cairn terrier

Blue Puppy Gets Caught

 

Blue Puppy gets his paw caught as he tries to escape anyone noticing he raided the trash can.

Oh dear, what’s this?

Blue Puppy gets his paw caught as he flees from raiding the trash can.

It looks like Blue Puppy got caught as he tried to run away after raiding the trash can.

Toby innocently stands there, wondering what mommy is looking at.

What are we going to do with him, Ma?

Toby innocently looks on, silently passing judgement on Blue Puppy's antics.

I don’t know where he gets this.

Toby is getting smart.  He is making sure that Blue Puppy takes the blame for everything now that Santa is watching.

******************************************************

Looking for a unique Christmas gift?  Consider giving Dream Our World!  Inside are my interpretations of various works of art and how they may be viewed from a canine perspective.

Cover of the book Dream Our World

Dream Our World follows Bitey and Toby as they visit the museum of their dreams and enjoy a day of unsupervised fun!

Dream Our World is available from Amazon.

 

12 CommentsLeave a comment

After Thursday Comes Pieday!

Aagh! Gladys!

Aaagh!  Gladys!

This turned out to be a wonderful year for pumpkin pie…not so much for pumpkins.  Mwahahaha!

Don't worry, Mom. I'll help.

Don’t worry, Mom.  I’ll help you!

(Toby loooves pumpkin.)

***********************************************

Geordie Update:

Sleepy Cairn terrier after finishing his meal.

My left side looks a little funny because I have to use corn oil based eye drops, and it gets on my fur.

Geordie surprised us all again this week.  He was in such bad shape a few days ago that I thought I might have to make the type of decision for him that I didn’t want to.  It was obvious that he was sick and in pain.  Grandpa decided to get him some CBD oil to try just to see if it might help.

I gave Geordie only a quarter dose at first to make sure he didn’t have a reaction to it.  Not only didn’t he have a reaction, he demanded more oil right away.  Then he demanded food.  Then he demanded to go outside.  Then he demanded a chance to sun himself.  Wow.  Any time Geordie is bossing me around is a good day!

The woman who sold the oil said that the effects are cumulative and not to expect much right away.  This is either the second or third day that he has been taking it, and already he is demanding to go on walks.  Amazing!

Next week, I am heading out looking for some CBD oil of my own.

*******************************************************

Join Bitey and Toby on their latest adventure.  In Dream Our World, the boys explore the world of art from a canine perspective all while enjoying a day of unsupervised fun!

Cover of the book Dream Our World

Dream Our World is available from Amazon.

 

16 CommentsLeave a comment

Toby’s Prize

Sweet potato that Toby dug up in the garden

Toby had a special something

TOday that he found.

It was an orange tuber that was

Hiding in the ground.

He dug it up with his own paws

From its dark hiding place.

He showed it off to me and Mom

A huge grin on his face!

******************************************************

I wish I had the camera ready when Toby found this giant sweet potato (It was 9″-10″ long.)  .  I don’t think I have ever seen such a big smile on his puppy face.  This just reinforced to him that digging in the garden is great fun.

I am tempted to hide a few potatoes in the dirt and set him loose to find them.  If all goes well, the tilling should get done with very little effort on my part.

Psychedelic Pup

Hippie Toby says:  I really dig gardening.

___________________________________________________________________________

Come see what Bitey and Toby have been up to!  In Dream Our World, the boys view the world of art from a canine perspective and enjoy a day of unsupervised fun.

Cover of the book Dream Our World

If you are wondering about Toby’s commentary on the Pollack picture, like most kids, he doesn’t appreciate abstract art.  He is saying, “Heck, I could do that!”

 

19 CommentsLeave a comment

Landscapes and Memories

Hillside landscape in Autumn colors

As a painter it is my nature is to create pictures that are meticulous and  exact.  While studying the works of artists such as Van Gogh and Chagall though, I found myself swept away by the freedom expressiveness of their artwork, and I loved it.  I want some of those feelings for myself!

I decided to explore the area around me and see what I could find to inspire me.  Then I want to see what I can create – more creating a mood than a replica of the place, however. This was my first attempt at quickly capturing a scene from the neighborhood.

This particular location holds a special memory for me.  When Geordie was a tiny pup, only a few months old, we were sitting at this same place.  Suddenly Geordie jumped up and began growling and pulling as if he wanted to catch something.  I checked all around and couldn’t find any rabbit or deer or anything.  When I followed where his nose was pointing, I found a car driving on one of the roads on the facing hillside.  From where we were sitting, it looked no larger than a beetle.

I hadn’t realized until then that my puppy didn’t understand perspective.  The only way I could think to explain it to him was to pick him up and reach one arm out as far as I could toward the car.  When he saw that even I couldn’t touch it, he finally settled down.

 I still have a lot of work to do before I am comfortable with a more abstract style of painting.  This one is driving me batty because I want to go back and make it right.  Except, I don’t want “right” I want “mood”.

It’s a good thing I have a lot of paper because I’m pretty sure I am going to need it!

Oil painting of male Goldfinch
5 CommentsLeave a comment

Flashback Friday

Can you find the puppy hidden in this picture?

Carn terrier puppy hiding under a chair.

When Bitey was little, this was his favorite hiding space…until he got too big and needed help getting back out.  Wasn’t he an adorable itty bitty beast?

In instances like these, I try to envision non-linear time.  What might it be like to have your little dog with you as a puppy and a senior and every step in between simultaneously?  I suppose we have that with memory, but to us the points of time don’t fall together but are strung apart.  I imagine that in the world beyond this one, time is non-linear.

I guess we won’t need Flashback Fridays then!   : – )

 

2 CommentsLeave a comment

Peek-a-Boo!

 

Peek-a-boo!

Aah, this is such a rare moment – Toby looking at the camera instead of away from it.  I must have taken a dozen shots with my uncooperative little guy beating the shutter every time.   I am thinking of starting a folder with just blurry, back of head shots.

Toby got shortchanged on baby pictures since things were so chaotic when he was young.  (It is nearly impossible to take pictures when you have a puppy with a UTI.) I am trying to make up for that a little by getting some nice photos now.

 

Boy's Navy and Copper Suspenders, handmade.

June brings with it a variety of formal events.  Make sure your young man is prepared to look his best with something from the Boys’ Shop at Needful Things of Salem.  With these Navy and Copper Brocade Silk Suspenders your youngster will be ready to conquer any social occasion.

 

 

 

 

7 CommentsLeave a comment

Formaldehyde in Wrinkle Resistant Fabrics

Two Cairn terriers sitting in the grass.

This year for Mother’s Day, my boys very thoughtfully got me a pretty, new set of sheets for the bed.  As I opened the plastic to remove the sheets, I quickly had to set them down because of the itchy red rash I got from touching them.  Not only did they cause redness and itching, but they had a very strong chemical odor to them.

Not sure of what was going on, I checked the packaging and saw that these were “wrinkle resistant” sheets.  I Googled the term and found that what makes a fabric, in this case cotton, wrinkle resistant isn’t the way it is woven (as I had thought) but that the fibers are infused with formaldehyde to cause them to swell and not bend as easily.

I know that formaldehyde can be used in the sizing on fabrics to make them appear crisp when displayed, but I hadn’t known it was bonded to the fibers over something as unimportant as wrinkling.  Formaldehyde can cause skin irritation, breathing difficulties and of course it is a carcinogen.  Since formaldehyde is absorbed through the skin, every time you lie on treated sheets or wear wrinkle resistant clothing, you are exposing yourself to this poison.  Sadly, there is no government regulation requiring disclosure for formaldehyde use.

A big concern should be our children and grandchildren being exposed this chemical.  As a parent, I would not have given a second thought to the term “wrinkle resistant” on my child’s sheets – I would have chosen a print he/she would enjoy.  I would be horrified to find that I had exposed someone I love to something so dangerous.  And don’t forget our furkids.  If your pup or kitty sleeps in the bed with you, they are also breathing and touching carcinogens.

Fortunately there are a number of companies who still sell regular cotton sheets at pretty reasonable prices.  Cotton can be treated with a lot of pesticides as it is grown, so if this a concern look for organic sheets manufactured in the US.  Organic regulations are more strictly enforced for domestic products than foreign ones.

So, if you are making a purchase of bedding or clothing, please be aware of what might be coming home with you uninvited.

****************************************************************************

4 CommentsLeave a comment

Life Gold

Go away.

For some reason, my favorite pictures are the bad ones.

When Geordie got sick, a  neighbor told us about Life Gold – Dog Cancer Support .  Her dog had been diagnosed several months before and has been taking it ever since.  At his latest check up, the vet said that the dog is doing great and to keep doing whatever it is the family has been doing.

I started Geordie on Life Gold as soon as I could have it delivered.  At this point, I can’t testify to it altering the length of his life yet, but I feel confident in saying that it has significantly improved his quality of life.

Before his diagnosis, Geordie had been kind of laid back with lots of napping.  The clue we had that something was wrong was that he would cough from time to time.  Since giving him Life Gold, though, it is as if he is 5 years younger!  He has taken up playing with toys again, and he even invites me to play chase with him.  In the evenings, after Toby has gone to sleep,  he drags his little brother out of bed and insists Toby play with him.  This goes on every night!  Plus, he barely coughs now.

I realize that Geordie’s cancer isn’t cured, but it is wonderful to see him living such a full and happy life.  I wanted to share this in case someone reading has had a pet diagnosed with the dreaded “C” word. Life Gold isn’t expensive, and it might just help your dog to feel better and you both to be happier.

Picture of Life Gold herbal supplement for dog caner.I forgot to mention one other thing I noticed about Geordie and Life Gold.  Whenever he went for his chest X ray, the vet was a tiny bit concerned that he had lost 3/4 of a pound.  For a while, he simply hadn’t been very interested in his food.  After starting Life Gold, however, he developed a healthy appetite and has gained enough weight that he looks like a healthy terrier again.

Pick up a copy of A Tired Mommy Is a Good Mommy which tells of Bitey’s life before Toby.

Cover 8 (800x778)

Available from Amazon.

 

 

8 CommentsLeave a comment