Monday Mischief – Daisy Has Radar!

I think Daisy might have a telepathic connection to anything that drops on the floor. Even if she wasn’t around when it fell and hasn’t been anywhere near that room at all, she just knows.

Who, me? Innocent little me??

This morning I knocked an emery board onto the bathroom floor. I couldn’t pick it up right away because my hands were wet and soapy, but as is usual with me lately, by the time I finished washing and drying, I’d forgotten all about the dropped emery board.

And in all fairness [aka excuse], it fell on a beige area rug with its beige side up, so it didn’t catch my eye. Honest. Really.

Keep in mind that Daisy was nowhere in the area; she wasn’t even at that end of the house. And it didn’t make a sound when it fell on the rug.

Later, after breakfast, Daisy suddenly and deftly trotted past me to the opposite end of the house. I knew that gait – she was up to something. So I waited. I gave her a minute to locate her target so I could catch her in the act.

There she stood in the bedroom, the nail file sticking out of her mouth, angled like a cigarette between the lips of a seasoned smoker.

She just stood there, frozen. Staring at me.

Suddenly she started to bolt for the safety of the bed – under the bed, that is.

“Drop it!” I yelled.

And she did! I was shocked! She stopped in her tracks, looked at me, and let the thing drop to the floor. I cracked up!

It was too late to get my camera for a picture, so instead I took a picture of the aftermath:

I got some good licks in!

We’re part of the Monday Mischief blog hop!

Major Blogspot/Blogger Problem! Anyone Else?

Has anyone else been having trouble posting comments on Blogspot/Blogger lately?  I haven’t been able to post a comment on anyone’s Blogspot blog in a week! It either refuses to give me the verification code or, on the rare occasion that I’m lucky enough to see it, it keeps telling me that the letters I’m typing are wrong….which they’re not. DD tried it unsuccessfully too. I’ve tried it on Chrome, IE, and Firefox – none work. Very frustrating!

So now I’m not able to post on any of my Blogspot buddies’ posts. I did notice yesterday that one person only had comments from other Blogspot people, so I’m wondering if anyone else who doesn’t have a Blogspot/Blogger account is having the same problem or knows if there’s a fix.

If any of my Blogspot/Blogger buddies read this, please know I’m not ignoring you! I’ve been reading your posts but just can’t comment! 😦

All this frustration is exhausting....

 

The Little Birdie Who Thought He Could

We finally had our first winter snow this past weekend! We were so thrilled, even though it was only about 3 inches deep.

Of course, it was rained away two days later. 😦 But while it was here, we LOVED it!

After a snow, our Bird Diner is always busy, both at the feeder itself and underneath, where messy pickers fling seeds.

All plumped up for winter!

And there’s just something about the bland atmosphere that makes bird colors POP

One little chickadee thought he could pay us a visit. I guess he needs to see a Bird Optometrist for a pair of tiny glasses, because he flew into our sliding glass door HARD, leaving behind a tiny little feather and knocking himself into a stupor:

He sat like that for more than 15 minutes, beak open, not moving a muscle. I started wondering if he’d killed himself and frozen in place!

Wow! That was some landing!

He was near the house, where it’s a little bit more protected from predators like hawks, but there are a couple of huge cats that roam the neighborhood, and they’d just love to happen upon a stunned bird. So Daisy and I kept watch just in case.

Are you okay, little one?

Fortunately they didn’t come around, and this little guy finally started moving his head in tiny little increments, as if he was testing to see if he could manage it.

Half an hour later, he was turning his head normally and he moved really close to the house until he was ready to fly away. A happy ending!

🙂     😀     🙂

Monday Mischief – Faker!

My oh my, did Daisy ever cry wolf this weekend! She’s taking mischief-making to a whole new level!

Sunday wasn’t only bath day for our Miss Daisy, it was a full grooming day.  That means that after her bath, I clip her nails, trim the hair on her face, legs, and paws (including around the pads), and give that cute little derriere of hers a buzz cut to keep unmentionable stinkies from clinging to her. It takes two of us to get the clipping and trimming done – DH to hold her in a comforting yet firm way, and me to do the dirty work.

Needless to say, Daisy hates full-on grooming days.

You're not coming toward me with that clipper....are you?

We give her treats to help get her through these non-invasive, non-painful, simple little procedures. The way Daisy acts, you’d think we were performing surgery without an anesthetic.

But this weekend she raised the stakes. My least favorite part of grooming her is clipping her nails. Only once did I draw blood from one of the black nails, and she didn’t even yipe. We stopped the bleeding quickly by dipping her nail in regular ol’ flour; the vet said we could also use baking soda or a styptic pencil. I probably only slightly nicked the edge of the quick since she didn’t feel it, but I was shaking for an hour!

That was months ago. Yesterday, after trimming the hair on both front paws/legs and clipping the nails, we moved on to her back legs, which are much easier to do. As soon as I clipped the second nail, she let out an ear-piercing yipe. Scared the living daylights out of me! I was so upset – how could I have done this again, and on a transparent white nail, yet?

I started running to get the flour again when DH called out, “There’s nothing wrong with her!”

In disbelief, I went back and checked her nail myself – I hadn’t cut anywhere near the quick! She wasn’t bleeding, and there was still white nail extending beyond the pink quick.

“FAKER!” I cried at her. “The dog who cried wolf!!”

Relieved but still shaking a bit, I took hold of the next nail with DH’s prompting. Guess what happened? She yiped before I  even brought the clipper anywhere near her foot!!

“Oh no you don’t!” I scolded her, staring straight into those big brown eyes, “You’re a faker! No more! You stop faking!”

I think she understood, because I cut the rest of her nails without even so much as a whimper. 🙂

So, to add to Snoopy’s Rules of Mischief  here’s our Rule No. 8 – if twisting, pulling, yanking, groaning, and puppy-mumbling won’t stop them from clipping your nails, resort to yiping. Works every time. (Or at least momentarily!)

This is NOT my best look!!

We’re part of the Monday Mischief blog hop!

One Lovely Blog Award

I can’t tell you how happy Scriptor Obscura made us this weekend when we (uncharacteristically) went online and discovered that Scriptor honored us with the One Lovely Blog Award!

Thanks so much, Scriptor! If you haven’t visited her site, take a moment and have a look – the fresh perspective of her creative writing and poetry is definitely worth your time. 🙂

I love this award because its purpose is simply to recognize the efforts of fellow bloggers and to let them know that their work is appreciated. Well, I can truly say I appreciate every single blogging buddy we’ve come to know over the past year and a half since we’ve been on WP. Your comments brighten each day. 🙂

There’s no limit to how many people this award can be passed on to. So, in no particular order (we love and value you all!), I’d like to pass this award on to those who take the time to read and comment regularly – we LOVE your visits and comments!! 😀

Basset Momma

Tiffy’s World

Snoopy’s Dog Blog

Yorkie Tails

Chancy the Gardner

Bunk Blog

Roxy the Traveling Dog

Live, Bark, Love

2 Brown Dawgs

Vanilla Bean

Words With Purpose

Passionate About Pets & People

Happy Bark Days

Kame & Kroten Blog

We also sincerely appreciate all our followers who don’t have time to comment and those who comment regularly but don’t bother with awards (like Granny1947 and The Hook) – if any of you would like this award, feel free to take it! We’d have named you, but we don’t know who you are…. 😉

Happy day to everyone!

Monday Mischief – Daisy On High

Look where I found Crazy Daisy last week!

Uh ohhh.....they caught me.....

Yup, she’s perched on top of the sofa. Not on the seat cushions – on the sofa back. She’s balanced between the hard frame and the removable cushions – not an easy task.

Why, you may ask, would Daisy choose to leap up there and risk breaking her leg rather than enjoy the soft cushions, blankets, and multiple pillows below her? Answer: The Lure Of The Pillow.

The one pillow that was separated from the rest. The small pillow was inadvertently left on top of the back cushion. To Daisy, this is irresistible – there must be something special about that pillow if it gets the highest ground.

If I look away and act nonchalant, maybe they won't notice me....

If it was safe for Daisy up there, we wouldn’t mind. But there’s just enough space between the sofa and the wall that she could easily get stuck and break a leg or even a hip; plus the cushions aren’t attached to the sofa, so this balancing act she’s doing is pretty risky.

Pushing the sofa back against the wall isn’t really an option for a number of reasons, so we’ll just have to remember never to leave a pillow up there again.

You have to take special precautions when you have such a mischievous little pup! 😀

You’ve stumbled onto the Monday Mischief blog hop! Grab the button below and tell your mischievous pet’s story! 🙂

Daisy’s Christmas Day Adventure

Our Christmas trip to Florida was Daisy’s first experience living in a home other than her own. She spent two solid days doing nothing but sniffing around the edges of every room like a bloodhound on the scent of its target.

She explored every piece of furniture, every pebble on the chattahoochee patio, and every fiber of carpet in every room.  What a busy girl! She usually naps during the day, but not one nap was had. By night time, she was ready for bed!

On Christmas day, Daisy “helped” us open our presents; in fact, she became one:

Now I'm as dressed up as all the presents!

After we all opened our gifts, our traditional “wrapping fight” spontaneously ignited – we ball up the wrapping paper and tissue paper and throw it at each other. It probably sounds silly, but it’s a multi-generational high-speed game of paper dodge ball while we’re all still sitting around the Christmas tree. 🙂

This year, though, it was Daisy who was bombarded with paper balls, and she LOVED it! She chased all the paper balls, jumped up to catch them, and loved being the center of attention. The aftermath was one pooped pup who fell fast asleep amid the wreckage:

That was one wild game! I can't wait 'til next Christmas!

Monday Mischief Makers – We’re Famous!

Hey fellow Mischief Makers, guess what? Cracker Barrel has come out with a whole line of toys and ornaments in our honor:

Can you believe this?! Toys and ornaments made just for us Mischief Makers!

We discovered a whole line of toys, plushies, and ornaments being sold at Cracker Barrel exclusively in honor of cat and dog Mischief Makers – how cool is that?! We should each put one on our Christmas trees! 😀

Finally! Someone out there recognizes our Mischievous talents!

Happy Monday Mischief everyone! Grab the button below and join the blog hop! 🙂

Houdini Havachon!

Daisy’s travel adventure continues….

During our long car ride south, we discovered another side to Daisy – she’s the Houdini of Havachons!

There we were, innocently riding along, music playing, DD reading in the back seat, when suddenly we hear DD cry out, “Daisy! How did you get over here?!”

Daisy had quietly and imperceptibly escaped from not one, but BOTH of her harnesses! We test the fit of her regular harness and her car harness every time we put them on her – they were snug when we put her in the car. Really. They were. (This dog can make us doubt ourselves sometimes!)

DD had suddenly felt a little paw poking her leg, asking for permission to snuggle on her lap. She looked up and there was Daisy, standing next to her “naked” –  no harness on her at all!

We couldn’t figure out how she did it. The next day, she did it again. But the third time, DD caught her in action. Daisy quietly pulled her shoulders in tight, making herself as narrow as possible, then slowly started pulling one leg backward, slipping it through the harness opening.

That’s exactly the kind of move Houdini used!

Suddenly we heard a loud “NOOOO!” from the back seat; fortunately I had my camera on my lap and saw Daisy caught in the act with that telltale “deer in the headlights” expression – you can see her front leg has been moved back a few inches and her shoulder was partly behind the harnesses:

Foiled! Caught in the act!

Once DD knew Daisy’s trick, she kept one eye on Daisy all the time and stopped her before she got too far into her new escape routine. I guess we’ll always have to make sure someone is sitting in the back seat with Daisy – there’s no telling what new moves she’ll come up with! 😉

Travelin’ Havachon!

So….guess where we went for Christmas? I’ll give you three hints:

Where else would you see a gorgeous blue heron in a busy parking lot? You guessed it – Florida!

We definitely prefer frosty noses, building snowmen, and hot cocoa for Christmas, but we made a last minute decision to join the family down south for Christmas this year. So instead we enjoyed warm, sunny weather, flowers in bloom, and ice cold fruity Christmas punch. 🙂

The only annoying thing was that we kept singing that old Bing Crosby song about Christmas with palm trees in Hawaii…. 😛

But the best part was that little Miss Daisy had her first major travel adventure – a 2400 mile (round trip) car trip!

Lots of time to catch up on my naps!

I’m happy to say that Daisy did extremely well and surprised us with her instinctive travel smarts. Up until now, we’ve only driven 1.5 hours with her, so this was a HUGE difference! It’s a 22+ hour drive, but we stayed overnight along the way. We drove for 3-4 hours at a time, then stopped to take Daisy out. Sometimes, in unfamiliar surroundings, Daisy will just “go” when the spirit moves her (like in the middle of sidewalks! Yikes!), so we were concerned about the car and the hotel room.

Our concerns were unfounded. 😀  She was great in the car and waited for us to take her out to “unload”.

When we first started our drive, she whined quietly for a few minutes, but then settled in comfortably.

zzzzzzzzzzzzz

After our first stop, she whined a bit longer, and we realized that she’s used to cuddling if someone else is on the sofa with her. Well, DD was in the back seat with her – probably just a moving sofa to Daisy! – but she had the armrest down so she could put her water in the holder and her books in the compartment. We didn’t realize this was distressing Daisy to some degree, as she was being cut off from one of her favorite cuddlers.

Her whines got a little louder when DD piled blankets and a pillow on top of the armrest so she could snooze….with that wall of fleece between them, Daisy couldn’t see DD, and she really didn’t like that. She kept staring at me in the rear view mirror!

DD realized that when she wasn’t napping, she could move Daisy to the center of the seat and attach the center seat belt to Daisy’s car harness; that way Daisy could cuddle up next to her or even lie on DD’s lap. This created one happy little Havachon!

Snuggled up next to DD - NOW I'm a super happy passenger!

It was a bit of an adventure for us to travel with a dog as well. We’ve never done that before, since our previous dogs were large, so we read up on how to travel with a dog, booked pet-friendly hotels, and kind of felt our way along.

The only thing we didn’t like was that we had to eat in shifts. DD and I would eat in our favorite road restaurant:

Down home cookin' and a country store all in one!

….and then bring food out for DH, who stayed outside with Daisy and then ate in the car. I felt bad for my poor hubby, but he didn’t mind. First of all, we were driving in warm southern climates. Second, Cracker Barrel restaurants all have plenty of green grass to walk dogs and they have a covered porch filled with porch rockers where he could sit with Daisy on his lap. She was in her glory! And we met so many new people because of Daisy – everyone would come over to pet her and ask what kind of dog she was (most people thought she was a poodle!), which led to some long conversations. It was so much fun!

We brought Daisy’s wee-wee pads into the hotel room just in case, which turned out to be a good idea. Instead of marking the hotel carpet, she marked her wee-wee pad instead! Whew! 😉

We feel so much freer knowing that we can travel long distances easily with Daisy. It seems to me that she’ll go along with almost anything as long as we’re all together! 😀