumped right in. It was quite hot and Jazz and Dixie were not to interested in playing in the dog run so we went upstairs to the cafe terrace for lunch in the shade of a huge palm tree! After that we went for a walk along the beach before heading back to Tokyo.