Whiskers

Loves my little guy!  Though he isn't so little now.  This was taken awhile ago....

4:00aM

Spring Ducklings

I received a phone call from the post office at 5 am Wednesday morning to come pick up my ducklings! This year I only ordered 4 fawn-colored Indian Runners, though they sent me 6 of them. It was a warm, sunny day on Saturday so I took them outside for a field day :-)

They were content to just run around near me thankfully, since two of our dogs were keeping a close eye on them.  

They even took turns pecking at my lips!  Too cute.... 

Exploring the Forget-Me-Nots 

Afterwards, they enjoyed a little playtime in the sink :-)

Whiskers

I have a new lil' buddy that came home from the pet store with Olivia (11 year old granddaughter) and me  this week while she is visiting during her spring break:

He's the cutes little guy, and so friendly!

Cuddle Buds

They are just so dang cute :-}

Healthy Dog Biscuits

It's not too late to make Fido that last minute Christmas gift to put under the tree tonight!

 Healthy Dog Biscuits

 

1 3/4 cup beef or chicken broth

1 package dry yeast

2 cups whole wheat flour

2 cups all-purpose flour

1/2 cup cornmeal

1/2 cup wheat germ

1 tsp salt

1/3 cup safflower oil

1/3 cup finely chopped fresh mint

1 egg lightly beaten with 1 tsp water

 To make the dough, heat broth in small saucepan to 105 degrees.  Sprinkle yeast over water and stir to dissolve.  Let mixture proof at room temperature for 5 minutes.  Pour yeast mixture into bowl of a standing mixer with a paddle attachment.  Add flours, wheat germ, cornmeal salt, oil and mint.  Mix on medium speed until a soft dough is formed.  Remove to well-floured surface.  Knead 10-12 times until texture is smooth.  Cover dough with a kitchen towel and let rest for 20 minutes.

 Roll dough out to about 1/4 inch thickness. Using cookie cutters that are bone shapes, cut out the biscuits.

 Place 1/2 inch apart on parchment lined baking sheets.

Brush the biscuits with the beaten egg and water mixture.

Bake at 400 degrees for 30-50 minutes, depending on the size of cookie cutters you used, until lightly browned. Turn oven off and keep biscuits inside for another 30 minutes to crisp. Remove, cool and store in plastic bags.

Your dog will not only love you for these treats, but he will also have fresh, minty breath!



Smilebox

My niece Melissa introduced me to a fun new format to present photos!  There is a free version that may be upgraded to a $40/year version if you want more options.  I am trying out the free version with this Smilebox of our dogs and cats.  Please turn your speakers on and feel safe to view this type of  slide show from me.  Also, any Animoto slide shows will be safe as well.  Just remember to never open the slide show from YouTube that gives my name and says it is for natural disasters.  It is spam, but pops up on my blog seemingly every other Friday.  Enjoy!

This digital scrapbook made with Smilebox

Happy Trio

The COLD weather has arrived and this happy threesome are contented to huddle around the fire!

My Sunny Sunshine :-}

Sunshine

 Sunny.  Her name is Sunny.  Because she is my little sunshine :-)

 He might look like a grumpy old fart, but he is a softy underneath it all !

Sunny is such a cuddly little fur ball.  Hard to escape her, though! My sidekick :-)

'Nother One!

Meet the newest member of our (supposedly shrinking) family

Crummy pictures, but so be it.  I have always had a weak spot for orange and white kitties.  Always.  We were not able to keep cats alive on the busy country road that we lived on growing up, so we stuck to dogs after awhile.  But I loved kittens.  So not long after I was married, a 3 week old abandoned orange and white kittie found its way into my purse and snuck into our little rental house in Southern CA.  Tigger was the first of many Orange and whites over the years.  In the last maybe 10 years I have opted to not have male cats, as no matter when we get them neutered, they tend to spray their foul smell at the most inappropriate places.  Which means any place at all, in my thoughts.  I haven't had an o&w cat for a long time, so have been keeping my eye out for a female one.  Every time I find one, it is a male.  Unbeknownst to me until recently, almost all orange cats are male! Last Thursday I was at the pet store buying crickets for my Leo the Leopard gecko and I happened to glance at the big cage near the counter where they keep their kittens.  "Oh!  You have an orange and white little kittie!", I exclaimed to the cashier who was busy counting out 30 crickets for me.  "Yes!", she responded, "And the neat thing about this one is that it is a female!".  That had my name written all over it!  But I did not want to buy her impulsively, so I ripped myself away from her and told the woman that I would go to the library, and I might be back in a bit.  From the parking lot of the library, I called Darrell at work, and asked him to talk me out of something.  Instead, he named half a dozen reasons why I should buy the kittie.  I listed a few reasons why it was a bad idea, so after making sure I wanted talking out of this, he agreed, but said it was up to me.  Sooooo........

What a cutie pie she is!  Purrs, cuddles and likes to be right by me :-}  As always, the big question for me is what to name a new pet?  I am leaning towards Sammi or Josie.  Any thoughts?  Or suggestions? (I've had a couple of Pumpkins already).

Squirrelly Thief

Hibernation is over and they are back at it!  Stealing the birds' food!

Lipizzaners!

As a young girl, Bethany was given this book from a neighbor for whom she did some laborious work for.  She loved horses, and spent some years in riding lessons and riding.  When she saw that the World Famous Lipizzaner Stallions, the White Dancing Stallions of Vienna, were coming to Everett this weekend, she was excited to be able to see them in real life, and Darrell and I were invited to accompany her!

 They also had a 1500 pound Black Parisian Dancing Horse!  It was amazing to see something so massive prance around as if he were walking on clouds!

 One could barely hear the hooves of the big stallions as they danced and pranced across the floor to classical music.  Truly an amazing sight to behold!

Chick Time!

I sent Darrell down to the feed store to pick out FOUR new chicks this year, just enough to assure I will get a few eggs daily throughout next winter.  Chickens over a year old tend to lay only sporadically during the cold winters up here.  I knew that if I went, I'd end up picking out 10-12 different varieties of chicks, like happens every year, and then I get a butt-load of eggs everyday during the first year they lay.  Too many! 

Which one looks more likely to eat the chick?!?!

My New Friend

I made a new friend with a gentle bumble bee today......

I asked him nicely if he'd come out and play!

Then I watched as he collected pollen, cute as can be.

Now it's time for a real poem about a

Bumble Bee

While Strolling Through the meadow

One fine and sunny day

I came upon a little Bumblebee

Along the way

He was dancing and jiving

He was as happy as could be

So I asked him what he was doing

He said "Can't you see?" "See what",

I said as he bounced

There on my knee

"I'm happy as a bumble bee",

That is what he said

As he tapped his little toes

And Bounced upon my nose

I'm going to be a father bee

Happy day's oh happy days

~Darryn John Murphy

Manatees!

Just a bit down the coast from Tampa, the electric plant was built years ago.  The water is warmer here, due to the plant's existence, and so the manatees have made it one of their favorite hangouts!

We saw so many of these giants........ close to a hundred or more!

Here is a tail. the last part to go under after a surfacing.

Manatees are known as gentle giants, weighing in between 800-1200 pounds!  It was incredible to see so many!

Early Gifts

Zeke and Scout enjoyed early Christmas gifts yesterday :o}  Scout received the outer part of a doggie bed to snuggle into on these cold, cold days and nights, while Zeke enjoys the inner cushion for his pillow.  Besides the little stuffed animal that Zeke arrived with, he has never shown any interest in other toys, such as  Scout's balls.  However, they both are rambunctiously enjoying these new toys and others that came in a boxed package from Costco!  Merry Christmas, Boys!

Creepy Crawlers

Just a few more before I move on to something else:

Spider waiting to capture its prey in the jungle

This fellow (and I am sure some of his friends) freely moved in and out of our room through gaps in the structure.



The Agouti ,  a big tailess rat-like creature all over the jungle, including running around outside our room.

The Coatis, a raccoon-like animal with an exceptionally long tail!

Wild turkeys with their warty heads abounded here.  Pretty coloring, though!

What we never saw, though heard clearly, were the howler monkeys.  Both at dusk (well, okay, so it was pitch black) while we were fumbling our way out of the jungle ruins, and the next dawn as we crept back in, the howlers were letting all know they were there with their ferocious roars!  I kid you not, they sound just like the mighty lion, the King of the Jungle!  It was truly incredible!  We also never saw any puma or jaguars that reside in the jungle, and forunately didn't run into any boa constictors, coral or rattle snakes while there.  Both the white tail and the red deer also call the jungle their home.