Hey Mom and Dad! Pics from Columbus!

Pictures from Scott's football game!

Fall is here

It finally got cold here. Our high temperatures suddenly dropped to the 50s, and everyone is running around in winter coats suddenly! Chuck and Lenny spent a nice day in the woods yesterday, enjoying all of the foliage.

Mr. Ribs lives!

Despite Lenny's chewing, I salvaged our Halloween pumpkin and its skeleton design. (I just turned the pumpkin around.) So Mr. Ribs is back, and permanently housed outside.

Chuck's first review!

The review of last weekend's CIP concert will be published in tomorrow's Columbus Republic newspaper, but Chuck received an advance copy.
His performance of Rossini's La Gazza Ladra Overture was reviewed as follows:

"Assistant Conductor Charles Latshaw led the orchestra with precision and grace. The entire ensemble, including the brass, played for him with wonderful lightness, which made the dramatic crescendos rewarding and exciting. The performance combined stateliness with touches of humor."

Congratulations Chuck!

Getting ready for Halloween

I'm back - it's Kelley again. Just wanted to report on our big weekend. Lenny is currently grounded for bad behavior, so no blogging for him.

Chuck made his professional debut on Saturday night with the Columbus Indiana Philharmonic. He conducted the Overture to "La Gazza Ladra" by Rossini. He'll post his video soon on Youtube and his website. Also, the concert will get a review in Thursday's paper, so I'll keep everyone updated on that. It was a big success for him and I was very proud!

I've been practicing with my Daphnis group for flute class next week. On Friday, I got switched from alto flute to piccolo, so I've had to practice quite a bit to get everything under my fingers!

Saturday morning Chuck and I ran in the "Hoosiers Outrun Cancer" 5K road race. My goal was to run the entire way without stopping to walk - about 3.1 miles. A few days before, I had run 3.3 miles on the treadmill, so I felt pretty confident I could do it. I was running "In Celebration Of" two survivors - my mom and Christel. After the first mile uphill, I gave out. I had to walk. I was really disappointed and kind of mad at myself that I wasn't tough enough. I also felt like I let Mom and Christel down! I did run the rest of the way after about 1/3 or 1/2 mile of walking. I ended up beating my time on the 5K from last year by about 10 seconds (which is a little bit frustrating because I walked MUCH more last year). The finish line was in the football stadium, and Chuck (who finished in about 26 minutes!) saw me on the Jumbotron.

Sunday was fun - I went to Amanda's house to carve Halloween pumpkins with her, Aaron, and Ebelia, her roommate! I got all Martha Stewart-y and decided to do something fabulous on my pumpkin. I had a very intricate pattern that I outlined on my pumpkin featuring a skeleton (the pattern was called "Mr. Ribs") and I didn't have time to finish it at Amanda's, so I brought it home and started carving a little bit.

Chuck and I decided to go out for about 15 minutes to the grocery store.

"Do you think we can leave the pumpkin inside?"
-KELLEY THE FOOLISH
(Kelley and Chuck look at Lenny, snoring in his crate.)
"It will be fine!" -CHUCK THE UNWISE

We came home to find a big hole and toothmarks in the pumpkin. Good-bye, Mr. Ribs!

Lenny got to meet Jama while we were at Amanda's house. Here is her little bed I made for her out of Ohio State fabric!

My parents and a lot of the Russell clan went to Washington this weekend to cheer on my cousin Scott, who plays football for Washington & Lee University. They won, 28-0, over Catholic University. I wish I could have been there with everyone, but I am starting to get excited about Thanksgiving at the Russells' this year. Thanksgiving is definitely one of my favorite holidays.

Congratulations again to Amanda and Aaron, who were very recently engaged. Here's a picture of the happy couple! I just found out that my friend Mary Ann had a baby, so congratulations to her as well! And last but not least, happy birthday to Lenny's buddy Butchy, who just turned 6. (I wish I could get Lenny to wear a party hat!)

Lenny's log

Lenny here. Now that I've taken over blogging for a while, I'd like to reach out to our new readers and give some background info on our family. As most of you know, I'm an 8-year-old wire haired fox terrier. For the first five years of my life, I lived as "Skippy" with an older couple. They acquired two grandchildren full-time, so I was assigned to the laundry room all day long. The old lady decided to find me some new roommates. Kelley and Chuck had been looking for a WFT, so they came to meet me and I went bonkers jumping up and down. (Chuck thought that meant I would be a good "frisbee" dog - ha!) They brought me home for a weekend and decided they liked me, so I got to stay with them.

They're pretty good roommates. I mean, they could always give me more treats - they actually make me DO something to get a cookie. Lately that's been "Speak." I don't know why they think that's so great - they used to tell me NOT to bark! Chuck actually never used to give me treats, but I think I've proven that I can do pretty cool stuff when properly bribed.

Chuck is an orchestra conductor. Once I got to go to one of his rehearsals and it was really loud, but a lot of nice girls came and patted me during the break. We had to move here to Indiana because he goes to school at Indiana University, getting his masters degree in instrumental conducting. We came here from New Hampshire, which was nicer - we used to go hiking in the mountains a lot. However, there is a dog park here in our town, which is GREAT! Chuck acts like a tough disciplinarian guy with me, but when Kelley's not around, he gives me cookies and lets me take a nap with him in their bed. Also, he likes to study outside, so he always brings me to go sit in the sunshine.

The biggest problem with Indiana is that it makes me really itchy. Apparently I'm allergic to everything outside here. I had a few problems in New Hampshire, but once we moved here it got really bad. I have to have shots, and I get a bath twice a week, which is the WORST!

Also, I tore my ACL here at doggie daycare and I had to have surgery for it. I couldn't walk normally for about 4-5 months, and I am just now able to run well again, but a little lopsided. I'm not as fast as I used to be at the dog park, but I can still keep up pretty well. The surgery was really when the treats started happening - I'm still milking that! I start limping a little bit every now and then, and I get sympathy cookies from Kelley.

Kelley is a flutist, but works as a secretary for the IU Jacobs School of Music to pay the bills while Chuck is in school. Every now and then she practices at home, and I sing along, but only if Chuck's not home. I don't want any critiquing. :) She also likes watching Project Runway (she likes to sew) and Ohio State football.

When I had all of my allergy problems, Kelley went online to meet other fox terrier people who may have had similar issues, and she met all sorts of wonderful fox terrier families. That's how we got to know so many dogs with blogs!

So for all of you who are new to Link to the Latshaws, that's who we are. For all you who know us already, don't you love us? Hee hee!

Happy Birthday Blog!

Can you believe it? A year of blogging has gone by, and "Link to the Latshaws" is celebrating our first anniversary. Last year, the first post was about Lenny's Yoda Halloween costume, so today I'll post Lenny's 2006 outfit: SNOOPY!





In other news, Laura has accused Jeffrey of CHEATING on Project Runway! Even Tim Gunn was expressing his doubts about Jeffrey's collection. You can read the article at this link. Tonight is the Runway reunion special.

The Life of Lenny

What could be more fun than rolling in poo at the dog park? Life is good!

Link to Lenny!

Okay, I admit it. I'm a little jealous. There are all sorts of dogs with their own blogs out there, many of which I am a devoted fan. They all seem to have many more readers, and receive many more fun comments, than my blog! I think the key is that they are actually "written by" the dog.

So, as a publicity stunt, I have invited Lenny to be the guest blogger on "Link to the Latshaws" today, to gauge the public's reaction. So, without further ado, here is our dog laureate!

Hi everyone! First I'd like to give a bark-out to my two of my favorite cyber-space wire fox terriers, Butchy and Snickers from Iowa! Butchy mentioned me on their blog today - apparently some of Kelley's previous postings made Snickers a little uncomfortable, so I apologize on my human's behalf.

Butchy and Snickers' mom has her own dog clothing business. While I am not a big fan of wearing clothing myself, I must admit that Snickers is especially lovely in this outfit. Kelley says these outfits would put the Project Runway dog designs to shame! Here are some more from her store.

Walter, if you're reading, I think you should get a camo shirt and go hunting with Jeff! You can find the store, Snitchybug designs, here.

Some of our other favorite blogs are by wire fox terriers Axel, Fee, Mango and Party, Bogie, and Mackie. Axel is the one who started the whole dog blog craze in the fox terrier crowd. Mango, Party, and Fee live all the way in Singapore, and are pictured at left. If you like Airedales (I am frequently mistaken for an Airedale, so I know they are a very nice-looking breed), check out Miss Sunshade's blog - she's from Canada and one hot mama! (I like big bitches.) :)

Speaking of Project Runway, I was sleeping curled up in Kelley's lap while she was watching it this week. (Editor's Note: GO MICHAEL!) A Macy's commercial came on, and there were two wire fox terriers on it!

I am enjoying being anthropomorphized online like my WFT buddies, but I don't have much more news to share. So I will express my writing skills in this haiku, featuring the true extent of my vocabulary, for your enjoyment.

Get it! Bath - Cookie
You want to go in the car?
Belly rub - High five!

Wait - Give me a kiss
Go to the park? For a walk?
Doggie - Say cheese - Treat!

Headaches are over!

I had a series of three migraines recently, I think probably due to stress. Luckily, I've been good for a while now, and the literal and figurative headaches are over! Chuck is returning triumphantly from his audition up in M*ch*g*n today - it sounds like it went very very well. He'll find out whether or not he got the job in November. The three other candidates still have to audition, but apparently some of the board members were joking that they should cancel them, because they like Chuck so much! Probably a good sign. :) I know that the three others won't be able to live up to Chuck's charm, abilities, and of course dashing good looks! And now the big stressful events are over for a while, hopefully.

I did find some interesting facts out about Holland. Besides having the largest pickle factory in the world, the town is the birthplace of the geeky website slashdot (Chuck reads it daily) and of the "WWJD" (What Would Jesus Do?) bracelets.

I found some cool websites today (slow day at work!). One was www.iloveasta.com, a tribute to Hollywood's famous fox terrier. The other was Cardinal O'Malley's (of Boston) blog of his trip to Italy. It's funny and very interesting! Here's an excerpt (from cardinalseansblog.org):
"On the island of Martha’s Vineyard we have a lovely Church, St. Augustine’s. There are in the Church lovely stained glass windows depicting the seven Sacraments. The first window one sees on entering the Church is that window representing the Sacrament of Penance. On the window there are the keys symbolizing the power to loose and bind, a priestly stole and the words: “Go and sin no more.” But in the summertime, when it is very hot, they open the windows to allow some air to circulate. However, the part of the window that opens is the part where the word “no” is written. Then what people read on the window is: “Go and sin more.” I never heard of any complaints. (lol)" There are some really beautiful pictures of Rome on the site also.

Lenny got to sleep in the "big bed" with me while Chuck was gone. However, at about 2:30 each night, he decided he didn't like it and woke me up to tell me so. Last night he just wanted a belly-rub and he had the nerve to wake me up! I'm a little cranky today due to my lack of sleep.

I am getting to play more! I will be performing on two new music concerts coming up soon - one this weekend. I am also really enjoying flute class and getting inspired to play!

Rebel without a cause

Shiver me timbers!

Yesterday afternoon a student came into our office simply to announce that, yarrr, it was International "Talk Like a Pirate Day."

Lenny is learning to talk, but alas, not like a pirate yet. He is learning the trick "Speak." The trick that he learned most recently is his cutest one ever - yes, even cuter than "Say Cheese," if you can believe it. He does what I call the Latshaw Paw. Chuck puts his hand out, palm down, I put mine on top of it, and then Lenny adds his paw in a "Go team" kind of gesture.

Lenny's Halloween outfit is all picked out, but I will keep that as a surprise. Our office has challenged the other Jacobs School of Music administrative offices to a Halloween costume contest after the success of our princess outfits last year. We have a theme, but it's top secret. We can't let the Admissions Office get word of what we're doing. The Dean is going to judge the contest.

CONGRATULATIONS TO AMANDA NISKODE' AND AARON DOSSETT!!!! They are engaged!!!! We are so happy for them.

Happy Birthday!

Happy birthday to both my sister Annie and Chuck's dad George! They celebrated their birthdays yesterday. I hope George got to wear the special Latshaw birthday hat.

Chuck and I both visited the dentist on Wednesday. Of course Mr. Perfect Teeth had no cavities (he never has) but I have a small one. I also got my eyes checked the same day and I am going back to order my glasses this weekend. So I had a really super fantastic week.

But Thursday was a little more fun. It was the annual School of Music staff outing to the Indiana State Fair. We went specifically on Thursday because it was "IU Day" at the fair. However, it rained about 70% of the day, so we spent most of our time wandering around the animal barns.



We saw the latest in sheep fashion.




We also enjoyed the finest in fair cuisine.




This weekend my friend Amanda is moving into her new house so we are going to visit it tonight. Tomorrow morning is my glasses adventure. Monday, Chuck's interview is scheduled with the Pacific Symphony VP of Education!

Tough guy

Last week someone asked if Lenny was a pit bull. No joke.

Well, we went back to the dog park last night and I ended up with my foot in my mouth. Lenny's two rottweiler buddies showed up again, and I started complaining to Chuck about how mean they were and about their bad owners.

They came in on their leashes like perfect angels, and one of the girls told me that they were doing special training that their trainer recommended to avoid any "leash aggression" - they were trying to cut off bad behavior before it got worse. So yes, they were being good, responsible dog moms.

They let them off the leashes and ran and played and barked with all the other dogs, and everyone lived happily ever after.