Monday Mischief – An Act of Rebellion

Don’t let her sweetness and cute face fool you – when push comes to shove, Daisy can rebel like a 16 year old teenager.

But I'm so innocent!

We’re getting ready to have our kitchen redone.

The wallpaper has been stripped.

We’re in the process of selecting a cabinet maker (an exhausting task). And then a granite fabricator.

Then DH will paint the walls (I have no clue what color to choose) and tile the backsplash (again, a big blank so far). This is a full-blown p-r-o-j-e-c-t that will take many months of Saturdays.

We got the first estimate a few weeks ago. The company rep came out to the house to measure and give his pitch. Which was laughable, by the way – he’s coming in over $7,000 ABOVE everyone else for lesser-grade materials. :<O

He was here for FOUR HOURS. Daisy absolutely refused to behave, so we had to put her in our bedroom and close the door. I don’t like doing that, but we had no choice. At least it’s a big room and we put all her toys, blankets, and water in there.

After some initial complaints, she finally realized her high-pitched “you-can’t-do-this-to-me” yapping and whining wasn’t getting her anywhere and she quieted down.

So the guy finally left around 5:00 – without, I might add, a signed contract. Nor did he get a call back. But his quote sure is making all the other cabinet makers sound great. And they’re offering us way more for the money.

Anyway, as soon as DH closed the front door behind Mr. Big Bucks, I opened the bedroom door and Daisy tore out, once again underscoring her nickname of The Blur. She sniffed for half an hour – every step the guy had taken, every place he’d stood. It really brought out her Inner Hound.

Everything seemed to go back to normal after that….until….

I walked through the kitchen, through the dining room, down the hall….back up the hall, back through the dining room….and then I saw IT….

Daisy had planted a Poop Bomb right smack in the middle of the doorway between the dining room and kitchen. (I’ll spare you the photo!) She set a trap for me, the little dickens. I think this was her retaliation for being closed in the bedroom for so long.

Oh, so you found my little surprise, did you? Maybe you'll think twice before removing me from all the action!

Next thing you know she’ll be shopping for her clothes at Hot Topic with all the other rebellious teens.

We’re part of the Monday Mischief Blog Hop! Check it out and meet some new pet pals!

Dogs, Guinea Pigs, Turtles – What’s In A Name?

Some might say “nothing”. A rose by any other name….etc.

I’m not so sure though. Every time you hear of a child named Damien, everyone cringes and jokes that the name has carved out his destiny. Ridiculous – absolutely, no question.

Yet it seems different when it comes to the pets we’ve had. All of our pets were named as babies, before their personalities really emerged. And each one seemed to reflect their name.

A few examples, for your consideration.

We got two little red-eared slider turtles at the same time. DD, who was an English Literature major at the time, has a flair for the dramatic when naming pets. The first name she chose for one turtle was Diamedes. Sounds to me like an ancient warrior….and he was. He was king of the tank. He dominated the basking island. When we cleaned the tank, we’d put him in a large open box so he wouldn’t get lost – he zipped around that box more like the hare than the turtle, and he’d climb up the sides using those long, sharp claws like grappling hooks. When he’d fall, he’d flip back over and do it again and again and again until he finally made it over the top. Diamedes was one determined little warrior.

Can't find our photos right now, so here's a little red-eared slider via Wikipedia.

The other turtle was named Wilbur – we still can’t figure out why DD chose such a pedestrian name when she always leans toward Shakespearean names and names that sound like they came out of classic novels or pre-18th century English courts. But anyway, Wilbur it was. And he was a Wilbur in contrast to tough Diamedes – he let Diamedes literally climb all over him – if Wilbur was on the basking island first, Diamedes would just climb on top of Wilbur like a turtle totem pole. If there was one dried shrimp between them, he let Diamedes have it. We had to feed him separately sometimes just to make sure he ate!

Then we had guinea pigs. One was named Cinnamon, a mild spice. Cinnamon was quiet and mild. If you sat on a chair with her in your lap, Cinnamon would scurry up your sleeve and hide in there or climb up your arm and hide behind your neck, under your hair. And she’d stay there for as long as you’d let her. Sweet little mild Cinnamon.

Then there was Bessie. Bossy Bessie. Bessie pulled no punches. We couldn’t put her in the same cage as Cinnamon because she’d attack and dominate immediately. Bessie was loud and tough. She’d screech at Cinnamon, who was minding her own business in her own cage. If Bessie didn’t want to be picked up, she’d bite us. When she was ready to get off our laps, she’d bite us. Bossy Bessie. Ya gotta respect a critter who only weighs ounces but stands up and bullies 100+ pound humans!

Image via Wikipedia

Not true to her name was Mugsie, but that’s because she had the wrong name. “Mugsie” sounds like it belongs to a boxer type, but she was our rescue Shepherd-Husky-Collie mix, the first dog DH and I got when we moved into our house. She was gentle, beautiful, sweet, and lackadaisical; her eyes were outlined in black that looked like Cleopatra’s eye liner. She adjusted to situations easily and liked everyone (except one neighbor, and I agreed with her! LOL) I wanted to name her Kima (pronounced Keema) or some other exotic sounding name, but DH, who never had a dog before, had his heart set on Mugsie for some reason. So Mugsie it was. But she was Kima at heart.

Mugsie, the first pet of our married life.

And now there’s Daisy. Named before her personality formed, while she was still a frightened little furball hiding under the coffee table. We picked the name because of a line Meg Ryan said in “You’ve Got Mail”, when Tom Hanks brings her a bouquet of daisies and Meg Ryan says that she thinks daisies are the happiest flowers.

Daisies, our pup's namesake.

We think they’re really pretty too, and they always make us smile. So Daisy it was. And now that frightened little furball is happy, sweet, pretty, and always makes us smile. She’s the most expressively loving pet we’ve ever had.

Daisy, our sweet baby.

Daisy Turns TWO Today!! :D

Yup, today’s Daisy’s second birthday!! WOOHOOOO!

She sure has come a long way from that little tiny frightened furball we brought home almost two years ago — 2.6 months old and 2.6 pounds….most of which was hair!

Daisy, 5 months old. Just piles of hair and a sweet little face.

She barely moved around that first day. She stayed underneath the coffee table or slept on my foot…that is, when we weren’t cuddling her….who could resist that tiny little face buried in all that crazy hair!!

Daisy's first day home. She constantly slept on my foot!

Happy Birthday sweet little Daisy! You bring happiness, love, and laughter to us every single day!

YUM!! Birthday cookies!! (What a little character she is!)

Monday Mischief Backfire – Sometimes Silliness Just Doesn’t Pay

Daisy loves to race around the house like the silly little nut she is, especially if someone’s trying to catch her to give her a bath or put her harness on. Or sometimes for no reason at all.

She goes so fast that it looks like her back legs want to pass her front legs. I don’t think there’s even a camera speed that can stop that action!

Daisy racing in the snow last year. One of our friends has nicknamed her "The Blur".

The other day Daisy was curled up on my lap, and I was stroking her lightly. Very lightly. When my fingers ran over a spot on her left side, she made a small sound of complaint, and her entire side pulled in.

I’ve never seen her do that before. I thought maybe I’d hit a ticklish spot and it annoyed her. So I did it again just to see if it was a one-off. Nope. I did it a third time just to be sure. Each time, the same result. Anywhere else was fine, but that one spot bothered her.

Broken rib? But how could that have possibly happened?

Maybe it's weird, twisted sleeping positions like this that cause problems - ya think, Miss Daisy??

I mentioned it to DD, who solved the mystery.

Silly little Daisy had been racing around and around the coffee table in the family room when she cut the corner a little too tight one time and hit her side on the corner of a footstool we keep tucked underneath. DD said Daisy stopped in her tracks, looking a bit stunned, seemed to think about it for a second, then walked away.

I used to fit under here and zip around the corners with no problem....did the table shrink??

Which just goes to prove – sometimes puppy mischief can backfire!

Come join us in the Monday Mischief blog hop and meet lots of other new pet friends!

Monday Mischief – Lunatic Squirrel!

Is it the unseasonably warm weather that’s driven this squirrel crazy?? Is he climbing fruitlessly trying to find cooler weather for his thick winter coat? There’s no “nut rainbow” at the top of the screen outside our sliding door, so what are you looking for, Mr. Squirrel?

I was on the phone when I saw and heard this nutty visitor, so I hurriedly took less-than-great pictures with one hand.

What are you doing at the top of the screen, silly squirrel?

Didn’t find what you were looking for, eh?

Well that was a fruitless endeavor!

And where was Daisy, our Great Protector, during all this? Snuggled up on Big Blue, right in front of the screen and not even noticing what was going on right over her head!

I'm too comfy on Big Blue to watch for squirrels!

We’re part of the Monday Mischief Blog Hop! Join in and see what mischief other animals are up to!

But They Promised Us SNOW!!

What a frustrating winter! Yesterday they promised us snow, so we happily waited for this:

But instead, we had gray skies and this:

Whoever heard of daffodils blooming in FEBRUARY – in the northeast! And look at the height of the full-sized daffodil stalks behind the minis – they should only just be breaking through the ground!

We love winter, we love snow. We really missed them this year. All we got was this little 1-2 inch tease in early January that melted in two days:

A small smattering of snow

But then, at the end of the day, this unseasonably warm weather graces us with this stunningly rich treasure, and all’s right with the world again:

Monday Mischief – Using Her Havachon Wiles

It’s an unspoken Havachon Rule in our house that all ribbons are Daisy’s turf. Daisy will charm you, doe-eye you, and pour on the sweetness until you go into diabetic shock…..IF you’re wearing something with a long ribbon on it.

Once you succumb to her sweetness, which everyone does at some point, she’ll climb on your lap using those big eyes to their best advantage, tiny ears drooping  to emphasize her cuteness. “Awww,” you inevitably say, “this is so sweet!”

She’s got you right where she wants you. All cuted-out and helpless.

And that’s when she makes her move.

She’s used her Havachon wiles to gain access to your ribbon. The telltale sign? A loud open-mouthed, lip-smacking chewing sound and a very content looking puppy.

It's mine....all mine....

This is such a deep pleasure for Daisy that she actually goes into a “zone”, with an expression on her face that tells us she’s miles away, thoroughly and completely enjoying her ribbon addiction.

::slurp chew chomp munch::

Most of DD’s pajama bottoms have draw-string ribbons running through the top, and that’s Daisy’s Number One Target. She could sit on DD’s lap for hours if we let her, just pulling and chewing away on those ribbons.

The weirdest thing is — she actually ties knots in them somehow. Tight knots that can’t be undone. (Could she be a reincarnated super-flirt who used to tie knots in cherry stems with her tongue??)

Who'd believe these used to be flowing pink ribbons?!

We’re part of the Monday Mischief Blog Hop!

Meet Big Blue – And We’re Not Talking Football!

Who – or what – is Big Blue? Here, let me introduce you:

Mommy....can I have Big Blue for my own?

Big Blue is Daisy’s new best buddy. When DD was younger, Big Blue was her reading pillow – she’d prop him up in her bed and read in soft luxury.

DD hasn’t used Big Blue in years, so when she was having a clear-out in her room, Big Blue was put on the floor along with a bunch of other things to be donated. A little while later, she saw Daisy snuggled up all comfy and content on Big Blue. So she left him on the floor in her room, and any time we’d go into that area of the house, Daisy would happily run into DD’s room and snuggle up on Big Blue.

Ahhhhhhhh.....cozy....

We didn’t have the heart to donate him – he’d found a new life with our little girl! So now Big Blue sits proudly in front of our sliding glass door (aka Daisy’s Window On The World), where Daisy can snuggle up in warm comfort as she watches the Bird and Squirrel Show outside.

Now I can watch the world in comfort!

Or, she just snoozes away….

zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

I love it when old things find a new life!

Monday Mischief: The Face – And Place – Of Trouble

Escape. It’s all about the escape.

I think one of the first things our pups do when we bring them home is — scope out each room for good “you-can’t-catch-me” places. Why? Because they know they’re going to be mischievous, and they need a good escape plan.

One of Daisy’s favorite spots has always been under the bed, but over the past few months, she’s picked a new one – underneath the dining room table.

Heeheehee! Catch me if you can!

It’s now her “go-to” hiding place if she senses an impending bath.

Haha! Just try to reach me through all these legs!

Maybe she forgot those chairs are movable??

We’re part of the Monday Mischief Blog Hop!

Daisy Picks Up A Hitchhiker

While we were in FL for Christmas, we discovered something brand new – and it wasn’t fun.

After taking Daisy out for walks, we’d find loads of nasty little green pods stuck in her fur. And I mean STUCK – they had little spikey things sticking off them that caused the pods to latch onto her fur so strongly that we had to cut the fur off. We couldn’t pull them out no matter how we tried.

We found them everywhere – on her legs, paws, tail, stomach….even under her neck and between her pads!

They looked something like this photo, but surprisingly (and happily!) those nasty looking spines were flexible and didn’t hurt Daisy at all.

My family in FL has St. Augustine grass, and these seed pods apparently are weeds that come up in the cooler months. They call them “hitchhikers” because they grab onto socks, pants, and anything else they can attach themselves to.

We still don’t know exactly what kinds of weeds they are, but they could be sandspur, which could hurt if it attached to the skin. Fortunately, Daisy’s fur is SO thick and curly that even these nasties couldn’t get near her skin – a great natural defense system! But she wasn’t too fond of sitting still while we searched her fur and cut them out after every outing.

So just a heads-up to all my traveling blog buddies out there – new areas could host new problems for our outdoor pups, so just check them over after going outside. You never know what might be lurking!

Good grief, what WERE those crazy things?!