Due to my tardy postings over the last few months, there are some funny things I've experienced this year with Holly that I haven't managed to write about. However, there is one event that happened over the summer that I must share with you before the year's out.

Mum, Holly and I went for a picnic back in June. To help with Holly's fitness, Mum and I had been trying to teach her the concept of running to catch a ball, picking it up in her mouth and bringing it back - you know, standard labrador stuff - something Holly can't seem to grasp! On this lovely sunny day and few months ago, we arrived at our picnic site and put all our bags down on the bench. Then Mum, me and madam all decided to line up in a row in preparation for me throwing the ball.

I said to Holly, 'Granny and I will show you how it's done and all three of us can run for the ball and have a wee competition to see who reaches it first' - why on earth I thought she'd understand this, I don't know. Knowing Holly, she probably understood perfectly well but thought, that's far too much like hard work.

So with the three of us lined up in a row, I hurled the ball as far as I could. Mum and I shot off as fast as two people in their mid forties and early eighties could after the ball, eagerly anticipating Holly following us enthusiastically. As we bounded forwards as fast as we could following the ball, we suddenly realised there was no sign of Holly.

As we darted forward trying to teach our pupil the art of 'fetch' she had promplty turned on her heal (or was it paw) and hotfooted it back in the opposite direction and made her way back to the picnic and was merrily tucking in to her own private feast as mum and I ran into the distance desperately re-enacting a game of fetch to no avail!

It really was one of the funniest things. Mum and I must have looked so daft and Her Ladyship incredibly proud of herself. It would have provided great amusement to anyone watching!