Dogs and Wine in Mexico

Look. At. That. Sigh.

What does this have to do with dogs and/or wine you ask? Thinking... thinking... searching... ok, I got nuthin'. These are a pictures from when we went on our honeymoon a couple of months ago and I decided to share because Mexico just kind of rocks. Besides, there are dogs in Mexico. And wine. Amazingly enough we somehow managed to find the wine on our honeymoon...



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Secret Hiding Place for my Winter Underwear

Did a little spring cleaning the other day- decided to put all the winter stuff away and bring out the bright and sunny summer stuff. And this is was the result. Complete and utter frustrating pandemonium. The people who lived here previously forgot to mention that any closet and storage space we thought we saw in each room would shrivel up and die the very second they handed over the keys. The VERY SECOND. "There's a closet" POOF!!!! No more closet. No more cupboards. No more shelves, no more place to put anything, no more AIR. Where did the air go, I could have sworn WE WERE SUPPOSED TO HAVE AIR?!!!??!

Mickey thought it was great fun, of course. We don't care what Mickey thinks.

Turns out there is a bit of storage and its door is conveniently located in the following location:

• underneath the carpet in the closet by the front door (i.e. under the house)

Did you get that? UNDER THE CARPET. As in under it. You have to pull the carpet up. And you have to remove the closet doors in order to pull the carpet up. So the doors were in the living room somewhere.

Don't believe me? Photographic evidence:


Who is their right FREAKING mind would require that you remove closet doors and pull up carpet to get to the access point to ANYTHING? PLEASE TELL ME, FANCY DESIGNERS. Maybe this would be a good place to hide fugitives, or money after I rob a bank, or perhaps even a growth op (that is "bad guy" lingo for a place where one might grow drugs. I think), but I am pretty damn sure my winter UNDERWEAR does not need a secret hiding place.

The image above shows John reaching (reaching!) for air as he heave ho's the aforementioned Winter Underwear.

Right after this we went for dinner and downed our french wine. Can ya blame us? After all of that we should have had two bottles...

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Happy Tails

Went on a walk with the dogs the other day and, as usual, Kayloo got preoccupied with something and got to lagging behind. When we called her and she came trotting along she just looked like she was in absolute ecstasy. And really... she was. She was outside, off leash, running around, the whole pack was together and all of this was combined with the joyful aftertaste of whatever crap I imagine she had just found and ate. Things were pretty crap-tastic. I'd say this would be the Mickey equivalent.

Her tail even looks like it is having a party back there. My dogs have funny tails.

Tough Little Purple Flowers

We took the dogs for a walk last weekend (here's another pic) and in addition to nearly scorching ourselves and almost getting lost in the forest, we crested an incredible mini-mountain, feeling rather victorious in the effort. The entire space was just a mass of rock face and wind blown grass beaten and dried by the sun. Even though there wasn't one green blade of grass on the entire peak, these beautiful and tireless purple flowers peeked out everywhere, petals stretched out, inviting the wind and the sun to beat down for another day.

Tough little flowers.

All About the Stick

Sometimes it is just very important to fight for the stick. In Mickey and Kayloo's case... it is ALWAYS important to fight for the stick. ALWAYS. Sometimes it's important to sleep (like here or here or here)... but all the time it's important to compete and fight and every now and then win. Sometimes I wish I was more like that.

Tastes Like the Smell of Mr. Clean

Same lovely French restaurant that I was telling you about last week- different wine altogether (no, we aren't total lushes. We're lushes, sans the "total").

In actual fact we didn't want dessert wine. What we wanted was limoncello. That's right, limoncello. Do you know how many times I have had to defend limoncello's honour? Countless. And guys, come on! It's good! No, limoncello does not "taste like the smell of Mr. Clean." And no, it doesn't taste like lemon juice on steroids. It just doesn't.

I have a giant bottle of the stuff in my wine rack (yes, I realize wine should be in a wine rack, I've got limited space and a limited budget... I'm not storing socks in there yet, so we're still ok), and I just discovered it is a giant bottle of total crap. We made the mistake of ordered one glass of high quality limoncello and one glass of "in the paper bag" quality so we could compare. Turns out we've been drinking crap all this while. Good to know. It would have been BETTER to know this BEFORE I bought 4 litres of crap. It would have even been better to know AFTER we downed the giant bottle of Mr. Clean and forced the majority of it on our guests all the while demanding that they agree how great the taste was. That way we could have downed and forced in ignorant bliss. But knowing now is good too. I'll think of something. I'm sure there's a birthday or wedding coming up somewhere...

Anyway- what we ended up having was Blackberry Wine by Starling Lane Winery. It was very, very good. That is my professional review: Very, very good. There is no way this stuff would ever make it into the Kitchen Wine Bottle, for sure.

And here is another poster because the last one was such a hit.


Overall Review: Very, very good (Thumbs Up)

Welcome to Your Amazing Life

So, here's my Theory:

Life is shit and then you die...

or

Life is amazing... and then you die.

Please- choose amazing, people! Why not?

Choose remarkable. Choose crazy and smart and daring and cheeky. Move forward! Say what you think and if you don't know what that is put in the work and FIGURE IT OUT. Satisfactory is no longer good enough.

Now, you can't un-know this.

If you weren't there already: Welcome to your amazing life.

The Effectiveness of Screaming like a Banshee

This picture is from the same trip up island (in British Columbia). Right before this an evil hawk (eagle? dragon? who cares...) was circling around our heads planning its attack to make a nice light snack of Mickey. The Evil Monster was swooping in, swooping out, swooping in, swooping out and I'm pretty sure his EYES WERE RED and he had a DEMONIC SMILE. All the while I'm running around the beach screaming like a banshee, waving my hands over my head & hollering at John: "You get him RIGHT NOW! Grab him! Get him! Take this SERIOUSLY John!!! Ahhhh! The sky is FALLING!!!!!" Mickey thought this was a fabulous game and kept safely out of reach while the crazy woman (me) got herself all wet splashing in the puddles across the entire beach.

As it turned out my lunacy was very effective and the Evil Hawk left us alone and we all lived happily ever after so the dogs could roll in mud puddles and tromp all over big rocks covered in clams.

I absolutely loved watching them run down the beach. Look at their happy tails! One might say they were happy as clams...

French Restaurant (capital "F," capital "R")

John and I celebrated our anniversary (ahhh, ooooh) and we went to this fabulous, cute little restaurant that had a bunch of wonderful posters on the walls. It was cool and quaint and made us miss Europe. It was a French Restaurant (capital "F," capital "R"). You can probably tell because in the poster above, the woman is BARE CHESTED. GASP!!! When I was in Amsterdam I don't think I ever saw so many naked women in advertising in my life. And I was scandalized, I must say. I once went to a perfectly reputable restaurant and on the large (too large in this case) screens there were people doing things that you don't want to watch while you are eating. Why on earth did they think that would be a good idea? I am far too prude for that kind of thing. What happened to good old fashioned Dutch windmills and clogs and marijuana and prostitution with your meal?

Since we were at a French Restaurant we had French Wine. We never have french wine. We have Australian wine and Chilean wine and South African wine... but not a lot of French. And when I say "not a lot" I mean "nada." It was a 2007 Brouilly, a red Beaujolais wine, and I have probably completely embarrassed myself by missing something important in the name, but in any case, you have the picture there below so you can find it if you want to give it a go. The candle doesn't come with it.


Overall Review: Thumbs Up (even from John!)

Crazy Freaking Huge or Where's Mickey? (look closely)...

We went up island awhile ago and passed through Cathedral Grove. Will ya look at that? Kayloo and I are posing somewhere down below Mickey's paws for the picture above (Kayloo is a wee bit of a camera hog)- we couldn't get Mickey to sit beside me for the photo op. The trees are humongous. More than humongous. They are crazy, freaking huge. I love all of the contours and colours; sometimes it is so nice to feel so very small... and to actually like it. It is such a great feeling to see the dogs on adventures.

Update: So, I'm being told that the first pic looks like a picture of a great big tree and that's it. Without trying I've created a bit of a Where's Waldo?... although it's Where's Mickey? See that split in the wood at the top left of the picture? Move your eyes down and to the right... there! See him? There we go.


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Very, Very Tired

This is Kayloo. She is very VERY TIRED thank-you-very-much-go-away-with-the-camera-already. I am noticing a bit of a theme here in terms of her level of activity (this girl really does like her rest).

Perfect Little Furry Cherubs

Here they are after a long walk in the woods. Peaceful. Sweet. Perfect little furry cherubs. When they are like this I can almost remember what they were like when they were wee pups (Kayloo and Mickey).


And this is what they are really like:



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Wine: We're Just Not That Into You

I drank the last glass of this bottle (2006, Santa Amelia Reserva Selection, Cabernet Sauvignon Maule Valley Chile) on a Very Special Date with Myself. Ah, the Self Date. As you all know, I love my husband dearly... but who can resist the pull of an Evening All to Oneself? Sigh. I mean, I didn't go an light a bunch of candles or anything, but it was lovely all the same.

It was a Friday, which is the absolute best day of the week in my humble opinion. I was tired, but not so that I fell asleep as soon as I crashed on the couch. And I got to watch a bone fide click flick (He's Just Not That Into You) without being assaulted with scoffs every time someone did something "unrealistic." Unrealistic? Um. I am not so sure what is "unrealistic" about guys and girls swirling around in a sea of indecision and emotional pandemonium before falling breathlessly into the warm embrace of total and utter HAPPINESS AND SPLENDOR AND AMAZINGNESS AND FANTASTIC OUTFITS AND CUPS OF LATTE THAT NEVER END. What is so unrealistic about that exactly?

Anywho- the wine. The first glass I had had a chance to breathe for almost an hour (I forgot to water my plants and my mother says that if I kill one more plant I am going to Plant Hell and well, you can only imagine how that keeps me up at night), but it still tasted like it needed more time. By the time Friday came around it had definitely improved. It's a bit spicy and woodsy on the nose with a hint of current. John said there was a hint of "old."

John's Review: Thumbs Down
Shauna's 1st Review: Thumbs Down
Shauna's 2nd Review: Thumbs Up
Overall Review: Thumbs Up because I obviously get two votes on the vote I think is more important.

A Good Adventure

Here we have the dogs on an Adventure. Never mind that Mickey can keep himself occupied for 10 minutes nosing around a blanket... here the pups are on a REAL adventure. I think on this particular walk the dogs took down a bear and a wild boar and a squirrel and a Sasquatch. Hang on... they didn't get the squirrel. Vicious creatures those little vermin are...

And below we have the Ever Growing Kayloo being Good (check out how much smaller she was!). Look at those ears! She almost flew away just the other day...

Wine: Dodgy Little Penguin

This "Little Penguin" bottle, although sitting out by my front step for this photo because it is Oh So Artistic, generally sits on the counter in my kitchen by my stove. You'll notice that the label is slightly torn at the top. In my house, this is a VERY good indication that this bottle has been around for awhile because bottles of wine are NEVER around for long enough for anything to happen to their labels. Nosireebob. Wine enters the house, is corked & is drunk in one fell swoop (a quick shout out to all the small town folks! Yeeah!).

No, this bottle serves a very special purpose: I am thrifty (read: cheap) and, rather than throw out wine that has escaped my gullet and dared to get old, I put it in this bottle and use it for cooking. Is that weird? Does anyone else do this? Please don't write to me and tell me that I am violating some major health code and I am one step away from starting an Off Wine epidemic.

Overall rating: a very wary Thumbs Up because I have no idea what is in that bottle nowadays.

The Wonderful, Cold Beach

I love going to the beach. I hadn't been to a beach when it was cold until I was in my 20's- I think I was in Australia. For a girl from the interior of British Columbia a cold beach is a novel phenomenon. The only large bodies of water around my home town were lakes and you certainly didn't willingly drive a half hour to seek them out when you've just finished thawing your car engine with a hairdryer.

This is Kayloo's first time and she is sticking close by Mickey, much to his chagrin I'm sure.

16lbs of Holy Terror

When Kayloo first came into our home we were worried that Mickey wasn't going to be high energy enough for her. Kayloo would nip at his tail, his nose... his entire head. She'd bounce around, nudge him and then lay on him in a final attempt to get his attention. Mickey would run in the other direction with his tail securely between his legs, ignore her entirely or stare at me with pleading eyes. I am fairly certain he was saying something along the lines of: Are you KIDDING me? Why oh WHY is she touching me and how did she get in here anyway? And then slowly, ever so slowly Mickey became less shy and blossomed into a wee, fuzzy, 16lb, brown bundle of HOLY TERROR. I am not kidding. He was a growling, humping pain in the butt and he only calmed down after we ran him on his exercise wheel thing for half a day. And then he'd blink and be back at it again.

These pictures are taken before Mickey became Evil. Below you can see Mickey is plainly saying*: I see that you have put your paw in my eyeball. Again. We've talked about this. I hate you.

*Don't humanize your dogs people. It's weird.

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Kayloo's Home Visit (or Puking at the New Home)

Before I begin, I would like to say that I've been getting a bit of (jealous?) feedback that I may have gone on & on & on about the Victoria Pet Adoption Society. To you Jealous Feedbackers I say: (Victoria Pet Adoption Society) What do you mean (Victoria Pet Adoption Society)? I don't really get (Victoria Pet Adoption Society) what you are getting at. Weird (Victoria Pet Adoption Society).

Moving on... This was Kayloo's first time at our house for the "home visit" portion of the adoption process. First, we met Kayloo at the Society and a few days later a lovely woman from the Society came to our house so she could evaluate if we were crazy and to what degree we would freak out if she promptly puked all over our carpet (which she did). Apparently we did alright because a few days after that we were allowed to come and pick her up. Fantastic!

And there is Mickey in the very background to the left. I've heard that it is a good sign if dogs ignore each other.

Merry Christmas Mickey!

Here we have a crooked scan of the Christmas card the puppy daycare took of Mickey on Christmas Day. I know, horridly unprofessional (a scan... gasp!)- but I just had to include this picture. What kind of mom would I be to include a Christmas picture of the black and white one, without including a Christmas picture of the brown one? I'd start getting feedback that I was racist, I am sure. Will you look at the PAWS! They are TURNED OUT people! He looks slightly concerned, his head looks way to big for the rest of him and I am sure he is aware that he is not quite pulling off that little 'kerchief. Classic. Love it.

Merry Christmas Kayloo!

The Victoria Pet Adoption Society took Kayloo to see Santa Claus. That is just fantastic! I can just imagine what she would have been like too- Kayloo is a dog who is liable to lick you to death so I am sure his beard wasn't the same after meeting her. Nowadays Kayloo likes to lick her guests for the following reasons:

• you just got out of the shower
• you have bare feet
• you just put lotion on
  
• you had salmon recently... or a few weeks ago
• it's Tuesday
  
• you put your hand anywhere near her snout
• she is saying good morning to you for the first time that day (or the 2nd or 3rd)
• she turns her head & suddenly realizes that your face is in licking distance & remembers that she hasn't yet tried to get her tongue up your nose today
• + a few other reasons I can't remember right now
  

Introducing Miss Kayloo

Little Miss Kayloo. At this point she had not yet made our home brighter, but she was melting hearts all over. Of course she was! Kayloo was abandoned when she was 4 weeks old and the fabulous people at the Victoria Pet Adoption Society brought her back to her perfect, shiny puppy dog self. How evil do you need to be to abandon a puppy? Sigh... she is so gorgeous...

Giant!

Mickey trying to sleep on the little cushion but he is having difficulty because of how freaking humongous he is. He is a giant, gargantuan dog! Remember how small and cute he was? Like here and here? He could practically digest an entire horse whole now. WHOLE I say!

Diesel

Here is a shout out to Diesel the Chocolate Lab puppy. I was certain he was pretty much a genius. I mean, he was 5 minutes old and he peed right on that special little pad! Handy!

CIBC Run for the Cure/Mafioso

"Running" for the CIBC Run for the Cure. Everyone kept on looking at me like I was evil or something for not carrying him more than I did. It was raining & I heard murmurs of "he's too cold," "poor little guy," and "she should be carrying that little dog." Right. Didn't they know I was training him to run on a Mickey-sized exercise wheel so he could, all on his own, create enough electricity to run every gadget in our house + the 50 storey apartment building down the street? I would have picked him up if it wasn't for that, honest people.

He kind of looks like he figures he is somebody, doesn't he? Fergehd abowdit.

Small as a Button

I am putting this one in, out of sequence, because... omg, look at how little he was! He used to fit under the couch- he'd kick things under there and then go in after them. I distinctly remember one of the last times he did that- he got stuck for a good couple of minutes. And then barked and snarled like the couch had a personal vendetta against him. Probably did.

Sears Model

Here we are cruisin' at the ocean. Kind of looks like he has a Sears pose going on there, doesn't it? If only he could point & squint off into the distance.

A Genius I Say...

I taught him to play this game where he sits at the top of the stairs, I stand at the bottom and he "throws" the ball down to me. My dog is a GENIUS I tell you! Never mind the fact that he eats cat doo and spent the first 5 months of his life running into the SIDE of the couch each time he tried to scale it... but still, clearly a genius. That little statue in the background (not chewed on... yet) was given to us by friends in Holland. I LOVE it. It's from Bali and is called Calm or Serene or Shauna FOR THE LOVE OF GOD CHILL OUT. Something like that.

Monkey

You can tell just looking at him that he's a cheeky monkey, can't you? I'm sure right before this he hung out on the couch chowing down on my dinner and shortly after he went and peed on the floor. And then proceeded to bark for a half hour.

Helping Mom Pack

I was about to go out of town for work & Mickey decided to jump into my suitcase to help me pack. I think at this point traveling for work was still a novelty, but I have the sneaking suspicion that sometime shortly after this my interest in work travel came to an abrupt and obvious end. I mean, COME ON people! He is a puppy & he is SITTING IN MY SUITCASE! And he is cocking his head! Who can resist that? A puppy... and a suitcase... and the ears...

Safe in his Crate

Mickey is crate trained. Sometimes it takes a Kong lace with cocaine (i.e. Rollover) to get him in there, but he goes in and he no longer cries about it. There was a time when we couldn't get him out of his crate. Sigh... those were the days...

Duck Hunting

Mickey is fascinated and mostly scared of the ducks at this point. Never mind the fact that most of those ducks are probably bigger than he is but still... he's a DOG for heaven's sake! And a terrier to boot- isn't he supposed to want to grab ducks & shake them until their heads fall off or something? Anything? To add insult to injury, it looks like his tail is broken.

Mickey's First Bath

Right after Mickey's first bath. This was not a fun time for little Mickey. He didn't jump out, but as I recall he kind of danced around on his nails the whole time...

Our Carpet Would Never Be the Same Again

Here is our little Mickey on the first day as part of The Best Fan-Damly Ever! Omg, how cute is he? On the way home he threw up something like 4 times. Less cute. But look at his little itty bitty floppy ears and his funny wunny widdle nose (insert more ridiculous baby jubba-wubba talk here)!


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