The Happy Dogs Bedtime Prayer

The Happy Dogs Bedtime Prayer
Author Unknown

Now I lay me down to sleep,

The queen-size bed is soft and deep.

I sleep right in the center groove,

My human being can hardly move.

I've trapped her legs,

She's tucked in tight,

And here is where I shall pass the night.

No one disturbs me or dares intrude,

Till morning comes and I want food.

I sneak up slowly and it begins,

My nibbles on my human's chin.

She wakes up slowly and smiles and shouts,

"You darling beast! Just cut it out!"

But mornings here and its time to play,

I always seem to get my way.

So thank you Lord, for giving me,

This human person that I see.

The one who holds me tight,

And shares her bed with me at night!

Lucy's Take...My Hoomans Have Left Me!

Well, it's official. Da Hoomans have left for Aruba, and dey didn't takes me! What kind of parents leave a boxer baby home whens dey go on vacation? I's tried to hide in a suitcase, but Mom noticed how heavy da bag was when she picked it up, and she founds me. I would've been a good puppy...

Anyway, here's my situation for next 7 days...

Aunt Kim is heres and she and I are going to haves a blast together. I sposin we'll go on some walks, catch some z's, play some fetch, watch some tv, and maybes we'll take a couple of rides. Maybe she'll evens teach me some tricks. I guess we'll have to see! She says I's is gonna meet her dogs, dat sounds like fun!

Da fridge is stocked with ton of yams, mashed taters, chicken, turkey and grounds beef, so I's guessin I'll be eatin good. And I noticed my ma's bought lots of treats for me!

I'll bes missin ya all!

Off To Aruba...

By the time you're reading this, Rob and I should be well on our way to Aruba with our friends Ricky and Karen. We'll be back on September 4th, but I've scheduled posts for while I'm gone and I'm sure that if Lucy has her way she'll be sneaking on to my computer to say hello to you guys!

In the meantime, here's where we headed and what our plans are...

The Occidental Grand Aruba...

We hope to be seeing plenty of beaches...

Drinking plenty of tropical drinks...

Eating lots of great food...

And relaxin on the beach!

And of course, I'll be missing my little Lucy Lou!

We'll be back on the 4th of September! Have a great week!

I Rescued A Human Today

This article was shared with me several months ago, and it's something that I've read and thought of often. It's so true that our animals sometimes rescue us, and the more and more I talk with other dog owners who are deeply involved with their pets, the more I hear about how their animals rescued them! Everytime I read it, I get tears in my eyes thinking about all of the animals that need humans to rescue!


Author: Janine Allen CPDT

I Rescued A Human Today

Her eyes met mine as she walked down the corridor peering apprehensively into the kennels. I felt her need instantly and knew I had to help her. I wagged my tail, not too exuberantly, so she wouldn't be afraid.

As she stopped at my kennel I blocked her view from a little accident I had in the back of my cage. I didn't want her to know that I hadn't been walked today. Sometimes the shelter keepers get too busy and I didn't want her to think poorly of them.

As she read my kennel card I hoped that she wouldn't feel sad about my past. I only have the future to look forward to and want to make a difference in someone's life. She got down on her knees and made little kissy sounds at me. I shoved my shoulder and side of my head up against the bars to comfort her.

Gentle fingertips caressed my neck; she was desperate for companionship. A tear fell down her cheek and I raised my paw to assure her that all would be well.

Soon my kennel door opened and her smile was so bright that I instantly jumped into her arms. I would promise to keep her safe. I would promise to always be by her side. I would promise to do everything I could to see that radiant smile and sparkle in her eyes. I was so fortunate that she came down my corridor. So many more are out there who haven't walked the corridors. So many more to be saved. At least I could save one.

I rescued a human today.

Duck, Duck, ...Boxer!

I must apologize for my absence the last several days. As mentioned earlier in the week, Rob has been out of town and I've been quite busy. It would seem with him gone that all of the phone calls and issues seem to get directed right to me! Additionally, I have encountered a huge problem. While this may not seem like a big deal to most, it has turned my world upside down. I left my mouse at the other store, and have been mouseless for days. I do not function well with the touch pad on my computer, so I have been very challenged the last couple of days! With any luck, I will be reunited with my mouse by tomorrow. I have been so distressed over the situation, that I considered driving the 2 1/2 hours round trip to retrieve the mouse, but exhaustion and unwillingness to drive got the best of me!

I am also in the very, very early stages of possibly getting a new vehicle. (One that might be a little more pup friendly than my existing sedan!) In the last couple of days, I have managed to list my existing vehicle on Craigslist, Auto Trader and Ebay Motors (all without a mouse)! I am hoping that someone comes along quickly and snatches it up, but we shall see. I've never had much luck selling cars outright.

This is my very, very special mallard duck. This little guy was hand carved by my Grandfather back in the days before arthritis took complete hold of his wonderful hands, and then hand painted with loving detail by my Grandmother. It's one of the most precious things that anyone has given to me. This little duck has a permanent spot in our living room right next to the TV, and has been there since before Lucy came to live with us.

He's relatively quiet, never bothers anyone and doesn't even so much as "quack" as my little boxer walks by him 100 times a day. But, this morning, something went amiss, although I don't know what it was.

This morning, right before leaving for work, I was in the kitchen throwing things into my handbag (a.k.a. "the suitcase") when I heard Lucy making very odd noises at the bottom of the stairs. She wasn't barking. Not quite growling. It was more like a grumbling kind of noise. When I went to investigate, I noticed that it was the duck that was causing Lucy so much distress.

Lucy would not get any closer than 3 feet away from my wooden duck. For 5 minutes, Lucy continued to make the strange grumbles, and she circled it, but wouldn't get close to it. I finally went over and picked up the duck and Lucy sat down- still 3 feet away- grumbled some more and wagged her little nub.

No amount of talking to Lucy changed the situation- she was very disinterested in getting any closer to the duck until I picked the duck up and put it in my purse. By the time we got settled into the car and went about 3 miles down the road, Lucy was lunging for my purse and duck. When we got to work, I removed the duck from my purse and sat it on my desk. She watched with great interest. Finally I decided to lift the duck and move a little closer to her- no response. Not even a grumble! And when I put the duck on the pillow with Lucy, she didn't even budge.

I will never know what caused the bizarre reaction to the duck at the house this morning, but it sure was funny!

Things I Love Thursday & A Blog Hop

I don't know about the weather in your neck of the woods, but here in Pittsburgh we've had two gloriously beautiful days in a row. And by gloriously beautiful, I mean warm (not too hot), breezy, and with bright blue skies filled with fluffy white clouds!

There's nothing more amazing, and you can bet the Lucy and I enjoyed as much as we could of our wonderful weather both this morning before coming to work and last night when we got home! I was actually out there last night even after it got dark, although I had to grab one of my "Boxer Mom" sweatshirts, the night air was just a bit on the chilly side!

Speaking of going home, last night on our way home from work, Lucy and I stopped off at a farm market to grab some sweet corn. It's the first corn on the cob I've bought this season, which is shocking because I always look forward to 'sweet corn time'. There's this little farm called "Brenkles" right on our way home from work, and they've got the best corn in the county! Last year, I couldn't get enough of it, so at the near end of the season, I bought about 6 dozen ears of corn, cooked it, took it off the cob and froze it! Yum, yum! There's nothing better than Brenkles sweet corn for Thanksgiving and Christmas... just like Mom used to make when I was a kid and still does.

I can remember being a little girl and going out to the cornstalks and asking my Dad over and over again, are they ready yet? And then when they were, I couldn't wait to get the husks off to smell that sweet corn smell. If you've never smelled it before, you're missing out!

I didn't get to cook my corn last night, which is more than okay. When Lucy and I got home, my little boxer darling was definitely in the mood to play, and she wouldn't stop looking out the window and crying. I had no choice in the matter, so I set out across the street to see if her buddy Job was available for a boxer playdate!

Job knows what's going on when I ring that doorbell, and Lucy's buddy was as happy to see me as Lucy was to see him when we walked through the door. The wiggle butts went crazy! Those two kids played for 2 hours last night, and at the end, neither was ready to be separated!

As you can see by the few pictures I managed to snap, things got a little wild last night, lots of teeth, and wild romping minus the abandon... They played for almost an hour in the yard, running together, hiding from one another, rolling around in the grass, and cooling off in the puppy pool (of course, Job still is uninterested in jumping in the pool like Lucy does- but he's more than happy to drink that ice cold water!

What was most amazing to me was that as heated as things got, nothing got out of control and there wasn't so much as a bark or a growl from the little fawn or the little brindle boxer. Lucy even shared her big green spider with Job! My little girl didn't even flinch when her buddy picked up one of her favorite toys and dragged it around the house! "Good Lucy!"

Lucy and Job are amazing together, and I only hope that when we find a "brudder" for Lucy, that we make as good of a match as Job & Lucy are! I can't wait to have two boxers running through the house and yard together all the time.

After a long day at work, nothing is better than watching these two boxers run wildly through the yard with big smiles on their faces! It's just pure joy!

My little boxer slept very soundly last night, and I had nothing but pure bliss watching these two absolutely beautiful boxers romp for 2 hours. I really don't miss cable at all!

Lucy's Daddy is back in Houston again, so Lucy feels it's her responsability to keep Daddy's spot in the bed warm! She even slept part of the night with her head on her pillow, and when he called last night to say good night, Lucy's head perked right up at the sound of Daddy's voice on the phone!

Things I Love Thursday Blog Hop

Wanna play? Here’s how:

•Put up a Things I Love Thursday post at your blog. Let your readers know about something/anything you love.
•Please use the button you see above when you are doing your post.
•Try and pick an actual “thing” that you love. Keep helpful tips and things along those lines in the “Works For Me Wednesday” category. We don’t need to reinvent the VERY SUCCESSFUL wheel.
•Feel free to do a product review, but make sure to let your readers know that you have been supplied with the product to review so we are keepin’ it honest.
•Also, link back to The Diaper Diaries. You can link to the blog in general or the Things I Love Thursday post itself.
•Sign up on Mr. Linky. Please link to your ACTUAL POST and not just your blog so people can find it easier. Also if you would put in parentheses what your post is about, that is always helpful to other readers.

Wordless Wednesday... Sunsets & Boxer Baby's

On This Day A Year Ago... We're Engaged!!

I can't believe it's been a year, but on this very day August 17th, I officially became a fiance. Here's the story...

Rob & I started dating in September of 2005, combined households and dogs in June of 2006, and started working together in January of 2007. I have known since the first time that he told me he loved me in October of 2005 that I wanted to marry him, but was convinced, despite several conversations about getting engaged, that he would probably remain a bachelor forever!

Then one night in June of 2009, he came home and told me that he didn't want to wait anymore, he wanted to get engaged. My heart started beating wildly and I was so excited for days that it was all I could think about. Several weeks later when he told me to start shopping for the ring I wanted, I knew he was serious! I had no idea at that point that he was going to send me out searching for my dream ring, but that's exactly what happened.

I spent the next month and a half educating myself about diamonds, and visiting local jewelers attempting to find my dream setting. I knew that I wanted a princess cut center stone, I knew that I wanted the setting to have an antique look to it and I knew that it had to be in white gold or platinum. Everytime a jeweler placed a sparking loose princess cut diamond in my hand, my little heart flutters came back as I thought about finally getting engaged to my prince charming.

After a month and a half, I had narrowed my selection down to 3 local jewelers and 3 somewhat similiar settings. I had a favorite, but wanted Rob to have some say in the process. The plan was to spend the day of my 35th birthday visiting each of the 3 jewelers and selecting a diamond from the chosen jeweler. Can you think of a better 35th birthday present than picking out the diamond of your choice, I couldn't!

Ironically, the setting that I thought to be my favorite had been picked out of a catalog, so the first time I saw it was at the jeweler that day with Rob at my side. It took my breath away, and I knew it was the one that I wanted, but we still visited each of the 3 jewelers, and Rob still made me think on it for a couple of days. I was so excited, it was hard to wait, but I know he didn't want me to make a decision that I was going to regret knowing that I would wear the ring for the rest of my days.

2 days after our shopping spree, Rob asked me if I had made up my mind. I told him that I had, and he told me to call the jeweler back and have it set. My hands shook as I made the call, I was thrilled and I couldn't wait to see the finished ring. At this point, we had seen loose diamonds, and the setting, but nothing all put together. The jeweler told me that he would have it ready for us in a couple of hours and that he would deliver it to me... You can imagine what that wait was like...

And finally... around 2:00 that afternoon our jeweler placed a little black box in my hand! And I cried, called Rob on the phone and told him that I couldn't wait for him to put it on my finger that it was the most beautiful and most special thing that anyone had ever given to me. And I still feel the exact same way one year later!

Every 'big' and meaningful conversation that Rob and I have ever had has taken place on our kitchen floor. So, that night when he got home, I handed him the little black box, and we sat down together on the kitchen floor and he 'officially' asked me to be his wife... And you better believe it when I say, that ring has hardly left my finger in the last year. I can't wait to graduate from 'fiance' to 'wife'!

It took about 6 months for the shock and excitement of having a sparking diamond on my finger to ease. I spent a lot of time in the sunlight making it dance...and I admit, I still do it, just not as often!

2 Boxers, 1 Fenced Yard, Tons of Fun!

If you've never seen two boxer play, you're missing out! Last night, my neighbor and Job's Human, Athena volunteered to take Lucy and Job for a walk. When it became clear that the two boxers had more interest in having a boxer brawl than going for the walk, I offered to take the kids and set them loose in our yard!

Just look at these two kids! Job is about a year and a half old, and he's not that much bigger than my little boxer baby. I can tell already, Lucy's gonna be bigger than he is. Can you tell they're smiling, or is that my imagination?

These two boxers are very well matched, they run, tumble and play very well with one another. They run at about the same speed, and I love watching them run side by side all over the yard.

And more often than not, my little Lucy is more than happy to let Job have the upper hand! She doesn't seem to mind Job pouncing on her one bit!

Lucy's so happy to have a boxer playmate. She's been out of commission since her spaying, and this is the first time the two have been allowed to play together. "I's is so happy you's came to play, Job! Do you's like my yard?"

This is the best picture I got of Job all night. Photographing two moving boxers is no easy task. They don't stay still very long when they've got an opportunity to rumble. Isn't he a handsome boy? I just adore him, and so does Lucy!

"You's looks like you could use a hugs, Job!"... Lucy's so smitten with this beautiful brindle that her eyes are glowing green! Must be the boxer look of love!

"Come back, Job! I wanna play wits you some more! Where'd ya go?"

This is my favorite picture from the play date! I just love that these two can rumble like two champs and then tire out and snuggle on up to each other. The contrast between the brindle and the fawn is also quite beautiful!

Lucy tried to show Job the best way to cool off, but he just looked at her like she'd lost her mind. He wanted no part of dunking in Lucy's puppy pool.

And so there you have it. The best way to tire out two young boxers, and have an entertaining evening for the humans is to let them loose together in a fenced in yard and let them play to their hearts content. I'm so happy that my Lucy has such a great friend, and I have a feeling that we'll be seeing lots of Job from this point on!

Tuesday Tag-Along Blog Hop

Welcome to this week's Tuesday Tag-Along blog hop, hosted by Twee Poppets Review and Giveaway! This is a great way to discover new blogs while increasing the number of followers for your own blog. Please feel free to grab the TTA button for your blogroll to help bring more bloggers to this blog hop!

Without further ado...

Here's how it works:

Create a new Tuesday Tag-Along blog post. Include the Tuesday Tag-Along button by copying and pasting the code above. (You are also welcome to copy and paste these instructions in their entirety, or any portion of this Tuesday Tag-Along blog post!)
Add your blog name and the URL of your TTA post to the MckLinky below.

Follow Twee Poppets, the hostess blog listed in the first slot. Twee Poppets will follow you back! (Note: If you want Twee Poppets to follow you back, you MUST leave her a comment saying that you are a new follower and leave a link to your blog!)
Follow the Blog Hopper of the Week, listed in the second slot. To learn how to be chosen as the Blog Hopper of the Week, read the red text below.

If you can, please follow the blogs in the three slots before you (e.g., if you're number 20, follow numbers 19, 18, and 17). This is not mandatory, but it will help ensure that everyone who signs up gets a few new followers!

Follow as many other blogs as you want. The more you follow, the more that will follow you back! Be sure to tell them that you're following from Tuesday Tag-Along! You may also want to leave a link to your blog so they can return your follow more easily.

When you get a new follower through Tuesday Tag-Along, be sure to follow them back! It's just common courtesy. :)

The weekly Tuesday Tag-Along MckLinky opens every Monday night at 8:59pm Pacific Standard Time (that's 11:59pm Eastern Standard Time), and the TTA blog post will be posted well in advance of that time. The MckLinky will be open to add your blog until 11:59pm Tuesday night. You then have all week long to visit blogs and return follows!

There is a new list every week. The link you enter one week will not carry over to the next week's MckLinky. Please link up again each week to join in the fun!

miscellany monday

Happy Monday Friends! This morning, I'm excited about "Miscellany Monday" hosted by Lowercase Letters . I can't think of anything more perfect or more fitting for me than a chance to just ramble about a bunch of misellaneous stuff that pops into my head- especially on a Monday!

This is gonna be fun! But bear with me, because my brain seems to have taken a complete and total leave of absense, and it left no forwarding address or other method of contact. It just left.

For the last several days, I haven't been feeling quite like my usual bouncy, bubbly self. I feel like I might be fighting off the flu or some other kind of virus, because I just feel tired and worn down. Last night, Rob, Lucy & I were sound asleep by 9 PM.

As proof of this, yesterday morning, I had two phone conversations, one with my Mom and one with Rob. I finally hung up with Rob in order to get ready for work. I went upstairs, showered, put my hair in a towel and threw on my bathrobe. I ran downstairs to check on Lucy, saw that she was happily playing in the yard, and ran back upstairs. What I did next is the proof that I'm obviously exhausted, and that my brain has left me. I turned on the shower, unwrapped the towel from my hair, took off my robe and hopped back in the shower. All I have to say is that I was very, very clean and somewhat late by the time I left the house!

My only hope for accomplishing anything at this point is to make lists. I've got them all over the place. I didn't mention it last week, but I had to buy a bigger handbag in order to accomodate all of the lists that I seem to be carrying around. But, there's another complication to these lists that I spend all of my time making. For example, the other day, I made a list for Wal-Mart, but when I arrived at Wal-Mart, I didn't have the list and of course, I had no clue what was on the list or even where I had put the list. I still need to go back to Wal-Mart.

And it would seem that everyday, Rob will say to me "The next time you're in Wal-Mart make sure you pick up some -------". Does he really think I remember all of these things? This from the man who cut the grass the other night and parked the tractor in the middle of the yard with the lights still on? Why were the lights on anyway? He cut the grass in broad daylight- I don't think that running lights are a necessity in the yard. There just isn't that much tractor traffic!

For as long as I can remember, I have had a habit of paying my bills as soon as I recieve them. I mostly bank online, so as soon as a bill appears in my mailbox, I go online and schedule a payment. But, for the last couple of months, something seems to have gone amiss. Because, I keep forgetting to pay things. I have a feeling that I have unknowingly subscribed to stop receiving paper bills, because although the bills exist, I don't seem to be getting statements.

I really need to look into that matter...I'm pretty sure I wrote it on one of my lists... Now where is it?

My very wise mother would probably tell me that a huge part of forgetting to pay bills, is that I never seem to know what day is. When you work 10-14 days in a row, and do pretty much the same routine for that many days at a time with no change of pace, it's very easy to get confused and have no clue what day of the week it really is. At least twice a week, I'll wake up, look at Rob and say "What day is it?" I think he's starting to worry about me just a little bit!

What I think I need is an alarm clock that wakes me up by telling me several times what day of the week it is. That would solve the problem. Or maybe somehow, I could train my smart little boxer to bring me a specific ball, labeled with the day of the week on that day... I'm reaching here, hugh?

I have a habit of buying a brown and a black pair of shoes when I find a style that I really like. Most of the time, this is a good thing, except when you're in a really big hurry, and trying to get out of the closet and shut the door before a boxer puppy can sneak in and cause all kinds of chaos, so you don't turn on the light. I seem to be ending up at work a lot of days with one black, and one brown shoe. I guess I should just be thankful that the shoes are the same style. I guess it could always be worse!

Our New Look!

Well, it's finally done, and Lucy and I couldn't be more excited- 'Lucy's Human' has a brand new look! Chelsey @ The Paper Mama just emailed me our finished header, and I put it all together! Thanks, Chelsey! You did a great job, in a very short amount of time, and Lucy & I couldn't be more pleased!

If you're looking for a button or a header- Chelsey is your girl!

Lucy's Take... Joyful Sunday & A Sunday Blog Hop

My mama was talking a lot about toilet paper this morning. She tolds me that life is like a roll of toilet paper, da closer you's get to da end of da roll, the faster it goes. I haves no idea what she meant, but it's seemed like it was important. I don'ts know much about toilet paper, and I don'ts really tink I have dat great of concept of time! All I knows is dat when my hooman isn't around, time just seems to drip by! I'ves never played with toilet paper, but it sure looks like fun!

Mommy's lettin me make a joyful list today! Isn't dat great?

I's so excited to have my own joyful list! I'ms a pretty happy puppy and der are lots of tings dad make my little nub start wiggling! Mom says I needs to just pick 2. I gets a big kick outs of ripping tags off of tings. I don't knows what it is, dey just don't belong there, and I luvs removin them! Dis morning, I worked really hard on removin da tag from my dog bed. I didn't gets it da whole way off, but I got a good start!

You oughta see my backs yard! It's wonderful! There are all kinds tings for me to play with der, and I can always find a new adventure in my yard. Its has a big, tall fence arounds it, and sometimes there are chipmunks on dat fence. I luvs to chase them around da yard. I don'ts know why dey run from me, but it's fun to try to catch them! I luvs tuggin on tree branches and big weeds, and there are lots of those out der too. And on one side of da yard is dis really tall grass, Mom calls it Pampas grass, it's great to play in! And I's always draggin my toys outside to play with. When Mommy cuts da grass she lets me chase da tractor- Daddy doesn't allows me to do that. I luvs my yard!

Do you's all know what yams and sweet potatoes are? Well, Mommy says dey are vegetables, and dat dey are very good for me. Dis mornin, and last night for dinners I had sweet potatoes with my kibble! Dey are so good! Yams, sweet potatoes, and green beans are my favorite veggies!

Don't tells my hooman dat I tolds you dis, but da last time she's went to da grocery store, she bought some sweet potatoes, and I'm nots sure why, but she put dem in da freezer. I don't tink she meant to do dat, but sometimes, I tink my hooman is pretty tired and her brain don't works da way it's sposed to! They still tasted pretty good, so I guess it turned outs all right!



I'ms supposed to tell you all about the blog hop that we're takin part in. It's hosted by Lucas's Journey With Sensory Processing Disorder. Mom says to go on over and link up to make some new friends. We just love makings new friends!