October 17, 2013 was my last day with Ella.  She had pretty severe bone cancer in her leg and was unable to get herself up anymore with out great difficulty.  She was a great dog to the end, and I still miss her terribly every day.
Since then, I have rescued 2 brown dogs, no idea about breed type.  They had been abandoned in their backyard with out food or water, and the female had a litter of puppies (the rescuers found homes for them before I got her).  Makes you really wonder about people!  she and her brother were on petfinder.com and they were very helpful in the adoption process.
I also have 2 other rescue dogs that ended up at my sisters place.  my sister lives on a vineyard, and people drop off animals, thinking they'll find their way.  Thankfully, these 2 found their way to ellen and Patrick.  one is a beautiful black and white bull terrier mix who unfortunately has 2 bad knees and can't run around the vineyard any more, so she's restricted to my back yard (and does very well).  The other is a pit bull who is the sweetest (dumbest shocked look on his face) who doesn't get along with another stray pit bull they have there.  he gets along great with the 3 at my house, so he's a semi-permanent resident too.  I will eventually post photos, when I figure out how to get all the ones in my phone onto this blog.

Louie: 11-02-03 to 01-29-12

WOW, just going through the pictures I wanted to include has left me a blubbering idiot, but when you lose a dear friend and family member, I wouldn't expect any different.  I will still include Louie stories when I write about the dogs, because when I was looking through photos, a lot of stories came back to me.  I am so thankful for photos, they certainly help the failing mind, and Louie was SO special, he deserves to be remembered.  his life was relatively short, but not by giant breed standards (they average 6 - 10 years), and so full of great times and memories.  I was so fortunate to have understanding bosses who allowed me to stay at home and spend the time we had left sitting on the couch and just being together.  Ella has had a tough adjustment since she's never been alone, and she is finally starting to be more like herself.  she has always brought me a stuffed animal when I come through the door at the end of the day, and it was heartbreaking not to have that happen for awhile.  she has started again, not every day, but definitely more frequently, and I am so thankful.  it's a hard adjustment to have only one dog now, but we're doing the best we can, and we will continue to do so.  Louie was an amazing friend and is missed every day, but the love, laughter, joy and even tears (mine, when he knocked me down and gave me 2 black eyes) are worth it.  you will want to know him.

you know it's cold...

you know it's cold when your dog is standing in front of you looking like she's smoking because you can see her breath... and you're inside.  it's 52 degrees in my house and definitely time to turn the heater on.  I've noticed how louie and ella are sleeping a LOT closer to me at night, and it's toasty warm when I'm in bed.  325 pounds of additional body heat is very comforting, but also hard to move when they get there first.  I still "trick" them with "let's go outside" to get them off the bed so I can get in and claim my own space first, but they manage to take over anyway.  I wake up in weird positions trying to jockey for position while sleeping.  love them!  this photo was taken at ellen's when we stayed there last year in the queen sized bed.  having a king isn't MUCH better.

happy belated birthday louie!

I missed posting for louie's birthday (nov. 2)!  boy am I a bad mom.  louie is now 8 too and I didn't make a meatloaf cake for him either.  it's a good thing that I spoil him rotten every day so that every day seems like his birthday.  I think we were all coming off that halloween sugar high, and I was making truffles, turtles and peppermint patties for a party I was going to.  we're going to have a belated special meal.  I did manage to get his nails trimmed, which is probably why he's looking so dejected!  love that puppy.

it's that time of year

I was just thinking back to last year at this time, when I cooked a turkey and had given the dogs all the dark meat.  not all at one time, but chopped up into their food.  I then took the 2 breasts and sat for about an hour (while watching tv) shredding them into small pieces in a bowl, so I could make enchiladas and turkey pot pie (two of my favorites when I get tired of turkey sandwiches - if that's possible).  when I was done I got up, leaving the bowl full of turkey on the back of the sofa and went to wash my hands.  now... under normal circumstances, this would not have been a big deal.  I have left a steak sitting on a plate on the sofa so I could go get something else and come back to find it still sitting there.  louie and ella are both SO good at not stealing food, it didn't even occur to me.  that ella was on steroids.  that make her ravenous.  that make her stand in the kitchen looking like she's figuring out how to open the refrigerator.  needless to say, in the 1.2 minutes I was gone, the entire bowl was licked clean and she was back on the floor looking like she was starving and ready for more.  I couldn't punish her, I didn't see it happen, and it COULD have been louie.  to this day I STILL don't know for sure it was her.  except I do.  so I cooked a turkey yesterday and gave them some dark meat in their bowls, cut the rest of the meat off the carcass and put everything in the refrigerator.  if she's figured out how to open the door I'm in trouble.

ella turns 8!!!

today my baby girl turns 8! last night was a rough one, she didn't want to settle down and was up and down all night, which means in turn that I was up and down all night. I'd just get to sleep and she'd do something to wake me up. I'm sure it was all the excitement of knowing that she'd get her birthday cake today (I don't really believe that). traditionally, I make her a meatloaf cake in a round pan with mashed potato "frosting", and usually gravy on top. this year I used the regular meatloaf pan and made a layer cake with crumbled bacon on the sides. it's fun to create and she loved it!

 I put it outside on the step since I know it gets messy,

 gave louie his in a different location.  as you can tell, after setting them down and getting a picture of ella with hers, louie's was almost completely gone!

 he did sit patiently right behind her, waiting until she was finished before checking for anything she might have missed.

 doesn't look like there was anything for him to get.  she checked the area before giving up her spot.  the plate was totally clean.

it's a fun tradition!

sprinklers, the saga continues

when the sprinklers go off, so does ella!  she'll plow through anything to get as far away as possible.  never mind that it's probably refreshing, it's pure torture to her.  she'd rather sit inside and wait for them to be turned off before she goes out again.  she'll wait very patiently, but she won't go anywhere near them.  I do have to put a leash on her when I bathe her or she's as far away as she can be (usually sitting on the sofa with bubbles in her fur).  she never liked the pool either.  this is not a water dog!

man oh man she's a pretty dog!!!  she has the greatest swoop to her nose and she's so expressive.  can't tell that I love them, can you?