The art of getting what you want....or at least trying

Doyle, preparing himself

The goal (the little white chew on the floor)

The Stare Down

The Circling Technique

"Can I have my own chew?"

We Love Summer!

Sophie and Doyle have been so excited that I am working from home this summer. They love just being able to relax. Sophie is definitely a "morning dog" as she is up about 6am every day wanting my attention. Doyle would much rather sleep in before starting his day.

One frustrating thing with Doyle is that he barks EVERY time I begin to dial a number on the phone. He wants a treat to chew on and lets me know it!

Sophie has made a friend. I let the dogs out in the back yard for a little while every day. There is a neighbor girl who always wants to come over and pet them. The dogs, especially Soph, LOVE it!!

Here are some pictures of our lazy summer days!

Doyle likes the snow and cat treats?

Doyle is such a weird dog! Every time it snows, he would like to be outside for hours. Unfortunately he is way too skinny and would freeze if I left him out there very long. He enjoys the few minutes he gets outside!


Doyle has a new obsession....cat treats! He steals the bag constantly He's funny to watch and will just chew on and lick the bag for hours!

Avery

I haven't put a picture of Avery up lately, mostly because I haven't really taken any. She pretty much stays to herself. She likes to sit on top of the gate and watch what is going on. She is a little bit afraid of Doyle, so she doesn't come into the living room very often since that's Doyle's territory and he lets everyone know it!

My Daisy Girl

My mom's Saint Bernard died last Friday. She was nearly 10, which means she had a good, long life. She had Addisons Disease and for the last 5 or 6 years, my mom has given her a shot every 28 days so she can survive. Sophie used to love Daisy. They were good friends when I was still living at home. Here are some pictures of Marley and Daisy-girl (as I have always called her). I can't find the pictures of Sophie and Daisy.

Avery's growing up!

Avery is just about 1, or will be soon. She's getting so big, although in the cat world, she is still quite small. Doyle scared her a few weeks ago, so I haven't seen much of her except when the dogs are outside. She doesn't like attention, but she does like to be in the same room as me. This is a picture from a few weeks ago. She was relaxing in the guest room (it was her room at my old apartment).

Sophie

Sophie is the nicest dog. She is better than Doyle or Avery. She's smart and gentle. She rarely barks, unless protecting me from the scary buggies that pass by sometimes. She loves to show off her tricks and gets them correct most of the time. She really is a great puppy to have. Except she takes really bad pictures. She just looks the same in every picture, so the lack of pictures of Sophie has only to do with her absence of expression in the pictures! :)

Doyle's Naptime

My buddy now likes to steal my throw pillows (and I do mean steal!). He falls asleep on them and just wants to be left alone! This is him, enjoying the afternoon sun a few weeks ago.

Sophie and Doyle

This is my only recent picture of these guys. I had a few from the other day, but they were all a little blurry...oh well.

Blinds

Every since Avery has been big enough to jump up to the windows, she has played with the blinds. I never minded too much, until I realized that I need to replace them all!! What a weird cat!

Leaving for a Week

Avery doesn't like it when I leave. Here she is trying to keep me from packing. She loves to play in my suitcases.

Bathtime or boredom!

I think I need to get out of my house! Today, for the 3rd day in a row, I have been stuck in my apartment. Cleaning, dished, laundry...there's only so much to do, right? How about give the dogs a bath? I attempted this task for the first time since they were puppies. Normally, they take a trip to the pet spa down the road (partly because it's only about $10 per dog to groom them and partly because it's one less day they have to be in their cage while I am at work). Today, I thought, why not?! Here are some pictures from the event:

Doyle, getting ready for his bath (He really liked this!)

Relaxing...nice and clean!

Sophie, really nervous about what was going to happen!

Sophie, not quite clean yet

Blizzard!

Over the last 24 hours or so, we have gotten well over a foot of snow. It is now extremely windy, so the drifts are quite high. I am off of school for the second day in a row because of the storm!! Sophie and Doyle love snow days because they get to spend the day being my little shadows. But they really hate to hear the words "Do you want to go out?" Poor little Doyle never gains weight and has no fat on him at all. He shivers and sticks his tail between his legs as soon as he hits the snow. I have to drag Sophie out the door because she hates the snow so much! Here are some pictures from this morning on our trip outside Though their "spot" is only about 10 feet from my front door, I say "trip" because it takes quite a bit of hiking to get there today!

My Attack Cat

Avery's new thing is hiding anywhere and everywhere, waiting until no one suspects anything, and attacking whoever walks by. Sometimes, she catches me by surprise, but I have gotten a few pictures while she waits for her prey!

Some Pictures from Christmas

Doyle always steals my blankets and claims them as his own. This is actually a tree skirt and he stuck his head through the center. What a weird dog!

I caught Sophie and Doyle sleeping like this one day (the tree skirt again!). I thought they looked really weird!

Fashion Show

OK...yes, I clothe my dogs. But only because whenever I take them out in the winter, they shiver until I take them back inside!! Here is their assortment of coats. Doyle loves the blue one, but hates his hoodie. Sophie doesn't even notice if I put it on her. I have included a picture of Avery. She just sits there and observes, although I think she is secretly laughing hysterically at the dogs, for letting me put coats on them, and at me, for putting them on in the first place!

Doyle in his favorite coat

Sophie and Doyle in their first coats

Sophie and her sweater

Doyle doesn't like his hoodie...can you tell?

A little happier after a few minutes (and without the hood up)

My Observer (and critic)

I think I may have a problem!

I am so excited about my new tree this year. I haven't put up my big tree yet (I think I am getting a real one this year), but my little musical tree was really fun to decorate today!

I am just not sure how much Avery likes my new tree! I am afraid she is going to pull it down!

Isn't she adorable?

I couldn't resist taking this picture of Avery. I just think she looks so cute! I can't seem to take any good pictures of Sophie or Doyle lately.

Photo Shoot

I saw Avery sitting so nicely on my bookshelf, so I took some pictures. She loves to sit and pose! What is it with her and Doyle?!

I caught her licking her lips....

Maybe it was right after she had her new favorite snack!

Avery's Legs

Avery's legs are so funny looking! She has one orange leg and one black leg. Isn't that weird?

Meet Avery

This is Avery. I'm still not sure she will be able to stay, but it is really fun to have her for at least a few days! Isn't she adorable?!

Avery

After school today, there was a family out front with a box of six little kittens they found near their home. The kittens had been abandoned. I stood and held them for a long time and ended up bringing one home. We'll see if it works. Sophie is already friends with little Avery (a beatiful little calico). Doyle is not too sure. He has barked at her all night!! I am going to keep Avery until Friday and see if she can get along with Doyle. If not, there is another family from school that said they would take her. I'll post some pictures sometime soon!

Sleepy Boy

This is Doyle's new favorite spot to nap! Whenever I fold up the blankets in the living room, he finds a way to get in the middle of the blanket.

Sophie loves to play!!

This is her expression right before she gets ready to attack Doyle to get him to play!

Doyle's Throne

Doyle's favorite place to sit! He barks at everything, so I rarely give him the chance to actually see out of the window!

Coney and Reese

Meet Sophie and Doyle's friends: Coney and Reese Mccallum. Coney and Soph are only two days apart and have been friends from the beginning. The four together (r-l): Coney, Doyle, Sophie, and Reese.

Marley

Marley and Daisy (my mom's St. Bernard)

My favorite picture of Marley!

Marley and Sophie napping

Doyle and Marley

This really is how Marley sleeps!

Meet Marley. He is Sophie's, and sometimes Doyle's, friend. I puppy sat for Marley for three months this summer. He was a great puppy! I cried all morning the day he left!

Early Morning

Doyle has this quirk of waking me up early in the morning, just to get a little bit of extra attention. This morning, it was 5:30 am. I heard his little feet hit the floor and I knew I was in trouble. He came and sat next to the bed. I tried not to move, hoping I could get my last half hour of sleep in peace! Too late. Once Doyle wakes up, we all get up! (I must admit, the extra time in the morning was helpful...maybe I should try this more often!)
Sometimes, just to try and "get back" at my little buddy, I wake him up from a nice long nap. This picture was taken at one of those times. I love the "leave me alone and let me sleep" expression! Maybe I'll try that on him next time!

Foot Obsession

Sophie seems to have an obsession with feet. Whenever I walk around my apartment, she follows me and, after each step I take, attacks my foot by biting my big toe! What a strange dog!
Doyle, on the other hand, will only attack my feet at night while I try to sleep. All of a sudden, my foot will get a nice reminder that it is not supposed to move until Doyle is ready to get up! Did I teach them this strange obsession? How in the world did I get two dogs, both obsessed with feet?

Christmas 2005

Doyle pose #1

Doyle and Sophie

Christmas 2005

My curious puppies!

Sophie (This is a special picture...she hates to sit for the camera!)

Doyle pose #2

I'll spare you the rest of the Doyle poses. I told you he likes the camera!

Meet Doyle

My dear Doyle is my dumb one. Don't get me wrong...I love my little buddy, but he really is just dumb. In the two years since he came to me, he has learned 3 things..."sit", "in your cage", and "are you hungry?" Not real impressive!
I love Doyle's ability to cheer me up! He is my constant shadow. Even as I type this, he is curled up in my lap, almost underneath my laptop! He loves attention. Doyle will do anything to be able to sit next to me. He's the best!
One of my favorite things about Doyle is his energy! This manifests itself in several ways. First, he races around the house. Over and over again, he will run at top speed (couch to floor to kitchen to bedroom to bed and back again) in circles! I usually sit on the couch and laugh at how ridiculous he looks...where does he think he's going? But this is a daily routine! (Is this more evidence of his dumbness?) Second, Doyle loves to pose for pictures. Yes, I know, that sounds ludicrous. But really, he will sit for an hour if I am holding the camera. I sure do have a weird dog!

Meet Sophie

Sophie is my princess. She entered my life a month after I graduated from college. She was the cutest little puppy I'd ever seen. I found her at a pet store (one that doesn't buy from puppymills). I held every puppy in the store and as soon as I picked her up, I fell in love!

Soph is extremely intelligent! She knows many tricks and she loves to show them off!! Her favorite trick is playing dead. Once we get to that trick, I can't get her to do anything else!

Enjoy reading about Sophie's antics. She may be the smart one, but she's also the one who tries to get away with everything!