The New Year Ahead

Posted on January 4, 2016 by Ammo

Happy New Year // Ammo the Dachshund

Well, it’s officially 2016! It’s like in the blink of an eye another year has come and gone, sometimes it’s much too fast for my liking!

So much has happened in 2015. From Sledding with my Ponies, dachshund life struggles, road trips, kitchen renovations, and even beach excursions….life was never too dull for me.

Happy Dog Visits the Beach

All of you were there to share in my adventures, and many of you even enjoyed checking out some of my most popular older posts:

DIY dog toys

It seems you all love to make fun things for your dogs and teach them tricks! (Who doesn’t?)

ammo the dachshund blogging outdoors

And to those of you that left me comments daily (shoutout to JB, Donna, Pam B, and Rebecca) either on my blog or my Facebook Page, THANK YOU! While I don’t always respond to every comment, know that I do read them! They bring a smile to my face everyday and it makes me happy that so many of your out there are enjoying my adventures!

Lazy Days on the Farm // Ammo the Dachshund

While I never quite know what the year ahead holds for me, I do know that it certainly will never be dull around here.

With each passing year I do like to re-evaluate my blogging adventure. While I love sharing my life with each and every one of you, keeping up with my blog and social media accounts can be a full time job. The truth is, it’s a hobby that I enjoy, but I have to be realistic in how thin I spread myself between my full time job working at mom’s shop, taking care of my ponies, and making sure I have time for all my fun adventures with my friends and family.

Flying Hero Cyber Monday Sale

So moving on to 2016, I’ve decided to make a few changes to perhaps lighten my work load just a bit. The first change is that sadly I will be closing up my Flying Hero Etsy Shop as soon as I sell out of all items. While I’ve loved sharing fun dachshund artwork, greeting cards, and handmade items with all of you, it’s just become difficult for my manager (aka mom) to handle keeping up with all of it. (did you know we actually have 3 etsy shops – Studio 3, Painting Pony + Flying Hero, plus a Brick & Mortar store)

Flying Hero Etsy Shop // Ammo the Dachshund

So the good news for you is that lots of items are now on SALE! Quantities are limited though, and once they are gone…they will be GONE!

Shop Flying Hero

ammo the dachshund blogging outdoors

The next change for 2016 will be my blogging schedule. I’ve decided to try a slightly different posting schedule of Monday, Wednesday, and Friday with occasionally some additional posts during the week as my time warrants.

While I know some of you may be sad to not read my adventures during the week quite as often, my hope is that this will allow me to have even bigger adventure posts to share with you each week!

Photographer's Muse // Ammo the Dachshund

Taking pictures, editing them, and having time for actual adventures is a big job in itself. So by posting 3 times a week I’ll have a little more time to create even better content for all of you to read!

So if you’re a bit sad you might not be hearing from me quite as often, don’t worry, I’ll still be sharing snapshots of my life daily on Instagram and Facebook.

Train Your Dog to Get in the Car // Ammo the Dachshund

So buckle up, and join me for the ride that is 2016! I can hardly wait!

What changes will you be making in 2016?

2015 New Year Resolutions

Posted on January 8, 2015 by Ammo

Happy New Year // Ammo the Dachshund

I’m now about a week into 2015, and just like years past I like to come up with a few resolutions for the new year. Last year I came up with a list of several goals I wanted like to accomplish. Lets see how I did…

2014 Goals:

Relax more, and don’t work so hard!

I always struggle with this one as I take on a lot of roles, shop dog, farm dog, guard dog at home. But I tried to relax some!
Go on more walks around my neighborhood

I’m happy to report in the summer especially I tried to go on at least 1 walk a week through my neighborhood, I also went hiking a lot more too!
Take a trip to the dog beach again

I went for a day trip this year to one of the Delaware beaches and had a blast, I also created my own beach at the farm too!
Compete in a Barn Hunt Competition
I would still love to make it to a barn hunt competition some day, sadly 2014 just wasn’t the year!
Take a new training class

While I didn’t attend any new training classes I did continue on with my dog agility training for most of the year.

Happy New Year // Ammo the Dachshund

For 2015 I decided to do something a little different. Instead of a whole list of goals I would like to accomplish I have come up with just one resolution.

My resolution for this year is to take more time to be with my family, enjoy as many adventures as possible, and learn to unplug a bit. As you know I lead quite the busy life for a dog. Not only do I work everyday in my mom’s shop as the official greeter, but I also have duties on the farm, as well as guard dog duties at home – and lets not forget my love of adventure! And while I started this blog because I wanted to share my fun adventures with you, sometimes I struggle to have a balance of adventure time and “blogging” time.

ammo the dachshund blogging outdoors

So while I have no plans to stop sharing my happy adventures with you (it’s what keeps my tail wagging everyday!), I have decided that starting next week I will be blogging 4 days a week instead of 5. (Tuesday through Friday).

But don’t worry, if you find yourself missing your monday dose of me – you can always catch adorable photos of me daily on my Facebook page and instagram account.

I’m looking forward to 2015 and all it has to bring, and I’m hoping to have even more excitement and adventures to share with you in the months to come! xoxo,

2014 New Year Goals

Posted on December 31, 2013 by Ammo

In keeping up with my yearly tradition I’ve decided to take a look back over the goals I made for myself last year to see how I did! I’ve also come up with a new list of goals for 2014 that will hopefully keep me on my toes!

My 2013 Goals:

1. Create some more greeting card designs for my Flying Hero Etsy Shop

Not only did I come up with a fun new Holiday card this year, but I just finished designing a whole bunch of new cards that will be available in my shop this week! Don’t worry, I’ll be sure to share my new designs with everyone just as soon as they are ready!

2. Master the weave poles for my agility classes

I’m proud to say that I officially mastered the weave poles this past year! Yay! I even worked up to weaving 12 poles at a time.

3. Compete in an agility trial

Technically I didn’t compete in an agility trial this past year, but I did get to run a new course in a new location during the Fair Hill International Event in Maryland.

4. Learn a performance that I can perform on my own at events

I practiced and practiced and performed my very own trick skit during the Spring Doxie Fest last year in support of the Coast to Coast Dachshund Rescue! It was a lot of fun and I think everyone enjoyed it!

5. Make every day count!

Looking back over everything I’ve done this past year I think I have this goal down! From trips to the beach, road tripping, paddleboarding, and enjoyable days on the farm – I packed in as much as I could this past year and it was such a blast!

2014 Goals:

Relax more, and don’t work so hard!
Go on more walks around my neighborhood
Take a trip to the dog beach again
Compete in a Barn Hunt Competition
Take a new training class

So what about you? What are your goals for 2014?

Don’t forget to start 2014 off right, check out my Calendar available for purchase HERE! Hurry, because I only have a few copies left!

P.S. I promise to have a full recap on my wonderful Christmas for you later this week!

2013 New Year Goals

Posted on December 31, 2012 by Ammo

In keeping up with my yearly tradition I’ve decided to take a look back over the goals I made for myself last year to see how I did! I’ve also come up with a new list of goals for 2013 that will hopefully keep me on my toes!

My 2012 Goals:

1. Learn a new trick with my favorite pony, Minnow.

Ok, so I can’t recall a SPECIFIC trick I learned with Minnow this past year, but I did star in our brand-new Painting Pony DVD with him. And I had a super fun super hero shoot with Minnow this summer.

2. Compete in my first agility trial or take an agility class with a new club.

While I’m not quite ready for my first agility trial just yet, I have been taking agility classes since the spring. I’m hoping I might be ready for a trial sometime next year.

3. Make more home movies, featuring me!

I’m happy to report that I’ve created lots of new video footage this year (over 50 videos on my youtube channel!), and I even landed on two national television spots at the end of this year (which I’ll be sharing all the details on the blog soon). And if you want to catch my biggest performance of the year you can check out my new DVD HERE!

4. Get more creative with my costumes.

I’m happy to say I’ve dressed up more this year than any other year! You might recall my pilot’s outfit when I went flying, my super cool Halloween costume as Wile E. Coyote, and even my dapper Holiday outfit for this year.

5. Master some new tricks and share them on the blog.

I started a new feature on the blog this year called Let’s Get Tricky! I also added a few new tricks to my repertoire and I’m hoping to continue the trend in 2013.

6. Take pictures every month for my 2013 Calendar!

So I may not have specifically set out to take photos for my calendar every month, I did rack up quite a lot of space on Mom’s hard-drive with my thousands of photos from this year.

7. Make more DIY projects.

I definitely got my DIY on this year! I came up with over 10 great DIY projects this year, including my Birthday Bandana, a Dipped Yellow Chair, and even a Pet First Aid Kit.

8. Paint more.

Painting may have taken a bit of a backseat this year, but that didn’t stop me from getting created. I opened up my very own Etsy Shop, Flying Hero, to sell my greeting cards, calendars and more – many of which have helped raise money for animal rescues!

9. Dig more holes in the backyard.

You know I got this one covered!

10. Smile everyday!

How can you not smile when you’re having this much fun!

So moving on to the upcoming year, I can’t wait to start 2013 off with a bang!

2013 Goals:

Create some more greeting card designs for my Flying Hero Etsy Shop
Master the weave poles for my agility classes
Compete in an agility trial
Learn a performance that I can perform on my own at events
Make every day count!

So what about you? What are your goals for 2013?

Don’t forget to start 2013 off right, check out my Calendar available for purchase HERE! Hurry, because I only have a few copies left!

2012 New Year Goals

Posted on December 29, 2011 by Ammo

Last year I made my list of New Year Goals, so I thought it would be fun to check back and see how far I got with them – and also come up with a few new ones for 2012!

ammo the dachshund new year party

P.S. this may look like my Birthday hat, but right now it’s doubling as my new years party hat!

LAST YEARS GOALS:

1. Take another agility class or maybe even COMPETE in agility. Sadly since my last agility class at the Dog Training Club of Chester County I haven’t been able to attend any new classes. Not because I didn’t want to, but because the training center hasn’t been offering any new agility classes that fit my busy schedule, so mom’s been looking into finding a new place for me to test out my agility skills this year, like this place. But I did try my hand at an agility course while I was at the Dog Days of Summer Event and I even tested out some moves at the dog park this year.

Ammo jumping through hoop

2. Actually win a race at the Dachshund Races this year. I did even better than win just one race this year, I won 3! and I even qualified for the Championship race, bringing home a respectable reserve champ ribbon! Go me!

3. Make MORE artwork. This year I created and shipped all over the World nearly 20 original pieces of art. Not bad for my first full year of being a real life artist!

4. Visit some nursing homes. I made several trips this year to visit the nursing home – HERE, HERE, and HERE. I even made some undocumented trips too! It’s great when I can make someone’s day a little bit happier with my happy wagging tail.

ammo the dachshund nursing home

5. Perform more with the Trick Ponies. I added lots of new performances with the Trick Ponies to my calendar this year. I visited a school and made appearances at the Ludwigs Corner Horse Show and The Dog Days of Summer event to name a few.

6. Learn at least 10 new tricks. Ok well I might not have accomplished this “10 new tricks” goal, but I did add a few new ones to my repertoire. Which reminds me….I never shared them with you guys! So that will definitely have to be a future post.

7. Dress up more often. This one I have totally accomplished. I was a dressing up fool this year with my 12 days of Christmas, my rocket dog costume and even my Valentines Day outfit to name a few.

ammo the dachshund rocket dog

8. Go on vacation. Admittedly I don’t really go on vacation much, it’s hard to get a way when you have such a busy working calendar like me! But I did get to take a special trip this year to Assateague Island to visit the sand and surf (and some new friends) with my pony pals.

assateague island

9. Try something new. This year I took my first trip on a motor boat at the Marsh Creek State park, I built a super fort while mom was away in Chincoteague, and I even did some relaxing by the pool for the first time. Oh yeah, and I watched a movie in the park this summer!

10. Giggle more. I giggle everyday, what about you?

2012 Goals:

1. Learn a new trick with my favorite pony, Minnow.

2. Compete in my first agility trial or take an agility class with a new club.

3. Make more home movies, featuring me!

4. Get more creative with my costumes.

5. Master some new tricks and share them on the blog.

6. Take pictures every month for my 2013 Calendar!

7. Make more DIY projects.

8. Paint more.

9. Dig more holes in the backyard.

10. Smile everyday!

So what about you? What are your goals for 2012? Do you think I can accomplish everything on my list by this time next year?

P.S. Don’t forget there is still time to enter my giveaway to win my 2012 Calendar!

2011 Dachshund Goals

Posted on January 10, 2011 by Ammo

Instead of doing “NEW YEAR RESOLUTIONS” I’m going to come up with a list of goals. Things I’d like to do and accomplish this year. My mom made a list of her own for the Trick Ponies (and me) so now it’s my turn to figure out exactly what I want to do this year.

So here’s my list of goals for 2011:

1. Take another agility class or maybe even COMPETE in agility

2. Actually win a race at the Dachshund Races this year

3. Make MORE artwork

4. Visit some nursing homes

5. Perform more with the Trick Ponies

6. Learn at least 10 new tricks

7. Dress up more often

8. Go on vacation

9. Try something new

10. Giggle more

Phew. That was a little harder than I thought! Now do you think I can do it? Have any ideas of what I should add to my list? Anyone learn any new tricks already? (I need to get cracking on that goal)