Poor Pup

Sometimes our little pup just doesn't understand that the laundry needs to be folded - and stay folded. Or that when the floors are freshly waxed it's probably not the best time to run across them with muddy paws. Sometimes she doesn't really get that piles of paperwork are not chew toys.

So on days when she really isn't getting all of those things, it's important for me to remember that maybe telling her no, no, no isn't what she needs to hear.

What she really needs to hear is - let's go for a walk or let's play B-A-L-L. Somehow this makes what could be a disastrous day for both of us into a good solid day of work and play.

Because she is such a good girl. Really.

Walking the Dog

I get how people who don't have time to walk their dogs in the middle of the day, or who aren't physically capable of walking their dogs, or for some other legitimate reason just can't walk their dogs.

But.

Every time I see a dog walker in the city, I just want to rush home and take my pup for a really long walk and then play her favorite games with her for a really long time.

She deserves quality time with me - or is it that I deserve quality time with her?

Either way - I love my pup!

Best Friends

A boy and his dog.  I can't help it, but every time I see my DH and our pup walking down to the pond, I keep hearing that song from "The Courtship of Eddie's Father".  People let me tell you 'bout my best friend!

They're too cute.

Maybe because our pup walks like a Muppet.  Her little ears flop up and down with each step she takes.

They're overwhelmingly adorable.

I'm probably biased, but seriously - you see it, right?

Hi Ya Pup!

Hi ya pup!  Why you're just the best puppy ever.  Sitting at my feet just waiting for me to be done so we can have some quality time together.  We could play ball - or fetch (this time, you fetch and I'll toss - okay?).  Or we could just go for a really long walk.  Just the 2 of us.  Wouldn't that be fun!?

{DH opens a bag of treats ........ rrrrriiiiippppppppppp}

Hello?  Pup?  I say, do you want to go for a walk?  Play with Ball?  Play Squeak?

Pup?  Are you listening?  Hello?

Once again I am forgotten in her never ending quest for an endless supply of treats.  She'll be back though.

I know where we keep them!

Stairing Down the Dog

Our pup is always looking out for us.  Making sure that we are safe - and herding us out of danger.

Sometimes, though, we do the unthinkable - we sit in 2 different rooms!  It's hard for her to make sure we are where she believes we should be - and running back and forth can be so very exhausting!

But I believe she has found the perfect solution...sleeping on the stairs. She has me herded on the 2nd floor and can easily see my DH on the first floor.

Such a brilliant solution.

But there's no way for me to get past her without disturbing her slumber.  Poor thing is tuckered out.

New Kids on the Block

I think that the best part about living in the country is being able to have a dog.  I always wanted a dog when we lived in the city, but I never thought that it would be fair to the dog - cooped up in an apartment all day, only getting outside to "do their business", no place where it could run and sniff and just be dog-like.

But here in the country, in the land of dogs, my DH and I are - well, I guess we are wimps.  We only have 1 dog.  And she's not huge like and English Sheepdog.  She's pretty small as far as country dogs go.  My friend L- on the other hand, is a country dog aficionado!  She knows how to do country dogs right.  She has a pack.

Of course, I think she cheated because her pups are bassets - they sleep a lot.  But just look at that little face!  He's a young pup, but you can tell that the weight of the world rests on his shoulders.

It's almost too much to bear and obviously requires many naps - and cookies - and some more naps.

I try to tell my friend that have an Aussie is like having a whole pack of dogs all built into one small package.  After all, the amount of time my pup spends sleeping is the same as the amount of time that her pups are awake!

Of course, no matter what the breed, until their bladders fully develop - every pup is an exhausting exercise in love.  But so worth it!

Picture Day

Do you know how sometimes you just want to take a picture of your kid (or pup) and no matter how you try to convince them (or her) to just sit still in the perfect light - they won't?  No matter what I tried, our girl would only sit nicely in absolute shadow.

Then I thought - the heck with it! And I showed her how to work the camera.  (Tap nose here - it's within her skill set.)

So she did!

She thought it was really fun.  Just touch the screen and you get to see a pup that looks just like you do!

What a hoot!  I swear she's laughing.  After all, it's not everyday that she gets to play with electronics - especially after that unfortunate incident with the printer cable.  Let's just say it was not a chew toy.

Finally she settled down and took a nice self-portrait.

That's my girl!  Not bad for a budding photographer, don't you think?

(Disclaimer:  My DH thought this was a *really bad* idea to teach her how to play with my ipad.  Just thought you should know...)

Bath Time!

Our pup is a very smart girl.  So when it's time to give her a bath, we have to be even smarter than her.  And it's not as easy as you might think.  Any change in tone or body language is a dead give-away to her that something's not quite right.  We set up everything in the back way in advance so now she thinks we're just going for a little walk.  Right...

The first phase of bath time is a good brushing.  Since our pup is an australian shepherd, she has an undercoat.  She also has extra fluff on her thighs that protects her legs from burrs - which means it is often full of burrs.  The feathering on her forearms is a great place for sticky pinecone scales to attach.  Her fur is very fine here and we have to be careful not to yank when we hit a bit of pine sap.  She's not too terribly fond of the whole brushing routine even though we've regularly brushed her since she was a baby.  She'll tolerate it though, and we'll get enough loose fur off of her to turn a chihuahua into a pomeranian.

After a few minutes of treats and play, it's time for her bath.  At first she doesn't think we're really serious about it - that we're joking around.  But soon she realizes that we are quite serious and there will be actual water and ... s-o-a-p involved!  She has to take drastic action.

Please! Let's go inside!!! I'll be the best puppy in the world, if we can just go inside.  Right now.  Come on!  It'll be fun, I promise!

Her pleas fell on deaf ears - it was time for the bath and that's what was going to happen.  20 minutes of cajoling, praising and being firm but kind, finally resulted in one very clean, very angry pup.  Even liver treats and hot dogs couldn't console her.  We had done the unforgivable - we made her smell good.  Well, good to us that is.  Her fur is so soft and fluffy and she smells like an orange!

She needed some alone time to get over this great offense and decide if she would ever ever forgive us for this violation of her trust and breach of the Use of Water Treaty of 2010 - which, if we would have just recalled 20 minutes earlier, clearly states that water is to be used only for drinking and at no time should water EVER be used for cleaning purposes.  Never ever ever.  Ever.

It was a rough day for our pup, but she survived and soon bounced back enough to eat all of her treats, and her dinner, and some frozen peanut butter yogurt.  Then with her new bouncy ball toy firmly grasped in her mouth, she made her way to her hidey-hole where she would be safe from baths forever.

Poor pup.

Let's Play!

The best thing about a dog is - when you are bone tired and the work isn't done and you're feeling just down in the dumps about it, there she is full of love and sweetness.

My DH and I put in 15 hours today, but there's much more to do.  We were both tired and achy when we finally came in from the gardens.  Of course, the first thing we did was complain about our aches and pains - and the first thing our pup did was go fetch a toy so we could play!

She always puts things in perspective for us.  Even when she was a tiny little 7 month old aussie, before her eyes changed colors, she always had that little smile and a happy attitude.  It's like she's saying 'it's okay - come play with me and it will be even better!'

She such a happy pup - and it's contagious!  After a few rounds of keep-away, we felt much better.

What a good girl!

Hot Dog - Cool Treat

Okay - so this has nothing to do with peas, but it was way too hot today to take pictures of anything having to do with cooking - even if it was just making cool pops for my hot pup - so here's the latest (and probably last) of the spring peas.

I don't give my pup ice cubes to cool her down.  They are just too cold for her to eat and they shock her digestive system.  Also, the thought of her breaking a tooth on an ice cube always makes me nervous.  So - no ice for the pup.

But what to do when it is hot hot hot outside and I know she just wants a little something that is cool and refreshing?  Peanut butter yogurt cubes to the rescue!

It takes less than 5 minutes to make these and toss them in the freezer.  I take a large container of plain yogurt, add about a cup and a half of (natural no sugar added) peanut butter and mix it all up.  Then I spread it out on a sheet pan and pop it in the freezer until it's frozen solid.  Once it's ready, I cut it up into squares and toss them into a zip bag, storing them in the freezer.  

Our pup can have a couple of these cool treats anytime she needs it - and I don't worry about her tummy or her teeth because they're cold - but not as cold or hard as an ice cube.

Now I'm off to think about the rain we are going to get when this little heat front moves on out of here and things cool down again.

What's a Dog to Do?

All week long I gardened.  I dug, I weeded, I planted.  And there by my side the entire time was my faithful puppy.  She was so involved with what I was doing - interested in everything that was going on.

You can tell by the excitement in her eyes that this is her idea of a great day!  Just being near me is enough to make her eyes light up with joy.

Yes, she is really getting into the spirit of a week filled with me on my hands and knees in the dirt and mud pulling out foot after foot of crabgrass roots.  The enthusiasm is overwhelming.

Here's a really fun moment - when I toss the compost into the bin.  I have her complete attention here for sure.

I don't think she can contain herself much longer.  I can see that her heart must be racing a mile a minute with all of the excitement that gardening can provide to our pup.  Yup, racing away.

Whew, that was a close one - I thought for sure she would actually stand up or something!  It's clear to me that our pup loves weeding about as much as I do.

I knew we were simpatico on some level.  Good pup!

Puppy vs the Lion

When our pup was just a little pup, we took her for a walk and passed these guardians of one of the local antique shops.  She was rather unsure of what to make of them.

Now, she is an older and wiser pup.  She knows her place in the world and is brave and confident in her abilities!

She approaches the fierce lion without even raising a hackle and gives it a good sniff.  That'll show the lion who's boss.

But still, it is a pretty big lion...and there are 2 of them and only 1 of her...

Is this really wise!?  Perhaps this requires a bit more thought on our pup's part.

Better luck next time, pup!

Walk?

Our pup is so expressive.  The look on her face really lets me know that she is listening - and sometimes just what she is thinking.  Take this recent conversation we had for example:

Hi pup!  What 'cha doin'?

Are you having fun?

Are you bored?

Wanna go for a walk!?

Let's go for a walk!

See what I mean?  I think she wants to go for a walk - so that's just what we're going to do.  See ya!

On Safari

Here we have the great hunter stalking her prey through the wild grasslands.  She peers out, looking across the verdant fields and spies...

Me!

Our pup loves playing in the lawn before it gets its' first cutting of the season.  She scoots along on her belly and then bounces up and pounces on whatever catches her interest.

Sometimes I think she believes she is a cat.

Playing in the Garden

What could be more fun on a sunny afternoon than playing in the garden?  There are squirrels and chipmunks and birds everywhere to chase.  And the red ball is even outside.

It really doesn't get much better than this for our pup - hours of continual attention and affection from both me and my DH.  

It's all she really wants.

Well, that and the red ball --- and maybe some treats --- and that squirrel, the one over there!  Let's run and chase it!!!

She's such a good girl.

No More Potatoes

I don't know where my mind was on my way home from work tonight, because when I got home I realized I had forgotten to get more dog food for our little pup.  Now I know that some folks just feed their dogs whatever it is that they eat for dinner - and that works for them.  Others cook their dogs special meals just for the dogs - and that works for them.  I buy dog food for our pup - that's what works for me.

But tonight I forgot to pick up her food on the way home.  So when I was greeted by one very hungry puppy at the front door, I needed to figure out something fast.  

Corned beef & cabbage.  That's what was in the refrigerator, so that's what she got for dinner.  Of course I couldn't give her any onion because you don't feed that to dogs.  And I didn't give her any cabbage because she has never had that before and a weeknight is not a time to be introducing your pet to a new food. (You need to know which end it will come out after you put it in, if you get my drift...)

So that left the corned beef, carrots and potatoes.  Corned beef definitely - she loves it.  It's meat, 'nuff said.  Carrots were a go - she's not a big fan of them, but she will eat them and I know they are good for her.  

Now about those potatoes.  Dogs eat potatoes.  Some dogs even love potatoes.  And I've told her again and again that potatoes are really yummy and she will like them if she just would give them a chance.

But there is absolutely no way that she is going to ever ever ever eat potatoes.  Won't. Ever. Eat. Potatoes.

However, I really appreciate the way she lines them up in a neat little row off to the side of her food mat.  It tells me that she has at least thoughtfully considered them and deemed them unworthy of actually being eaten.

So, no potatoes - ever.

Good Girl

Waiting patiently is not her strong suit.  S-T-A-Y and D-O-W-N are not her favorite thing to do.

She's more of a "play now!" and "go!" kind of puppy.

So when she wants to go and play now and she does a perfect down/stay, I know she is such a good girl.

She didn't even know there was a reward involved.  I was so impressed.

Good girl!

The Best Part

This is the best part about having a day at home.  From the start of the day (maybe a little earlier than I had hoped) until bedtime, my little pup is right there.  Playful, cute, attentive and smart.  

She's a good girl and I just love spending the day with her.

Happy President's Day!

Take That, Yarn Harlot!

I finished reading the Yarn Harlot blog today.  Well, actually do you ever finish reading a blog?  It keeps getting new posts.  So, I guess not.  I read all the posts up to today's on the Yarn Harlot blog and I have to say that after I was done, I felt that my fiber arts skills are really lame.

Let's set aside, for a moment, that she is a professional knitter/fiber artist/knitting author (NY Times Best Selling Author, no less) - she does it for a living.  Let's just put that all aside and focus on one little tiny thing.  I've been knitting for as long as she has and I have yet to make 1 single pair of socks!

Not only does she knit socks (pick any month, you'll find them), but in 2011she set up her own sock club and knit a pair a month from that in addition to the 8 other pairs she knit up - and those are just the ones she blogged about.  (I know, right? But we're setting aside the fact that she does a Sock Camp and a Sock Summit.)  Then she goes on her book tours and encourages sock knitting from coast to coast.

And to top it all off, she seems like an intelligent, hard working, loving and all around nice person.

But!  I still felt lame with a miserable case of sock envy.  She's the one who knit up a scarf in two days - I'm still working on mine (it's all those beads) and I don't see an end in sight.

So, what's a girl to do?  The only thing I could - the one thing that I knew for sure that Stephanie Pearl-McPhee would never be able to do better than me.

I roasted a turkey.

With stuffing.

That was almost making me feel better, but not all the way better.  So then...

I baked up a batch or 7 of Biscuit Fiend dog treats.

Now I feel much better because I know for sure that the Yarn Harlot can never ever do that.  

Why?  She's a vegetarian - who has a cat.  

So there!  Take that, Yarn Harlot!  You may be a phenomenal professional knitter and NY Times Best Selling Author and write really humorous and informative books and beautiful knitting patterns and encourage donations to a fantastic charity and be a good person, mother and wife - BUT! 

I can roast a turkey and make healthy organic dog biscuits.

(Okay, how hard can it be...where's that sock yarn?)

It's An Honor Just To Be Nominated

My friend pointed out that I have been nominated for the Bloggers Choice Awards in the categories of Best Blog About Stuff, Best Food Blog (they must not have tried the chili!), Best Hobby Blog and Best Humor Blog.  I'd love for you to vote for my site - if you think it's worthy - if not, you can vote for other worthy sites!

Cool!



Thank you and Happy Valentine's Day!