It snowed this week, just a little bit.

Emilie's mom sent Dharma a little doggie vest for cold, wet weather. It is quite reflective.

It matches Emilie's new coat.

Dharma's coat arrived just in time for the biggest snow storm of the year. It snowed.

And snowed.

And snowed some more. Derek had to shovel snow just so a little doggie could get outside to do her business!

Derek also had to shovel the driveway. Three times.

Derek's new weather station was buried in snow.

So we had to turn to more primitive methods of measurement. It snowed more than twelve inches in all.
And it is just starting to melt.

Books, books, books!

The new bookshelf isn't QUITE full, yet.

Books are one of my favorite gifts, to give and to receive. As I mentioned, we got lots of books for Christmas. Here are a few of them:

The City of Dreaming Books, a novel about a fantasy world obsessed with books.

Swindled: The Dark History of Food Fraud, from Poisoned Candy to Counterfeit Coffee, by Bee Wilson (this one is part of my weight-loss program!)

Maps that Made History, by Lez Smart (Is that his real name?)

The Garden in Bloom, Ann Lovejoy (So nice to read when it is snowing outside!)

Sacred Food: Cooking for Spiritual Nourishment, Elisabeth Luard (With recipes.)

The Naming of Names, Anna Pavord (A really cool book about Linnaeus and binomial nomenclature.)

How to Cook a Hippopotamus: The Folio Book of Quaint and Curious Advice (Includes "How to Behave on a Sinking Ship," "The Market Value of Good Manners," and a recipe for Bear Rump Roast.)

When you Catch an Adjective, Kill It: The Parts of Speech, for Better and/or Worse, Ben Yagoda (This brings to mind a friend's t-shirt: English doesn't borrow words from other languages. It knocks them out in dark alleyways and goes through their pockets, looking for loose grammar.)

Bizarre Books: A Compendium of Classic Oddities, Russell Ash and Brian Lake (Such as "Living with the Dead," "How to Avoid Work" and "The Art of Faking Exhibition Poulty." I haven't noticed How to Cook a Hippopotamus in here, but I'm not finished reading. Unfortunately, this book lacks ordering information!)

So, let me know: what books did you get for Christmas?

Daily doxie dose:

Even a puppy can't make this carpet look good! Doesn't she look disapproving? This ugly carpet was in our hotel on the way to Kansas. We learned there are two kinds of hotels that accept dogs: the kind where Paris Hilton stays with her little chihuahuas and the kind where a little dog pee can't really make the room any dirtier. Seriously.

Home improvement

Derek would like to state, for the record "I hate home improvement projects!" We managed to take an entire evening to put up a second towel bar in the guest bath. Someone might have lost the drill, then someone might have not held the drill very steady while drilling. If you do that, the hole ends up too big. Then the plastic anchor disappears into the little hole. (We eventually just pushed it in and let it fall down in between the walls. 'Bye-bye little plastic problem!) Then we had to find a bigger anchor and a bigger screw. Someone even insisted on using the level to make sure the towel bar was perfectly straight. But, we got it done.


I'm not sure it was worth it. Even though I did hang some pictures I made over the new towel bar. That part went much better.


And, don't forget, your daily dachshund dose. Here is Dharma, trying to prevent Derek from playing video games. After all, he should be playing with HER.

Finally!

On the twelfth day of Christmas
My true love gave to me
Twelve drummers drumming

Tapping their dainty paws on tiny golden drums.

Actually, her paw is behind the drum. Isn't it a cute little drum? It was part of a somewhat gaudy floral pick from the craft store. It was so tiny, I was afraid she might try to eat it. When we started taking pictures, Dharma got all excited, because she gets treats for posing. And she practices her "sit" and "stay," so it's very educational. I love this picture because you can see the cute little whorl of fur on her chest. Take my word for it, it is a very soft spot to pet when she rolls over on her back and lets you rub her belly.

Behind her, you can see part of our new bookshelf. We got so many books for Christmas that we needed more shelves. (Not that books are a bad thing, not at all!) And my mom is cleaning out her house by filling up mine. So she sent me most of my childhood books, including some Little Golden Books. I remember those fondly. When we went to the grocery store, if I was really, really good, sometimes I got a book. That was way better than candy. So, clearly, I have always been a nerd. Even before I could read.

On the 'Leventh Day of Christmas

My true love gave to me
Eleven Pipers Piping

What? You didn't think we'd let her smoke a pipe, did you? How do you get a doxie so interested in a horn-shaped Christmas ornament? With peanut butter, of course.

I know, this series is taking a bit longer than twelve days. Epiphany was the 5th, and that was when the 12 Days of Christmas should have ended. I'm not sure why "having an epiphany" means coming to a sudden revelation. It seems like it should mean something more like "getting a surprise present." Since, of course, that's what Jesus got when the Three Wise Men showed up on Epiphany. Or maybe it should mean "getting a strange and totally impractical present." I mean . . . frankincense? What a great baby gift. Actually, come to think of it, maybe an air freshener IS a good present for a new baby. They CAN be kind of stinky, especially before disposable diapers and plastic trash bags were invented.

It is still the Christmas season, though. To prove it, I present a picture of Dharma getting a slightly delayed Christmas present today. It was a squirrel, from two little doggies she gave cookies. Doggies aren't so big on calendar dates, its more of the thought that counts.

Ten lords a-leaping!

Well, really only one cute "lady" leaping. But she's really leaping!

Air Dharma!

She also does hurdles.

Elapsed time: .3 seconds

Elapsed time: .5 seconds

Excellent form! Just look at that dismount! Did you see those ears fly?

After so many jumps, Dharma decided maybe she needed a parachute. Unfortunately, sometimes you get tangled in your own 'chute.

It is so embarrassing!

Actually, that isn't a parachute harness. It is the little harness for her cute doggie car seat. Yes, she has a car seat.


Partially for safety, but also so I didn't have to hold her for 12 hours straight while we drove to Kansas over Christmas. I think she liked it. She could see out of the window or curl up and sleep.


Of course, I did hold her part of the time.


This is the only way to travel: a book in one hand and a doxie in the other!

Ladies dancing!

On the ninth day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me
Nine ladies dancing.

Dharma dancing, with a little help from Emilie.

Dharma says, "Enough with the pictures. Let's boogie!" (While, apparently, flashing the "puparazzi.") I know, it looks like she's going to bite me, but she's actually crunching up a Milkbone.

All that dancing makes for a tired puppy:

Eight days and counting. . .

On the eighth day of Christmas

My true love gave to me
Eight maids a milking.

Or just one really cute little milk maid!

Dharma says: Yum, milk!

And a close up of her new outfit:

On the Seventh Day of Christmas. . .

My true love gave to me
Seven swans a swimming.

Emilie: Uh, Dharma? Where are the other five swans?

Dharma: Oh, no, Mommy. I ate them! I thought they were snacks, not props. But they weren't nearly as yummy as the French hens. Do we have any more of those?

Just kidding. Actually, the "swans" are little scented soaps. And there were only two of them to begin with. Honest.

On the Sixth Day

On the sixth day of Christmas,
My true love gave to me

Six geese a-laying

Yes, they were real eggs. No eggs were injured in this photo session.

When we were taking these pictures, my mom said, "Boy, is Daddy going to be mad if we break eggs in the bed!"

There were lots of pictures of furry blurs, of Emilie's hands, and a few of doggie butts. Here are a few and what I imagine the doggies were saying:

Holly: Hey, Dharma. Eggs!

Dharma: Hmm. . .

Both: Sniff, sniff, sniff.

Dharma: (Sniff) These are REAL eggs!

Both: Mine, mine, mine!

The Fifth Day

On the fifth day of Christmas, my true love gave to me
Five Golden Rings
(And two little doxies!)

Holly, with black fur and red collar, is my mom's dog. She is older than Dharma, but smaller. Dharma, with chocolate brown fur and pink collar, is bigger but she is only 20 months old. They play together pretty well--as long as Dharma doesn't touch Holly's favorite toy, a little squeaky pig.

Gratuitous dog picture:

Baby loves bling!