A Sock Monkey for Zoey

I had to run in the Walgreen's to pick something up the other day. As I walked across the front of the store, this fantastic little dog bed caught my eye. It was a sock monkey! Not that we had particularly been looking for a sock monkey bed for her, or any new bed for that matter, but it was too cute not to investigate. I spent a good couple of minutes checking out the sock monkey bed. It was only $13 (cleverly disguised as $12.99), but I just couldn't decide whether she needed it or not. After a couple of minutes I went on my way and left the sock monkey bed.

By the time I got in the car, I was already regretting my decision to leave without the precious little monkey bed. Had I made a mistake? When I got home and saw our poor neglected little Zoey I knew I was going to have to go back and fetch her a new bed. Never mind the bed she already had, complete with three blankets of her own, and her special big fluffy pillow that I made for her. They're not enough! So I returned to the Walgreen's for a special sock monkey for our pampered puppy.

How can you say no to this face?



Zoey loves her new bed!



She napped in it all day after I brought it home.



Of course, now I am going to have to get her a blanket that matches her new bed.

Zoey's Sad Day

I'm pretty sure I have probably mentioned before that Zoey likes blankets. If I haven't, I'll tell you now. Zoey likes blankets. Actually, she is blanket obsessed. She has three of her very own blankets in her bed, and she tries to appropriate our blankets into her collection. Her blankets are in her bed over in the corner of the living room where she can surround herself in fluffy blankety goodness as she gazes out around her kingdom.

One day, when I went over to her bed to pet her and giver her a proper belly-rubbing, I noticed a stench. I meant to wash the blankets, but I got sidetracked and forgot about it. A few days later, my husband walked over to the fish tank and commented on the foul odor. He wasn't even leaned over near her bed - He could smell it standing up. You see, blankets aren't just for warmth and softness. They are also for licking. Perhaps she has saturated them in nutrients to sustain her until her next meal, or maybe that is just her way of loving them. Whatever the case, her breath is far from a pleasant fragrance, and she had spread the odor to her blankets through her licking. It was time to wash the blankets.

The next morning, I took the blankets and the cover for the bed and put them in the washer. The foam bed form was put away for the time being so she wouldn't try to lay in it and lick it and get it all stinky. It was a very sad day. Just look how sad she was without her blankets!

She waited and waited for her blankets to return. All day long she moped around, mourning the loss of her blankets. Hours went by as she suffered. A little while after my husband got home from work, I remembered that they were still in the dryer, so we turned it on to warm them up before we put her bed back together. She likes it when the blankets are warm.

First came the bed cover. The blankets stayed in the dryer fluffing so they would still be nice and warm when we put them in the bed. Little Zoey could hardly wait until hubby finished putting the cover on the bed to get in it!

Zoey was so glad to have her bed back - Now if she just had some blankets!

Here come the blankets!

Aah... the world is right again... A nice soft bed with warm blankets fresh from the dryer!

Here was the really fun part. Zoey got herself all buried in her warm blankets to take a nap. A little while later, I was working in the kitchen and my husband was sitting in the living room. He suddenly said "What's wrong with Zoey???" She had stuck her head out of her blankets and she was panting. She never pants, because she's just to prissy to do anything that would bring on panting. I went over there and stuck my hand in the blankets and it was HOT in there! She just didn't want to get out of the warm blankets! I pulled her out and made her stay out until things cooled off a bit. She fought me on that, but I put my foot down. I think in the future we'll let the blankets cool down a little before we put them back in the bed.

EVERYBODY RUN!!!

Look out, She's possessed and she's coming to get you!

Seriously, how could I not post this? My husband wanted to take a picture of her because she was panting. It was over 100 degrees outside and she had just come inside. Because she is such a delicate snowflake, she very rarely lowers herself to any activity that would result in her getting hot or any other sort of discomfort, so she seldom pants. Unfortunately, just as he snapped the picture, she closed her mouth, but her tongue was still sticking out. That plus the ultra neon green glowing eyes resulted in a picture too entertaining not to share!

Birthday Weekend - From the Dog's Perspective

My hubby's parents gave him a fun camera for his birthday, and we figured this past weekend we could put it to good use. We were going to celebrate my birthday with hubby's family on Saturday and with my family on Sunday. It's a fun little camera that attaches to the dog's collar and takes pictures at set intervals. You can pick every 1 minute, 5 minutes or 15 minutes. For Saturday, we chose every 15 minutes because the camera only holds 40 pictures and we wanted to make sure it would be able to take pictures the whole time we were there, without running out of memory. Doesn't this look like something fun to wear around your neck?

We put the camera on Zoey's collar and told her "You have a big job tonight. You are going to document this event for us so can always remember what a fun time we had."

Zoey: I don't know about this camera, Mommy, but I'll try. It's not too comfy."

Maybe I should head to the kitchen first. I am a self proclaimed Chief Crumb Cleaner-Upper, and there's been some cooking going on in there. Maybe Mommy and Daddy would like a nice shot of the kitchen floor and the legs of someone the person sitting at the table.

What's this? A stool? A table? It's a mystery to everyone but me. But don't Grandma and Grandpa have a nice light in the kitchen?

After all that wandering, I'm tired. Maybe I should get in the recliner with Daddy to relax. That's not very productive, but I've been working hard!

Me: Zoey! You hardly got any pictures we could use! You'll get a chance to redeem yourself tomorrow, but you better be thinking about your strategy!

ZZZzzz... ZZZzzz... Snore... Snore...

Me: Ok, Zoey, I decided to set the camera to take pictures every 5 minutes, and I brought the laptop so I can upload them if your camera's memory gets full. It's all in vain, though, if you aren't able to get any good pictures. Have you come up with the perfect strategy to get us top notch doggie cam pictures?

Zoey: I have been mulling it over, Mommy, and I'm up to the task. I won't let you down!

I was on a mission to get better pictures of this event, so I decided to try a different approach Sunday. Positioning myself on the soft warm blanket on the couch would put me at a better level to get the kind of shots Mommy and Daddy are looking for. Plus, it meant I got to lay on a blanket. Blankets are the best!

Look, there's Grandma talking with Mommy's cousin! And I suppose I should try to get Mommy in one of the shots, since it's her birthday and all.

Zoey: Hello, Daddy! I'm here to take your picture! I think I should take a picture of Mommy's brother over there in the doorway too!

What's going on outside? IT'S GRANDPA!!!! My favorite person!!! He's the best! I think I should go see him over there. Wait a minute - What's he doing? He's got meat over the fire! He's cooking tasty burgers!

Oh look, there's Mommy's aunt and cousin! I think they have some dolls on the table there. It looks like they're having a good time. I wonder if they're enjoying the dolls as much as Mommy's sister-in-law is enjoying her cake? Mommy said it was a tasty lemon cake, but she didn't share any morsels with me. Mommy never shares morsels of her cake with me. The nerve!

Grandma and Grandpa's yard is a fun place to wander. Hey there's my little friend Ginger's rear end over there, and some people on the driveway!

Me: Good job, Zoey! You took some good pictures today!

Zoey: Mommy, taking top notch doggie cam pictures is alot tougher than I thought it would be. I'm tuckered. I think it's time for a nap.

I Can Has Cookie, Please?

The cookies I made last week are almost gone. Their time with us has been brief, but oh how we have savored them! Here they are, the last of the cookies, soon to be only a cherished memory.

Please, Mommy - My kingdom for a cookie! No more eating junebugs or bird seed. I'll learn to survive without a blanket on the couch and constant belly rubbing. If only I could have a morsel of your delicious cookie! Just a crumb would be divine - Just a taste!

Aww, gee, if only they didn't have chocolate in them. Dangerous chocolate. It's only for your safety, little Zoey. I wouldn't want anything tragic to happen to you because I shared my cookie. I guess I will have to eat them all up myself!

Zoey's Pretty Collar

Every year for Christmas, Zoey gets a new collar to add to the rotation. This year, my husband found a really neat shop on Etsy called Bella's Pretty Collars, and we decided that Zoey needed to have a collar from that shop. There are lots of different designs and colors to choose from, and it was hard to pick. We ended up choosing the Hello Kitty collar. The seller was just fabulous! We sent her Zoey's neck measurement and she made just the perfect little collar! It is extremely well made, and just perfect for Zoey! SO... If you are looking to get a new collar for your doggie, be sure to check out Bella's Pretty Collars!

Princess Zoey the Scaredy-Dog

That's Zoey. Isn't she cute? Well let me tell you a story about her. Before I begin the story, I must let you know that she is afraid of thunder. At the faintest rumble of thunder, she turns into a quivering mess and glues herself to us until all signs of thunder are gone. When it storms at night, Zoey wanders around the bed and pokes us. She shakes and acts pitiful, and if we try to go back to sleep she just wakes us up again.

Well, a couple of mornings ago, we had a thunderstorm. Zoey first woke us to let us know her distress at 5:00 AM. I looked at the radar and it looked like the storm was just about gone. I waited a little while, and when the storm didn't let up I checked again. This was no ordinary storm. You see, this was one of those continuous storms that keeps developing at the back as it moves. Boy were we in for a treat!

When my alarm went off at 7:00, I had not gotten to go back to sleep and I was pretty sleepy. The storm was still going, though, so I figured I might as well go ahead and get up. As I got ready for my morning students that day, Zoey stayed right at my feet, tripping me as she whined about the thunder. By about 9:30, the storm stopped and the thunder finally went away. Zoey was a happy camper and went off to take a nap. Poor little thing - She was just tuckered from the trauma of the thunderstorm! After my morning students, I had a couple of hours to kill before my afternoon students. I sat down on the couch to knit, but I could just barely keep my eyes open. I had been up since 5:00AM after staying up after midnight the night before watching the Olympics. This would be the perfect time for a nap.

I went back in the bedroom and got the alarm all set so I wouldn't miss my afternoon lessons. I laid down on the bed and closed my eyes, and what did I hear? RUMBLE RUMBLE... That's right - Another storm was coming! The little princess came running down the hall and jumped up on the bed, where she proceeded to climb all over me like I was a jungle gym. I finally got hold of her and tried to hold her down so I could try to get a little rest. Guess who showed up then? Mr Blue Jay! He was squeaking and squawking out in the back yard, and Bob decided to answer. He said "SQUEAK! SQUEAK!" over and over... That was fun. I never did get my nap that day.

Who's That Bird?

In case you don't know me in real life, I should introduce you to my feathered friend. That lovely gray cocaktiel featured on my blog is our little Bob. He's a fun little guy. As you can see, he is not a fan of the camera. He was in mid squawk when I took that picture. He is usually much more friendly than the picture would lead you to believe. At the moment though, Bob is in the process is pretty-birding me to death. He doesn't actually say the words, but he squeaks it out in cockatiel speak. He has been doing this for the last couple of hours. About every three seconds or so he squeaks out his lovely rendition of pretty-bird. Sometimes I tell him that if he doesn't stop I will put him in the closet, but he knows me better than that. He seems to have figured out that the more he squeaks, the more treats I will give him to try to shut him up. Hahaha I guess I better go get him some before he makes my ears burst!