The Blizzard that Wasn't

Have you ever really had your heart set on something only to be disappointed?  Well, that happened to Mommy this week.  Supposedly the blizzard of the century was on its way . . . and it was bad in some parts of the country, but not here.    [sigh]      [sigh]     [bigger sigh]
Yes, we are thankful we have power, and aren't stranded, and aren't freezing, but a nice BIG snow could be fun!  Mommy was hoping she'd miss at least three days of school.  She did manage to have one day off, so she can't be too upset, but consecutive days off are always a plus in her book.  Daddy wasn't disappointed in the least.  Snow makes his job much more difficult and dangerous for co-workers.  He was happy with the total snowfall of . . . are you ready for this . . . ONE INCH!!!!!!!!

Daddy must think all we do on snow days is lie around eating bon-bons and reading glamour magazines, but he'd be wrong.  When he hit the road, this is what Mommy was doing:

She was grading papers!  And we each helped!   Hunter stared Mommy down until she explained to him that he could NOT eat the papers.  It wouldn't be good for her to have to tell the students they don't have a grade because her dawg ate their homework!

Dixie sniffed the papers for a while and I just watched.  I was hoping I might learn about a good book to read since Mommy was grading book reports.  Some looked interesting and some didn't.  I'm talking about the books and the reports written about them!

When Mommy finished with the papers, we had breakfast and then cleaned house.  No vacation for us!  That's why we need consecutive days.  A snow day to work and a snow day to play!

Better luck next time . . . crossing my paws!
Jenna


PS: My parents started dating nineteen years ago today!  Daddy says the anniversary is nineteen years tomorrow, but give it up Daddy.  You know have to trust the female on this one!

Ready for the Races

Poppa has always called me a horse due to my enormous size.  I topped out at 101 pounds several years ago.  Now I weigh about 75 pounds.  When Mommy wrapped my ankle sores (due to duress at being deserted by her and forced to go to the kennel during the holidays), she was reminded of Poppa's comments.   Only three more ankle wraps and I'll be ready for the Derby!

Have no fear, I'm all better now . . . until my next forced incarceration anyway!
Hunter

PS: This picture was taken on New Year's Day with no snow in sight!

Tie One On?

Mommy and Daddy are having a bit of a disagreement.  The week before Christmas Daddy came home to find Flop Ear, his mounted eight point deer, with a red scarf around its neck.  Daddy wasn't too pleased, but figured it was only for a week, so no big deal.  He grumbled a bit, but did not remove the scarf.

The day Mommy started putting away the Christmas decorations, Daddy came home to another rather unpleasant (in his opinion) surprise . . .

Daddy is definitely NOT happy about this turn of events.  Mommy said it's only for the month of January and surely he and Flop Ear can stand it for that long.  I think Daddy is picturing the red scarf going back up for the month of February.  And then a green one in March if this year's March is like last year's cold one??

We dawgs are staying out of the discussion.  It's really nothing new for Mommy to dress up the animals in the house.  It happens to us all the time.

What do you think?  Scarf or no scarf?
Jenna

State of the Union

Tonight many people will tune in (and probably many more won't) to watch the president deliver his State of the Union address.  I thought this might be a good time to let you know how the Sister Union is getting along here in our household.

It is amazing to think that just three short years ago we were only a two dawg house and then my parents got the crazy idea that we should become a three dawg house!  I'm still not sure what they were thinking, but on most days it's been a pretty good decision.  I also think that as I grow older and slower, it's a good thing we have Jenna around to play with Dixie.  If it was just me and Dixie, I might have had to sit on Dixie by now.  Both girls are full of energy and I'm not.  They keep each other entertained and allow me to work on my beauty sleep.

Dixie used to be our Wild Child until we brought Jenna into the mix.  Now Dixie is our Worry Wort.  She needs to be careful or she's going to develop a few wrinkles on her face between her eyes from all of her worrying.  Dixie's wildness has taken a back seat to all of the energy Jenna exerts.  That being said, they are both very well behaved for the most part.

Jenna is definitely the more dominant of the two sisters unless a tennis ball is involved at which point Dixie wins paws down every time.  I thought Jenna would've been a bit more reserved or humble when she joined our gang since she was new, but nope, not our Jenna!  She takes over and lets you know she's the boss.

An outside observer would notice this hierarchy if they spent any time with us in the evenings.  Our love seat is dying a slow death due to those two dawgs.  (Just because I too was allowed to lie on it for eight years as an only child doesn't count, I'm sure.)  They love to hop up on the love seat and each take an end.  Throw pillows mean nothing.  Sometimes those pillows are added cushions for the girls and sometimes they're just in the way and hit the floor!  And then there are other times when Dixie is the cushion . . .

Just how many creatures can fit on this love seat?  Mommy took these pictures from her seat at the other end!  She and Dixie were relaxing and minding their own business when Jenna decided she wanted to join in the fun.  And that was that!  Jenna just makes herself at home no matter where she is.

So the State of the Sister Union is that the bond between my sisters is quite strong.  They each have their quirks, but they live together peacefully . . . most of the time!

Hunter

Jenna: AWOL

On New Year's Day, Mommy heard a knock at the deck door.  She came around the corner to see our neighbor Mike with Jenna on a leash!  Jenna and Dixie had been outside playing and apparently Jenna had decided to see if it was true . . . is the grass greener on the other side???  Mommy wasn't sure if Jenna had gone UNDER the fence or OVER it.  She was praying for under!

When Daddy returned from his New Year's Day shoot, he went out to inspect the fence and found the problem.  Apparently Jenna still has her supermodel figure!  (At least we are assuming Jenna went under the fence; that is a much easier fix than her going over it!!)

Daddy immediately went to work making the necessary repairs.  It's not pretty, but it should work!

Meanwhile, Jenna watched Daddy's progress and Mommy played ball with Dixie.

I supervised the work of all of the family.  I've seen this happen before.  When Dixie was just a puppy, she too wanted to know if the grass was greener on the other side.  She soon realized the error of her ways and learned she should stay on our side of the fence!

Hopefully, Jenna did indeed go under the fence and not over it.  She has come so close to popping over it a time or two.  Mommy has no idea how to go about breaking the habit of going OVER the fence.  Well, she does, but it won't be pretty!

Only time will tell if Daddy's repair job did the trick or not . . . 

Hunter

Good Ride, Harley

Yesterday, my old buddy and canine cousin, Harley, passed on to Glory.  Her kidneys were giving out on her and she wasn't going to get any better.   Harley was a spunky, energetic, loving dawg.  Unfortunately, we didn't get to see each often since we lived so far apart.

Harley was just a puppy when my parents met her for the first time eleven years ago.  They were home for Christmas, and Harley was just the right size to fit under the Christmas tree (I'm not sure if I was ever that small!).  She made quite an impression on the whole family and was so much fun to play with.

Just like me, Harley was her parents' first born.  She lived in the lap of luxury for the first three years of her life as an only child.

And then Harley's world was rocked with the addition of another human, Cousin C.  Of course Harley adjusted and so did Cousin C.

Mommy flew to meet Cousin C a couple months after her birth.  Mommy made sure she gave Harley a little bit of extra love and attention.  For Harley, the feeling was mutual.

Harley showed off her Halloween costume that year.  She could have just gone in her Birthday Suit, since she celebrated her birthday on Halloween.  Unfortunately for Harley, her mom had been hanging with my mom and that meant a costume!  At least in this getup she could still be the Queen Bee!

Harley had a great eleven years with our family.  I'm sure Cousin C and her brother, Cousin A, are going to miss Harley bunches and bunches.  Good Ride, Harley!

Love,
Hunter

Getting a Leg Up

Mommy took me to the vet back in the fall, and I was diagnosed with degenerative disc disease in my lower back.  [sigh]  Yep, growing old stinks!  While at the vet, Mommy was asked if I favored one of my hind legs more than the other.  I don't know why the vet didn't just ask me.  I could have told her all she needed to know.  Mommy didn't think so at first, but she was wrong.  Right after our visit to the vet, we had our first snow and boy was it telling!  As soon as Mommy saw my prints in the snow, it clicked in her mind and her ears.  She remembered hearing my nails scrape the floor and deck.  The proof is in the picture:

A round of steroids helped for a while, but we have to face facts.  I'm a senior in the canine world and I'm not getting any younger.  Mommy saw a commercial recently and thinks this product may help me.  Stairs are so difficult for me sometimes.  I don't have too many problems going up, but coming down is another matter.  Enter the Acorn Stairlifter:

image from acornstairlifts.com

I bet Daddy could adjust it so that the actual seat could be closer to the ground making it easier for me to hop on and hop off.  Maybe he could add a bigger seat too.  What do you think?  

If you know me well, you are already snickering.  There is NO WAY I'm getting on this contraption.  There is not a single bone in my body that likes anything about this chair.  In theory, this chair is a great idea.  In reality, I don't step foot on the lift table at the vet.  I even have to be coerced to step up two inches onto the scales (and it's been this way for years, not just because I'm old!).  

Mommy, I know you mean well, but get real!  This ain't happening!  The only way I'm going to get a leg up is if you help me.  And thankfully, you do!

If anyone else has any other great ideas, please let me know!

Hunter

MISSING: Family Canines

During the holidays this year Mommy and Daddy posed for LOTS of pictures with our extended families.  We think the results are pretty good and wanted to share them with you.

There is only ONE problem  . . . there are no canines represented in either of these pictures!!!!!  THE HORROR!!!  Where are Lucy, Harley, Maggie, Jewel (the only family feline and we aren't too sure about her yet)??  Not to mention our wonderful selves Hunter, Dixie, and Jenna?????

Next time, people, we want equal representation!!!

Out with the Old

Mommy really wanted to wait until after the New Year to take down the tree, but it was pretty dry and making the house very dusty.  It may also have been contributing to Mommy's stuffy nose, but we aren't sure.  Even if that's the case, there is NO WAY Mommy is making the transition to a fake tree!  (At least not yet . . . )  The tree came down almost a week ago.  Here's what it looked like in all its glory:

As Mommy worked last week on taking down the tree, she made quite a mess.  Needles were flying in all directions.  Mommy got lots of exercise walking around and around Hunter and the tree.  Hunter was determined to be close by in case his help was needed.

He's been lying around a lot this past week.  He doesn't like being cooped up at the kennel when Mommy and Daddy ditch us and leave town.  He has a nervous habit of gnawing on his ankles and creating sores.  Mommy has the worst one wrapped up so it can heal without Hunter agitating it more.  This is also an effort to prevent him from overdosing on Neosporin!  Hunter is not a fan of this process, but Mommy says it's for his own good.  Don't Mommies always say that??

Mommy managed to get the tree out of its stand and yank it through the sliding door and onto the deck.  As the tree went through the door, its branches went snap, crackle, pop!  Jenna's crate had to be cleaned out first so she could settle in there and escape the vacuum during the rest of the clean up process.

For now the tree sits on the deck.  Mommy will cut up its branches and add them to her front porch winter decorations soon.  She needs to go over it one more time to make sure there aren't any decorations still hanging on for dear life.  Daddy swears Mommy threw out his little drummer boy ornament one year.  In a recent Google search, she learned the "vintage 1980's ornament" was not to be found except already engraved with someone else's name on it.  (Yes, it actually said vintage!! Ha!)  Mommy suspects the ornament in question still hangs on Mimi's tree and was never in our house to begin with.  In the meantime, the tree just takes up space on the deck where we walk back and forth to the yard.  

We wish you good luck in removing all of your Christmas decorations.  Happy New Year!
Dixie

Happy New Year 2015

Welcome to 2015!

We decided to ring in the new year doing our favorite things.  Maybe if we spend enough time today on our favorite pastimes, then we'll have LOTS of those same things in the new year.

Dixie decided to play dress up, but wouldn't stay still for a picture.

Then she tore up her costume.  

She did this many times last year, so it stands to reason she will again in 2015 as well!

Hunter enjoyed sucking on his blanket.  He has done this since he was a puppy.  

It helps calm him and eventually puts him to sleep.

At least he goes to sleep when he's not distracted by watching Dixie eat feathers . . . 

Foodie Jenna enjoyed gnawing on a bone.  

She wasn't happy when Mommy took it away and tried to take a picture without it. 

Dixie finally cooperated with her New Year's picture once the party hat was changed out.

Wishing you a new year that fills your home with joy, love and many blessings to come!

Hunter, Dixie & Jenna