A Sunny Day with my New Toy!

Mom got her tax refund today so that put her in a particularly good mood. When she came back from grocery shopping she brought me this new toy!

 I immediately started running around with it in the back yard while mom was doing some weeding. Do I suspect that she *may* have bought this toy to distract me while she does yard work? No....

 Mom thinks I look very cute here!

 I was so busy playing with my toys I couldn't be bothered to drop them while I attended to some business: (thanks, mom for showing the whole world me weeing)

 Leaning into the curve just like a racing pony!

 Resting in the shade & giving my toy chicken a little chew:

 I didn't like the way this BAD chicken was looking at me so I kept working him over, BOL!

 Now the squeaker is gone (perhaps I ate it?) and his comb has little holes in it:

All in all, a fab day playing in the sunny backyard! That BAD chicken won't be trash-talking me again any time soon, BOL BOL BOL

April 21, 2011

Mom has the week off so today since it was sunny (still cold!) we walked along the Magnolia Bluff. We started here at Magnolia Boulevard:

Then we walked along the edge of the bluff, looking out onto the Puget Sound & the Olympic mountains beyond.

 We have had a La Nina winter here in Seattle, which mean colder than normal. In fact, this has been the coldest April on record - mom is still wearing her winter coat! The cold has been hard on the local flora; several old Madrona trees along the bluff did not survive:

 Looking down towards the water:

 I am being camera-shy; or rather just more interested in looking elsewhere:

 There are several benches along the bluff where one can sit & look out at the Sound. People buy them & put little plaques memorializing loved ones who have passed away.

 Lots of very, very good sniffing to be done here!

 And lots of people & dog watching!

 Our last view before we walk back home:

Mom wanted to come here today & was glad the weather was sunny. Six years ago on this day mom's divorce was finalized, and she & I had walked along this very bluff. It was early evening & cloudy but mom wore her sunglasses because she did not want anyone to see her tearful eyes. She walked in a stunned sort of daze, not quite believing she was no longer married after 11 years. I trotted along sympathetically at her side, wishing there was something I could do that would make her feel better.

Six years later  now & we are so much better off then we were then! Mom is at peace now & either though I am older & grayer, I'm happy, too. We give thanks every day for how blessed we are.

President's Day

Today is a holiday so mom had the day off. It's President's Day, in honor of our past presidents. Mom needed to get gas for the car & when she came back, she had this most FABULOUS bag with her!!

 And it's not even my birthday! Dick's on Holman Road is right by mom's favorite (read that: the cheapest) gas station so she thought we could have a little treat! Here I am waiting for my cheeseburger, which is just out of view (but not out of smell, BOL)

 Remembering how I ate my cheeseburger in one bite the last time, she wisely cut it up into four pieces so I wouldn't choke. I gobbled it down in mere seconds! Mom also shared her nommy fries with me.

The camera battery needed recharging after the last picture so you can't see me "woogling" on the floor in glee after I finished my treat. Later we will go for a loooonnggg walk to work off those cheeseburgers, BOL.

Lazy Cats & Me

The other day was very sunny for January (not very warm, but sunny) so of course Shadow the cat laid in front of the window like a slug, the epitome of feline laziness:

 As soon as mom got up from her chair he decided that was the perfect spot for him to absorb even more rays. Mom booted him off, however so back to the tabletop he went.

 Slinky has dibs on the yellow chair:

 I patiently waited until lunchtime so mom could stop working & take me for my walk. Here I am giving her my most persuasive stare:

 After our walk we went into the backyard for a game of fetch!

 Flappy ears! Happy Lab!

 Concentrating very hard on my kong-on-a-rope

Today it's raining again here in Seattle so no backyard game of fetch... sigh.

Christmas Wrap-up (there's a pun in there somewhere...)

There was a Lunar Eclipse on the Winter Solstice; such a rare event on that day so we stayed up late in hopes of seeing it, despite the forecasted rainy/cloudy weather. Mom did get one good shot in our backyard between the clouds:
Here I am in my festive Santa bandana with a little jingle bell, all ready for Christmas!

We were supposed to open our presents on Christmas morning, but Shadow the cat had other ideas & dragged out one of his gifts (A catnip-stuffed fish toy) & opened it early:

Slinky got very excited over this gift & began rolling around with it on the floor in a silly manner: Being a very good girl, I waited until Christmas morning to open my gifts. I got a new furry ball, a new chewy bone, & a large cookie bone that's supposed to freshen my breath (I can't decide if I should be insulted over that one but it tastes very nommy)

Then on Monday I got my Christmas present from Wiggle! I was so excited to smell his lovely snuffle on the package!

Inside was a lovely Christmas ornament which mom hung on our tree so now we'll think of Wiggle & the human every year when we decorate the tree! I got a fabulous, flingy toy from Wiggle that made me so excited mom had a terrible time getting me to sit still for a picture as I was running & flinging it around so much. I even knocked an ornament off the tree in my wild, flinging excitment. But I finally sat sort of still for a picture:

All in all, it was a wonderful Christmas & I hope every one of you had a lovely Christmas, too! Now onto the New Year!

It's Beginning to Look a lot Like Christmas...

Yesterday mom got our Christmas tree! It's a nice, fresh cut tree from Ollala Farms & smells so good. She got the decorations out of storage in the garage & then decorated it:
We have some cedar trees growing conveniently next to the house so she trimmed off some little branches to decorate the fireplace mantle:

I helped, too, mostly by getting underfoot! Here I am with my toy flower:

The cats pretended to be uninterested; here's Shadow watching from the safety of the yellow chair (Slinky was napping in the bedroom): Now, if only I see some presents under that tree with my name on them!

Snow!!!!!

The first snowfall of the season is here early! Despite the horrendous driving conditions for commuters (including mom) I managed to have some fun in it. Here I am during the first snowfall yesterday: It kept snowing until late last night. When I went out for my bedtime wee, it looked like this:
"Let me in, please!"

This afternoon it "warmed up" to 27F so I went out to play some more!

Hey! My Kong-on-a-rope keeps hiding from me! How sneaky... Aha! I got you!

Sticking my tongue out at mom, BOL! We're hoping the icy roads will be better by Thanksgiving as mom is doing the honors this year. Regardless, she is still going to cook a lovely turkey so I look forward to snacking on that!