Planning ahead

Emilie has been wondering what Dharma should be for Halloween. Admittedly, it will be hard to top last year's crayon costume. Or the original Tootsie Roll costume.

She could be Sherlock Hound. She would have a head start, since she already has a lovely tweed jacket. Should Emilie wear a matching Victorian costume, maybe? A nice, Gothic mourning costume, perhaps?

The hot dog is kind of a cliche, unless you can put a new twist on it, like they did with this little weiner. Maybe Dharma could be a bottle of mustard? She has a nice, cylindrical shape. And she looks good in yellow. The cap could be a little pointy hat. Any other doxies want to go as the hot dog with her?

She is so sweet, she could be a banana split. I love that hat, but I'm not sure the doxie likes it.

Perhaps a bottle of Hershey's syrup? She is already chocolate colored, so she would just need the label.

I asked Dharma what she would like to be. She suggested she could go as a nudist:

I'm not sure that is appropriate for the small children in the neighborhood to see. She would make a good fairy princess, though.

What do you think, readers?

Bored fur-baby

I, Dharma, am now bored. Maddie is gone. I have napped a lot since she left.

Power napping.

At first it was nice, kind of peaceful. But now, I sort of miss her. I have chewed on all my toys. Rearranged my bed. And I even tried to dig a hole in the floor (unsuccessfully.) Now, I am bored.

And annoyed: Mommy went to work today. I thought I had gotten her trained to stay home with me all day! I worked on it all summer. And then, just like that, she goes back to teaching. She was gone for almost six hours today! Hmmph. She really needs to get her puppy priorities straight.

She says that she works so we can buy noms and toys. But what good are toys if you don't have anyone to play with?

Maybe we need another foreign exchange puppy...

Double-cute puppies!

Bye-bye, Maddie

Yes, Maddie has found her forever family! I, Dharma, am a little lonely, but mostly happy. My mommy says she is going to a very good home, where they will love her and spoil her. And maybe things will get back to normal around her. I hope they are ready for Maddie, she is quite a handful!

One night last week, it got kind of chilly. In an on-going attempt to civilize Mad Maddiekins, Mommy dressed us in little puppy pajamas. I don't think Maddie liked hers.

Or maybe Maddie just liked my pajamas better?

So, instead, we decided to share a nice, snuggly blanket. Maddie is quite warm and soft, when she holds still. Once she fell asleep, we curled up together...

And then cuddled even closer...

Maddie and I became very close during her visit.

It was so nice, we even cuddled some when it wasn't cold.

I shared the sunbeam with Maddie.

I think we finally taught her to play nicely with other doggies. Most of the time. Mommy said she will have other doggies to play with in her new home. Good luck, doggies!

Foreign Exchange Puppy

Dharma here, updating you on our house guest, Maddie. Yes, Derek insists she is a guest, not a family member. Sort of like a foreign exchange student. She will stay here and learn our ways, teach us new things, and then move on.

Don't think Maddie is all cuddles and wiggles. She steals my toys! And then she does the "cute baby puppy" act so well, I can't stay mad at her. I thought I was good with the puppy dog eyes, but she is a master. I think this picture shows her deviousness and determination, don't you?

Charge!

She's cute and she knows it. And she knows how to use it. She has my Mommy wrapped around her little paw.

Don't hate me because I'm beautiful.

What she doesn't know is that she has a appointment with the V-E-T next week. Yep, she is in for a bit of a surprise. Nail trimming, shots, microchipping, and even something my parents call "fixing." I don't understand. Is she broken?

It really irritates me that she gets more food than I do. I know, puppies and their fast metabolism. But she gets two meals a day, and I only get one! And she gets treats for doing the least little thing. The way my parents carry on, you'd think she was pooping rainbows when she "goes" in the backyard. And they don't even get mad when she makes a little puddle inside. It's the magic puppy cuteness, I tell you.

Nobody said she's not allowed on the couch.

But I admit, it has been nice to have someone to play with. And snuggle. She's not allowed in the bed, for some strange reason, but I am. And don't worry, I am still bigger and stronger than she is, so I can always steal my toys right back. Right now I think I will go steal the warm spot she made in my blanket.

Mad Maddiekins!

Marvelous Maddie

Maddie is settling in nicely. She is a puppy, though. So she is very energetic! We are trying to teach her to "SIT" before we give her food. She will sit, but when you start to pass her the food, she jumps up and down in excitement. Even some of my friends commented that, compared to Maddie, Dharma seems so calm and serene. Hence the name Dharma, I suppose. And Maddie's new nickname: Mad Maddiekins. Sort of like the guy in Willow.

Dharma shows Maddie the right way to sunbathe.

She and Dharma are playing together kind of rough, but they both seem to enjoy it. And, so far, there are no injuries (except to the carpet...) They are so cute when they pretend to be fierce!

Maddie, looking wild-eyed, trying to steal a bone from Dharma.

When they fall asleep, they look so innocent, don't they?

Maddie and Dharma, (kind of) sharing the blanket.

Dharma says

I don't hate the foster puppy. I'm just suspicious of her. She's cute, and she worships me. She says she wants to be just like me when she grows up. (First, she'll have to learn not to nip the humans.) But I'm not sure I like the way my Mommy is looking at her. See what I mean?

"Isn't she the cutest thing!"

Maddie update

Maddie has completely worn us out, including Dharma. Since the puppies are both asleep, Emilie will report.

Maddie has peed on the carpet twice, and destroyed one houseplant. To be fair, the houseplant was on its last legs anyway. She is doing very well. She is playful, curious, and affectionate. And if she gets any cuter, she will probably burst. If you look closely, you can see that she has a little white spot on her chest. It is very soft.

Maddie gets tummy rubs.

If she sees Dharma doing something she wants to do it, too. That is good if Dharma is demonstrating SIT before getting breakfast. It is not so good when she wants to chew on theexact same bone that Dharma is chewing on. She also nipped Dharma a few times. Dharma growled at her, and she backed down. Then, thirty seconds later, Dharma was coaxing her out from under the table to play chase. No wonder they are both sound asleep!

Chase! Dharma (left) and Maddie (right.)

Big news!

Having conclusively proven that puppies are the mostest bestest things in the whole wide world, I, Dharma, have some news.

We are fostering another doxie. My mommy says that is like having a foreign exchange student. She will stay with us for a little while, we will teach her proper manners, and then she will move on to live with someone else. I, Dharma, have my doubts about the "moving on" part.

This is Maddie. She is 5 months old.

Of course she's cute. She is a dachshund. She is very playful. Here we are playing together:

Maddie (left) and Dharma.

And I am very tired now, so this will be a short post.

If you know of a very good home for little Maddie, you can contact The Nest.

Puppies are better than men

To be fair, I will now explain why puppies are better than men, too. Aren't you glad, I, Dharma am here to tell you these things?

1. We don’t need to shave. And we are never prickly or stubbly if we don’t.

2. Dogs don’t sweat. Well, technically our paws can sweat, but we don’t even HAVE armpits!

3. You can pick out all our clothes. So you will never be embarrassed to be seen with us.

Bloomers?!? Mommy, what were you thinking?

4. We don’t leave our dirty socks and underwear on the floor. In fact, if you leave yours on the floor, we just might make off with it.

Must be Booger Dog.

5. We don’t care about watching sports. We will never ignore you just because the game is on. If you want to throw us a ball, on the other hand…

6. We will never complain about your housekeeping. To us, your floor is always clean enough to eat off of!

Nom!

7. Doggies love to cuddle. In fact, we will cuddle all day and all night. Snore…

I am helping Mommy work on the computer.

8. We don’t drink out of the carton. Honestly, that is just because we can’t open the refrigerator. Darn opposable thumbs! Why don't they make refrigerators with doggie doors?

9. We will never gripe about your cooking. And we will help you clean up the kitchen floor when you are done. Crunch, crunch. You may never need to sweep again!

I am helping Mommy. Like my hoodie?

10. We really are that into you. We will never stop loving you. Doggies never lie about love. Although we might lie about who made that mess on the carpet…

Here I am, trying to give my Mommy a hug.

Note: For those of you with less well-behaved dogs, Emilie clarifies: Dharma is not trying to be intimate with my arm. She is actually trying to pull off my pink velvet gauntlet to play with it. She loves this velvet belly dance outfit because it is so soft. Sort of like fur. And wouldn't the world be a better place if more people wore gauntlets? Dharma and I think so!