Archive for the ‘Sophie’ Category

It was plenty hot today – in the 90′s – but a subtle shift is taking place. A little sharper chill at night, cooler mornings. School supplies are being shopped for. It is inevitable… summer is winding down.

This is one of my favorite photos from summer 2010 – Sophie and Argos “on duty” watching the kids play. They laid down by each other on their own, keeping watch of their charges. The kids were industriously building sand castles. The dogs didn’t seem to care.

They didn’t seem to care until we were gathering up to go – then Argos got a wild hair and began play bowing and acting silly. I was trying to get my camera out to take a photo of the sand creation. Argos sprang to life. He bowed down on the edge of the castle and that was it. He pawed repeatedly and furiously. Goodbye sand castle! I had tears from laughing so hard. We all did, which only fueled more pawing. Silly Greyhound.

Sophie, if it is possible, laughed too.

Sophie and Argos on Beach Duty

More of Sophie and Argos beach days: Don’t worry – he’s friendly

As we learned yesterday, Barnie was feeling a little left out. Someone has taken over his Invisi-Cat Shield. Just who is this new guy, and what do the other pets think about the situation?

First Argos.
He has actually shown the least interest, especially if it is nap time.

Next Sophie.
She is always the referee/nanny/babysitter. Remember when Barnie joined us?

So intense. Checking out the new guy.

Next, Greta
She has been a little cranky. I would say it is because she is 19 years old, but she has pretty much been this way her whole life. But we love her anyway.

And finally, Barnie!
The playmate he has been searching for. Maybe…?

So the new guy – still kind of nameless, but considering Quincy or Pete – is pretty cute. Warning… Cute overload:

As usual, summer has me going in too many directions at once. That, and my laptop decided that it was done doing wi-fi, so I have been working on that situation.

And well… a few new things have been happening in our lives.

We left off with Barnie cozy-ing up with Greta. Wow – this was a first! Some people suggested that it was because of the Cat Mat – that they couldn’t resist sharing the space. I would like to believe that, and there might be an element of truth, but… the real reason is below.

Barnie fills us in on getting squeezed out.

Barnie loves his Invisi-Cat Shield. Now it is being used by someone else.

Next update coming soon…!

What do my pets do most often? Sleep!

Sleep, sleep, sleep. The pets have fun, too. They… go for walks, play in the yard, go for hikes, chase stuff (and each other) and enjoy meal time excitement. But mostly, they lounge around, living the easy life.

They also swap sleeping places. Never fighting or aggressive, but definitely on the “first come, first sleep” basis. Here is a typical day in the life of lounging pets.

Nothing is more "typical" than a Greyhound loving life on the couch.

Unless we find this...

This causes trouble for Argos, who must find other accommodations.

This IS a very nice dog bed, by the way...

Deaf 19 year old Greta minds her own business. She sleeps very soundly in her Princess Bed.

Unless we find this...

Barnie insists he is comfy (and fits) in Greta's Princess Bed.

I have recently taken up the sport of knitting, and am obsessed! But … I don’t like to just make random things. Schtuff to fill up your house. Nope. I am all about functional art. In this case, I decided that I would make Barnie his very own Cat Mat for napping coziness.

My “in my head” pattern turned out a little too big for his window perch, so I thought it would make a great back-of-the-couch cozy for Greta. This is “her” spot nearly all of the time, when she isn’t in the Princess Bed. I worked until late at night and left the Cat Mat project on the back of the couch, where I was figuring out how wide I want to make it.

Cat Mat in progress, laying on the back of the couch to measure size.

Greta approves of the Cat-Mat-in-progress.

You can see where this is going here.

My sweet Sophie is happy wherever she lays her head!

Even though we are meeting prospective adopters for our foster, Hammer tonight(!), we went to one more adoption meet-and-greet, because the more the merrier! It’s a party.

Greyhound Twister! I don't pose these photos. Silly dogs!

That’s Hammer peeking under Lunar, another foster, and Argos. Lunar is also coming to our pre-adoption meeting tonight – the family is considering adopting two Greyhounds! How exciting.

Argos needs a head rest.

It was a very beautiful day — my daughter (and Greyhound wrangler) and the dogs were begging to go to the park after the meet-and-greet, so we did.

Everything about the park is fun. Fun!

Argos comes alive. Squirrels! He is doesn't pull or go crazy, just super, hyper-alert. So still.

Sophie and Argos have a silent communication – they get it – there’s squirrels here. How exciting! Neither dog makes a sound, but they look at each other, back to squirrels, and back to each other.

Hammer is not-so-much into the squirrel thing.

I heart you, Sophie.

To be continued…