Happy Spring!

Happy Spring!

Of course I'm usually happy but today is my birthday so I have some extra reason to feel good. Mostly it's been a pretty decent day. I got to snuggle the boss ma'am. Chomp on her thumb (whoopsie - so sorry!) , get snacks, watch my stories, take a walk. What more could a small dog ask for? Well, maybe some birthday cake. Perhaps that's coming later.

So, another year older seems like a good time to reflect on where I've been and where I'm going in life. Mostly I'm thankful for all of my friends. Also for all of the snacks I've had and those snacks I've yet to enjoy. For Spring, life is good.

Spring the Super Star

Well, it's about time.

Sure the boss man makes beautiful portraits of me (how can he go wrong with my stunning good looks) but when it comes to sharing his work, time after time, he submits shelter animals.

Today he made me proud and submitted an edgy Spring portrait to the Photo District News Annual Faces Competition. I'll bet my portrait races to the top of the People's Choice Competition list in no time flat! If you are interested, you can check it out here. Better yet, a vote for Spring is a vote for the most beautiful dog in the contest.

Um, wait, just a sec...

Okay, the boss man says that this might be the most blatantly self aggrandizing entry that I've ever written and that I should apologize. Maybe he's right. Sorry for being so beautiful. Also, should you feel so compelled, thank you for your vote.

Friends in high places

It pays to have friends in high places. Today I received an email from Brennan Johnson. We've not met before but clearly she knows what I like AND she is willing to give it to me. See, she works at Cloudstar. Yes, the Cloudstar - maker of delicious treats and is offering me a FREE box of Buddy Biscuits when the bosses place their next order. Just for me (it says so right in the email). Not for the houndy types.

Yay Brennan, super friend!

Lessons

It's funny. The boss man has been spending all sorts of time this week preparing lessons and teaching a bunch of strangers. I keep telling him that I have so much to learn and he should teach me but he says he's too busy. I think he needs to get his priorities straight. Of course, if he is going to teach strangers, I keep telling him that he's going about it all wrong. From what understand, he hasn't been giving his students treats at all. How does he expect them to learn? Any trainer worth anything says positive reinforcement is the best way to teach new tricks. Amateur!

Gratitude

I have the best friends! I don't know how they knew, but they sent my two favorite things for Christmas. Toys! Treats!

Toys and treats. Toys and treats. I'm such a lucky dog!

Thank you Kiko!
Thank you Josie!
Thank you Skye!
Thank you Basil!
Thank you Shelby!
Thank you groupies Bob & Dianna!

New Toy!

I love it! I love it! I love it!
No the hounds can't have it!
Why would they even think they could?
They have their own new toys after all.

New Year's Resolutions

Happy 2010!

As it seems to be some sort of tradition, I've decided to make some new year's resolutions. The bosses tell me that they are not making any so I thought maybe my resolutions should help us all.

1) Take more walks
2) Eat more (I'll steal from the boss' plates)
3) Wag more, bark less
4) Scratch that last one. Wag more, bark as much as is necessary
5) Learn more. (My favorite trainer is now offering agility)

Happy New Year!

Spring

Things that pass as normal

So Maebe has pretty much recovered and things are back to whatever passes for normal around here. Having Lyle around means things are never really normal. Crazed Whigle.

I've heard the houndy types complaining about the distinct lack of toys around here since "The Incident." I'm here to set the record straight. As a Wild Haired Terrier, I naturally love toys. The squeaky carrot (a.k.a. Spring Nip) was my favorite. I'd squeak it quietly to myself and my eyes would glaze over in a state of blissful contemplation. Later I learned about the wacky cat. Wacky cat and I could hang out together to pass the day in a state of contentment. When we welcomed the Biggie into the family, those joys went to the wayside because a dog just can't reach that Nirvana while a crazy jealous dog is barking her fool head off to stop chewing her toys. I'd even be happy to share if she knew what that meant. See, toys that she gets her paws on seem to have this way of disappearing and seriously, no one wants to share their favorite toys with someone only to learn that they were ripped to shreds.

So, as far as I can tell, there haven't really been any toys worth having in just over two years. Which isn't to say that I'm not glad that Maebe's better, because I really am. We grrrls have to stick together after all.

Oh, and for the record, I for one am glad the boss ma'am didn't go to the humane society this week. One terrier (well two if you count the boss man) is more than enough for a house if you ask me.

Joey.

Mmm, bread.

The bosses should be ashamed of themselves. On Tuesday, they made this fantastic cinnamon-raisin bread. They ate some, shared a few crumbs and put it away for the rest of the day. They ate some more on Wednesday for breakfast (and shared a few small crumbs) and still had some left over. Today the boss man decided he had better finish it off but he decided that the last slice was stale and THREW IT AWAY! As if I would have cared.

It was then shortly after exercise time and the boss man decided to go to the recycle center while the boss ma'am cleaned up. When he left the garbage door open a crack I knew right away that he felt bad about throwing away that last piece of bread so as soon as I heard the garage door close, I sprang into action. Of course, being a short-ish dog, I couldn't just reach in and grab the piece of bread but I am very crafty and persistent and had my bread in no time at all. I'm sure that it goes without saying that I had to be exceedingly quite because I didn't want to end up in a situation where I had to share my hard earned with the houndies. I'm sure they wouldn't have liked it anyway.

Soon enough, the boss ma'am emerged from the shower and celebrated my accomplishment with me. I knew she was proud of her Spring when she shooed away Lyle and got her camera to document my achievement.

Helping the Children

I am nothing if not helpful. When last I checked in, I was writing to talk about helping the homeless. Today it is about helping the children. Today is the Dairy Queen's Children's Miracle Network annual fundraiser. If you haven't already done so (or even if you have and have room for a second), go to DQ and get a Blizzard. I'd recommend the Tag-A-Long Blizzard. Or a Thin Mint Blizzard. Or a Heath Blizzard. Or a Strawberry Cheesequake Blizzard. Perhaps you already have a favorite flavor and that would be okay too. You should go now because, well, let's face it, I haven't written since last January so it isn't like you are going to miss anything while you are gone.

This week the bosses, Lyle, Maebe and I are taking what is called a staycation. I think it just means that the bosses want to spend more quality time with us dogs. Yesterday was a model for what all staycations should be. We got up, had some breakfast, the boss man made some chicken jerky (long overdue, slacker), we walked, we had lunch, we napped, we had dinner. Then we went for a super fun hike. Well, it was kind of dusty and full of prickly tumbleweeds but it had it's highlights. Then afterward, the bosses took us to DQ for dishes of ice cream. It was delicious even if the bosses did take a "boss tax" before giving us our cups. I can only hope that tomorrow is as good.