Abby: Hello? I'm in here!

Mommy and Daddy stayed up late talking last night while munching on a delicious, ginormous Ho-Ho that a good friend made for them. At least that's what I heard. I wasn't there and here's why. Daddy came home with a bunch of homemade goodies and other delectables given to him by very good family friends. One of those gifts was a huge pack of fancy beef from out west and it needed to go into the freezer in the garage right away. Well, that obviously required the assistance of my bubbies and me, so we accompanied Mommy and Daddy to the garage to help them store the meat. Fast forward about an hour later when they decide to go to bed. Only then do they realize I'm not in the house. (Really? A whole hour? I'm losing my touch.) Anyway, they freak out, Mommy runs outside in her plaid flannel pajamas yelling into the dark night, "Abby! Abby!" Daddy runs upstairs to see if I snuck up there. Nope. My Mommy frantically calls upstairs to Daddy, "I'm getting in the car and looking for her!" She said she drove all the way to the wooden bridge worried to death that I was lost somewhere in the cold, wet and foggy night. She said she kept praying to God, "Please let us find Abby! We have to find our little girl!" Then Daddy gets in his car and drives to look for Mommy, (because she ran out without her cell phone), to tell her that he had found me in the garage. I was there the whole time! Mommy and Daddy were so happy to see me and I was ecstatic to see them. I wiggled with joy! Mommy asked me why I didn't bark to let them  know I was in the garage. I told her I thought it was bedtime. I mean, it was after midnight. Where did they expect me to go at that hour?

So, Mommy and Daddy, there's a lesson to be learned here: If you hadn't thought the worst and assumed I snuck outside, then you wouldn't have been driving around the neighborhood in the middle of a cold, damp and windy night in your pajamas and slippers searching for me.

Once again I have proven that I am a good girl! Why do I have to keep pointing this out?! (Ahem, January 29 entry.)

xoxo,

Abby

Gus: GoD & DoG

My mom and dad call me an angel so they thought I should be the one to tell you about the GoD & DoG video. It's a tenderhearted song and animation about the love and loyalty dogs have for humans, and most importantly God has for all of us. My mom says the video warms her heart and brings her to tears nearly every time she watches it. She loves it so much that she decided to interview the composer Wendy Francisco to find out why she wrote the song. She wrote an article about it and now it's on the Guideposts website! You can see it here: GoD & DoG: The sweet story behind the YouTube sensation filled with hope and faith. 

I think Mrs. Francisco did a great job explaining God's love by relating it to the unconditional love that dogs show their humans. It's true, I love my mom and dad no matter what. And, best of all, God loves each us and will never leave us. 

Amen. Bow wow.

Gussie

Gus: Snuggle time.

My mom and dad got back from their weekend getaway a couple of hours ago. Boy did  I miss them! I really missed their bed! I lllooooovvveee that big bed. When cousin Adam stays with us we don't get to sleep in that bed, my brothers and I have to stay on our doggy couches in the garages. I really like it in there, but it's not the same. When mom and dad got home I went as fast as I could up the stairs to their bedroom, picked Sebastian Bunny out of my stack of toys, and then right up the doggy steps to the comfy bed. (I need those steps 'cause I have bad knees and can't jump anymore.) Anyway, I got right up there and wiggled and moaned and played with Sebastian. It was wonderful! Hobbit and Buster came up, too, and we all laid in bed and watched TV for a little while. I love it when we can all snuggle together. Mom and Dad say snuggle time with us is their favorite, too. A big comfy bed, warm, furry doggies, fluffy toys, and family. It doesn't get any better than that.

Sweet dreams,
Gussie

Buster: I'm lovin' this weather!

My maw and paw said it won't be spring until late March, but boy it sure felt like spring today. The sun was shining and a fresh breeze was blowin'. I must've picked up a dozen new scents! The Coon Dog in me was just eatin' that up! I played all afternoon with my bubbies and sissy. We ran after squirrels and barked at the neighbors walkin' by.  Even Hobbit was joinin' in on the fun. He was chasin' his favorite red ball all over the yard. I haven't seen him do that in a while. He must be feelin' better these days.

Cousin Adam is gonna spend the weekend with Gus, Hobbit and me while Maw and Paw go away for the weekend. Abby and Huck won't be here. (That's like a vacation for us older guys!) Abby's goin' to Aunt Mary's house, but Huck's gotta stay at the kennel. I feel kinda bad for the pup, but Maw's working with Aunt Erin (Huck's Godmother) to see if she can keep him at her house in the future.

I know I complain about Abby and Huck sometimes. It's just that it can get pretty old havin' Abby bark at me all the time. And Huck, he's always naggin' at me to play outside with him. But, hey, they do bring some excitement to the place. Gus isn't up to gettin' too rowdy and Hobbit doesn't really hang out with us dogs, so I have to admit I kinda like the two youngsters. They keep this ol' boy young. I may be 10, but sometimes I feel like a pup again.

Night,
Buster

Maw took this picture of us barkin' at the neighbors next door. 

See? I'm right in there with the youngins. Yep, I'm still the big guy.

Here's Hobbit playing with his red ball. 

As you can see he can get kinda worked up.

Hobbit: Pedro, My Puerto Rican Cousin

My mommy said I have a cousin who just moved to the states from Puerto Rico. His name is Pedro, he is part-beagle and has one-eye, just like me. He was flown here for the chance to find a nice home. His dream was finally becoming a reality, except he didn't know that, at least not yet. It had been a really long day of flying for poor Pedro. He'd been stuck in that travel kennel for way too long. I can't imagine being cooped up like that riding in the belly of a loud metal beast with a bunch of suitcases and boxes and no one around to comfort me. I know he had to fly in a plane to get here, but I think he'd just had too much stress and confusion for one day and that's why he broke free and ran like the wind. Thing is, it's quite blustery in Boston this time of year. Nope, no sunny Caribbean sunshine to warm his cold nose. I bet he second-guessed his split-second decision a third, fourth and even fifth time. Well, thankfully there were a lot of really nice people who work at the airport and they did everything they could to find Pedro. The little sato (that's Puerto Rican slang forstreet dog; I learned that from my mommy) was no where to be found and spent a bitter cold night who knows where. Thankfully, it ended well. Now he will have his chance to find a forever home. Good for him. I know from experience that it's worth the wait.

Here's Pedro's story: Rescuing A Rescue

Love,

Hobbit

Hobbit: My Big Day!

Well, yesterday was my BIG day! The photographer, Mr. Cunningham, came to our house to take MY picture for Guideposts magazine! My Poncho wanted to dress me up in little tan and white striped seersucker pants and brown saddle oxfords, (that would have gone nicely with my coloring, I think), but Mommy said Guideposts probably didn't want us to get too fancy. The photographer was very nice and I won him over quite quickly. I felt very comfortable around him. Maybe too comfortable because I kept falling asleep. For the first portion of the session I was lying on my back in my Poncho's arms, (my usual position), and when I do that I instantly doze off. I was getting tired of them waking me up, but Mr. Cunningham said it was important to keep my one eye open to show that I have just the one eye. 

Things got more interesting when Mommy got out my little red Kong toy. That perked me up right away! Mr. Cunningham liked that and he took lots and lots of pictures. After more pictures of me with Mommy and then all three of us, it was time to photograph the whole family. 

Mommy, Poncho and Mr. Cunningham were all a bit concerned that it would be the most trying part of the day. They were right. To make things as easy as possible they decided to have us all sit on the couch. Huck and Abby couldn't sit still and were climbing all over us. I don't think Gus ever looked at the camera. He seemed to be doing his best to not participate. And I could tell Buster was starting to get aggravated with Mr. C repeatedly snapping his fingers over his head trying to get his attention, saying, "Buster! Buster! Buster!" Boy, you should've seen the look on Buster's face. Mommy and Poncho knew he was getting perturbed, but they didn't tell Mr. Cunningham that. Didn't want to make him nervous by pointing out that the 90 lb. dog was about to have a melt down. Even with all that going against him, I think Mr. C was able to get a couple of good pictures. He was patient with us and he is a talented photographer.

We ended the photo shoot with a walk outside. That didn't go as well as hoped. I think it was just time to call it a day. A three-hour photo shoot can make a dog "dog tired!"

It was all in all very exciting and our whole family is thrilled about Mommy's article being published in June. 

Good night, Diary!

Love, 

Hobbit

Abby: I'm a good girl!

Mommy and Daddy were worried for no reason! I was a good little girl while Mommy was out of town. Daddy was quite pleased with me! Huck is another story. Looks like they should have been focusing their worries on him instead. Daddy caught Huck chewing on the corner of the new area rug. He explained to Huck that such behavior will not be tolerated. Huck was a good boy and stayed away from that rug ... only until the next morning. Apparently he forgot what Daddy told him just several hours earlier. I think his attention span needs some work. Anyway, Daddy talked to him again and when Mommy got home from her trip she sprayed Bitter Yuck on the corners of the rug. So far, so good. There is an obvious takeaway from this story: Abby is a good girl! Huck still needs work.

Oh, and something exciting is going to happen tomorrow! You see, my mommy wrote an article for Guideposts magazine and it will be published in the June issue. It's a story about Hobbit. Anyway, Guideposts is sending a photographer to our house in the morning to take pictures for the article! Of course, most of the pictures will be of Hobbit, but the rest of us get to be in some of the pictures, too! So, Mommy and Daddy have been busy straightening up the house and bathing Hobbit and trimming his nails. Mommy also and gave me a trim around the eyes and mouth, washed my face and brushed my fur. I think I look kind of pretty! Tomorrow morning the big guys will get their turn. My mommy and daddy are kind of dreading the group picture, though. We all know how the Christmas card photo shoot went. Let's hope things will go smoother with a professional photographer in charge. 

Well, I better get my beauty sleep.

Love, 

Abby xoxo