Busy, Busy Buttons

Stuffing Collection

2012-01-31T22:07:00.006-06:00

Last night, Mom started taking up a collection as she walked around the house. "What was she collecting?" you may ask. Here you go:

Yep. That's stuffing from stuffies. She found little pieces all, all, all over the place and decided to put the little pieces into a pile. I have NO idea where all those pieces came from, but I had to check out the collection, of course.

And then I went and found a squeaky toy and played with it while sitting in the stuffy pile.

Mom had the nerve to suggest that I was responsible for the stuffy mess. She said that I was the one who plucked holes in the stuffies...de-stuffed them...and then left the little pieces all over. The nerve of her!

I decided that I was NOT going to sit in that stuffy pile and be blamed for creating the mess. I took my squeaky and walked away.

This is the face of innocence, I tell you.

If you don't believe me, just send me more stuffies and I'll prove it to you. He he he...

Walking

2012-01-29T19:47:00.009-06:00

The sun was shining today, and Mom didn't think it was too cold outside, so we went for a walk. And when I say "walk," I mean WALK. We walked around our pond! We haven't walked that far in months.

Mom says we both got too lazy (not me!) and we needed some good exercise. So off we went!

I was excited because we haven't gone towards the pond in forever, so there were all sorts of new smells for me to sniff!

I had a ton of unsniffed pee-mail to check out.

"Oh, we gotta go that way, too, so I can sniff that tree over there..."

More pee-mail.

There was a TON of "news" to check on the garbage can!

Yet another good sniff spot. (Mom ended up with lots of pictures of me sniffing...)

Mom says the blue garbage can is for recyclables and the green can is for poops.

Here's a scenic picture of my pond.

See how my ears are blown back in this pic and I'm giving Mom a look?

Well that's because Mom "thought" it wasn't cold out...but it WAS! I froze my hiney off. The wind was blowing strong, too. Here's what the weather actually was:

So when I saw our house starting to come into view, I RAN that way!

It was so nice to be inside where it was warm! Mom thought I'd be exhausted from our long walk, but I still had enough energy left to roll for a while on a squeaky.

But I've spent all evening snoozing on the couch.

It was great to get to go on a walk around the pond again! Maybe we should wait for it to warm up before we go again, though. The pee-mail was practically frozen!

A Jungle Out There

2012-01-26T20:16:00.004-06:00

Somebody decided that the trees where I live needed a haircut. At least I guess that's what happened because out of the blue THIS happened:

Hmm...I smell squirrels...

Yep. Definitely squirrels...

Those poor trees, though. Just look at how many limbs were cut off!

At this point in our walk Mom realized she should turn off the flash on her camera. (Someday she'll learn...)

That's a lot of limbs!

See the little piles of limbs in the picture below? The tree trimmers weren't done...by last night, that whole area was FULL of limbs, too!

I feel sad for the trees, of course, but there's a larger issue here. WHERE am I supposed to go potty?! Those limbs are taking up all my good grassy spots!

It's a jungle out there...and I'm a puppy who can't find a spot to poo. Mom and I hope the trimmers clean up that mess soon! If the rain from today freezes, the limbs could be frozen to the ground. I can't be expected to "hold it" until spring!

The Snoring Blanket

2012-01-23T20:33:00.002-06:00

Tonight, Mom noticed that the orange blanket on our couch was snoring! Then she looked closer and saw a little tuft of white fur sticking out...

Oh, yes. The source of the snoring was discovered.

But I couldn't be bothered by Mom's rude "photo shoot." I just went right back to sleep!

She shouldn't have woken me up anyway, right?!

Seeing the Big Man

2011-12-19T19:51:00.000-06:00

Did you know that Santa Claus was at Petsmart last weekend? Yep! I usually go see him there each year...or at least each year since I've lived with Mom. This year Mom got me these ridiculous Christmas PJs to wear, too. She said my white furs blend in too much with the Big Man's white furs.

Anyway, the PJs were a bit absurd, but everybody in Petsmart kept giving me lots of attention because of them. Guess it worked out well.

And then it was time for me to see Santa himself. He played with me for a bit before he picked me up for the photo.

You can probably guess what I told him... I've been a very good, if only slightly ornery, pup this year, and for Christmas I'd like him to bring me toys, cookies, toys, bully sticks, and TOYS!

I sure hope he agrees I'm on the "good" and not "naughty" list... He he he...

Belly of the Beast

2011-11-22T19:10:00.003-06:00

Mom thinks it's funny to refer to me as "the savage beast" or "the hound" or things like that just because, well, I'm very NOT those things. She also calls me Crazy Butt a lot, but that one sort of fits since I AM a little crazy and "Butt" is the first part of my name!

Anyway, Mom took this picture tonight and she decided to name it "The Belly of the Beast."

Mom's so weird.

Giving Sarge the Bird

2011-11-22T18:43:00.005-06:00

Sarge, from over at Sarge Speaks Out, is having a contest where he wants everyone to give him the bird. Seriously. He said it's time for our blogs to go fowl. (He he he. How could I resist repeating that?!)

Now it's not the dirty kinda bird we're supposed to give him, of course, but just about any other kind will work.

So here's the bird I'm giving Sarge:

That's right...it's a rubber chicken. Mom tried to get me to pose with it, but this is as close as she got because I was busy playing with another toy:

Mom did get this pic when I was playing with the same chicken the other day, though:

And of course there's video...

Thanks for the great contest, Sarge. I hope you like your bird!

Pillow Play

2011-11-14T21:02:00.004-06:00

Soft squeakies can make a cool pillow for your chin. And it's a good way to keep your Mom from swiping your squeakies, too.

Just saying...

Review: Pumpkin Patch Treats

2011-11-12T19:36:00.005-06:00

I'm on Baby Patches' Tester Team. She's the Chief Kit at Nip and Bones. When you're on the Tester Team you get cool free stuff and you also get to write a review on your blog. That's a "win-win" in my opinion!

So not too long ago, Baby Patches sent me some cookies to try out.

They're Max & Ruffy's Pumpkin Patch treats. Perfect for this time of the year! I gave the cookie a good sniff. They really smelled pumpkin-y!

And of course I chowed down. (Sorry...I was chewing with my mouth open...)

The cookies smelled so good that my Mom actually tried a little bit. She wasn't sure what came over her.

Anyway, I liked the pumpkin treats, but I'm not really a fan of fruits and veggies. I remember how much my former foster sister Sydney LOVES fruits and veggies, though, so I thought maybe she'd like to try these Pumpkin Patch treats, too.

I mailed the cookies out to my former foster family in New Jersey! Here are the girls checking out the package. That's Dixie, Sydney, and Shawnee!

Since I knew Sydney would like these the most, I sent the package to her.

I put a note in the package to tell her that she could share with the other girls, of course. Sydney could smell the pumpkin through the box. Look at her giving it a good sniff! (That's Shawnee's legs nearby. She must have been reading my note to Sydney.)

Sydney got so excited that she actually started LICKING THE BOX!

Here's her silly nomming face! She was really excited about the cookies.

My former foster Mom took a video of the girls eating the cookies, and you can see how excited Sydney gets about them. Now, one very important thing to keep in mind when you watch this video... Sydney is always a lady when taking treats. She's very careful to take them with her lips and to NOT use her teeth. But after a couple of these Pumpkin Patch treats, just watch what she does to her Mom's fingers! She got a little too excited, I think!

The girls loved the Pumpkin Patch treats...especially Syndey. Fifteen minutes after that video was taken, Sydney was still looking for any cookie crumbs that might have been missed on the deck. I think she'd definitely give the Pumpkin Patch treats four paws up!

Thanks to my former foster family for helping me to write this treat review, and thanks to Baby Patches for the yummy cookies that I got to share!

Wordless Wednesday: Comfy Pink Bed

2011-09-28T19:44:00.003-05:00

Princess Tent Door

2011-09-26T22:42:00.002-05:00

Door?

I don't need no stinking door!

New Water Bowl

2011-09-26T22:24:00.003-05:00

My Aunt Katie gave me a new water bowl for my birthday!

I gave it a good sniff, of course.

And I refused to look at Mom when she tried to take a picture of me with the bowl.

My new water bowl says "Spoiled" on it. I have nooooo idea why...

My Birthday...Postponed

2011-09-18T21:51:00.009-05:00

Today was my birthday! Can you believe that I'm 11 years old now? I don't feel a day over 6. And if you ask Mom, she'll probably tell you that I don't act a day over 3! He he he.

Anyway, I started out my birthday celebrations by taking an early-morning nap. Mom woke me up way, way too early.

Late this morning, Mom started the true celebrations when she gave me a new TOY. It's a barktini. Cool, huh? I was mesmerized.

Hey, it was 5:00 somewhere...

I got tired of the paparazzi (a.k.a. Mom), so I took my barktini into my princess tent. And it's fitting that I hide out in there today anyway since it was my birthday present from Mom last year. It's the princess tent's 1-year anniversary!

I glared at the paparazzi from inside my tent.

And do you think Mom would leave me alone in there? Noooo. She invaded the privacy of the princess tent!

Eventually, I just gave up and brought the barktini back out where there was more room to roll.

And roll I did. I even rolled and chewed at the same time!

Played a bit too much, though, and I'm still not feeling the best. So, I flopped half-in-half-out of my princess tent for a nap.

And then that's about when things started to go wrong. Yep. Too much excitement and too sicky of a tummy. Mom and I had to make an emergency trip outside. When we came back inside, I just felt horrible, and I looked as pathetic as I felt.

(It was raining out, too, just to add insult to injury!)

Mom decided to postpone the rest of our birthday celebrations since I wasn't doing so well. Tonight she boiled some hamburger and made white rice for me. That's what my vet says to feed me when I have bad tummy troubles.

I wouldn't eat anything today...but I chowed down on that hamburger and rice. Yummy stuff!

The food in my tummy helped it feel a little better, so I played for just a bit. (Yes, I'm chewing and rolling at the same time again.)

But it didn't last too long. I went back to the place I started my day.

And then I just flopped in the middle of the room, too.

Mom says she still has lots of birthday surprises planned for me. She even ordered me my very own birthday cake! But, all that has to wait until I'm feeling o.k. again. I say "GIVE ME CAKE!" but Mom says it would make me feel worse now. So, I have to wait. Pffffft.

Here's a sneak peek for you!

Pathetic, Sick Puppy

2011-09-12T19:23:00.003-05:00

Today has been my day to act super pathetic.

I'm an expert at it, too. It's o.k. to act pathetic, though, when you don't feel so good. And when your Mom takes you to the vet.

I tried to act camouflaged so that the vet wouldn't find me, but she did.

I didn't want to be at that vet's office. But who could blame me?!

I've got a nasty ear infection. And I've got an infection in the skin all over my front legs, too. My allergies are the culprit for both nasty infections. Stupid allergies. The vet gave Mom lots of pills and ointments and stuff for me. Mom says it'll help me feel more like myself again soon.

Until then, though, I'm gonna just keep acting pathetic.

My Adoption Story

2011-09-10T00:33:00.007-05:00

BlogPaws and BISSELL are having a blog carnival to raise money for the Petfinder Foundation. A blog carnival is when lots of blogs focus on the same topic. The topic for this event is "my adoption story." If you know me or if you've followed my blog for long, then you probably know that I have one whopper of an adoption story...

After I was born, I lived with one family for a few years. Then I went to live with a woman and a kitty and another Shih Tzu like me. Then one day out of the blue, my owner passed away and another woman took me and the other pets and put us in the car for a ride. One by one, though, she stopped and dumped each one of us out of the car. Yep. SHE DUMPED US OUT OF THE CAR.

So all of the sudden I was all by myself, out on the streets. A little doggie alone in the scary world.

Within a couple of days I ended up in a foster home for Companion Critters, a rescue group in New Jersey. I was scared and hid under the table for a while. But eventually I got more comfortable again and then they found me a nice new home. Or so we thought. About a year after I thought I found my forever family, they actually took me back to the foster home. They said that they couldn't keep me anymore.

I was nine years old then, and my allergies were really bad, too. So, I was actually considered a "less adoptable" dog, if you'd believe that. Hard to find a nice new home with that sort of label.

After I was returned to the rescue group, though, my foster sister Shawnee wrote about me on her blog. That's when my TRUE adoption story started. My forever-and-ever mom read about me on Shawnee's blog and totally fell in love with me. (But who could blame her, right?!) She didn't think I was a "senior" dog since she already had a Shih Tzu who was almost my exact same age, Lexi-Lou. And she didn't think my allergies were a problem, either.

So my foster Mom and my soon-to-be-new Mom talked and talked and finally decided that I was going to move from New Jersey to Illinois to live with my new Mom and my new sister Lexi-Lou. And you know what else? My foster Mom and Shawnee actually drove me the entire way! Yep...they delivered me safe and sound to my new home.

They told Mom that it would take me a few days to get over the shock of the new home and to really start playing and settling in. I knew that this was my forever-and-ever home, though, so I actually helped unpack my own toys. I made myself right at home. By the next morning, I was rolling on my back, playing like crazy! We've actually got video of that, too...

Now I'm spoiled rotten. Absolutely spoiled rotten! But, Mom says she's just making up for all of the bad stuff that I've been through. Makes sense, don't you think? I WAS dumped out of a car, onto the street, you know. Oh, by the way -- you know the bad, bad woman who did that? She didn't know that I had a microchip. And she didn't know that my old neighbors really loved me and worried about me. With the microchip, the neighbors, and the awesome rescue group, the police actually had enough evidence to get that bad woman!

Now part of the BlogPaws Carnival is actually to also tell about the happiness that I've brought my new Mom. I'd think that's pretty obvious, though, if you look at how spoiled I am. He he he.

From Buttons' Mom:

Buttons' adoption story took a pretty difficult turn for me not long after I adopted her. One week after Buttons came into our lives, my Lexi-Lou passed away unexpectedly. My dogs aren't "pets," they're my children. I was completely crushed when Lexi died. Buttons hadn't really bonded with Lexi yet, so she wasn't affected by the loss.

Three or four weeks later, then, my mother was diagnosed with breast cancer. Three months after that, my father's health took a bad turn. A month later, he passed away.

Why am I telling you this? Because I honestly believe that God placed Buttons in my life specifically because of the grief that was coming. Buttons is a funny, creative, crazy little girl. In the middle of my pain and loss, she could still make me laugh with her antics. She wasn't doing anything special...she was just being herself. And I don't know what I would have done without her bringing that humor and love into such a dark time. So to me, that's a big part of her adoption story.

And I'm pretty sure that's part of the reason she's spoiled rotten now, too...

Enough sad, mushy talk from Mom. It's time to leave you with some cuteness. (Can you believe what those other families I had are missing out on now?! He he he.)

A Box Bigger Than Me...

2011-09-06T20:14:00.005-05:00

About five years ago, I got this HUGE box from my friend Boris. OK...so maybe it wasn't that long ago...it was actually just a couple of weeks...but Mom's been neglecting my blogging duties so it feels like it was five years ago.

Anyway, Boris sent me a box that was a lot bigger than me! When Mom brought the box inside, I was so excited about it that I refused to eat supper. I wouldn't touch my food until after Mom opened that huge surprise!

Yes, I was a little impatient. I even jumped in the box before Mom got the top open all of the way!

But can you blame me?! Check out the HUGE Snoopy and Woodstock that Boris sent me!

I went right to work, playing with Woodstock.

And then I saw Mom take something else out of the box, so I had to check that out, too.

Yeah, my head sorta got in the way of that picture. Here's what Mom had, though:

Boris sent me some BUTTONS that say "I love Buttons!" Isn't that the coolest thing ever?!

But the box wasn't empty yet...there was another surprise in there. Here's me impatiently waiting for Mom to open my last surprise.

I had to check it all out before Mom assembled it.

Then I took a bully stick break while Mom went to work.

TA DAH! Boris sent me a BARN to go with my princess tent!!! It's a new secret hidey spot for me...and a stable for the princess to park her carriage in, of course.

I took a quick tour.

Mom put one of my blankies in the barn, too, to make it more comfy cosy.

Here's me posing with my new hidey spot!

I haven't played in the barn much yet, but Mom says that's because I go in my princess tent all of the time instead. So, she's gonna move my barn into the dining room so I have a hidey spot there, too. Sounds like a good plan to me!

So, after all of the excitement over my huge surprise, I had to take a nap on my new Snoopy.

Thanks to Boris and DogToys.com for my awesome, fantastic, super-duper surprise!

Playing with My Bully Sticks

2011-09-05T13:31:00.005-05:00

This is a bully stick:

OK, so it's a little mangled up right now. It started out looking sorta like a dog bone, but I've been chewing on it. That's how it ended up looking so funny.

Anyway, I'm sure you know how much I love my doggie toys. I can make just about anything into a toy, too. For example, I've been rolling on my bully stick lately...

(Yeah, there's part of another bully stick in the picture, too...)

It doesn't squeak, but it's still fun to roll on! And after rolling on it for a while, I can chow down, too. Such a versatile toy!

And you know how I sleep with toys in my mouth? I can do that with my bully stick, too!

Last night, I made Mom play fetch with my bully stick. She didn't understand, but she still played. I've got her trained well.

Rolling and Scratching

2011-09-02T18:58:00.002-05:00

I must say that I'm a bit of an expert when it comes to playing with squeaky toys. Since I have bad allergies year-round, I'm also quite skilled at scratching techniques.

Did you know that rolling on your back isn't just for squeaking toys? That's right! I suggest you try this tactic the next time you need to scratch the top of your head or your back (if your parents aren't there to help, of course)...

Sometimes I combine rolling for scratching with rolling for playing. It's o.k. to do that, too.

Wordless Wednesday

2011-08-31T17:47:00.002-05:00

Stink Eye

2011-08-29T22:53:00.002-05:00

Here's my new tactic to get Mom to give me more toys...

I just give her a look like this:

Then I tell her that if she gives me a new toy, then nobody gets hurt.

I'm sure it'll work...

Sneaky Supper

2011-08-23T22:23:00.003-05:00

I don't like to eat dry kibble. That's a fact. Mom thinks I should eat dry kibble. That's another fact.

So, to try to get me to eat the kibbles, Mom puts pieces of canned food on top of the kibbles. She puts some powder stuff in there, too, for extra vitamins and stuff. Mom thinks she's soooo sneaky.

This is what my supper looks like:

I do my thing...

And this is what I leave for Mom:

See what I'm doing here? I'm turning the sneaky around! I just eat the canned pieces off the top and leave the rest virtually untouched!

For some reason, Mom doesn't appreciate my sneakiness.

Killer Wasps at My House

2011-08-21T17:57:00.003-05:00

We've had a bug issue outside our house. Lots and lots and LOTS of these things:

Here's a close-up:

These bugs are super duper scary looking and super duper icky looking. And they're BIG. They actually live in burrows in the ground, up close to the front of our building.

We've had mornings where there were probably 50 of those icky things flying around when I went out for my morning potty! Mom called the condo association and they said that the bugs are cicada killer wasps. They look ferocious, but "supposedly" won't hurt us if we leave them alone.

That doesn't really make Mom feel much better. You see, the bugs don't really bother me, but they really freak Mom out. She's worried, of course, that one of the bugs will "get" me. In her mind, these wasps are more like this:

It's hard to take pictures of our ferocious bugs. Here's me checking them out one morning, though (for as long as Mom would let me, of course, which wasn't very long...).

I've actually had two "run-ins" with the big bugs. Mom nearly had a heart attack both times, too. My first run-in happened when I stepped out onto our stoop one morning and came face to face with a wasp, just hovering on the stoop.

Here's a re-enactment. Just imagine there's a huge bug right by my nose.

The bug and I just stayed right there, having a staring contest. Mom ended up pulling my leash to get me away from it.

The second bug run-in was when Mom and I were coming inside from our evening walk the other night. I was heading up to the door...

...when I was bonked in the head by one of the wasps carrying a cicada! It looked just like this picture (this one came from the internet, though, and not from Mom's camera...).

Yep. The wasp/cicada just bonked me in the forehead, and then it flew off!

The condo people told Mom that the bugs would be disappearing as soon as the cicadas disappeared. Mom's hoping that happens soon...

My Portrait

2011-08-20T23:30:00.004-05:00

At a Twitter party not too long ago, I won a portrait from Joan Nardozzi, donated by Smokey8. After a quick (but sorta funny) detour to Germany, my portrait arrived at my house!

Here's me checking out the picture of me. (Ignore the partially-chewed bully stick by my head.)

The portrait is done in pastels, so Mom wouldn't let me sniff it very much. She said I might smudge myself.

Here's a close-up scan of my portrait. Isn't it just awesome?! Mom and I really, really love it.

It's based on one of Mom's favorite pictures of me. Cool, huh?

Big thanks to Joan, Smokey, and Fuzzy Freya (my temporary German host)!

Water Torture

2011-08-20T22:37:00.006-05:00

It happened again. Yep. Mom decided that I had to have a nasty, no-good, torture-filled BATH.

I hate baths!!!

But this time, the torture was doubled. After Mom drained the dirty bath water, she REFILLED the tub and gave me an oatmeal bath, too! I gave her a dirty look...

I was not happy. She said I needed the oatmeal bath because of my itchies from my allergies. I don't agree. I'm already itchy...why torture me with water?!

After the bath, Mom kept me captive in the bathroom while she tried to blow-dry my furs.

I grabbed my squeaky penguin to keep me company, while watching at the gate.

When I was released from my prison, I took out my frustrations (and dried my ears) on my penguin.

After that, I hid under the blanket on the couch.

I did NOT want to end up back in that bathtub...

Washing Grandma's Car

2011-08-09T22:45:00.006-05:00

Guess what...Mom and I went to see Grandma again this past weekend! This time I took my new Snoopy with me. I played with him in the car.

Snoopy makes a great pillow for naps, too!

While we were at Grandma's house, Mom and I went for a ride in Grandma's car.

"Yep...corn. That means we're near Grandma's house!"

We took Grandma's car to a car wash. I kept close watch on the action outside of the car.

"What the heck is all of that noise?!"

The car wash scared me a little. I'll admit it.

And I kept watching outside to see if those washer things were about done.

When we left the car wash, I was super tired. I could barely stay awake on the drive back to Grandma's house.

Grandma was super happy that Mom and I washed her car. And I had fun, of course, romping in Grandma's yard, too. I love visiting my Grandma! Mom and Grandma did some other stuff over the weekend, but the car wash was the "highlight" for me, I think.

On the ride back to our house, Mom said I acted like a drama queen. I panted like crazy most of the drive because the sun made me hot. I couldn't help it! Mom even had the air conditioning going full blast on me, but I was a panting fool anyway!

Well, when I wasn't using Snoopy for a pillow, of course!

Taking Snoopy Home

2011-08-08T21:04:00.009-05:00

My cool neighbor gave me a huge squeaky Snoopy toy the other night! I took off with him, carrying him home as fast as I could go.

Mom made me slow down so she could catch up. She didn't get that I was in a hurry to get that Snoopy home!

He was a little hard for me to carry...

...but I didn't let that stop me!

In this picture you can kinda see the dead grass that was collecting on Snoopy's head during the trip home...

I had to jump up on the building stoop with Snoop! Nice action shot, huh?

I leaned Snoopy up against the door while I waited for Mom to open it.

Had to lick my lips and rest my jaws while I was waiting on Mom to open our door, then, too.

Sadly, Snoopy suffered some road rash on his snout and ear from his trip to my house. Sorry, Snoops. Mom did her best to get the dead grass out of his ear.

And now that I've got him home, Snoopy is awfully fun to play fetch with!

My New Ride

2011-08-08T20:47:00.004-05:00

Mom decided that she needs to get more exercise, and to do that, she wants to go for longer walks. My little legs won't make it on longer walks, though, so that means I'd need to stay home.

But not anymore. Look at what Mom got tonight...

That's right. I've got a new ride.

It's got a sun roof, too.

And it's even a convertible!

I was a little freaked out at first 'cause I didn't understand what the stroller was. But, I did get used to it pretty quickly. Mom's hoping to go for our first long walk together tomorrow. We'll see how this works out...

Weekend at Grandma's

2011-08-02T20:32:00.006-05:00

Mom and I went to spend the weekend with Grandma again! Here are my highlights...

I supervised Mom's driving on the trip up to Grandma's house.

I enjoyed being Free-Range Buttons in Grandma's backyard!

I hogged the bed again, of course. And I rolled on some toys. And then I supervised Mom's driving on the way back home.

And then I slept for two days to recover from all of my free-range fun.

Using a Doggie Bed

2011-08-02T20:15:00.003-05:00

I love my comfy doggie beds, but did you know that it's not always necessary to curl up inside the bed? That's right. Sometimes you can be just as comfy when you flop on the floor but leave your booty in the bed.

Mom took pictures of me practicing this technique over the last few days...

It's comfy. Trust me.

In Fine Form

2011-08-02T19:47:00.004-05:00

My allergies make me feel icky, so I haven't been playing quite as much lately. One night last week, though, Mom said I was in "fine form." I have no idea what that means, but I'm guessing it means "cute" or "extra snorty."

Anyway, Mom took these videos when I was in "fine form" and playing...

Packages in the Mail!

2011-07-25T20:01:00.001-05:00

The other day, we got THREE packages in the mail!

You know what packages mean around here...TOYS!

One package had another pretty package inside it...

Look at the cool stuff! I won a pendant from my friend Marjorie during a Twitter party, but look at the cool cards and stationary she sent with it!

And do you see that pendant? It's got ME on it!

Mom tried to get a pic of me modeling the pendant, but I was a reluctant model. (OK, so I just really wanted to nap!)

So the cool stuff from Marjorie was in one package, but that leaves TWO more, right?! You know what was in them???

NOTHING! That's right. I got robbed. Both of those boxes had stuff in them for MOM. That's totally not fair.

I gave Mom my stink eye...

And I guess my look must have really helped because Mom felt bad and got a toy out of her secret stash for me!

I forgave her...

Visiting Grandma

2011-07-20T20:57:00.003-05:00

Last weekend, Mom and I went to visit Grandma, and we stayed at Grandma's house ALL weekend long! There was lots of stuff going on. Here's my "photo essay" of the weekend...

I supervised Mom's driving on the way to Grandma's house. It's a long trip.

When we see corn, we know we're getting close!

You know I love being at Grandma's house for lots of reasons...but the main one is 'cause she's got a huge yard with a fence. I'm Free-Range Buttons -- NO leash! So here's me checking stuff out.

Mom took this pic upside down 'cause she was bending over, scratching my booty.

More Free-Range Buttons... Just look at all of that yard for me to sniff!

Mom even took a short video of me investigating stuff in the yard. Mom was hot and wanted to go inside. I took my time, though, checking pee-mail from my doggy cousins.

And then I did a lot of napping in Grandma's air conditioning.

When my uncle came to visit, I decided to hide.

And at night time, I hogged the bed (of course!).

On Saturday morning, there was a big 5K run/walk in the town where Grandma lives. It was held in memory of my Grandpa and raised money for Parkinson's research. (Some of you may remember that Grandpa just died last year from that icky bad disease.) I stayed at Grandma's house and Mom went and did the walk. So, here's me posing with Mom's race number. She got to be # 1.

After the 5K, there was more time for me to spend sniffing stuff outside. Can you see me in this pic? I'm that little tiny white dot by the little cabin!

That afternoon, I got to go watch a parade in town with Mom.

I wasn't sure about some of the noises. The fire engines were loud and the sounds from these little go-carts made me get a little scared, too.

And then later that night, I hogged the bed once again. And if you look closely, you'll see that I'm sinking down into the bed. Yep...our air mattress sprung a leak!

And then the next day it was time for us to drive all of the way back to our house. When we stopped to get gas, I guarded the car. I made sure to bark at EVERY person I saw at that gas station. I thought everyone needed to know that I was on the job.

Then I supervised Mom's driving some more.

And you know what I did when I got home? I had to recover from all of the busy fun I had visiting Grandma!

Meow Meow Meme Award

2011-07-07T21:43:00.000-05:00

My friend Mario gave me the Meow Meow Meme blog award a few days ago. Can you believe that?! I hadn't even posted in over two weeks because Mom was "too busy." But Mario still liked me and my blog enough to pass the award along. So sweet. Thanks, Mario!

Like some other blog awards, you're supposed to answer some questions. I think this may actually be a kitty award (the first hint was the award title -- Meow Meow Meme), but I'm just gonna answer everything anyway. Here goes...

1. Where do you like to hang out?

That's simple...my princess tent, of course! I like to hide in there and spy on Mom. I can hide and spy at the same time.

My second favorite spot to hang out in is under Mom's bed. I've tunneled through all of the stuff she stores under there. I can do whatever I want under there, 'cause she can't reach me. Pretty cool!

2. Who is your favorite kitty crush?

I love all kitties. Seriously. I just like to sit and stare at kitties. If a kitty comes up to me, I get all bashful and hide behind Mom. ("Bashful" sounds better than admitting I can get scared of a kitty...)

Here are some pictures of me staring at Jingles over at his house. I'm super nice to Jingles and I don't bother him at all. I just like to stare at him! (I do the same thing with Piglet and Mel and Pepper. I think those are all the kitties I know in person...)

3. What is your favorite scent?

This is a tough one to answer. I really like soggy bully sticks. Oh, and squeaky toy stuffing. And there's the all time favorite...pee mail!

Just for fun, here's a close-up of my super sniffer.

4. What's your favorite TV show?

I don't watch TV at all. In fact, the only time TV ever catches my attention is when the Toyota commercial is on that has the squeaky toys in it. Here's a video of Mom playing the commercial on our computer just to show how I react to it...

5. What's your favorite movie?

Well, I don't watch TV, and I don't really watch movies, either. So instead of a regular movie, I'm gonna show you my favorite video of me! I think that works.

This video is special to Mom and me 'cause it's the very first video she took of me. This was the morning after I met my new Mom. She and my foster Mom both thought I'd be frightened from the big move and my new surroundings. But what did I do when I got to my new house? I unpacked my toys and dove into my new sister's toys, too. Less than 12 hours after moving in, I was rolling on toys. Nobody could believe that I adapted so quickly. I think it's just 'cause it was meant to be. Oh, and there were lots of cool toys here, too...

6. What is your best piece of feline wisdom?

Well, I obviously can't write about "feline" wisdom, but I can share some "canine"...

Perfect your stink eye look. It really helps in properly training your Mom. For example, this is my latest stink eye (the latest that was caught on camera, at least). I'm basically telling Mom to put DOWN the stupid camera and take me out to potty.

Those are all of my Meow Meow Meme Award questions. Thanks again, Mario!

My Pacifier

2011-07-05T21:36:00.006-05:00

I was snoring away in bed the other day, as only I can snore. And if you've ever met me, then you know I'm a pretty good snorer. Even the vet thinks my snorty noises are quite impressive. But that's a whole other blog post...

So anyway, I was snoring away when Mom rudely woke me up. I looked up at her all sleepy, and she started taking pictures of me. Rude! She was snapping away with the camera because of my new pacifier. See it?

Yep. That's a bully stick. I chew it all up and cram the whole thing in my mouth. Or as much of it as I can get in there. And that's how I sleep...

...until Mom wakes me up to take pictures, that is. Then Mom took her rudeness to an entirely new level. She pulled the bully stick out of my mouth!

She thinks the chewed up, slobbery part is gross. And she doesn't seem to think I should be sleeping with all of that bully stick in my mouth. She's afraid I'm gonna choke or something silly like that.

But you know what I did? As soon as she pulled it out, I put it right back in!

I've been doing this a lot. It's fun to snooze with a bully stick pacifier. Tonight I even got MORE of it in there!

Mom distracted me with a toy puppy, though, and got me to give up the pacifier for a while...

Now I gotta go find it again. It's bed time, you know!

Ruff Life

2011-06-14T21:18:00.002-05:00

Sometimes it's hard to be a princess...

Strategy: Act Pathetic

2011-06-14T20:43:00.003-05:00

When your food bowl is empty, it's essential that you get it filled back up as quickly as possible. So, I'm going to share with you a great strategy that I've used several times.

It's simple. Act pathetic...and flop by your food bowl.

The "pathetic pup" technique works every time.

My Reputation

2011-06-14T19:36:00.003-05:00

It seems that I've gotten a bit of a reputation as a squeaky toy terror. Or a destroyer, perhaps. Stuffing remover. Fur plucker. (You know what I'm getting at here...)

In fact, Cathy Keisha discusses this briefly over on her blog. She's got a stuffy who is getting her in all sorts of trouble. And, long story short, near the end of the post she says, "I'd mail him to Busy Buttons and let her have her way with him."

Hmmm. Why on earth does everyone think that I'm a toy punisher? I love my squeakies!

OK...maybe I love squeakies just a bit too much...

The Mom and the Kibbles

2011-06-04T18:10:00.006-05:00

You know that story of "The Princess and the Pea?" Well, I've written my own version. I call it, "The Mom and the Kibbles." Here it is...

The Mom and the Kibbles

There once was an adorable, always-right Shih Tzu named Buttons. Buttons lived with her Mom, and even though she had only been with her forever family for a year and a half, Buttons had her Mom pretty well-trained. (She discovered early on that Mom had a weak spot for sad puppy eyes, and that really helped speed up the training.)

Each night at bedtime, Buttons got cookies. These were special kibble cookies because Buttons ate prescription doggie food for her bad allergies and tummy troubles.

Even though the cookies were kibble pieces, they were still VERY yummy as far as Buttons was concerned.

One night, Mom didn't sleep well. All night long she kept dreaming that she was sleeping on rocks or that things were poking her in the legs. She flip-flopped through the night, trying to get comfortable.

As Mom got out of bed the next morning, she thought about her funny dreams. She pulled back the bed sheet to investigate and discovered...KIBBLES!

Buttons hadn't eaten all of her kibble cookies at bedtime, and since Buttons liked to scoot to the middle of the bed during the night, the kibbles had followed right along. Those rocks that Mom dreamed about were actually the kibble pieces poking her!

Mom was not happy. Not happy at all. In fact, she banned all kibble cookies from the bed from that day on.

The moral of the story: Always finish your bedtime snack.

Now I gotta go practice my sad puppy eyes to see if I can get my kibbles back in the bed each night...

Time for Bed???

2011-05-29T22:39:00.003-05:00

Mom says it's time for bed, but I totally disagree. Instead, I think it's time to play! And you know what? That's exactly what I'm doing!

OH, we should play fetch now, too!

I say that Mom can just sleep tomorrow...

Free-Range Buttons

2011-05-22T21:27:00.005-05:00

Mom and I went to visit Grandma again this weekend! You know what I like best about Grandma's house? I can be "Free-Range Buttons." At least that's what Mom calls it.

See, Grandma has a really big yard and it's got a fence all of the way around it. You know what that means? Freedom! NO leash! I can explore and sniff and check stuff out and even roll in the grass! I get to just enjoy being me and being a doggie.

Here's a pic of me enjoying the space in Grandma's yard and sniffing some pee-mail from my cousin Hoss.

Checking out some more stuff on my way back inside...

I didn't have to wear my leash at all this weekend...until we came home. It was awesome!

But I guess I let the excitement of being Free-Range Buttons get to me this weekend. When we pulled into our parking spot at our house I "accidentally" jumped out of the car before Mom could put my leash on me. Oops!

Never fear, though. I knew exactly what I was supposed to do. I pottied in the front yard and then I ran to the door and waited for Mom to let me inside.

I LOVE being Free-Range Buttons. Don't ever want to lose that privilege!

Not What It Seems...

2011-05-19T19:42:00.002-05:00

This picture looks like I was rolling on that green ball, doesn't it?

Nope! That's how I took a nap last night. Fooled ya! He he he...

Oh, Mom says I'm overly furry now. I'm o.k. with that, though. I'd rather be furry than groomed!

My Big Plan

2011-05-18T22:15:00.003-05:00

I decided tonight that Mom didn't need to go anywhere after she got home from work. She needed to just spend the evening at home with me. Makes sense, doesn't it?

So here's what I did...

That's right...I went and took a nap right smack in front of our door. Mom couldn't open the door at all with me snoozing there, so she was stuck inside.

Unfortunately, my plan had one minor flaw. I didn't anticipate the draw of the cookies. Yes, Mom lured me away from the door with cookies. And then she went to her meeting.

But at least the cookies were yummy.

Oh -- Mom says to ignore the stuff all over the door mat, except for that dark spot by my face. That's where I drooled. (Must have been dreaming of cookies...)

Running out of Steam

2011-05-16T22:17:00.002-05:00

A few nights ago I wanted to play with my squeaky squirrel, but I also needed to take a nap. So what happened? Well, my squeaks got slower and I played myself right into a nap, of course...

COOKIES!

2011-05-16T20:35:00.007-05:00

At a Twitter party not too long ago I won a prize from Lainey's Pawtique! Does that name sound familiar? Well, if you've read my blog for long, then you may remember that I got another prize from Lainey's Pawtique a few months ago! Pretty cool, huh?

They make such good cookies that it's now my goal to win a prize from them every couple of months. That way I am sure to get regular cookie deliveries! (Well, that or I need to get Mom to order me some of those yummies!)

Anyway, the last time I got my cookie prize, it came in a super big box. Since Lainey's Pawtique knows I'm addicted to toys, they actually sent me a HUGE stuffed dog along with my cookies. Isn't that cool?!

Well, once again, my cookies arrived in a super duper big box...

I had to act like I was ignoring Mom so she'd put down the stupid camera and open the box for me.

As soon as the top flaps were open, I dove right in.

I pulled that stuffy out of the box and it just kept coming and coming!

This time Lainey's sent me a HUGE caterpillar stuffy! I went to town...

I played like crazy with that caterpillar! Want to see me in action? Here's a little snorty snippet...

Not much can distract me from a new toy. I'm sure you probably know that if you've followed my antics for very long. However, when I saw Mom lift that bag of cookies out of the box, I knew exactly what it was and I was entranced...

After Mom gave me a cookie, I went a little nutso. Here's me acting like a crazy dog:

And I even barked and barked, insisting I get more treats.

I really don't understand why I couldn't eat the entire bag of cookies at once. They were YUMMY! Anyway, between the cookies in my belly and all of the playing that I'd done, I really wore myself out. It was time for a nap.

Thanks for the awesome prize, Lainey's Pawtique!!!

New Toy from Grandma

2011-05-16T20:05:00.006-05:00

Ack! It's been a full week since I've posted. Good grief! That's just terrible. Mom claims she's been "busy." I'm telling you, the woman has her priorities all goofed up...

Anyway, last weekend when Mom and I went to visit Grandma for Mother's Day, I found a new toy to play with. It's a cool stuffy ball! I carried it around with me while we were there. Mom kept laughing at me and telling me that it was "not a toy" and it was "not for doggies." That didn't stop me, of course. Mom said it was a "Cubs collector's item" of Grandma's. Whatever that means.

If I say that it's a toy, then it's a toy.

And guess what...Grandma agreed with me. She even told me that I could HAVE her stuffy ball. Mom forgot to pack it up for me when we got ready to leave, but Grandma noticed. She even brought it all of the way out to the car for me! She told Mom, "don't forget Buttons' new ball!" HA!

My Grandma seriously rocks.

So here's me getting ready to roll on the new toy when we got home.

Playing...

More rolling on (OK, maybe not "on" but "near") the ball...

Yep. My Grandma rocks!

My New Car Seat

2011-05-09T20:44:00.004-05:00

You've probably seen pictures of my special seat in the car. Mom got a booster for me so that I could be safe and still see out the window. She puts my pink seat belt on me and it attaches to my seat. Pretty spiffy, huh?

Well, when Mom and I go for rides in Grandma's car, I don't have my special seat. Mom takes my spot up front, so I have to sit in the back. Without my booster, it's hard to see out the windows. But, you know me...I figured it out. Here's where I sit now:

Perfect view out all of the windows of the car! And if anyone is behind Grandma's car, they get a good view of MY behind! He he he...

Mom turned the flash on for this next picture 'cause she thought the shadows were messing up her pictures. Of course MY view was seriously messed up when I was blinded by the stupid camera...

Pretty nice booster seat I discovered for myself, don't you think? I refuse to ride in the back of Grandma's car anymore without jumping up there...

Strutting My Stuff

2011-05-09T18:09:00.010-05:00

On Saturday, I strutted my stuff at the Mutt Strut!

The Mutt Strut is an annual fundraiser for my local humane society. Last year I helped to raise $220 for the shelter. You know how much I raised this year? $225! Isn't that great??? Thanks so much to everyone who helped sponsor me!

Last year my friend Molly walked with me in the Strut. Well, my Aunt Ronda has two doggies and this year it was Gus's turn. He's still just a puppy, so he had a lot of energy for strutting. Aunt Ronda even had to put him in time-out a couple of times when he got a little too excited. Can't blame him, though. There was a LOT of stuff going on!

This was the biggest Mutt Strut my humane society had ever had. They raised over $22,000 for those shelter animals! Isn't that amazing?!

Different vendors had tents set up at the Strut. Mom & Aunt Ronda both won squeaky toys at one tent!

Here's Gus waiting for the Strut to start...

And here's a little time-out...

The opening festivities included the Blessing of the Dogs. It's good to be blessed. The guy in the white robe is the one who did that part.

And then the Strut began!

I strutted like a pro, of course.

Mom kept trying to get a picture of Gus and I walking together, but he was a little busy.

The park had a cool drinking fountain with a bowl on the bottom just for dogs.

I kept close to Mom and Aunt Ronda for the Strut. I get a little anxious when there are other dogs around...and there were a LOT of dogs at the Mutt Strut!

After we finished our walk, the doggies did paw print painting and agility stuff and had contests and did bobbing for Milkbones. Me? I worked on acting pathetic. I was tired and I wanted to go home. The other dogs freaked me out.

And I mean I really, really acted pathetic...

Gus liked watching the contests and stuff, though. I think he had a super time.

Here's me and Gus taking a break. Mom says it took multiple attempts to get a picture of both of us looking at the camera...or at least facing the right direction...

Lots of the dogs who are up for adoption were at the Mutt Strut. They even showed everyone all of the cool tricks they can do. And you know who else is up for adoption at the humane society? PIGGLES!

OK, so Piggles is a piggy, but he could do tricks just like dogs. Mom was a little obsessed with Piggles. He strutted right along with all of us!

Anyway, you remember how I said that Mom and Aunt Ronda both won TOYS from a vendor? Well, when we got in the car to leave after the Mutt Strut, I saw Aunt Ronda put Gus's new toy in a plastic sack on the floor of the car.

You know me and my toy radar. Well, just as soon as everyone was distracted, I made my move.

I acted all innocent when I thought they might be on to me. (That gray blur on the left is Gus.)

And then I settled right back in to playing with Gus's toy.

I got a pink whale toy...but I had fun playing with Gus's toy while I could!

Super Sneaky at Supper

2011-05-03T20:40:00.003-05:00

I was super diabolical during supper tonight. Mom usually puts little pieces of canned doggie food in with my kibbles. That way she THINKS she can "trick" me into eating all of the kibbles, too. I usually just eat the kibbles anyway, though, because I'm hungry. She's really not tricking me into anything.

See what I did tonight, though?

I ate all of the canned food but left a lot of the kibbles! He he he! I even spit some of 'em out after licking the canned food off.

The canned food is really so much better, though. I'm sure Mom can't blame me for my new tactic.

By the way, Mom says that last picture is proof that I need a haircut. Personally, I don't care if she can't see my eyes through the furs...

The Mutt Strut

2011-04-30T20:04:00.005-05:00

Next Saturday, May 7, I'm gonna be strutting my stuff in the Mutt Strut! It's a fundraiser for our local humane society, the Champaign County Humane Society.

I participated in the Mutt Strut last year, too. Here's a picture of me and my friend Molly strutting. I think her new brother Gus is going to be strutting with me this year.

Last year I raised over $200 for the Mutt Strut! So far this year I'm only at $25. If you could help sponsor me, I'd really appreciate it! You can donate on my special FirstGiving Mutt Strut page. Thanks!

Box at the Door

2011-04-27T21:49:00.004-05:00

I got in a little trouble tonight. I got all excited because there was a box at the door. You can even see my wet paw prints all over around the box. (My paws were drenched 'cause it's pouring down rain outside tonight.)

The reason I got in trouble, though, is the fact that the package was not at OUR door...

Mom said it was the neighbor's package, not ours. And apparently the neighbor probably wouldn't want me checking it out like I do. Oops...

Thanks, Easter Bunny!

2011-04-27T12:50:00.002-05:00

The Easter Bunny stopped by our house on Saturday night when Mom and I were sleeping, and that Bunny must have thought I'd been super good 'cause he left me TWO toys! The Easter Bunny rocks!

Mom confiscated the toys, though. Can you believe that?! I didn't even get to see them. Easter morning Mom just said I had to wait until later to play with my new toys, and then she left to go to church!

When she came home from church, she took me for a ride in the car and we both went to visit our friends who have kitty cats. I LOVE watching kitties, so that was fun. Our friends make a fort for me to play in, too, under their footstool. And they have a backyard with a fence, so I got to run around back there. We had lots of fun visiting them for Easter.

When we got home from visiting, Mom finally broke out the new toys...or at least one of them. She told me that I had to wait for toy #2 because I "appreciate them more" if I get them one at a time. Something is seriously wrong with my Mom...

Anyway, the first toy I got from the Easter Bunny was a loofah dog holding an Easter egg!

I got tired of Mom taking pictures, so I took the toy into my princess tent to play.

I was pretty tired after the long day of visiting our friends, though, so I did a lot of this that evening...

And this...

On Monday when Mom got home from work, she said it was time to give me my second new toy from the Bunny! This toy was a yellow ducky that quacks. I decided to be a little anti-social, though, with Mom because she made me potty in the pouring rain before she gave me the toy. So, I took it into my tent, too.

Then I gave Mom a "look" when she tried to take pictures through the door of my tent. Back off, Mom!

Eventually I came out of my tent so that I had more room to roll on the new ducky.

And I rolled A LOT.

Then I got tired of the camera again so it was back to the tent. But I only went part-way inside this time.

Ended my evening on Monday by snoozing with both of my new Easter Bunny toys.

Thank you, Easter Bunny!

I won a gift certificate to DogToys.com at a Twitter party in March. It was donated by DogToys.com as a party prize. Mom says that my gift certificate helped out the Easter Bunny this year. I have no idea what she means...but she said I should thank DogToys.com, too. So...

Thank you, DogToys.com!

Unfortunate Events

2011-04-23T22:55:00.004-05:00

Had something baaaaad happen here tonight. I thought maybe Mom was getting a bath ready for me, but then she'd stop and go do something else, so I thought I was safe. Nope. I was wrong. She tricked me!

And to make things even worse, Mom got a gate. Yep. A gate. See me stuck in our bathroom behind the gate? Not cool.

See, Mom always got hot when she was blow-drying my furs after a bath 'cause our bathroom is little. Worked well for me, though, because that meant she never dried me all the way and I was allowed to escape early. With the gate, though, the bathroom isn't closed up, so Mom won't get so hot in there. Ugh.

And do you know what else she did to me tonight? Usually when she starts running bath water, I always hide under the bed or in my princess tent. Tonight, she stuck me in the bathroom behind the gate BEFORE she started the water! Sneaky, bad Mom!

While the water ran, I just sat by the gate and wished I could go hide...

But I was stuck. After Mom put me in the bathtub, I tried to jump out by myself, but I wasn't so lucky there, either.

I was forced to take a stupid bath.

The good news tonight, though, was at least Mom restocked the toys in the bathroom before she held me captive in there.

She started blow-drying me while I was checking out the toys. (Her distraction technique apparently worked...but not for long.)

I sat and stared out the gate for the rest of my blow-drying. I'm a master of looking pathetic.

I gave Mom the stink-eye in the living room when she finally let me out of the bathroom.

And I totally got my revenge later, too...

Seriously, the Easter Bunny doesn't care if I smell like a dog...

Toy Piggy

2011-04-19T22:12:00.004-05:00

If you watched the video in my last post, you heard my new, snorty piggy toy that my cool neighbor gave me. Wanna see what it looks like?

Here's a picture of me playing with the piggy inside my princess tent.

And playing with it outside of the tent...

I played so much that I even had to nap with my new piggy in my mouth.

Mom took lots of videos of me with my piggy, too. She thought it was so funny that the piggy and I both kept snorting and grunting. (Mom's so weird.)

I think Mom felt a little bad about laughing so much at all of the snorts. You know what she did? She actually let me take the piggy to bed last night! I gotta take advantage of this while I can...

The Sounds of the Princess, Part 2

2011-04-18T19:52:00.003-05:00

Tonight, my cool neighbor gave me a toy piggy that makes piggy sounds. The best part about that is that I make piggy sounds all of the time, too! So, when I was playing with my new piggy inside my princess tent, Mom couldn't tell what was making the noises -- her little piggy or the toy piggy!

Can YOU tell the difference?! It's about half me and half toy piggy!

Busted...

2011-04-18T19:34:00.002-05:00

Last night I had a great plan. When Mom wasn't looking, I took my new green squeaky ball and buried it in the covers on the bed. That way, I could sneak it into the bed so I could play with it at night. Mom said my new ball wasn't allowed in the bed, so I knew I had to be sneaky.

But I guess I didn't bury it quite good enough. I tried to give Mom my best "who, me?" look.

But she totally busted me. Sadly, the green squeaky ball was evicted from the bed. Poor ball.

I gotta come up with a new plan...

Playing Like Crazy

2011-04-17T22:35:00.003-05:00

I realized the other day that it's been a while since I've posted some videos. Well, I got a new squeaky ball this weekend, and Mom thought it was the perfect opportunity for some more movies of me playing like a crazy pup. And believe me, I played like crazy!

My new squeaky ball is SUPER loud. I love that in a toy. The louder, the better! Anyway, I started out by playing inside my princess tent, and then I decided to shove my new squeaky down into my doggie couch. Brilliant idea, if you ask me.

And since I shoved my squeaky down into my doggie couch, I had to attack the couch to play with the toy. Double the fun!

And then I just kept going crazy with the squeaky.

Eventually, I started to get tired. A lot of constant playing will do that to you, you know...

Don't tell Mom, but I'm planning to sneak that squeaky ball into bed tonight. Mom says squeaky balls "aren't allowed" in there. But she doesn't know that I already stashed it under the covers when she wasn't looking. This is gonna be FUN...

The Sounds of the Princess

2011-04-16T22:14:00.001-05:00

Mom says the video is a little shaky 'cause she was trying to not laugh. No idea why she thought I was so funny...

Mom's Slacking...

2011-04-12T21:31:00.005-05:00

What do you notice that's wrong in this picture?

See the problem? If not, try this picture...

My friends, that is an empty toy box, and it only has two lonely toys hanging out near it. What this means is that Mom is completely slacking in stocking my bathroom toy selection.

My job around here is to play with the toys and to entertain both myself and Mom. Her job is to supply the toys. And if I'm guarding the bathroom while she's in the shower, then I need toys in there to play with. Makes complete sense to me.

I'm the toy player. So what if I decide to take my bathroom toys to the living room to play. That's the player's decision! It's Mom's job to move other toys around and be sure I'm properly stocked in all rooms.

Guess I'm going to have to just take matters into my own paws and pick some toys to move back to the bathroom.

Hmmm...decisions, decisions...

Maybe one of the toys from under the tunnel...

Oh, you may have noticed something else in that first picture. That's a new toy from my cool neighbor! And yes, I also plucked all the furs off the top of the toy's head. I tried to blame the fur plucking on Mom...

...but Mom caught me with some blue fur stuck to my chin. Oops.

Grumpy Bunny

2011-04-07T22:20:00.005-05:00

Mom says my eyes can be very expressive. I think she's probably right about that. For example, check out the look that I gave her this evening when she woke me up from a nap and put BUNNY EARS on my head...

I was not a very happy Buttons Bunny. But eventually I just gave up being mad and went back to sleep...with the ears still on...

Mom wanted a picture of me in bunny ears so she could enter me in the Toki Poki Wuvable Wabbit contest. Toki Poki is posting the pictures on Facebook and the 10 pictures with the most "likes" by early next week will have cards made of them. Those cards are going to be given out at children's hospitals to help bring smiles to some kids.

My baby people cousin has spent the last week at a children's hospital out in Philadelphia, so Mom loved the idea of the winning cards going to help kids. That's why she wanted to enter me.

So, if you're on Facebook, could you please go "like" my picture in the Toki Poki gallery? I'd appreciate it! Mom and I would really love it if my picture could go to those kids in the hospitals.

And if you're curious about why my baby people cousin has been at the hospital, you can read about it on his blog, Jadon's Journey.

Thanks!

My Priorities

2011-04-06T22:56:00.003-05:00

I got a cool new donut toy tonight! It's got three squeakers in it, and it's super easy for me to hold onto.

The problem with my toy, however -- and the reason for this blog post -- is what Mom did with the donut. She gave me the new squeaky when she got home...and then she had the nerve to expect me to go outside to potty! How nutso is THAT?!

She should know me well enough by now to know that ain't going to work. I do NOT leave squeakies, especially NEW ones, to do something silly like potty outside. When I get a new toy, nothing else matters.

Mom had to pull and tug to get the donut away from me, and then she also had take the donut outside with us before I'd even consider joining her out there.

I think it's pretty obvious to everyone (and it should be obvious to Mom) that my priorities are as follows:

Toys.
Cookies.
Doggie food.
Belly rubs & ear scratches
Going potty outside.
Going for walks.
Naps.
Taking up as much of the bed as possible.
Working on my plan of taking over the house with my toy collection.
Whatever else Mom thinks she's gonna get me to do.

So Mom should really have known better. Just when I think I've got her trained, she goes and does something stupid like that...

Anipal Photo Hunt: Catching Up!

2011-04-03T20:11:00.006-05:00

I discovered that I missed TWO of the Anipal Photo Hunt challenges. I didn't miss any of 'em before the Photo Hunt went on a break, and I sure can't end up behind now! So, I decided to catch up.

The first post I missed was with the theme "Mardi Gras." I don't have anything specifically "Mardi Gras," but I DO have a picture of me wearing some beads! They're Shibbering Cheetos Love Beads. I was rolling on some toys, too, so I was having fun. That counts as Mardi Gras, don't you think?!

The second Anipal Photo Hunt that I missed was "What the Heck Is That Thing?!" I went to my archives for this one, and I found TWO different things to use...

First, we got a box in the mail one day. You know what boxes have in them, right? TOYS! Not this one, though. It had something Mom called a "cake pan" in it. What the heck?!

My second "What the Heck Is That Thing?!" was when Mom's friend came to visit last year. This pile of blankets on our couch kept making noises and moving. I kept a close eye on it.

I had to figure out what was going on in those blankets!

Turns out it was Dallas, Mom's friend's doggy!

And NOW I'm all caught back up with the Anipal Photo Hunt!

Anipal Photo Hunt: Grazin'

2011-04-03T19:27:00.004-05:00

I didn't realize it, but the Anipal Photo Hunt is back! This week's theme is Grazin'. Now, I don't eat grass, so I can't show you pictures of that. I do eat kibble, though. And I looked it up, and "grazing" could mean eating stuff other than grass. So, these pictures should be just fine.

A while back I had some special powder stuff that Mom put on my food to help with my tummy issues. These pics are from me eating my powdered kibble. Mom thought it was hysterical that I ended up with powder all over my mouth...

I wasn't too thrilled about Mom's "photo shoot" while I was trying to eat my supper. Can you tell???

Here are the other Anipal Photo Hunt blogs for this time:

Got a Grip

2011-03-30T22:48:00.003-05:00

It may look like I'm using my bear as a pillow, but it's actually firmly in my mouth. (At least as much of it as will fit is in there.) And I'm not letting go of it.

This bear is going to bed with me tonight whether Mom likes it or not.

Update on the Bed Rules

2011-03-29T17:49:00.003-05:00

Mom announced that my new fishy from our neighbor is NOT allowed in bed because it's made of latex and Mom says it's too flat and too squeaky and too loud. (Is that supposed to be a bad thing?!)

I just don't understand why Mom doesn't like rolling over on loud squeakies in the middle of the night. I love those squeaky sounds!

So I was bummed that I wasn't allowed to take the fishy to bed. But, I did get some good news, too. We had sushi delivered this weekend and Mom told me that the sushi was OK to sleep with! Woo hoo!

It's plush, squeaky sushi, of course.

My friend Smokey had a contest on Twitter one night and he gave away lots of prizes. I won one...and it was a doggie toy! So, that's where the squeaky sushi came from. Smokey bought it on NipAndBones.com and sent it to me for my contest prize. Isn't that cool?! Thanks, Smokey!

At least I can play with the sushi in bed at night.

(Please pay no attention to that mangled, de-stuffed toy in the last picture. I have no idea how that happened...)

In Time-Out

2011-03-28T21:58:00.004-05:00

I sort of pooped in the office today while Mom was at work. Oops. My tummy is still acting up, though, so Mom wasn't upset with me. She knows I can't always help it.

But just to show her I'm sorry, I put myself in time-out.

Sleepy Saturday

2011-03-27T22:47:00.004-05:00

Saturday was my Mom's birthday, and I celebrated with her of course. In fact, I started the party early by waking Mom up at 4:00 a.m. to go potty outside. And then I decided that I was pretty sleepy, so I slept in. And I mean I really slept in. Mom got up at 8:00 a.m., but I didn't get out of bed until noon.

And I only got out of bed then because Mom made me. She said she was worried that I was gonna explode if I didn't go outside again.

I say that I was just sleepy and she worries too much.

More Toys from My Neighbor!

2011-03-25T20:58:00.004-05:00

I got TWO new toys last night from my neighbor when Mom and I went for a walk. She gave me a pink bear and a little blue and yellow fishy!

I was so excited when we got home that I insisted on playing fetch before Mom could even get my coat off of me. (Yeah, I run down the hallway and wait for the toy to fly over my head...)

Then I played with the toy in my doggie bed for a bit.

When I got out of the doggie bed, Mom finally managed to get my coat off of me. And then you know what I did? I rolled on that fishy.

And I rolled.

And rolled.

Know why? Because I love squeakies, and that's how I roll.

(He he he! Couldn't resist that pun...)

Debate Over a New Rule

2011-03-20T17:54:00.004-05:00

If you've read my blog for long, then you probably know that I have an ongoing debate with Mom about the amount of toys that I should be allowed to have. In my opinion, two of us live here, so I should be allowed to have 50% of the space in the house. And I prefer to fill that space with TOYS. Makes sense, doesn't it?

Well, that same theory also applies to the space in the bed. We share the bed -- even though Mom claims it's "hers" -- so I say that I should get 50% of the bed, too. Right? And if I want to fill my half with toys, that's my prerogative.

It's very important to sleep with toys. You've gotta have 'em nearby just in case you want to snuggle or squeak in the middle of the night. And I always personally select the toys I want to snooze with. Heck, sometimes I even sleep with a toy in my mouth.

So, you can imagine my shock and disappointment when Mom announced today that we have a new rule about which particular toys are allowed in the bed. That's just absurd! They're MY toys, so I should get to pick whichever toys I WANT.

But noooooooo. Mom declared that my latex and rubber toys are no longer allowed in bed. That means no more orange soccer ball to snuggle with.

Obviously, I gave Mom quite a look when she made this announcement.

She says that my white soccer ball and my rubber chicken are also not allowed anymore.

Her lame reasoning for the new rule? Mom claims that she's tired of rolling over on a loud, latex toy in the middle of the night. I guess the round balls and the rubber chicken sometimes "migrate" over to Mom's part of the bed. And since I like to take my 50% out of the middle of the bed, they don't have to travel very far.

Although dogs love a good squeak any time of the day or night, it seems that people don't really appreciate rolling over on a loud squeaky toy at 2:30 a.m.

However, in all fairness here, I should be an equal party in any rule making and thus I should be allowed to have my pick of any of my toys to sleep with. I don't mind a squeak in the middle of the night. Mom needs to just adjust and adapt.

My solution to Mom's problem? She can always just go sleep on the couch.

Adopt the Internet Day!

2011-03-15T16:48:00.005-05:00

I haven't been able to post lately 'cause Mom had surgery on her hand. She can only type with one hand now, and let me just say that she is really cramping my style. Anyway...

Today's Petfinder's birthday! To celebrate, I want to talk about the adoption option.

You know that I'm cute. And I'm funny. And I make lots of people smile 'cause of my antics. BUT did you know that I'm a rescue doggie? That's right! I'm here today because my Mom adopted me a year and a half ago.

I even had a Petfinder page out there all about me.

So, with over 320,000 animals on Petfinder now, can you imagine all of the possible cuteness and funniness and antics out there, just waiting for a home? Consider adoption!

And in the spirit of Adopt the Internet Day, I'd like to introduce you to two little boys out on Petfinder right now. Meet Willie and Waylon:

Willie and Waylon are brothers who are about 6 months old. They're Chihuahua and Miniature Schnauzer mixes at Genesis Animal Rescue in Mattoon, Illinois. The boys are about the size of some of my squeaky toys -- only 4 lbs each! I hope these little cuties find their forever home soon.

And now, since this post has taken Mom hours to type one-handed, I'm going to simply end with a little cuteness of my own...

Going Hiking

2011-02-28T20:38:00.006-06:00

My former foster sister Shawnee goes on hiking adventures all the time. You probably know her -- she writes about her hiking trips on her blog, The Shenanigans of Shawnee the Shepherd.

Tonight Mom and I decided to go on a hiking trip of our own...just like Shawnee. Cool, huh?

We set out to do a .6 mile hike, but only ended up doing about .2 mile (more on that later). Yeah, so that's not nearly as impressive as Shawnee's hikes, but keep in mind that my Mom's out of shape and I've got short little legs. In fact, to show you just how short my legs are, I stole a picture from Shawnee's blog (from back before I was adopted). I'm standing right beside Shawnee -- see how much shorter my legs are?

The other two doggies are Shawnee's sisters, Dixie and Sydney. They're my former foster sisters, too. (Hi, girls!)

Anyway, back to my hike! Here's where Mom and I entered the park.

And when I realized where we were going, I took off on a run. Just look at my ears flying!

Lots of pee-mail to check at the park.

More pee-mail.

It's a very dog-friendly place. The trail even has two "dog stations" set up, complete with poo bags!

I told you there was lots of pee-mail to check, right?

Here's a scenic view of the pond at the park. The park was filled with geese tonight. Mom says they're Super Poopers, just like me.

If you look closely, you may notice that that front section of water isn't actually part of the pond. It's flooding from all of the snows melting.

We walked past a tree that was donated in memory of a local woman who loved trees and parks. I gave it a sniff, of course.

There are cool markers along the path, too, so that you can see just how far you've hiked. This one says .3, but we didn't start at the beginning, so that's not quite right for our trip.

And now we come to the reason why we only walked .2 mile instead of .6. You see, .6 mile is a trip all of the way around the pond in the park. But I decided that I was hungry. And cold. And tired of walking. So, I acted all pathetic and shaky and I refused to move until Mom agreed to turn around and walk towards home. (The "pathetic" trick works like a charm with her!)

So now here's a picture of me acting all excited to go back home for supper.

And I'm a little blur here because home's in sight.

"Come on, Mom! Open the door!"

So we set out to do a hike...but I guess we really didn't, did we? We actually just walked at the park near where we live (and I've probably blogged about the pond before anyway). And we didn't walk very far, either.

Oh, one more thing...

Shawnee always keeps track of the litter that people leave along the trails she hikes. She even carries all of the litter out of the parks in her very own back pack. How cool is she?! So, here's the litter that Mom and I found along our super-duper-mini hike (a.k.a. "walk"):

After I had my supper and warmed myself up, I spent some quality time rolling on my squeakies.

I suppose I should keep up the rolling and just leave the hiking to Shawnee. If you want to read about some really cool hikes, be sure you check out Shawnee's blog!

Anna's Spectacular Tongue-Tacular Contest

2011-02-28T19:50:00.004-06:00

Anna is bringing back her Spectacular Tongue-Tacular Contest!

You know what you can win in this contest? TOYS and treats! Yes...I said TOYS!!! So I just had to enter...

Here's my tongue photo for the contest:

Yeah, it's a bath photo...but it does really highlight my tongue, don't you think?

Check out Anna's blog if you want to enter her tongue contest, too!

Not My Fault...

2011-02-27T21:25:00.005-06:00

Mom was scratching my head and my ears and she leaned down close to me. So, I gave her a kiss on her nose. I can be stingy with my kisses, so Mom was all excited. And she deserved a little kiss for spoiling me so much, right?

But then I sneezed right in her face.

Oops.

It was clearly not my fault, though. I'm an innocent little doggie.

I blame my nose. It's obviously my nose's fault. Doesn't it even look guilty?!

(And yes, that's another new toy from my neighbor in the first picture. Woo hoo!)

Just Hanging Out

2011-02-23T20:53:00.004-06:00

It was a quiet evening at home for Mom and I. Well, maybe I shouldn't say "quiet" because squeakies were involved. And I did play a lot with my little soccer ball and my round bed....

I said I played a lot, right? He he he...

I suppose not many nights at home are actually "quiet" around here. But that's the way it should be, right?

I Am Sleepy

2011-02-21T22:06:00.004-06:00

I didn't want to get out of bed this morning. It's my choice, right? I was sleepy, so I just stayed all snuggled up in bed. (Well, I wasn't quite all snuggled up here when Mom rudely woke me up by taking pictures...)

Mom claims that I didn't get out of bed until lunch time. I just know that I needed my beauty sleep. Mom was up and banging around earlier, and it sorta annoyed me that she had to keep checking in on me. Seriously...I just wanted to snooze!

I snoozed on the couch this afternoon, too. I burrowed under my blankie for a nice nap.

Know what I did this evening? You guessed it...

A girl just needs her rest some days...

Ack! Groomer!

2011-02-19T10:29:00.004-06:00

I thought I was safe. I thought I had won the War of the Groomer. I was super-duper shaggy and Mom hadn't made me go to the groomer in a long, long time. Imagine my horror, then, when she took me there this week. ACK!

I went from LOTS of shaggy fur to almost no fur. I feel practically naked now!

WHY did they cut off all of my shaggy furs?! Sure, I'm super cute now, but is that really necessary?

Even my belly is naked!

The worst part of the groomer trip, however, was what the silly groomer did to my poor, poor tail. My tail was really fluffy. I AM a Shih Tzu, you know. We have fluffy tails! And Mom and I loved my shaggy tail! But look at what it looks like now...

Yep...the groomer SHAVED part of my tail!!! She told Mom that I had some mats in it. I think she just got confused and thought I was a poodle or a lion. After all, that's the tail that I have now...a lion's tail or a poodle's tail.

Need proof? Just look at this comparison...

See? My tail isn't a Shih Tzu tail anymore! I'm a lion now! Or a poodle. (Lions are more ferocious, though, so I'm sure my squeakies think I'm a lion...)

I hope my tail grows back fast. Stupid groomer.

Snoozing and Snuggling with Stuffies

2011-02-19T10:04:00.003-06:00

My toys seem to be growing in size. You know I got the giant doggie, right? Well check out the huge bunny that my neighbor gave me!

I was snuggling with my bunny and my doggie.

Been snuggling with my doggie by itself, too.

And I even burrowed under the doggie to nap. Blanket? I don't need a blanket when I've got a giant stuffie!

What giant stuffie will I get to snuggle with next?!

My Super Big Prize

2011-02-16T22:12:00.004-06:00

A while back I won the grand prize in a contest on the Two Little Cavaliers blog. This was a huge prize, too. I got lots and lots of cool stuff. I'll tell you all about my prizes in another post, though, because today I've got to tell you about just one part of it...

Part of my big grand prize was a special package from Lainey's Pawtique and Bakery. They make lots of yummy cookies and other cool stuff for doggies.

On Monday, a giant box arrived in the mail. Just look at the size of the box! And it had paw prints stamped on the outside, too, so I knew that it was all mine.

In the box was my prize from Lainey's Pawtique! Lainey knows how much of a toy fanatic I am. And I think she also knows that I've had tummy problems lately. So, just take a look at what she sent me...

It's a stuffed doggie that's bigger than me! Yes, I went a little nuts.

Mom didn't get video of me dragging the dog around, but she did get proof of my plucking...

I've had a ton of fun with this guy. I like to pluck his ears and his tail a lot.

Mom and I even played fetch and tug with my new toy. It wasn't very easy for me to fetch, though, so Mom sort of threw it and then we both fetched. Here's me tugging on it.

Lainey also sent me some other goodies in the box. Mom played with those when I was attacking the stuffie. I got some yummy cookies, and valentines, and a smell-good ornament with my name painted on it!

Mom tried to get me to pose with all my prizes, but I was a little disgruntled because I just wanted to play. (And I look even more grouchy 'cause I need a hair cut...)

Here are some of the yummy cookies that I got.

Mom wouldn't let me eat many 'cause of my tummy issues, but she did let me have two cookies. They were so yummy that I followed Mom around until she hid the bag of cookies from me. Anyway, here's me eating a bone-shaped cookie (half is already in my mouth).

You know what Mom did? She actually ate two of MY cookies. Can you believe that?! I thought those were doggie treats for ME but Mom ate some of 'em. The nerve of her. She said they were yummy for her, too, so I'm going to have to watch to be sure she doesn't eat more.

Anyway, I went so crazy playing with that huge dog and then eating the cookies and playing some more, that I had to put myself in time out. I went into my princess tent for a while to chill out. (Mom spied on me through the tunnel, as usual.)

And then I ended up doing this for the rest of the evening:

It really wears you out, you know, playing with a doggie that's larger than you are!

Thanks so much to the Two Little Cavaliers for having the contest and for Lainey's Pawtique and Bakery for this super cool, perfect-for-Buttons prize!

Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T22:45:00.004-06:00

I don't have much time to write tonight, but there's one thing that I have to tell you...

It was a goooood Valentine's Day for me. Here's proof:

I'll tell you more about that huge doggie (the stuffed one) later. I wore myself out playing with it tonight and I need to go to bed now.

Coldest Night of the Year

2011-02-10T17:37:00.006-06:00

It's been super duper cold outside here lately. Last night, Mom was even cold inside. She had trouble sleeping 'cause of the cold, but she thought it was all in her mind since she was tired and SOMEONE kept her up a lot.

OK...yes, it's true. I'll admit it. I'm "someone." I was ansty and I kept Mom up last night. She even had to take me out to potty at 12:30 a.m. and again at 4:30 a.m. And then I was still awake and antsy after that. I even messed around in bed, burrowing myself under the blankets.

This morning when we got out of bed, Mom realized just why she was cold and why I was so antsy... Our thermostat said it was only 51 degrees in our house! Brrrrrrr! And the thermostat was set so it was supposed to be that cold, too!

How on earth did the heat get turned down so low? We have a theory. Meet the culprit:

That's right. It's a squeaky toy.

See, Mom and I play fetch in our hallway. This is me waiting for Mom to throw the toy:

Yeah, I run ahead and stand there and wait. Anyway, our thermostat is on the wall in the hallway.

Last night when we were playing fetch, Mom tossed the squeaky and it bonked the thermostat. She didn't think to check the thermostat, though, to be sure it was o.k. It was just a light-weight, plush squeaky, right?

Wrong answer. The squeaky turned the thermostat dial when it bonked it, and that's how the thermostat was set to be 51 degrees!

Mom will certainly check the thermostat from now on after any squeakies hit it. And I really hope she improves her squeaky-throwing aim anyway so that no more toys end up hitting the thermostat.

It's been much warmer in here since we got that fixed.

But I'm still going to take my own M&M blankie to bed tonight, just in case!

Visit to the Special Vet

2011-02-09T20:05:00.005-06:00

On Monday, Mom decided to take me to see a special vet because I'm still having some tummy problems. Seemed like it took forever for the vet to come into our little room. I sat in the window while we waited.

Did a lot of people-watching out the window, too. There were a lot of people out there!

The special vet did lots and lots of tests. It wasn't very fun, so I'm not divulging info on those. What happens at the special vet's office, stays at the special vet's office.

Here's how I felt by the time I got to go home HOURS later...

The good news is that the tests didn't show any icky bad stuff. Bad news is that we still don't know what's wrong with my tummy. But we're trying some new things to see if they help.

Mom's been putting this yummy powder stuff on my food this week. She said something 'bout the powder being for any sneaky bugs that might be hiding in my tummy. If my tummy gets better this week, then I'll get another week of powder later on. If the powder doesn't help my tummy, then Mom says we'll try something else. So, we'll see!

I finally recovered from all of the icky tests, though. Mom and I went to see our neighbor tonight and she gave me some squeaky fries! They're super loud, too, so I LOVE squeaking 'em.

Yeah, Mom and I couldn't decide which of those two videos we liked the most so we showed you both!

Anyway, I rolled and squeaked until I had to take a break in my couch.

It's been quite a week, you know.

Who Unstuffed My Stuffie?!

2011-02-06T18:29:00.003-06:00

When Mom and I woke up the other morning, we discovered a mystery. Someone had plucked a hole in my squeaky toy and pulled the stuffing and squeaker out! The stuffie's remains were right there on the foot of the bed, on the blanket that I sleep on. How rude!

I figured that it HAD to have been Mom because it's just the two of us here. Right? So I gave her a look and said, "Was that YOU, Mom?"

She denied it, of course, and then pointed out the fact that she doesn't play with my toys.

And then, well, she got a photo of this...

She caught me red-handed. I couldn't resist the toy, and I totally blew my cover. Oops.

Perfect Form: The Art of Rolling

2011-02-05T10:27:00.002-06:00

This is an educational post for all of you who would like to learn how to roll on your toys to squeaky them.

First of all, you must select your toy to roll on. Any toy will work, but make sure it's not a toy that will poke or ouchy you when you roll on it.

Next, flop on the toy. Then you can begin rolling on your back.

When rolling, it's all about using the perfect rolling form. Always -- and I mean always -- cross your back legs. It's much more lady-like and it gives you more booty power. You can sometimes use your front legs to get extra leverage when rolling, too. Just flop them about a little and you'll see. Always do little shimmies when you roll, too. Those are fun. And sometimes it helps to make snorty noises. (I'm not sure why, but I seem to make a lot of piggy noises when I roll...)

Here's a video demonstration of the proper form to use when rolling:

If you notice your Mom sitting nearby with a camera, it is important to IMMEDIATELY turn your back to her. Do not roll any more until she puts the camera away. Just ignore her. She needs to learn to not disturb your play time.

There you have it! That's all there is to rolling on your squeakies. Now, everyone please practice. Let's hear those squeaks!

Revenge is Sweet

2011-02-02T17:29:00.003-06:00

You know how I was planning something to show Mom who's boss after she made me take that bath and then she weed-whackered my bangs? Oh, yes. I got my revenge!

My plan was put in place this morning at 2:40 a.m. Yep. 2:40 a.m. I woke Mom up and made her take me outside so I could go poo. The best part? It was right in the middle of our blizzard! We got lots of ice and then lots of snow on top of the ice. So when Mom had to take me outside, we had deep snow/ice, and it was still coming down. And it was windy and cold. I took my time finding the right spot outside, too. That'll show her for making me take a bath!

Mom says we were lucky that our snows weren't as deep as they were supposed to be. We got more ice than we were supposed to, though. This afternoon we went to go visit our neighbor, and Mom and I both stood on top of the snows without breaking through. That's some strong ice!

Oh -- our neighbor gave me a cool squeaky carrot toy today. This evening I let the carrot sleep in my couch while I napped on the couch cushion.

I Was Weed-Whackered!

2011-01-31T20:14:00.005-06:00

Last night I was ambushed with a bath. Tonight Mom decided that my bangs were too long. WHEN will this torture end?!

She put me in the bathroom sink because that's where she thinks she can "contain" me.

But I kept planning my escape the whole time, so I think she finally learned that the sink ain't the spot she thinks it is.

OK. So maybe my bangs were a little long. It was getting a bit hard to see.

But between Mom's lack of experience and me fidgeting up a storm, the results were NOT good. My bangs look like they've been attacked by a weed whacker!

Just as soon as I got out of that sink, THIS is all Mom saw of me...

Here's a close-up of the damages. Some pieces are still too long, and there's a super short spot right in the middle.

It isn't pretty. But I guess at least I can sort of see now. Mom says it's a good thing that I don't have a mirror in my princess tent, 'cause maybe I'll just forget that my bangs were whacked.

Forget this experience? Never. Instead, I'm adding another layer of fun to my plans for revenge. I'm thinking of super loud squeakies now -- AND my animal sounds Babble Ball -- at 3:30 a.m. under Mom's bed...

That'll teach her.

Ambushed!

2011-01-30T21:36:00.007-06:00

Let me ask you something. Does this look like a doggie who deserves to be harassed?

What about this? Does THIS look like a doggie who needs to be tormented and tortured?

Unfortunately, that is exactly what happened tonight, my friends. I was napping, minding my own business, and then suddenly AMBUSHED by this...

Yes, I had to take a bath.

After weeks of reprieve, I thought I had won the War of the Bathtub. Mom hadn't subjected me to a bath for a long, long time. Apparently, however, I was wrong. She just lulled me into a sense of complacency and then WHAM...bath torture.

Looking pathetic and cute has no effect on Mom when she's in bath mode. My charms are powerless.

The woman was on a serious "get Buttons clean" mission, too. I prefer to be stinky. And dirty. I am a dog, you know.

And you can see just how upset I am by looking at my tail in this picture. Is it up and curly and wagging? Noooo. I am not a happy pup.

Since all of my attempts to escape the bath seemed to have no impact on Mom, I finally just stuck my tongue out at her. Take THAT!

Of course the normal blow dryer torture ensued after the bath. You'll notice that I sat RIGHT BY the bathroom door, awaiting my escape.

When Mom finally let me out of the bathroom, I went a little crazy. Then I hid under the blanket on the couch. I didn't want to end up back in that bathroom.

When I realized that I was safe, however, I decided to dry myself off the rest of the way by rolling on the carpet.

Then I took out some of my frustrations on a penguin toy.

In my opinion, tonight's ambush bath was entirely uncalled for. Just ridiculous. I was stinky for weeks, so why the torture tonight?!

I WILL get back at Mom for this. I'm working on a plan right now. I can't divulge all of the details, but I can tell you that it involves squeaky toys under Mom's bed at 3:30 a.m....

My New Sofa

2011-01-26T21:53:00.009-06:00

At one of the Twitter parties, I won a gift certificate to Nip and Bones from MizzBassie. Cool, huh? So, Mom and I decided that I could use some furnishings for my princess tent. We ordered a doggie bed that looks just like a little sofa.

I must admit, though, that I got a little confused when it arrived. You see, I'm used to always getting TOYS in the boxes that come to our house. Not doggie beds. So, naturally, when the huge box arrived, I assumed it was filled with toys.

And it was a BIG box, too. I went a little crazy.

As soon as Mom got the sofa out of the box, I immediately "checked in the edges for change someone might have dropped." (He he he.)

OK, so maybe I wasn't checking for change. What I was actually doing was pulling the cushion out of the couch because I thought for sure that it was a toy. It looked like some of my toys...and toys come in boxes...so it HAD to be a toy!

Yes, I attacked the new sofa.

I refused to leave the cushion in the sofa, too. I kept pulling it out and trying to squeaky it. Mom even caught me on video trying to squeaky and pluck the sofa cushion. (There was actually a squeaky UNDER the cushion that kept squeaking, too, so that just egged me on!)

I even rolled on the sofa and cushion just like I roll on my toys.

Eventually, I went and got another squeaky and played with it inside my new sofa. (Just like I play with toys in my round bed!) The sofa makes a nice echo chamber for squeakies. I had fun doing that until Mom realized that I was plucking the sofa instead of the toy. Oops.

I refused to leave the cushion in the sofa for most of that first day we had it. When it was on top of the sofa, I buried toys under the cushion, too. And then I even buried myself!

Since then, Mom has managed to convince me that the sofa cushion is actually a cushion and not a squeaky toy. So, I leave it in the sofa most of the time. But I still like to stick toys under it sometimes.

And I love to play in it, too, of course.

But most of the time now, my new sofa is used for napping.

It's a comfy couch!

Mom's in Trouble

2011-01-23T20:49:00.004-06:00

Mom had the audacity to leave me all morning and part of the afternoon, too. And then you know what? She left again this evening! That's just rude. And it's uncalled for...especially on the weekend!

So, I showed her. When she got home and wanted to play with me tonight, I wouldn't have anything to do with her. Instead, I took my squeaky ball and went into my princess tent.

She rudely tried to take pictures of me while I was in the tent. I refused to look at her.

I waited her out. She finally gave up trying to take pictures of me and trying to get me out of the tent. I had to take a quick peek.

I think she's learning her lesson.

My Big Personality

2011-01-22T21:15:00.004-06:00

I make Mom laugh. I make Mom laugh a lot. Why does she laugh at me so much? I don't know. I'm just being me. Mom says I'm silly and I have a whole lot of personality...whatever that means.

So, you tell me if this sort of stuff is funny dog behavior. It seems completely normal to me.

1. I think it's perfectly fine to play with my orange soccer ball while upside down on my back with my head under my dog bed.

2. What about flipping dog beds upside down and then digging in the bottom of them like there's dirt there?

3. Or maybe rolling on a toy and then digging in the big chair (and seeing if I could get into any mischief from there)? I did that until I realized that Mom was watching me...oops.

So, you be the judge. Am I funny? Do I have a "whole lot of personality?" Or am I just being a normal doggie? Or maybe "all of the above"...