Ho Ho Ho

Hercules
Mona and the Mommy
Kirby
Kess

BLU and Comet

Fun in the Snow

Now that it is getting so dark so early, I really value the free time I have on the weekends so that I can let the boys burn off some steam in the daylight. Today I took the boys and their Chuck-It to the park behind the house. I love this large park, it's usually empty (unless the high school kids are using it for sport practice) and the boys can really let loose! Of course they are on-leash ... very long fine leashes. What? You can't see the leashes? Hmm, that is odd. They show up perfectly clear in the pictures to me.



Of course, it is always good to stop and relax by catching a few snowflakes on your tongue.

Happy happy puppers!

Don't you just hate it when you get snow up your nose?


And of course, can't forget MORE CHRISTMAS CARDS!

From Beckett

From Ben and Twinkle

And from Happy

More Christmas Cards!

PHEW! These things are just flying into the mailbox now!

Thanks everyone!!

Harry the Pug

Abby, Rosco, and Tigger

ThoughtsFurPaws
Sophie, Dixie, Harles, and family

101 Things to Do With a Box ... #2

Even if the amount of snow on the ground is quite pathetic compared to what we are used it, it is still winter time, none the less. So that means that it gets dark very early in the evening, usually around 5pm or so. By the time I get home from work, there is no light left to enjoy the back yard with the dogs or to take in any park-action. As such, I am sure to find things for them to do in the house that will exercise their brains and bodies.

Tonight was another round of "101 Things to Do With a Box". (See our previous entry for more explanation.) I did not have a suitable box handy, so decided to use a plastic step stool instead. It holds up much better than a cardboard box anyways.

Here is a video of Romeo's attempts. Gio did have a good go with the stool as well, but his footage didn't make the final cut. He had decided to position himself between the stool and the camera, so I got a lot of video of his very happy tail and a lot of fluff, but very little else. Near the end of our session, Romeo was pulling out some really cute stuff ... including wedging himself halfway under the stool and sticking his head out of the side. Unfortunately, the camera had cut off without me noticing so that was missed. Next time, I will try the stool again and maybe Romeo will pull out those cute tricks before the camera decides to go to sleep.

More DWB Christmas E-Cards!

One from Eduardo the Snuggle Puggle ...


And another from Cutie King King!



Many more are arriving daily through snail mail. WOW! We are overwhelmed! These cards are all so beautiful, and are really adding a lot of festive flair to the house.

Holidays

Because of my "big day" last week, I decided to take a couple of days off of work this week. Mainly just to allow my sanity to catch back up with me, and to allow myself to catch up on all the things I have been neglecting this past while.

Yesterday was spent Christmas shopping and running errands. Today was all about the boys! Last week I received an e-mail saying that Romeo's St. John Ambulance therapy dog bandanna and certificate had arrived at the Saskatoon main office. There was also a request that I bring the boys by for a visit when I stopped in to pick it up. So I loaded the boys in the car this afternoon and headed over to the SJA office on Broadway. They had a good visit with the nice ladies that work in the office.

That is where the fun ended for the boys, at least temporarily. Next, was bath time. The dreaded quarterly bath. The boys were both getting very dirty, stinky and grey. Gio is a sucker for ear scratches, so after he cons everyone he meets into rubbing his ears, they tend to get a little greasy. And well, Romeo is just a pig. Especially now that our agility classes are being held in a horse arena on some sort of dirt/rubber/horse manure combo on the ground. Great for running on, but messy as all heck!

So I took the boys by Vaganza's for a "U-Groom". I know I have mentioned it before, but I really do love the U-Groom option at Vaganza's! You get to use their raised tubs, high velocity drier, and grooming tables, plus all the shampoo, conditioner, whitener, detangler, and Pet Silk that you want! All for a very reasonable price.

Neither of the boys like bath days, but they tolerate it. They are both getting much better at accepting the high velocity drier. Romeo doesn't even raise a fuss until I get near his head. Gio's tolerance for the drier is more related to time than location. He will calmly accept the drier for about 5-7 minutes ... after that, it is war. I'm getting pretty good at the drier thing, though, so I am now able to work around the boy's tolerance levels and get them "mostly" dry. Usually just the ears and a little bit around their neck remains wet when we are done. I can live with that. Then a little bit of Pet Silk and they are poofy and fluffy, all ready to go! Whites white, and blacks shiny. At home, I tidied up their feet (it was long over-due). Of course, ending it all off with a nice cookie.

I can tell that the boys feel much better after their baths. They are both quite fiesty now, Gio especially, harassing Romeo into play wrestling with him. Romeo is just happy to bounce and spin everywhere like a maniac.

I've got a couple of more little things to do before it's back to work tomorrow. I finished up all of my Christmas cards, tidied up my office area a bit, now just need to update my 4-month calendar (without that calendar I am completely lost).

Back to work tomorrow. It seems so much more tolerable now that the "school" part of it is finished!

Backin' It Up

And another DWB e-card!