Basset Momma

Just A Dog

2012-03-08T05:00:00.007-05:00

It was our buddy Remington's "Gotcha Day" on Tuesday and in his post he had a copy of the letter he wrote the night before he went to his forever home with Beth and Mike 3 years ago. From a dogs perspective it tells how scared he was. You can read it here. One line that stood out for me was "Some people will do bad things to you and then say, it's just a dog." Remington's letter really touched my heart and that one line reminded me of the poem "Just A Dog" author anonymous; which donnes the front page of of our friend Becki's web page at Autumn Blaze Bassets. I had never read this before meeting Becki and it was just a glimpse into how caring she was about her bassets before we got Fred and then Gloria. It still brings tears to my eyes just like Remington's letter did. Thanks for the reminder Remington of just how hard some dogs have it!

So for those of you who have never read "Just a Dog" before, here it is.

Just A Dog

From time to time, people tell me, "lighten up, it's just a dog,"
or "that's a lot of money for just a dog."
They don't understand the distance travelled, the time spent,
or the costs involved for "just a dog."

Some of my proudest moments have come about with "just a dog."
Many hours have passed and my only company was "just a dog,"
but I did not once feel slighted.
Some of my saddest moments have been brought about by
"just a dog," and in those days of darkness, the gentle touch
of "just a dog" gave me comfort and reason to overcome the day.

If you, too, think it's "just a dog," then you probably understand
phrases like "just a friend," "just a sunrise," or "just a promise."

"Just a dog" brings into my life the very essence of friendship,
trust, and pure unbridled joy.
"Just a dog" brings out the compassion and patience
that make me a better person.
Because of "just a dog" I will rise early, take long walks and look
longingly to the future.

So for me and folks like me, it's not "just a dog"
but an embodiment of all the hopes and dreams of the future,
the fond memories of the past, and the pure joy of the moment.
"Just a dog" brings out what's good in me and diverts my thoughts
away from myself and the worries of the day.

I hope that someday they can understand that its' not "just a dog"
but the thing that gives me humanity and keeps me from being
"just a man" or "just a woman."

So the next time you hear the phrase "just a dog,"
just smile,
because they "just don't understand."

~Unknown Author~

And this folks............

.....is not "just a dog". This is my friend!

Book Review - The Diary Of A Mad Fat Girl

2012-03-08T00:00:00.001-05:00

I just finished reading The Diary Of A Mad Fat Girl by Stephanie McAfee and I absolutely loved this one! It is set in a little town called Bugtussle in Mississippi so it's got a lot of southern flare and sass. The star of the book is Ace Jones who along with two of her friends are high school teachers in this little town where the gossip runs high and the nosiness runs deep. Ace is funny, loud and crass but inside has her own insecurities. She shares the house she was raised in by her Grannie with her dog Buster Loo who is hilarious!
It follows Ace and her friend Lily on their sleuthing adventure to save their friend Chloe from an abusive marriage. In the middle of it all Ace has to come to terms with her feelings for Mason and their on again, off again relationship they've had since she was 11 years old!
And of course there's still Buster Loo needing Ace's attention. Us dog owners know that no matter what is going on in your life, you still have to walk your dog, take them for potty breaks and give them some loving too!
I found McAfee's style of writing fresh and clean. This book definitely makes you laugh and even makes you mad at times. To me that is a good writer. I really did enjoy this book a lot and had a hard time putting it down.
This is a paid review for BlogHer Book Club but the the opinions expressed are purely my own.

Wordless Wednesday - Guarding His Stash

2012-03-07T04:26:00.001-05:00

Poor Starved Freddie

2012-03-06T05:00:00.001-05:00

Yes, in Freddie's eyes I starve him. He only gets food twice a day instead of 24 hours a day like he would prefer. To top it all off I don't let him eat Gloria's food either! So the dishwasher has become his favorite thing in our house....next to the bed, couch and well........everything else. But the dishwasher represents food on dishes that us silly wasteful humans haven't licked clean.

Fred knows my routine; usually I unload and reload at the same time.

"Are ya gonna unload the dishwasher now Momma?"

"Come on! How long can it take ya!"

"Sniff, sniff! Here comes the motherload! Come on Gloria!"

And the pre-wash cycle begins. This enables Fred to struggle by for yet another day!

Monday Mischief - Hats for Hope

2012-03-05T06:16:00.002-05:00

Fred and Gloria were busy this weekend trying not to partake in a photo shoot. They wanted to join in the Hats for Hope and send they're thoughts and prayers to Sammy, Andy, Shelley & Sierra's Momma, Miss Judi who is having some very painful and serious health issues right now, but they just didn't want to wear a hat. After trying lots of bribery with treats, I resorted to meatballs. Yes just like George Clooney did to win his dog over. Gloria was a little easier as she will do anything for food, but Mr. Dramatica...........oh boy!

"Come on Freddie! Look, I'm wearing my hat for Miss Judi! "

"Fine. But I want two meatballs!"

"Do I get another meatball now Momma?"

After a long day of ~~not~~ posing for pictures, Freddie climbed into his chair and fell asleep.........

..............still keeping his toes crossed for Miss Judi!

So if you can, drop over and leave Judi a note of encouragement.

So today we are joining two hops. Pip in the Hats for Hope blog hop and Alfie , Snoopy, Luna and My Brown Newfies in the Monday Mischief blog hop.

T.G.I.F

2012-03-02T04:24:00.000-05:00

It's been a long week. Even for Fred.

"Is it Friday yet?"

"Yes Freddie, thank God it's Friday!"

Tonight we're curling up downstairs by the fire and watching old black and white movies.

Fred will eventually lay down.

This seems to be his spot of choice lately when we're downstairs.

Gloria likes to lay by the fire.

And our main course tonight..............

JUNK! And lots of it! That black ball is an avocado. I'll make some guacamole just to add a healthy twist and maybe even have a piece of dark chocolate. What's not pictured here is our all time favorite that we will also be indulging in......chip and dip! We be washing it all down with a big pot of tea.

"Yippee!!" "I love Fridays!"

Have a great weekend!

Sparring Bassets Live!

2012-03-01T05:00:00.012-05:00

By popular request here is a video of Fred and Gloria in action! Excuse the filming, it's just something I haven't mastered yet!

When you hear them really yipe, that's when one catches the others ear. Ouch! When Gloria's done she just stops and Fred's pretty good at not bugging her anymore. Usually!
Fred actually has his own channel on youtube with some other videos of him before we got Gloria and from last summer after we got Gloria. If you would like to check them out his youtube channel here freddiespaghetti1

Wordless Wednesday - Lazy Bassets (Myth Busted)

2012-02-29T00:38:00.003-05:00

Fred's Leg

2012-02-28T05:00:00.004-05:00

Fred's leg is fine. After resting up Sunday and limiting his running (particularly on ice) his leg is now fine. But of course Mr. Dramatica is trying to milk it for all it's worth.

"Can you get me my bone Momma?"

"Get it yourself Fred. There's nothing wrong with you."

"I can't reach Momma."

"Pleasssseee! Momma!"

"I guess I'll just lay here in the window and watch the world go by." Sigh!!

"Will I ever run free in the outdoors again Momma?"

"Can you get me a drink Momma?"

"No Fred, there's nothing wrong with you."

"Maybe some kibble, or t-bone steak?"

"For the last time Freddie! There...is...nothing...wrong...with...YOU!!" "You jumped up on the couch didn't you?"

"Phhhttt!!!"

"Gawd! Freddie your such a baby!"

Monday Mischief - No

2012-02-27T05:00:00.004-05:00

The weekend was slow and lazy around our house. Since it rained all day Friday, froze over and turned into a snowstorm on Saturday our yard had hidden ice underneath the snow. Fred wound up sliding around and hurt his front leg. So he limped around and believe me trying to restrict his playtime and the use of his leg wasn't easy! So it was back on the leash everytime he went outside again. Sunday he laid around with his Dad waiting for the Daytona 500 to come on.

And they waited.

Then after the rain wouldn't let up they postponed the race until Monday at noon. When everybody will be at work!

Meal Time for the Hounds

2012-02-25T05:00:00.004-05:00

Meal time at our house for Fred and Gloria, like everything else that involves Fred, is dramatic. Fred lays staring at the bowls of food while Gloria sits looking from Fred to the bowls and whimpers. Fred eventually gets up and struts, yes I mean struts, over to his bowl and starts eating. Gloria will lay there staring at Fred and whimper but won't eat until he is completely finished his food. If I don't supervise Fred will then proceed to eat Glorias food too. I tell Fred no and he drops to the floor, well more like throws himself on the floor, remember "Mr. Dramatica". Only then will Gloria finally go and eat her food while Fred lays there and whines like he's starving to death!

It goes something like this,

"Come on Gloria! Come and get your food girl!"

(sigh!) "No, no.......I'll wait until Freddie's had enough." (sigh!)
After almost a year of being with Fred, Gloria's become quite dramatic herself.

When Freds bowl is empty she goes over to eat........aaaaand then Fred starts!

"Help Gloria, I need more food!"

"That sure looks tasty! I can't remember the last time I had a good meal." sniff!sniff!

"You're not having my food Freddie! I just watched you eat!" "Momma!"

"FRED!" "Leave her alone!"

"Get off my back woman!"

"What did you say?"

"Heh,heh,heh, just kiddin'......I mean....What, I'm not doing nothing Momma."

And that happens twice a day at feeding time in our house! What's it like at meal time for your fur babies?

Freddie Spaghetti's Song

2012-02-24T00:39:00.000-05:00

I can't believe I have done this, but I did. By popular request I have recorded Freddie listening to me while I sang his Freddie Spaghetti song. It's amazing the silly things we do for our dogs, but just look at the love in Fred's eyes. I think that says it all.

Warning: I am not, have never claimed to be or will ever be a professional singer, so listen at your own risk. heh,heh! And please if you are having a sip of your morning coffee, swallow it before listening because you or somebody close to you will probably wind up wearing it!

Enjoy 'cause it'll never happen again!

One More Award

2012-02-23T07:46:00.000-05:00

We have been honored with one more award.

Old Dog over at Yellow Dog Farm has awarded us with the Versatile Blogger Award. Thank you so much! In order to accept this award we have to follow a few simple rules.

1. Add the award to your blog.
2. Thank the person who gave you the award.
3. Mention 7 random things about yourself.
4 .List the rules.
5 .Pass the award onto 15 bloggers
6. Inform each of those 15 by leaving a comment on their blog.

Seven random things about Freddie

1. My registered name is Fabulaous Fred. Duh!
2. I love it when Momma sings my Freddie Spaghetti song to me.
3. When Dad gets up for work, I curl up on his pillow. heh heh! Don't tell.
4. I love ice cubes. I think it comes from hearing that shaker full of ice when Momma makes martinis on Friday nights. "Shaken not stirred"
5. I sleep on my Momma's lap every morning while she has her coffee.
6. I don't listen.
7. Unlike some furry sisters, I Fabulous Fred do not eat POOP!

Since I have given out so many awards this past week I am going to pass this award on to six blogs

Charlene and Storm
A Tale of Two Huskies
Eating The Elephant
I Still Want More Puppies
Lucy, Duke & Their Humans, Too
Pupparoos!

Thanks once again to Yellow Dog Farm for passing this award on to us!

"Okay Momma"

"Can we get back to us now." "I mean me, Gloria's just a prop! "

Wordless Wednesday - Freddie Spaghetti!

2012-02-22T01:11:00.001-05:00

Playing in The Snow

2012-02-21T05:00:00.005-05:00

Fred and Gloria have had lots of fun playing in the snow we've gotten over the past week and a half.
They've done the basset hound dance.........

Gloria tried to catch snowflakes on her tongue......

"Geez Gloria, it's not even snowing!" "Got a little bit of 'tard in ya there, do ya!"

They've eaten snow. (thankfully just the white stuff)
And when Gloria's had enough of Fred,

she lets him know it and goes and sits by the back door.

Freddie tries to shake it off.

Then into the house they go to pass out.

Now that's what I like to see!! :)

Monday Mischief - The Foiled Breakout

2012-02-20T03:51:00.003-05:00

Once again, Friday I did my pre-weekend dog drool, fur and any other hound crud cleaning. Fred and Gloria took their usual spot in the kitchen while I went on drool patrol.
This time however things were a little different. Instead of Freddie sticking the wooden piece of the gate in his eye and laying there all dramatic like he usually does. He decided for some reason that he was breaking out!

"Come on Gloria!" "I'm breaking us outta here!"

"Nom, nom, nom....get up and help, Gloria."

"I'm telling, Freddie."

"Grrrr,grrrrr.....pfffft...aahhhh...yuk!"

"Whoa!" "Geez, Gloria!" "Did you fart over here!"

"It's hard to get good help anymore." sigh!

Awards, Awards, Awards!!

2012-02-17T02:54:00.003-05:00

I have gotten behind on my awards. I have no excuses except there doesn't seem to be enough hours in a day anymore. It's not a great excuse, but it's the only one I've got. So I am going to try and catch up.

We received a Liebster award from The Chick and The Hound who writes about her life with Annie Oakley her basset hound. Thank you!

Liebster means dearest in German and the award is intended to help up and coming blogs get the attention they deserve. As with any award there is a bit of ceremony involved. In order to accept the award we must do the following:
1. Copy and paste the award on our blog.
2.Link back to the blogger who gave us the award.
3.Pick our five favorite blogs with less than 200 followers and leave a comment on there blog to let them know they have received the award.
4.Hope that the five blogs chosen will keep spreading the love and pass it on to five more blogs.
Here are my picks.

Redberry Cottage
Two Doodles and A Dane
Fablulous Flo
Pawfect Days
Angus and Milo's Adventures

Thanks again to The Chick and The Hound!

Our next award is the Pawsome Blogger Award.

We received this award from three different people and can't thank each of them enough. The first from The Charming Chi, check out the five chihuahuas, second from Bentley the Basset with his words of wisdom and we all know the third, Haopee over at My Dogs Love Me. After receiving this award we must pass it on to 8 other blogs that bring us love, laughs and furiendship. I am passing this award on to:

Two Collies and A Mutt
Dog Blessed @ Silverwalk
Tanner Trains the Family
Bunk The Pug
Pixel Blue Eyes
How Sam Sees It
We Three Doxies
Peggy's Pet Place

Thanks again to The Charming Chi, Bentley the Basset and My Dogs Love Me!

The next award was the Lief Award given to us by Urban Hounds. We are honored. Thank you so much!

They say that Lief means sweet in Dutch so we are humbled to receive this award from such a terrific blog as Urban Hounds. We will pass this on to three blogs we enjoy.

The Daily Oskar
Yuki and Rocket
Home is Where the Hounds Are

Thanks once again to Urban Hounds!

The next award was one of two given to us by Misty Shores Chesapeakes. We are truly honored for both. The first is the One Lovely Blog Award.

The purpose of this award is simply to recognize the efforts of fellow bloggers and to let them know that their work is appreciated. There is no limit to how many this can be passed on to. I love all the blogs I read but I am passing this on to two.

The Empty Nesters Family Daily
Ultimutt Pet Sitting

The second award from Misty Shores Chesapeakes is the Hope Unites Globally Hug Award. This is a truly special award and we are so honored to receive it.

You can read about this award and all it stands for here. Like Misty Shores Chesapeakes a couple of the paragraphs really stood out to me.

These people do not have to actively use the word “hope” in their work or creative talents. They only need be conscious of their desire to make the world a better place for everyone.

These people use their available resources–a smile, a hug, a helping hand, a listening ear, a voice, time, money, possessions, education, personality, talent, websites and blogs—to make a positive impact on the world and make the world a better place to live.

You can share this award with as many blogs as you like. You can read about it here.
There are so many terrific blogs out there who share a part of themselves with us to make us laugh, make us cry and make us feel better. It is so hard to choose as all the blogs I read are great, but I am going to pass this award on to 5 people.

Dashshund Nola
Bailey Be Good
The Adventures of Higgins
Finn Howard
Hound Dog Mom

Thanks again to Misty Shores Chesapeakes for this wonderful award!

And thank all of you for bearing with me through this long awards ceremony. I hope you all have a great weekend! I know I will!

Crazy Weather

2012-02-16T05:00:00.001-05:00

This winter the weather has been crazy! January was just rainy and muddy. Then we had temperatures as high as 15C this February and as cold as -19C all within a week.

This was Fred on Monday February 6th basking in the sun.

It was so warm he didn't even want to ~~terrorize~~ play.

By Friday night we had a snow storm.

Look closely at that tree and you can see the garbage bag. heehee!

Monday February the 13th the hounds were romping in the snow again!!

I wish it would just pick a temperature and stay there. Either stay cold or stay warm, instead of mud, snow, mud, snow!

Crazy I tell ya....just crazy!

Wordless Wednesday....Glorias' Tail

2012-02-15T05:00:00.002-05:00

Missing Garbage.....Bag

2012-02-14T05:00:00.004-05:00

The day that we had that wind storm and it blew part of our fence down, it also blew our garbage cans around the yard. When I went outside to pick them up one was missing it's lid and the garbage bag inside. I found the lid in the yard but never found the bag. Obviously the wind had carried it far, far away. Or or so I thought. About a week later, I was sitting at the table working on my blog, when I thought I could hear faint cries for help! I got up and looked out the front window and noticed something big and black in the neighbors' tree.

Lo and behold......there it was.

Our garbage bag! I'd know that Kirkland pull tie garbage bag anywhere! Sadly there was nothing I could do about it.

It hunkered down into the tree even further during the snowstorm we got last weekend.

I look over at it every once in awhile feeling helpless. You just can't help feeling sorry for the little guy. :(

"Hey!" "Momma!" "Snap outta it!"

"I thought this blog was supposed to be about me!!"

Note: Yes, that is a face cloth that Fred stole off of the bathroom counter!

This is for K.

Monday Mischief - Squirrels

2012-02-13T04:52:00.000-05:00

This is Fred.

His hind legs kind of look like a rabbits, don't they?
Freddie is starting to calm down somewhat now that he is almost two. But there is one thing that drives him bonkers.

Yep, squirrels.
They make him go.......well...... squirrelly. Not a little squirrelly, a lot squirrelly.
This grey one is always out front taunting him.

"Come and get me ya long eared freak!"

Once again, here's Fred.

Here's Fred on squirrels.

"You little @*#$er!" "If I ever get my paws on you, your a@# is grass!"

Since we have had so much spring like weather and Mr. Squirrel is constantly out there taunting poor Fred, I had to move the red ottoman to the side as Fred has gone so ballistic a couple of times he has fallen off it. We've already been through one hound with a broken leg and don't want to go through that again if we can help it!

Our Prize!

2012-02-11T05:00:00.003-05:00

The calendar we won from Sugar The Golden Retriever's giveaway back the end of January finally came! It's a Maui Humane Society calendar where Sugar was 8th in the Runners Up for the People's Choice.

They had the 10 Runner Ups pictured in the middle of the calendar.
Since I was babysitting my grandbaby Emma I thought I have her point out Sugar.

Emma just wanted to keep pointing to the kitty cat beside Sugar. But after several attempts, I finally got her to point to Sugar.

"There!" "Are you happy now Grandma!"

What a great picture. I really think Sugar would have made a great June or July!

Along with the calendar were two new collars from Sugar's Paw House for Fred and Gloria.

Gloria was so excited because she'll finally have something girlie! Thanks again Sugar!

Fred did great with Emma and it was the first time he has been off his lead while grandkids were here.

He only tried jumping up once.
Progress!

Tagged

2012-02-10T04:17:00.001-05:00

Our pal Goose over at The Gospel of Goose tagged us to answer a few questions. So without further ado here we go....

1. Describe yourself in 7 words.
Freddie - cute, funny, kleptomaniac, spoiled, cuddly, stubborn and did I say cute?
Gloria - devoted, cuddly, easy (no I don't mean that kind of easy!) spoiled, sweet, loyal, tattletale
BM - procrastinator, worrier, funny, modest, homebody, devoted, menopausal

2. What keeps you up at night?
Freddie - Glorias farting
Gloria - gas
BM - Worrying about my kids and grandkids , my blog, hot flashes and Gloria farting

3. Who would you like to be?
Freddie - myself
Gloria - Heidi Klum
BM - myself

4. What are you wearing right now?
Freddie - Detroit Lions collar.
Gloria - Seattle Seahawks collar.
BM - pj's and the housecoat that Fred keeps stealing the kleenexes out of

5. What scares you?
Freddie - being without food
Gloria - When Momma leaves without me and any loud noise.
BM - heights, airplanes, the thought of something happening to family

6. The best and worst of blogging.
The best is all the blogger friends we've met and all the laughs and daily inspiration they have given us.
The worst is all the loss and heartache that some of our blogger friends have to go through and like Goose not having enough time to keep up and comment on all the blogs we want to.

7. The last website I visited.
Gospel of Goose to get these questions.

8. What is one thing I would change about myself.
Freddie - Nothing. I'm perfect!
Gloria - Stop eating poop.
BM - Try to be a better person

9. Slankets yes or no.
Freddie - Is it chewable?
Gloria - no
BM - no

10. Tell us something about the dog that tagged you.
Goose is a fun loving guy we'd love to hang out with. He goes on lots of adventures with his Momma and his friend Bert. He even goes to church! He's very athletic and energetic for a guy who's 12 and looks great for his age. Freddie's only going on two and I think Goose could wear him out! So we'll stick to dreaming of jumping fences like Goose and reading about it on his blog!

Okay we're supposed to tag 8 other bloggers 'cause thems the rules. There's no pressure, so just join in the fun if you like.

2 Brown Dawgs
The Adventure of Higgins
browndog cbr
Urban Hounds
Declan's Dogs Blog
Dachshund Nola
Finn Howard
Kootenai's Climb

Next Friday I will be getting to all the awards I am behind in and I apologize to everyone who has given us awards for being so slow at getting it done. But fear not, it is coming!

And The Winner Is................

2012-02-09T07:45:00.000-05:00

For the drawing of the Mr. Chewy $50 giveaway I had Fred and Gloria help. Fred was extremely excited about it!

"What?" "Your doing it now?"

He waited patiently with Gloria while I put all the names in a bowl.

"Hurry up Momma!" "We can't stand the suspense!"

So down went the bowl.....

and Freddie did the honors.

Ooooooh! I wonder who it is! (and yes that is just one piece of folded paper in Fred's mouth)

It's Higgins! From The Adventure of Higgins! Congratulations Higgins!

Freddie well.......

he was completely exhausted from helping with the draw........or maybe he just has a tummy ache from the paper he ate! Whatever!

Weird Sisters Book Review

2012-02-09T02:00:00.003-05:00

I just recently finished reading the book Weird Sisters by Eleanor Brown. This is a story of the late coming of age of three sisters and the journey that has them looking deep inside themselves to find out who they really are. With the pressures of growing up being the daughters of a quirky english literature professor; Rose, Bean and Cordy, grew up with Shakespeare, books, (a lot of books) and no television or other commercial products like the other kids. Their home is in a small college town that thrives during the school months with it's one coffee hangout and small library, but becomes quiet and boring as heck to them in the off season. Going through their younger years they performed plays for their parents, laughing, crying and being jealous of each other. They finally grow up, grow apart and go their own ways.
Each of their journeys come full circle when they are brought back to the small town and their childhood home because of their mother's illness; or so they say. Alone and together each one of them confronts the demons that plagued them growing up. They face their father, their failures and their fears. Eleanor touches on subjects all too familiar to so many women growing up. It was an easy read that makes you feel the heart aches and triumphs for each of these girls to women. I would recommend you put this book on your reading list, especially if you grew up with sisters!

Disclosure - This is a paid review by BlogHer Book Club but the opinions expressed are my own.

Wordless Wednesday

2012-02-08T05:00:00.003-05:00

Butt Head

2012-02-07T05:00:00.007-05:00

Yesterday Freddie was trying to entice Gloria into playing. She just wanted to sleep.

"Come on Gloria!" "Your about as much fun as a rock!" "No wait, rocks are fun." "....as a stick!" "Hmmm...sticks are fun too." "......as a dead mouse!" "That would be really fun!" "Okay, your just not fun!"

Soon Freddie gave up and fell asleep too.

It just so happens that he fell asleep with his head in Gloria's butt. So when he woke up...........

"Oh, geez!" "Is that your butt!"

"Ahhhhhh! Momma help!"

"For gosh sakes Fred.......just stand up!"

Monday Mischief

2012-02-06T05:00:00.002-05:00

Lots of times when I go to bed at night to read I will take a cup of tea in with me. Lots of times by the time I remember I have tea beside me it has gone cold. So in the morning I dump it out unless someone beats me to it first!

"Enjoying yourself Freddie?"

"What?"

Kleenex Thief

2012-02-04T05:00:00.012-05:00

Fred will do anything to steal a kleenex. I don't know if it's because he can't get at the toilet paper roll anymore or what! He'll counter surf for kleenexes and even try to steal them out of your hand. Lately he's learned that I keep them in pockets so he can't get at them......or so I thought!
Yesterday he stole my housecoat from our bedroom and went and hid in the bathroom with it.

"What?" "I was just bringing it to you!"
"But I'm not in the bathroom Freddie."

Then a couple of minutes later.........

He's routing through the pockets for kleenexes. Basset hounds have a reputation for not being really smart. Believe me they are smart but very stubborn and Freddie.....he's one smart cookie!

Mr. Chewy Giveaway!

2012-02-02T05:00:00.021-05:00

It's a big day around here. Groundhogs Day, my birthday and Mr. Chewy Giveaway!
So to celebrate, why not give one of my lucky readers $50.00 worth of free products from Mr. Chewy! Woohoo!!

Has this ever happened in your house.

"Is it true Momma?" "Freddie said all our food is gone so now we're going to starve to death!"

"Arggg!! Save yourself Gloria!" "Maybe you can find some crumbs around the floor!"

"Freddie, Momma said Dad's picking the food up on his way home from work."
"Oh, dear, sweet, naive Gloria." "Can't you see she just trying to shield you from the harsh reality of the situation!"

"Arrrrggggg...........!"

Ya.....it gets pretty dramatic around my house if we even come close to running out of kibbles or treats. Then we have to drive to the next town to get our preferred dog food! I wish Mr. Chewy was available for us to order online and have delivered right to our door step, but sadly it is not available in Canada.
So when Mr. Chewy contacted me about a $50.00 giveaway for one of my U.S. based readers I jumped at the chance so nobody else would have to endure what I do when we run out of dog food!

Mr. Chewy is an online pet food retailer of 70t premium brands to choose from for your furry friends, dog and cat alike. They are continually adding new in demand brands of your favorite pet food, treats and supplies.

They offer fast and efficient shipping all over the United States. If you order over $49.00 your shipping is FREE!

Mr. Chewy has given us a $50 promo code to giveaway to one of our followers. That's a lot of yummy goodness for one of our furry friends! Yay!

Entering to have $50 worth of yumminess delivered to your door is simple.....

1. Follow this blog
2. You must live in the United States (sorry no Alaska or Hawaii)
3. Click on the Mr. Chewy link and see what makes your tummy growl and your mouth drool. (or in Fred's case, makes you whine!)
4. Leave a comment saying what you are drooling over from Mr. Chewy's site and mention you'd like to enter to win.
5. Get your comments in by February 8th 2012 and we will draw a name and announce the winner on February the 9th 2012!

And remember, for referring a friend Mr. Chewy will give them 10% off their first order and donate $10.00 to a partner charity that you choose!

Good luck to all and may you all see happy faces like this!

So I'm off to celebrate and see what special gifts Freddie and Gloria have left for me in the backyard!!

P.S.- No I did not see my shadow today, but with the weather we're having......does it really matter?

Wordless Wednesday....Almost!

2012-02-01T05:00:00.002-05:00

"No.......seriously, does my butt look too big?"

Fred In Motion

2012-01-31T05:00:00.003-05:00

Sunday afternoon we got a snow storm. (Yay!) So yesterday morning we woke up to this.

Because Freddie goes berserk in the snow I thought I would show you all the many faces I see of Freddie Spaghetti as he runs towards me with the camera. Bare with me, there are a few. These were all taken in sequence with my camera in Sport mode...and yes apparently my lens was dirty.

This is the point where I get the heck out of his way! So there you have it. That's what Gloria and I see when Freaky Freddie runs at us. Now you know why Gloria looks terrified half the time! (hee!hee!)

Monday Mischief

2012-01-30T05:00:00.002-05:00

Freddie is such a help around the house.

He generously helped me with the laundry again on the weekend!

Another Casualty

2012-01-29T03:19:00.000-05:00

Freddie's hot on a trail again.

He's about to find another casualty of our screwy winter.

Yes, it's his purple Walrus. Well it used to be purple anyway.
What Fred doesn't know is that this was no accident. No it was not forgotten like Rat Bas@#&d. I left that stupid toy outside because it drove me nuts in the house! Him and his stupid little squeaker that Freddie just couldn't seem to get out. He's managed to rip apart everything else in our house, but not Mr. Walrus!
Not only that, Mr. Walrus is made of a terribly good rubber and couldn't even have his silly head ripped off!
So...yes, I left him outside to freeze. Silly me forgetting he is a WALRUS!!

Well, geez! Look at him. Now I actually feel sorry for the little guy!

Mornings with Fred.......and Gloria

2012-01-28T05:00:00.005-05:00

Most of our mornings start something like this......

"Who's my little boy! Who's Momma's baby!"
scritch, scritch, scritch

"Oh, go on........ Momma stop!"

"No really, Momma...you're embarrassing me!" "Stop with the camera, come on!"
"Huh? Where are you going?"
"Okay, okay.....maybe just one more!"

"How's this?"

"Oh brother!"

Freddie's Discovery

2012-01-27T04:00:00.000-05:00

Fred made a discovery in our yard yesterday morning. I went out with him and Gloria in the morning 'cause as we all know I have to beat Gloria to her poo, basically as it comes out her butt! Freddie did his business and then he caught a scent.

Then he started tracking.

Now usually it's where a squirrel has hid a peanut in our yard and he has to dig it up and eat it. yuk! We have to be very careful of this because of our granbaby Emma's severe peanut allergy. :(

Ahhh! But these weren't squirrel tracks!
Freddie tracked and tracked.

Then...........EUREKA!

It's pretty sad when even the bunnies aren't afraid of your hound dogs!! Apparently they had a hay day in our yard the night before.

"Come here Gloria!" "Look it's poo!"
"Eeewwww!" "That's disgusting Freddie!" "I'm not touching another critters poo!"
"Duh!" "You eat your own poo." I've seen ya do it!"
"At least I know where it comes from!"

Sadder than the bunnies not being afraid of my hounds is the fact that I actually took my Nikon camera that my wonderful husband had bought me for our Anniversary and took a picture of rabbit turd! Now that's sad! Also the fact that I think Freddie may have snorted a couple of those little pellets!

Roam

2012-01-26T05:00:00.002-05:00

Thought I meant Freddie didn't ya? No I finished the book Roam by Alan Lazar that I won back in December from Bocci's Beef. First I have to say that I have never read this type of book before as I tend to be a Stephen King, John Sandford kinda girl. That being said, I actually loved the book! Nelson is a half beagle, half poodle who stole my heart! I don't know if it's from the cover picture or what but I pictured a male version of Sophie (From Sophie's View) in my head for Nelson. We all know Sophie is an adorable Labradoodle!

This book touched on all my emotions making me sad, making me angry and making me smile. Your heart goes out to Nelson who through all of his years hardships and heart aches manages to seek out the one true love he lost, his human! It comes complete with links to music which was written by Alan for specific parts in the book. I really think this is a Walt Disney movie waiting to happen; without the doggie sex scene of course. (hee!hee!)
I finished Roam 4 days ago and find I am still thinking about it which tells me it was a great book. The book was very well written. Alan Lazar is not only an accomplished composer but has proven he also has a talent for writing stories. If nothing else this book will make you want to hold your furry friends even closer and be so thankful you have them! It definitely puts you in that "awwwe" awareness mode! Roam is definitely worth the read!

Freddie update: Tempatures have dropped blow freezing again and the lawn is frozen. Freddie is once again allowed to "ROAM"! Okay, only in our yard!

Yes, that is slobber on his ear!

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-25T05:00:00.002-05:00

Ugh! Not Again

2012-01-24T05:00:00.001-05:00

"Huh?" "What do ya mean the snows not going to last!"
"Just go and play with your sister Freddie."
"Okay Momma." "Glorrrria!"

"Holy geez, Gloria!" What the heck are ya doing?"

Yes, even Gloria gets in her moods once in a while and Freddie doesn't know what to make of her.

I tried to encourage them to get as much play time in as they could in the snow since it was going to be 9 degrees C or about 50 degrees F. Soon the yard started to look like this.........

as things started to warm up. Then by mid afternoon yesterday........

.........THIS AGAIN!! And what does this spell? MUD!

If you look close at this picture of my lilac bushes you can see it has buds on it. Next is my Tiger Lilies.

They have started to pop out of the ground because they think it is spring!

So poor ole Freddie got to run free for a total of 1 1/2 days and now he's back to going out on a leash because our yard is once again a muck hole!! Gloria and Fred are so close any more that she actually stood by Freddie as he slunk back into a depression yesterday afternoon!

If anyone knows how to do a snow dance, please send instructions!!

Monday Mischief - Chickens?

2012-01-23T04:23:00.000-05:00

No we didn't get any chickens. Although that might not be a bad idea. Naw, I've got enough on my plate dealing with Fred! It's been upsetting for Fred not being able to run around in the backyard and play, especially after are walks. When we get home from our walks, I usually let Freddie and Gloria off their leashes in the backyard and they run and play for about 10-15 mininutes before we go inside. This helps get Freddies excess energy out. Since our fence blew down we have been listening to constant sighing and whining from Fred. He just comes and puts his head on me and sighs.

"But why Momma?" "Why can't I go out and play?"

Long loud sighs, over and over. This really motivated hubby to get out there in -10 C and rig something up to block off the opening where the fence fell over. It also got him away from Fred and his constant whining!

Now it is done! It might not be pretty, but it works for now.

It's chicken wire we had behind the shed. Hence, the reference to chickens! Thankfully the ground wasn't completely frozen because of the up and down temperatures we've been getting.

So I finally let Freddie out without his leash. First he went over and checked out the makeshift fence.
Then...........

Gloria was back to running for her life!

They ran and played for about 15 minutes until Gloria had enough and her feet got cold. Of course Fred acted like it was the first time in his life he'd ever run free. After Gloria went in, Freddie did his last couple of circuits around the yard.

I think I could almost here the music from the movie Born Free playing in the distance. Always the drama ~~Queen~~ King. Then he went in the house........

.....and crashed for the night! YES! We got to sit and watch our Saturday night at the movies on TCM in peace and quiet. It was great!

Wow!

2012-01-21T06:00:00.003-05:00

I have a few awards to talk about. First a few weeks back we were honoured with two more Liebster Awards. Thank you so much to Prudence over at A Coon Hound's Tails and 47 over at Rocco's House. If you haven't visited their blogs yet, stop by and sniff them out. Prudence over at A Coon Hound's Tails and Rocco and Leia over at Rocco's House won't disappoint.

I will get to my choices posted for this award (x2) at a later date as I need to pick ten more blogs and I do need some time to make my choices. Thanks again to A Coon Hound's Tails and Rocco's House.

Yesterday, Daisy from Everyday Adventures in Havachon Heaven passed the One Lovely Blog Award on to us. This is the first time receiving this award and we are truly honoured! Thank you so much Daisy. Daisy was away in Florida for Christmas but still managed to get into mischief! Check out her Christmas Day Adventure and see what mischief she got into in Florida.

The purpose of this award is simply to recognize the efforts of fellow bloggers and to let them know that their work is appreciated. There is no limit to how many this can be passed on to. I love all the blogs I read but I am passing this on to two

What Remains Now - Lori is one creative lady with 2 retired Greyhounds and a kitty named Twinkie. She is always finding different ways to express her creativity be it painting, writing or a new craft. A very inspiring blog!
Yee Wittle Things - Brandi is a young mother of two little ones and a fish named Harold. She is constantly finding creative ways to entertain her little ones and help them grow at the same time.

Thanks again to Raising Daisy!

Now try to keep your emotions in check...........

Don't get all choked up over poor Freddies dilemma.

We will be coming up with a solution this weekend so Freddie can run free once again! (in our yard anyway!)

Menopause Moment

2012-01-20T11:07:00.000-05:00

Yep. Welcome to another addition of "Menopause Moment". After doing my post yesterday I got all melancholy thinking about my babies who have passed on. The reason I started this blog two years ago was to help me get through the passing of our Basset Barney. He was 12 when he passed and had a good life but that didn't make the loss any easier. As you all know your not just losing a pet but a member of your family. Our Belgian Shepard mix, Bear, was 10 when the big C took him. Barney was 4 at the time and mourned for his buddy a long time. It was heart breaking to watch him. Bear's scent was still all through our house. Anywho, here are some pictures of the guy who started it all and his big brother.

Yes even Barney had to endure the Seahawks! This torch has been passed on to Gloria as we all know Freddie is a Lions fan like his Momma!

Barney and his sister at the cottage. This picture shows how even if we want to move we don't 'cause we don't want to disturb a sleeping baby. A much younger Brandi doesn't look to pleased with her furry brother.

Ahhh! The family photo. Ooops! where's the human kids! (hee!hee!)

Thanks for joining me in another addition of "Menopause Moment". (Sorry about the old grainy pictures)

The Fence

2012-01-19T08:53:00.000-05:00

I really am a believer that everything happens for a reason. Tuesday it poured rain all day so I took Freddie out on his leash all day to go potty so he wouldn't come in covered in mud. By supper time the rain stopped and the wind picked up to about 90 km per hour. I took Fred out for a pee and this is what I found.

Part of our fence had blown over. I instantly had a flashback as this is what happened when our late Basset Barney broke his leg. You can read about it here. And see him in his cast here. So thankfully I had been taking Freddie out on a leash instead of just letting him out the door. Either of the hounds could have gotten hurt or caught a scent and took off. Really this would only be Fred, he'd be gone in a second. Gloria....no......she just doesn't go to far from me.

This is what it looked like Wednesday morning as it snowed overnight too. Yes, those are condos they built behind us in what used to be a park! Hubby was in North Bay for work when this happened so it has had to sit like this until tonight. Then he will have to go and knock it down and take it apart.
Well, until we get something rigged up for the rest of this winter (if that's what you can call this crazy weather) Freddie has to be tied up to go outside. No more running around enjoying play time in the backyard. And oh boy, is Freddie ticked!

"This sucks!" "I hate my life!!"
"Oh Fred, stop it." "It will only be for a short time."

"I don't care!!" "I'm never going outside again!"

"For gosh sakes Freddie, shut up I'm trying to sleep!"

Yesterday my computer also decided to go all wonky! Finally I just walked away until this morning. I had to go in and restore it to a previous date and this seems to have fixed things. Yippee!

Wordless Wednesday

2012-01-18T05:00:00.003-05:00

Slobber Patrol

2012-01-17T06:49:00.001-05:00

Yesterday was a busy day. Monday is not my typical house cleaning day. I'm also on "Slobber Patrol". That's where besides my regular cleaning, dusting and wiping up the obvious drool, I scour things like pictures, walls, table legs, televisions, dressers and any place you might normally miss that drool will adhere to when the hounds shake their heads in the house. You'd be surprised at some of the places I've found drool!

When I start my cleaning, I put the hounds in the kitchen with a bed and pull a gate across to keep them there since Freddie Spaghetti likes to attack everything as I'm trying to clean. So I just put them in the kitchen. Gloria doesn't care. She goes and lays on the mat in front of the sink. But Freddie.........well you know Mr. Dramatica!

Yep, there he lays. Whining with part of gate stuck in his eye! He does this every time! As you can see the gate is missing some of the bottom pieces. Fred has chewed them off (surprise). He has done this eye thing since he was a puppy. It drives my daughter crazy when she comes over, but I'm used to it now and just ignore it.

"Look Momma! I'm impaling my eye with your stupid gate!! You'll be sorry!"
"Ya whatever Fred. Just don't make a mess on the floor."

Yes, I think Freddie needs some counselling.

Well, Freddie's big sister Brandi did come over and broke him and Gloria out of the kitchen and showered them with hugs and kisses.

Freddie told his story. "And then Momma took a stick and shoved it in my eye...and I whined...."....blah blah blah!

He finished with his typical "ya, ya.....I know I'm cute take the stupid picture already!" " F#*$'in paparazzi!!"

Note: Our snow has left us and in it's place it is pouring rain. Yes, now it's even muckier than ever in our yard. Crazy, crazy weather!!

The Bench

2012-01-16T05:00:00.004-05:00

In an earlier post I had mentioned that after Christmas I had put the red bench (ottoman) in front of the big window to deter the dogs from slobbering all over it. Yes and stop Fred from jumping all over it when he sees a squirrel or cat or bird or a spec of dirt go by. Now they just fight over who's going to be on the bench!

So Fred sits there for awhile and then......

"Momma! It's my turn to be on the bench!"

Gloria sits there for awhile. And I'm still left with this.

Oh, yes. My little plan is working out great!

This is a Blog Hop. Thanks to Alfie’s Blog, Snoopy’s Dog Blog, Luna, a Dog’s Life, and My Brown Newfies for setting up this hop.

White Happiness

2012-01-15T15:19:00.000-05:00

Our white fluffy stuff has brought about contagious happiness in our family. We have always been a snow loving family. It's just fun to play in, walk in and yes even to shovel. Friday after I walked the hounds and let them play in the backyard, I put them in the house to warm up and I headed out front to shovel the driveway. Really, I don't mind it. While I was shoveling this is what I saw in the front window.

I like this next picture. It's a picture of me taking a picture of Freddie.

Saturday my hubby got to get out his snow blower. His way of playing in the snow. It's a man thing, ya gotta have a piece of machinery!

This was after he ran in to the corner of the front step. He was so busy trying to look at me and smile while I was taking his picture, that he ran in to the step. Thankfully he had let off on the throttle! I laughed so hard I thought I'd pee my pants. It's still making me laugh!

The grandbabies even got out and helped their Mom shovel their driveway.

Awwwe! How cute is that!

Then this morning Freaky Freddie had some more fun in the snow.

These two pictures are in sequence. Skin all pulled back and then all pulled forward as he runs straight at me.

That's what I see as I'm knelt on the ground with camera in hand. I've learned to move pretty quick!
Freddie wasn't out for long today though as it's -19 degrees celsius today. Gloria, she just said screw it and stayed inside and called dibs on the bench in the front window!

That has been our winter wonderland weekend!

Snow Day! Yay!

2012-01-14T00:36:00.002-05:00

Friday the 13th turned out to be pretty lucky for us. It didn't start out that way. To start off with in the wee hours of the morning, I had to pee. Every night I wake up either from a hot flash or I have to pee. Sometimes I don't know how I have any water left in my body! Okay, I got side tracked with the whole menopause thing.

Carrying on.......so I thought I'd take a glass of water back to bed with me and set it on the night table. Of course through all of this Gloria has followed me, because she panics if she looks up and can't see me. Fine. I get back into bed. Gloria can't make it back on the bed. She has her front paws up but she's needs a boost. It's so dark in our room so I decide to turn the light on beside the bed to help her. Aaaaand....yep....you guessed it.....I knocked the glass of water off the night table! Well, it shattered all over the floor, my husband just about had a heart attack (it was 4:00 a.m.) Gloria was traumatized and Freddie thought that must be the alarm to get up! So the hounds went out to pee, my husband went back to sleep and I cleaned up the mess and decided I may as well stay up now and have a tea.

So when did it turn lucky?

When I looked out the window and saw that we got SNOW!!
Once it got light outside, Fred, Gloria and I got to go out and play in it. Okay they played, I took pictures. So here's the latest pics.

Fred's proportions look all out of whack there. He looks all buff in the front with a scrawny butt!

Gloria's just praying that Fred doesn't run into her at full speed!

Gloria trying her best at greyhound mode.

Freddies dark side coming out. Gloria almost looks like she's panicking.

The flying nun.

And finally, you just can't have a snow day without eating some snow!

To think that this next picture was taken the day before, goes to show what a crazy winter it's been so far!

Ya, sorry about the butt thing, but (hee, hee) I just like the way all of their paws are off the ground in this shot!

Happy Weekend!

The Split Leash

2012-01-13T05:00:00.002-05:00

A while back we saw our pal Snoopy's Mum had him and his pal Cosmo on a split leash. You can check out that story here. I had commented that I have a split leash for Fred and Gloria, but have been too chicken to try it out. Why? I don't know. Maybe for fear being dragged down the street by two wild Bassets or falling over in a tangled mess in front of all the neighbours, I don't know. I just envisioned disaster! The other day I decided to finally try it. I kept thinking, heck Snoopy's Mum even runs with Snoopy and Cosmo on the split leash! I must be able to at least walk with these two. So I stopped procrastinating about it and tried the split leash.

Well, it was great!!! Probably one of the best walks I've had with these two. Instead of pulling on me, they pull on each other.

It started out with Gloria in the lead and when she started to peter out........

Fred took over the lead. They basically walked each other! The best part was that by the time we got back around to our crescent they were actually walking behind me!

Thanks for that story of you and Cosmo, Snoopy! It stayed in the back of my mind and motivated me to try our split leash!! No more procrastinating for me! Well........maybe just a bit.

Pawsome Blogger Award

2012-01-12T05:00:00.001-05:00

In amidst all the warm, rainy, mucky January winter weather, we got a little sunshine brought into our lives. Besides recieving two more Liebster Awards (which I will get to in a later post) we also recieved a Pawsome Blogger Award from our friend Dachshund Nola! Thank you so much Nola! We are honored!

In order to accept this award, I must pass it along to 8(not sure how many, so I'll go with 8) blogs that bring me fun, love, laughs and furiendship.
I give this award to:

1. Urban Hounds
2. The Adventure of Higgins
3. Sheltie Times
4. Lucy, Duke & Their Humans
5. Kootenai's Climb
6. Gospel of Goose
7. Finn Howard
8. Brando & Bogart

Thanks again Nola!

Now for some pictures I took last night of the fog. Yes fog!

This first picture I took in night landscape mode.

This next one I used my flash.

Amazing how you can actually see the droplets from the fog!

This next picture is just poor ole wore out Freddie Spaghetti after their 50 minute walk yesterday!

He had to tear around the yard about 5 times after his walk before he actually came in the house and conked out!

I know, I know......disturbing isn't it!

Wordless Wednesdsay

2012-01-11T02:30:00.001-05:00

Romping on the Grass

2012-01-10T06:00:00.002-05:00

Sad isn't it. My title should be be, Romping in the SNOW!!

I took Fred and Gloria out to throw the the ball around yesterday morning. Figured, what the heck the lawn is ruined now anyway. So much for the sod we laid last year. No snow, just mud. But you have to make the best of it and watching Freddie Spaghetti and Gloria have so much fun together is worth it!

Fred's been trying to get Gloria to play ball with him, but she just doesn't know what to do with it. Well, yesterday she started catching on. First Fred dropped the ball for her.

"Go on Gloria. Take it."

"Woo hoo! This is fun!"

"Go on Freddie. I dare ya to try and take it!" "I triple dog dare ya!!"

This of course left Freddie no choice.

And a chase ensued. They soon forgot all about the ball and just kept ~~tearing up~~ tearing around the yard.

Here's Fred in his Greyhound mode!

After playing the Basset Hound Ballet for awhile,

Freddie caught a scent of something in the air and once they both stopped they realized how tired they were.

My little plan worked again. Now they would go in and nap and I could get my pies baked!!

Monday Mischief

2012-01-09T00:01:00.002-05:00

Yep! Freddie's at it again!

He just can't leave the towels in the downstairs bathroom alone. This is one of the ones I had just folded and put on the shelf.

Then after getting no attention for that, he counter surfed a receipt.

He thinks I can't see him if he hides under the table. Boy is he looking guilty there or what!

It's Over

2012-01-08T10:53:00.001-05:00

My Lions are done for the season. They lost the playoff game to New Orleans last night. I'm happy though, at least they made the playoffs and showed just how good they can be. But now the stress is over and I can sit back and relax. I think I'll just root for the Saints now even though they did beat my Lions. Fred however is having a hard time understanding that the Lions won't be playing anymore this season.

"Why won't our Lions be playing anymore, Momma?"
"Because Fred, they lost the game to the Saints."
"But why?"

"Why Momma? Whhyyyyyyyyyy!!!!"

"Go ask your father!"

On that note I'm off to veg for the day!

Togetherness

2012-01-07T09:35:00.001-05:00

First I will start out by saying, our snow is gone! It sucks. Yes it's sunny and mild but I have never liked the in between. By that I mean either get cold and stay cold or get warm and stay warm because the in between just spells muck!

This is what I dealt with all day yesterday if I wasn't right there to wipe Fred and Gloria's paws when they came in.

Mud! Come on this is January in Canada. I want the freeze please! I guess I should have asked Santa for a room for all this mud; hence....a mud room.

Okay now that I have gotten that off my chest, the real purpose of this post was to share some pictures I got recently of the hounds together. It doesn't happen a whole lot because every time they're in one of those OMG! or Awwwwwe......poses together, I get the camera and Fred, being a pro just flips his nose at me like "Oh, another one.....yawn" but Gloria runs at me every time she sees the camera which makes it hard to get these shots. I have to hide the camera from her right until I take the picture. Sometimes I get the shot in before she gets up but most times I don't.

This was them watching me on my laptop yesterday writing comments. I try to get as many comments in as I can throughout the day and stay on top of all my favourite blogs and some. I know I do miss commenting on some and for that I'm sorry, hopefully I get to it the next day. As all you bloggers know and can appreciate, this is time consuming. I am fortunate to be at home with the hounds so I can carry on through the day. I do truly love this blogging world I have discovered and love reading everyones blogs!
Fred and Gloria do start to lose their patience with me, though.

"Come on, on Momma! What are we chopped liver!"
"Actually Gloria, that sounds kinda good."
"For pete's sake Fred, is that all you ever think about!"

Now this next picture I love. After taking our tree down I put a hassock/bench in front of our big window so the dogs could look out the window but wouldn't constantly be slobbering all over it. This was working great as they would just look over it or occasionally put their paws up on it to look out. Yep, was working great until Mr. Squirrel came to hide nuts in our front lawn. Both dogs of course loss their minds and jumped at the same time and this was the shot I got.

I don't even know how they managed to both fit but they did and slobbered all over the window. (sigh) Once all the excitement was over they were stuck and couldn't figure out how to get down. Momma to the rescue again!

So that's a few of my rare shots of the hounds posing together.
Enjoy the hop!

Versatile Blogger Award

2012-01-06T06:00:00.002-05:00

We are honoured once again!

This past week we received the Versatile Blogger Award from For The Love of My Dogs. Thank you so much! I am truly honoured and sorry I'm a little late posting. If you haven’t been to For The Love of My Dogs and met their furry family Harley, Scarlett, Chelsea and Roory; make sure you check it out! I myself can't thank them enough for the "Wheat-Free Breath Saver" treat recipe. But believe me there's so much more you'll find there. They really are "all things dog, all the time"!

The rules for the Versatile Blogger Award are as follows:

1. Thank the award giver and link back in your post.
2. Share 7 things about yourself.
3. Pass this award along to as many as 15 blogs you enjoy reading and let them know about the award!

Seven things.......hmmmmmm....here goes.

1. Fred drinks water like a horse. Gloria drinks water like a chihuahua.
2. Fred struts when he walks and Gloria waddles.
3. When Gloria wants what Fred has she'll run to the door and bark and as soon as Fred runs over to see, she goes and takes what she wants.......snap!
4. Gloria sleeps right across the end of our bed and Fred sleeps straight up the middle. We just hang off the sides. (Remember we need a king size bed!)
5. When I'm on the computer, it drives Fred crazy. He literally whines!
6. Gloria still doesn't really know how to play with toys. She tries. It's just not pretty.
7. Both of these hounds hold the key to my heart. Problem is.....they know it!

I am just going to pass this award onto one blogger and that would be my daughter at YeeWittleThings . Her blog touches on all sorts of topics from a stay at home Mom's point of view. Having a severe peanut allergy (her daughter), Muscular Dystrophy (her hubby) Raynauds (her) and a son starting kindergarten, it's safe to say her daily life is very busy. I'm proud to say she handles it with strength and grace and I love her to pieces. Through it all she manages to blog about it and find humour in her daily life. So my darling daughter this award is for you!

Oh, Fred's got something to say,

"Remember when it was just me and you, Momma."

"Before you got that stinkin' laptop, oh, and GLORIA!"

"Arrrrrggggg!!! I think I'm gonna die!!"

"Nothing a little "bon bon" wouldn't fix, Momma." :)

Always Mr. Dramatica.

The Storm

2012-01-05T06:00:00.002-05:00

The winter storm came.

We were glad to have it. At least the hounds and I were anyways. I love playing in the snow with the dogs and then sitting by the fireplace with a nice cup of hot chocolate, maybe a dash of Creme de Menthe (Mmmm!) and lots of marshmallows on top. But with the first storm of this winter coming on so fast like it did I am sad to say we did have one casualty.

Rat Bast$#d.

I only call him that 'cause we don't know who his Daddy is. Okay we don't know who his Momma is either. Obviously someone who's into plastic. Anyway we bought Rat Bast$#d at the pet store when Freddie was a baby. I don't know what happened. Apparently I have been so busy between the holidays, then the clean up, I didn't see Freddie take him outside. You know how they say it only takes a split second.
Well.......

............he has froze to death and Freddie isn't speaking to me. What can I say....it's tough being a Bassethound Momma!!

Note: I recieved my copy of Roam by Alan Lazar that I won from Boccis Beefs back in December. I was so excited that it finally came as there was a mix up with my postal code. But here it is! Yipee!

The author even inscribed it for me.

I can't wait to read it and will update when I'm done.

Wordless Wednesday - Just Fred

2012-01-04T06:00:00.002-05:00

Coffee With A Canine

2012-01-03T06:00:00.001-05:00

Last week I received an e-mail asking if I would like to do an interview for Coffee With A Canine. I jumped at the chance as I love that blog. It's a great place to go and read about different people in all walks of life and their canine companions. It has a category for each breed and is easy to navigate around the sight. You can check out my interview at this link Coffee With A Canine.

The first day of 2012 brought us warm temperatures and with it pouring rain. Which also means lots of muddy paw prints. Yuk! We donned our umbrellas and took the hounds for a short walk. Fred waited for the rain to stop so he could go outside and play. Day turned to night and still he waited........

........and waited

Overnight brought a drastic change in temperatures and with it the snow!

So the second day of 2012 brought us snow squalls and wonderful playtime in the snow!

Fred and Gloria had a hoot playing in the backyard.

The best part.........

Freddie was absolutely wore out the rest of the day!!!!!!

Monday Mischief

2012-01-02T11:33:00.000-05:00

Boy am I late getting going this morning! I think it's because it's just so darn dark around here. Yesterday it poured down rain all day and today we are having snow squalls! Yippee for snow!! But none the less here I am with my Monday Mischief post. Thanks to Alfie's Blog, Snoopy's Dog Blog , Luna a Dogs Life and My Brown Newfies for hosting this hop.

Normally this would always be mostly about Fred, he's the trouble maker. But this Monday is definitely about Gloria. I think she's been hanging around Freddie Spaghetti too much. Normally I'd say she's not animated enough to take too many interesting pictures of, as they all come out the same. You know, like.......sitting or sleeping. She's such a quiet good girl, but not very exciting. Oh boy though, did I catch her in a good one yesterday! You'll be absolutely amazed when you see just how animated she can be!

Are you ready? Here she is!

I know! I know! Amazing isn't it. She's just gone crazy! I don't think I'll be able to control her after this.

Look out Freddie! She even took monkey! Fine maybe she doesn't know what to do with it, but she took it. (what a rebel)

Wild, I tell ya! Just wild.

More Awards!!

2012-01-01T19:31:00.002-05:00

Over the holidays Bassetmomma got two more Liebster Awards!! I am behind getting to this post but truly thankful to both Brando and Bogart and The Adventures of Higgins .  Stop in and check out both of these wonderful blogs!



Liebster means "dearest" in German, and the award is intended to help up-and-coming blogs get the attention they deserve. As with any award there is a bit of ceremony involved. In order to accept the award we must do the following:

1. Copy and paste the award on our blog.
2. Link back to the blogger who gave us the award.
3. Pick our five favourite blogs, with less than 200 followers and leave a comment on their blog to let them know they have received the award.
4. Hope that the five blogs chosen will keep spreading the love and pass it on to five more blogs.

Since we received this award from two different bloggers, I have picked out 10 favourite blogs to pass it on to. There are so many great blogs out there and the tough part is narrowing it down. Here is my ten, five for each award.

Cult of The Grey Hound - A great blog where it is all about the dogs Willow, Breeze and Dru with the added bonus of superb photography.
Peggy's Pet Place - Where you'll find tons of useful information. Books, tips, stories and of course her spaniel dachshund mix Kelly!

My Dog Loves Me - A day in the life of a dog lover where they often touch on different dog breeds.

What Remains Now - A very unique and creative blog about greyhounds, movies, books, crafts and more.

Gospel of Goose - Well, I don't think I need to say anything about Goose. You just need to go check him and his Momma out for yourself. Believe me you'll be hooked!

Stella and Rory from Down Under - Tales of the unconditional love of two dogs from Australia and their family.

A Tale of Two Huskies - Photographic adventures and antics of two Siberian Huskies Isabella and Jake.

It's a Greyt Day - Life with Greyhounds. Ups, downs, loves and losses. Beautiful.

Nanny McFur - An entertaining read of heartwarming and some heartbreaking furry friend stories and videos.

Last but not least I have to pass this on to 2 Brown Dawgs - I know they have already received this award but this is one of my favourite blogs. I love reading about these beautiful Chesapeake Bay Retrievers, Thunder and Storm.   Whether it is birding, training, going for a walk or hearing about the new puppy; there is always something interesting there to read not to mention the great pictures.

I hope you all can find the time to check out these favourites of mine. They won't disappoint!! Thanks again to Brando and Bogart and The Adventures of Higgins. I am truly honoured!

Happy New Year!

2011-12-31T16:41:00.003-05:00

Freddie, Gloria and their Momma want to wish everyone.........

                                              A VERY HAPPY NEW YEAR!!

                                May it be filled with lots of unconditional love!

Goodie Bag

2011-12-30T10:02:00.000-05:00

Fred on being inconspicuous.

"Don't move Freddie Boy.....just lay here acting normal."

"What?"
"Okay. She doesn't see the bag." "Let's see what's inside."

"Jeez!" " It's empty! What good's a goody bag if there's no goodies in it!"

"Stupid thing."

"Aaaahh....phfffttt...phfftt..

"Grrrrrr.....stupid.....freakin'....oh,oh... here she comes!"

"Momma!" "Look what Gloria did!"

Christmas is Over

2011-12-29T06:00:00.001-05:00

Fred's having a tough time dealing with the fact that Christmas is over. I tried to have a little talk with him yesterday to snap him out of his mood.

"Come on Freddie! Don't be so depressed. I'm sorry Christmas is over."

"At least there's still New Years Eve......right?.....Fred, Freddie Spaghetti, Fredrico, buddy."

"Will Santa be there?"

"No."

"Will there be presents?"

"Well, no."

"Ughhhhhh!!!! Then wake me up next December!"

Wordless Wednesday

2011-12-28T06:00:00.002-05:00

It came!

Christmas

2011-12-26T05:00:00.002-05:00

Christmas Eve we had one of our family gatherings. I spent all morning preparing the food. Fred and Gloria were right in there helping. We all had a big night ahead of us.

Don't you just love my candy cane striped lounge pants!

Once the food was done and the house was cleaned I tried to shine up the hounds a bit. They had a busy meet and greet coming up and I wanted them to look their best.

After their big night of entertaining they both tried to curl on my lap.

Which was good because Santa would soon be coming. By the look of them, you'd think they got into to the ole punch bowl!

Santa didn't disappoint and brought them some squeaky toys and chew bones.

Gloria even attempted to play with her toy (this is a rare event). She was doing good until it squeaked. Then she ran and hid by me.

Fred was still too tired to even stand, so he just laid on the floor and chewed on his toys. I think he kept squeaking his on purpose just to scare poor Gloria!

Awwwe.......look how enthusiastic he is!

So now that the hounds had new toys and more messy chew bones everything was good. Especially since my daughter and her husband got us this bad baby for Christmas!

This will make life so much easier when it comes to cleaning up after two messy basset hounds! Not that I look forward to a mess, but I can't wait to try it out. Today we have our kids and grandkids for boxing day dinner as we just do presents and brunch on Christmas. So throw two hounds into the mix and I'm sure there will be a mess by the end of the day. Then I will get to try our new Bissell Little Green!

Wishing for Snow

2011-12-24T09:06:00.002-05:00

I'm just sitting here this morning having my coffee wishing for snow. I usually don't worry too much about getting snow as I always think it is my Christmas present from my Mom every year. You see, she passed away just before Christmas 12 years ago yesterday. My Dad followed 2 years ago on the 20th. I used to phone her no matter what time of day when we got our first snow fall because I love snow so much and she would always laugh and say "Yes, Janet I see the snow." Every year since she has passed we have had snow even if it is green until Christmas Eve, it suddenly will snow. I always tell my kids, "See, I told you Grandma would send snow!" So in keeping with the snow theme I thought I'd share some pictures and just maybe, just maybe..... give Mom a little nudge.

These pictures were taken at the beginning of May this year.

This next one.......

.... is Gloria before we got her with Fred's Mom Lola at Autumn Blaze Bassets last winter.

Doesn't Fred look like his "other" Momma!

These next ones of Fred..

... were taken two weeks ago!

So like our sign says.........

.....BRING ON THE SNOW!!!!

Merry Christmas Mom & Dad!

Santa!!

2011-12-23T06:00:00.004-05:00

Santa came to see Fred and Gloria!

Fred just had wonderment in his eyes and little Susie Loo Who (Gloria) was just in awe!

"...and I want a chew toy and a bone and a new collar..."

Okay, Santa really came to see the grandbabies. Cameron didn't know what to think but was pretty happy after Santa gave him Lego.

Emma, well she didn't fair so well.

Don't worry Emma was fine once she had her Barbie and Santa was gone!

And you could hear Santa shout as he left them that night, "Merry Christmas to all and to all a good night!"

12th Man Tree

2011-12-22T09:06:00.000-05:00

This is our 12th Man Christmas Tree in the rec room.

We have both Seattle Seahawks ornaments and Detroit Lions ornaments.

We have the old Seahawks colours.

The new Lions logo.

Every year we get a different ornament to add to the tree.

This icicle actually lights up with different colours when you turn it on.

And I didn't make these Seahawks pictures blurry on purpose, Steve!

I just don't know what mode to use on my camera to take pictures of the ornaments without the flash showing up in them!

And this is our big reward for being season ticket holders this year!

Woohoo! We got a card! Okay, in all fairness there was an ornament in with it too. You can see it in the first picture of the ornaments. We used to get a $100.00 gift card to spend at the Pro Shop. But I know, times are tough for the NFL. (sniff!sniff!)
The sad part is I was still so excited to get the card yesterday. At least it showed they didn't completely forget about us!

So, that's a peek at our 12th man Christmas tree and now.......

That's right, a picture of Fred!!

And now to answer the burning question.....if Steve has been a Seahawks fan for over 25 years, why do we have season tickets to the Lions! It's because Seattle is a 5 1/2 hour flight away and Detroit is a 2 1/2 hour drive not to mention the cost! Steve flew to Seattle once for a game at Quest Field. ( An anniversary present from me about 8 years ago). That was his one time dream. So now we just drive to Detroit, at least it's live football!

Wordless Wednesday, Veggin'

2011-12-21T07:14:00.004-05:00

Note:
My apologies go out to Scrappy at Yorkie Tails for mixing up her info on my post yesterday!
I'm just calling it a midnight menopausal brain fart!

Winner, Winner, Chicken Dinner!

2011-12-20T05:37:00.002-05:00

Okay, there's no chicken dinner. I just love it when Guy Fieri says that on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. But I am making a whack of cabbage rolls today for the dinner my husband puts on for his guys at work.
Enough about food, I am here to announce how humbled we are to have received another Kreativ Blogger Award. This one we have received from Christine over at Brando and Bogart. She has a wonderful blog about her cute Cavaliers Brando, Bogart and Ziggy and the mischief they get into.

Again, the first part requires me to tell you ten things about the hounds you may not know and the second part is to pass it on to six other blogs.

So here are my ten things about Fred and Gloria.

1. Fred is on the verge of coming out of his puppy stage. He tries really hard to sit and wait for people to pet him when they come in. He sits and wiggles until he can't take it any more and then his puppy brain takes over again and he pounces! Dang!
2. Gloria will not eat her food until Fred eats his. She sits and waits until he is completely done his, then she goes to her bowl and eats.
3. When it comes to rawhide or bones; Gloria waits for no one. She thinks they're all hers and lets Fred know it.
4. Lately, Fred likes to get up in the middle of the night and go into his crate and curl up with his bed buddy. I think it's because four is getting to be a crowd in our bed.

5. Freds bed buddy, Ole Blue, is the toy that we had waiting for him when we first brought him home from Autumn Blaze Bassets and it is the only toy he has not ripped apart. He gets him out and plays with him the odd time, but there isn't one mark on it, other than drool!

Ole Blue and Sir Hawthorne

6. Fred and Gloria both enjoy tummy rubs. They lay side by side on there back to get a good tummy rub.
7. I know she's a girl, but I have to say it. Gloria snores and farts all night long! Sorry sweetie the truth hurts!
8. Fred whines everyday when he hears the kids outside at recess at a school near our home. He wants to play too.
9. Fred will constantly jump and claw at our front window if he sees anything outside be it a squirrel, cat, people, dogs or a piece of paper blowing in the wind.
10. If Fred gets in the big comfy chair first, Gloria will run to the front door and bark until Fred gets down to see whats going on and then zoom! she jumps in the chair and Fred just stands there feeling stupid. Silly boy.

The six blogs I have chosen to pass this award to are

How Sam Sees It A blog about two golden retrievers, their adventures and the trouble they get into.

From Sophies View About a gorgeous Labradoodle named Sophie and her adventures in her beautiful surroundings in Nova Scotia.

Ocean Breezes is a lovely blog that takes you away from everyday life to a calming, quiet place of beautiful pictures and reminisces of days gone by where you can relax for awhile.

Bailey Be Good The in and outs of a one year old Belgian Shepard mix and her big sister Nala. Always an interesting read.

Yorkie Tails Scrappy is a little Yorkie living in Montana with her family. Enjoying life and adventures on her......I mean their farm!
(Sorry Scrappy! I fixed your information after mixing it up with another. Sometimes doing posts late at night is not such a good thing!)

The Farm House Chickens and dogs....need I say more?

Drop in and check them for some great adventures and stories. Thanks again to Brando and Bogart for another Kreativ Blogger Award!

Only five more sleeps!

Weekend Fun

2011-12-19T08:51:00.001-05:00

We had a great weekend. Yesterday we woke up to snow!!

So I told Fred and Gloria to get out and enjoy it while they could. 'Cause by Wednesday it will be rain. :(

After trying to eat all the snow, AGAIN.

Fred finally enticed Gloria to play.

Then, when Fred started getting a little too rough (typical boy) and Gloria had enough........

"OUCH!" "I'm telling!"

........ she headed downstairs to watch the Seahawks WIN (what up with dat!) with her Dad.

Okay, maybe she slept through it. It's the thought that counts.

Then Fred came down to watch the Lions win with me.

Okay, he pretty much chewed his bone through the whole game. But once it came down to the wire that last couple of minutes of the game and tensions were high........

....he kicked me out of my chair.

I didn't care. The Lions won and I know it's because I remembered to hang my Lions' flag in the window at halftime!!

This is a Blog Hop. Thanks to Alfie’s Blog, Snoopy’s Dog Blog, Luna, a Dog’s Life, and My Brown Newfies for setting up this hop. Please go to any of the sponsoring blogs to find out who else has been mischievous or to join the hop.

Hound of Many Hats

2011-12-18T08:12:00.000-05:00

Okay. Maybe not many, just one. And sure, I'm not proud of what I did to the hounds last night. Quite frankly I didn't think Fred would just sit there and let me do it. I honestly thought I was in for a battle. But humiliation is a funny thing.

"Oh jeez! You'd better not be putting this on the blog, Momma!"

"Open Your eyes!" "I'm not taking it off until you look at the camera, Freddie!"

"FINE!"

"Are ya happy now?"

Then came Gloria's turn. Just look at how excited she was!

"How's this, Momma?" "Do you want me to dance a jig too?"
She's such a good girl. She'll do anything if it means more presents under the tree!

Fred finally looked at his father for help. (kinda like Ralphie in a Christmas Story when his mother makes him try on the pink bunny suit)

"Dad!" "Your a guy make her stop.......PLEASE!!!"

So, I stopped. But I will always have these Christmas pictures!

Fabulous Friday!

2011-12-17T06:58:00.002-05:00

Friday was a great day. It didn't start off that well because Fred ripped apart one of the tags on a Christmas present under the tree. Both hounds have been so good around the tree but apparently Fred couldn't take it anymore and wanted to find out if one of the gifts were for him. What can I say, he breaks under pressure. Here's what's left of the tag.

Just ignore the dog fur on the Christmas tree skirt. Here's the present that seemed to be calling Freds name.

Now I just have to figure out which one of my kids that present was for and make another tag.

After that excitement I found that I had won another Liebster Award and also a book!

First for the Liebster Award. I am so thankful to Bailey Be Good for giving me this award. I am really
honoured.

Liebster means "dearest" in German, and the award is intended to help up-and-coming blogs get the attention they deserve. As with any award there is a bit of ceremony involved. In order to accept the award we must do the following:

1. Copy and paste the award on our blog.
2. Link back to the blogger who gave us the award.
3. Pick our five favourite blogs, with less than 200 followers and leave a comment on their blog to let them know they have received the award.
4. Hope that the five blogs chosen will keep spreading the love and pass it on to five more blogs.

So here are my five blog picks. Stop in and get acquainted.

Brando and Bogart

Mr. Rugby Sevens

Chronicles of Cardigan

The Royal Coon Hounds

Yee Wittle Things

Thanks again Bailey Be Good. You made our Friday!

To top off my Friday I came home to find I had won the Roam book give-a-way from Bocci Beefs.

Thank you sooo much. I can't wait to read it!!

Christmas Cards

2011-12-16T09:34:00.000-05:00

Fred and Gloria want to thank everyone for all of the great Christmas cards they have been receiving. They wait patiently by the door every morning for Liz the mail lady to see if she brings them more Christmas cards.

Wednesday there was no mail, at all. No cards, no bills (yipee!) But all Fred seen was there were no cards. So depressed Mr. Dramatica took to the couch for the whole day. I tried desperately to perk him up. Why, I don't know. Usually I take advantage of these times and get some things done with out him harassing me. But it's Christmas, and I didn't like to see him depressed.

So I tried.

"Freddie, come on lets go out and play for a bit."

"Oh, is my mail out there?"

"No, remember there was no mail."

"Oh, than okay Momma, NOT!"

Yes, he was starting to get a little nasty about it, so I decided to just let him wallow in his pity and sleep it off.

So he went from the couch to the chair that night

and slept by the door waiting for the next day to see what Liz the mail lady would bring. I know, he looks pretty down there, doesn't he.

Lo and behold yesterday Fred and Gloria got more Christmas cards. They even got a card from Liz the mail lady!

And after rejoicing and reading all the cards to Gloria ('cause she can't read) ...........

Freddie Spaghetti passed out from sheer joy!

Hallelujah!!

Another Award!

2011-12-15T12:19:00.003-05:00

After the excitement of getting the Kreativ Blog Award, Bassetmomma was just nominated for the Leibster Blog Award by taleof2rescues. Thank you so much. Stop in and check out their blog with their two beautiful rescues Lightening and Thumper. Two dogs off to a rough start who found their forever home with a loving family.

Liebster means "dearest" in German, and the award is intended to help up-and-coming blogs get the attention they deserve. As with any award there is a bit of ceremony involved. In order to accept the award we must do the following:

1. Copy and paste the award on our blog.
2. Link back to the blogger who gave us the award.
3. Pick our five favourite blogs, with less than 200 followers and leave a comment on their blog to let them know they have received the award.
4. Hope that the five blogs chosen will keep spreading the love and pass it on to five more blogs.

So here are my five blog picks. Stop in and get aquainted.

browndogcbr

Harville Hounds

Bailey Be Good

Cybersibes

Two Collies and a Mutt

Thanks again Sherri from taleof2rescues.

We Got An Award!

2011-12-15T02:47:00.002-05:00

I was so excited to see that raisingdaisy has chosen my blog for the Kreativ Blogger Award. Thank you! Fred, Gloria and I are honoured. You should stop for a visit at raisingdaisy to see the day in the life of an adorable Havachon pup. You'll also find lots of informative doggy tips, news and reviews.

The first part of the award reqires me to tell you ten things about the bassets that you don't know. The second part is to pass on the award to six other blogs.

Here's the first part.

1. Fred and Gloria are not related in anyway. They just came from the same kennel.

2. Fred's registered name is Fabulous Fred and he lives up to that name everyday.

3. Fred and Gloria both love to give basset hound hugs in the morning squishing their heads into my legs.

4. Fred's favourite show is Dogs with jobs. I think he just likes watching other dogs work for a living!

5. I think Fred secretly hates his Detroit Lions collar. He just wears it for his Momma.

6. I think Gloria secretly hates her Seattle Seahawks collar. She just wears it for her Dad.

7. Gloria jumps at every little noise and Fred just couldn't care less.

8. Fred hides when he sees me get the gentle leader for his walk. Once it's on he's okay, he loves his walks. I just have to catch him first.

9. Gloria loves the idea of a walk but peters out very quickly if she doesn't pace herself. My husband has had to go home and get the car to pick us up and bring us home. LOL!

10. Fred never sleeps on a flat surface. He always has to be on some kind of pillow or cushion, towel or pile of clothes. Anything that isn't flat.

Now I have to pick six blogs to nominate for this award. There are so many great blogs out there, but I have to choose just six. Here they are.

1. Koontai's Climb - The adventures of a black lab/border collie cross.

2. The Life and Times of Remington - The very busy and comical life of a big black Newfie dog.

3. HoundDogMom - Life with bassets, basset rescue and transportation.

4. Urban Hounds - A funny mix of dogs, their tales, reviews and tasty doggy recipes.

5. Hoods Happenings - Life with Miss Mindy.

6. YeeWittleThings - About the daily ups and downs of a stay at home mom of two young kids, one of whom has a severe peanut allery.

Pop over and check them out. Thanks again to raisingdaisy at Everyday Adventures of Havachon Heaven!

No, it's not sunny here but all our snow has melted and it's raining like crazy! :(

Wordless Wednesday

2011-12-14T00:40:00.001-05:00

Hard as Nails

2011-12-13T14:23:00.000-05:00

Basset Hounds have some of the toughest nails of the dog world. They can be very hard to cut. Gloria lets me trim her nails without a peep. She's such a good girl.

Freddie Spaghetti......well he has to go to the vet to get it done because he doesn't like anyone touching his darn nails. He gets upset and I get upset. It's an awful experience I just dread . He was so upset yesterday as I had to take him to the vets to have his nails trimmed. I had just put it off too long and finally had to bite the bullet and take him in. That's the first time I've ever seen him shake at the vets office. He peed all over and I just plain felt like dirt! Gloria was upset that she had to stay home alone and she started howling.

Fred whined all the way to the vet, but we got it done and we made it home.

Mr. Dramatica is still milking it for all it's worth and I'm just plain exhausted!

It Must Be Christmas...........

2011-12-12T10:39:00.004-05:00

The Detroit Lions are still in!
They did get 11 penalties.......

......but only one was a personal foul this time.
The way the game started off, it looked like it was going to be one sided. The Vikings gave up the ball to three interceptions by the Lions, it was almost like the Lions were playing themselves! Then the Vikings brought in Webb and nobody could catch him. The pendulum started to shift. The end was definitely a nail biter but the Lions pulled it off. Final score 34-28. Sorry, Remington!

I was supposed to be there with hubby, but Fred and Gloria have seemed a little off lately, so I opted to stay home with my babies and catch the game on the big screen. I think there's so much going on around here with Christmas getting closer, that they get antsy like little kids 'cause they know something is up. Did Steve take these pictures at the game? Nooooo. I took them off of our 58" Panasonic HD. Pretty good, eh. Ya, ya, why would I do that. I just wanted to have the feeling of being at the game snapping off shots, I guess. Yep, I've got issues!
Whatever.

Fred spent the weekend playing with his food dish.
First he had a stand off with one of his toys.

"You talkin' to me"
"Are YOU talkin' to ME!"

Then he spent all day Sunday playing with his food dish.

Apparently we haven't had to spend hundreds of dollars on toys.

We just needed an extra noisy food dish!
Now it's Monday. Can't wait to see what this week brings!

Snow!!

2011-12-10T09:08:00.003-05:00

We finally got some snow! It might not be a lot but it's a start. Freddie seems absolutely amazed by it. First he thought he had to eat all the white stuff that was covering HIS grass. Then he decided that unless he had a lot of help, he could never finish this job himself. So he said SCREW IT, and went off to play with Gloria. They had a hoot!

They ran and played.

And played and ran.

And bounced. Yes bassets do bounce!

Then........

"Momma, my feet hurt."
So, inside we went.

Fred got his towel from the 12th Man Room to dry himself off.

Then Mr. Sunshine went and laid in the sunshine and I was able to wrap some more gifts and make some jalepeno jelly for Christmas entertaining!

On Frozen Ground

2011-12-08T15:32:00.002-05:00

Finally! So thankful it's Thursday and the ground has froze up. Which means no more muddy dog paws to wipe every five minutes and best of all all the poop is frozen when you go to clean it up! Yipee! Oh, this makes my life sooo much easier. Although now the poop is just turdcicles to Gloria. I just have to beat her to it!
Since I had a little more free time today, I actually got some Christmas baking done. The hounds didn't know what to think since they didn't get to taste any as it was all chocolate today.

Gloria sat patiently waiting at her t.v. table.

"I'm ready for my cookie, Momma."

But just couldn't understand why she couldn't have a cookie to try. Did she actually think she'd need a knife and fork? She's such a neat freak.
Freddie......well,

"Whaaaaaaaa!"

"I want a COOKIE!!"

He just threw his normal temper tantrum on the kitchen floor. He hasn't learned that it doesn't get him anywhere! Sorry Freddie!
Now I'm off to wrap, I mean try and wrap some presents while Fred watches quietly. Ya right! Time to put in my Michael Buble Christmas CD, pour a glass of wine (it's five o'clock somewhere, isn't it?) and wrap some gifts. Wish me luck!

Wordless Wednesday - Learning to Share

2011-12-07T10:15:00.001-05:00

Then again.........

Maybe not!

Please, Sir....I Want More!

2011-12-06T09:31:00.002-05:00

Yes, I have a recipe for dog biscuits. Sure Fred and Gloria think they're "okay". But what Freddie Spaghetti and Gloria go really bonkers for are my Gruyere Cheese and Bacon Mini Scones. That's what these hounds sit and wait so patiently for.

"Hurry Momma! Hurry!"

I mean, come on! Bacon.........Cheese........need I say more! This little "human" appetizer from the LCBO Food and Drink magazine is a favourite (in moderation, of course!) for both human and hound. The hounds get to split one and munch on a couple of extra pieces of bacon. That is their Holiday Treat!

"Please, Sir"
"I want more!"

Here's the link to the printable recipe and don't forget to check out the LCBO for other yummy holiday recipes!

It's That Time of The Year!

2011-12-05T10:27:00.003-05:00

That's right, and I don't mean the Holiday Season either (although it is that too, yipee!). What I'm talking about is the time of year when it's cold enough to finally break out my Hudson's Bay Company Point Blanket!

I absolutely LOVE my Hudson's Bay blanket! My wonderful husband Steve got me this for Christmas in 2009. The Hudson's Bay point blanket and coat played a huge roll in the fur trade industry in Canada with the native population from 1670 on, leading to the birth of a nation! Click the link here Origin of the Hudson's Bay Company to learn more about the history of the Hudson's Bay Company of Canada, the Fur Trade and the Point Blanket. One Hudson's Bay point blanket was used in a Canadian home for over 50 years after being salvaged from a wreck on Lake Superior and spending several years under water! This I learned from the pamphlet chalk full of information that comes with the blanket.

Now Freddie, he's not as excited about the blanket as I am. He's not allowed to go on the bed until one of the hounds sheets covers it at night.

"Why Momma?" "Why can't I go on your blanket?"

Sorry Freddie Spaghetti. No hound fur on the blanket! Besides you've got bigger things to brood about after Detroit got all those bad penalties against the Saints last night! :(

Now, Gloria. She just doesn't care!

"'Cause while Freddie's brooding, she's in the big comfy chair!

Thanks to Snoopy's Dog Blog, Luna A Dogs Life , Alfies Blog and My Brown Newfies for hosting the Monday Mischief Pet Blog Hop.

The Big Brown Comfy Chair

2011-12-02T08:53:00.003-05:00

There's been a shift in the Gilbert household.

Gloria learned how to get into the big brown comfy chair.

Shortly after she retired here to her forever home from Autumn Blaze Bassets, Freddie and her fell into a routine. It took a bit but Fred taught her how to jump up onto our bed. Once she was up there the first time she had this look of amazement on her face like "this is awesome! They really let you sleep here Freddie?" Now it's just a given.
Again, NEED A KING SIZE BED! Okay, I'll let that one go and move on.
Then there's the living room furniture Fred has always called his own, i.e. couch and chair, not the table, that would just be silly. Well, and too uncomfortable for the hounds. So, Fred has always had his comfy chair and the couch when he feels the need. These have been HIS spots since we brought him home when he was a baby (awwwwe, sniff, sniff). Gloria has been with us since April 1st of this year and being five years old and a kennel dog was quite happy laying on her cosy bed on the living room floor. Then, last Thursday, for whatever reason, she went to lay down, took one look at the comfy chair and said "Screw it!" She barreled past Fred and tried climbing in.
Oh, it wasn't pretty, watching as she struggled around the stool to get up there, then finally realized climbing on the stool first, worked. But she just didn't know what to do or how to lay when she got there!

So, she just kinda laid hanging half out of the chair. I probably would have had more pictures, but I was too busy laughing my butt off! I tried too look away 'cause I knew she was embarrassed, but it was hard not to watch and snicker.
Then it started.
The fighting over the chair.
Every time Fred got out of the chair.

Gloria got in the chair.

Now, when they come in from outside, it's a race for the big comfy chair. And of course, Gloria always wins out, (She is a little heftier) now that she has learned to run and jump into it.
Then Freddie has his little fit........

"I want the chair!" "Whaaaaaaaaaa!!"

Then he gets on the couch.

"Rats!" "Foiled again!"

So, my days now go something like this........

"Momma, Gloria's in my chair."

"Momma, Freddie's in my chair."

Then of course Fred has to get all dramatic.

"MOMMA!!" "THAT B*#CH IS IN MY CHAIR AGAIN!!"

Then the standoff.

Fred....... "I'm not moving, you move!"
Gloria..... "No, I'm not moving, you move!"

Everyday now is the same thing. Just like the movie "Groundhog Day" with Bill Murray.

The only exception is when their Dad decides he wants the chair and kicks both of them out! Then they wind up here, of course!

Ya, that Detroit Lions shirt is the only one I own. hee!hee!

Wordless Wednesday, Just a Girl and Her Hounds

2011-11-30T06:51:00.002-05:00

Oh, Deeeetroit!!

2011-11-27T07:01:00.003-05:00

So Yeah, Detroit lost to Green Bay at the Thanksgiving Day game 27-15. They actually set a franchise record for losing eight consecutive Thanksgiving Day games. Yipee! No. Not really the kind of records you want them to be setting but, oh well. There's worse things in life. Right? But lets start at the beginning. First there was the long 2 1/2 hour drive down the 401.

It was a great day for a drive. I love seeing all the windmills as we get closer to windsor.

They look so majestic; there almost mesmerizing!

Then, ya, we made it.

Such proud happy fans! I think it's funny when I catch people in the background stuffing their faces. hehe!

I love it when they bring out that huge flag. It really does make your heart go all a flutter. I mean we're Canadian and I still get all choked up!

As for the game; I have to say that watching Aaron Rodgers play was just unbelievable. That guy is awesome! No wonder Green Bay is on top with that guy as their quarterback. Nothing phases him, he's right on the money every single time.

Detroit.....well.....I don't know where Matthew was throwing half the time, but in spite of his three interceptions they still managed to get some points on the board.
This little guy just down from us couldn't take it any more.

Aaaand passed out!

Detroit had lots of injuries..........

and just killed themselves with penalties. Then that stunt Ndamukong Suh pulled in the third quarter was just bad sportsmanship. It got him ejected from the game and hurt the team. Bad Suh! Bad, bad Suh!!
Okay enough with the reprimanding.
All in all it was a great day! The halftime show with Nickelback was awesome!

The song they did was so fitting for the United Way campaign.

Then Calvin Johnson even got a touchdown with 11 seconds left in the game.

We got to see some sports celebrities.

Like Howie Long and Terry Bradshaw.

Hey, is that Jimmy Johnson?

I love that guy!

And I got to see my Nate Burleson. Life is good!

Yes, it would have been great to see the Lions beat Green Bay but I still love the Lions and I love to watch them play at Ford Field. It's a great stadium, a great experience and we always have a great time!
Did I mention it was great?
Win or lose, that's my team! As Steve said on the drive home, "It could be worse, they could be like Seattle!" Poor Stevie, the Seahawks really suck this year. Goooooo Lions!!

And yes, the hounds survived just great with their sister Brandi coming over to furrysit!
They waited in the window for a bit.

Then gave up.

Freddie was mad at me for awhile when I got home and wouldn't talk to me.

But he got over it!

Size Matters

2011-11-24T06:31:00.001-05:00

This is still on the topic of the King Size bed matter. Apparently, it's driving me bonkers. But first I'd like to say Happy Thanksgiving to all our friends in the U.S. We will be over in Detroit again today at the Thanksgiving Day Football Game. Yeah!! Let's hope Detroit can be the ones to finally break Green Bays winning streak! If the Lions can just repeat last Sundays game, it would be a shoe in. Matthew, Calvin, Nate and Kevin Smith (the big surprise) played an awesome game. So, let's see that again today.(a girl can dream can't she?) To top it all off Nickelback is the halftime show. I know there was a lot of controversy over them doing the halftime show, but we love them; and it's not just because we are Canadian either!

As for last Sunday night, Fred went BONKERS when we got home from the football game. ( And yes, the Lions won 49-35 booyah!!) Gloria just wanted to cuddle and wouldn't leave my side. But boy oh boy was Freddie in a mood. It lasted until about 10:00 p.m. when he finally crashed....in our bed of course and as you'll see by the picture below just how little room Stevie and I have when we go to bed at night.

Warning: Some viewers may find these pictures offensive or distasteful or both. But there was just no getting around it. It's the bare truth.

That's the view from Steves side of the bed. You'll notice the football game on the t.v. That's because there's always football on our t.v.

Aaaaaannnd this is my lovely view.

You'd think the least he could do is put his head up by us instead of his butt! Anywho, this is why we are desperately in need of a king size bed. Did I say desperately. I mean DESPERATELY. You just don't kick bassets out of your bed, you go bigger!

So you see, size really does matter!

Wordless Wednesday

2011-11-23T07:49:00.001-05:00

Help!

King Size bed needed!

Detroit Bound!

2011-11-20T06:44:00.007-05:00

We're off to Detroit this morning to catch the 1:00 p.m. game against the Carolina Panthers "blah". I don't know how Fred and Gloria know we're going but every time we get up and get ready to go to a Lions game they sense that we are about to leave them for the day. Then the guilt trip starts.

"Don't do it Momma." "Don't leave us again." Yes, then the promises come. Gloria says she won't eat poop anymore and Freddie, well there's just to many promises to mention as the list would go on forever!
But I am tough. I do not cave in to them pulling at my heartstrings. It is my day away from the kids....and yes I will miss them, but I will also enjoy every minute of it!

So they try to block the door.

"Come on Gloria!" "We've got to disable this door so she can't get out!"

Silly puppies!

They'll enjoy some quality time when their sister Brandi (check out her blog at YeeWittleThings) comes over to babysit them. They just don't know it yet.

As for me, I've painted my nails blue, am putting on my game face and saying my prayer. "Dear Lord, please let the Lions whomp the Panthers butt!!"

Goooooooooooo Lions!!!!

What? No Walk?

2011-11-19T11:45:00.001-05:00

Freddie was a little depressed yesterday. Oh, it was my fault. I have been so busy doing up soup for orders the last couple of days, that I haven't taken them on their usual walks. Yes, I feel bad. So, Fred kept sitting looking forlornly out the window just dreaming of when he'd go for another walk.

"I'll never see the outdoors again!" (Mr. Dramatica)

Then he couldn't take it any more put on his best "woes me" look and started bugging.

"Momma, I want to go for a walk."

"MOMMA" "I said, I want to GO FOR A WALK!"

Since he was so demanding and since I felt guilty and since he was getting ready to throw one of his famous hissy fits; I decided to take a break and at least take him and Gloria out back to run and play for a bit.

Boy did they run and play.

and run

and play. Oh dear, Freddie really looks nasty there!

They ran a little more until their tongues started to hang out, then it was time to get back in the house.

So the dogs went to sleep.....

Okay, Freddie passed out.

Gloria curled on her bed.

And I got to finish making my soup!!

Today they are so excited to be going back for their regular walk. Aren't weekends great!

Puppy, Awwwwwe!!!

2011-11-18T11:39:00.000-05:00

There's nothing cuter than a puppy especially a basset hound puppy. Becki at Autumn Blaze Bassets still has one female puppy that isn't spoken for from Daphne and Walles litter born October 29,2011. Get ready to become a puddle.
Are you ready?

Awwwwe!!

See I told you. Nothing makes your heart melt like a puppy.

This of course brings me back to June 21, 2010 when we brought little Freddie home from Autumn Blaze. Here's one of the videos I took when he was a baby.

He's always talked back!

Now, if you will excuse me I think I'll go get a tissue and cuddle my baby!