Girls and Growls

Angel made some new friends on Friday night. The girls had a "girls night" here with several of their friends spending the night. I was looking forward to the girls being here, but not to Angel's predicted reaction. The girls started coming at 5, starting with Gracie, then came Jessie, Meagan, and finally Annie. Every girl got the same "angel unwelcome", fierce barking, lion-like growling, and clawing...on me, of course, while trying to settle her down. A couple of the parents dared to come in, and they were "treated" to the same surprise. I don't know about you, but a dog with that reaction gives me some cause for concern! Luckily, they were all briefed on her situation, so no one was really afraid of her. It just made it impossible for me to be cordial to them. Somewhat embarrassing, I guess, even though they knew what to expect.

It didn't stop me from being annoyed by it all, though I do try to remain calm. It took about an hour to finally get her to stop barking, growling, and rushing our guests. We went through many many treats and finally....finally...she gave them each an approving lick. Sigh.... I was a full hour late trying to get things ready for dinner for all six girls...and us too! Oh well. Just another day with Angel.

Sad thing is, she has "groundhog day" mentality, for when out of her sight for just a moment, she seems to "forget" who's here and starts all over again upon sight of them! Ugh...I have to say she is settling down somewhat faster, and trusting just a bit sooner than usual. By the time they left late on Saturday, Angel was giving most of them the belly and trying to sneak more licks! It just takes lots of time. And patience on all our parts.

She is worth it, but I'm pretty sure I got a few more gray hairs this week. Soon I will match Angel....:)

Naughty Dog

Angel was up to her no-good tricks again this morning as she scared Serena right out of her shoes..literally! Serena took her outside this morning and I thought nothing of it until she burst through the door, looking a bit disheveled. Angel trotted off while Serena began to blurt..."She took off on me! She ran ALL the way down the road...right in the road! All the way down to Grandma's driveway...she wouldn't stop...I couldn't catch her...I was so afraid a car would come...she tried to go down to the river too! I was so scared...my shoe came off while I was running...I had to tackle her then I sat in the snow because I couldn't breathe...and on and on the story went..complete with tears. :( She stood there, bright red from the cold, standing there in soaking wet moccasin slippers, pajama bottoms and her bright pink coat, watery eyes as big as pies as she spoke.

Meanwhile, Angel, looking a little sheepish, went off by herself, surely knowing what a stink she had caused. Or does she?

We don't know what she's thinking when she does this. Serena had merely reached into her pocket for her phone and Angel took off, leash and all. Nearly a quarter of a mile away. Steve takes her out on the training lead all the time and lets her run. She listens to Mr. Alpha Male, apparently. Not so much the rest of us...

Later Angel went up to Serena's room and I heard Serena  say, "Are you here to apologize or are you just hiding from mommy cuz you know you're in big trouble?" :) I'd like to think she does feel bad, but truly, I think Angel is just planning her next shenanigan!

I am thankful that because of the poor road condition, we didn't have much traffic today. We live on a very curvy, very unforgiving road. I thought of all kinds of horrible things that could have happened....going down the riverbank would have been disastrous, as you can't get down there without some kind of rope.  Serena is being treated for a bum knee right now, and I am glad she didn't hurt herself or fall while running.

All Natalie could say was, "Hey, those were MY slippers you were wearing!":)

A Snooze A Day

Ahh..to be a dog. To have a bed in nearly every room of the house too! This is Angel's kitchen bed. She likes to be in here so she can see me in the kitchen and in the living room. The sun hits the bed just right at certain times of day and she seems to like that too. I guess it brings out her "inner cat"! This was Sophie's old favorite spot for the same reason: to keep tabs on mommy! If I move too far away, she will turn her body so that she can watch me. It's pretty cute...she can be so tired and barely moving, but she notices every move I make and doesn't miss a beat! As I type, she is right behind me....ahh...to be a dog owner...

Our Other "angel"

These were some of the last pictures I could bear to take just a couple of months before we lost Sophie. As I look at these pictures, I know exactly what was going through our minds, and yet two years later, I still can't seem to share those thoughts aloud. Angel has done wonders in healing our hearts, and it has been easier since she came along. It is a blessing to have had Sophie, who is now our "angel", and now to have Angel, who is our angel on earth.

Angel and Mercy

Well, I guess the "honeymoon phase" is officially over. Angel got into some trash while we were at the basketball game the other night. Mind you, Angel doesn't get left alone regularly, and if we leave, it's never for very long. So, I'm not quite sure why she gets so incredibly bored while we are gone! I actually do have a few theories...she is bored without her usual doggy/kitty playmates. She has separation anxiety because she's never lived at a home for very long. She is now comfortable enough to get into mischief!! Whatever the reason, she still goes unpunished.

I was the first to walk through the door, and a little shocked at the mess on the floor, so I probably said, "oh my gosh" or something like that. I wasn't angry, just surprised. She never does that! She immediately took off, assuming she was going to "get it". I finished picking up the mess and called her to go outside. She didn't come. Unusual for her. Kept calling. No Angel. I went into the bedroom and there she sat in her bed, somewhat cowering. I felt so bad for her that I just calmly walked up to her, told her she was okay, and gave her a few pats. Then when I told her to come outside, she happily followed.  I guess it's just going to take even more time for her to completely trust us. Sad to think about her broken little heart sometimes.

Last night I went to bed pretty early, not feeling well. Angel immediately took her spot in bed with me, all stretched out next to my side. She's so warm and cuddly, and so very comforting. At some time in the night, she had gotten back into her own bed, while my insomnia kicked in. I laid there and laid there, almost willing her to jump back in bed with me! When my husband ended up getting up, she thought it was "morning" and jumped up in bed with me!  So at 4am, I had Angel right up next to me, laying her head on my hands. Guess what? I went back to sleep!

I know I go on and on about her. (kind of the purpose of a blog, right?) But I will never get tired of her love for me. I will never get tired of loving her. I've always said a friendship with an animal is something you have to experience. No one can explain it to you. And even the most broken animals always have the most love to give. Maybe like some humans? Don't the ones who "least deserve" the love need it the most?

She's Lovin' It

Hubby and I had a craving for ice cream last night, so we took Angel to McDonald's. McDonald's is the only public place we can take Angel where she doesn't growl or bark at everyone. Know why? She loooooves hamburgers!  One of the things we were told when we adopted Angel was that she loved going through the drive- thru to get a burger.  As soon as we pull in, Angel seems to "know" exactly where we are. As we approach the speaker, she is on full alert! She begins licking her chops and staring intently at the windows. Usually when a person talks or approaches the van, she goes all crazy! Not at McDonald's. She is a perfect little lady, sitting there all cute, waiting for that little paper bag with a delicious plain hamburger in it to come through the window! No barks, no growls...nothing! Just one happy dog!


 

Sleepy

Here is Angel, half asleep and barely hanging on to the back of my chair! She cracks me up. I can put her to sleep just by talking softly and quietly to her. She reminds me of a cat. Her eyes start to flutter, then ultimately close, then she drops her head down.

What a life! Oh, to be a dog and get to sleep all day.....

Calling All "Yofi" Fans

I am so pleased to be able to follow the life of one of Angel's puppies! Come and see how wonderful Marley's (formerly "Yofi") new family is at his new blog.

www.happygirlgr.blogspot.com (i hope this works. If not, let the fingers do the walking)

Gina, I hope you don't mind my sharing this! I think Gina's blog is wonderful and I am so happy for her and her family that Marley has settled in so nicely. 

Again, if you are a puppy mama out there, please let us know! We'd love to see how your puppy resembles his brothers and his mama.

Thanks again to Nancy, who took one leap of faith...ultimately bringing Angel to me! :)

Chocoholic?

We came home from the basketball game last night and followed a mysterious trail of food. It seems my mom gave Serena a bag with 2 boxes of granola bars and 3 king size candy bars in it. The only reason I know that is because Angel emptied out the bag and was in the living room gnawing on one of the boxes! Fortunately she had only chewed a corner of the peppermint patties so she didn't get any chocolate!  She must have thought she was really going to get it because she went and hid under the table and looked pretty pitiful.

Well, as soon as I realized she hadn't eaten the chocolate, I was relieved. I just went over and picked her up, giving her smooches.  This is really the "worst" thing she's done in 8 months. I'm just glad it didn't hurt her.

And Serena, who had been sleeping, said to me, "oh, yeah, Grandma sent home some stuff with me after practice."

Yeah, we saw it. :)

Squeakin' and Snowballin'

Angel girl must have a little cabin fever these days. She's been getting a little crazy! Natalie likes to take her outside and let her chase snowballs, and Angel looooves snow! She will grab the snowball, run like the wind, fling the snowball out of her mouth, then chase it again- attack mode! With the snow beginning to melt away, she's been busy chasing dry leaves. Not as fun, we can tell! :) We've also been taking extra time to play with her inside. She has a big basket full of toys- her favorites always on top so she can get them! Right now she is in love with her "piggy", the first toy we ever bought her, a squeaky squirrel, squeaky bunny, squeaky duck, squeaky candy cane, a squeaky "lamb chop",and another squeaky piggy just like her old one! Do you see a pattern? She just goes nuts with all of them....at once! Yesterday I cracked up as I was playing with her on the floor. She walked up to me and bonked me on the forehead over and over with her squeaky bunny...."squeak! Squeak!" over and over again. She usually follows me around the house doing this to my leg, so the forehead thing was pretty hilarious! Hubby was working from home yesterday and got to be entertained with all her antics....and mine. She can never decide exactly which toy she wants to commit to,so she tries to pick them all up at once! If I try to put them back in the basket, she goes right to the basket and pulls them right back out! If I put it in my pocket or on my head, in my sock, etc....she goes for it! Natalie gets her climbing over and under her knees. She calls it her "agility work". She actually is pretty agile, especially when climbing across the backs of our chairs. It always seems like she's trying out new tricks when trying to jump from one thing to another. She's quite a character! In the past I have had issues with SAD (seasonal affective disorder)-like symptoms, but with Angel, I am always smiling....and squeaking! She's a hoot....and a squeak!

My Girls

My three favorite girls! Angel loves her sisters, but lately, she's been growling a bit at Serena. I think she sees her as a "litter mate", somehow sensing that she is the youngest in our family "pack". It's nothing serious, but it bugs Serena just a bit! Angel has never tried to bite or snap, so I figure it's Angel's way of trying to put Serena in her place. Not gonna happen...does she KNOW Serena? :) Anyway, lovin' these girls is the easiest thing to do in my life and I don't know where I'd be without them!

Dog Pals

We celebrated Christmas at Steve's parents home, where there are always lots of dogs visiting! These are just a few of the dogs who come to visit- Monty (in front), Jenna (in pink collar), and Cooper (in blue collar-brother of Jenna). Monty is about 2-1/2, while Jenna and Cooper are getting a little long in the tooth! All three are sweet dogs, but I'm still afraid to introduce Angel!

Serena was the "dog whisperer" that day, as the dogs aren't allowed past the kitchen at Grandmas! It can be a little overwhelming to have 3 big dogs clamoring for your attention, especially when the largest is about 95 pounds! I know I shouldn't be worried, but next to them, Angel looks like an appetizer! :)

Photogenic

This is one of the pics the girls took of Angel when trying to get just the right pic to make into my Christmas gift. I love the one they chose, but this one was pretty cute too! Angel loves to sleep...anywhere...anytime...and she always looks so cute while sleeping. The girls took about 30 pictures, many of her asleep. I thought it was funny...they complained that "all she did was sleep while you were gone!" Funny, when I'm home, all she wants to do is play!