Vote for Pedro!

Justin

2012-01-31T10:04:00.000-05:00

Don't ask me why she was doing it, but yesterday my mom was looking at Petfinder, just looking. She does that every now and then to see if there are any Ziggy-looking dawgs out there. Some how she ended up looking at Bernese Mountain Dawgs. There were only 6 pages of them - dawgs like German Shepherds and Golden Retrievers have hundreds of pages. On page 5 she came across this handsome boy, Justin. According to his story,

"He was born 06/13/08. He likes children and other dogs. The breeder gave him up when he got too thin. He is only 58 lbs and should be 85. We had to pull all but 4 of his teeth because they were so rotten. His ears were absolutely filthy. We have given him stem cells to strengthen his liver function. He is a leaner. 12/30 He has gained 5 lbs and we are very hopeful. He has kidney issues which we are attempting to correct."

Something about Justin touched my mom's heart and she decided to do a small donation to Dirk's Fund (the people taking care of him). Today she got an email from Bob at Dirk's Fund saying Justin is staying with him and is eating three times a day. They hope he will survive - evidently he has kidney failure. Please send your thoughts and prayers out to Justin. Without ever having met him, we are so grateful that he ended up in a place where people are really dedicated to helping him. It makes me think of Khyra's mom and all the other wonderful people out there who are making such a difference in the lives of these animals. Thank you for caring!

Snow Day!

2012-01-21T08:09:00.001-05:00

Yep, it finally happened - the 1st snow of the season. I'm not too worried because I think it's gonna be 50 again on Monday.

Mom let Marley out this morning and he froze on the back porch for the longest time. Think the big oaf forgot what snow was. Guess that's understandable because he was only a little baby last winter. Hard to believe he was ever LITTLE!

While snapping the picture of Marley mom caught Tommy doing some running around, feeling his oats in the snow. Boy did she get a good chuckle out of that!

Here's Tommy by Marley's dawg house (which he never uses). This oversized dawg "loft" used to be our chicken coop.

Finally, Mom & Dad picked me up and made me go outside. I told them it wasn't necessary, that I could just pee on the furniture but for some odd reason they didn't go for that... Ok, I can do my business right here on the front porch thank you very much.

But noooooo...... She made me walk out and watch Dad sweep the snow away. Enough already. I need some hot chocolate or maybe a little nip of something stronger in my dawggie water! Chihuahuas are tropical dawgs!!

Two Years

2012-01-17T09:00:00.001-05:00

Ziggy Boy!

Today marks the two year anniversary of Ziggy's passing. Though time has passed our love for him has not. We still can't talk about him without tears coming to our eyes.

Smokey Dawg!

This Fall, Ziggy's brother Smokey joined him at the Bridge. Their brother Dozer is there too along with their dad, Noodles. Their mom is still with her human but it sounds like there is a family reunion going on with the boys! I sure hope they're having a good time!

He Can't Read!

2012-01-16T11:25:00.000-05:00

Marley is now 16 months old and weighs in around 120 pounds. For those of you who are mathematically inclined, that's about 15 of me! Marley refused to learn how to use the dawg door so two things happened - #1 It was removed, and #2 we have a dawg sitter that comes over a couple times a day to let us out and tell us how wonderful we are. In case you were wondering - I still pee in the house. No nuts, no difference. If I gotta go, I go!

Well, Marley is back on a gardening kick. My dad planted about 200 tulip bulbs this Fall. Marley has eaten about 198 of them... Our wonderful dawg sitter decided that she would leave Marley a note to remind him NOT to eat the last of the tulips. What do you think happened?

The Orange Cats

2012-01-10T09:57:00.000-05:00

Oh the misery of living with cats!

I always have to keep my eye on them! Tommy can be a grouchy old man!

Then there's THIS ONE!

Kitty Kitty is always lurking close by, waiting to POUNCE! Good thing I am a FEROCIOUS CHIHUAHUA!

I Double Dawg Dare You!

2011-12-24T09:27:00.000-05:00

To have a MERRY CHRISTMAS!!

Love,
Pedro, Marley, Tommy and Kitty Kitty

Remembering the Queen

2011-10-08T14:14:00.001-04:00

On September 28, 2011 we lost Libby. She was 15 years old. We knew it was coming - she hadn't been eating and was barely drinking water for a couple of weeks.

When she was sick in August the VET told us that we had done so much for Libby over the years and that Libby was lucky. We realize that she was preparing us to let Libby go.

When we took Libby in on September 28th the VET told us there was nothing more to be done. Libby was starving herself and she was ready to go. All of this happened at the same time Pedro was being diagnosed with the bladder stone. I didn't want to just throw a post out there about Libby's passing. Libby was a WONDERFUL cat. She looked you in the eyes when you talked to her. She seemed to know, to understand what you were saying.

She was resiliant. She survived the dog attack and lived 5 years with only 3 legs but never lost her sweetness. When a new animal joined our family, she was the welcome wagon.

She treated Natty and then Kitty Kitty as if they were her own kittens.

She loved Ziggy and Pedro and Marley even though a large dog almost took her life.

She never became fearful and always seemed to have a smile on her fluffy little face.

We will miss Libby. She was our Queen...

I Can Pee!!

2011-10-06T15:39:00.004-04:00

Being plugged up was no fun! Peeing drip by drip took forever. I didn't complain but when I had to go to work with my mom because we were getting new wallpaper (and she didn't want me to bite the paper hangers), she noticed. She got me to the VET immediately and before I knew it I got sliced and diced and de-stoned.

The problem is they took TWO TOO MANY STONES FROM ME! I am ~~six~~ FIVE years old and have managed to keep my BIG stones all this time. The doctor told my mom that if they remove those stones too it COULD keep my prostate smaller and thus restrict my plumbing less. So, even though removing my nuts, I mean big stones, won't keep my body from forming future bladder stones, it COULD help my ability to pass them. To me that is an awful lot of COULDS. I tried to use my psychic powers to tell my mom NO! Don't do it! Evidently she has no psychic powers and, sadly, I am de-stoned and neutered...

In Recovery - Doing Well

2011-10-01T11:36:00.000-04:00

Just heard from the hospital that Pedro is out of surgery and recovering nicely. I don't have any more information but the doctor will call later after he's done with his other surgeries. SIGH OF RELIEF!

Pedro Update

2011-10-01T07:24:00.000-04:00

Pedro is in the hospital and will have surgery today to remove the stone. I will post more after the surgery is over. The doctor is very positive and reassuring. Thank you for your thoughts and prayers. He is my boy...

- Rachel

Prayers for Pedro Please

2011-09-29T08:37:00.001-04:00

Pedro has a bladder stone lodged in his winky. Sounds funny but it's really not and it has the potential to be deadly. The VET tried to dislodge it yesterday and flush it back up into the bladder but it wouldn't budge. Pedro is a trooper and actually seemed to be peeing a little easier today but the stone has got to go. We have to take him to a specialist. Needless to say I am very, very worried about my little man. Please keep Pedro in your thoughts and prayers. We've had an extremely tough time in our dawg house which I will write more about soon, when I can do it justice. Right now I have to focus on PeeDee.

- Rachel

Didn't Make It...

2011-08-28T09:52:00.003-04:00

Doomed by Irene???

2011-08-26T18:35:00.000-04:00

The sunflower, not Libby!

Stay tuned...

Natty Is With Ziggy Now

2011-07-26T17:05:00.000-04:00

So, so, so sad. Natty left today to be with Ziggy. His heart was tired and he needed to go. He was only two. My mom found Natty in our back yard when he was just a tiny kitten. He got a bum deal in the heart department, born with a terrible valve defect, but our V-E-T told us he wouldn't have lived a year as a feral cat. She said he was lucky to be with us but really, WE were lucky to have him in our family.

Natty, we will miss you every day. You brought joy and laughter to our home. We know how much you loved Ziggy and now you will be with him always...

Remember the Coffee Table?

2011-07-05T11:07:00.002-04:00

A couple of years ago (starting in February 2009) my mom started a project to fill one section of our coffee table with shells and rocks from my friends all over the world. The response was AMAZING and we filled up the section of the table and did many, many posts telling the stories behind each contribution. Well, last week my friend Coco the beautiful Chihuahua Princess and her sisters Lady Godiva and Truffle sent us some awesome shells that their mom found when she was in California!

The package contained notes and pictures and presents from the girls telling me about the shells and about the wonderful gifts they sent also.

The shells were found on a beach in California on Sunset Beach Road in Watsonville which is 3,060 miles from my house in the Hamptons! Coco informed me that it would take about 2 days and 1 hour to drive there non-stop if my mom felt like taking a road trip! Probably not gonna do that...

The shells are awesome! The pesky kitten (Mom calls him Kitty Kitty but Leah says his name is Murphy - I refuse to acknowledge him at all...) gave 'em a sniff and said they smelled yummy. Mom took them away quickly before he got any ideas about nibbling them!

As always she labeled each shell with the names of the senders and where they came from.

Then she carefully placed them in the table. Some re-arranging had to be made but if you look closely you can see all the new additions!

Next, the TREATS! The girls sent some of their favorite treats and the perfect little tennis ball for me! Of course I shared the treats with Marley but NOT the tennis ball! He has enough toys!

Wow! Thank you Coco, Godiva, Truffle and your wonderful Mom for sending the beautiful shells, delicious treats and fun tennis ball! We had such a great time opening everything, adding to the table and enjoying the treats and ball! Woo hoooo!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-06-15T11:57:00.002-04:00

Dad Hits 50!

2011-06-01T08:47:00.000-04:00

Yep, it happened on the 31st. My dad reached the old (and I mean OLD) half century mark!

Mom wanted to do something extra special for Dad on his big day and all this green grass inspired her to get him a little something green!

She even personalized it for him to commemorate the occasion...

Leah added her touches, expertly wrapped as always :P

Dad seemed to really, really like his new green machine and got right to work mowing the lawn!

They capped off the day of celebration by going to a Brandi Carlile and Ray LaMontagne concert in Central Park!

Happy Birthday Dad!!! We hope your 50th was a special day for you!!

Wednesday's Kitty

2011-05-25T13:10:00.002-04:00

I need a home! Adopt me PLEASE!!

It's Like Spitting in the Wind

2011-05-23T15:44:00.002-04:00

No matter how hard she tries to stop it,

feral kittens keep appearing. This time just one.

He's really cute and he's tamed down very quickly.

He's making himself right at home...

But we really don't have room for another kitty

in our little house.

Do you???

Visiting Smokey

2011-05-18T07:00:00.004-04:00

Last weekend my mom and dad got to visit with my late brother Ziggy's real life brother, Smokey.

It was so incredible for my mom to see Smokey again - she hadn't seen him since Ziggy passed.

She felt such a connection to Ziggy through him and Smokey was so happy to see my mom! He was prancing around like a puppy with her!

Sure do miss that brother of mine...

Marley Helps...

2011-05-15T17:55:00.000-04:00

Marley told Mom not to worry, he has the yard work under control so she can just sit back and RELAX...

He did the weeding...

Look at the close up, no weeds!

He did the edging...

Yep, he edged all right!

He even aerated the lawn...

Lots and lots of air in there now!

Phew! Looks like Marley wore himself out.
Thank goodness, I don't know how much more "help" my mom could take!

May Flowers

2011-05-13T13:59:00.000-04:00

This is a re-do of a post I did the other day that Blogger seems to have lost during it's recent "illness"...

Mom's sneezing alot so it must be Spring.

Took a little walk around the yard and admired the blooms.

The lilac bush is jammed with flowers this year!

Tommy looks handsome strutting across the green grass.

Marley is thinking about doing some gardening.

Oh no, here we go...

Mom, better get your Xanax!

Hump Day

2011-05-11T07:00:00.001-04:00

Oops HE Did It AGAIN!

2011-05-06T19:19:00.002-04:00

OMD!!!! Marley!!! Really?????

You're gonna give Mom a heart attack!

Not So Innocent!

2011-05-03T19:44:00.000-04:00

It wasn't me!!! I am innocent. The big boy on the other hand NOT SO MUCH!

Luckily for Marley my mom is pretty good at repairs:

So, from now on Marley, chew on this!!!

Guilty Conscience?

2011-04-30T07:00:00.000-04:00

We didn't do anything! I swear! We're INNOCENT!!

This is Ridiculous!

2011-04-28T07:00:00.007-04:00

Not to be out-done, Marley decided to upgrade to
Full Body Warmer!

My mom is having a hot flash!

North vs. South

2011-04-26T07:00:00.001-04:00

Or New York vs. Texas. You decide:

Texas leg warmers, Sam & Scooter.

New York leg warmers, ME & Natty.

That's my Mom in both pictures.

Happy Easter!

2011-04-24T07:36:00.002-04:00

Like a WEED!

2011-04-15T07:00:00.003-04:00

Marley is officially 7 months old. Still a cute little puppy right? WRONG! Marley went in for his fix-it surgery last week and when he stepped on the scale bells went off - 90.3 pounds! At this rate he will top off around 120 pounds. Good thing he's a gentle giant. Here are some pictures. Every time we blink, he grows...

The cone head is off now but in case you're interested, this is called a Bite Not Collar. My mom bought it because Marley was running into everything with the HUGE E-Collar he came home with. This collar allows full vision but still keeps him from biting and licking what he's not supposed to bite or lick! Two paws up for this product (free endorsement for a good product!)

Mom Visits JB!

2011-04-11T13:29:00.001-04:00

I'm trying not to be jealous... I'm trying to be the bigger dawg... But it's hard... Why? Because my mom went to Texas a couple of weekends ago to visit the new human baby in our family - the little "Dude" is her great grand nephew. Doesn't that make her seem like she's about 102 years old?! Ha, ha! I assure you, she's not. Little Dude (that actually is his middle name) is so cute, if you like little humans (which you all know I do NOT). So, I'm not really jealous that she visited the human baby, what gets me is she visited JB the Texas Kitty and all her brothers and sisters (and of course the human lady too)! Now that just doesn't seem fair! I like cats - I live with 3 after all. So my nose is a little bent out of shape. Mom did snap some pictures for me though:

Gaia was the 1st cat to greet Mom. She came right out to say hello. She looks so much like Libby but the pictures my mom took didn't come out so you have to take my word for it (she is in the background of the picture above with Charlie).

After a little while Armani came out. He's huge! And Fluffy! And very, very friendly - kind of like Tommy!

JB waited awhile then decided to have a look to see what was going on. I can't believe Mom met the famous JB! I would have asked her for her pawprint!

Chester checked out the situation too.

And finally Charlie came out to say hi.

The only member of JB's Small World my mom didn't get to meet was Coco Bean. JB's mom say Coco Bean is a very shy girl and she hides under beds when strange humans visit. Mom was so happy to meet all the famous kitties from JB's Small World and it was great to see their mom again too!

Hey! That's My Car Seat!

2011-03-21T11:24:00.000-04:00

No, Libby, you cannot go to work with Mom!

Leg Warmers

2011-02-14T10:20:00.001-05:00

Natty & I are keeping our Valentine warm! Happy Valentine's Day!

New Year, New News

2011-01-13T15:38:00.000-05:00

Mom's not much of a blogger any more so we've got months and months of updates here. Let me start by saying, January 17th is the one year anniversary of our loss of Ziggy. 2010 was filled with many ups and downs and though our hearts have mended some, we still miss Ziggy so, so much.

Over the summer, you may have remembered, we adopted a golden boy named Sonny. Sonny was only with us for about 6 weeks when we had to send him back. It was heartbreaking but he had something called small dawg aggression. The humans were very afraid for my safety, even though I loved Sonny. The good news is the family that fostered Sonny for 6 months before he came to us adopted him permanently. They said it was like he went on a little vacation then came back home. That made us all feel a little bit better and we wish Sonny all the best!

The humans thought for quite awhile that they'd NOT bring another dawg into our home. They said I'm enough - YOU GOT THAT RIGHT! Being the King of the Castle, I was ok with that. Then one day in November Mom and Leah got a bug up their butts about getting a puppy. Dad was even on board. They had done all kinds of research for months and months after Ziggy left us and had decided that a Bernese Mountain Dawg most exemplefied the qualities Ziggy had. Bernese are good with small humans, love their people, are calm and steady and eager to please. In other words, brown nosers. Chihuahuas don't stoop to that level... So once they decided that a PUPPY would be the best route to take, the search began. I wish I could say it took a long time but it didn't. Right away they found a litter of puppies in Pennsylvania that were ready to go to their new homes and in a BLINK, I had a new brother.

Leah went to PA just before Thanksgiving and picked up Marley. We had Ziggy and now we have Marley - poetic? Marley was 18 pounds at 8 weeks old. He's now almost 4 months and over 40 pounds, on his way to around 100 or so. He's house trained (which the humans like to rub in my nose because I still have the occassional "accident"). He knows tricks - sit, shake, lie down, roll over, speak. Big deal I say! I know how to sit too! The really fun thing, I have to admit, is seeing how much he does remind us all of Ziggy. He's even kind of nice to snuggle up with for a nap.

In other news, Natty IS STILL WITH US! The V-E-T is shocked every month we call up to renew his high blood pressure medication. No one thought he'd make it until the end of October but here we are in January and he's not giving up.

He's become a bit of a spoiled brat too! Mom won't let any one yell at him and gives him treats constantly so now he's almost impossible to live with. Poor Libby gets the brunt of it! We all think Natty thinks he's a dog. He runs around the house with Marley and even eats his food some times!

Libby and Tommy, our senior citizens, are hanging in there. Libby sleeps in the corner of the living room most of the time and doesn't go out much any more. Tommy still flits in and out and likes to give the stray cats a hard time. So we've gone through some sad times but made it through and 2011 is looking up. Thanks for stopping by - I hope all you dawgs and cats have a great New Year!

Feliz Navidog!

2010-12-21T14:48:00.000-05:00

Time flies. So much to tell, so much new. Thanks for visiting with me even though I've been "absent"! I hope all you dogs, cats, other critters and humans have a wonderful Christmas!!

Happy Dignified Halloween!

2010-10-31T15:55:00.000-04:00

Sleepless Nights...

2010-10-08T07:00:00.021-04:00

My mom has been suffering from something called insomnia, which evidently is a human-specific ailment since none of us 4-leggers have any trouble sleeping at all. The other night my mom slept for a total of 1 1/2 hours. She made it until all of 7:30 PM the next night before conking out. Too bad it didn't last all night though. She said she's got alot on her mind, worrying about Natty. I thought I'd share some pictures to show her how it (sleep) is done. Humans can learn alot from us dawgs and cats about successful sleeping.

As a baby, I loved sleeping in my mom's scarf. Gotta stay warm and cozy!

I still like to sleep next to her. Finding the perfect position is key.

Stinky was always willing to demonstrate interesting sleep positions. We sure do miss the smelly one!

Natty suggests cuddling up next to a furry friend for the best possible sleep. I've got that one covered for Mom since I'm always sleeping right next to her!

Sweet dreams!

I've Got My Eye On YOU!

2010-10-06T13:22:00.000-04:00

Hahaha! Libby is such a ham!

Life is Like a Box of Dawg Doo

2010-09-27T11:51:00.003-04:00

It's been awhile again. Mom just doesn't feel like blogging. She still misses Ziggy so much. After he died it took the blogger out of her.

Now we have more bad news. That's another thing - we don't like to just write about bad things but that seems to be what 2010 is about in my dawg house. Natty isn't doing well. We knew from the very beginning that he had a bum ticker but we thought it wouldn't catch up to him for a few years - he's only 1 for goodness sake! He's had a couple of "attacks" in the past two weeks that my mom witnessed, who knows how many others he may have had. He went to the VET today and they took pictures of his heart and it's VERY big. I thought having a big heart was a good thing but, evidently, there is a difference between a big heart and an enlarged heart. So the future is uncertain for our black & white boy.

We hope the blood pressure medication (guess it tastes really bad!) and baby aspirin help but for now we will savor every moment we have with him.

Happy Birthday to Me!

2010-08-16T12:23:00.000-04:00

Yup! Had my 4th birthday on Friday the 13th! It was a pretty lucky day for me cause I got lots of presents! I guess Friday the 13th is only unlucky for humans. It's a dawg's life!!

There Are No Words...

2010-08-04T20:37:00.002-04:00

Today we found out my friend, Dr. Dre, was attacked and killed by three large dogs. Such a tragic loss is so impossible to fathom. Our hearts go out to his family. We truly did and always will adore him. Please stop by and offer his pack your love and support.

Wordless Wednesday (almost)

2010-07-28T07:35:00.003-04:00

SERIOUSLY! REALLY?

Click here for the full story...

Remember Me?

2010-07-21T12:21:00.000-04:00

Just in case you forgot how good lookin' I am!!!

Winged Wednesday

2010-06-30T14:56:00.002-04:00

This pretty Cecropia Moth visited my mom at work today.

The interesting thing about this moth, other than being HUGE,

is that is doesn't have a mouth!

It eats while it's a caterpillar then survives

on it's stored fat for the rest of it's life.

My mom says I could survive on my fat for quite awhile...

She's not very nice.

Time Bomb

2010-06-13T08:01:00.001-04:00

Just before adopting Sonny, my family (AND me too!) went on a vacation to the Florida Keys. I flew on a plane for the first time. This I did not like...

My mom had to shove me into a backpack and put me under the seat in front of her. Ok, ok, it was a backpack made for dawgs like me with plenty of ventilation and a comfortable bed but, jeesh, to be treated like a carry-on bag is so beneath me! Any way, I had a little benedryl (which did nothing to stop my crying) and we arrived in one piece.

We drove for what felt like an eternity until we reached a little shack my mom rented in Cudjoe Key. Cudjoe? Really? Are my humans trying to tell me something? The "cottage" was cute, a little worn out, but the owners allowed dawgs so we weren't complaining.

Most of the time I hung out with the family but they did leave me a few times to go snorkeling. They snorkeled at Bahia Honda State Park and saw a huge conch,

a bunch of lobsters, barracuda and some oversized hermit crabs.

They did two boat trips out to reefs for more snorkeling. Eastern Dry Rocks Reef off of Key West and Looe Key Reef off of Big Pine Key. At Eastern Dry Rocks my mom, Jessie and Leah were surrounded by a school of at least twelve 100 pound plus Tarpon. They said it was eerie because they were just floating in the paths between coral heads and they were gigantic!

At Looe my mom saw a reef shark that was between 4' and 5'. It gave her a little startle because it swam within 10' of her but it must not have been hungry because she still has all her fingers and toes.

Later she was swimming along and a Sea Turtle came right up underneath her. Everyone else was out of the water by then so she enjoyed the experience alone. She says its something she'll keep with her for the rest of her life.

Today my mom was reduced to tears seeing pictures of the wildlife being destroyed by the oil spill in the Gulf. If something isn't done, the fragile reef system off the Florida coast may suffer or die as well. It is so frustrating to watch the seemingly unending flow of oil billowing up into the beautiful turquoise waters of the Gulf and now spreading like a cancer through the water onto the shore.

My mom's heart is ripped apart thinking about the pain these poor birds, dolphin and fish are being subjected to as a result of this human caused disaster. The human toll is devastating as well. The loss of income and livelihoods for those in the fishing and tourism industries is catastrophic. We pray that the wound to the seabed can be sutured so the bleeding of oil ends and the clean-up can begin. We pray for all those, human and animal, who are suffering as a result. We pray for an end to this disaster. Please.

Woofless Wednesday

2010-06-09T10:26:00.000-04:00

Introducing.... Sonny Boy!

2010-05-26T22:07:00.001-04:00

Finally the answer to the clues! I have a new brother! Sonny traveled all the way from Arkansas to join our family. Mom found Sonny (aka Sunny Daze Ahead) on Petfinder.com. She looked and looked and looked before she finally found some dawg who was the right fit for our family.

Though Ziggy's shoes can't be filled, Sonny has brought his white boots and socks to us and will fill his own, new shoes!

Now, I'm a tough dawg to please and I am officially giving Sonny my Pedro seal of approval! So, Sonny Boy, welcome to our family!

I really think you're gonna like it here :P

BIG Clue!

2010-05-25T06:53:00.001-04:00

This is the final clue. Tonight all will be revealed.

I don't think this clue leaves too much to the imagination though. I will say, other than those who read my mom's Facebook, Thor was the 1st to figure it out!!!

More Clues

2010-05-15T20:22:00.000-04:00

Mom says no one got it right yet so she gave me a few more clues (they don't help me at all but see if they give you any ideas).

Gold, golden, yellow gold...

White boots...

White socks (or is it White Sox?)...

and (this one really confuses me) Arkansas...

I'm close to giving up!

Puzzle - Clue #1

2010-05-05T16:09:00.001-04:00

Something is going on in my dawg house. I keep hearing the humans talking about something with the sun. I'm going to listen in as much as possible and share the clues with you. Maybe all you dawgs and cats can help me figure out this mystery...

The words I've been hearing alot are sun, sunny, sunny day??? Hmmmmm..... what could that mean???

Earth Day Twenty-Ten

2010-04-22T15:24:00.003-04:00

In honor of Earth Day my mom decided to help a tree in distress. For the past month she's seen this sight every day on her way to work and it's been bugging her!

This poor little tree dressed in a garland of plastic garbage, neither festive nor happy, was crying out for assistance! What better day than Earth Day to do a little clean-up?

Mom said the tree had angry thorns that sliced into her thumb like a knife through butter but she persisted and got all the offending plastic off.

Doesn't the little tree look so much happier now??

I decided to do my part for Earth Day too by ummm... watering the earth! Hey, we're all good at something!

Just Pictures...

2010-04-12T16:46:00.004-04:00

Mom planned to do an interview - Questions and Answers - but like so many other things lately, it didn't happen. Dr. Berger sent us some beautiful pictures from the Iditarod that I wanted to share with all of you!

Arriving!

The "START"! Wait! Do the sleds have to stop for red lights??

Brrrrrr! -30 degrees?? Are you kidding?? Too darn cold for my little chihuahua paws!

This is how the pooped pups slept!

Notice the booties.

I think it would only be fair if the HUMANS slept in the snow on hay too!

Emi in the tundra. Hmmm... no trees? Where's a dawg to pee??

Seriously! Where did these dawgs PEE???

Hmmm... Maybe they didn't pee for fear of the icicles that might form... In retrospect, my late brother Ziggy would have loved Alaska with all the snow and sub-zero temperatures. As for me, I'm a summer dawg - which I suppose is a good thing because the only sled I could pull would be one for a mouse!

One Boss Cake

2010-03-29T08:48:00.003-04:00

Yesterday my family went to a surprise 50th birthday party for my mom and dad's sister-in-law. They thought about what kind of gift to get her - my dad wanted to give her fifty $1 scratch-offs (which he did end up doing) but my mom wanted to do something a little more meaningful. The sister-in-law's family has a really great Italian restaurant in Southampton and they enjoy exceptional food and wine. So, my mom thought it might be fun to take a ride to Hoboken, NJ and go to Carlo's Bakery to get her a cake! If you watch TLC, you'll know that Carlo's Bakery is the backdrop to the show "Cake Boss." If you've never seen the show - you should catch an episode. Very, very funny and the cakes they make are incredible works of art. We live about 70 miles from New York City and Hoboken is a straight shot across lower Manhattan and through the Holland Tunnel. Traffic through the City was, to put it mildly, AWFUL! When they got to the bakery there was a perfect parking spot waiting for them just around the corner. The line to get in went to the end of the block (which was probably better than usual due to the very cold weather on Saturday.) They waited on line, made some new friends, peeked through the windows, drank some Starbucks coffee, and after about a half hour or so had their turn to go in. They were given a number when they walked in the door and, ironically, it was 50!

They chose this cute pink polka dotted cake and bought a bunch of other pastries including lobster tails, cannolis, cream puffs and two red velvet cupcakes with cream cheese frosting. Mom and Dad have been dieting but over the weekend they each had a lobster tail and my mom had a cannoli too!

Well worth the cheating. I thought I was being left out but I got to taste the cream filling from the lobster tail and I give it 2 paws up!

While they were there they saw two of "Buddy's" sisters (the blond behind the counter is one) and the delivery guy who in one episode cracked up the delivery vehicle.

Mom bought a sweat shirt (she's a sweat shirt FREAK - probably needs to go on "What NOT to Wear"!) Everybody at the party, including the birthday girl, loved the cake and my family is already planning to go back in warmer weather. All-in-all a very SWEET weekend!

Here She Is Again!

2010-03-16T12:16:00.001-04:00

Iditarod vet Emi Berger checks Allen Moore's dogs at the Takotna, Alaska checkpoint on Wednesday, March 10, 2010, during the 2010 Iditarod Sled Dog Race.

(Bob Hallinen/Anchorage Daily News/MCT)

My Famous V-E-T!!

2010-03-12T14:45:00.003-05:00

Iditarod vet Emi Berger and musher Newton Marshall, of St. Anne, Jamaica, after the vet checked his team at the Takotna checkpoint on Thursday night March 11, 2010 during the 2010 Iditarod Sled Dog Race.

(AP Photo/BOB HALLINEN - Anchorage Daily News)

WOW! A Jamaican Dawg Sled Team and my favorite V-E-T Emi! Sounds like a movie to me...

Crazy Weekend in My Dawg House!

2010-03-06T20:34:00.003-05:00

Easily Amused?

2010-02-10T09:34:00.002-05:00

My mom is definitely easily amused. While making her coffee the other day (when the sun was shining and snow wasn't falling), the steam was dancing in the sunlight. She actually thought it was beautiful... alrighty then...

I guess if you click on the pictures and make them big you might be able to see what she's talking about...

I Don't Think So!

2010-01-26T20:36:00.001-05:00

We're starting to rearrange and figure out how to live in a house without a big dawg. The humans are still sad and do alot of talking about "The Boy". Tommy and Libby don't seem to notice anything has changed at all. The pest, Natty, and I, however, have really felt the loss. It's weird because when I go outside I think I smell Ziggy. Every time I go out to do my business I have to walk the perimeter and look for him. I'm confused and don't know where he could be hiding. I know the humans say he's gone but I can smell him. Mom says after the rain that scent should go away. We'll see. In the mean time, Natty has taken to sleeping on Mom's legs at night while she's watching tv. You all know from my post last month that Natty liked to sleep on Ziggy.

Well, the other night he was sleeping on my mom's legs while I was asleep next to her. Slowly he lowered his feet, one at a time, until all four were touching me. I don't think so Natty! I am NOT going to be your new electric blanket (hmmm, given my size I guess the most I could be is a heating pad!) That cat is such a pest!

2010-01-21T16:21:00.000-05:00

We don't know how to begin to thank all of you for supporting us during this very difficult time but we want you to know we appreciate each and every one of you. For our friends, old and new, we hope to stop by and visit with you soon. Thank you all so much for your kindness and caring.

Beloved

2010-01-17T14:30:00.000-05:00

Today with a heavy, broken heart we had to say goodbye to our Ziggy. When thinking of one word to describe how I feel about Ziggy the word beloved seems to encapsulate it all. Such a strong word meaning dearly loved, adored, cherished, favorite, darling, treasured, much-loved, dear. Ziggy was our treasure. Before Ziggy I had tried more than once to adopt a dog but didn't find the right fit. I became convinced I was solely a cat person. I always had cats - mostly strays that found me - Fighter, Hershel, Mittens, Gregory, Lucy, Eleanor, Ceasar, Libby, Tommy, Stinky, Gracie, XiuXiu, Cowboy, Boots, Molly, Elvis, Patsy, Pricilla and Natty. I firmly believed there were two categories of people - cat people and dog people and never the twain shall meet. I was a cat person. After our house was robbed in 2000 the police officer who helped us suggested we get a dog. He said a dog is better than any security system. The next week I heard of a litter of puppies looking for homes. My husband knew the owner of the dogs so we went to see the two that were left. George brought out Ziggy to me. I held him and, though he was cute, I was not sure I really wanted a dog. I asked to see the other puppy. Startled at the request, George told me they were "exactly" the same. If there is one thing I know - no two living things are exactly the same. So George brought out Smokey to me. Smokey looked at me and pushed away. He did not choose me and later that week went to live with my husband's brother and his wife where he has had a wonderful happy life. So we brought Ziggy home. He smelled like puppy urine and even though I didn't want to traumatize him on his first night with us, he got his first bath. We put him in his crate and went to bed. He cried like a baby and I ended up sleeping on the floor next to him all that night. That was it. I was in love. The next night he slept in our bed - something I said I would never do. We became his world and he ours. More surprising was the reaction of the cats - Tommy and Libby. After Ziggy calmed down from his puppyhood they accepted and loved him like I thought could never happen. Later on even the stray cats could be seen rubbing up against Ziggy. Pedro of course would have only been happier if he could literally have been joined to Ziggy's hip. Ziggy never met a person he didn't like. Black, white, brown, tall, short, young or old, he'd like you. That's not to say he wasn't protective of his family but if we were ok, he was ok. Cancer is such an insidious disease for animal and human alike. It came on so fast with Ziggy that we didn't have time to catch our breath before it was all over. The feeling of helplessness is overwhelming. There was nothing we or the doctors could do to help him so we did the last kind thing were able to and helped Ziggy to the Bridge today. Our hearts are broken and will not soon mend. There is a hole in our lives and in our house that will never be filled. We wish Ziggy snowy days and happy trails. We will carry him in our hearts always. Ziggy, you are now and always will be our beloved...

Pray for Ziggy Please!

2010-01-16T07:34:00.006-05:00

We don't know what's wrong. Last Sunday he was fine. Monday he stopped eating. The only thing that came up on his blood work was an elevated white blood cell count, indicating infection. He's on antibiotics but is getting worse. Leah and Jessie slept on the floor with him last night. As soon as his vet's office opens we're taking him in. We're all so desperately afraid for him. Please, please, please pray for Ziggy.

UPDATE - 1/16/10 9:30 AM - Ziggy has been hospitalized. His fever is up over 103 and he refuses to eat. His doctor gave him a shot of antibiotics and he is getting IV fluids and having xrays done. We'll know more after 1:30.

Merry Christmas to All!

2009-12-24T08:05:00.001-05:00

Electric Blanket

2009-12-10T06:06:00.006-05:00

Thoughtful, kind, patient, sweet, peaceful, blah, blah, blah... Yeah, that's Ziggy. Just look at him tolerating Natty! If Natty tried to share my food he'd be a RED, black and white cat!

Seriously Ziggy? Sleeping with the enemy? This goes too far.

Natty looks cute but, trust me, he is a vampire kitty. I don't know why all of the cats love Ziggy so much. Even the stray cats rub up against him. I mean, he's supposed to be MY electric blanket!

Two Shining Stars

2009-12-07T10:03:00.005-05:00

Two new stars shine in the night sky.

They twinkle so brightly with memories of days gone by.

Jill (left) and Libby (right) were two beautiful doxies that lived with my mom's friend Judy. Libby was quite old at 15 and started to fail this past summer. She couldn't hear and her sight was gone. All summer long Jill stayed close by Libby acting as her eyes and ears. She watched out for the big sister she loved with her huge dachsund heart.
Last month Judy and her husband had to help Libby to the Rainbow Bridge. It was heartbreaking for them but they knew it was time. When they didn't come home with Libby, Jill stopped eating. Within 4 days Jill couldn't get up. The doctor tried to help Jill but 5 days after Libby left for the Bridge, Jill joined her. Needless to say, this has been very, very difficult for Judy and her husband. Though they were prepared to say farewell to Libby, Jills departure has left them heartbroken. Judy doesn't have a blog but I know all of you will join me in sending her our paws and tears of support. We know there are more doxies out there that need to be rescued and when Judy and her husband are ready some lucky doxie(s) will have a wonderful home waiting for them.

My Mom Messed Up!

2009-12-02T13:41:00.007-05:00

During my mom's blog meltdown when she went on strike (against my wishes) she made us miss the Dogs With Blogs Holiday Card Exchange! I am sooooooooo upset! My mom is very upset too. We had so much fun last year sending and receiving cards that my mom almost cried when she found out it's too late to get on the list. So, please, if you would like to exchange cards with us, please drop us an email at PedroVotes@aol.com so that we can swap addresses! Thank you!!!

Lazy Sunday x 4

2009-11-22T14:30:00.004-05:00

3.
4.

Can you say couch potatoes?

Sunday Snippets

2009-11-15T16:34:00.005-05:00

It's been a rainy, wet week here on the coast of New York but the sun finally peeked through the clouds today. I took the opportunity to go outside with Ziggy and the cats - ALL the cats, including the strays that stop by our Stray Cat Soup Kitchen! First thing I saw when I went outside were two cats on the roof of the shop - Elvis and Tommy. Tommy booked pretty quickly but Elvis took a liesurely stroll down the roof before jumping off the edge! That is definitely not something a dawg could do! Tommy seems to be feeling much better. So much better in fact that shortly after these pictures were snapped he beat up poor Elvis! Don't worry, Mom ran into the neighbor's yard and rescued Elvis and brought him back for dinner. I was very busy smelling cat butts and, of course, marking everything, like the pool cover. So much to pee on, so little time! Here's a picture of Natty's mom - Pricilla (that's Natty's uncle Cowboy next to Pricilla). And Natty's dad Boots.Look how BIG Natty, the pest, is getting (see Gus & Louie - there is a pest in my dawg house too!) I hope you had as much fun on Sunday as I did!

This Is What Happens In College?

2009-11-11T12:32:00.003-05:00

It's "Mountaineer Week" at Leah's college and yesterday she entered the pie-eating contest. Today she made the FRONT PAGE of The Daily Athenaeum (the school newspaper) with her face stuffed with pie! Chocolate cream pie to be exact. I think I want to go to college Mom!!!

We're Here

2009-11-09T12:59:00.005-05:00

The floors are done, we've moved back in, Mom painted and then she and Dad promptly went away again! They said they needed one last get-away before the winter. Thankfully it was only for a long weekend and Jessie came and stayed with us. Unfortunately, my cat-brother Tommy has not been well at all. While Mom and Dad were gone he had to stay in the hospital. They did all kinds of tests on him to figure out what was wrong but it's a mystery. All his bloodwork came back as normal - no Leukemia or FIV, his red and white blood cells were normal, liver and kidneys fine. The VET thinks it's either Irritable Bowel Syndrome, cancer, or a virus. His usual portly physique has been replaced with a new bony thinness that doesn't feel healthy at all. He's on Flagyll, Amoxicillin and Prednesone. Mom thought he was doing better but he cat-yacked this morning. Keep your paws crossed for Tom-Tom! He's the cat that asks for nothing. He's sweet and lovable and drools when you pet him and we sure don't like seeing him under the weather.

My World is Upside Down!

2009-10-16T08:04:00.004-04:00

I don't know what's going on. I'm confused, disoriented, scared and depressed. Everything in my dawg house has been moved around. At first it was kind of fun - lots of open space to run around in. The openness made my bark seem louder and more ferocious than usual. The kitten found dust bunnies to chase and was in his glory. Then it happened... Monday night the hallway got crammed with furniture and Mom had to squeeze us in to Leah's room. I heard Dad say he was going to sleep in the trailer. Trailer? We don't have a trailer. What is a trailer anyway??? Tuesday morning my Mom got up, hurried to get ready for work then put Libby and Natty in the trailer. Libby HATED it! She tried to escape but Mom kept putting her back. The trailer was creepy because Mom covered everything in it with comforters. I wondered why and she said her friend Kathy leant us the trailer to live in while our floors are being refinished and she didn't want us to damage anything so she covered it all. Now, why would she think WE would damage anything??? Hmpf! After locking up the cats (BTW - Tommy has decided to be an outside cat since Natty came live with us so his life has gone on without interruption), Mom loaded Ziggy and me in the car and off we went to her job.I don't like going to work. I don't know why my mom has to spend so much time at work but, as she's reminded me soooo many times, it's so she can buy us nice things, like food. Work is very stressful for me. So many people to bark at and bite. Ziggy doesn't mind because he actually likes people outside of our family. Mom's boss makes me a little nervous too because there is this weird, crazy energy coming off of him that put's me on edge. Wednesday when we came home the house STUNK so we all had to sleep in the trailer that night. Thursday the smell didn't seem as bad. Mom couldn't take it though so she tip-toed over the floor to Leah's room, bringing Tommy with her, and they slept with the windows wide open in 40 degree weather all night. Tonight Dad says he's going to his parents' to sleep with Ziggy. Me and the cats will be camping again with Mom. I'm tired, Ziggy is completely exhausted, Libby is beside herself and Mom has a permanent headache from the fumes. No pictures of the chaos but we'll post some pictures of the floor when it's done - this picture was taken after the stain was applied. Sorry we haven't visited anyone this week. Once our house is in order we'll be by to say hello!

S'More WVU

2009-10-07T08:35:00.004-04:00

Last weekend was Parents' Weekend at West Virginia University. Mom wasn't planning on going but she and Leah decided they needed to spend some quality mother-daughter time together (note I did not say mother-daughter-Pedro time together). Rather than staying in Morgantown and doing the pre-planned Parents' Weekend things, they decided to do a little camping (via a camping cabin). The drive there was difficult with traffic and multiple accidents along the way but Mom made it to the campground around 9:00 PM, checked in and dropped off her stuff then headed to Morgantown (23 miles further away) to pick up Leah. The cabin was cozy and they slept in on Saturday (that means 8:00 for Mom and 10:30 for Leah!) They decided to do things they hadn't done before so after exploring the campground and surrounding area they went to Coopers Rock State Park. The views were beautiful and the Monongahela River sparkled in the valley below - great Christmas Card photo ops! They didn't exactly rough it with the food because Mom didn't want to pack all the things necessary to cook so they ate out. The only thing she made sure to bring was coffee! After a delicious dinner at Texas Roadhouse they headed back to the campground for dessert. S'Mores! This is a Leah favorite after so many years of summer camp (Camp Ma-He-Tu).They gathered some fire wood, stoked up a cozy fire and started roasting marshmallows. The pictures sure look yummy!Sunday came too quickly. After a $200+ grocery shopping trip Mom hit the road, taking a different route home. Even with a little traffic in Pennsylvania and by the George Washington Bridge (is there EVER not traffic there???) she made it home in 7 1/2 hours - not bad at all. Camping was fun but a little creepy since they were literally the only 2 people in the campground. Mom said she'd stay there again but maybe during a time when more people are around.

Trying Times!

2009-10-01T08:55:00.001-04:00

Mom! He won't leave me alone!!!

Natty Do

2009-09-28T09:50:00.003-04:00

So mom broke out the new camera this weekend and took tons of pictures of that bratty little kitten in my dawg house - Natty. There are no pictures of me with him, mainly because I don't really like the little bugger all that much. He is kind of fun to chase around and tackle but there will be NO snuggling with me! Ziggy and Libby tolerate the brat much better than I do. Tommy, on the other hand, absolutely hates him and won't even come in the house any more - he insists on dining alfresco! Natty has GROWN like a weed (but I'm still bigger, for now...)!

New Camera!

2009-09-24T20:43:00.003-04:00

My mom finally got a new camera today. It wasn't the camera she planned on buying but that's ok because it was FREE!!! Yes FREE!!! Mom had to go to a trade show for work and they gave her some raffle tickets when she got there and she won! No new pictures yet because the battery is charging but I imagine I will be tortured with many photo sessions very soon...

Where are my Friends?

2009-09-20T19:57:00.001-04:00

My mom has been busy and we haven't been able to post much or visit my friends. When we do visit we usually go through Blogger and see who has updated their blogs and head on over to say hello that way. Well, it's been so long that my mom decided it would be best to start at the top of our Doggone Good Blogs list and work our way down to the bottom, stopping to see everyone along the way. Much to our surprise we found a couple of our friends blogs had been cancelled, deleted, removed, erased, kaphut! Oh no! What happened? Where did they go? I'm so worried.

Does anybody know about Mandy & Tuffy

or Joey & Zeke? Please, please, please let me know!

It's All in a Name - Pedro

2009-09-16T10:03:00.008-04:00

Names are very important. They define who we are. Our name becomes our label, our headline, our identity. How many times have you heard, "I could never name my child so-and-so because I knew someone with that name and I didn't like him/her"? In my dawg house, my mom is the official name giver. She prefers human names but doesn't necessarily always stick to that rule. When it came time to name me, my mom wanted an authentic name that would pay tribute to the Mexican origin of my breed, Chihuahua. She once met a chihuahua named Peelow, but she didn't think that was dignified enough for me. She tossed around Paco and Pablo but finally settled on Pedro. A strong plus for the name Pedro was, of course, the character from Napolean Dynamite. That movie cracks my mom up every time she watches it. The clincher for the name, however, were all the fond memories my mom had of going camping for Spring vacation each year with her parents in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Along the way, for what seemed like hundreds of miles, they would pass signs for South of the Border. Any of you who live on the East Coast of the U.S. and have driven on I-95 South through North Carolina or North through Georgia and South Carolina are very familiar with these signs. By the time they'd pass the 20th sign, my mom would be begging her parents to stop at the tourist attraction (or tourist trap as her father would call it). The funny thing is, the signs were always more fun than the actual place. It seemed that every time they'd stop there half the stores would be closed and never once was the amusement park open. To this day, whenever my mom drives South she stops there and to this day she has never seen that amusement park open! None-the-less, South of the Border and Pedro's signs hold special memories for my mom and so the name Pedro became mine. I do have a BUNCH of nicknames (which are not at all dignified) including PeeDee, PeePee and Little Boy. What was the point of giving me a dignified name attached to such fond memories if they were only going to call me by such demonstrative and highly unflattering nicknames? I don't get humans... but I do love mine :P

UPDATE: My cousin, Coco the Princess, has suggested that I start a Tag for my friends to tell how they got their names. I think this is a great idea and so I officially tag Coco to tell her "It's All in a Name" story!

Flashback Friday

2009-09-04T08:47:00.002-04:00

I'm 3!

2009-08-13T20:44:00.006-04:00

August 13th is my day - Pedro Day! I woke up this morning and my mom sang the Happy Birthday Song to me then promptly left for work. Dad went to work. Leah went to work. Jessie went to work. I want to know how come none of them took the day off to celebrate with me... Well, Ziggy and I hung out and had a great day doing dawg things while the humans all worked! Tonight the birthday festivities swung into high gear! Leah went out earlier today and did some major shopping for me! I didn't really want to pose with the bag but Dad made me do it! I couldn't believe how many great toys and treats were in that bag! Do you see the skunk? It's unstuffed! I can't wait to sink my teeth into it - hehehe. After opening my presents and enjoying one of the treats for awhile Mom surprised me with the most awesome birthday cake ever! Can you believe she got a cake for me that looked just like a hot dawg? So funny because it even tasted like a hot dawg! I had a really, really great birthday! I think 3 is the best one yet for me!

OH NO SHE DIDN'T!

2009-08-11T16:24:00.003-04:00

This is just NOT FAIR! My mom has rescued another animal! She caught this little feral kitty in our back yard and pretended she was just going to tame him down so he could be adopted BUT now he has a NAME and we all know what that means.....

Introducing NattyHe's a toe biterand is already a pro at Paw Placement at a mere (we think) 4 weeks old!

Evidence of Betrayal

2009-08-02T19:04:00.006-04:00

Still no camera, so no new pictures of me for your viewing pleasure! So, so sad. Well, instead I'm going to show you some shots of my mom cheating on me during her vacation. Can you believe it? While I was sitting home depressed and missing her, she was out making friends with canyon dawgs, and horses and other birds and critters. Not nice...

Mom with Rusty down in Texas.

A family of geese my mom and Leah saw in the parking lot of Lupe Tortilla's in Sugar Land.

Visiting with Scooter before leaving for Las Vegas.

Not much wild life of the animal kind in Vegas but this pigeon directly above my mom's lounge chair at the pool gave her a bit of a scare!

This bull was by the road on the way out to the trailhead. When my mom stopped the car so Leah could take a picture the bull started running toward them. They didn't hang around to see what he wanted!

Just before the trailhead they passed a few pack horses having a snack on the side of the road.

Look at this baby! Even I think he's cute!

Down in the Indian village my mom made friends with some of the locals.

She said this guy was so cute. He walked with them for a little while before heading home.

The school sign was loaded with bird nests!

This lizard let my mom get pretty close. He was BIG!

In quiet pools along the river there were tadpoles swimming happily.

This good lookin' Boxer dawg pup hiked down with his humans. He barked the whole time they were swimming but wouldn't go in the water with them.

This dawg's name is Sponge! Leah had fun giving him some belly rubs while they waited for the helicopter.

Lastly, leaving the canyon, they saw a bunch of these chipmunks scurrying along the side of the road. All this while I sat home counting the minutes until mom and Leah came home to me. Don't worry, I forgave them!

This Is Why

2009-07-27T10:02:00.006-04:00

My mom has the worst luck with cameras. In the past 10 years she has lost 1 camera, had 2 cameras stolen, outgrew one (it used floppy disks and was HUGE), got pushed into the pool with one, lost one to Leah, and this past week, left her current pretty pink camera out in the rain... The camera that went into the pool dried out and actually worked for quite awhile before it finally quit. The current camera, not so much. So...no camera, no pictures, no pictures, no posts. Before buying a new camera my mom would like some suggestions from all of you on what camera to get. She's looking for high quality pictures to capture me in all my handsomeness without spending a fortune. Help us choose please!

UPDATE - So far, this is what my mom is leaning towards. It seems to have alot of the power of the SLR cameras with point and shoot convenience. The fact it uses regular batteries concerns her though.

For Phantom

2009-07-20T14:52:00.006-04:00

My Sibe friend, Phantom, has had to wear clothes after a recent surgery and, like me, he is not a fan of clothing. He just found out that he needs to keep his shirt on until Friday, so in support of Phantom, I've donned my duds! I'm with you Phantom!

Mango "Minor"

2009-07-13T11:15:00.004-04:00

I recently received this gigantic box in the mail from my friends Mango, Ximiu and Chubs. I read a post on Rocky's blog about a package he received from them and in that post Rocky referred to Mango as "Mango Minor". I thought that was a very clever way to differentiate him from Mango the Large so I'm borrowing it for the headline of this post! When my mom put the box down I knew right away that Mango sent me what I've always wanted, what I really need, what I deserve, my birthright - my very own personal PEDESTAL! Yes! I am now elevated to new heights! My importance is magnified! I am truly the King of my castle! I......., oh, my mom just told me we need to open the box to see what it really is. Sorry, I guess I got a little carried away.

Ok, so we opened my pedestal, er, box and Mom read the letter to Ziggy and me. Lo and behold, the box was not in fact a pedestal but a package containing many wonderful things including 5 new rocks for our coffee table!Mango told us he set out on the hunt, working hard leading the pack of pugs on their quest for the best rocks for our table. According to Mango though, Ximui and Chubs were more interested in what their mom was cooking in the kitchen than they were in finding rocks in the yard, but he impressed upon them the importance of their mission and so they followed their leader. First Mango found the black and red rocks. Then together they found the white one.Once back home, while getting ready to email me the pictures, Mango eyed up his mom's collection of rocks that she had gotten on a trip to Vietnam and thought he would donate a couple of them to the cause. Whoa, Vietnam is half way around the world!

The red, black and white rocks came from Mango's home in Richardson, Texas which is 1,635 miles from my house in New York. The purple and green rocks came from Vietnam which is a whopping 8,882 miles (14,293 kilometers) away from me!

Diving deeper into the box we found this coffee mug for my mom! Libby says, "You're darn right Mango! If you love my mom you better love me too!" Libby looks a little stern in that picture but she's really a very, ahem, charming cat. (She is holding a claw to my throat as I write this but I mean every word I say... really!)

Then we found a HUGE bag of green and white toys! They match our green and white rug! The official school colors for the town I live in are also green and white! Good job Mango, Ximiu & Chubs on your color choice :P Lastly, we found a bag of delicious treats, oh yeah! Ziggy and I loved those treats but the really funny thing is, so did Libby! My mom always says Libby acts more like a dawg than a cat! I hope she doesn't get any bright cat-brained ideas now about stealing all my food and treats...

There are so many rocks and shells in the table now that at first glance it might be difficult to spy the ones Mango, Ximiu & Chubs sent to me. If you look closely though, you will see the green rock from Vietnam almost glowing on the right side with the rest of their rocks around it! Thanks so much guys for sending us such a diverse collection of rocks from Texas and Vietnam and also for all the outstanding presents! You three rock!

Lawnmower Dawg

2009-07-11T08:19:00.004-04:00

My mom was at the estate of one of her customers last week and look what she saw... A LAWN MOWING DAWG! I wonder how much he gets paid.......It sure is alot of work for a dawg to do - this is only part of the yard.I don't really think he minds the work though. Look at how happy he is!

Dr. Dre is in da House!

2009-07-06T19:04:00.004-04:00

Well, his rocks are in the coffee table any way... Dre lives in Northern Idaho (2620 miles from my house), very, very close to my friends Baby Rocket Dog and Hootie. Recently those three dawgs got together for a romp in the park. It looks like Hootie is set to really romp right onto Dre but don't worry, no dawg got hurt!
If you havent visited Dr. Dre's blog yet you really need to because he is HA-LARIOUS! My mom cracks up every time she reads his blog. She thinks Dre and I look alot alike - I'm just missing the mohawk! My mom's niece's husband Daniel has a mohawk too. So I decided to go get myself a mohawk. What do you think? Are Dre, Daniel and I triplets or what?
Dr. Dre found some awesome rocks for me at Lake Pend Oreille and he was nice enough to write the facts on the back of the big rock so I'd never forget where it came from.That sure is one beautiful lake but it looks cold!!! Jessie and Leah brought me into our pool a couple of times in the past week and even 80 degree water is too cold for me! Come on mom, open the wallet and buy some oil so we can heat up the pool!These rocks are as unique as my homeslice Dre himself!Look, they even have some bling in them. How on earth did these rocks get those square holes? It's a mystery to me...Thanks Dre for sending me such great rocks and thanks for making us laugh with your funny, funny, funny blog!

Guest Appearance

2009-06-29T15:59:00.008-04:00

This is my "cousin" Coco - she's a King Charles Cavalier. Isn't she beautiful? I wanted to post this picture for some comic relief because there has been so much sadness out there in DWB land over the past week. We already miss Dakota, we are so worried about Bear's safety and happiness, we want Laska to find his way back home and, most of all, we were heartbroken to hear about the loss of Baby Chloe in Huskee & Hershey's house. Each of these stories alone is sad enough, but together they're overwhelming. We're saying healing prayers for all of our friends and we're hoping they each experience peace in their lives this week.

UPDATE: Laska is home!!!!

Representing 6 States!

2009-06-23T20:38:00.007-04:00

Back before my mom went on her vacation, I received a package from my friends Baby Rocket Dog and Hootie with rocks for our coffee table. BRD and Hootie are like my friends Faya and Dyos, one is an Airedale Terrier and the other is a Welsh Terrier. Like a Me and a Mini Me (except not a Me Pedro cause, as you know, I am Chihuahua).Sometimes these dawgs live in Arizona and sometimes they live in Northern Idaho. A while back BRD and Hootie, along with their parents, left Arizona to go back to Northern Idaho. I think maybe they fly North in the summer and South in the winter, except I'm pretty sure they drive. All along the way they picked up rocks for me! Arizona, Colorado, Utah, Wyoming, Montana and Idaho. I'm not sure about the order but it sounds like a lot of driving! All of these places are very far from my house - 2,432 miles to Arizona, 1,857 to Colorado, 2,206 to Utah, 1,813 to Wyoming, 2,116 to Montana and 2,620 to Northern Idaho. Whew! By my mom's calculations, BRD and Hootie drove 1,144 miles between Arizona and Northern Idaho. They are true traveling dawgs!
The rocks came individually wrapped and labeled so we'd know exactly where each came from. So organized! We carefully unwrapped them and put them with their labels for a photo documentation of their origins.

Also in the box was this very interesting dawg toy. I had to check it out right away because it reminded me of someone I know. The yellow cat stuffie made me want to shake it and bite it and rip it apart! Hmm, I wonder why. Even Ziggy got in on the action and stole it away from me...

Oh, wait a minute. I see the resemblance now! This stuffed yellow cat looks strangely like my yellow cat Tommy. Tommy is an ok cat but he can be a bit of a bully! I guess I just need to take out my yellow cat frustrations on the stuffed cat. I think it's alot safer - no claws...

The rocks from the 6 states are now at home in our New York coffee table. Thanks so much Baby Rocket Dog and Hootie for taking the time on your long journey North to think of me! We will think of you every time we look at the coffee table and I will definitely think of you every time I beat up the yellow cat (the stuffed one that is)!

The Trip

2009-06-13T08:04:00.014-04:00

Where to begin? This vacation was the longest vacation my mom has taken since she was in high school and went camping with her parents cross-country for 6 weeks. Her 11 days away was packed with enough activities that it felt like 6 weeks, or at least 3. Leah and my mom started their vacation with a trip to Houston, TX to go to my mom's grand-nephew's wedding. Remember, my mom was an aunt before she was born so, though she's far from her 20's, she's not in her 80's either! Many of you will recall that last September my mom's nephew and his wife were in a horrible motorcycle accident that claimed the wife's life. It was a terrible time for the whole family which was only compounded by the fact that it coincided with Hurricane Ike. Well, the nephew that got married on May 30th is their oldest son. It was nice for my mom to go back to Texas for a happy reason. Chet and Cristina originally got engaged while visiting us (pre-me) with their whole family. Chet took Cristina to Montauk Point and proposed there. So sweet! The day was perfect and the wedding was beautiful! Congratulations Chet & Cristina!!

Next Mom and Leah hopped on a plane to Lost Wages! There they met up with Rambo and Midge's G-mom and JB and Chester's mom. I'm still horrified that they would actually do this without me, Ziggy, Rambo, Midge, JB and Chester. The nerve!!! My mom said she drank more margaritas in Vegas then she has her whole life! They hung out by the pool, ate delicious food at a place called Tacos & Tequila (they highly recommend this restaurant if you're ever in the area) and did some crazy stunt called Indoor Sky Diving! So, no, they did not jump out of a plane but rather jumped into a wind tunnel. Leah loved it so much she couldn't wipe the smile off of her face for days and now wants to jump out of a REAL plane (this does not thrill my mom one bit). My mom says it was so nice to finally meet other DWB and CWB bloggers and she thinks another trip should be planned so more of us can get together. Lost Wages is a great place to do this because there are usually inexpensive flights and hotels but if any of you have any suggestions please chime in! Wouldn't it be nice if the humans could get together some time this Fall???The last leg of their trip required the most effort (understatement). Leah and my mom left Lost Wages and headed into Arizona. First they stopped at the Hoover Dam to look over the edge and admire the new bridge being built. Then they headed to a place called Peach Springs to spend the night before hiking 10 miles down into Havasu Canyon (a side canyon of the Grand Canyon) for a 4 day camping trip. The day was slightly overcast, which is great for hiking. Last August there was a devastating flash flood that washed through Havasu forever changing the landscape and the course of the beautiful blue river. Havasu Falls now flows as a 1-part fall rather than the 3-part fall it was the last time they were there. It was still breathtakingly beautiful though. Two new falls were created during the flood and one of the falls had a beautiful swimming hole. The group spent quite a bit of time there swimming and jumping through the waterfall. They did the trecherous rock climb down to Mooney Falls and spent time down there exploring the many changes to the river. On the last day there my mom and Leah decided to join 4 others and take a helicopter out rather than hiking up the 10 mile trail. They still had to hike 2 miles to the Indian village where the helicopter left from (which was about all Mom's poor feet could handle). When they got on the flying bird they were laughing and giving each other high-5's over their decision! The flight was a mere 7 minutes for a hike that would have taken 5 hours! The nicest thing for my mom was not to be totally wiped out for the 5 hour drive back to Lost Wages.
One more night in Vegas then they hopped on a plane back to ME! My mom has told me not to worry, she's not going away for any length of time again until Thanksgiving. Hmmm, that is unless all of the human DWB and CWB people decide to get together in the Fall... You can never trust humans...

Friday Feets

2009-06-12T05:39:00.005-04:00

My mom got home late on Monday night and has been running around like crazy ever since. The suitcase is lying on her bedroom floor still unpacked. I've had to go to work with her all week because the suitcase smelled like horses and canyon dawgs so I decided I needed to pee on it. Well, that didn't go over too well so now I'm a workin' dawg! I don't mind because I missed my mom so much while she was gone that I'm happy to go to work with her. Regarding the picture in my last post, for those of you who think my mom and Rambo's G-mom actually jumped out of a plane, my mom says, ARE YOU CRAZY!!! So, guess again! I have so many things to tell you and hopefully Mom and I will get a few posts together this weekend. We also need to visit all of you! I've received rocks from Baby Rocket Dog and Hootie, shells from JB's mom's Florida trip, and my mom brought me home some really cool rocks from Havasu Canyon. There are tons of pictures from her trip too. So please come back and see us soon! If you have a chance, stop by Ziggy's blog and say hi to Jessie. She's had a really rough week and could use some cheering up from her friends. Thank you!

Where is She?

2009-06-04T00:57:00.002-04:00

My mom sent me this picture from her trip. Hey Rambo, is that your G-Mom with my mom? Where are they, and what the heck are they doing???

Canadian Rocks

2009-05-28T16:16:00.002-04:00

I got a package from my Boxer friend, Chef, this past weekend. Chef lives in Montreal, Canada. My mom went to the University of Vermont (back in the Dark Ages) in Burlington, Vermont. She says Burlington wasn't all that far from Montreal and one of the things they liked to do was drive in to Canada to buy beer. When I asked why she said something about Canadian beer having a higher alcohol content than American beer. This didn't sound good, so I changed the subject... Montreal isn't really all that far away from me - 326 miles or 525 kilometers (as the crow flies - it is actually 435 miles to drive).I wonder why it took 18 days for Chef's package to get to my house? Maybe it went by Pony Express? I think I do smell some ponies on here. Oh well, I'm just happy it did arrive!Chef searched in his own garden and found three awesome rocks to send me. He was so excited and tired from the hunt that he had to take a nap with the rocks before packaging them up for the long journey!When I opened the package there was this great card inside. Chef is that you? Besides being an award winning dawg, are you a model dawg too?

Libby read the post card and letter for me. Chef invited me to come visit him in Montreal! Too bad I don't have a passport since as of June 1st you have to have one of those to go to Canada from the US.Libby says I should go tomorrow before the passport rules take affect. I'm getting the feeling that Libby is trying to get rid of me!

The table is almost full! Thanks Chef for the perfect Canadian rocks!

M.I.A.

2009-05-23T05:45:00.020-04:00

Not me, my mom. She's been everywhere but home lately it seems. Last weekend she went to West Virginia to move Leah's stuff into her apartment for next year. Whew, that was alot of work. Mom said she had to give up and hire two college boys to help move the furniture up to the 4th floor! No elevator... Mom says she's too old for that! Along the way she waved to our friend Khyra! And the Peregrine Falcons in Harrisburg! Mom also picked Leah up in Harrisburg at her boyfriend's house.
She waved to our friend Chester!And this sign made us think of Mason Dixie! She has a "Line" named after her. What a famous dawg!
On the way home my mom stopped at a place called Sideling Hill in Maryland. She's been looking at it ever since the first trip she and Leah took to visit WVU. Such interesting geology, especially in light of our coffee table project, demands a visit.It was WINDY crossing the bridge over the highway! During the walk my mom picked up a few rocks for me for the table.
As usual, I was not thrilled to have to pose with the rocks...But I do have to admit they look great in the table. Thanks Mom & Leah for thinking about me on your apartment trip!In other news, my mom and Leah go on their big vacation next Friday. I'll be home with Dad, which means extra treats and table scraps! That really helps to make up for missing Mom and Leah. Mom is a little nervous about the trip because she just found out the canyon she is supposed to hike is closed until June 1st because the tribe is concerned about Swine Flu. Their hike is supposed to begin June 4th. We all hope Havasu will reopen as scheduled on June 1st. Mom doesn't know if she should cancel the hotel by the trail head or not. If they announce on the 1st that they're not reopening it will be too late to cancel and she'll lose her money. She and Leah have talked about different things to do if the hike is cancelled but it will be so disappointing if they don't get to see these beautiful waterfalls again. Will all you dawgs and cats please keep your paws crossed for my mom? Thanks!

Khyra's Rokhs

2009-05-14T05:57:00.011-04:00

A box arrived a while back from York, Pennsylvania from my friend Khyra! Khyra is such a beautiful girl and a good friend to so many of us. I was so excited to open this box that I actually stopped de-tailing the zebra Suzuki sent me! York is about 262 miles from my house and my mom passes by it on her way to/from West Virginia when she goes to Leah's college.
Inside was a letter from Khyra explaining that it took her assistant a long time to get the package to me. Um, Khyra, it took my assistant a LONG time to help me write this post! She kept complaining about her broken tooth and something called a roots canal. Sounds like a bunch of lame excuses to me!
Finally the box is open! I see some delicious treats in there for me and Ziggy and Libby too!
Bully Sticks for me and Zig! Libby LOVES Temptations! She's been spoiled by so many dawgs and cats during this coffee table project that she's usually the first one to inspect the packages when they arrive. She's also the first one by the treat basket when my mom leaves for work! She figured out that mom gives us treats when she leaves and she wanted in on the action.
Khyra sent us a "furry" special letter that only Ziggy and I could read. In our letter she told the story of her rock hunting expedition. She and her mom jumped into the Xterra and headed to Samuel S. Lewis State Park. Samuel S. Lewis State Park was named to honor the Secretary of the Pennsylvania Department of Forest and Waters from 1951-1954. Samuel S. Lewis donated 35 acres of his farm to the Commonwealth in 1954. Lewis convinced Walter Stine to sell his arboretum to the Commonwealth for a reasonable price. The Commonwealth then purchased an additional 35 acres of the adjacent Almoney Farm to complete the initial park tract. The park opened to the public on July 4, 1954. The Department of Conservation and Natural Resources purchased an additional 14 acres of land in 1999. It looks like a great place to run around and explore and, of course, find rocks! Here is a movie of the day Khyra and her mom set out in search of rocks.

Khyra is definitely KHWEEN of the ROKHS!

Besides the Pennsylvania rocks, Khyra's mom added a couple of shells from her own collection - a little white spirally snail shell and a spotted clam shell. Can you imagine a snail walking around with that tall, skinny corkscrew shell house?

All the rocks and shells from Khyra fit neatly into the corner of the coffee table. Thank you so much Khyra (and your mom too of course!) for going to the park and finding such great rocks for the table!
Here is one final picture of Khyra hunting for rocks. Can you see her fluffy tail??

Rocks from Down Under

2009-05-09T06:34:00.023-04:00

I received my 1st contribution for the coffee table from Australia, the land down under and the birth place of Dogs With Blogs, from Suzuki, Tahlia and Scooby! This was a very exciting package for me because not only did it travel a record distance, 11,698 miles or 18,823 kilometers, but it was HEAVY! Inside the box was an awesome card from Suzuki. I think Suzuki is one cool dawg! She is a world famous writer using the pen name Bark Kent.
She has a really good lookin' brother, Scooby who helps single dawgs connect on Scooby's Singles Saturdays, and her sister Tahlia is my cousin Rambo's girlfriend!
The most impressive thing Suzuki does though, and this is what brought me to her blog originally when I saw her picture in a contest, is BOOGIE BOARD!
HOW RADICAL IS THAT??? She is just awesome! Suzuki included a letter that gave the history of the area where the rocks she sent were found. In addition she emailed me some absolutely beautiful pictures of the Waroona Lions Club Drakesbrook Weir Community Park where they went rock hunting. No dawgs are allowed in this park but, since Suzuki is a rule breaker, she and her sibs snuck in! Drakesbrook Weir is an irrigation dam which collects the overflow from the Waroona Dam in a town called Waroona which is south of Perth. In winter it is full of water. The whole ground is mud. These cracks are caused from the mud drying out. Looks like somebody forgot their kayak last winter! That's what the humans get for not putting away their toys! The cracks vary in depth from about 1 inch to 6 inches. I'd be in trouble if I stepped into one of those 6 inch cracks since my little legs aren't much longer than that! Suzuki wasn't sure what kind of rocks these are but she said they were the "prettiest" she could find and I think they're very handsome rocks indeed! My mom says they remind her of petrified wood. Does anybody out there know what kind of rocks these are? Suzuki thinks they could possibly be sedimentary rocks called chert. I know that kind of rock can be found in the Grand Canyon too and my mom said she'd bring me home some when she goes there in a few weeks. Suzuki also found the shell in the park. I would never have expected to find a shell there. I'm a spoiled rotten dawg! Look at all the treats and toys that box was stuffed with! No wonder it was so heavy. In the box was a stuffed zebra (my favorite), a squeekie hamburger (Ziggy's favorite), dawg tags, two cool rope bones (I'll kill them later), and chocolate treats that are safe for dawgs to eat! All the rocks were individually wrapped in bubble wrap so they could make the long journey to my house safely.

The first thing I had to do was rough up the zebra! Man that's a fun toy! Turn your volume down when you watch this video because my mom and Jessie were cracking up and the TV was LOUD!Libby is a funny cat. She thought the box was her present and she LOVED it! I didn't want to tell her that, ahem, she probably needed a shoe horn or some grease to squeeze into it!Now the Aussie rocks and shell have a home in my table. We'll probably spread them out but for now they're taking up the whole upper righthand corner! Thank you Suzuki, Scoobie, Tahlia and your humans for sending us such an incredible package all the way from Australia! We'll leave you now with one more picture of the beautiful landscape from Drakesbrook Weir Community Park.

Chester's Personal Rock

2009-05-06T11:00:00.001-04:00

I received a package from Chester the chocolate lab this weekend. Chester did the research for me - we live about 300 miles apart. Chester is from Greencastle, Pennsylvania.

Because my mom's makin' a table
with rocks from my Dog Blog friends.

Chester had to find one real quick

before this rockin' fun ends!

Chester thinks his rocks aren't real special

not nearly as pretty as some.
So he looked and looked and looked

'til his paws were getting numb.

But then he came across it

I'm telling you the truth.
He marked it really well
by biting it with his tooth!!
There won't be no mistakin'
this rock and from who it came
His tooth is there forever
and Chester's the one to blame.

Ok, I can't take credit for that poem, I paraphrased the one Chester wrote on his blog. Please don't turn me in for plagiarism! I fessed up!Along with the special rock there were two other little rocks included in the package. Chester explained in the letter that the rocks didn't come from his mom's head but were actually found in West Virginia! I wonder if Chester knows that Leah goes to college in West Virginia? Well, Chester's mom and dad went for a bike ride to Harper's Ferry and they found these rocks. You can't tell in the picture but they are actually very sparkley!Libby dug a little deeper into the box and found some other things in it that Chester sent along for the two of us! Libby was very insistant about having some of her treats immediately! Mom offered a couple to me but I told her I am a dawg! The balls we will share though.Now this treat was for me! Ziggy was seriously eyeing it up though, so Jessie broke it in half and we shared. I know Ziggy would do the same for me cause he's a very kind and generous dawg.We put the Pennsylvania and West Virginia rocks together into the table and they really look great! The tooth cracks me up! Thanks Chester - you are a character!

A Round Rock from Texas Kitties

2009-05-03T20:57:00.014-04:00

My two new Texas kitty friends, Angel & Kirby sent me a really cool round rock. These two good looking cats live in Plano, Texas which is 1,630 miles from my house. There is a very long family history to this rock that was explained lovingly in the letter that came along with it.This is a naturally round rock. It has not been polished in any manner. If was found on the property that Angel & Kirby's mom's father (I'll refer to him as Grandpa now) grew up on in West Texas (actually the Western part of Central Texas in Eastland County - whew I'm confused!) There was a community there called Yellow Mound where Angel & Kirby's Grandpa lived as a boy. The family has been finding these round rocks for 80 years (I think that 560 dawg years!) Many of these round rocks are very smooth like the one Angel & Kirby sent to me. Others look like they are made of small pebbles stuck together. Angel & Kirby's mom thinks her dad would be very happy to know that one of these rocks is now in my table.

Angel & Kirby, I want to thank you so much for sending this unique and very personal rock for my table. Every time we look at this rock we will not only think of you and your mom but also your Grandpa. We will think about the earth in Yellow Mound which is brown but almost like yellow clay. Though we've never been there, we will imagine your Grandpa when he was a young boy and later on your mom when she was a young girl, each searching for these perfectly round rocks. We can almost see them filled with joy when they found one and maybe even playing a game of marbles with their collection. My mom's mom and dad have also left for the human rainbow bridge and would have been 90 and 93 this month if they were still here, close to the 85 Angel & Kirby's Grandpa would have been if he were here too. My mom knows how important these special memories are and we all thank them so much for sharing!

All the Way From the Philippines!

2009-04-30T10:40:00.002-04:00

I received a package in the mail from my friends Sweepy, Sumo and Bogart. They're also known as Hounds in Heaven and they live in the Philippines. I never realized the Philippines were so far away from me - nearly as far as Singapore! Sweepy lives approximately 8,500 mile or 13,700 kilometers from me. Wow!

Inside the package was this very artistic card that the hounds made for me.The letter explained that the pieces glued to the front of the card, with the exception of the slivers of shell, were from their personal collection.

Bogart's job is to guard the rocks and he takes his job very seriously!

First they spread out all the rocks and glass pieces onto the floor for closer inspection.

Sweepy went through the collection, viewing each piece one by one and chose his favorites.

Sumo chose the rock he wanted to send and carefully placed it on Sweepy's nose while he was sleeping!

Even though the shells were part of the card, we took them off and put them into the coffee table too. The shells, brightly colored glass and smooth and shiney rocks really added some pizzaz to the table! Thank you Hounds in Heaven for sending such great things!!

More from Singapore

2009-04-24T11:55:00.010-04:00

The beautiful Princess Snowball from Singapore sent me a package of shells and rocks for the coffee table. This is package #2 from Singapore - the first was from my friends Huskee & Hershey. Even though they're all from Singapore, they each sent very, very different things!
The two shells on the top were so delicate and beautiful that I'm grateful they made it all the way (9,539 miles or 15,349 kilometers) in one piece! As you can see below, the rocks and shells were carefully packed up in the cute little box. Princess Snowball also sent two "Milk Spoon" treats. Ziggy and I each had one and they were unlike anything I've ever had before. Ziggy finished his right away but it took me a long time on mine. In fact, I got one end chewed off and then the whole thing vanished! Hmmmmm...... I'm thinking Ziggy stole it when I wasn't looking. I'm telling Mom!!!!!!!!!
I asked Snowball where she found such beautiful rocks and shells and she told me she set out on a quest.First she jumped into the sea and swam and swam and swam for a very long time. Until at last she spotted a picturesque beach that seemed like it might have hidden treasures waiting to be discovered! The name of this beautiful place is Changi Beach.So she made her way to the shore and collected the awesome shells and rocks to send half way around the world just to be in my table! I am so impressed with Snowball's long distance swimming abilities! She should definitely be in the next Pawlimpics! I definitely see GOLD medals in her future. Thank you, Princess Snowball for the spectacular rocks and shells and for the delicious, strangely disappearing, treats!

Bijou Rocks Around the US!

2009-04-21T06:29:00.009-04:00

One of the 4 packages we received last week was from Bijou. Bijou is a Toy Rat Terrier from Falls City, Nebraska. She has a younger brother named Banjo who is also a Toy Rat Terrier. Rat Terriers have longer snouts and shorter tails but other than that look alot like chihuahuas - which means, of course, they are extremely good lookin dawgs! The package from Bijou was very heavy and Ziggy was very anxious to get it opened.

Before the rocks made their 1,370 mile trek, Bijou had to first pose with them!

Then she needed to smell them to make sure they were not only interesting looking rocks but also interesting smelling rocks! Smells are so important to us dawgs you know.

After the photos session and quality control inspection, Bijou gave her stamp of approval and declared the rocks were fit to be mailed to me!

Mom opened the package and laid all the rocks out on the patio with the letter. Bijou explained that the two speckled rocks on the upper left came from the Oregon coastline. The two triangular rocks on the lower right along with the white rock on the bottom left came from Arizona. The remaining rocks all came from Bijou's home state of Nebraska. So alot of the rocks had already traveled great distances before they made their way to me in New York!Libby the camera hog insisted on a photo shoot with the letter and rocks (as usual)!No offense to all my cat friends, but sometimes cats can be such attention seekers! Libby is constantly infringing on my time with mom. She insists on sitting next to mom on the couch every night which really annoys me because I want to sit next to mom! If I'm not quick enough she'll steal my spot next to mom in bed too! The little white rock from Arizona is called a Desert Rose. Mom had to take a close-up picture of it to share with all of you because it is so interesting and beautiful. Desert Roses are actually "chalcedony" which is formed when mineral rich water flows or drips over a long period of time. You can see "growth" rings on this beautiful specimen. It is very smooth and has an almost waxy feel. It's hard for me (and my mom) to really understand the geological make-up of this rock but it is somehow related to the quartz family and is often used to make jewelry. Please forgive me if any of this information is wrong. I did research but there isn't a Desert Rose for Dummies web site out there! All I know is I like it and it's a great addition to my mom's table!I chose the place for the rocks in the table on the two corners. Several of the rocks were too big to fit under the glass but no worries - my mom has figured that all out. Rambo sent a rock that was too big and the beautiful big shell from Byron & Xinver is also too big to fit under the glass. Last weekend my mom found the PERFECT clear glass candle holder that she's filling with the plus-sized rocks and shells and she'll post about that when it gets a little more full!

A Package from Sammie & Honey and an Apology

2009-04-19T11:53:00.008-04:00

This week I received 4 packages in the mail! I'll get to those in a minute but first I have to apologize for not visiting all of you this week. My mom went to West Virginia to spend Easter with Leah. She took off Good Friday from work and got home early Monday morning after a horrific traffic jam on the New Jersey Turnpike. At one point she had to get off the road a take a nap because she was getting too tired to drive. So that started the week and one thing lead to another and suddenly it's Sunday again and this is the first time we've had a chance to even open the packages! I hope this coming week is a little slower than last week!

The first package we opened was from Sammie and Honey, two good lookin Goldens from San Rafael, California. I looked on a map and San Rafael is almost directly across the United States from my house in New York, a total of 2,980 miles awayThey went for a nice walk on Muir Beach to find special shells and rocks for my mom's table. Sammie needed to run around and play for awhile first while Honey enjoyed wading in the cool Pacific Ocean.After that they got down to some serious searching. They found rocks and shells and even a piece of plastic sea "glass".When they got back home the grandpeep helped them make beautiful and colorful cards to send to us with the rocks, shells and plastic sea glass taped onto them.When my mom opened the package for me the first thing she pulled out was a miniature hamburger squeekie toy! I loved that toy so much I had to run around like crazy and kill it!

Also inside the bag were some great treats! Yum!

Mom, hurry up with the camera and PLEASE open these treats for us! Please!!!The rocks, shells and plastic sea glass are great additions to our table. Thanks Sammie, Honey, your parents and the grandpeep for sending us such a nice package!Stay tuned this week for posts about the packages I received from Bijou, Snowball and Sweepy!