settling in, in omaha

since mom moved us to omaha in february, i've gotten to go to the dog park almost every day! it's been awesome. we don't go to the little dog side anymore, though -- they're such wimps over there! they let me intimidate them too much. (ok, i admit it--i've earned my title, 'the terrorist.' so what if i think i'm a big dog?)

so, since i really AM a big dog! in my mind! we go to the BIG DOG PARK. i am learning that i can say hello to everyone without tugging on their ears or chewing their necks -- and i don't even get drooled on too much! it's quite exciting, and i get my exercise. that park is huge.

my new name is d.s.

short for d***b s**t! and mom didn't even give it to me...

it all started on sunday, memorial day weekend, when mom decided it was a good idea to walk me and desi off leash. she just doesn't get it, does she? (so who should really be named d.s.? but i digress.) desi, the goody-goody, came back to mom right away (to be fair, mom took us to a park at sunset when no one was around, thinking that we needed some leg-stretching time. and i *do* have way too much energy for one doggy.)

not ME! oh no, i gave mom a good run for her money, running back and forth past her, just fast enough so that she couldn't grab my collar and catch me. HA! and then, when we got back down the path to the car park, i wanted to see if i could give those CARS a run for their money! and guess what, big as they are, THEY KEPT STOPPING!

of course mom kept having mini-heart-attacks but what did i care? i was FREE as a bird! one BIG CAR stopped just in time for two nice ladies to come join the fun. and then it was that i got my new name ;)

i wouldn't come to them either! and when they asked what my name was, and mom told them, the younger lady gave me d.s. mom still calls me by it from time to time. though i think she's learned her lesson, and i doubt if i'll get off-the-leash walkies ever again.

*sigh* i guess my only fun will have to remain grabbing the mousies under the shed out back. WOOF!

i LOOOOVVVE POOP!

this entry may not be for delicate ears, but i can't help it: i am dog! hear me growl! and SMELL me STINK! mommy was too slow on sunday, and did i RUN or what? desi-dog and i got out, but desi's been getting slow on me. i had to leave her in the dust; there were too many piles about! the fun was out there to be HAD! and ROLLED in! doggie perfume, mmm mmmm MM!

'course dad washed me down, while mom hollered about the stink when i finally made my way home. i don't know what she gets so distracted for. then when my perfumed remained (well, i HAD to share with mom the delightful scent, didn't i?) and she got over the fact that dad had only dented my hard-won bouquet, well -- she scooped me up and back into the tub! guess the poop bits left on my ears were a little too much for her. *sigh* i don't know how to get rid of the peppermint-lemon scents she tried to rub the poop smell out with. unless, of course, i can get back OUT THAT DOOR....

phew!

the bad news: desi's not mom's sister's favorite dog anymore. the good news: desi's losing weight / gaining favor in mom's eyes. i guess mom's forgiven her for the cat incident. and though mom can't seem to lose the weight, desi can! it helps that mom's walking us every day, just about, now. and i've gotten REAL good at my trick of walking over to the leashes and letting mom know IT'S TIME FOR WALKIES. mom's always telling me how much i tickle her and i'm glad to oblige.

good news and bad news

the good news is, mom and her sister took me and desi for a LOONNNNGGG walkies yesterday! woo-hoo! we were SO excited.

then the bad news came when we got back to mom's sister's house, 'cause mom's sister has (had!) a cat. we managed to stay clear of the cat until mom and her sister washed us up, but unfortunately desi hurt the cat after bath-time when she got out. desi hurt the cat so bad, mom's sister had to take him away forever. and mom's brother-in-law hurt desi and himself getting desi off the cat.

mom's sister let desi out, and didn't protect the cat, so it's partly her fault. and i didn't get in on any of the action -- actually i think i was kinda scared.

mom's not sure what to do about desi, and i am lying low.

running to new lengths

three times -- count 'em, THREE TIMES -- i've escaped this week! oh i'm getting good at it! of course it's meant at least two baths this week, because mom somehow doesn't care for the poop smell i tend to bring home with me. wonder what that's about? i find it lovely myself.

and now i have taken to bringing home other dogs' yummy treats! mom had to grab my newfound bone away from me. i don't understand -- it didn't have any meat or anything clinging to it, it was clean, so what was the problem? but she wouldn't let me keep it.

i have also started taking to whining just a tad more than is probably found charming in this house. but i can't help it! with my new tastes of freedom, i just CAN'T be held captive in this little place. so i plague desi and yawp just to keep everyone on their toes, until the next time i can make a run for it. mom LOVES the sound of my tiny feet skittering around on the floor, so i always find it in my doggy heart to come back... i know mom's afraid sometime i might not (she says 'ok, go on, run from me; don't let me catch you and get hit by a car! what do i care?' but i know she doesn't really mean it)... but i *know* i can always just run on back up to the door and whine, and they'll have to let me in... (hey, isn't there a poem by some guy named frost that ends that way?)

lexie's gone to OR.... and i'm gone to the local poop pile!

my big-girl pal lexie went off to someplace they call 'oregon' -- she ore gone! -- so she can protect grandma ruth. meanwhile i are gone out the front door!

slipped by mom last night when she got home late -- WOO-HOO! did i make tracks. mom shut the door and was i GLAD -- i got to roam (really, ZIP! i've been cooped up way too long. the HECK with these once-a-week walks, mom!) for at LEAST a half-hour til mom brought in the heavy artillery... that's right, julio! and MILKBONES.

he came OUTSIDE and managed to bring me down... i mean, home *sigh* i'm a sucker for treats! but not before i managed to roll, roll, ROLL in a massive pile of poop! (that's what mom called it anyway. i sure did have the perfume, that's all i can say.)

so.... soon's julio brought me in, and pointed out to mom my new bouquet, i had my FIRST BATH. (mom doesn't believe in pampering much; that's why it was the first.) PHEW. i DID NOT LIKE IT. but being small and all, i didn't have much choice. now i've got this FUNKY PEPPERMINT-Y 'castille-oil-y' (mom calls it) smell ALL OVER ME. gotta ROLL OUTSIDE AGAIN so i can get this mess OFF!

woof! found the hole in the gate

i have only so much time left, before daddy fixes the gate. but i have LOTS of incentive to escape in the night, since mom can't stand me barking in her ear at the cats in the yard! so woof, out the back door i go, and WOOF! through the hole in the gate i go!

i got to run ALL OVER THE NEIGHBORHOOD last night, and BOY, did i have a blast! no doubt the neighbors enjoyed my short little high-pitched r(y)aps too! mom's got no reason to be worried about me, just 'cause i'm black all over. i'm greased lightning! no cars can get me! WOOF! (mom-editor's note: BAD GIRL LOLA WILL NOT ESCAPE AGAIN. she just THINKS she's outwitted us.)

i am SUCH a HAPPY PUPPY!

i LOVE my mommy! and i LOVE my DESI! i LOVE my lexie too, though not quite as much. lexie puts my head in her mouth and that weirds me out. i learned how to lick from desi, and learned how to be a burglar alarm from lexie, and i taught desi and lexie to 'squeak' at the end of their yawns, like i do.

desi, meanwhile, lets me get away with murder. i chew on her neck and steal her rawhides and growl like a crazy dog at her and she never even nips me. i think she thinks of me as the baby she never got to have. that's all right with me, because i love to cuddle with her too. mom talks every now and then about desi 'going away to oregon with grandma ruth.' i don't know what that means. but i do love my sunday walks with mom, desi and lexie.

i will confess to having a bit of a sharp bark, too. but i am a good girl because i don't yap all the time. no burglars or skunks will get by in our yard, that's for sure!