New Blog Address

New web address dansallaboutfamily.wordpress.com

A New Website

I have a new website that I will probably be using more than my blogger sites. It will take me a while to figure it out but plese check it out if you get a chance danasu88.wordpress.com

We Have A Visitor

The Cable Guy came today to fix my Wi-fi that had been down for a few days and I put the animals up before he got here so they would not get in his way. I put Journey in her crate in the bedroom and shut the door so she would stay quiet but that didn't work. Journey started howling as soon as the guy walked in and the guy goes "What kind of bird do you have?" That is how high pitched Journey's bark can be. I explained how Journey can be and he asked me to let her out. I let her out and she was so excited to have company of any kind. I guess spending all day, every day with me can get kind of old so Journey ran and she jumped and she licked and she danced because she had a new friend. I am just glad that Journey is a social dog and she endears herself to everyone that she meets.

Attention!!

Journey is the type of puppy that demands attention. If I am sitting down writing or doing research on my laptop, Journey will come up and start barking at me because she wants attention now. If the barking doesn't do the trick, she will jump up and grab my shirt sleeve and start tugging on it. I take that as my cue that she wants me to go sit on the love seat so she can curl up in my lap and take a nap. If I am trying to get ready for work and I am putting my pants on she will grab the cuff of my pants and start pulling on them because she knows I am getting ready to leave. Journey has mastered the art of non-verbal communication. Luckily for me, I have learned to listen to every word she doesn't say.

The Good Life

My puppy Journey is spoiled. So is Ellie the cat but Journey is more spoiled. I have been out of work for a while now and she has gotten used to laying in front of the fire or laying beside me on the love seat, getting lots of belly rubs, long walks whenever she feels like it, and sleeping on the bed. We take naps, we sleep late, and we take excursions into the wilderness. Journey lets me know when my lap needs to be available for her to sit in and when she wants to drive the car. There was only one incident of road rage but I calmed her down. She is my protector and lets me know when bad people are around. I believe I will nominate her for dog of the year.

A Harness For Journey

There is an old country saying that goes something like "I would rather sandpaper a bobcat's butt in a phone booth than...." do something that was going to be very difficult. I broke down and bought Journey a harness so I could more easily walk her because she was shredding collars as quickly as I could buy them. As soon as I open the door to walk her, she takes off at one hundred miles an hour and doesn't slow down until I get her back in the house. Since I can't move that fast, she constantly pulls on the leash. I thought a harness was the answer and under normal circumstances it would be.

Journey is far from the normal puppy. I have often compared her to a two year old child. She is into everything, she grabs the toilet paper from the bathroom, she grabbed a toilet brush and goes sprinting thru the house with it, she is always harassing the cat..... and you get the picture. I love Journey and would not trade her for anything in the world and that is the beauty of being a dog owner. She is my partner in crime and I am hoping she would not trade me in either.

A New Friend

Journey made a new friend in the neighborhood the other day. My neighbor rescued a pit bull puppy named Crosby and Journey got to have a meet and greet the other day. Journey is a friendly puppy and Crosby is a puppy so they got along pretty well and seemed to enjoy each other's company. My neighbor's daughter had Crosby out this afternoon and Journey dragged me over to Crosby and they played with each other but I don't think Journey was happy that I gave Crosby belly rubs intended for her but it was all good. Journey has not had much of a opportunity to interact with other dogs and all she knows is Ellie the cat. Therefore Journey acts like a cat most of the time and plays like a cat but Crosby really doesn't know the difference so a canine friendship is born. That is until Crosby gets to be five times the size of Journey and then I will probably rethink the friendship.

Journey The Lap Dog

All of the dogs I have ever owned have all been bigger dogs and could probably never be considered lap dogs. Max the German Short Hair thought he was but at about 70 pounds and his baseball bat like tail, he caused some serious damage when he jumped in your lap. Molly was not friendly enough to anyone, including me, to be considered a lap dog and then along comes Journey. Journey is the first true lap dog I have ever owned. I can get used to this. When I come home at the end of the day and Journey's initial excitement at me being home wears off, she curls up in my lap and gives me snuggles and doggy kisses and lets me know that in the end everything will be ok, and if it's not ok, it's not the end. She snuggles up beside me at night and he is a great nap buddy. I love my little lap dog.

Are You Awake?

Since I now have a cat and a dog, in the interest of fairness, I have to tell my share of cat stories. Ellie the Belly is a beautiful black cat that is 10 years old. She lives for dinnertime. This morning she woke me up at 2 AM wanting to be fed. She first tried patting me on the face with her paws. I can hear her best Sylvester the cat voice saying, "Hey Dan! Are you awake?"I threatened to pull all of the hair out of her tail. Ellie decided that she would try to make amends by washing my hair with her sandpaper-like tongue. Since I still have most of my hair, I thought it would be in my best interests to go ahead and get up and feed her. As it turns out, it was a small price to pay.

You Have Pop Tart On Your Breath

I believe my puppy Journey measures my days by what kind of food I smell like when I come home. One afternoon, I had spilled some white sauce from a Japanese restaurant on my hoodie at lunch, and he honed in on that as soon as I got home. I finally had to take my hoodie off and give it to her so she would leave me alone. The next day I had spilled some hot dog chili on my pants and she had a field day with that. I was too tired to take my pants off so Journey had to do the best she could do. One afternoon I had a pop tart when I got home and she smelled pop tart on my breath and I ended up having to put her up for a while so I could have some peace. Journey thinks if whatever I eat is good enough for me, it is bound to be good enough for her.

My Saving Grace

Once again, I have reached a time in my life where my animals have become my saving grace. In this case, it is my cat Ellie the Belly and Journey the Puppy, a brindle colored Yorkie/Scottie mix (I call her a "Yottie.") Before I go to work in the morning and when I get home in the afternoon, Journey crawls into my lap for some quality cuddle time and some snuggles. They both sleep with me and they make for good nap buddies. I do not know where I would be without them.