A-Chew for Me

Do you remember what Jenna put on her list for Santa?  She wanted to visit the Kleenex factory and take a tour complete with samples.  That hasn't happened yet.  I personally think it's because she didn't include me too!  I also like tissues.  I'm just not as obsessed as she is.

Usually when Mommy offers a piece of paper to Jenna, she offers one to me too.  I usually politely decline the offer, but sometimes I surprise her and take it.  That's the key Jenna.  Don't be predictable; keep 'em guessing!

I don't take the paper to eat it.  I use this tiny piece of paper as a way of torturing my sister.  I carry it around with me just so Jenna can't have it.  Recently Mommy snapped these pictures of me trying to avoid Jenna's jaws as she made a move to get my paper.  Please note, I'm so talented I can carry a tennis ball too!

I can even sleep with paper in my mouth as my sister looks on longingly.  Acting oblivious is the ultimate torture for her!

Usually the paper just sits in my mouth until it disintegrates into nothing. THAT really bothers my sister!

Most of the time I just carry the paper around until something better to nibble on comes along.  When it comes to paper or a treat, I'll ditch the paper every time.  [sigh]  Yes, Jenna swooops in and makes her move at that point, but it was worth it to make her sweat for a few minutes!

Sisterly Issues . . . er, Tissues!
Dixie



PS: Mommy and Daddy had their first date TWENTY-ONE years ago today!!  (Well, SHE says they did.  HE says the date is tomorrow!  Who do you believe??)

A Dog's Purpose

Mommy has big plans for the weekend!  She'll be queuing up for tickets to see A Dog's Purpose, the movie based on the best selling book by W. Bruce Cameron.  We aren't sure if there are enough tissues in the world to get her through the movie, but she says it's going to be worth it.  At least she's hoping it will be.  She hasn't read the book, but she says the title alone is enough for her.

She's made us into movie stars by adding us to a mock up of the movie poster.  Which one do you like best?

For reasons I cannot comprehend, Mommy could not find the perfect picture of me for the poster.   She apparently didn't have that many good full-on face pictures of me (her words, not mine).  How can that be???  I'm beautiful!  She kept trying and trying different angles and still isn't totally happy with the results.

Mommy thinks her favorite is Jenna (minus the tiny piece of grass hanging from her nose).  And of course, Mommy couldn't leave Hunter out.  He's the original reason for Mommy's dawg crazy mentality.  But he happened for so many more wonderful reasons too!  She says Jenna's poster is actually tied with Hunter's in her mind.

Are you planning to see it?  Mommy says Jenna and I will have to wait for the DVD.  Why can't we go with her??

Dixie

Life Saver?

When you think of a fire dawg, what do you think of?  Mommy says most people think of dalmatians.

Yes, these are handsome dawgs, but I have another image in my mind . . . ME!  Trying to escape the madness!

We've had a few issues with smoke detectors lately.  Once, Mommy had the broiler on and although NOTHING was technically burning (yet), the "burn" smell was starting to permeate the air and so the smoke detector started to sound.  When this happened, Daddy grabbed a broom and began to fan the alarms in the kitchen and master bedroom.  It seemed to take forever for the alarms to stop.  Being the wise dawg I am, I made for the nearest exit.  I went to the back door and waited for someone to notice me and help me escape.  Where was my sister Dixie?  She ran to her crate.

Another time, Daddy was cooking and the alarms started going off.  Mommy grabbed the broom this time, but since she's shorter and we have really tall ceilings, she wasn't nearly as effective as Daddy at fanning the invisible (perhaps nonexistent?) threat.  Once again, you could find me at the back door and Dixie in her crate.

The final straw came two Saturdays ago.  At FIVE in the morning, all of the alarms in the entire house started sounding off.  We have SEVEN alarms in this house and they are seriously loud.  Yes, they serve a life saving purpose, but . . .

Mommy jumped straight up and started running around trying to find the problem.  No one was cooking (much less awake) at that time of morning.  There had been a fire in the fireplace the night before, so that caused Mommy to slow down in her search, but it too was fine.  After racing through the entire house, she and Daddy decided to yank all of the smoke detectors off the ceiling.  They started in the bedrooms since they were at a shorter ceiling height.  When it came to the master bedroom and kitchen, a second ladder had to be retrieved from the garage so Daddy could climb higher.   There were alarms and words flying around the house as frustration set in and eardrums continued to pound!  Where was I?  You guessed it: waiting at the back door.  (I'm such a smart dawg!)

As soon as number 6 of 7 came down, the sounds blissfully stopped . . . for about ten minutes and then the alarm from the master bedroom just started sounding off as it sat on the table!  That battery was ripped out and has not been replaced!  We think one of the batteries in the detectors needed to be changed and it was causing all of the alarms to sound off.  Yes, those are supposed to be changed with the time in the fall and spring, but . . . Needless to say they are ALL changed now.  Except for that master bedroom detector.  Whenever we try to replace that battery, it starts the whole chaotic mess again.  We think it's defective.  It's not going back up.

Mommy says not to worry.  We have six other alarms that alert us to any potential problem.  They seem to be everywhere!

I tell you all this to remind you that you should change your batteries every so often in your smoke detectors AND you need an evacuation plan should the worst happen.  I will be waiting by the back door for my parents.  They will be duking it out over who has to go retrieve Dixie from her crate!  I guess on the bright side, at least they'll know where to find her!  That reminds me, we need to add the stickers to the doors and windows to remind the firemen to look for us too.  I don't think Mommy has thought of that since we moved.

A Public Service Announcement from the Most Beautiful Fire Dawg,
Jenna

Faces of Dixie

My sister Dixie is sometimes referred to around these parts as the "pretty one."  She IS a beautiful dawg, but I'm not sure one could say she's better looking than me.  After all, I'm the one they call The Supermodel!

Mommy recently took a series of snaps of Dixie's face when Dixie was seeking attention (when is she not??).  This set of pictures shows Dixie's anxious and worried looks as well as her poor, pitiful me looks.  And I guess, it shows how beautiful my sister is as well . . . [sigh]

Enjoy the many faces of Dixie!  I'll narrate from Dixie's point of view while you look . . .

Hey, you up there, notice me!  I'm down here!

PLEEEZE!!!!

Mommy, you're a goddess!  Can't you see how much I adore you?

Jenna, are you listening to me?  Daddy's nice, but not as wonderful as Mommy.

(Daddy, please note, those are Dixie's thoughts, not mine.  You know you're my man!)

I'm getting sleepy.  Maybe if I continue to plant my head here, Mommy will pet me.

I think I heard Jenna move.  Hurry!  Pet ME before she comes over and ruins it all!

Whew!  So glad that's over!  I'm not sure if you or I will recover from being inside my sister Dixie's head.  My sister can be a sweetie, but she can be fierce too!  You just never know which face of Dixie you're going to get!

Sisterly love,
Jenna

First (and Only??) Snowfall of the Season

Make no bones about it, we LOVE snow!!!  We truly thought we would not see snow this year in our new location, but we were pleasantly surprised last Friday when we received about an inch of snow.  We admit, that's NOT much, but trust us, it's more than we hoped for!  Mommy worked that day, but she definitely made time to play with us outside when she got home.  It was so much fun and a great reminder of our time at our last house.  (An additional two feet of snow would've been a better reminder of our previous location, but we'll take what we can get.)

I was so super happy, I was barking up a storm so everyone would know how excited I was by this turn of events.

Jenna was happy too!  The snow gives her a bit of a beard on top of her muzzle to match the one on the bottom!

Once Mommy went inside, we went berserk running around chasing each other in our tiny back yard.  Mommy said she could hear us having fun from inside and came to the window to watch.  She took these pictures through the blinds.

Although temps were in the 70's the first half of this week, there's a chance of more snow tomorrow.

Crossing my paws and keeping an eye out for that first snowflake to fall . . .
Dixie

Our Little Sheldon

Do you ever watch The Big Bang Theory on CBS?  If you do, you're very familiar with the character of Sheldon.  To say Sheldon has a bit of OCD is putting it mildly.  He must eat certain types of food on certain days, can't knock on a door unless he knocks in three sets of three, and he must sit in the same spot on the sofa any time he's in the living room.  To sit in another chair is unthinkable.

We seem to have a Little Sheldon on our paws here at the house.  Now that Mommy is allowing us to hop on the sofa again, Dixie is reverting to her old ways.  Dixie is channeling Sheldon!  She must sit in the same spot on the sofa every time.  It doesn't matter if Mommy, Grandma, or I am already sitting in HER SPOT.  Dixie will give you the stare down until you cave and get out of her way.

She can become quite agitated if you ignore her.  Mommy tries to coax Dixie into another spot on the sofa or to a place on the floor, but once Dixie has it in her mind, you can forgettaboutit!

This is HER SPOT!  Dixie doesn't care if you settle on top of her or beside her.  Just let her have it!

Yes, that's me getting comfy on top of Mommy.   My parents say I don't understand personal space.  I'm not sure what they speak of.  Mommy was sleeping, so she didn't mind.  Dixie was in HER SPOT on the right end of the sofa, so she didn't care either!

Dixie doesn't mind lying on top of Mommy either.  As long as the majority of Dixie's body is in its rightful place, she's good!

Don't let this look fool you.  Dixie may look sad and lonely, but trust me, she's in her Happy Place!

We're telling you all this in case you visit one day.  If you start feeling the hairs on the back of your neck twitch and sense you're being stared at by Dixie, you're probably right!  Especially if you're in HER SPOT!

Jenna

Christmas Memories

Christmas is over already?  Yep, it's been almost two weeks now, but don't you wish you could go back and re-live it?  We sure do!  We had Grandma and Poppa visit with us for a whole week over the Christmas holiday.  We LOVE having them here!  This was me on the first morning after their arrival!  YIPPEE!  Good morning, Poppa!

It's great to have two extra people in the house . . . that's two extra people to rub our bellies!

Two extra people might notice how malnourished we are and toss us an extra treat to snack on!

On Christmas morning, my sister and I were the first ones to awake.  With no children in the house, Mommy says there's no need to get up super early.  She says that, but she's right there with us.  After fixing coffee, turning on Christmas music, texting family and friends in earlier time zones, and sniffing out potential presents, we were allowed to wake up the family!

As Daddy opened his gifts, he started decorating me with all the ribbons and bows from his packages. He had me pretty well covered and then started on Jenna.  Since we're "tied up in string," does this make us "a few of his favorite things?"

Jenna and I enjoyed a few crazy runs through the house on Christmas morning!

All this excitement really wore me out!  I had to escape the madness and crash in the laundry room.

During their visit, Mommy took Grandma and Poppa around the town and to nearby attractions so they could see where we lived and get to know the area.

It was a great week, and we were sad to see them go.  Hopefully they'll come back soon for another visit.  After all, they bring great toys when they come!

Still living the Christmas dream!
Dixie
(and Jenna too)