Oh, HOUSEkeepers!

Big Guy and Big Lady got this wonderful sign from friends Lesley and Iain in England for a Christmas present. Now, we love our Big Guy and Big Lady, but we suppose this is probably quite true.... and somehow we knew this, deep in our hearts, that they work for US!? :_) Anyhow, we are very thankful for this nice gift which is now displayed in the living room. We couldn't help but notice that Lesley got a sign with a BLACK dog on it resembling me!

Happy Christmas to Our Friends Around the World!

Happy Christmas, one and all! Patrick and I are sooooo glad that the ice storm is over, and our first snowstorm is over, and Big Guy and Big Lady are home safe with us and celebrating Christmas! We wish for peace in the world, and dog treats for everyone!

Cardinals in the Ice

Our recent ice storm brought out all the birds and Big Lady and Big Guy worked very hard to make sure that all our friends in the garden had enough food and water to survive the ice.

Here are photos of Daddy Cardinal, and Mama Cardinal in our Bradford Pear trees.

Daddy Cardinal often likes to hide behind the Bradford Pears while he is waiting for his turn at the safflower seed, but he's sort of hard to miss, we think you'll agree.


All in all, it was a busy day at the backyard!

Snow and Ice

Snow and Ice. Hmmm. So, it's fun to go skating off the deck and chase Patrick around the yard like we're playing ice hockey, but, but, it's COLD!

Spent lots of time today sitting inside watching all the birds come to the feeder. Poor things! At least the Cooper Hawk was no where to be seen.

Here are my favorites!

A yellow finch, a red cardinal,



and me at the window watching juncos.



Patrick and I are eager for spring. Maybe we could just skip Christmas and go right to July. The storms were so bad last night we had thunder and lightning with all the sleet and ice. Patrick thought maybe there would be tornados, but I told him tornadoes have difficulty spinning when its 27F out and sleet is pouring out of the sky.

Winter Visitors To Our Yard

It may not be winter according to the calendar Big Lady keeps on the wall, but according to the back yard, it is winter. We had a dusting of snow on Friday after everyone stuffed themselves with Turkey on Thanksgiving. It's been cold. Last night it rained and it was miserable.

Today the weather cleared this afternoon, and look who came to visit us! This must mean a) he likes the food, or b) he saw our friends the mice in the backyard among the fallen leaves. It was a good thing that I was inside the house snug and warm when Big Lady saw him on the fence and took photos from inside. Otherwise I would have 'woofed at him and told him this is our yard :_)

The Sun Goes Down Early Now

The sun goes down early now, and over a month has passed. I told Patrick it was his turn to do the blog, but he sighed and settled into the blue couch, so I guess it's up to me.

Big Lady was gone two days this week, well, for lunch at least. It made for very long days. We almost didn't see the sun outside at all except when she came home. She did bring home this great picture of a sunset which she took outside Pleasanton on her way home Saturday night.

Ah, well. It gets dark quickly now. Big Lady worked out in the yard this morning, but now when she comes home from work it is so dark you can't see me in the yard. Patrick does have a white tip on his tail and is often spotted from a distance, but I am Stealth. Did I tell you they call me that sometimes?

So, it is good to have Big Lady home again and we hope Big Guy will be home this weekend. In the meanwhile, Patrick and I will settle in on the sofa and see what's on the telly.

New Visitors in the Garden

Whoa! You probably think Patrick and I have taken September off! But oh, no, we've been helping Big Lady in the garden!

For starters, we have new visitors who have been alternating between eating the Rue and the Parsley. These are cat-r-pillars, says Big Lady. They must travel the length of the deck to get from plant to plant because the Rue is on the opposite side from the Parsley.


Then, Big Lady is still growing peppers. They're not the hot kind, and they are not as big as the ones in August, but they are still growing. Occasionally one breaks off and Patrick and I play ball with it, except we really don't like the taste of them unless they are cooked with chili or eggs.




Of course, the roses are still in bloom, some of Big Guy's favorites are the tall bush that reaches to the guttering of the house, the BIG RUGOSA!

But all in all, it has been a busy fall. Patrick has made me promise to be more dilly-gent in posting regularly!

Hummmmm!

Ah, this one's a little better. We have three hummingbirds back on the feeder. This one was earlier today. The focus button on the camera seemed to work fine on this one. These are pretty birds. I am glad that they visit JJ's garden frequently. Big Lady and Patrick like them too, although sometimes Patrick forgets that they are not bumblebees and tries to leap up in the air after them. They are very dainty. And not nearly as messy as the sparrows.

I love my backyard. I think Big Lady and Big Guy love it too.

Leave it aloooooooooooooone!

Big Lady is funny. She says the darndest things. Tonight, we were out filling up the bird feeders and I was poking around in the flowers, and out popped toadie up on the wall of the house by the deck. Well, we're not sure if it's a toadie configured to look like a rattlesnake, or a frog wearing a camoflage fatigues. His paws would suggest frog. I think Big Lady must never have disected frogs in high school biology. My guess is a frog, but he has diamond brown markings. What do you think? Toadie? or Froggie? Either way, Big Lady was in a shriek. She told us to leave it alone because she wanted it to hang around and eat mosquitoes. Well, we have enough of those, so it should get fat and grow up pretty quick. She told Patrick and I later that Uncle Rusty, who has gone on to the Rainbow Bridge, was once stung in the eye by a toad, so we were admonished quickly to leave it alone and go in the house. We notice that she snuck back out with the camera. Too bad she's not too good with that focus button yet on the new camera. !

Sunny Bunny!

Perhaps Bunny some day will have his own blog, as Patrick and I are keenly convinced he is watching us. Or perhaps he is just happy to sit in the shade of the rose garden and munch on birdseed.

Either way, it is hot. Patrick and I are ready for winter. We already have our winter coats. Bunny looks like he has one as well. The birds have feathers, Big Lady and Big Guy have skins and hair, too.

Big Guy reported that the deck registered 107F in the sun today. We had hot paws, but Big Guy put some ice cubes in our water cooler and so we had lots of cold water to drink. Big Lady observed that we were drooling and dribbling water clear across the dining room floor, but I told her this is how we keep our paws cool on the floor... first we drink, then we dribble, then we pad across the dribble to keep our pads moist. :_) Clever, huh?

Anyhow, Bunny was around today. Notice that Big Lady has a better camera these days, so the detail is a little better :_)

Emma comes to the Garage Sale

So that's what this has been about. They have been collecting stuff in boxes for ages. Today they spent about 5 hours sitting in the garage in the blazing heat while a lot of strange humans came round and offered to take some bits away. We don't mind too much, we could stay inside with the air conditioning and the ceiling fans. We also got some Pizza crusts too.

I saw Emma the little terrier from next door. She's a nice dog and treats her human pretty well. Big Lady and Big Guy obviously talked to her because they smelled of small terrier when they came back inside. Emma and I talked briefly over the fence. I tried to call her through the window but I'm not sure if she heard me.

Happy Fourth!

Happy Fourth of July to all my fellow American canines. Good wishes to all dogs and dog lovers round the world. We've had a pretty good day although Big Guy had to stay in Kansas City because the roads south were flooded. I know it's been pretty wet down here in the last few days.

There were a lot of firecrackers, although not as many as last year. Patrick doesn't like loud noises so sometimes I have to go and tell people off when they scare him.

Groomed

This wasn't good. Big Lady told Big Guy she found a large grey marble on the floor of the bathroom. It was a tick, and it had fallen off me when I went to see her. Eew! Ick!

The good news was I got a good brushing today. The bad news is that I also got some of my fur trimmed round my legs. I suppose they need to but I liked the flowing look - it was a bit like an Irish Setter except darker. Big Guy said it looked pretty good. I've looked up close and it looks OK - not that there's much I can do about it right now.

Storms in SE Kansas

It's been a stormy week. This has some benefits. Paddy gets worried by thunder and loud noises and so wants to hide somewhere in the master bedroom when it happens. Where he usually wants to hide is on the master bed! If Big Guy is up in Kansas City we get to use his side of the bed. If he's back down here, then things get a little tight because, let me tell you, humans take up a lot of room. I've been told I'm pretty good because I just jump on the bed to say good night, give them a cuddle (they react differently when I lay my head in the pillow) and then go and lie on the floor at the foot of the bed.

Patrick, on the other hand, just goes up onto the bed and falls asleep. This would be fine but he insists on sleeping with is nose pointing towards their feet. This means that sometimes they get woken up by a tail, (or worse still a hind paw) in their faces in the middle of the night. They get all cranky and then *I* get chucked out along with Paddy. Then it thunders again and the status quo is restored.

It's thundered a few times this week. It's rained a lot too, so the Dog Towels have been coming out. I don't mind the Dog Towel because I can't stand getting very wet. I don't look good when I'm wet, unlike Mr.50% Labrador who looks like a commercial for Ducks Unlimited.

Gathering of small mammals at the bird feeder

JUST LOOK AT THIS

We didn't get all three bunnies together but we did see a sight that few dogs could resist. Check this out.

You may have noticed that there's not a bird in sight just at the moment - Which may be because of the two little mammals outside in the garden......

 

 

 

...or the two big mammals sitting by the window!!

I think we were pretty well controlled. Big Lady is afraid that we're going to go through the window sometime. Did I tell you this is the window that used to have venetian blinds on it? :-)

More pictures at the feeder

It was a pretty good weekend. Big Guy came to visit. We had our Dog Vitamins and Heartworm tablets. We saw several critters in the garden and then we had to go inside while Big Guy got the Lawn Mower out on Saturday.

We had more strange weather on Sunday - so we managed to have another mass cuddle on the bed although before Big Guy left - I think that's because there was a Tornado Warning for the County where we live again.

Here are some pictures we got of some of the latest visitors to the gardenover the last few days. You may notice that my technique with the digital camera is getting much better!

Big Lady bought some squirrel baffles to try and stop the squirrels eating the bird seed. Someone should have mentioned the bird-bath, which the squirrel climbed onto and then jumped over.

A Brown Thrasher, a Blue Jay and a Blackbird have been visiting the feeder

Scary Weather!

It was a bit scary last night. We had a Tornado warning, but the Big Lady was looking after us. We have an emergency kit with our leashes and some of her stuff. We go and shelter in the Big Bedroom. This is not too bad because we get to lie on the Bed with the Big Lady or Big Guy or both of them.

The good news is there are a lot of animal visitors. We heard Big Lady telling Big Guy she'd seen THREE BUNNIES in the yard. This is fantastic!! The squirrel has been getting much more brazen and is getting food from the bird feeders as well as the squirrel corn that Big Lady set up as a distraction. Well, she said she wanted squirrels because she had them in her old house - she sure has got at least one now.

We're back!

She didn't abandon us. We're back and the Internet access in the house is much better! I think I got my message across that I don't like getting wet very much. Patrick loves it (as you may see sometime - I think it's the Labrador in him) but I don't enjoy it.. I do like the brushing, though.

We're on Holiday again

Not much opportunity for blogging because Patrick and I are at the resort this weekend and the kennel doesn't have very good Internet access. The Big Lady is up in Kansas City for a conference and so the Big Guy is staying there. We're getting baths and nails again. There are some new girls at the resort but they seem to like us.

More Weekend pictures

Woodpecker on the Bird Feeder

Here is an adult Red-Headed Woodpecker on the bird feeder in the Rose Garden

The Author poses for the press

Here I am looking pretty happy at the top of the deck stairs. It was a pretty good weekend, I can tell you.

More pictures from my World this weekend

Here are a few more pictures from the World:

Adult and Baby Red-Headed Woodpecker
in the Rose Garden
This is an adult and baby red-headed woodpecker - Big Lady took the picture. She says the adult is sitting on the suet square and the baby is sitting on the trellis waiting to be fed

She says she saw the adult breaking off pieces of suet and feeding them to the little one. I've seen the woodpeckers hanging around a couple of times but I don't get the chance to chase them as they hang out in the Rose Garden so much.

Irises by the Deck


You have to admit she grows a good Iris. These are a nice color. That's me in the background, by the way. You may have recognized the handsome black fur making a nice setting for the purple flowers

I have seen the Bunny

I can report (and Big Lady and Big Guy know) that I have seen the Bunny. I chased it out of the garden this evening and Big Lady said it went under the shed.

Their excuse for this portable piece of fence is that they are protecting the grass which is just starting to grow in all the mud behind the shed.

I know they're just making it easier for the Bunny - and this is me telling them I know it's here.

Warmer Weather

Big Guy and Big lady have turned on the Air Conditioning in The House now that it's got warmer. This is especially useful if you're a dark-colored hairy dog like me.

I think all dogs would do this given the chance, but I'm very happy to report that Patrick and I have our own air-conditioning vents to keep us cool. I also like the tiled area by the front door very much.

Squirrel Sighted!!

Before we saw the Bunny(or Bunnies) on we got a Squirrel in the back yard on Sunday morning. He was checking the Bird Feeders but they either have stuff he doesn't like (Safflowers, I think) or the feeders are made of metal and they don't let squirrels get in and take the seeds.

It's much easier being a dog. I wouldn't like to have to go climbing all over things to get food... unless it's a sofa, or Big Lady.

Finally the little guy walked away

But Patrick knew he'd been around, and showed us what the appropriate hunting pose is when you scent a squirrel. I don't know where he gets these ideas. We do see some squirrels when

we're walking in the park but then we're wearing our leashes and we don't get to run after them.

Will THEY be in for a surprise if they wander in here again !!!

Bunny's Friends

This may be a relative of the big bunny. I don't know. JJ chased him around the garden today and he hid under the deck. However he's also learned the trick of not being interrupted by anyone except human photographers inside the house if he hides in the Rose Garden

The Bunny Is Back!!

The Critters are back. Some of them are familiar and some of them are new to me and also new to Big Lady and Big Guy.

This is probably the same bunny i chased last year. He still goes and sits in the Rose Garden where Patrick and I aren't allowed very often.

He's also brought a couple of friends...

Happy Cinco De Mayo!

Happy Cinco de Mayo to all my canine amigos. It's getting much warmber in Southeast Kansas although there were a few days of very sharp frosts a little while back, which made Big Lady and Big Guy worried about some of the plants and small birds. It was a little like autumn again when the frozen leaves started to fall off.

There are some new visitors to the garden - and a couple of old friends are back.

Groomed!!

Big Lady went to a conference and then went to see Big Guy. We spent some time in the spa being pampered by the girls. I got a bath, had my nails trimmed, and had some of the straggly fur trimmed.

It's pretty exhausting. Patrick and I sleep for hours when we get back.

However I think I look pretty spiffy in this picture. Big Lady took this picture of me on her phone after she picked us up.

Happy Spring :-(

Big Guy and Big Lady said spring will be here very soon. Like, today. Or Tomorrow.

This is what spring looks like in southeast Kansas today.

I think it is falling down in inches.

Perhaps Paddy and I can play a good game of Wild Dog and Muddy Paws tomorrow, but not tonight. The lightning is too sharp and the sky keeps booming at us. I think tonight we'll stay inside and watch TV.

Eclipsed!

Big Guy grabbed the bird-watching things he puts up to his eyes and took Big Lady out on the deck the other night. He said he was looking for the Moon.






I could have told them where the Moon is. Dogs always know where the moon is. I watch it sometimes when the sky gets dark. Sometimes when I watch the Moon, I can hear Emma next door, which means I have to run up and down the fence line and and talk to her. Sometime I can hear Wild Coyotes howling from somewhere in the distance. They're a bit scary. Patrick and I can do impressions of Coyotes. We played "coyote howl" for Big Lady and Big Guy one early morning but they weren't pleased. I didn't think it was too early in the morning, but they did. That's what they get for sleeping in late!




Oh, sorry. I digress. Back to the Moon. After a little bit of looking through the bird-watching things, Big Guy came back into the house and let us out on the deck to take a look at the Moon, too. Here are some pictures Big Guy took with the camera. You can't see me in them, but I'm there. The Moon looks like someone took a bite out of it. This is the view from my step. The Moon looks a little bit different.

Oh, and the flag below it is from one of our neighbors. They're patriotic. I think this is left over from Fourth of July. Or maybe Christmas. I wouldn't want anyone to think that we saw an American Flag in the sky up by the Moon. It's actually tethered to the side of their house.

Brrr... Winter!

Winter has come back to Kansas with a vengance. We have heat, but it is very difficult for our friends the birds to get to their food and water. The gate to the Rose Garden is frozen shut. We have about 2 inches of ice on our stairs. Behind us is about 4 inches of frozen sleet which has given the ground the consistency of a hockey rink. Fun for chasing Patrick, but we just want it to be gone. We like mud better.

Snow and ice, go away.
Patrick and I want to play.