Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

One Year Ago

2010-01-22T07:18:00.000-08:00

One year ago today, my big sister Clover died. We still miss her and think about her a lot. She was really the best kitty ever. This is Mommy's absolute favorite picture of Clover:
She used to love to lie in front of the big window and soak up all the heat and sunshine that she could. Mommy and Daddy even put special UV-blocking film on the windows so she wouldn't get sunburned.

This is Mommy's favorite picture of me and Clover together:
We are both soaking up the sunshine. I learned from her!

In other news, I want to tell you about a recent adventure I had at a cabin in Lake Tahoe two weekends ago. It was very cold there because there was lots of snow. Mommy and I went for a walk in the neighborhood, but I was not happy with having my feet touch the ground. I only walked less than a block before Mommy decided to take pity on me and tuck me snugly into my orange backpack to be carried the rest of the way. It was much more fun then!

After we got back from our walk, I discovered the wonder of the fireplace! Mommy put my bed right in front of it so I could get warm. It was soooooo nice! I snuggled up in front of that fireplace every chance I got from then on:

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Merry Christmas Furiends!!!

2009-12-23T13:55:00.000-08:00

Hello Furiends!

I have had a very nice Christmas season so far. I got to go on an outing to cut our Christmas tree and I was very helpful in choosing the right one. There were a lot of nice smells at that tree farm, and of course I had to add one of my own. Poo and kick!

After we decorated the tree I was forced to endure a photo shoot session with a bunch of Christmas balls in front of the tree. It actually wasn't that bad because I got to eat lots of treats! Mommy thinks the pictures turned out pretty cute.
Of course they are not quite as cute as the picture she found online and was using for inspiration. Check it out!

I have a new addition to my extensive wardrobe. Last week Mommy was at Target doing some Christmas shopping (not for me) when she--ahem--JUST HAPPENED to walk through the dog section. There she saw a really super cute Christmas jacket, but of course they didn't have it in my size (small). They had a small in teal, but she wanted a small in red. Who wants a teal Christmas jacket? She was a little bummed, and walked around the whole area for about fifteen minutes just to see if she could find one. She couldn't, so she finished her shopping and went home.

When she got home, she kept thinking about that jacket. So she decided to go out again to another Target in a different town. Her logic was that we must have a lot of chihuahuas in our town, so all the smalls were gone, but maybe this other town is populated mainly by mastiffs and great danes. Flawless logic, as you can see. So she drove all the way over there, and guess what! They had a small one in red! Yay!

It turns out that it's really more of a cape than a jacket. This is me as Little Red Poppy Hood:
The hood is actually quite nice because it keeps my ears warm when I go outside to poop.

I hope you are all having a nice holiday too!

Bye for now,
Little Red Poppy Hood

Fort Funston, Leaf Walk, and Cuddling!

2009-12-03T07:36:00.000-08:00

Last month we went to Fort Funston. (Yes, I said "last month" and I'm just now getting around to posting about it.) It was a super great day. The weather was so warm that I didn't even have to wear my jacket the whole time! We went down to the beach and when my feet hit the sand I totally freaked out! I tried to run in circles as fast as a tornado! I love the beach!!!!! I even met a new friend down there. I don't know his name, but he was really nice and we hit it off really well. In this picture you can see an action shot of us playing.

Before we left, Mommy and Daddy wrote my name really big in the sand. I tried to do a nice pose, but the beach is a very distracting place!

The other day we went on a fall leaf walk. Daddy took lots of pictures of the colorful leaves, and a couple of me too. Mommy really likes this fuzzy purple stuff.

Lately I have been doing a lot of aggressive cuddling, which means I squirm and wiggle until I get into the perfect position to maximize body contact and heat transfer. It has been super cold here!!!
I hope all my furiends can forgive me for my long absences from my blog and my lack of commenting. The truth is, Mommy has become a teeny bit obsessed with digital scrapbooking. So every time she is on the computer, she scrapbooks pictures of me instead of helping me check my blogs!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Movie Friday: I Waaaant!

2009-11-20T07:57:00.000-08:00

Excuse me please...why am I not allowed to have this burrito?

I asked so nicely, but they didn't give it to me! At least they gave me a few beans from it though. I'm lucky because I always get some beans when Mommy and Daddy have Mexican food. Yay! But that burrito was so huge--couldn't they at least have given me a bite?

Bye for now!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

The Whole Enchihuahua

2009-10-27T16:23:00.000-07:00

Today has been a good day! First, Mommy bought me a new carseat for her car. She says it's really annoying to have to move the carseat back and forth between cars. Today was the final straw because Mommy was in a bad mood and wanted to take me out with her to get a soda, but the carseat was at work with Daddy in his car! So, she strapped me into the backseat with another little strap we have and we went out and bought a second carseat!

Then when we got home we had a fall/halloween photo shoot. I wore my cozy orange fall sweater and I posed nicely in front of the pumpkins on our front porch.

In the second picture you can see my chihuahua welcome sign too!

After that, I put on my BRAND NEW HOME MADE HOWLOWEEN COSTUME!!! This year I am dressing as an enchihuahua. That's enchilada + chihuahua...get it??!! Ha ha ha!!!

Mommy made a label for the front of my costume that says:

100% Delicious Enchihuahua
All Natural Ingredients:
tortilla, beans, lettuce, red sauce, & love

Love is the most important ingredient, of course.

Deeeelicious!

Happy Howloween!
Poppy the Enchihuahua

A Message From Dr. Poppy

2009-10-10T08:42:00.000-07:00

Hi Furiends,

I am a little bit worried that some people out there may be seriously deficient when it comes to their recommended daily intake of vitamin C (that is vitamin CUTE). I am sure that none of these vitamin cute-deficient people are your parents; nor are they mine. I supply so much cute that sometimes they actually suffer from another condition called hyper-cutonic affective disorder (H-CAD), or "cute overload" in layman's terms.

Anyway, back to the point at hand. There are plenty of pet-less people out there who are vitamin-cute deficient! Today, I will try to make this all better by providing several samples of vitamin cute.

Sample A: "Excuse me, are you going to finish that?"

Sample B: "My toothbrush has a flavor!"

Sample C: "Mommy always appreciates my helping."

Sample D: "Butt up; so comfy!"

Furiends, if you know someone who suffers from vitamin cute deficiency, please do your best to give them some cute so they feel all better inside.

Bye for now,
Dr. Poppy, LBC

Waterfall Hiking!

2009-09-26T12:19:00.001-07:00

Hello furiends! Look at me hiking!!!I love hiking! We went to a county park with lots of streams and waterfalls. Don't worry--I was careful not to get my feet wet! I got to walk about half of the time, and the rest of the time Mommy carried me in my orange backpack. I am slowly working my way back up to being a "trail dog." Before my back surgeries, I used to walk the whole way on our hikes. Now I can only do a little walking and mostly riding. But I still have fun!
This time we were hiking with friends, which we don't normally do. It turns out that I HATE riding when we are hiking with friends! I like to be in the front of the pack, and if I have to ride or walk in the back, I get very upset and mush like a sled dog until I can reach the front of the group. This, as you might imagine, is not so great for my back.

Mommy and Daddy did a bad thing last weekend. They went hiking without me! They went to a park that does not allow dogs. I can't imagine! So I cannot show you any pictures of me from this hike because I was not there! Humph!

I hope everyone has a great weekend!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

"Ear"resistible Ears!

2009-09-09T18:37:00.000-07:00

Hello furiends!

I promised that I would blog again "later in the week," but that seems to have turned into "later in the next week." Oops. Oh well! Here we go!

I am really excited because I am officially entering Lexus & Bentley's "Ear"resistible Ears Contest! I love my ears for two reasons. First, they are very functional because they help me concentrate like I am doing here with this treat:

Second, they help me get what I want by looking cuuuuuute!
I hope you like my photo entry and I can't wait to see all the entries and admire everybody else's ears!

In other news, Dinah & Bridget gave me an award called "Oops, I Ate It!" Now, I'm not sure if this award should start with "oops," because I usually always mean to eat the things I eat. For example, one day when I was a puppy, Mommy found me in the living room chewing on what looked like a green tassel. She thought and though about where I might have gotten such a thing, but she was pretty sure that we didn't have any tassels, green or otherwise, in our house. It turned out that she was right, because when she got closer, she saw that what I was actually eating was the stringy, fibrous end of an asparagus!!! It must have fallen on the floor while Daddy was chopping them for dinner. Oops! Hee hee! It was on that day that Mommy and Daddy realized that I am an asparagus fiend and will go to almost any length to get some.

And the last item on today's agenda is a little story about how I got my name. I may have told this story before, but I really like it, so I'll tell it again. When Mommy and Daddy got me, they already had my sister Clover, the prettiest orange kitty who ever was. Mommy really likes "nature" names (like Clover), and she wanted mine to fit in with the theme. The day before Mommy and Daddy picked me up from the shelter, they went hiking. During their hike, they tried to decide on a nature name for me. They went through the alphabet letter by letter, trying to find the best name. Mommy came up with Daisy, Sandy, Spring, and several others. Daddy came up with Onion. Ha ha. Nothing seemed to feel quite right. Then all of a sudden, Daddy said, "How about Poppy?" Mommy screamed! She wondered how she could have overlooked that name. Poppies are her absolute favorite flowers! So that was that. I became Poppy, and I really like my name because I think it's pretty and also I've never met another dog with the same name. I think maybe it's common in England, but we don't live in England. :) Here is a picture of me on my very first day home a little over four years ago:

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Goodbye Vacations, Hello Fall

2009-08-31T07:42:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody! I had two great vacations in a row! The first vacation was to Mendocino, which was very picturesque, as promised. We stayed at the Inn at Schoolhouse Creek, which was SO dog-friendly! Dogs are allowed everywhere except the main house during breakfast. When we arrived, I peed in the Pooch Parking area:

After we got settled, we set off to explore the town. It was all foggy, as can be expected on the California coast. I was prepared with my fleece lined rain jacket. We had dinner at a cafe in town. They had a big deck outside with lots of heat lamps. Mommy and I were nice and cozy under the lamps, and Daddy was sweating! This was our appetizer:

The next day we went to the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens. It was really pretty and they allow dogs! We expected it to be foggy again, but it was actually really sunny and warm. I did a pretty good pose on this bench, don't you think?
Later that day we went to Big River Beach, which is where the Big River meets the Pacific Ocean, and had a picnic lunch. The Inn has its own private little beach called Buckhorn Cove, but you had to walk down the shoulder of the highway and then down a poison oak-infested path to reach it. No thanks! So we went to this huge beach instead. This was only the first day off of my official six-week crate rest, so I wasn't allowed to run and play all crazy-like. Daddy walked with me a little bit, but I tried to run the whole time! My legs were moving fast and my ears were slicked back, so I must have been runing, right? Mommy says I wasn't because Daddy was holding me back on the leash. Maybe that wasn't such a good idea for my back. I had to have a drink after that:
Boy, was I tired that night! When we're on vacation, I never get to take my mid-day naps, so no matter what we do, I'm always tired at the end of the day. I dug this little pile of covers on our bed all by myself:

The next morning we checked out of our Inn and went to another place for breakfast. It's called The Ravens and it's at the Stanford Inn, which is also very dog-friendly, by the way. We might stay there next time. It is a vegetarian restaurant, and the only restaurant in all of California that allows dogs inside to eat!!! I hope I didn't convince them to change their policy...as soon as we walked in the door, I squatted down and started to have a poop right in front of the front desk. Heh heh, oops. Mommy quickly took me outside, where the poop actually fell out, luckily. Anyway, they did let us inside after I was done! This is a picture of the dog dining room. Nobody was there because we were pretty much their last breakfast reservation. But you can see the hotel's dogs, Murphy and Gypsy. They were there to keep us company!

After breakfast we walked around the Stanford Inn's gardens. There were lots of good things to smell. I'm wearing my new coat in this picture. I actually didn't wear it the whole time because once we got there, Mommy realized that she hadn't made a hole in it for my leash. I think all coats for little dogs should have the hole pre-made right where the harness would be. Some of them have a hole at the neckline for the leash to attach to the collar, but I don't wear a leash attached to my collar. Little dogs often have problems with their tracheas. It's safer to wear a harness! But I think you can see how pretty my new coat is anyway:
Mendocino was really fun, and the whole town was super dog-friendly. We were home for only a couple of days before our next vacation, camping in Lake Tahoe!!!

We went to Emerald Bay State Park and camped for three nights in our gigantic tent! Daddy got a new warm weather sleeping bag that has an expandable zipper section. He got it specifically so that I can fit better inside with him. At first it didn't smell right to me and I didn't want to go inside. After quite a bit of coaxing, I finally tried it the second night. I approve, as you can see. And why won't Mommy stop taking pictures while I'm trying to sleep?!

We went on a great hike to Granite Lake. I got to ride in my orange backpack because I'm still not healed enough for real hiking. But I like to ride too, so it's okay. We met several people on the trail who remarked on how cute I am and how they wish their dog would ride like me!

On our last day there, we went to Kiva Beach, which is the dog beach in south shore. I didn't have any sunscreen on, so we tried to stay in the shade. I spent much of the time in my rightful place on top of Daddy:

I had TWO great vacations, and now this week Mommy has to go back to work. We sure will miss this summer. Even though Mommy has always been a teacher, this is actually the first summer she has taken off! Usually she does summer school or summer camps or something. I was very lucky to have so much time with her, especially since I had to have an unexpected back surgery. This year her teaching schedule is a teeny bit better than last year, so I hope we have more time together every day. I am such a lucky Poo!

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Pee Ess:
Later this week I will do a post about an "Oops I Ate It" award I got and and also about how I got my name. :) And I'm also going to enter the "ear"resistable ears contest!

I'm Going on Vacation!!!

2009-08-19T08:24:00.000-07:00

We are going on vacation for a few days to a very dog-friendly place with beaches and bluffs and meadows and creeks! It's called Mendocino! (Mendocino is home to the only restaurant in California where dogs can eat INDOORS!!!) I am very excited to go, but I have to wait for Daddy to wake up before we can leave. I guess I will spend this time packing my bag. I can also tell you what I have been doing lately.

I sure have had a busy couple of weeks! August has been much better than July so far. No surgeries! Yay! Two weekends ago we went to our favorite pet supply store to find something for me to chew on while I am on crate rest. Being still is soooo boring that Mommy and Daddy decided that they wanted to get me a special treat. We bought these dried sweet potato things and then we went to the coffee shop next door to get Daddy a treat. While Mommy and I were waiting outside, she opened the sweet potato package and I practically tried to grab it out of her hands! She gave me one to eat on her lap, and it was soooo good! She was surprised because she had bought me a sample one of these before, but I didn't like it at all. Maybe it was too dried out. But these were moist and delicious and chewy! Look at me chowing down:

A couple of weeks ago Mommy did a bad thing and ordered me another jacket plus TWO more Puppia harnesses (one pink and one brown). We eagerly awaited its arrival for a looong time, and it finally arrived the other day! I will take a picture of me in my new Urban Hund jacket while we are on vacation this week. It is brown corduroy lined with pink fleece! They included some sample treats in the package, and I was very interested in finding out what they were. I dug and scratched at the package to no avail. She finally had to help me get them out, and guess what they were. Peanut butter ballz! Oh yummy yummy! Mommy checked the PB recall pet food/treat list first to see if they were on it, and when they got the all-clear, I chowed down! It was a little bit hard to get started because they are so huge and they roll around like a ball! At first I didn't know whether to eat it or play with it! I figured it out eventually. So delicious!

In other news, I received an award from my new friend Coco the chihuahua. She says I am a gem! Thank you, Coco! How sweet of you!

I will see you all after my picturesque coastal vacation!!!
Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Loldog!

2009-08-02T13:23:00.001-07:00

My Mommy made me into a loldog, but she doesn't know how to send it to ihasahotdog. Oh well.

I hope everyone is enjoying this beautiful, lazy Sunday!
Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Four Presents!!!

2009-07-28T10:46:00.000-07:00

Mommy has been feeling guilty that I have to spend so much time doing nothing, so she bought me some presents! Four presents!

First, she ordered me a new collar. I kept getting my dew claw caught in the tag ring on my old one, so she wanted to get one of those special collars with my name and phone number embroidered on it. She ordered it from Dog Collar World. They have soooo many colors to choose from! We chose orange and white gingham with black embroidery thread. It came to our house in only a few days! Here is what it looks like:
I am a little bit sleepy in this picture, which is why I am rubbing my eyes. But it's a pretty good picture of my new collar, don't you think? My name is on one side and my phone number is on the other side. And we attached my bell, too. AND it's still a breakaway kitty collar, so it's extra safe. Although the website said it's a 10 pound breakaway...but I only weigh 8 1/2 pounds ...hmmm. I've never gotten caught on anything before, so it's probably okay.

At the grocery store yesterday Mommy bought me TWO MORE PRESENTS! She got me this thing that looks like a toy, but she insists that it is Not-A-Toy, but rather a little buckwheat heating pad. You can judge for yourself--do you think it looks like a toy?

It's filled with buckwheat and you can microwave it and it gets all warm and toasty. They're called "Whoopsies." I think that name is kind of funny. But no matter what it's called, it looks like a toy to me!

The other thing she got me at the store was some wheatgrass! I love to eat grass, and I haven't been able to walk around in the backyard or on walks to get my recommended daily intake of grass, so she bought me some organic grass of my very own! We used to get this for my sister Clover, but we haven't had it since she died almost exactly six months ago. :(
Num num, I love grass!

The fourth and final present isn't exactly for me, but it's me-themed, which is almost just as good. At the Garlic Festival over the weekend Mommy and Daddy got some yard art! Look:
This is the me-themed one. It's a welcome chihuahua! Mommy's only complaint about it is that she wishes it had paw prints instead of bones. Bones are so morbid, but they are sometimes hard to avoid on doggy stuff. The artist we bought this from also had ones that said "Protected by Chihuahua Security Co." Those were pretty funny too!

We also got an angel kitty for my sister Clover, who is at the Rainbow Bridge. I think we will put this one in the sunshine near the vegetable garden.

I hope everyone else had a great weekend too!
Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Pee Ess: (or should I say POO Ess!?)
This is just an extra picture for your viewing pleasure. Mommy calls this one "So Close, Yet So Far Away."

Lunch Time!

2009-07-20T12:52:00.000-07:00

My recovery is going really well. The problem is that I feel so good that I want to get up and run around! That would be very bad for my back though. I have three more weeks of crate rest to go. :(

This picture was taken six days after my surgery. Look at me standing up!
Later that same day Mommy and Daddy decided to take me out for lunch to Chipotle. I love this place because they always feed me beans if I ask nicely! I sat in my carrier during lunch so I wouldn't wiggle around too much and fall off the chair. It was pretty comfy!

And if you want to be really impressed, check out this video of my first post-surgery walk six days after surgery:

I can actually walk without my sling, but I'm not supposed to. Sometimes I walk around the living room just a little bit. But really I want to run and play!!! Being relaxed is soooo hard!

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

My Sense of Drama is Highly Developed

2009-07-15T09:20:00.000-07:00

Hi friends,

As you can see, I'm still resting and recuperating from my back surgery. Sometimes I am restless and really want to get up and move around, and sometimes I am very sleepy, like this:
Mommy put a camping mattress on the floor so she could rest next to me. It puts her in the perfect position to rub my head constantly. Yay!

Last night Daddy noticed that it is really swollen along my back where the incision is. It's probably a seroma, which they told us could happen. It's supposedly not bad, but Mommy hates it and wishes it would go away! They are putting warm stuff on my back to help it feel better, like this warm washcloth in a plastic bag:

I am starting to feel more feisty and have taken to screaming any time someone tries to pick me up. Mommy and Daddy do not appreciate this; I'm not sure why. After all, when I scream, I usually get what I want! I'm not really in more pain now...it's just that I tend to be a little bit overdramatic. For example, the other day when Mommy said, "Poppy, do you want to go out?" I stood up and walked across the bed to her before she even knew what was happening--and no screaming at all! Of course, they didn't tell me that we were going to the v-e-t to get my sticky fentanyl patch removed!

I am really excited because tonight I might get to go out to dinner and see my long lost Uncle DJ, who I haven't seen in over six months! He is the one who doggysat me when Mommy and Daddy had to go to Cirque du Soleil after my last back surgery. Oh, I am excited!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Recovery, the Sequel

2009-07-12T11:57:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends!

I am feeling pretty okay after my back surgery. Mommy and Daddy are really pleased because I am already way ahead of where I was in my recovery last time. Maybe even a whole week ahead, and it's probably because they caught it early this time. I can already be picked up and put down without screaming. And I can move my back legs and tail a little too!!!

Mostly I am feeling a little sad and am spending a lot of time resting in my bed:
I'm on pain meds and also a sedative, which is helping to keep me relaxed. I moan a lot, and the only thing that makes me stop is being close to Mommy and Daddy. I put my paw like this in her hand all by myself:

Yesterday morning Mommy took me outside to watch Daddy while he watered the garden and I was really happy to be out there looking around and smelling everything! I didn't moan or whine at all! I had such a good time, in fact, that they decided to take me out to a birthday party! This party is a yearly summer event for Mommy and Daddy's close friends' kids. They've been looking forward to going for a month now, and they were sad that they were going to have to miss it. But after I had such a good time outside in the back yard, they thought maybe they would take me--just for an hour or two.

So we packed up my pee pads and my stroller and my blankie and hit the road! I really did enjoy that party, even though I ended up moaning the whole time. It wasn't because I was in pain though--it was because I wasn't allowed to do anything! I had to just sit there and rest. But it was awesome because I got to see some of my best friends and everybody said, "oh, poor Poppy" and gave me gentle pets. And I really loved having some fun things to see and smell. (By the way, please excuse Mommy's slipper foot--she had toe surgery last week and this is the only shoe she can wear!)
It was fun, and boy was I tired when I got home!

Last night Mommy made me a treat Kong with crunchy foods and frozen peanut butter. I licked my way through the peanut butter, but I wasn't about to be tricked into eating crunchy foods at a time like this! It's wet treats all the way for me!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Oh Noes!

2009-07-09T14:39:00.000-07:00

On Tuesday morning I woke up in a lot of pain. It was my back! And my back legs felt all funny again. Mommy and Daddy took me to see my vet, who said we should wait 24 to 48 hours and use anti-inflammatories and pain meds to try to avoid another surgery.
On Tuesday and Wednesday I was pretty tired and a little bit out of it, as you can see.

Well, the plan worked for the first day, but last night I started to get worse. So this morning we went to the specialist, who sent me for an MRI. When I woke up from the MRI, I was all sleepy and a little bit upset. I really wanted to go home, but the MRI revealed that I do need to have another surgery! :(

I'll be back in a couple days... Wish me luck!
Poppy the LBC

Pee Ess from Poppy's Mom: We just dropped her off at VSA for her surgery. We get to visit her tomorrow and then pick her up on Saturday morning. In our family we have now had two knee surgeries (Dad), two toe surgeries (Mom), and two back surgeries (Poppy). I think that's enough!

UPDATE: Poppy is out of surgery and doing well so far. We'll get to visit her tomorrow and maybe even bring her home tomorrow(if not, then Saturday).

Resting and Relaxing

2009-07-06T10:22:00.000-07:00

Hello Friends! I haven't been doing anything exciting lately because Mommy has been busy with end-of-school-year stuff at work, and then she had foot surgery. Eek! So we've been recovering.

But the rest of my summer promises to be filled with fun and family! We have a couple of fun camping weekends planned for after Mommy's foot is better. In the meantime, I am keeping busy with a rigorous schedule of sleeping, snuggling, eating, and playing...in that order.

Bye for now!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

I Think I Smell Summer!

2009-06-14T17:39:00.000-07:00

The weather was nice this weekend, so I spent some time outside investigating Daddy's new garden. He's growing vegetables for me!

Another exciting thing that happened this week is that we got carpet! My parents were tired of worrying about me slipping on the tiny spots of hardwood floor that were not covered by bathmats, so they broke down and bought a huge rug that covers the whole entire living room--with no gaps! Now I can run and play more than I could before. It is awesome. Look at all that soft fuzzy stuff:
And it matches my ramp, too!

On Friday we got to go visit my Grandma and Grandpa. They used to live only about five minutes away, but they moved last week. Now they live about 20 minutes away. I wasn't sure if I liked it at first, because it smelled all weird. But then I saw Grandpa getting some chicken ready to barbeque, and suddenly I started to like their new house a whole lot! I tried to be patient, but I don't think I did a very good job:
After it was cooked, Grandma gave me two little pieces! I officially declare that their new house is the best ever!

I hope everyone else had a nice week too!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

My Camping Trip to Lake Tahoe

2009-06-02T10:29:00.000-07:00

I had a really fun weekend camping in Lake Tahoe. We had a really relaxing time--we mostly just sat and read and ate snacks! We couldn't do any hiking because Mommy has a sort-of broken toe. But I was just as happy to spend the whole weekend sitting on laps and snuggling in the forest.

We got there pretty late on Friday because we had to wait to leave until Mommy got home from work. We set up the tent in the dark, by which I mean that Daddy set up the tent and Mommy and I sat and watched him. :) Then we had veggie dogs for dinner. Yum!

The next day we slept as late as we could even though there were like 10 kids in the campsite across from us and they started running around screaming at 7:00am. We had a slow morning and then we went into town to visit Dog Dog Cat, where I peed on the floor. Good times. After that display, Mommy and Daddy felt obligated to buy something, so they bought me a bag of Zukes treats and a new mini version of my Water Rover travel bowl:

When we got back to the campground, it was time for lunch, so we went down to the beach and had a picnic. This is a picture of me licking my lips after Daddy gave me a little bit of cracker to eat:
After lunch, Daddy went for a little hike by himself while Mommy and I relaxed and read a very interesting dog book. For dinner we had hot dogs again, but it was different because this time we roasted them on sticks over the fire, whereas the previous night we had cooked them on our campstove. Perhaps some might say that Mommy and Daddy are lazy and boring, but really only half of that is true!

When it got dark, I was ready to go to bed. Here I am getting all cozy and pre-warming the bed for Mommy and Daddy:

The next day we tried to sleep late again (loud kids again) and then we drove up to a different little town for lunch on our way home. We had bagels and hummus, and I got to have a tiny little bit. When we finally got home on Sunday evening, I was so tired (and dirty) that Mommy gave me a bath and then I did this for the rest of the night:

I hope everyone else had a good weekend too!
Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Sleepy Sunday...I mean MONDAY!

2009-05-25T20:41:00.000-07:00

I went for a walk this morning and the weather was so nice! Then I spent the rest of the day sleeping!

I had a pretty lazy weekend. But I did get to run lots of errands on Saturday. We went to the coffee store and the pet supply store and a running store. I got to go in all the stores except the coffee shop, because they are silly and don't allow dogs. :( At the running store I whined and whined until the guy behind the counter paid attention to me. Sometimes I can be annoying, but my parents don't mind! The running store guy had a big giant husky at home, and he thought I was very cute!

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Look What I Found!

2009-05-17T11:30:00.000-07:00

Hi friends!

I know it's been a while since I last posted, but don't worry--I'm okay! We're just busy around here. Now that the weather is warmer, this is how I prefer to spend my afternoons (and mornings and evenings):

The other day Mommy took a cute video of me playing with a ball. After my surgery, Mommy and Daddy put away all my balls because I'm not really supposed to run a whole lot. So I usually don't have any in my toy box. But the other day, Daddy put a big blanket in the dryer with some tennis balls to help it dry well, and when he took the blanket out, the tennis balls came with it into the living room to be folded. And guess what--I found one!

They let me play with it a little bit before they took it away:

I hope you enjoyed my movie! I have to go get ready for a visit to Grandma and Grandpa's house now. Have a great Sunday!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Beeeeeean Holloooooow!!! (now with pictures)

2009-04-28T11:05:00.000-07:00

Hi friends,

We went to the beach last weekend and I had so much fun running around! I have such good traction in the sand that Mommy and Daddy don't have to worry about my back end slipping out from under me and causing another back injury. Yay! But don't worry; I'm still careful.

On this day, I found a stick. I grabbed the stick and ran all around with it. Check out these action shots:

Daddy took me for a little run-around and then I remembered that Mommy was sitting all alone on the blanket, so I had to run back and say hello!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Pee Ess:
I just realized that Bijou tagged me for an award! It is called Neno's Award, and here is what the award is about:

"As a dedication for those who love blogging activity and love to encourage friendships through blogging. To seek the reason why we all love blogging. Put the award in one post as soon as you receive it. Don’t forget to mention the person who gives you the award. Answer the Award’s question by writing the reason why you love blogging. Tag and distribute the Award to as many people as you like."

Thanks so much, Bijou! Here is why I love blogging: It lets Mommy and I tell about all my adventures and people actually listen! Sometimes in real life people don't want to talk about dogs all the time. (Weird, huh?) So my blog is a place we can do it!

My Vacation!

2009-04-22T10:38:00.000-07:00

Hi friends! I'm back from my vacation to the Grand Canyon! It was fun, but kind of windy and cold. Luckily we were prepared for the cold weather with lots of sweaters and sleeping bags.

Before we went to the Grand Canyon, we stopped in southern California to visit my great-grandmother. She's 92, I think. I liked her very much, as she smelled slightly of food and sat very still. She was a vision in blue (my harness was totally color-coordinated with her outfit!), and I tried in vain to jump up onto her lap in order to lick her face. Daddy wouldn't allow it, but he did let me lick her hand and she kind of grabbed my head and scratched it a little bit. She liked watching me walk around the lawn, too.

On our way to Arizona, we saw this van. Mommy and Daddy practically started screaming! Mommy shouted, "We love you!" And then she leaned out the window to take a picture.

Our campsite was very pretty and very quiet. Mommy was afraid that there would be scorpions because it is the desert, but Daddy was right--no scorpions because the rim of the canyon is at 7,000 feet!

That night I got cozy with Mommy in her new GIANT zero degree sleeping bag. That thing is so big that there is plenty of room for both of us! That means no more complaints from Mommy about a 9 pound dog squeezing her into a weird position all night long. Yay!

The first time we walked along the rim, Mommy and Daddy were a little afraid I would get too close to the edge, so I had to ride in my orange backpack. It wasn't so bad. I had a really good view! And later they let me walk on the ground all by myself (while they held a death-grip on my leash).

The canyon was really pretty! Here are a couple of pictures without me. (Although I'm sure they're not as interesting as the ones with me in them.)

To tell you the truth, we had to leave a little early because one night I had a throwing up episode and I started breathing funny and Mommy and Daddy were worried (or freaked out, I should say) that I had aspirated some of my vomit again like I did in February. I didn't really stop wheezing until we dropped some altitude. When we got home and saw Dr. D, she said I was fine, but that she probably would have done the same thing. Next time we'll know that I don't aspirate every time I vomit--hopefully it was only that once--and my parents won't have to freak out.

Bye for now!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Next Stop: Grand Canyon

2009-04-11T22:21:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends!

Thank you all for the very nice birthday wishes. I am a lucky Poo!

We are in the middle of last-minute preparations for a big camping trip next week, and I am helping. Well, Mommy and Daddy are preparing; I'm mostly doing this:

I supervise while they get ready to go to the Grand Canyon! Yes, that's right--we're going to the Grand Canyon for a whole week! I am so excited, but also a little bit nervous because I think it might be cold. It is actually supposed to snow a little bit next week. Eek! I really wish I had a snowsuit now. But we're bringing all of my jackets and my long underwear, so hopefully I'll be warm. And Mommy got a new, big and wide zero degree sleeping bag, so we will both be warm at night.

See you when I get back!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

It's My 4th Birthday!!!

2009-04-01T16:11:00.001-07:00

I started out my special day by sleeping in. It was awesome!

After that, I had a birthday bath. That was less awesome, but it's always good to look nice and clean for your birthday, right? Besides, Daddy fed me treats during the ordeal, and then afterwords Mommy gave me a peanut butter kong! Look how much fun I'm having:

Next we went for a walk to the park. We saw lots of pretty flowers, including my Mommy's favorite: poppies! She tried to take a picture of me with them, but I was not really into posing for her.

What a nice birthday it has been!

Bye for now,
Poppy the 4-YEAR-OLD Little Blonde Chihuahua

Pre-Birthday Post

2009-03-31T21:00:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody! Guess what tomorrow is... It's my birthday!!! That's right--I will be four years old tomorrow. Mommy and Daddy can't quite believe that I am not their little baby puppy anymore. But I'm really a Big Girl now. Actually, if you want to know a secret, here it is: I always want to be their little baby puppy, no matter how old I get!

I'll tell you all about my birthday adventures tomorrow!

Bye for now!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Lazy Sunday

2009-03-22T17:22:00.000-07:00

This is what we did for most of today:

We were supposed to go hiking today, but it is waaaay to blustery out! It is so windy that when Mommy took me out for my morning poops, I turned around immediately and tried to jump back up the steps into the house because it was so cold! Mommy and Daddy thought that was very funny and they laughed a lot! Then I pooped on the floor. I have them SO trained!

We are having a movie Sunday today. I like movies because it means snuggle time. I loooove to snuggle!

Today was also fun because look...I found a sun spot!

I hope everyone else had a good weekend too!

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Is it Spring Yet?

2009-03-13T10:28:00.000-07:00

Last weekend my Mommy and Daddy took me on a fun outing. First we went to a farmers market. We actually went to get bagels and tofutti, and we forgot that there was a farmers market that day. It was fun and I got to walk in the street a little bit because there were no cars. We found some really pretty Icelandic poppies, which are in bloom all over the place right now, and took some pretty pictures.

After we had our bagels, we continued on to Fort Funston. It was mighty cold and windy, so I wore two sweaters! Since it was so windy, there were a lot of hang gliders there. We stood on a deck on the side of the cliff and watched them for a while before we started walking.

I hope this weekend will be as good as last weekend!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Ten Honest Things

2009-03-06T17:35:00.000-08:00

Oops! I was supposed to list at least ten honest things about myself when I was tagged for the Honest Scrap Award. So without further ado, here are my ten things:

1) I poop on the floor. Yep. I pee in a box, but I poop on the floor. It's kind of embarrassing, but ever since my injury, I don't have complete control over my poops.

2) I would prefer to sleep until 2:00pm with my Daddy every day. I'm not lazy, just sleepy!

3) I miss my sister Clover. She died in January.

4) I like to be carried. Some people say you're not supposed to carry little dogs all the time because it gives them a superiority complex, but I don't hold with such nonsense. Besides, I don't think this is a problem because I already am superior! So carry me forever, I say!

5) I like to shred papers. I don't eat them; I just shred them and leave them all over the floor.

6) When my whiskers break and fall off, Mommy likes to find them and put them in a jar for safe keeping. Hmm...I guess that's more of an honest thing about my Mommy.

7) I like to lick lotion off my Mommy's hands. I know I shouldn't, but I can't help it sometimes.

8) My feet smell like popcorn. Mmm...popcorn...

9) I eat my foods one piece at a time. I take them from my bowl one by one and carry them over to my blankie, where I usually play with them for a while before eating them.

10) I don't really like kids that much. They are too unpredictable!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

OMD!!!

2009-03-05T10:47:00.000-08:00

I may have found out who I am!!! Well, I mean, I know who I AM, but I am not exactly clear on WHAT KIND OF DOG I am. I have always thought I am a chihuahua/???. For a while Mommy and Daddy thought I was a chihuahua/Italian greyhound. Ha. Here's a picture of an Italian greyhound, just so you can see how silly of an idea that is:

More recently they have thought that I am a chihuahua/some-kind-of-terrier. Maybe. Much more likely than an IG, I think.

But today, Mommy was following doggy bloggy links and she found this blog about dachsies. They just got a new foster who is a--get ready for this--a chiweenie! That's a chihuahua/dachshund mix! Don't you think Angel looks JUST LIKE ME?! Except for the color, I mean. Here is a picture of me for comparison:

This is a picture of me sitting side-saddle on my ramp while it is flat on the floor. I think you can see the bigness of my ears and the shortness of my legs in this picture. Plus, I'm really looooong, especially for a chihuahua. And we all know I have IVDD, which is totally a dachsie thing.

So what do you think, am a I chiweenie?

*************
In other important news, I have received an award from my buddies Bijou and Banjo. They gave me the Honest Scrap Award. Here is what they told me about the award:

"When accepting this auspicious award, you must write a post bragging about it, including the name of the misguided soul who thinks you deserve such acclaim, and link back to said person so everyone knows he or she is real. Choose a minimum of 7 blogs that you find brilliant in content or design. Or improvise by including bloggers who have no idea who you are because you don’t have 7 friends. Show the 7 random victims’ names and links and leave a harassing comment informing them that they were prized with “Honest Weblog”. Well, there’s no prize, but they can keep the nifty icon. List at least ten honest things about yourself. Then, pass it on!"

Here is the award:

Thank you so much Bijou (and Banjo too)! I've been waaaay behind on blogs lately, so I don't know who has this award already. I'll have to think some more about who to pass it on to. This is always the hardest part for me. :)

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua (/Dachshund???)

My Weekend

2009-03-03T17:46:00.000-08:00

My weekend in Lake Tahoe was pretty fun. It was cold and snowy, but I got carried a lot, so it was okay.

In fact, Mommy got a new backpack just so she could carry me on long hikes. The backpack I used to ride in (see this) is not very comfortable to carry, she says. So she got a new ORANGE pack just for me! I know it's just for me because it is in my signature color--ORANGE!

Mommy was very happy when she found this pack because it is a top-loader with two compartments, which is rare for a small daypack. The larger top part is for me, and the smaller bottom part is for Mommy's stuff. The only problem is that the top flap sort of gets in my way. Other than that it's great!

On Sunday, when my parents started packing, I had to make sure they didn't forget me!

I hope everyone else had a great weekend too!

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Pee Ess: Sorry I have not been keeping up to date with everyone else's blogs...I'll try to be better!

K is for Kale!

2009-02-27T10:35:00.000-08:00

I don't usually care for leafy green vegetables, but last night I went bananas over some kale that Daddy dropped on the floor while he was chopping it for dinner. When I was finally able to grab a piece, I ran with it into the living room and started chowing down. At first Mommy thought I was just going to shred it and leave little wet pieces all over the rug, which is what I usually do. But this time I actually ate it!

Mommy took a video of me eating my second leaf:

I'm going to Lake Tahoe this weekend, so...

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Scrabble!

2009-02-24T10:05:00.000-08:00

I like Scrabble. I like to help by licking the box and trying to walk on the board. I think my parents like that.

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

I'm Feeling Fine

2009-02-18T17:28:00.000-08:00

Other than the fact that Mommy just brushed my teeth, which I don't really like very much, I'm feeling pretty good! My big esophagus has gotten a little smaller, and I hope it will get even smaller still. I'll have some more x-rays soon and Dr. D will tell me if I'm all better.

In the meantime, I get to eat wet food all the time! Woo hoo! Hence the aggressive tooth-brushing, which is the only downside as far as I can tell. Oh wait...there is one other downside. Farts! I never used to fart at all. Now I do these SBDs (Silent But Deadly) and sometimes I have to smell my own butt afterwords to make sure it actually came out of me. It did.

I have gone on a couple of good walks this week in between rain storms. The other day I found a big branch at the park and I climbed inside it. Somebody must have peed on it, because it smelled really interesting.

This is an action shot of me on my weekend walk:

And now, Movie Monday! I know it's not really Monday, but today is the first day of the week for Mommy, who had Monday and Tuesday off. So it's kind of like Monday, but even better! This is a video of me plaing Bitey Face with Daddy. And then at the end I do some of my tricks: sit, down, spin, shake, gimme five, and prairie dog.

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Pee Ess: IVDD stands for InterVertebral Disc Disease.

UPDATE-2/19/09: I do not have megaesophagus! It was only temporary!!! Woo hoooooo!

The Poo End of the Stick

2009-02-08T14:35:00.000-08:00

Well friends, I certainly got the short end of the stick when it comes to health issues. I got the short, s**t-covered end of the stick! Let me explain.

Yesterday morning I woke up very early and threw up in bed a little bit. It wasn't a lot of vomit, but I felt very bad afterwords because it was hard to breathe and I was shaking a lot. I eventually was able to fall back asleep, but later that morning I threw up an awful lot of bile and phlegm. We went to the emergency vet and they took some x-rays and did some blood work.

It turns out that I have megaesophagus!!! And because of my loose esophagus, I also have a little bit of aspiration pneumonia. The pneumonia should go away with some antibiotics, but my big esophagus is a big problem. I have to eat standing up like a person to help the food go down into my stomach instead of into my lungs. Uh-oh. This means that I get to eat wet food now instead of dry food, which is good, I guess. But I don't feel so good right now.

I'm on five kinds of medication: cisapride and sucralfate for my megaesophagus, clindamycin and baytril for my pneumonia, and prilosec to help keep the acid in my tummy (just like Daddy!).

So for those of you keeping track, I now have in my medical history file: a broken pelvis, IVDD, and megaesophagus. WTF!?!?!?

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

UPDATE, 2/9/09:
Mommy just talked to my regular vet (we went to the emergency clinic this weekend) and she says that it's quite possible that my big esophagus is temporary! Keep your paws crossed for me!

My Big Sister Clover

2009-01-28T11:04:00.000-08:00

Hi everybody. Thank you for all your very nice comments about Clover. We are still feeling sad around here. We miss Clover. I have been trying to do a good job of cheering up my parents by bringing them a bunch of toys to play with each evening. Usually I just pick two to play with, but for the last few days I have been bringing them at least five. I really want them to feel better.

This is the last picture we have of Clover. It was taken on Friday, the day before she died. I think it is nice that the last picture is of my big sister and me together.

Mommy keeps thinking she sees Clover behind the curtains and curled up on the bed. But she's not there. It was all so sudden. Clover had a heart condition: early stages of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy and also an irregular heart rhythm. Mommy got up on Saturday morning and said hello to Clover and petted her and carried her around a little bit, and then put her down and went in the other room. A few minutes later, Mommy heard Clover scratching on her post, and then there was a thud. Mommy ran out to see if Clover was okay, thinking that she had fallen off the couch again--she does that sometimes with our new couches. But she was just lying there on the floor next to her post, breathing funny. Daddy got his stethoscope and tried to help, but it was too late. She died in Daddy's arms. It all happened so quickly.

Mommy and Daddy rushed her to the vet, but it was too late. We think she threw a clot to her brain or had sudden cardiac arrest. Either one could have been caused by her heart condition.

We all miss her a lot. Here is Mommy's favorite picture of Clover:

This is another great one of what we call(ed) "Double Happiness." That was when both Clover and I were on Mommy or Daddy's lap at the same time! Mommy and Daddy already miss this.

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihiahua

A sad, sad day

2009-01-24T15:19:00.000-08:00

Clover
Our Fuzzy Orange Baby
2002 to January 24, 2009

Snuggly Sunday

2009-01-11T11:55:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! I hope you are all enjoying the weekend. I am having a good time relaxing and snuggling.

On Friday night I had a void-fest in the middle of the night. I woke up suddenly and projectile vomited all over Mommy and Daddy's comforter. Oops. I was very sorry about that. They weren't mad because they knew I didn't do it on purpose. It was a lot of throw-up. Daddy had to change the sheets and the blankets in the middle of the night. While he did that, Mommy took me out to the kitchen where I immediately ran to my box and peed for a long time. After I was done with that, I got out of my box and left a huge poop on the floor. So I voided all of my bodily fluids/solids in the space of two minutes. Wow, what a night. After that, I felt better. The rest of the weekend has been filled with snuggling!

Yesterday Mommy and Daddy wanted to take me out in the car to get lunch. When we went outside, I tricked them into taking me for a walk first! I just pulled Daddy right past the car and onto the sidewalk. Then Mommy felt sad about just putting me right in the car, so she said we could go for a little walk before we went for lunch. Ha ha, I tricked them!

Here is what I have been doing the rest of the weekend--snuggling:

When Clover is on Mommy's lap I get this sudden uncontrollable desire to be on her lap too. Mommy says it's jealousy, but I don't know about that. I just know that I want to be on her lap tooooooo!

I was being so cute and snuggly that Daddy wouldn't stop taking pictures of me. Here I am saying, "Daddy, enough with the flashy thing! It's hurting my eyes!"

Clover really loves our new couches. She sleeps on them like this all day and all night practically. So it has been a snuggly weekend for her too.

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Safety First!

2009-01-04T11:27:00.001-08:00

My Mommy and I think it is very important to be safe, so we made our first PSA (public service announcement)!

Buckle-up your pup! I always ride in a carseat! :)

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Safety Chihuahua

New Year's Day Was Great!

2009-01-01T22:36:00.000-08:00

Last night was very low key, but today was awesome! This afternoon we went to Fort Funston, which is one of my most favoritest places ever! It was very cold today, so I had to wear two jackets, and Mommy did too.

And yes, if you look carefully, you will notice that I am not wearing a leash so much as a pair of earphones with a long cord. That is because my parents are silly and they completely forgot all of my stuff when we left the house. No leash, no harness, and no poo bags! Luckily I always have a harness with me because of my seatbelt car harness. And we had some napkins to pick up my poo, but they reeeeally had to improvise about the leash. The ended up tying the connector end to my harness and Daddy made a hand loop out of the earphones.

They were a little nervous about it pulling apart, so they were extra careful with me near other dogs and cliffs and stuff. They have decided, on my advice, that from now on they will keep a backup leash and some extra poo bags in both cars. That way I will not have to wear earphones ever again.

When we got home Mommy started packing my overnight bag (more on that later), and she put two of my freeze-dried chicken treats in a little container. Then she threw the package in the trash and the paper insert that was in the package into the recycling bag. That was a mistake. For her. Not for me.

The end of the video is a little cut off, but what she said is, "Okay, maybe you can have it." And then she gave it to me! It was just a little piece of paper, but it smelled and tasted so great! I licked it and then shredded it into tiny, wet pieces.

Now more about my overnight bag: Mommy and Daddy are leaving me with Grandma and Grandpa OVERNIGHT because...well, mostly because Mommy needs to practice leaving me. It is very hard for her. It used to be easier, and they left me with Grandma and Grandpa for weekends several times before my injury. But this is the first time they have left me overnight since my injury. It is very difficult, but they need to do it. You always read about dog separation anxiety, except with us it's different. I don't have it, but my Mommy does!

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Party Like it's 1999?

2008-12-31T10:26:00.000-08:00

Well, it's New Year's Eve, and I'm not sure that we're really going to party like it's 1999. Is this what it looks like when you're partying?

No? Then I guess we're going to RELAX like it's 1999! I hope everyone has a Happy New Year!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Presents!!!

2008-12-27T12:09:00.000-08:00

I got a really fun present for Christmas this year. But before I can tell you about it, I have to show you how I opened it:

Whew, I finally got it open:

It's a Christmas light toy!!! It is elastic in the middle so it is fun to tug. One of the lights is squeaky and the other one rattles!

Pull harder, Mommy!

I hope everyone had a great Christmas!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Pee Ess: I actually got one other toy too, but Daddy has to modify it before I can play with it. I'll show it to you when he's done. It's one of these.

Merry Christmas!

2008-12-25T09:27:00.000-08:00

Merry Christmas!

Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Christmas Eve Eve

2008-12-23T10:47:00.000-08:00

It is only a couple of days until the big day, and I am getting very excited! Last night I got a little over-excited and I decided to open one of my presents early! When Daddy saw me, he said, "Uh, what is Poppy doing?" Mommy ran in and caught me in the act! It's not my fault though. She left it right where I could get it, and it was wrapped enticingly in tissue paper, which I love to shred. Here is a picture of me being caught red-pawed:

Since they caught me before I had opened it all the way, I still don't know what it is. That makes TWO presents that I'm not allowed to play with before Christmas...I can't wait!!!

In other exciting news, I did something outstandingly awesome the other night. Grandma and Grandpa were over at our house watching the volleyball game. Mommy had just finished asking them if they would watch me when they go down to southern California next month. She had just reminded them how good I was and how wonderful I was. I knew they were talking about me, so I wanted to go up my ramp so I could sit with them on the couch. But when I got half way up the ramp, I stopped. I had this sudden surprising urge. Can you guess what happened? I POOPED! ON THE RAMP! AND IT ROLLED DOWN!!! Oh man it was great. I was squatting there on the ramp and my nuggets were rolling down behind me. Mommy really really wanted to take a quick picture, but she thought that it would be better if she expressed some shock and dismay instead because, after all, Grandma and Grandpa were sitting right there and they saw the whole thing!

In case you think that was a really gross story, here are some awards I received recently from Coco, to remind you what a good and nice doggy I truly am:

Here is another picture of me being a perfect little angel, just in case you need another reminder of what a good and nice doggy I am. In this picture I am playing "Princess and the Pea."

In this picture I am doing my very best to help Mommy wrap Christmas presents. Sometimes it is hard because I don't have thumbs, but I can use my mouth instead:

Come back on Christmas and see a picture of me in front of the Christmas tree!

Bye for now,

Poppy the LBC

Pre-Christmas Present

2008-12-20T10:14:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone! I have been away from blogging for a few too many days. This time of year sure is crazy! But I wanted to share some of my recent adventures with you. A few days ago I got a really cool pre-Christmas present. It's a sweater in my favorite colors: orange and brown!!!
Mommy ordered it from this place called Olive Green Dog. They have some cool eco-friendly stuff. She says she also got me a present for Christmas from there, but she won't let me see it or play with it until Christmas morning!

Another fun thing I did last weekend was go get our Christmas tree. We went to a real tree farm in the mountains and cut it ourselves!
Here I am saying, "Daddy, let's go this way!"

In the end, I think we ended up with a good one:

And here is one last picture, just so that Daddy can show off his new digital SLR birthday present. He said to Mommy, "This is the cutest picture I have ever taken of anyone, ever."
This is in fact the very first picture he took with the camera after it arrived in the mail. I am his favorite subject! Also, I think this picture can be my PhotoHunters picture for the week, because I think my head looks a little bit WIDER than usual here. (The theme is WIDE, by the way.)

I hope everyone is having a lovely vacation and that your parents do not have to work too hard this week.

Bye for now!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

I Got a Big Present

2008-12-07T11:20:00.000-08:00

My Mommy and Daddy bought me some new couches as an early Christmas present! They are brown microfiber treated with a special non-toxic substance designed to protect the couch from "human and pet saliva, urine, stomach fluid, or blood." What in the world do they think is going to happen here?!

The couch is very comfy and I heartily approve!!! The only problem is that my ramp does not quite reach all the way to the top like it should. I will have to ask Daddy to fix this for me.

I am very excited for Christmas. I have a feeling this is going to be a good one. Last year wasn't so good. We were all very sad. So we are all VERY EXCITED about this year!

We are so busy with Christmas plans that I have been slacking on keeping up with all my doggy bloggy friends. I promise I'll try to be better!

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Thanksgiving Movie Monday

2008-12-01T11:26:00.000-08:00

I hope everyone had a good Thanksgiving. I did because Daddy made so much food! And when he cooks, there are always droppings! 'Tis the season to eat droppings, fa la la la la, la la la la! Isn't there a song about that?

The worst part about Thanksgiving was that Mommy and Daddy blocked me out of the kitchen! How rude! They were afraid they would drop something hot (like a tofurkey) or sharp (like a knife) on me, or that I would jump into the oven. How silly! So they made me sit in the living room and watch. It was torture!

But my patience was rewarded later because somebody dropped a chunk of dry bread for the stuffing and I captured it! I ran with it to the carpet and devoured it. Croutons rock! Here is a movie of me eating it:

Mommy thinks it's really funny that it took me an entire minute to eat it. She says that most dogs would have eaten it in one bite. What can I say? I'm dainty!

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihiahua

Peanut Butter Tongue!

2008-11-26T10:21:00.000-08:00

I've had my pre-Thanksgiving bath, and it wasn't so bad because after I was done I got a peanut butter kong! I haven't had one of those in a long while. Check out my tongue action in this picture:

I can't wait for Thanksgiving and all the floor-droppings it will entail! Daddy is cooking a tofurkey and potatoes and stuffing and pie! Yippie! Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Here is my Photo Hunters picture for the week:
The theme is reflection. I know this isn't really a reflection as much as a shadow, but it's still cool. This is a picture of my family during a hike in Lake Tahoe. Can you tell which one is me?!

Happy Tofurkey Day!
Poppy the LBC

My First Photo Hunters

2008-11-17T10:14:00.000-08:00

I really enjoy looking at Daisy's Photo Hunters photos, so I decided to try it myself! I went to the Photo Hunters website and I found out that this week's theme is "ruin(ed)." Hhmmm...I will have to think hard about this one. I don't know that I have ever ruined anything. Ever.

Oh, wait, except this:
Oops. This happened a couple years ago. I liked to jump up on the stool to get on Mommy's lap, but I didn't know there was a pizza in the way. You can still eat it with paw prints, right?

I'm sorry Mommy!

By the way, in case you are wondering, Mommy sometimes likes pizza with NOTHING on it!

I also got an award this week from my NOMSSFs Moe, Mindy, and Bono. Thank you so much kitties! I love your blog too!
I would like to pass this award along to Lorenza. I love her blog, and her ears, and her fashions! And also to Petra. I love her blog too! And Sparky & Patches. They just got a new sister named Pandie! Lots of other doggies and kitties already have this award. But if you don't, and you'd like it, consider yourself awarded!!!

Look, I Made a Stain!

2008-11-13T10:56:00.001-08:00

Well, I'm certainly no Joe Stains, but I have been known to leave my mark around the house in my own special way. This is my favorite type of stain to make. Can you guess how I made it?

I made it with my tongue! Yes, I am a couch-licker. I am also a bed-sheet-licker. I feel so proud of my stain, even though I know that it will dry in a few minutes and is therefore not really a stain, per se. But still, I am proud of my handiwork.

In other important news, my friend Dannan gave me a special award. It is an award that says I am a Cool Blog!!! Thanks so much, Dannan!
I would like to pass this award on to ChaChi Lu. I am a little bit worried about her because she has been gone for so long...I hope she is okay.

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Couch-Licker

Pee Ess:
For those of you who were interested, here is the whole sordid tale of The Unpleasantness. I was with Mommy at Sivan's house. We were there to take her out for a mid-day walk because her parents couldn't come home that day from work. However, when we got there, Uncle Ben was there anyway. Surprise! So we just hung out and played for a while.

Sivan and I were in the backyard with Mommy. Uncle Ben was inside. Mommy gave Sivan a treat, but she didn't like it, so she just dropped it on the ground. When Sivan dropped it, I went over to investigate and maybe eat it myself. Well, that made Sivan VERY mad and she growled and snapped and bit me! I screamed and ran away, but she chased me. Mommy screamed, "Heeeeelp!!!!" and grabbed Sivan by the collar. And Uncle Ben came running outside and found me waiting at the sliding door. Mommy said, "Pick her up!!!!"

Then the three of us went inside and Sivan stayed outside for a while. I was so scared that my bottom leaked a little bit. It smelled bad. It was the smell of terror! Mommy was also scared, but the only thing that leaked on her was her eyes, thank goodness! There was a little hole on my leg where Sivan had bitten me, so Mommy took me to the vet to get it cleaned and bandaged.

And that was that. Sivan and I don't really get to see each other all that much anymore. Which is sad because I used to love her so much that I would howl when we were separated. :(

Monday Movie

2008-11-02T09:18:00.000-08:00

I just found this great video of me and Sivan playing together in February of 2006. She is chasing her flying squirrel and I am trying to play too. This all happened before The Unpleasantness. If you haven't heard the story, here's the summary: Sivan and I are no longer allowed to have unsupervised visitation play time because once she tried to eat me.

This video was also taken before my injury. See how nimble and fast I am?

When this video was taken, we were on a trip to Fort Funston in the rain. I was wearing a fleece-lined raincoat, so I stayed kind of dry. Sivan doesn't have a coat though, so she got soooooo dirty and wet! She had to have a bath when we got back to her house.

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Grrr!!!

2008-10-30T22:08:00.000-07:00

Happy Halloween!

Do I look ferocious? I am trying to use my best scary lizard moves to get the treat out of Daddy's hands.

My costume has these weird leg things that I have to put my feet through. It's not super comfortable, but I think my disguise is excellent because you can hardly tell that it's me!

Come to think of it, my costume also has weird leg things in the front, too. It almost looks like the scary lizard is trying to take a ride on my back!

And now for our feature film: "Poppy-zilla Takes Over the Kitchen"

I hope everyone has a happy Halloween!
Bye for now,
Poppy-zilla

Getting Ready for Halloween

2008-10-29T21:56:00.000-07:00

Hello everybody!

I am starting to get excited for Howl-oween. I think I have finally decided what I am going to wear. Mommy thought about making me a costume, but she is too LAZY! So I am going to wear the costume I didn't wear last year. Remember how I said last year that I had a "costume A" and a "costume B"? Well, I never showed you my costume B, did I? It was a present from Jasper's parents, so I think I will wear it this year in honor of him. I am scheduled to have a photo shoot with Mommy tomorrow afternoon, so I will show you the costume after that. In the meantime, I will give you a hint: I am going to be a green lizard! Okay, I guess that was a pretty big hint.

For now, you can take a look at our Halloween e-card:

Happy Howl-oween!!!
Poppy the LBC

How Cute Am I?

2008-10-27T16:57:00.000-07:00

Thank you all for your kind thoughts about my cousin Jasper. It makes me feel better to know that there are nice doggies and kitties and peoples out there.

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

A Sad Day

2008-10-25T21:43:00.000-07:00

I am sad today. My cousin Jasper died this morning. He was diagnosed with leukemia only about two weeks ago, on October 9th. He was a good boy and a good kitty. I will miss playing with him, which I did sometimes, even though he was much bigger and stronger than me.

I did not even get to say goodbye. But I will try to be brave because I know that he is at the Rainbow Bridge now with my brother Puck and my aunt Muffin.

Goodbye, Jasper. We will miss you.
Poppy

7 x 7 Tagsies!

2008-10-24T19:36:00.000-07:00

I (along with everyone else who read his post) have been tagged by Tadpole to play the 7x7 game. I have been hoping someone would tag me, so thanks, Tadpole! Here we go:

Seven Things I Plan to do Before I Die:
1) Sleep all snuggled up next to my sissy Clover, like this. (It is possible that this is Mommy's plan.)
2) Go on a road trip to Mexico, to see where My People come from.
3) Stop animal overpopulation.
4) Learn to fly so I can go fast without hurting my back.
5) Go backpacking with Mommy and Daddy
6) Be allowed to go into restaurants and stores and movies and stuff.
7) Spread the message of animal car safety. Buckle-up your buddy!

Seven Things I Do Now:
1) Poop in the house.
2) Sleep in the bed in between Mommy and Daddy.
3) Sleep in late with Daddy.
4) Force my parents to eat every meal on the floor so I can be a part of the action.
5) Shred any paper that is left on the floor.
6) Growl if you bother my while I'm sleeping.
7) Snuggle, snuggle, snuggle.

Seven Things I Can't Do:
1) Run fast off-leash.
2) Eat cat poop in the yard.
3) Chase my sister.
4) Jump on and off the bed and couch.
5) Eat a lot of cheese.
6) Eat meat every day (my parents are veg)
7) Open doors by myself.

Seven Things That Attract Me to Friends:
NOTE: I am Not Allowed to be attracted to the opposite sex.
1) a sense of humor
2) cuteness (Is there a dog who doesn't fall into this category? I think not.)
3) good fashion sense
4) brown freckles!
5) showing absolutely no interest in me whatsoever (In Real Life)
6) being small (IRL)
7) being a chihuahua (IRL)

Seven Things I Say Most Often:
1) Are we going out?
2) I want to sit on your lap.
3) Can I have some?
4) Move over. I need more space.
5) I'm so cute!
6) I pooped on the carpet. Can I have a treat?
7) Let's play!

Seven Celebrities I Admire:
1) Mommy
2) Daddy
3) Grandma
4) Grandpa
5) Next-Door Grandma
6) Uncle Ben
7) Uncle DJ
What do you mean, "those are not celebrities"?! What can I say. My world is small.

Seven Animals Who Get to Do This Now:
1) You
2) You Guys
3) You over there
4) You in the back
5) Yeah, you
6) Hey you
7) You too

Have Fun!
Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

This Post is Brought to You by the Letter "D"

2008-10-19T20:56:00.000-07:00

I have been tagged by Ruby to play a fun letter game. I have to list 10 things I love that start with the letter she chose for me. And the letter is...D! Here we go:

1) Daddy!
I love my Daddy so much! He is the bestest ever because he plays with me whenever I want. And when he works nights, he lets me sleep in with him the next day until at least 2:00pm--awesome!

2) Digging the Covers
When I get in bed at night, I always have to dig my blankets into position before I can go to sleep. Mommy and Daddy think this is very cute, but really it's just necessary!

3) Dirt
For some reason that my parents can't figure out, I love to lie in the dirt. I always ask to go outside on sunny days, and then instead of finding a spot in the grass, I go straight for the dirt. I'll tell you why. It's because the grass is pokey on my tummy!

4) Ducky & Dog, Loofah & Disc, Floppy
Yes, I know that's really three things, but these are three toys I have that start with (or sort of start with) the letter D. And I like them a lot!

5) Dinner
This one kind of goes without saying.

6) DogTown
This is a very good TV show about Best Friends Animal Sanctuary. Even though it can be a little sad sometimes, it is a very good show and a very good place for animals. Mommy and Daddy hope to visit there someday.

7) Dressing Up
I have a lot of sweaters and jackets. Not as many as Lorenza or Daisy, but still a lot! I even have a bee suit!

8) Dancing
I love to come up to the couch and ask to be picked up, and then when they lean down to pick me up, I dance away! I dodge and weave and bop and zip. It sure does frustrate them, but dancing is so fun!

9) Downward Dog
Before my injury, this was one of my most favorite stretching positions. I couldn't do it for a long time after my surgery, but now I can again. Yay me!

10) DWB!
Yeah, it's awesome. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll poop on the floor...okay, I'll poop on the floor. But that's not DWB's fault.

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Pee Ess: If you want to play, let me know and I'll pick a letter for you!

My Big Camping Adventure

2008-10-16T07:57:00.000-07:00

Well, we went camping last weekend for my Mommy's birthday. It was really fun, but cold! I had to spend a majority of the evening wrapped up like this:

Yeah, it was pretty cozy. And then in the morning, Daddy wore my special pouch for the first time! Usually it is Mommy who wears it. He did a good job, as you can see:

Later that day we had lunch at the beach--my favorite beach! It was the first time I had been to the beach since my injury in December. Boy, was it fun! I even got to run around a little bit and look in some tidepools:

After that, we went to get pumpkins! Wahoooooo! I posed my very cutest pose in front of these pretty pumpkins. I was wearing my courduroy jacket that is perfect for the fall, so I felt very fashionable. However, the straw was a little scratchy on my butt.

There were so many pumpkins I didn't know what to do with myself!!! Can we take them all home?

Just like last year, I got to go on a wagon ride. Daddy didn't pull me around very much this year because he was afraid I would fall and hurt my back. So mostly it was a stationary wagon ride...don't tell anyone.

Check out this pumpkin! Mommy was a teensy bit afraid that it would fall on me, so she wouldn't let me stand on the ground under it. But next to it was okay.
Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Happy Saturday Everyone

2008-10-11T12:38:00.000-07:00

Hi friends!

Thank you for all your help and suggestions about my cousin Jasper. Mommy and Daddy went over to his house last night to see him and he is already feeling better. He is on Reglin for nausea and also Prednisone to help him fight the cancer. His parents were very glad to get all the info about their options. Thanks again for the help!

In other happy news, we are about to leave to do my favorite thing...CAMPING!!! I will post all about it in a few days.

But for now I will tell you about what I did last weekend. I got BLESSED! We went to Grandma's church and a big man in a white robe said some nice things about me and the other animals who were there. We stood in front of the church and tried not to bark while he talked. I was very quiet, which is more than I can say for some other dogs.
After he spoke, Mommy took me up to him individually and he shook a big stick at me. He dipped it in a bucket of water first, so when he shook it over me I got a little wet. It was weird. After we were blessed we each got a medal that said "St. Francis" on it. Do I look blessed?
Afterwards, there was a meet and greet. I got to sniff and chat with lots of other doggies. This guy was fluffy. I don't remember his name:
I also met a little guy named Balin. I usually love other chihuahuas and he was no exception. He was a little nervous about letting me sniff his butt, but he tried to be brave. He was dressed like a rock 'n' roll star. I wonder if he's famous.
Okay, I'm off to go camping!
Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Oh No!

2008-10-10T08:23:00.000-07:00

Do you remember my cousin Jasper? He had a Bad Adventure last year. Yesterday Jasper got some very bad news from the vet. He has an aggressive type of lymphoma. The vet said that if they do chemo, he will be very sick and feel bad, but he will have a small chance of living for another year. If they don't do chemo, he will only live a few more months, but they can make him feel more comfortable. His parents haven't decided what to do yet.

Does anyone have experience with lymphoma? Jasper and his family need some advice.

This is a picture of Jasper in happier times with his favorite radish. He likes to play with it like a ball.

Bye for now,
Poppy

Happy Birthday Clover!

2008-10-06T09:09:00.001-07:00

Happy Birthday Clover!!!

Well, actually her birthday was on the 1st, but I don't think she'll mind if I write about it a bit late. Clover is six years old now. That is twice as old as me! She is a good big sister. Especially when she lets me kind of almost play with her. This is a video of us from the other day. She likes to block my path so I have to bark and gruff for help.

Clover got a big catnip log for her birthday. She is sometimes suspicious of new toys, but this one seemed to pass inspection. First she licked it, and then she started biting it a little bit. I happen to love catnip toys, so I was watching closely to see if she was going to let me play too.

She didn't. But I understand; it was her present and not mine. Maybe I'll get to play with it later!

Deefor told a great story about how he and Arrow got their names. Since it's Clover's birthday, I'll tell you how she got her name. The story starts a long time ago...

Several years ago, Mommy and Daddy had a cat named Puck. He was from a shelter too, and he was sort-of-orange. Daddy wanted to name him Puck after a character in one of his favorite plays. Mommy and Daddy had been Uninformed and Unaware, so Puck was sometimes allowed to go outside in the yard. When Puck was two years old, there was a terrible accident. He went into the street and was hit by a car. Mommy and Daddy rushed him to the emergency vet, but there was nothing they could do. Puck died. It was a very sad day. They wished someone had told them how dangerous it is to let cats outside, but they just didn't know. Now they know that indoor cats live an average of 12 years, and indoor/outdoor cats live an average of 2 years. What happened to Puck was very "normal."

For two years, Mommy and Daddy felt sad and alone without a fuzzy warm animal in their family. So when Mommy started working at an animal shelter, she brought Clover home almost right away! Here is a picture of Clover when she was still at the SPCA:
Back then her name was Jilly Bean, which is a teensy bit weird. She was two years old and she hadn't lived in a very good situation before, so they thought it would be okay to change her name. Mommy wanted to name her Lucky in honor of Puck (Puck...Luck...Lucky), but Lucky didn't sound like a very good name for a girl cat. So they decided on Clover, just like a four-leaf lucky clover!

Whew, that was a long story! Thanks for making it all the way to the end!

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Bark in the Park

2008-09-24T10:21:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody! This weekend I went to a dog festival called Bark in the Park. It was the third time I have been there. The other times I went were before my injury, so I was able to try out the agility course for fun. I'm not allowed to do that anymore though because I might hurt my back again. So Mommy decided that we should enter the costume contest this year. We used my Howloween costume from last year--the Sooper Pooper outfit.

Here I am walking across the big stage. Mommy had to lift me up and down the stairs because they didn't have a ramp. Hey, don't they know about the ADA (American Dog-ablility Act)?!

After the contest, we walked around the park and looked at all the vendors selling stuff. But since I already own all the Stuff there is to own, we only bought one thing for Mommy and Daddy. It is a really cool little poster designed to look like an old fashioned ad. We got the "Head Honcho" Chihuahua brand coffee ad. While we walked around, I got to ride in my pouch because it was so crowded. I could have gotten stepped on! Mommy is so aware of little dogs that she kept looking down at her feet before she took a step. But not everybody does that, so I got to ride!

I hope everyone had a great weekend too!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Pee Ess: Are you wondering if I won the contest. Well, I did not. I was sad about this. But then today I found out that I got an award from my friend Pedro! He was so sweet to think of me! Here is my special award from him:
It is only fair to pass along an award that you get to another friend, so that is what I will do. This is actually my least favorite part--not because I don't want to pass the award along, but because it's so hard to choose! How about if YOU choose? If I love your blog (and you know I do), consider yourself awarded!!!

Foggy Days

2008-09-16T10:44:00.001-07:00

What have we been doing lately, you ask? Not much. The weather has been kind of foggy and cool, which makes it nice for sleeping and cuddling, but not too much else.

So this week we have been doing a little of this:

and a little of that:
As you can see, Clover has perfected her "tuck" position. Pretty good, huh? She can also do a "pike" position. I would definitely give her a 10 for form.

Oh, and of course I've been doing a little of this:
See how I learned to use my ramp to get closer to the food? Very clever, if I do say so myself.

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Today's Post is Sponsored by the Letter H

2008-09-03T11:09:00.000-07:00

Over Labor Day weekend I got to go to Humboldt Redwoods State Park (that's the first H of this post). It was sooooo beautiful. There were so many giant redwood trees to sniff and pee next to. We had to be Rule Breakers again, because dogs are not allowed anywhere in the park, except the campground. And that's all I'm going to say about that. Ahem.

We went to several different "groves," which are just different areas of the forest that have been named after people and groups. Each one seemed to be more beautiful than the last. I posed in front of one of the big trees so that you can make a comparison between a nine pound dog and a gazillion pound tree:

We walked around the forest following whatever little path caught our fancy. It was very dark in there, and a little bit chilly, so I wore my green sweater and stuck close to Daddy so he wouldn't get lost. Can you see us in this picture? We are very small:

We did an awful lot of driving this weekend, because Humboldt is so far away. After a while, each time we stopped I would try to climb onto the cooler because I was tired of sitting in my carseat. Safety-shmafety:
But of course it was all worth it just to see those gigantimous redwood trees.

When we got home from our trip I finally forced Mommy to check our email, and we saw that my HULA certificate (that's the second H) from Meeshka had arrived! Here it is in all its glory:
Of course, one just doesn't become a part of HULA simply because one is cute (although I am). There are certain qualifications that you must meet. Here they are, as written by Meeshka herself:

HULA Qualifications
1. Demonstrating Disruptive Behavior
2. Cause Humans to freak out for no real reason
3. Destroy Something
4. Human behavior modification
5. Humans dress you up
6. Love of Kleenex

I meet all of thise qualifications easily.
Number one: Every time my Mommy and Daddy hug or kiss or even THINK about hugging or kissing, I must squeeze between them and be a part of the action. That's disruptive, right?
Number two: If I sneeze or cough of throw up a tiny little bit, my parents spend the next hour closely watching my behavior to see if I am going to explode or something.
Number three: This one is a little trickier. I am not super destructive. Although I did recently shred Daddy's brand new nursing license. Luckily it was just a scanned copy. Although Mommy's heart did stop for a minute. Ha ha!
Number four: Well, this is simply my forte. My humans eat on the floor so the table will be at chihuahua height. They only eat at restaurants with outdoor seating so that I can accompany them. They carry me around whenever I want them to. The list goes on.
Number five: You've all seen the pictures. If the weather is the slightest bit chilly, I will most certainly be wearing a sweater. And I dress up for almost every holiday and special occasion.
Number six: Duh. Especially if they have a chewy center.

Thanks, Meeshka, for making me a part of your special group!!! :)

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua (and official HULA member!)

My New Shopping Accessory

2008-08-22T19:02:00.000-07:00

Look what my Mommy made for me! It's a shopping cart seat cover with fuzzy paw prints and padding! I got to try it out for the first time at Lowe's. Here I am in the plant section:
It was quite comfy, although I have to say that it was kind of frustrating to not be able to smell all the good ground smells. The only thing left for Mommy to do is to make a button-hole on each side so that my seatbelt strap can hold me in more securely.

Guess what I got to do last weekend. Lake Tahoe!!! We went for a hike on Saturday. I walked the whole way, other than parts that involved jumping up and down. We went about two miles, which is a long way for me and my little legs. Let me tell you, I was sooooo tired when we got back to the cabin that evening! I just slept for the rest of the day.

On Sunday we went to the beach.

Beeeeeeach!!!

I love the beach a whole lot. This beach was nicer than the last time we were in Tahoe because I didn't step in any sap this time. The view was great and there was lots of shade. Daddy took me out into the water and made me dip my feet in. This was not a highlight of the trip. But everything else was awesome!!!

Bye for now!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Pee Ess: Blogger finally let me add my profile picture!!!

The Best Places to Kiss a Dog

2008-08-09T11:24:00.000-07:00

I have been wondering something. It is about kisses from my Mommy. My Mommy's favorite place to kiss me is on my head, right between my ear and my eye. Here is a picture of my Best Kissing Place. Do you see it right there between my ear and my eye? It's nice and soft.
(Yes, that is purple fuzz hanging from my lips...don't ask.)

She kisses me there at least 100 times a day, I'm sure. And I sure do love it! Sometimes when she is holding me close, I smash my head into her face, just so she can kiss me there. There are times when I get overwhelmed though and when she starts to go towards the Best Kissing Place I turn my head and give her a quick surprise Nose French. I feel pretty certain that she loves that too, even if she always says, "Aaarrrghhhpppthhhhh!"

Well, what I am wondering is this: Do you have a Best Kissing Place? Is it the same as my Best Kissing Place, or is it different? Maybe everybody can post a picture of their Best Kissing Place. A while back, Daisy posted THIRTEEN kissing places! Wow!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Two Year Blog-iversary

2008-08-05T21:14:00.000-07:00

Two years ago today on August 5, 2006, I started my blog. I started out on yahoo360, and nobody ever read about my thrilling adventures. But then I had Mommy copy all my old posts to Blogger and I joined DWB and we haven't looked back since. Wee!

Here is a picture of me from exactly two years ago...this picture was taken on August 5, 2006. Don't I look nice and comfy on my big yellow bed?

Thanks for reading about my adventures over the last two years. I love reading about all of my DWB friends' adventures too!

Bye for now!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Poppy vs The Frozen Raspberry

2008-08-04T15:01:00.000-07:00

About a month ago (during the time our internet was broken) Mommy and I went for a walk in our neighborhood. It wasn't very hot, but when we got back I was veeeery thirsty. After I had some water, Mommy thought I might want a little treat, so she gave me a frozen raspberry. I started by licking it a bit...
Then I contemplated my next move...

Then I ATTAAAAACKED!!!

As you can see, I had a little trouble with this raspberry. Just like the Frosty Heart Episode of 2007, it did not want to get in my mouth! Eventually I conquered the raspberry, with a little help from Mommy. She broke it into three pieces and put it on my little plate. Then I had no trouble at all!

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Hiking in the Redwoods

2008-07-28T10:02:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we went to the Santa Cruz Mountains to go hiking in the redwoods. It was a really nice warm day--perfect for a long walk in the forest. First we had a picnic near the parking lot and gift shop. I got to sit on the table because I'm such a Good Doggie. See how patiently I am waiting for a piece of sandwich?

After we ate lunch we went for a walk through the redwood grove. There were signs that had pictures that looked like this:
Clearly this means "No West Highland White Terriers Allowed." Since I am definitely not a Westie, we decided that this sign didn't apply to me, so we went in anyway, of course. Yes, yes, we are Rule Breakers!!! Being a dog in the US means you have to be a rule breaker sometimes, doesn't it? Truth be told, the sign that was actually posted was that brown one of a great dane that you see all over California...do you know the one I mean? Well, clearly I am not a great dane either, so no problem!

While we were in the redwood grove I peed next to this tree:
Wow! After our illegal jaunt through the grove, we walked along a little creek. We saw several other dogs, including a very friendly one named Wally, but he didn't look like the Wally I know.

All in all, it was a very nice day. I heard Mommy and Daddy talking about going hiking again tomorrow, too!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Pee Ess:
I just found out that I got an award from Dobby! Thanks ever so much, Dobby!
I would like to pass this artsy award on to Daisy the Curly Cat, because she and her Mommie take such beautiful pictures.

If you would like to pass on this award, you should do so, making sure to leave links and notes and yada yada, you know the drill. Also we should say that this award originated with Arte Y Pico.

The Pictures are Baaaaack!!!

2008-07-20T11:11:00.001-07:00

We finally figured out that the picture uploading problem only exists on our desktop, and not the laptop. So the pictures are baaaaack!!! Woo hoo! Here are all the pictures I wanted to show you of my recent adventures during the month of July.

This is my basket ride on the Fourth of July:
Mommy thinks maybe she should get a "Dog is my Copilot" bumper sticker for her bike. We passed two women who thought I was so cute that they asked if they could take my picture. Of course!

At the park I wasn't allowed to run around a whole lot because there were too many people who might have stepped on me. So I got to sit on a lot of laps:

And here is my Zuke's bone! Oh golly, it was soooo good! Mommy used to give me Greenies, but then there was that whole hubbub about them causing intestinal blockage, so she stopped.
Anyway, she used to cut the small ones in half and give them to me half at a time. She forgot about this method though, and gave me the whole Zuke's. When I was halfway done, she wanted to take it away and save the other half for later. When she came towards me, I tried to swallow the whole thing! It was a bit scary for her. She had to pry my jaws open!

And of course this is me with my smoothie cup. Here I am warming up my tongue for the deep plunge into the waaay bottom of the cup:

Yes, I did it!

Thank goodness I have a small, cup-shaped head!

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Still No Pictures

2008-07-20T09:07:00.000-07:00

Well, the problem seems to be that our internet connection has become so slow that we cannot upload any pictures at all. We don't know how to fix it, and my personal computer guru just had a baby, so he is too busy to help us. :( I have so many fun pictures to share, and I am so frustrated that I cannot do it! Blogging is just no fun without pictures. Here are some updates on what I've been doing:

*I rode my bike basket to the park for a 4th of July picnic.
*I got a Zuke's bone, which was so awesome until Mommy tried to take the second half away from me, at which point I tried to swallow the whole thing!
*I tried to swim in my pool again, which went a little better than the first time, luckily!
And last, but certainly not least:
*I had some more smoothie and said a silent thank you that I have such a small, cup-shaped head.

Please don't forget about me while I am in picture-free purgatory!

Bye for now!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

arrrgh the internet!!!

2008-07-01T09:46:00.000-07:00

I have a very nice post all written about my Sunday afternoon encounter with a frozen raspberry, but something is wrong with either my internet connection, my server, or Blogger, and I haven't been able to upload my photos or videos since the weekend. Aaaaarrrrgghhh!!!

I will have to ask my personal computer expert (aka Uncle Ben) if he can help us. Until then, I'm stuck!

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Pictureless Chihuahua

My Pool and My Rollerblades

2008-06-22T14:43:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was really hot, so Mommy and Daddy decided to finally set up my pool. The verdict is that I do not like it! Maybe I will change my mind when the water gets warmer, but right now it is freezing!

I was very helpful during the set-up process, especially the pumping part. Here I am encouraging Mommy to pump more efficiently:
But then when Daddy put the hose in and started filling it with water, I started to get a little concerned. And then when I saw my pink lifejacket come out, I was downright worried. This next picture was taken shortly after my brief encounter with the 65 degree water. As you can see, Mommy is smiling, but clearly I AM NOT!!!
I would like to say for the record that I valiantly attempted to swim by kicking my little legs as fast as I could. Mommy was holding my lifejacket handle the whole time (about 8 seconds), so I knew I wouldn't drown, but it was just too cold and wet! I think we have to get a solar pool cover.

Today was much cooler, so Mommy and Daddy taught me how to rollerblade! At first I didn't quite have the hang of it because I was not used to my chariot going so fast. But then I realized that it was pretty awesome!
The best window to look out of is the bottom one, because you can lie down while you take in the view. Daddy pushed on the way there, and Mommy pushed on the way back. After a fair and impartial decision making process, I have come to the conclusion that Mommy provides a smoother ride.

While the ride is very smooth, I am not sure that Mommy has the best rollerblading technique. But check out how we zoom right through that stop sign. That's called a California Roll, baby!!!

I hope everyone else had as good a weekend as I had!

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Rollerblading Chihuahua

Lazy Week

2008-06-18T11:20:00.000-07:00

Hi everybody!

We are having a lazy week around here. Daddy is taking some time off before he starts a new job, and Mommy is enjoying her new, more relaxed schedule as well. As for me, well, I'm always relaxed!

Although I did hear some disturbing news this morning. Mommy was on the phone TWICE with both of my V-E-T-S making TWO appointments for me! One for a back checkup, and one for a regular checkup and vaccine. I may have to join the Doggy Protection Program to get out of this one! Shall I relocate to Mexico, the original land of My People (and home of Lorenza, of course)?

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

My Big Camping Adventure

2008-06-12T08:24:00.000-07:00

I had a great time on my camping trip. I did lots of sniffing and hiking and stick-chewing! Our campground was right on the lake, so we got to spend some time at the beach, which is my favorite! Here I am practicing my camouflage techniques: (Can you see me? Can you?)

I had stepped in some tree sap at the campsite, and then while we were at the beach I got a whole bunch of little pebbles stuck in my paw. Yuck. After a little romp on the beach, I sat and rested for a while and admired the view:

Dinner that night was delicious! When we are traveling, I always get Wet Treats for dinner because I am such a picky eater that I refuse to eat my dry foods. As you can see, Daddy had started a camp fire. It was such a nice night for a meal alfresco:

The next morning I did not want to get out of bed. Mommy and Daddy woke up and I said, "Are you kidding me? It's much too cozy inside my sleeping bag to go outside yet."

When I finally got up, we started planning for our hike. While Mommy and Daddy decided where to go, I soaked up some rays and snuggled with my Wubba Snugga:

As you all know, I am a Hiking Chihuahua. However, since my back injury, I have not been able to hike all that much. I am allowed to walk a little bit, but then I have to spend some time riding in my pouch or my backpack. But I like riding too, so I can't complain too much. After my ride--er, I mean hike--we ended up at this waterfall. It was really pretty, although I have to say that loud rushing water reminds me of B-A-T-H. But nobody tried to throw me in, so it was okay:

The next day we drove home, and boy was I a sleepy little Poo! Sometimes I like to ride with my chin up on the side of my carseat. Mommy and Daddy think it's funny, but if they tried it, they would see that it is really comfortable:

I hope you enjoyed the pictures of my trip!
Bye for now!
Poppy the Hiking Chihuahua

International Stuffie Day

2008-06-06T20:14:00.000-07:00

Hi Everybody!

I missed International Stuffie Day and I'm sad. But it's okay because it's never too late to celebrate, right? In honor of the (belated) occasion, I gathered all my stuffies around my spot in the living room for a photo shoot.

I thought I had a lot of stuffies, but as you can see, I actually do NOT! I am going to ask if we can go shopping for some more soon. I have had my eye on a giant Loofah Dog just like the one I have, but bigger. Maybe I will convince Mommy to buy it soon. In the picture clockwise starting with me are Ducky, Loofah Dog, Ball, Alligator Puppet, Frisbee, Wubba, Organic Caterpillar, Knit Bear, and Intellibone (which I have disabled using one of my famous wrestling holds). I'm not really all that creative with naming my stuffies, I guess. Mommy was the same way when she was my age. She had a raccoon named Raccy and a walrus named Walrus, to name a few. Maybe it's genetic.

During the photo shoot I got a little distracted and started to play with my knit bear. Oh, how I love Knit Bear! I am only allowed to play with him with supervision though. We don't want to have a hurty toe incident like Tad had a while back.

In other news, I am going camping this weekend! It will be my first camping trip since my back injury. I am sooooo excited!!! I promise to take tons of pictures and post them next week after we get back.

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Pee Ess: Has everyone met black Dobby yet (as opposed to brown Dobby)? He's super cute and he has mad fashion sense! He has sweaters and pyjamas and everything!

Welcome to our Ool...

2008-06-04T16:23:00.000-07:00

Notice there is no "P" in it. Let's keep it that way.

Mommy's cousins had a sign like this next to their pool when she was growing up. Maybe we will get one for our pool, too. I'm not really sure how I feel about the pool. Water treadmill therapy was okay, but only because they constantly fed me treats.

I actually think I am much more interested in what Daddy is making up there on the kitchen island. Can I have some???

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Blogging Buddies

2008-06-01T22:32:00.000-07:00

I have been so out of the loop lately because of Mommy's silly work schedule. I have missed so much these last couple of months! Today I spent a lot of time catching up on all my friends' blogs and I found out that Petra gave me an award in April! Thank you so much Petra! You are such a great blogging buddy!

I think I will pass this award along to ChaChi, my Chihuahua buddy!

In the upcoming week I am planning a photo-tribute to International Stuffy Day, which I sadly MISSED because of the aforementioned silly job. Also, my parents bought me a POOL...more on that later.

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Sometimes It Pays to Have a Small Head

2008-05-21T15:12:00.000-07:00

Today Mommy made a smoothie for snack. And she knows how much I LOVE smoothies, so when she was done with it, she let me lick the cup! Yum, yum, licky, lick, lick, yum!!! I am soooo lucky!

Mommy thought it was pretty funny that my whole head fit inside the cup. Makes it very convenient for reaching the bottom, I say!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

I'm Famous!!!

2008-05-13T20:17:00.000-07:00

Hi Friends! Today was an up, down, up day.

Up: It started out great, because I was able to sleep in really late like I always do.

Down: But then this afternoon it was yucky because I had to go to the V-E-T to get my nails clipped. Aaaarrrggh!!! I loathe having my nails clipped. They did a pretty good job though, and now I can walk around more easily without slipping.

Up: While I was trying to be brave with the vet tech, Mommy was in the waiting room looking through the latest copy of Silicon Valley Tails Magazine. She picks up a copy every time we go to the vet. She flipped right to the photo contest results, thinking that she would like to see some pictures of cute dogs and cats (even though she entered me and Clover and never heard back--hmph). Well, lo and behold, there I was! Right in the centerfold of the magazine! I have officially been crowned "The Cutest Sleeping Dog in Silicon Valley!"

Here I am posing with my picture in the magazine:

This is a closeup of the page of winners. If you look closely, you can see my Little Blonde Foot in the corner of the picture:

Here I am signing my pawtograph underneath my picture:

If you want to see all the pictures even more clearly, you can go to the website for SV Tails.

Yay! This made Mommy's and my day!

Bye for now,
Poppy the Officially Published LBC

A Big White Bird and Some Small Brown Presents

2008-04-28T15:29:00.000-07:00

I really wanted to post a video of me digging my bed into the proper sleeping position, but Blogger has refused to let me upload a video for the past six days! I guess I'll have to post some pictures instead.

Look what we found in our tree:

It's a big giant white bird with yellow non-webbed feet. Mommy and Daddy looked at that thing for a loooong time, and then they looked at a bird identification website for a looooong time, and they still never figured out that kind of bird it was. Maybe we'll never know.

This next picture is of a present I recently left my parents while they were at work. Can you see all eight nuggets?

In this picture you can tell that I now have access to almost half the house when my parents are at work. Before my injury, I could go anywhere I wanted in the house at any time. Now that I'm not allowed to jump up and down, I am restricted to the kitchen and half the living room (the half without the couches) when I'm home alone. They think I can't be trusted to use my ramp without supervision. Well, hmph! But I guess they're right. I did actually fall off the side of the ramp once. Oops! Luckily Mommy was there to catch me.

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Pee Ess: I'm sorry I haven't been checking all my DWB friends' blogs and leaving comments much lately. Mommy is working 40 hours a week, and she is really not used to so much work. Her work schedule (and consequently my blogging schedule) will hopefully go back to normal by early June. Until then, I'll try to visit as much as I can!

Helping

2008-04-13T10:23:00.000-07:00

Sometimes I like to help Mommy when she is working on our photo album. My job is "Creative Consultant." I do this by sighing and giving her "the eye" to let her know when a layout looks good or bad. And sometimes I sniff the pictures. That helps her a lot.

Mommy likes this picture because it is a double page spread of cuteness. And I'm sure you will notice that several of the pictures on the page are of me or Clover sitting on the desk just like I am doing in the big picture. Oooh, neat!

The doggy propped up against the wall is Muffin. She is at the Rainbow Bridge now. She lived with Mommy and Aunt Meg and Grandma and Grandpa when Mommy was growing up. Speaking of the Bridge, Grandma's best friend's dog Sophie went to the Bridge this week. She was 17 years old. I never got to meet her, but Mommy liked her. Goodbye Sophie! We'll miss you!

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

My Birthday Present

2008-04-02T17:10:00.000-07:00

I had a great basket ride yesterday afternoon for my birthday. It was very sunny out, so it should have been warm, but it was quite windy. So Mommy used my special home-made basket cover to keep me nice and toasty while we were riding.

Last night when Daddy got home I opened my birthday present. Well, it wasn't actually wrapped, but it was still very exciting. It's a big fuzzy blue ball! I chased it all over the living room. I'm still trying to take it easy on my back, which was very hard to do with such a fun toy tempting me.

Sometimes when I'm playing I get confused about which toy I want to play with!

Bye for now!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

HBTM, HBTM, HBDP, HBTM!

2008-04-01T15:29:00.000-07:00

Eek, I haven't posted in a while, but you have to forgive me because guess what!

Today is my birthday!!! I am three years old today!!!

At least that's what they tell me. We don't really know my birthday exactly because I'm adopted. But Mommy and Daddy think I was born around April 1st. I guess they want me to be an "April Fool."

In honor of my birthday we went hiking on Sunday. It was super fun! We went to a beautiful county park that has lots of trees and green stuff and waterfalls. They brought my pouch because they weren't sure how much hiking I would actually be able to do, but I ended up walking a whole bunch. I am slowly but surely getting back to my trail-dog self!

Look at me walking up the trail in my new green jacket:

When we got home I was the tiredest I have ever been, I think. I slept on Mommy's lap for a while, and when she got up to go to the bathroom, she put me in my living room bed and covered me with my yellow blankie. When she sat down again I was so tired that I DIDN'T EVEN GET UP TO GO SIT ON HER LAP! I just kept sleeping under my blankie.

Since today is my actual birthday, I have been promised a basket-ride this afternoon. And tonight after Daddy gets home I get to open my present. I can't wait! Being three is awesome!

Bye for now,
Poppy the Birthday Dog

My Big Snowshoeing Adventure

2008-03-14T16:50:00.000-07:00

My Lake Tahoe vacation was great! We stayed in a nice cozy cabin and my parents had lots of time to spend with me sitting on the couch, like this:

This weekend was the first time I had ever seen snow. It was kind of a bummer to walk on. Luckily I didn't have to do it very much because all the roads and sidewalks were plowed. Here's a video of me walking in the snow for the very first time. You can tell that I get about halfway and then try to turn around and go back.

Even though there was a bunch of snow on the ground, it wasn't that cold--only about 50 to 55 degrees. That is a bit chilly for a chihuahua though, so I wore my rainbow sweater while we were outside.

And speaking of outside, guess what I did! Snowshoeing!!! I got to ride like a baby kangaroo in a pouch that my Mommy carried. I had so much fun! Before we went out on our first snowshoe hike, we went to a boutique called Dog Dog Cat where they got me my very own...

DOGGLES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

They are shiny and RED, which is one of my signature colors (along with orange and yellow, of course). They block UV rays and feature interchangeable lenses. I was happy to wear them while I was riding in my pouch because the sun was so bright on the snow. I had such a good time snowshoeing that I want to do it again next year!

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua Who Owns a Smashing New Pair of Red Doggles

Grr, Gruff, Bark!!!

2008-03-07T16:20:00.000-08:00

At the park the other day there was this thing--this big WEIRD THING. But I showed it who was boss by barking and barking until I was sure it wasn't dangerous. I helped make sure the world is safe for all dogs.

After my stunning display of braveness, I had my picture taken in front of this nice purple stuff. I am enjoying my trips to the park a lot. I get carried to and from the park, but I get to walk around the whole park on the grass all by myself. I don't even use my sling anymore! But I'm still not allowed to run yet.

When I had my surgery Mommy and Daddy put most of my toys away so that I wouldn't be tempted to play rough with them. They left my favorite ones out, but it's not much of a selection. So the other day I was in the office and guess what I found! All my toys! They were all packed into my old puppy bed. I took the opportunity to pull them all out right away. It was so good to see my old friends: intella-bone, squeaky duck, mousy, hedgehog, and all my various sizes of tennis balls! I played and played--but not too hard.

We are going to Lake Tahoe this weekend and I might get to go snowshoeing. I'll post pictures when we get back. By the way, my new sweater still has not arrived! Something about being backordered. Grruff, I say. I was hoping it would be here in time for my vacation.

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

The Bunny Hop

2008-02-29T20:13:00.000-08:00

Mommy and Daddy haven't been taking a lot of pictures of me lately because the card in our camera broke. They have a new one now, and I have been promised a full photo shoot when my new sweater comes in the mail.

And where is that new sweater anyway? Mommy ordered it a week and a half ago! I want, I want! Maybe it will come tomorrow. I'll keep my paws crossed.

We went to the park the other day to practice my walking. The vets said I'm supposed to practice walking slowly uphill to help strengthen my back legs. Well, I'm not really sure how to walk slowly. As you can see in the video, I'm kind of running pretty fast. Daddy was doing his best to hold me back, but it really doesn't matter. I just bunny hop my legs along and pull like a sled dog. Even if I'm not getting anywhere, I like to get there fast!

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Look What I Learned!

2008-02-21T17:46:00.000-08:00

Back in October I showed you a picture of my smart sissy Clover sitting in front of our wall heater. She looooves it. She will sit in front of it for hours, just waiting for it to come on.

All winter I have been very afraid of it. I don't even like to walk by it when it's on. After all, it makes very scary growling noises. But guess what! I figured out that if you sit in front of it, you get very very warm, bordering on HOT!

Look! I learned to be brave and walk over to it all by myself! Now I like to sit in front of it until my furs are nice and hot.

The other day Mommy set up my bed on the hallway side of the heater, and Clover sat on the living room side. (Our heater goes through the wall.) It was awesome! Maybe someday we’ll learn to sit in front of it right next to each other.

Bye for now!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Pee Ess: I convinced Mommy to order me a new fuzzy sweater. It should arrive any day now, and when it does, I'll model it for you.

Sleepy Sunday

2008-02-17T21:46:00.001-08:00

This morning I got to sleep in while Mommy went out and did non-dog things. Then this afternoon we went for a nice long walk in my chariot. We strolled for so long that I actually got tired of standing up, so I sat down. That's the nice thing about a stroller/chariot: you can sit or stand or whatever!

Later in the afternoon was the sleepiest part of my day. I have been napping on the couch on Mommy's lap ALL AFTERNOON!!! At one point Mommy put me on the floor so she could go get a drink. She took her body heat with her when she went to the kitchen, so I walked over to the wall heater, which I had always been afraid of before, and laid down right in front of it. And ooh, it's so warm! Then it was back to blankie time:

Last night my parents went over to cousin Jasper and cousin Sivan's house. Here is a picture of Jasper in "his" chair. It's supposed to belong to his human bro, but we all know that Jasper gets what Jasper wants!

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Pee Ess: I know I'm a little behind the times, but wasn't that Puppy Bowl the absolute greatest?! We had never seen it before, and we had no idea that it would be three whole hours long. Very impressive!

I Hit the Mother Lode!!!

2008-02-11T15:38:00.000-08:00

I had a busy weekend. We ran errands (I love errands), which I am finally allowed to go on again. And then on Sunday we went for a bike ride out to the baylands. We stopped for a while and I was allowed to get out of my basket to practice walking around a bit. I did well, don't you think?

Guess what I found while I was walking around. Grass! Huge grass that was as high as an elephant's eye. Or a chihuahua's eye. Or something like that. It was like a smorgasbord!

I haven't gotten to eat grass in soooooooo long because I've been on "crate rest." Now that I can go outside again I am thrilled to see that the grass is still out there, waiting for me to eat it!

Bye for now!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

I'm Still Here...

2008-02-06T20:35:00.000-08:00

...and I'm still CUTE!!!

Here is a picture to prove it:

Mommy started a new job last week, so she has been making excuses about why she can't help me type my blog. I tried to do it myself, but all I got was this:

dszknj po[pofesvd

I don't know what that means. Maybe I'm speaking in tongues! But anyway, I'll try to make Mommy help me out this weekend.

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Walking in My New Sling

2008-01-27T16:44:00.000-08:00

Look what Mommy made for me! It's a sling! That way I can practice walking without having somebody crawling around on the floor behind me holding up my butt. This is much more elegant. You probably can't tell, but my sling is made of very soft flannel that has little blue sheeps on it.

You can hear a lot of Mommy laughing in the background. This is because while I was in the middle of sniffing around, all of a sudden she had the urge to start singing: "High on a hill lived a lonely goad herd; lady-odle-lady-odle-lay-hee-hoo!!!" When she told Daddy this, he said, "huh?" She said, "You're not laughing because you don't know why it's funny. My sister would think it was funny." If you're not sure why it's funny either, I highly recommend that you rent "The Sound of Music."

Here is another video of me on my way out to breakfast this morning.

We went for bagels and we had just barely finished eating when it started raining again. When will it be spring???!!!

Bye for now!
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Uhhhg, Oooh, Ohhh

2008-01-24T22:33:00.000-08:00

Oh, at swimming today I did a bad bad thing. I ate way WAY too many treats. Come to think of it, it actually wasn't my fault at all. Mommy and Daddy kept feeding them to me so that I would walk forward to get them. What were they thinking?! Now my TUMMY HURTS! I am trying to sleep it off in my Daddy's armpit.
I hope I feel better tomorrow.
Poppy the LBC

Movie Wednesday and My Cute Lifejacket

2008-01-16T10:41:00.000-08:00

Since I didn't get any pictures or videos of me "swimming" on my first day of therapy, I thought I would show you some videos of how well I'm progressing in my recovery. After all, I don't have much else to blog about, since I can't go out adventuring right now.

This first movie is of me eating my dinner while STANDING UP! If you watch closely, you'll notice that I do not move my back feet at all. They were placed in this position by Mommy, and if I try to walk I might wobble and fall down. And my toes knuckle under. But see how well I'm holding my balance? And look how long I stand there using the muscles in my legs. Go me!

This movie is my very first EXERCISE VIDEO! I do sit-stands, squats, and stand-there-while-they-wave-my-butt-from-side-to-side; 10 reps each!

We went to water therapy again yesterday and this time Daddy came with us and took some pictures with his phone. They're not very good, but you can see how cute I am in my lifejacket! It went much better this time because they filled the tank more so it was more like floating than walking. The down side is that the more water they put in, the wetter I get!!! When I was all done I had major fluffy-butt.

All of these pictures were taken after the treadmill part was over. In this one, the vet tech (different one than last time) is trying to entice me to walk towards her with a treat.

In this one I have almost reached my goal: goo-stuffed crunchy junk food treat!

Yes! I got it!!!

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC (not water dog)

An Award? For Me?

2008-01-14T20:27:00.000-08:00

I was going to post two movies today, but blogger doesn't want to let me upload them. So Movie Monday will have to wait. I was bummed about this, but then I read my comments and saw that I have been given an award!!! It's a "You Make My Day Award" from Meeshka. I'm super-excited about this for two reasons: One, Meeshka is a very pretty brown and white dog, and I dig very pretty brown and white dogs. Two, the flowers on the award look kind of like Icelandic POPPIES! Here it is:
I think I should pass this award on. Oh, there are so many dogs who Make My Day! Today though, I am definitely going to pass this award along to The Brat Pack. They have had some sad times recently. Getting an award makes me feel happy, and I hope it does the same for them! :)

Also, some dogs have been talking about their favorite song and other stuff like that. I would love to share my favorite song with all of you! There are actually several, but most of them are ones Mommy sings to me, and since she is not an officially signed recording artist, I will not include those ones! :) Here is my top three countdown:

3) "I Love My Dog" by Cat Stevens
The title says it all, right? But wait til you hear these lyrics: "I love my dog as much as I love you. But you may fade, my dog will always come through." Terrific, right? Yeah, I know he's named after a CAT, but give him a chance, okay?

2) "Dixie the Tiny Dog" by Peter Himmelman
The version we have is on KFOG’s Acoustic Sunrise CD. It's also on one of his regular albums though. It’s about a weinerdog, but “the Germanic term is dachshund and I like that.” It’s really a must-hear!

1) "I Love My Dog" by Larry Brown
This is a song that you can only hear, I believe, on the “Dog Tales” TV series. Go to their website and watch one of the shows and listen for it. Larry Brown is a lyrical genius. Listen to this: “I love my dog, love my dog, love my dog, love my dog.” That’s pretty much all there is to it. Told you. Lyrical genius. The simplicity of it is beautiful!

Bye for now,
Poppy Dog

I am Not a Water Dog

2008-01-11T12:07:00.000-08:00

Well, I had my first physical therapy session yesterday. It was okay at first because the vet tech lady sat on the floor with me and gave me lots of treats. That was cool! But then, the unthinkable happened. She picked me up and together we got into this big metal box! And then water started to come in!!! It wasn't very deep, but still, water is water. And I hate water!

Here is a picture of the big metal water box:
It is made for very big doggies--not for chihuahuas! Mommy and I thought maybe they would have a mini table-top version for wee little dogs. But, alas, no. I guess this is what the ideal patient would look like:
The water is almost up to his neck to give him some buoyancy and he is just happily walking along with a toy in his mouth. Give me a break! As soon as she lowered me into the water I spread my legs out wide and stretched my toes out into the classic "flying chihuahua" posture to try to slow my descent into the drink. It didn't work. Luckily, the water only came up about this high on me:

It think that's because it was my first time. The problem is, with the water only that high, it doesn't give me any buoyancy--only resistance for my legs. And with my legs as weak as they are right now, I don't need resistance, I need flotation! Mommy thought the water should have been higher. Maybe next time.

If you think a metal box filled with water is bad, wait until you hear what happened next: the floor started to move!!!!! The vet tech lady was sitting behind me on a little bench and she kept trying to push me forward and make my back legs move. The problem was that I didn't want to move my front legs either! Mommy had to hook me up to a leash and pull me from the front. But what that really involved was her standing on a stool and throwing herself over the side of the infernal machine in order to be able to pull me towards the front. If she just stood on the outside and pulled the leash, it was just pulling me straight up into the air! See--I told you this machine was not made for small dogs!

I have to go back again every Tuesday and Thursday for the next five weeks. Valentine's Day is my last session. Let's hope I learn to walk by then!

Bye for now!
Poppy

Pee Ess: Sorry I didn't take any pictures. Mommy was too busy feeding me treats and trying to convince me that it wasn't the worst thing in the world. Plus, it would have been weird to take a picture of a stranger in her bathing suit! :)

Sunday Afternoon at the Movies

2008-01-06T13:24:00.000-08:00

Welcome to Poppy's Matinee Performance of:

There's Something In My Kong That I Want

As you can see, I am still on bed rest. I am getting antsy! I want to try to walk around, but I'm not allowed! I get my staples out on Tuesday. I also have a rehab consultation. I got a lifejacket just in case they want me to SWIM or something. It's pink with polka dots. I'm not usually into pink, but it was the only one they had in my size (XS).

Mommy misses how I used to dig the covers into position before bed each night. I have a hard time doing it right now because my legs are still all funny. I am trying very hard to get better though. I can hold on to my pee now. When I have to go I try to get up, and then they know it's potty time. They take me to my box and put me in and I go all by myself. No more bladder squeezing. Yay! But they still have to hold my bottom up, because I can't stand up on my own quite yet. Daddy thinks I will someday. Mommy has good days and bad days. We're going to try to make today a good one!

Bye for now!
Poppy the LBC

Yesterday I Did Something SuperFun

2007-12-29T17:51:00.001-08:00

Not to repeat myself or anything, but yesterday I did something Super Fun! I went strollering at the mall! To help me stay happy and alert while I'm recovering from my surgery, Mommy and Daddy bought me this Chariot:

They call it a "stroller," but I think it's really a chariot. We went out to this really dog-friendly mall yesterday to do some post-Christmas exchanging, and I got to come in my new chariot! I got to go into all the stores, including, but not limited to, the underwear store and the kitchen store. I felt so cool. I accidentally peed while we were in the kitchen store, but I was sitting on a bunch of pee pads, so it was okay.

Since I had so much fun yesterday, I got to go out again this evening for a chariot ride through the neighborhood. It is nice to be out again. I hope someday that I can walk all by myself again. I start physical therapy in a couple of weeks after I get my staples out.

Recovery Update:
Today I wagged my tail! Mommy and Daddy went out to lunch and left me home for two hours by myself. When they got home they picked me up and I kissed their faces and WAGGED MY TAIL for the first time since my injury!!! Mommy's Mood-o-Meter: HOPEFULLY OPTIMISTIC

Bye for now,
Poppy the LBC

Pee Ess: My new year's resolution is to start labeling my posts. And also to walk again.

Mommy and Daddy are Leaving Me!!!

2007-12-27T13:06:00.000-08:00

Mommy and Daddy are going out this evening with Mommy's family. And I am not invited! So they are leaving me! At home! At least they are not leaving me alone. My Uncle DJ will be here to doggysit me. Here is a picture of the two of us in happier times, when I was a wee pup of only four months:

They are very nervous to leave me, but they made these plans weeks ago, and they can't really break them. I'm sure they will be calling a lot so see if I'm okay.

Here is some news on the recovery front:
My weird toe has stopped oozing blood and looks a lot better now. On Tuesday the outer layer of my toe pad FELL OFF! Our vet thinks it is one of three things, none of which are harmful in the long term: a bad reaction to a bug bite; a small "foreign body" like a plant sticker or something; or a histiocytoma. The last one sounds bad, but it is really just a benign growth that young dogs sometimes get that heals on its own in several weeks.

Also I can sort of stand up now. But only if someone holds me up under my tummy. And my toes still knuckle under and I still wobble and fall down. But Dr. M (at our regular vet clinic) and Dr. S (the surgeon) both say it's amazing that I can bear any weight at all only a week after spinal surgery. I told you I was a genius dog!

Bye for now,
Poppy the Little Blonde Chihuahua

Merry Christmas Eve

2007-12-24T13:30:00.000-08:00

I am trying to help Mommy get into the Christmas spirit. I am feeling a little bit better because I am not in so much pain right now. Although last night was pretty restless.

We went to the vet this morning to have my fentanyl patch removed. It was very sticky and I was too upset to let Mommy and Daddy take it off themselves. You all know how I feel about sticky-ness on my furs. I guess it's good news that I could sort of feel it. I sometimes twitch my legs around a little bit, but I'm not anywhere near standing up yet.

Remember that swollen pad on my foot? Well, it's not any smaller and now it's oozing blood. Great. Mommy put some ointment on it, so I hope it will feel better soon.

Today's Mood-O-Meter: Cautiously Optimistic

Poppy the LBC

Pee Ess: There is a show called "Dog Genius" on the Nat. Geo. channel next Sunday. I'm pretty sure this show is about me, so I told Mommy to Tivo it.