My Life in Dogs

Today is International Dog Day. I couldn't let it pass without mentioning the dogs that have made my life better and my heart fuller.

Before I ever had a dog of my own, I would hear stories about the dog my mother grew up with, a black Chow-Chow named Pete. Like most dogs in other people's stories, he sounded perfect, smart, cuddly, and irreplaceable. You know, like all dogs ever. ❤️

And then there was Whiskey, a wire-haired fox terrier that was on the scene before I was born. I really don't remember if he was my parents' dog when they were first married, or when my sisters were kids. But apparently he had quite a personality! 

The first dog I remember is Herman, a beagle/bassett hound mix that my father found by his workplace (a common theme for a lot of our pets) when we lived in Chicago. I remember being so excited to have a dog! His favorite person was my middle sister, Mary Ellen, who thought he was OK, but wasn't as crazy about him as he was about her, LOL.

In second grade, someone my dad worked with was giving away a dog for who knows what reason, so of course my dad brought him home. (Side note: my dad was as animal crazy as I am - I get it honestly!) That was Bud (Sir Budweiser Carlton III to the AKC), a black cocker spaniel. I remember pictures of me dressed for my first communion on our front porch, posing with Bud. ❤️

Next up was Toby, a Standard Poodle/Airedale mix puppy that my mother got from a friend whose dog had puppies. Toby, God bless him, let me dress him up, teach him some tricks, hug and kiss him to within an inch of his life, and probably never had a moment left alone if I was home. 🙂 He was stolen from our back yard.

He was the last pup that was part of the family while I was still at home. I had other dogs I adored, and would take care of for friends and neighbors over the years (;ong-time readers probably remember Doughoy!), but the next dog who was part of our family was this one:

Dug the Doodle Dog! ❤️❤️❤️

Followed a few years later by Hamlet, the Retired Seeing Eye Dog ❤️❤️❤️:

It wasn't until earlier this year we adopted our Angus Podgorny ❤️❤️❤️💔:

And then most recently, the ridiculous Miss Katie Potatey❤️❤️❤️:

I will admit that my first love has always been cats - maybe because no matter what else was happening, or where we lived, we always had a cat. And we've also had birds, fish, turtles - whatever I could talk my parents or The Tim into. I am still, at my age, wishing for more animals in my life!

But dogs are different, as you know if you've had one. It's a different relationship than with other animals - just as all relationships are different with any creature. For the most part, I would say that at least the dogs I've had are willing to put up with a lot more active attention than anyone else. Heck, even The Tim wants to be left alone more often than not! 🤣

So thank you to every dog, past and present, that I've ever even come across, for letting me love you, and for giving some of it back, even if I've just been able to pet you in passing. 

And to my own dogs, past and present - I love you more than my own life and always will. ❤️. If you have a dog or other friend in your life, remember to hug them and thank them. I would bet they will love you right back.

The Twelfth Day of Christmas

Here we are at the last/twelfth day of Christmas, which is also the birthday of our sweet Dug (well, it's the day we officially adopted him, so we assigned it as his birthday). So before anything else, Happy Birthday, Duggie! We miss you and still love you more every day. Tonight we'll drink a toast to you.

Our Christmas Day was a nice, lovely, relaxing day. The kitties enjoyed having us home all day and hanging with them.

Pip

Esme

Milo 

Alfie

Lots of presents for everyone to be opened!

Our tree, after Santa left kitty stockings and gifts under it!

Just hanging out and exploring

Alfie was the first one brave enough to check out the Christmas tent. It took him about 10 minutes to figure out how to get in (yeah, I know) and then he took even longer figuring how to get back out. (We're not hoping for him to become a Rhodes Scholar, so it's all good.)

Everyone seemed very happy with their gifts, including those sent in the mail. We talked to some family and heard about their celebrations. We ate and drank a lot of good things, and listened to Christmas music and it was a nice, long, enjoyable day.

*****

Then, there is another thing I wanted to show you, related to the holidays. About two blocks from our house is a small park called Fitler Square. It's a lovely place with benches, trees, flowers, and though smaller than some of the other squares in the city, it's beloved by the neighborhood. 

Well, a local group, the Philadephia Drunken Knitwits, received permission this year to "dress" the sculptures in the square in festive attire! 

The Ram

The Bear

The Pup

I have the feeling a lot of people missed this little guy - he's behind a fence. But if you look at the bear sculpture above this image, there's a small white spot behind the fence - that's this pup!

The Turtles

Isn't this great? It really made people smile, and as you can probably imagine, a lot of the kiddos who come to the square with their parents or daycare groups were excited to see the animals dressed up for the holidays! It got a lot of local and national media coverage, which was nice, especially since Fitler Square is not that well-known, even by people in the Philadelphia area. 

The group "undressed" everything yesterday, but I'm wondering if they will do it again next year, since it was so well-received. 

I can say for myself that every single time I walked through the square, seeing this made me happy.

*****

So far, 2025 has been good - all six days of it! But you have to take it when it's there, right? And since January 6 has become such a sad date in our history, it's nice to think there are still good things to celebrate about it. So I hope your day treats you well, and let's all keep our fingers crossed for the coming year. 

Because ... well, you know.

Happy Last Day of Christmas!

Well, it had to happen, even though I always wish it didn't.  Today is the 12th Day of Christmas, or Women's Christmas if you are in Ireland, Orthodox Christmas, or Epiphany.  I love Christmastime so much, I'm always sad to see it end for another year.  

BUT - it is also the day we celebrate(d) Dug the Doodle Dog's birthday, since it is the date we officially adopted him.

(Sadly, here in the U.S. the anniversary of something awful, but I don't have the wherewithal to deal with that right now.)

OK, so it's also Thursday, and Carole is doing a Three on Thursday collection of posts, and I thought I'd join in the fun.  So here are three things that have already been good in 2022.

1.  Cold weather has returned.  It is winter, after all, and the warm temperatures last week just annoyed me.  I know that for some people it has been a terrible week of too much snow and cold, and I am sorry for that, but for me Winter = Cold and so I've been pleased about it.

2.  I was ready to start a new knitting project, and I had the stitches cast on, the set-up rows done, and then - didn't understand the next part of the pattern, no matter how I tried to figure it out.  So I finally contacted the designer, and really thought that if she responded at all, it would be in a little while, since people are catching up on things at this time of year.  BUT - she responded within a day, and her response was not just helpful, but so incredibly kind.  Even if while writing it, she was rolling her eyes (i.e., "I can't believe she doesn't get this!"), it didn't come across like that on receipt.

3.  I was able to make an appt for my annual eye exam and it is a week from tomorrow!  This is good because there were not many open slots available, and my vision has been really bugging me lately.  So rather than have to wait any longer, I'll be there almost right away, and able to see what has/has not changed, and if things can be improved.  The eye doctor I usually go to is wonderful, but her popularity has increased recently, and it's been a bit more difficult to get onto her schedule.  So yay for me!

I hope you can think of at least three things that have been good for you so far this year.

The Holiday Weekend Beckons

It surprised me the other day when I realized that the Memorial Day weekend was upon us (at least for those of us in the U.S.)!  Usually today would be a busy day for me, finishing up at work since I would be taking Friday off, and then making sure that the pet sitter was lined up, packing was done, etc.  The flurry and sometimes panic of an upcoming weekend away, you know? 

But here we are anyway, with a big holiday weekend and no where to go.  Since today is Three on Thursday, I thought I'd share three things we usually do and three things we'll be doing instead this year.

For those who don't really know what I'm talking about, usually every Memorial Day weekend, we go to my sister's house in WV, where most of the family and tons of friends gather on one of the days for a big picnic.  It's one of the highlights of the year for everyone, and kicks off summer in a great way (even to me, not a summer fan).

1.  Usually - we spend the couple of weeks prior to our weekend away collecting things we want to take with us (games, gifts, etc.) or, in the day or so before we would leave, baking cookies or some other treat to take along.

Instead - we have been deciding what we want to fix for ourselves, and if we want our "holiday" meal to be on the holiday itself (Monday) or one of the other weekend days.  Not nearly as much fun, or quite as anticipatory.

2.  Usually - we decide ahead of time which friends we would like to be sure to see while we're home and see if they will be at the picnic or if we'll get together separately, or both.  A lot of people are only around one of the days of the weekend since they have other plans, so we have to try and get a chance to see them when it works for their schedule.  We also decide what games we want to play at the picnic, and choose teams if appropriate (I still get chosen last.  Some things never change!).

Instead - we have planned a "party" Zoom meeting on Sunday afternoon with most of the family.  This way, at least we'll get to see the ones we most want to see and catch up a bit.

3.  Usually - the menu includes so much variety, that you can easily spend the day trying everything there and not try it all.  Everyone brings something, and all the family provides the basics.  Even if you are a vegetarian as we are, there is an enormous choice of goodies.  Hamlet, and Dug before him, think it's the best day of their lives because everyone is giving them food!  Both of them have been known to park themselves in one place for most of the day - next to the grill!  We also spend a large portion on the morning of the picnic decorating the yard and setting things up.

Instead - the choices will be much more limited, Hamlet will get a *doggie* treat, and we'll just eat in our own garden, ourselves.  That's already set up.

So, it will be a nice weekend anyway.  But a whole lot quieter, a whole lot calmer, and not quite as funny or noisy or silly. 

On the plus side - DEFINITELY not as much clean-up. 

Though I'd trade for that happily at this point.  😊

My niece Amanda sent me this photo yesterday, which is appropriate for today's post.  Here is our sweet Dug the Doodle Dog, taking a break after "helping" us get my sister's yard ready and decorated the day of the big picnic.  I love this photo so much, I decided to share.

Whatever you do, have a good holiday weekend - or regular weekend, for those of you elsewhere - and stay safe!

Have a Great Holiday Weekend!

Yankee Doodle Dug!

The Tim, Hamlet, and I are on our merry way to (Almost Heaven) West Virginia for the Memorial Day holiday weekend.  The kitties will be guarding the homestead with the help of a cat sitter, who I'm sure will get quite an earful from Pip.  As much as I wish they could come with us, I know they would not enjoy the trip, so they have a better holiday here at home with someone else to honor and serve them ...

It will be fun to see everyone and catch up on everything and everyone.  I'm sure there will be a lot of laughing involved too, which is part of the fun.  Hamlet even got a bath, since this will be his WV debut!

Here's hoping that your weekend - whether you celebrate Memorial  Day or not - will be a fun, relaxing one, and that you can just enjoy things however you wish. 

A Perfect Rainy Day

When I don't have to slog back and forth to work in a downpour, I love rainy days.  They just seem to provide a chance to slow down, and either do nothing at all, or tackle a project that you want to do, but find excuses not to when the weather is nice.

This past Sunday was a serious rainy day - starting overnight, and just pouring until Sunday evening.  It had been in the forecast, so I had already decided I wasn't going to make any other plans to do anything that required being outside.  And that worked out perfectly, because when I can, I try to remember on the Sunday prior to Ash Wednesday to make some Hot Cross Buns.

I'm not much of a bread maker - The Tim has that down to an art, and bakes bread at least once a week, so that works for me.  But I have always liked hot cross buns, and in our family, they have always been something we had during Lent, rather than at Easter as many on Facebook have pointed out in such a lovely fashion.  (I mean, really, is there nothing that someone can't find to "correct" you about???)  Of course, that always meant store-bought or if we were lucky, bakery versions of hot cross buns, but that was fine.

Years ago, when we lived in Chicago, I was perusing a Prevention magazine one day at lunchtime when I had forgotten my book and was at the mercy of what freebies were around the lunchroom, and I came across a recipe.  I decided to be adventurous and give it a try, and I was beyond pleased with the results.  So that became a yearly tradition, except for years I completely forgot, or last year, when I was in my cast for a broken ankle, and standing for any length of time was uncomfortable.

Over the years, as with any recipe you make over and over, I've tweaked things a bit.  This year, I decided that rather than adding only the cinnamon and nutmeg in the recipe, I'd just put in an amount that seemed right to me.  Turns out, that was one of my best ideas ever - this batch is seriously tasty!

So Sunday morning, I gathered the ingredients, mixed things together, and put the dough in a warm place to rise.  Then I sat down and did some knitting.

Then it was time to punch down the dough, let it rest, and form it into the individual rolls, which had to rise again.  So I did that, and sat down and did some reading.

I put them in the oven to bake, washed up the mess of dishes I'd created along with breakfast dishes, took them out of the oven to cool, and then took a shower.   By then The Tim was home from work, and we caught up on our days, and had dinner.  After dinner, I did the icing, cleaned up, and he did the dishes (our deal is that one of us cooks, the other washes the dishes).  And then we watched the Olympics and I did some more knitting.

Now *that's* what I call a perfect rainy day, and a nice end to the weekend!

Here's a shot of the buns before baking.  As you can see, the recipe makes a lot.   Since they freeze well, we will have them for breakfasts during all of Lent.

And here they are, baked and iced.  Boy did our house smell good!

We were laughing, remembering a few years back when I made a batch, and then we went out for about an hour.  When we got home, Dug had helped himself to about 10 of them!  He was so pleased, we just couldn't even be upset.  And fortunately it had no bad effects on his system, if you get my drift ...  we only wish we still had that problem, I have to say.  :-(

****

I'm glad so many of you enjoyed my Knit-taalik story, and I only hope we can get a group going at work, that would be excellent.

Today at work was also really cool.  They are renovating two of the dioramas in the museum, and the glaziers were here to remove the glass (the panels are about 200 pounds each!).  It was so nerve-wracking (for us, for them it was their work), but really cool!  And then, I came back up to my desk and was able to see the restored LOVE statue go past on its way back where it belongs.  As I mentioned on Facebook, it was actually worth coming to work today.  Though unfortunately, now they expect us to do something.  Work really does cut into my day, you know?  

On My Mind

So that you know from the get-go, this post has nothing to do with knitting, reading, or our vacation, and mentions belief systems.  So you have been warned.  It's just something that has been on my mind for a few days, and I want some opinions if you care to share.

We have a neighbor who lives down the street who is truly a nice and lovely person.  I mean, genuine.  Not someone who grates on you.  She is kind to every person and creature in the neighborhood, and truly caring.

This past Monday, I ran into her on my way home from work.  I hadn't seen her for most of the summer, and she expressed sorrow at hearing that our Doodle Dog had died.  She said how he always seemed so happy, and was so friendly, and that she missed seeing him.  I said that we were heartbroken and still missed him terribly.

Then she said, "I'd like to tell you that there is something to believe in, and that you will see him again.  But there isn't, so he is just gone."

WHY WOULD YOU SAY THIS TO SOMEONE?  Even if I agreed with her (and frankly, I don't, but that is neither here nor there), I still found this extremely insensitive and rude.  I felt like I'd been slapped in the face.  I think I murmured something about having to get home and walked away, but I have been feeling so hurt since then.

Whether or not you believe in God, Goddess, gods, clouds, flowers, or nothing at all, I don't think it would ever be appropriate to say something like she did.  If I had asked her, maybe that would be different, but I didn't and I had said nothing beyond what I already mentioned here.

Then I also wondered, would she say the same thing to someone who had lost a human family member?  I hope not.  I do know that a few years back, her husband died, and perhaps she got tired of people telling her they would see each other again.  That is her business not mine.

The whole thing still upsets me.  Do you think I'm being oversensitive?  If I am, I can't really help it, it's how I am feeling, but I am curious to know if anyone else would feel hurt by this kind of comment.

I promise not to keep harping on this, but I just wanted to throw it out there for your consideration, if you are still reading this post.

Thanks.

A Sincere Thank You and Q&A

Hello all - well, here we are a week later.  Before anything else, I want to say the most sincere Thank You that I can to everyone for their comments, prayers, thoughts, sympathy, and support after my post about Dug.  It made such a difference to me, and I know that Dug is pleased to think so many people thought to comment.  I tried to respond to each comment, but fairly often I can't see the e-mail addresses of commenters, and so cannot respond to some people individually.  So if you did not get a personal note from me, please do not feel that I didn't appreciate your kindness - I just didn't know how else to get in touch.  (Does anyone know how to make e-mail addresses appear so that you can respond? I have never been able to figure out why some show and some do not.)

So - THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING.  I really felt comfort knowing you cared so very much.  We are still kind of in shock, but as all of you know, life goes on no matter what, and some things have to be done regardless of what else has or has not happened.  All of us are doing our best to adjust, some days are harder than others, as I'm sure many of you know.

*****

Since I am here anyway, and am trying to find things to make me smile, I decided I would also use this post to answer Kathy's weekly questions.  This week, her topic is Christmas in July (does that mean it will cool down?? If only ...)

1. We all have our Christmas movie favorites.  Do you have a summer movie you watch over and over?

I usually watch at least part of "Yankee Doodle Dandy" with Jimmy Cagney on/around the 4th of July.  It's so cornball, and we always watched it growing up.  I think I might be able to recite it.

2. How's your Holiday 2016 knitting coming along?

I'm only slightly behind, but the things I am planning to knit as gifts are pretty quick knits, so I'm hoping to have a couple more completed by the end of the month.   So far, I have one hat out of 3 completed, and 1/2 of a  shawlette completed out of 4 I hope to make.

3. I have more time to read in summer than around the winter holidays.  What have you read lately?

I recently finished the third installment of the Maisie Dobbs stories, which was interesting.  But my favorite book that I finished most recently was A Man Called Ove.  I listened to the audiobook, and it has become one of my favorite books of all time.

4. Is there anything better than an iced Christmas cookie?

I seldom have iced Christmas cookies ... but during the summer, nothing beats a gelati from Rita's. Nothing!

5. Have you knit a gnome?

No, but I have a couple of little ones knitted and then felted by someone else that I've bought at Maryland Sheep and Wool a couple of different times. One is just a cutie, and one is a Santa gnome.

6. Are you more excited about your Christmas tree or your summer garden?

I've been fixing up our garden, and it's really nice.  The Tim has a deck garden where he is growing veggies and herbs.  They are great.  But nothing is better than a Christmas tree!

7. You've just created your favorite winter colorway.  What do you call it?

Santa's Stripes
Rudolph's Red
Snowy Evening Walk in the Woods

8. Someone is secretly knitting you a Christmas gift.  What do you wish it to be?

Christmas themed/colored socks or fairisle mittens.

9. If you need snow for the perfect Christmas, what do you need for the perfect 4th of July?

Temperatures during the day in the upper 70s, sunny with no humidity, and a cool, clear evening.

10. Let's make the last one yes or no; are you knitting in the air conditioning today?

At home, no because our house doesn't have a/c.  But I do have to go to a dr's appt, and they will have a/c.  So yes and no. ;-)

What about you?

*****

Thank you again everyone.  For every single thing.

So That You Know

I would give my life to not have to write this post.  Seriously.  But I do have to write it, and I don't want to put it off any longer.

Yesterday afternoon, we took our sweet Dug the Doodle Dog to the vet's office for the very last time.

I've alluded to him not being his usual self here, but never elaborated, because to be honest, that was hard to write too, and I wasn't really emotionally able to deal with comments and support from everyone.  I know that sounds weird, but there you go.

Dug was never an active dog in the sense that he couldn't really run, and had an odd gait.  This was a combination of him having arthritis, but also because the vet told us that it was likely that whoever had him as a puppy kept him crated except for walks, so his back leg muscles never really had the chance to properly develop.  He wasn't in any severe pain, but he was slower than most pups and more deliberate in his movements.  Needless to say, we didn't care.

When he started having serious trouble walking a couple of months ago, we took him to the vet for a check.  She felt a lump in the area of his spleen, and suggested an ultrasound.  That scan showed that his arthritis was also really bad in his spine, and that there were several tumors and masses near his spleen, kidneys, and other places.

The vet prescribed some painkillers, and suggested two things: 1) let him enjoy his life and the things that made him happy, until they didn't, and 2) take him to a local rehab place, and see if that helped at least a bit in the meantime.  We agreed that as long as he was still his happy self, we'd do whatever we could for him.  But Tuesday night and Wednesday morning it was clear he was not his usual self, and so we knew it was time.

He died having gotten lots of love from the kitties before we left, everyone at the vet's office (where he was a favorite), who kissed him, hugged him, whispered special things to him, and of course, from us.  In his last conscious moments, he knew that everyone who loved him, and those who loved him best, were right there, petting him, talking to him, kissing him.  (We should all be so lucky when our time comes, no?)

We are grateful that we could help him, and that he is no longer suffering or sick.  We know there was an entire welcoming committee - animals and people - waiting for him, to be with him.  We know he will always be with us, even if we can't hug him, walk him, watch him love the cats and love his life.

But it sucks, and it hurts and that will never change.  We know we'll never get over it, but we'll just get used to it.  We've both been through it before with so many of our other family members (human, furry, and otherwise).  We would love to have him here still, but only if he could be healthy - because to wish otherwise is selfish and cruel.

Dug was always a happy boy.  He was full of love, kindness, and he loved his life.  Anyone who would give him attention was his friend.  He liked to play, though on a calmer level, like he did everything.  He was with us for 3 1/2 years, plus a week.  We think he was ~8 years old.

He was our boy, and he is our boy, and he will always be our boy.  We love you, Dug, more than our own lives.  We'll see you again someday. xo

I've been thinking out this, and Dug never wanted anyone to be sad or upset, nor did he like to be sad or upset. So I think he would want us to follow the advice in this quote attributed to Dr. Seuss, even if we can't quite do it right away:

Don't cry because it's over, 

Smile because it happened.

Dear Dug, we are smiling through our tears right now, but know that you will always bring a smile to our hearts and our faces. Thank you for forever being our Doodle Dog, and for saving our lives, especially mine.

Be sure to kiss and hug your family, both human and otherwise, today, as soon as you have a chance.  And if you are so inclined, please say a prayer, think a good thought, or raise a glass for our sweetheart.

Poem in Your Pocket Day

Thanks to Kym, I have learned that today is Poem in Your Pocket Day. I have always had a weird relationship with poetry.  As a young kid, I loved rhymes.  As an older kid and school student, I was frustrated by it, since I never could pick up what was going on what the "real" message was.  Only as an adult, when I could pick and choose and not be graded on it, did I start to enjoy poetry.  I'm still no expert, and cannot discuss poetry with those in the know, but now I consider poetry to be my friend.

And so here is my poem to share today.  I hope you enjoy it.

The Sweetness of Dogs

What do you say, Percy? I am thinking
of sitting out on the sand to watch
the moon rise.  It's full tonight.
So we go

and the moon rises, so beautiful it
makes me shudder, makes me think about
time and space, makes me take
measure of myself: one iota
pondering heaven. Thus we sit, myself

thinking how grateful I am for the moon's 
perfect beauty and also, oh! how rich
it is to love the world. Percy meanwhile
leans against me and gazes up
into my face. As though I were just as wonderful
as the perfect moon.

-- Mary Oliver

My very own "Percy" (aka Dug the Doodle Dog):

The Quiet of Early

I never used to be a morning person.  Granted, I was not a person who slept late until noon or after, but 9:30-10:00 a.m. on a weekend or a day off was not that unusual.

But 12 years ago yesterday, I had the first major surgery of my life.  And the next morning, at 5:00 a.m., there were suddenly about 8 people around my bed, and a HUGE BRIGHT light above me was turned on - time for rounds, which is what happens when you are at a teaching hospital.

That continued for the 5 days I remained in the hospital, and I got used to it pretty quickly.  But it never occurred to me that it would change my mornings so drastically.  Ever since then, I have become someone who loves/craves morning time to myself.  Now on a weekend, if I sleep past 6:30 a.m., I feel like I've missed out on a good part of the day.  (I know.)

During the work week, I get up at 4:45 a.m. (which even I think is early).  I feed the cats first thing because, you know it's been HOURS since they last ate and they are of course so near to death from starvation.  I used to do my exercises next, but then Dug joined the family.  So now I put on my dog-walking clothes, and Dug and I head outside for our morning walk.

And you know what?  It's the best.  Most of the year, it's still dark.  Granted, sometimes it's raining or snowing, and both of us would rather be inside, but otherwise, it's a whole different universe out there that early.  It's quiet.  You can hear the trains coming and going across the river, taking people to and from exotic or ordinary places.  Buses pass by, with sleepy-looking passengers who are either starting their day, or ending their night shifts.  There are always at least a couple of birds already up and singing.  We often run into the neighborhood opossum, who needless to say, is not interested in hanging with us (though Dug really wants to be his friend!).

We pass people delivering things to the market around the corner.  They always say hello, and give Dug a pat on the head.  We exchange good morning wishes with the lady who delivers the newspaper to houses in the neighborhood.

But we mostly just walk, and Dug has a good sniff at everything ("checking his pee mail," as a neighbor says), while I look at any stars or the moon, occasionally see planes flying overhead, and sing to myself.  Occasionally, we will have a brief "conversation" (which consists of me saying something, and Dug looking at me because he loves it when people talk).  We're usually only out for 20 minutes or so, but it's so lovely, and so quiet, and it feels like you own it.

Weekends are different, in that we go walking later, it's almost always light out, and more is going on in general.  It's nice for different reasons.

But the early morning quiet of the weekday gives you a whole other way of being in the world.  And now I'm glad that I have become a morning person, because it makes me feel like the day is all mine.

Easter 2016

Well, it's Easter Monday - overcast and misty rain here, and a little bit cooler than it has been.  Which is fine for a day at home (I always take Good Friday and Easter Monday off if I can).  Time to do some laundry, and get ready for the regular routine again.

We had a great Easter weekend.  As usual, my niece Amanda and her husband Patrick came from Baltimore to celebrate, and also as usual, we had a blast.  Saturday of course was spent creating our Inappropriate Easter Eggs.

We managed to do some personalized eggs for the kitties and Dug, but got carried away and forgot to make any for ourselves!  Oh well.

 Political eggs, from top: Sanders, Trump, the KKK (I didn't quite get that one, but I didn't make it), Sanders again, and Lyin' Ted Cruz (that's what it said above the picture)

Pop culture eggs, starting with the yellow one:  Caitlyn Jenner, the Pope, Pretty Little Liars, Richard Simmons being held prisoner by Paul Giamatti (I didn't understand the Giamatti part, even once explained), and Oscars So White.

The RIP eggs, from top to bottom:  Abe Vigoda, David Bowie (the other side had Alan Rickman), and the Supreme Court.

So as you can see, a fun and inappropriate time was had by all.

Yesterday morning, we all opened our Easter baskets (well, the ones for the kitties in Baltimore got packed away to go to them), and they were a success.

Things deteriorated pretty quickly after this shot.  They all got these little tea bag shaped toys with catnip inside.  That took care of the goodwill.  ;-)

Dug was tired from all of the excitement and the company, but still thought his basket smelled pretty good!

After we went out for a yummy brunch, Amanda and Pat headed home, and we took our annual walk to the bookstore with the Easter Doodle.

Dug loves this whole thing.  He knows the bunny ears get him lots of attention.  The Tim always promises the people who have to work on Easter that he will bring Dug to visit.  On the way there and back, people stop and ask if they can take a picture, little kids hug him, other dogs look appalled.  When we get to the bookstore, Dug is like a rockstar, and sucks up every single second of the adoration and love.  He always hates to head home because then it's just back to normal life ...

After a yummy Easter dinner, we just cleaned things up and took a breather, watching some TV shows that we had recorded and just hanging out.

Holidays are fun, but they can be exhausting.

I hope your Easter was wonderful as well!  And for those who don't celebrate, I hope you had a lovely weekend and had a chance to relax.

A Happy Christmas Day

Well, we had a great day on Christmas.  Quiet and relaxing.  It was too warm and humid, but we tried to ignore that and enjoy the day anyway.

Our house ended up looking nice, once we got everything ready, and then actually cleaned up!

 This year, the Misfit Toys had a little tree of their own.

 Santa and Rudolph were at the ready.

 As were the Misfit Toys.

One of the windows looking out onto the garden was especially dressed up!

 The Christmas tree was just waiting for Santa.

The secretary was even fixed up!

And there were tons of other decorations that you'll see one way or another. :-)  If you are on Instagram, I have some pictures there as well.

Anyway, Santa did in fact show up and it was quite exciting.

 One of Dug's favorite gifts was a corduroy candy cane.

In typical kitty fashion, Jetsam played with Pip's gifts - a catnip stocking and a catnip wedge of pizza!

 Milo the Koodle found the Little Pink Socks (like Mooch has in the "Mutts" comic strip) to be completely irresistible.

 Pip repaid Jetsam by playing with one of his toys, a catnip cell phone.

There were several pauses in the action, which meant that we actually spent a good part of the day opening presents and finding out what goodies were in our stockings.

Later in the day, we had a great Christmas dinner, and watched the end of "National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation," which we had started watching a few days before.

Many lovely, sweet, and funny gifts were opened, many carols were listened to and sung, a lot of food was eaten, and we had wine in the afternoon and eggnog in the evening.

The only thing missing was cold weather and a fire in the fireplace.  But we were all together, and it was a wonderful day.  You can't really ask for more than that.

The 12-Hour Beach Vacation

Last week at this time, I could not wait for the end of the workday (even more than usual), because we were going to leave after I got home for a long weekend in Rehoboth Beach with my niece Amanda and her husband Pat.  This had been planned for a few months, and to say I'd been looking forward to it would be an understatement.

When we go to Rehoboth Beach, Dug comes with us, and he *loves* it.  Amanda and Pat are two of his favorites, and he loves the house where we stay, because it has screened in back and front porches, and there is a little lake with a path around it in the back.  He thinks it's just the best.

The couple of days before, he'd had diarrhea, but he gets it occasionally, and nine times out of ten it clears up on its own.  So we piled ourselves and our stuff into the car, and arrived around 10:00 p.m.  We spent the rest of the evening laughing, talking, and drinking wine, and Dug went out a few times more than usual, but still just had the same problem, nothing else.  But overnight, he woke us up after having accidents two different times.  We figured we would run to the grocery store in the morning and get some chicken and rice and start him on a bland diet, as the vet usually suggests.

But in the morning the kitchen floor was covered in blood.  He seemed his usual self - not lethargic, or sick, or anything - but we decided we had to head home so we could take him to the vet.   So we ate breakfast, visited a little longer, and then packed up again and headed home.  We left around 10:00 a.m.

A 12-hour beach vacation.

Fortunately, the vet said he was fine overall, but was suffering from colitis, and would need some antibiotics for 7 days, and the chicken-rice diet for 10 days.  By Saturday he was fine, and by Sunday his system was reacting properly.

So instead of a beach vacation, we had a long weekend at home with absolutely no plans.  It turned out to be great.  Saturday we checked out a new outlet mall not far from us, where The Tim found two pairs of shoes, and I got a sweater.  Then we came home, relaxed, and watched the Notre Dame football game.   Sunday we worked on some projects around the house, and caught up on some movies we'd recorded.  Monday we got our Halloween decorations out (not that we have that many, but still it's fun to decorate) and made our house look a little more spooky than usual.

I wish we'd been able to stay at the beach, but it all worked out for the best.  I even finished a book and got a good amount of knitting accomplished!  But most importantly of all, by the end of the weekend, this guy was back to being 100% healthy, and trying on some Halloween  costumes.

To quote some famous guy, "All's well that ends well."