Here'ssssssssss ..... Dara!

This is Dara, and she's putting on (er, taking off) some finishing touches. Just wait until you see the finished product (tomorrow ;-)


But first Dara had to make sure I was properly dried after my bath. It's nice to get my hair "speed dried".



See how I look? Guess I need a little more grooming still, donchaknow.

Gettin' a buzzcut

I forgot to mention that before the bath you saw yesterday, Dara had to do something of a bulk removal of hair ;-)

You can see that I was getting pretty shaggy.


So out comes the buzz cutter, to take off all that (what is soon to be) excess hair.

This ensures that any mats and tangles are removed.

And makes me feel better ;-)

Getting a facial

But wait, it gets better. After my shampoo, Dara gives me a facial. This is so my chops are all soft and sweet-smelling.


And guess what -- this is a blueberry facial. Yummmm! (Oh, was I not supposed to eat that?)


Dara is such a pro -- she totally rinses off my chops without getting any water in my eyes. Woo hoo. Hey, Mom and Alpha, take a note!


There we go -- all clean now. (Not that I was ever really "dirty" mind you.)

Like an otter

Looks like my visit to Dara's Doggie Bag and Day Spaw will be metered out over the next few blog entries. Alpha must be running short of photos ;-)

(Actually, don't even whisper that out loud -- if he hears you, he will get out his camera and come running after me -- hee, hee.)

So anyways, here I am getting my bath and shampoo. I really like it! (Leo, you have nothing to fear ;-)

I feel just like one of those river otters after my fluff is all soaked and sticking to my sides. And we all know how cute otters are, right?

Just a little cute

Seems like Alpha has a bunch of photos to go through from my visit to the Doggie Day Spaw.

So in the meantime, he thought this one might tide you over. Yep, I'd say I qualify for "cute".

And you must admit that the little tongue tip is a nice touch ;-)

Up close with Mom

Yesterday was my grooming day. More pictures to follow (big surprise there, right?)

I was a little nervous at first, but Mom was there for me. And where was Alpha? Oh, you know -- snapping away ;-)

Of course, I love Dara, and was quickly put at ease. Don't worry, you'll see (I'm such a tease).

Bro' is taking a ride

Well my Bro' just can't wait until spring. So on a warmish day a while ago, he decided to take out the motorcycle.

I had to run over and wish him well on his ride. I'm glad he is properly outfitted!

And as Sergeant Phil Esterhaus used to say every week on Hill Street Blues: "Hey, let's be careful out there!"

(What -- haven't you guys checked out any classic TV programs? ;-)

Let's get going!

Hey Mom! Hey Alpha! Hurry up!

We need to get outside before the squirrels all run away!

I can see them munching under the bird feeders and I want to bark ferociously and chase them to the nearest tree.

Hey, it's what I do ;-)

Me and my shadow

Two of us got to go out on a walk the other day. Me -- and my shadow (hee hee). He followed me everywhere!

Let's hear it for nice sunny days (especially when it's cold).

And speaking of cold, I say pppfffttt to that (perhaps you can see me sticking out my tongue ;-)

But at least I look good in my preppy sweater!

On the good furniture

Now I should be impressed to be allowed on the "good" furniture.

But you can see the reason ... I'm being posed.

Thanks goodness it was worth it! (Hee, hee)

Who just had a bath?

Betcha can't guess.

Does my hairdo give it away?

Ah, to be so clean and sweet-smelling!

Quite vicious

Watch where you put your fingers. I'm really quite vicious!

Nah, I'm just playing.

And don't worry, I'll be sure to lick any accidental injuries ;-)

Playin' with my bro'

I am happy have have Greg home, again.

First Alli left to go back to school, then Greg for a trip to Montreal, then Alpha on a business trip.

And as much as I love my Mom, it's good to have additional playmates, donchaknow.

And Greg is a good one (whenever he's not sleeping in the basement). Hee-hee ;-)

Walking with the big people

My goodness they must be tall. Just have a look at their shadows!

And where is my shadow by the way? Hey, these people are spooky!

Nah, that's just Mom and Alpha (hee, hee)

Flying Frito

Greg's home again. And look -- he's giving me a ride in my bed.

Greg -- good to have you home buddy. You are my litter-mate. Woo-hoo, let the games begin.

Oh yes, and Alpha has been suitably chastised and shamed for the lack of blog posts. He assures me he will fill in the gaps, so you can check out the previous days soon.

Snow blower

No, no, no -- not *that* kind of snow blower.

Ya see, I was out for a walk today, and found the delectable scent of deer.

So off the nice clear paths I go, into the woods. And every so often, I'd stick my nose right where the deer hooves had been.


As you can see, it makes me a little snowy.


And then eventually I have to sneeze. Which makes me a ....

... snow blower! Ha ha ha!

My new office

OK, so maybe it's not *my* new office.

But ya see, Alpha had to move his office from the basement up to Alli's bedroom.

That's because Greg's home for the spring and summer, and Alpha had previously taken over *his* bedroom.

So now it's Alli's turn ;-)

And I think it is a wonderful idea, because frankly, Alli's bed is more inviting than Greg's.

And if you don't believe me, check out one of my snuggling pictures.

That's *my* bone

Hey there, Mr. Sneaky Pants, that's *my* bone!

And don't you try to take it away from me.

Unless of course it means we're gonna play some more ;-)

The melt

We've had cold, snow and ice ... followed by warm, sun, and melt.

As you see here, I prefer the latter ;-)

But we are gearing up for another winter blast.

Oh well, just gotta make sure Alpha keeps up with the snowblower paths

Mr. Clean

Just had a nice bath to get off all the road grime. Winter can be very hard on the hairdo, donchaknow.

But you can see the advantage of winter -- look how clean and adorable I am after my bath.

Oh yeah, and I smell good too!

Smushy face

Sometimes, after I've been sleeping on the sofa, I awaken with my "smushy face".

This is especially so after a recent bath, since my nice fluffy hair get compressed.

Now you know this happens to everyone -- just look in the mirror after you wake up in the morning.

But, in the immortal words of Will Smith (from Men in Black):

"You know the difference between you and me? I make this look good."

Supper sniffer

It's hard for Alpha to photograph the world of smells. But check this out.

Here I am running through some paths, when all of a sudden, I get a strong wiff of something really neat. Maybe you can see the tracks leading off the side of the path. Do you know what I smell?


Well, here it is. We had deer visiting the previous day. They were munching on our apple tree leaves, since everything else is snow covered.

Man, there is a whole 'nother world out there that you humans never see -- the world of smells. Thankfully, I've got a supper sniffer.

Undercarriage wash

Well, it's finally warming up a bit. And that means two things: I go for walks more often, and the roads are really slushy.

Sooooo ... even if I'm still a sweet-smelling pooch, I sometimes need to at least get my undercarriage wash. You know, like you do to your car, so the road salt doesn't do any damage. Mom wants to make sure I'm clean, and my paws don't get injured.

I sure do appreciate it.

Bye-bye Alli

Well, it's kind of a sad day in the Crisp household :-(

Alli had to go back to school today, so I won't be seeing her for quite some time :-(

But I will certainly do my part to make sure she gets to see me everyday :-)

And somehow, I just know Alpha will do his part as well ;-)

Have fun at school Alli !!!

Another kind of trail

Well, in addition to all of the snow-blown paths, there is another kind of trail I thought I would like to experience.

Alpha and Alli went out for a cross-country ski adventure, and they had the audacity to leave me behind! Some lame excuse about my injured paw still recovering.

So I did what all clever dogs do ... I snuck away from Mom and followed them! Ha!

Pretty easy to follow this trail ;-)

In the end, they had to bring me home because I kept wanting to go "off the trail" in search of deer scents. And that really wasn't so good for my paw.

I guess they did have a method to their madness. But hey, I had fun!

Double layer

On top of all that snow, it's turned really cold here.

This is niblet-freezing weather. Ever wonder how the Green Giant freezes those corn niblets? Now you know ;-)

Maybe you can see that my Mom has me bundled up in a double layer. That's to keep *my* niblets from freezing. Oh wait, I don't even have my niblets any more. :-o


Here I am tromping through the new snow -- check out those trail walls -- they are getting high.

Fortunately, the weatherman says things will be getting warmer in the coming days.

Glamour shot

Thought we'd start the year off right with a new "glamour shot" of moi.

Looking pretty good, doncha think?

Hey, the life of a model is tough. But somehow I manage ;-)

This is getting ridiculous

Oh come on .... more snow????

This is just getting a little ridiculous now.

Can't blame it on alcohol

This is Pedro's dad ... on New Year's Eve.

Can't even blame it on alcohol, since (unlike Alpha) he doesn't drink.

Hmmmm. Maybe we'll just chalk it up to a late night ;-)

Don't worry Pedro, I forgive him (hee, hee).

Happy New Year!!! (Hey, any more presents?)

Happy New Year everyone! I had a great 2007; I hope you did also.

And I can't wait to see what 2008 brings!

But first, I'm wondering why this holiday doesn't also BRING more presents?

Can you work on that, Alpha?