Whirlwind Weekend

First off, MOM'S HOME!!!

She got in on Sunday, and Dad drove to the airport to pick her up. I drove along with. When I saw her standing outside the terminal, my little doggy tail went absolutely wild!

Unfortunately, Snoufer couldn't see Mom until he got out of the hospital. Yep, that's right. He got hemorragic gastroentritis (HGE) and had to be put on IV fluids for 36 hours. He was so sad when he left! He wouldn't even play with me, and he just laid on the tile floor unmoving at the hospital. Dad was really scared, so I was working double-time on the Morale and Welfare. I missed him too. He's back now and just as spunky as ever!


Of course, he is a little more grumpy than usual, but that could be because he is embarrassed because his paw is shaved. He is a very vain Westie; he likes all his fur to be just so.


Of course, he's also got to take antibiotics to follow-up, which Dad gives him in peanut butter! Why can't I get sick?


Just kidding. I don't want that. Bloody diarrhea? No thank you. Besides, now Snoufer has to be on a bland diet, which Mom and Dad cooked up for him of rice and beef.


It can't be that bad, though, since Snoufer scarfs it down like crazy! Dad told me they're still not sure what caused it, but Snoufer got sick at about the same time that Dad started giving me gravy mix-ins in my food. I thought my food was disappearing rather quickly... The doctors say that it wasn't that that caused Snoufer to get sick, but it might have been a gastrointestinal trigger. So, the real punch line here is that I don't get gravy any more. NUTS!

An interesting side effect of this is that Dad and Mom are researching whole and/or raw foods for me and Snoufer. I'm so picky, and this experience has gotten them a little gun-shy on additives in mass-produced foods. Seeing how much Snoufer gobbled up even his bland diet of "real food", they think that might solve a lot of problems for us. Any suggestions from my pugfriends on this?

Mom had a great time on her vacation. She was visiting family in Michigan at a cottage on Upper Silver Lake (right by the Michigan sand dunes). They spent a lot of time fixing up the cottage for renters in the season coming up, but they had some time left over to fish:


To roast marshmallows over the fire on the beach:


And to go to a petting zoo:


I'm trying to figure out what this guy thinks he's doing...


When she was growing up Mom planted a tree in her backyard. Look how big it is now!


Next post I'll put up the pictures I promised of the Rennaisance Festival. Just to close this one out, I have here definitive proof that I really can read and type on my own, without any help from Dad.



So there. Pay no attention to the leg-like surface on which I am reading. It's nothing. Definitely not a human.

Oh! One more thing. I participated in the Christmas in July that Herbie, Nixon, and Fattie's mom organized, and I got Samantha and Mr. Tigger! I put together a goodie bag for them yesterday, and they sent mine out today! Mmmm, I can't wait! I am also participating in Project Dogway Week 2, so look out, all the competish! Updates on that as it happens.

So glad to be back!

Oh. My. Gosh.

Wowsie! I have had a very trying past week or so, so I first of all apologize to everyone for disappearing off the face of the earth!

Here's what happened.

Sunday July 27th: Mom and Dad took me to the Renaissance Festival in Larkspur for a jam-packed day of fun and food! I will put up pictures and a full description when Mom gets back. Speaking of which...

Tuesday July 29th: Mom left for Michigan to stay with her family at their cottage on Upper Silver Lake. And she is going to be gone for two weeks! She comes back Sunday August 10. I am very very sad. When she left, I sat at the door and whined under my breath for a good 30 minutes. Also, on the first day after she left, I tore up a pair of Dad's shoes while he was at work. I NEVER DO THAT! I was just so upset, I had to gnaw something. So now, I have to stay in the crate during the day. Which means I can't get to the computer. Which means nothing happens for a while on my blog.

There have been a couple of side effects of Mom leaving. First off, she took the camera with her, so there will be no more pictures until she gets back. Sorry everyone! Secondly, I have to keep Dad company a lot when he gets back from work because... well, that's my job. Besides, he's really bummed that Mom is gone. He told me that they've been married just long enough to get used to each other being there, and yet not long enough to get sick of each other. So, he's really kinda been out of it the past week. Finally, I've missed her too, so I've picked up some bad habits. In addition to chewing up Dad's shoes, I started to go to the bathroom in the house more and also have started to climb up on the dining room table and grab stuff that's up there. That's not all bad, though: I got an asiago cheese bagel out of it two days ago!

To cope with Mom being gone, Dad has alternately snuggled with Snoufer and I and watched a movie or worked like crazy. Mom left him a to-do list of stuff, so he's been busy with that, but he's also taken us out to places. Speaking of which:

Saturday August 2: We had Pug Club at the dog park! It was BLAZING hot-- the day before set a record for Colorado Springs (99 degrees!)-- so we didn't stay long, but I had lots of fun meeting new pug friends! There was a big stocky fawn named Roscoe who liked to chase tennis balls; I can run faster than him, so I beat him usually. There was a skinny fawn named Romeo who might even put me to shame for how energetic he is! There was also a black female named Gina who was there... but no Veronica. *sigh* Maybe I'll see her again someday. And then there were 4 puppies as well! One was only 12 weeks old-- she crawled right into Dad's lap. I could tell he melted then; maybe I can use this as leverage to get a female pug in the house. Dad's got a soft spot for the ladies, and we are one of the VERY few families with only one pug in the house. You know what they say about us: you can't buy just one! The others were about 18-20 weeks old. I had fun with one of them-- finally, someone I can play with who is smaller than me! I slept for the rest of the day after that.

Sunday August 3: Dad took us to a place called Nosh here in Colorado Springs that has a Puppy Pool Party on Sundays. It's this outdoor bistro with a fenced-in area next to a downtown park that dogs can roam around in and meet/greet while the humans eat. Don't worry: they provide doggie treats for us, and kiddie pools to splash in (No, I still am not a fan of water-- I didn't get in), and they give you a bandanna afterwards! I've decided I like big dogs. I hung out with a Weimeraner and a Rottweiler a lot that day.

Backtracking a bit...

Thursday July 31st: I got my last shot. I am officially set! Now comes the big decision. Dad and Mom like the way I look so much they want to find a lady Beagle and, as they put it, "make Puggles." I'm not sure what that means exactly, but I think I'm starting to get it. I've been feeling wierd lately-- increased energy, awkward body, deeper bark, increased protective instinct... And I find that I like big furry toys. A LOT. Anyway, Mom and Dad are having a bit of a moral dilemma, because they have been told by several friends and Petsmart people not to find me a lady, because there are a lot of dogs who get put to sleep due to overpopulation. Complicating the issue, I have a baby tooth that just won't fall out, so now I'll have to get it extracted, which means anesthesia and big bucks if it's not already part of another procedure. I'm a little nervous as to what kind of procedure they would do that would put me to sleep (temporarily), but I trust my parents to do what's best. If only they knew what that was... So that's adding to Dad's stress level a lot. He would certainly like help from all the Pugverse if they want to give it!

So as you can see, it's been both a busy and an emotionally full past week or so! Now I have to get back to my Morale and Welfare job, so I will sign off and give written updates as they happen!

Mom and Dad's Anniversary!

Hello everyone!

Dad's been really busy lately with getting some projects done for his Master's degree, so I've been busy doing my duties as Assistant Director of Morale and Welfare. And boy am I good at it!

Today is Mom and Dad's second anniversary! I wasn't around for the original, but Dad showed me some pictures from it, so I'll share them with you in a separate post, because I'm so proud of how great my humans looked! Who'd have thought they clean up so well?

I "helped" Dad wrap presents last night. Usually, I would tear up some wrapping paper, and would have a pile of glorious carnage to show you. Instead, Dad decided to wait until 11:00pm to do that, and I was tired! So, I just sat and watched.


Dad is taking Mom to this fondue place called The Melting Pot. It's really fancy. Mom is pretty excited about it-- she's been spending a lot of today already getting pretty. Personally, I think she already looked good, but what do I know?

The temperature has been soaring here! It's into the mid-high 90s, which is tough for Snoufer and me because there's no air conditioning in our house. Dad does a good job each night of opening the windows to let in the cool air, then closing up the house for the day. Lying on the tile floor also helps! Overall, it just makes for lazy days.



One of my ADMW duties is making Dad laugh; he thought this was hilarious.


My good friend The Devil Dog ought to like that one!

I prefer this picture of me, personally:


I'll keep you all updated on stuff as it happens. Thank you all so much for commenting and emailing me! I love hearing from my friends out there.